“We are going to work on something tonight before you hunt,” he said slyly, calling me over to take a seat at the head of the dining room table.
I happily did as I was told and took a seat in the chair closest to where Lysander stood.
“I am going to show you how to direct the feelings of your victim to make him submissive.”
A smile crept across my face. This sounded like it could be fun.
Lysander must have recognized my excitement. He returned my smile, showing just a hint of teeth beneath his lips.
“Everyone, mortals and immortals alike, is susceptible to suggestion. You can use this to your advantage by hypnotizing and relaxing them, making your victim more submissive and willing for you to take them.”
The docile butcher from the night before suddenly made sense. Lysander must have done something like that to him.
“How’s that possible?” I asked.
“We are gifted with stronger minds than we had previously as mortals. You’ve already shown your powers are developing quickly. Your ability to sense the presence of others without seeing them is proof of that. But that is only a small hint of what you will be capable of. If you can concentrate and harness this new power, you can do much more with it.”
Up to now, my victims had all been criminals of some kind, and a kill was usually the result of me fighting with them, dragging them down in self-defense as I drained them of their life.
I was intrigued by the thought that I could make someone just want me to end their life. I imagined a murderer throwing a knife to the ground and begging me to bite him.
A small giggle escaped me and I quickly covered my mouth with my hand to stifle it.
Lysander continued, “As your senses develop, you will easily be able recognize the feelings of those you come in contact with. You can use that ability to know what they are feeling and then change it to match whatever you want them to feel.”
He looked down at me. His eyes met mine, probing me for understanding.
“Can you sense what I am feeling?” he asked.
I sensed the warmth that seemed to join us, but never anything more. I remembered feeling the sadness that came from Lysander when he told me his story. I’d been looking into his eyes when I felt it.
It must be the eyes.
I tried to quiet my mind, focusing on him. His eyes were hypnotic and powerful. A rush of excitement took me over. He was like my own personal Greek god, statuesque and beautiful, the image of perfection with flawless features and those hypnotically beautiful eyes. It had been the nicest perk of my immortality, that he was my maker.
I lost myself, staring into the deep gray pools of his eyes, admiring the blue flecks sparkling at me. Lysander was a perfect specimen of man. I suddenly wanted to pull him close and feel his body next to mine. I wanted to give in to my secret urge to be close to him.
We remained locked in this stare for a few moments, as I imagined feeling his lips on mine.
I shook my head, blinking a few times, realizing I wasn’t concentrating on my task.
Focus! I need to focus! I can do this.
I blinked again before refocusing on Lysander’s eyes.
“Fear,” I whispered timidly. It was a guess. I couldn’t sense what he was feeling. A tiny voice in my head whispered to me and urged me to pull him closer.
“Concentrate on my feelings, Alyssa, not your own. Try again.”
I took a deep breath before looking into Lysander’s eyes again. I found it hard to see past the feelings of desire for him. I tried hard to quiet my nerves. There was no silence in my head. This need, this urge to be close to him, was all I felt. It took a moment before I realized it must be coming from him as well.
My heart fluttered at the thought that he might want me too. “Desire,” I whispered.
“Good,” Lysander said calmly, showing no outward signs of his feelings. “That is the first step. You will need to read the feelings of your intended victim.”
I breathed a sigh of relief, happy I was able to perform the first part of this task.
“Next, you must create a very strong feeling in yourself. You have to feel it if you are going to make your victim feel it,” Lysander continued.
That doesn’t sound too hard
.
“When you have your strong feeling, you must will that feeling to your victim, so they feel it too.”
A wicked grin crossed his face. I knew he was about to do something to me, but I didn’t know what it was.
“Now, imagine your victim feeling this as you attack.”
He lifted his hand and brushed the side of my neck. His touch caused my skin to pimple with gooseflesh. He looked down into my eyes; I felt the power of his stare intensify. A gray haze filled my head, and I suddenly felt weightless in my seat.
My heart fluttered wildly, like a humming bird buzzing in my chest. A feeling of want took me, an overwhelming need for him to be close to me. I swooned, falling back into the chair. I caught my balance just as Lysander bent down eye level with me.
