What you have to understand about me is that I like to keep vampires vampires and not morph them into simpering pussies that get all lovely dovey for the "sake" of the story. I've tried to keep the boys as canon as possible in every respect of their being. In the end, they're vampires, not lovey-bunny-flou-flou characters. It angers me even more when I see Marko demasculated. Just because he looks boyish, doesn't mean he's soft! This chapter is dedicated to keeping vampires vampires and not allowing their balls to be removed. If you don't like it then you don't have to read it. Also, if you're sensitive to sex scenes, avert your eyes now.

It was closing time at the Boardwalk but Detta knew they'd be somewhere. They had to be. They always were. She gently touched the markings on her neck, a fading reminder of her second near-death experience. She sneered at the thoughts running through her head but they all made sense. All of the dots connected and the arrow, in one way or another, pointed to David.

She neared the end of the Boardwalk, by the carousel. She was right; they were there, David's back to her. The other three saw her first, approaching like a raging bull, fury writ all over her face. Marko stumbled around his bike, trying to get to Detta before she did whatever she was going to do, but she had reached David before he had gotten to her. She grabbed him by the back of his coat and with all her might threw him back, causing him to stumble against the wall. She was lucky she had caught him off guard otherwise she knew he would have been immovable. Dwayne and Paul stepped up to David's side while Marko clung to Detta trying to hold back the thrashing girl.

"What's your part in it?" she screamed. "What is it?"

She flailed her arms as Marko tried to control her. "Detta, stop. Stop! Calm down!"

But she wasn't hearing him. "Tell me!"

David burst through the boys and latched onto Detta's neck with his gloved hand, looking around to see if anyone was nearby. "Let go," he growled at Marko.

Detta flashed back to her dream and her anger began to mix with terror. In her head, she begged Marko to not let her go but he did and when she was released, David threw her against the wall. Detta let out a yelp of pain and slid down the brick, clustering herself on the pavement, breathing hard and glaring up at David. He crouched down in front of her, his cracking knees echoing out over the ocean.

"What makes you think I had anything to do with any of your attacks?" he asked smugly.

She sneered. "Because you were rather pissy every time I didn't die. You dripped animosity all over me. It makes sense."

David laughed. "Oh, Detta. The things people do for money, right? I mean, that's how you got here, isn't it?"

"I was bribed and blackmailed," she snarled. "You should…n't know that." Her eyes widened. "He…you…"

"Why do you think you ended up in San Jose, you dumb bitch?" he said, shaking her. "Why do you think you conveniently ended up here, huh? I prefer to kill on my own territory."

Detta was at a loss for words. She scrambled up, clutching on to the wall. After a moment, she finally found her voice. "He—he paid you…how?"

"He flew out here before you got here, your editor. Found me—"

"That's who that guy was!" Paul broke in, his voice shocked.

David nodded. "I mean, I steal from my victims all the time but once in a blue moon does someone actually pay me to make a kill." Detta's jaw started trembling.

"David—" Dwayne started but didn't know how to finish.

David looked at him and then back to Detta. "I had to make it look somewhat accidental. Couldn't have you being found all bloodless. You were just another kill to me, Detta. Plain and simple. Things got mucked up when you and Marko started getting close but I figured he'd find someone else."

Detta stood in shock, her breath catching in her throat, her eyes dancing from boy to boy and finally landing on Marko, her face filled with disgust and fear. "You all knew…"

"No, Detta, we didn't. David—" Marko started but was interrupted by her.

"You—you reeled me in for him."

"Detta, you're not thinking—" Dwayne interjected.

"I am thinking!" she screamed. Her eyes fell upon Marko again, her lip trembling, tears welling in her eyes, her voice lowered to a whisper. "I was never safe."

"Guess I should finish it now."

Detta looked up at David as he spoke and when she saw his face, that same face from her dream, her lungs erupted in a blood-curdling scream. His eyes were on fire, his fangs descended and ready to tear into her flesh. He lunged but was caught by the three boys behind him. Detta didn't hesitate. She broke into a run as fast as her legs could carry her and dodged into the labyrinth of alleys behind the Boardwalk. She twisted and turned around the corners, getting herself lost, when something swooped down in front of her and pinned her against the wall. She closed her eyes tight and clawed at the face she knew was in front of her. She opened her mouth to scream but it was immediately covered with a leather-clad hand. David had caught her. She was going to die.

"Detta, stop it. It's me. Stop!" The calm voice was growing steadily more frustrated.

A hand connected hard with the side of Detta's face, causing her head to get thrown to the side, her hair whipping across her face. The shock of getting hit in such a manner froze her. She wasn't quite sure how to react but brought her hand up to her cheek in a feeble attempt to stop the stinging.

"Will you just stop it and listen to me, god damn it! Listen to me!" The voice was shrieking, hands now gripping onto both of her arms.

She brought her face slowly around to meet the eyes of the man standing in front of her. She knew it couldn't be David and when her eyes rested on the oceans filled with a slew of emotions, she knew it was Marko looking back at her. She just stared at him, her hand still covering her face.

"Are you listening?" he asked, raising his eyebrows to her.

Detta nodded.

"Me, Dwayne and Paul had no idea what David was up to. He told us nothing. That guy—"

"My editor," Detta whispered, almost not believing it.

