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The cool night air shuffled through my feathers and I glanced down at her as I pounded the wings, taking me higher over the forest top heading toward dinner. The forest opened to a small glen filled with deer and I swooped down from the heavens and snatched the largest doe in my talons before any of them understood the danger.
The flight back was harder considering my already exhausted state of mind and when I landed, pinning the deer beneath my talon, I turned my hawk gaze to Naomi.
She stared at the deer and then brought her shocked gaze to mine.
It was clear she didn’t understand and I willed myself back into human form. Without the strength of my talon holding her to the ground, the doe struggled to her feet.
“Food,” I said to Naomi and again I got the dumb stare. “If you’re not going to take her down, I will,” I snarled and caught the deer before she was able to find her footing, my teeth buried in the soft flesh of her throat and I was rewarded with the warm rush of blood. Of course, it wasn’t nearly as sweet or hypnotic as Naomi’s, but it was food none-the-less and it would bring me back to full strength, which I desperately needed.
With every ounce I drank, I could feel the expansion of my cells, the strength returning and I closed my eyes, pulling every last one of the hundred ounces out of the carcass. When there was no more, I dropped the dead husk on the ground and wiped my mouth with my shirtsleeve willing my teeth to retract.
Naomi still stared and I approached her, exhilarated by the blood. Her gaze pulled from the dead deer to me, and I had to remind myself she was new at this, but the horror reflected in her eyes caught me off guard.
“It’s more palatable than tearing a human’s throat and draining them,” I said. “Besides, this will give the people living in the house a couple weeks worth of venison, so it’s a bonus.”
Her eyebrows rose and her glance jumped from mine to the deer.
“I thought you said you had been hunting before.”
She nodded and licked her lips, still unable to speak.
“Naomi, you have to eat tonight.”
“Why?” she asked with a voice no more than a whisper.
“Because come daylight, your training begins and you will need all the strength you can get,” I said and pulled her into my arms and planted a kiss, exploring her mouth with my tongue, letting her taste the remnants of blood. I prayed that would set her appetite on fire and I smiled at the shift. Her fangs finally made an appearance.
When I pulled away, the feral hunger in her eyes sent a warning siren through me and I pointed in the direction of the glen. Her gaze landed on my throat and I stepped back, turning and taking flight, drawing her in the direction of the herd.
She sounded like a hungry pride of cats running through the woods and I knew with that approach, she would find herself standing in the field alone. I swooped behind her, wrapping my talon around her waist and started toward the treetops. When we cleared the brush, I soared, hearing her gasp at the dizzying height.
She held onto my talons like a frightened child and I wanted to tell her she was safe, but a hawk can’t speak, at least not in the way human ears would understand. I made a lazy pass over the glen, making sure the herd was still there and Naomi panted in my grasp, her eyes locked on our prey. Her hunger and impatience overwhelmed me and I dove toward the meadow, dropping her right on the back of a large buck.
I swooped, landing on a thick branch at the edge of the woods, turning in time to see the remainder of the herd galloping into the forest underneath my perch. Naomi had her hand wrapped around one of the antlers and her face nuzzled into the deer’s throat despite the animal’s struggles. She wrestled it to the ground, still drinking as the beast huffed and tried to shake her off.
The death throes of the buck slowed, and then stopped altogether, but Naomi kept her grip, tilting the massive head to get better access until she finally released, and slowly stood.
I transitioned and jumped off the branch, landing on the soft grass in a crouch, my gaze locked on her in case she was still overwhelmed by the shadow thirst. Her chest rose and fell, signs that the blood was working her muscles and when her dark gaze shifted to mine, her lips stretched into a feral smile, revealing the razor sharp teeth we were known for.
She moved faster than I did, and the hard ground met my back with the force of her tackle. I stared up into her wild eyes and grabbed a fistful of her hair, keeping her teeth away from my throat with brute strength. They snapped together in a click, followed by a growl so fierce it struck fear in me.
“Naomi!” I yelled and rolled, pinning her below me.
She struggled, snarling like a wild cat caught in a snare and I held fast, knowing the effects would wear off in a matter of minutes, but I was exposed with my hands wrapped around her wrists and my knees squeezing her hips.
She lunged, her teeth scratching my arm and I shifted, widening her span.
“Naomi.” This time I whispered, soft and seductive, hoping my charm would calm her.
Her eyes locked with mine and her struggling ceased. The fangs retracted and she blinked up at me before her gaze turned to the meadow surrounding us in confusion.
I released her wrists and sat back on my heels, mopping my face with my palm.
“What happened?”
Chuckling, I swung to the side and took a seat on the grass next to her, pointing at the massive antlers peeking out of the long grass.
She sat up and stared, her eyebrows arching before her head swung in my direction.
“I did that?” she asked, her graceful finger pointed toward the dead buck.
“Yes.”
Silence settled.
“I don’t remember anything beyond you kissing me,” she whispered.
I stretched out on the grass and stared up at the stars, trying to remember those first days and nights and I came up blank as well. In two thousand years, I never got through more than a couple days with a fledgling before disaster struck in some form, so I never had a chance to really talk to those I cursed with this existence.
“I don’t remember much about those first few days either,” I said and she turned her beautiful brown eyes in my direction. When she stretched out next to me, I continued, “Of course I was locked in a pit and when I came to my senses, every last vampire was in pieces.”
She reached over and pulled my hand off my chest, lacing her fingers through mine, the gesture silenced me and I stared at her. I realized in that moment that I really didn’t want anything bad to happen to this girl and I swallowed the lump in my throat. Being associated with me seemed to be bad luck and I pulled my hand out of her grasp, getting to my feet without meeting her gaze.
I crossed to the buck and stared at the carcass.
“Do you want the head mounted?” I asked when she joined me and she flinched. “You don’t want a trophy of your first kill?”
“God, no,” she gasped and disappointment flushed my skin. “My father asked me the same thing when I shot my first deer a few years ago. I said no to him, too.” She met my gaze.
It was nice to know it wasn’t just this situation and I nodded. I glanced around the meadow and sighed. “I’m not going to be able to bring you and the buck back in one trip.”
Her eyebrows rose.
“Deerskin and venison,” I said and glanced at the buck. “Although I think it’ll take me the rest of the night to skin these and pack the freezer.”
“Damian?”
I turned to her. “Hmm?”
“When are we going after Luc...”
I clamped my hand over her mouth and shook my head. “Not here,” I whispered and her eyebrows creased. “When I think you’re ready,” I answered and waved her back, “Until then,” I closed my eyes and the transformation took hold.