His hand knotted in my hair. He gently pulled my head backwards. Hot breath grazed the sensitive skin on my neck as he drew closer; it set my blood on fire. I suddenly needed to touch him, to feel his body against my own. I closed my eyes, exhaled slowly, and arched my neck towards him in anticipation. I knew now what was coming. I didn’t want to struggle. I wanted him to bite me, to take my blood, my essence, into him.
His lips parted on my skin, sending a shiver down my spine.
A sigh escaped my lips as his teeth pierced my skin—a momentary pinch. I whimpered but didn’t struggle against him. The sensual pull as he drew the life out of me quickly replaced the pain.
I wanted this. I wanted to be taken—to give all of myself to Lysander. Whatever he wanted from me, he could have. I would die in his arms if he only asked.
As quickly as he advanced, he finished his lesson, gently releasing me, letting me sink into the chair. Part of me wanted to cry out. I wanted more of his kiss. My body ached for his closeness.
Lysander pulled away and sat himself down on the floor. His eyes caught mine as I slowly re-gained control over my body. We sat gazing at each other. I wondered if he had shown me some of the real feelings simmering underneath his usually emotionless exterior.
It took a few minutes for me to completely recover from Lysander’s advance. I sat back up on the chair, breathing slowly, trying to calm my pounding heart.
“Now, Alyssa, I want you to try that on me. Make me feel that same way, make me want to die in your arms.”
I don’t know that I can do that.
His gaze had been so powerful and commanding. He had taken control of me before I knew what was happening. I didn’t know if I would be able to match that intensity and control.
I breathed slowly and steadily, trying to center myself. I needed to quiet my own yearning before I could gauge the emotions from Lysander. The lingering effects of his advance on me still took center stage in my mind. I couldn’t deny the ache, the desire to touch him.
I wanted him. I wanted to share myself with him. I wanted to be close to him.
I slid off the chair and onto his lap, on the floor. Our eyes met, and I again felt the warmth, the connection between us. I focused on his beautiful eyes, calling up any power I might have in myself.
I want you, I want all of you.
Willing Lysander to feel my need, I leaned in, pressing my lips to his. He didn’t reject me.
I want you, Lysander
.
His lips parted and our tongues collided, dancing together, playfully licking against sharp teeth as we explored one another’s mouths. We locked in an embrace as new lovers on his dining room floor. I savored the feeling of his lips—so soft, like two silken pillows—pressing against my own.
I willed my feelings on him, hoping they were strong enough for him to want me as I wanted him.
Kissing wasn’t enough; I needed a taste. Thirst nagged at me, and I needed blood to satiate it. I broke from the kiss and ran my hands through his silky hair, gently pushing his head sideways, exposing his bare neck as I searched for the pulsing blue vein.
He shuddered as my teeth broke through the soft flesh of his neck. His blood; the tingling ecstasy, the warm, sweet, honey liquid flooded my mouth, and a dizzying rush of energy washed through me.
Instinctively, as if I had been doing it my whole life, I willed Lysander to share in this feeling.
A low, rumbling groan of pleasure came from him.
I drew his blood into me, slowly feeling my need for him increase. I wanted to have him, all of him. I willed that thought and feeling to Lysander and drank him in deeply.
His arms surrounded me, tightening in an embrace, pulling me in close, silently telling me to take him. A hard knot formed in his pants. I felt it pressing against me as I sat in his lap.
Warmth spread between my legs. I reveled in the feel as he embraced me against him.
His heart beat in a slow, powerful rhythm, like a drum urging me to move and dance.
I ground into his hardness, matching the beat of his calling heart. Lysander’s chest vibrated against me as he let out another rumbling groan of pleasure. His hands raked down my back. Pulling me in close, he forced my body to press harder and harder against him. His hands sank lower down my back. He squeezed and kneaded my ass as he guided the motion of my hips.
My head swam with pleasure as I drank in my fill. My body flooded with energy. I ached with need for more. Erotic images played in my mind. I had not had the pleasure of a man in so long. I needed to feel him inside of me. I imagined him on top of me, taking me. I willed him to see that image and feel that desire.
