over me. Pretending that I wasn’t a brand-new member of the undead and giving a killer pitch that secured a product line really took a lot out of me.
Making my way to the elevator, I leaned against the wall as it carried me down toward the lobby. My body desperately craved sleep. Walking out of the building into bright sunshine, my only thoughts were about making it back so that I could sleep.
But back where? This was my opportunity to go home. Although, after this morning, I wasn’t sure that it felt right. My body was weak, and although I handled my first outing as a vampire well, I needed more time to understand what the fuck was happening to me. Luckily, I didn’t have to make that decision, because Diego’s strong arms caught me as I collapsed from exhaustion.
“Foolish fledgling,” he growled while manhandling me. “Did you kill anyone while you were here?”
I was still coherent enough to be offended. I squinted my eyes. “What kind of person do you take me for? I’m not going to go on a killing spree.”
Pedestrians walked by, but none of them seemed fazed by my weakness or Diego’s army of men surrounding us. “It wouldn’t be the first time. Or the last,” he replied before hauling me over his shoulder. I weakly slapped his back with my palm, but I doubt he even felt it. When I looked up, I noticed Rocky scowling at me. Yeah, he was pissed.
“Hey, Rocky,” I croaked as my head rolled to the side. “It’s a nice day, huh?”
“Don’t talk to him,” Diego snapped. “Rocky has earned himself babysitting duty for the next century. And you know what? I can’t even blame him for letting you go. It was you who pulled rank and put our entire community at risk. It was you who was traipsing around the city while I was trying to convince the council that changing you wasn’t the biggest mistake I’ve ever made. And it was you who risked your own safety for some ridiculous job selling dildos. Did you read the pamphlet at all?”
Under normal circumstances, I would have been embarrassed and slightly ashamed, but I was so fucking tired. So fucking weak. “Yeah,” I replied lamely.
“I doubt that. ’Cause if you had read it, you would know that new fledglings must eat hourly for the first few days. If you don’t, you’ll pass out. Your body needs fuel for the change.”
I moaned. Yeah. Food sounded nice. Diego carried me over to a black limousine with black tinted windows. He gingerly lowered me down in one of the seats in the back. Even though I knew he was furious with me, he was still gentle. The cool black leather felt good on my skin. I made a mental note to be impressed later when I didn’t feel like death. Or undeath.
Diego got into the seat alone. He came in through the other side of the limo, and slid over so he was right next to me. I guess his entourage wasn’t coming with us. I briefly wondered if they were walking back or if they could turn into bats and fly. I really should have read the pamphlet more thoroughly.
Diego told the driver to wait a minute as he started rolling up his sleeve, stopping when it was just past his elbow. I could see the vein in the crook of his elbow pulse and hear the flow of blood streaming through. The smell of Diego’s blood mixed with his sandalwood cologne was intoxicating.
“Drink,” Diego commanded.
I was too weak to move, even to feed myself. When I didn’t move toward him, Diego brought his exposed forearm up to my mouth and used his other hand to tenderly tilt my head forward. I could feel the sharpness of my canines protruding from my gums, ready to feed. My teeth met no resistance from the skin below them, sinking them deep into the vein, and I drank.
Diego
This new fledgling was an idiot.
What kind of person finds out that they’re now a member of an ancient supernatural race and their first instinct is to rush off to work the next morning? Any normal person would have taken the week off or called in sick. Not this girl. She risked everyone’s lives, including her own, by running off to sell...dildos? Didn’t she know that risking exposure to our race is punishable by death?
“I’m sorry, your majesty,” Rocky mumbled while bowing his head. I couldn’t even truly