Oh, God. I need you Lysander
.
I released his neck. Lysander’s hand reached up, cradling the back of my head as his lips found mine. In one fluid motion he rolled us over, laying me gently on the ground below him.
It was as if he had heard my thoughts. I flushed with excitement, looking up into his eyes.
Flames of passion burned brightly in the swirling twilight.
Lysander blinked a few times. His lusty gaze suddenly returned to a flat, emotionless expression as if someone had flicked on a light switch.
I silently cried out,
What happened?
“That was a good try, Alyssa,” Lysander said, as he rolled backward and sat against the wall. “If you can do something like that to your victims, they will have no reason to fight you or call for help…” There was a pause as he caught his breath before speaking again. “…though there is really no need to take it that far.”
Was that all just my doing? Didn’t he feel the same way? What the hell just happened?
Blood and warmth rushed to my face. My heart pounded hard in my chest.
“I... um... well…” I didn’t know what to say. The desire I felt was so real, I thought he must have felt it too. “Yeah. Right. I’ll keep that in mind.”
I got up and bolted to the bathroom to throw myself into a shower.
I was embarrassed, not knowing what to make of Lysander’s words or actions. He always remained hard and cold on the outside, but every so often, during the short time I had known him, a little glimmer of something could be seen below the surface.
CHAPTER 12
* * * * *
I took a long time in the shower, letting the warm water wash over me. It was ecstasy against my cold skin. I stood under the spout, soaking it all up.
I wanted to hide in the shower forever. I couldn’t believe how I had acted with Lysander. Our kiss had felt so real—the desire, the passion—but, in a matter of seconds his hard, cold exterior had returned as if nothing had ever happened.
This isn’t me. Why did I kiss him? Why did he kiss back?
His words echoed in my head.
There is really no need to take it that far.
I wondered if the feelings I had felt from him were real or just a good bit of hypnosis.
I’m so dumb. I should have never kissed him. He was just teaching me a lesson. There were no real feelings there. Lysander doesn’t see me that way. He doesn’t have real emotions.
I vowed not to speak of it to Lysander again.
Once the warmth had run out, I knew I couldn’t hide in the bathroom any longer. Stepping out of the shower, I took a towel and wrapped it around myself.
There was a hard knock at the front door. The sudden noise startled me, and I almost dropped my towel. I heard Lysander’s footsteps and the creak of the door as he answered it. A woman’s voice echoed from the foyer. My heart skipped a beat.
Oh, no, it’s Kallisto, she’s found us!
I pressed my ear hard to the door, attempting to catch a hint of what was happening.
“…it’s been ages, Lysander,” the woman said.
“Yes, much too long,” Lysander replied. “Please, come inside.”
Thankfully, Lysander sounded friendly and relaxed. I took a calming breath. Even though I was unable to make out all of what was being said, I realized it was safe.
I wonder if this new guest is a vampire, like us.
I slipped into a pair of dark, boot-cut jeans.
How much of the immortal world has been out there right under my nose all this time?
I was so eager to meet this new guest, I almost ripped my teal Henley shirt as I thrust my hands through the armholes. I tossed my hair into a loose ponytail and hurried to make myself look presentable.
By the time I’d finished dressing and made it out to the hallway, Lysander and this new woman were deep in conversation. They didn’t notice my entrance.
“Yes, California was beautiful,” she said. “We picked up a new member, Damon. We are hoping he and Jessie will get along well. She could use a mate to help calm down her wild streak.”
“I don’t believe I’ve met this Jessie,” Lysander said.
“No, you wouldn’t have. She joined us about three years ago.”
“Be careful not to grow your family too large,” Lysander warned.
I stood in the hallway listening and watching, trying to glean information about this woman in our home. The strange woman was short, perhaps no more than five feet tall. Even in her thick-heeled sandals, she only came up to Lysander’s shoulders. She wore a bohemian-style, multicolored wrap skirt and a black tank top. Her neck was adorned with silver chains with crystal pendants, and her arms were decorated with large, colorful bangle bracelets. She looked like a perfect gypsy, straight out of a renaissance festival.