"Your editor, we saw him talking to David. We asked him but he said it was something to do with his bike. David isn't the most…caring person so it wasn't a big deal when he didn't care about how you were doing. Do you hear me?"

Detta nodded. "But he's not a person." Detta's voice was a harsh whisper.

Marko gave her a defeated look. "No."

"He's a vampire."

Marko nodded.

"When I told you about my dream…"

"We can play funny games with human minds."

"We…"

Marko nodded again. "Dwayne, Paul and—"

"You. Have you been playing—"

Marko cut her off before she finished her sentence and gave her a firm look. "No. I wanted to tell you on my own terms. Guess that moment's gone."

Detta's eyes searched the area around her, hunting for a thought that only she could see. "That night on the bluff, when Paul—"

"He caught me just in time. I probably would have killed you. I have a tendency to get…carried away and I forget that you're just a human."

"Just a human…"

He saw the look on her face and rolled his eyes. "Oh get real, Detta. You're a food source!"

She tried to break out of Marko's grip but he held fast.

"Stop it. That's the raw reality of it all, Detta. But there's something else…with you. Something that would have made me regret killing you."

"Is there?" She cocked an eyebrow at him, revealing her disdain.

"Yes," he said matter-of-factly. "You feel it too. You know you do. And for me to regret a kill, let's just say I haven't done that yet.

"How old are you?"

"I was born in 1932—"

"Jesus—"

"And turned in 1954. Young by vampire standards."

"You won't hurt me." Detta sounded like a little girl but the fear was draining form her body.

Marko shook his head. "Every dog still has instinct. That's something I can't promise. Not while you're still human."

"What works?"

He knew just what she was talking about. "Anything blessed. It could be a newspaper and if it's blessed, I won't be feeling too nice. Running water, like streams or a shower."

"If I carry a cross…"

Marko smiled. "You're not religious, Detta. It wouldn't do anything. It would no sooner melt your hand than it would mine. A faith not your own won't protect you."

"And the others…"

Marko frowned. "David betrayed us. He's betrayed you but that doesn't matter. He's going to have to answer to us and…He'll have his hands full but I'd still be looking over my shoulder if I were you."

Marko slackened his grip on Detta's arms, knowing that she wasn't going to be going anywhere. She looked assaulted, frazzled. Marko could see her brain mulling over the information she'd been given. Her life wasn't safe but she felt protected nevertheless. She looked up at Marko's face, a mixture of concern and disdain smothered it but when she looked into his eyes, she found herself staring back out. That self had all of the answers she wanted, but it wasn't human. They both knew it. Detta was his food as long as she remained mortal and food for the other boys as well. David also wanted to finish his mission and she'd never be the same around him. The only way to save her life was to give it up for a new one, one that Marko embraced all those years ago. But would he help her?

Detta put her hand on the side of his face, feeling the coolness of his skin against the heat of her own. He closed his eyes when she touched him, the feeling overpowering. "Show me who you are," Detta whispered to him.

Marko sighed deeply, tap dancing around the idea in his mind until he conceded. When he opened his eyes, Detta gasped. They were the same flame color that David's were, animalistic, angry. She hadn't even noticed the changes in his face, his brow and cheeks much more angular and severe. Detta breathed heavily while Marko watched her, interest on his monstrous face. She brought her fingertips to his lips and they danced around on the skin. He knew what she wanted to see. He opened his mouth, revealing his descended fangs. Detta tried to stable her breathing, her heart beating furiously, pulsing blood through her body at warp speed. Marko sensed this and remained stoic, fighting his nature. She touched a finger to a fang, marveling at it before trailing her finger down its length.

Marko reached up and grabbed her hand, preventing her from moving it anymore. He wanted to tell her to stop, she was walking on a dangerous path, but at the same time the thought of her blood on his tongue was a temptation he didn't want to stave off. Detta's hand could move freely in Marko's slackened grip and she continued her finger's trip down his fang, coming to the point. Marko closed his eyes. She ran her finger along the razor's edge of his tooth, slicing the skin. She winced at the pain but watched as the blood trickled out, mixing with the moisture in Marko's mouth.

His eyes snapped open with the first taste of Detta's blood. Hunger and lust coursed through his body as he threw his hands onto Detta's waist, clinging to her body for support. His tongue found her wounded finger with ease and licked at the blood, drawing her body closer to his. She moved her wounded finger to his lips, smearing them with blood. He began to lick it off when another tongue joined his own. Detta lapped at her own blood in Marko's mouth, his body crushing her own into the wall. He devoured her tongue, engulfing it with his mouth. He had never had blood like this before, this taste that made him want to tear at her body to get. She kissed him back as ravenously as she could but it was no match for the vampire that held her.

She broke her lips away, gasping for air, as Marko's wandered down her neck. "Protect me."

Marko stopped and brought his eyes up to meet her's. He searched them, looking for her truth. Was this what she really wanted? He didn't know how much longer he, or any of the guys, could be around her without killing her. He would be savage if they did. And he felt like he had found something that had been lost for eons and he wasn't about to let it go. And neither was she.

Detta noticed his eyes were no longer the color of hell but back to their ocean blue, his face back to the soft boyish look that had originally roped her in. He studied her face for a moment before backing away and grabbing her hand.

"Let's go."

When Detta had her door unlocked, Marko threw it open and pinned Detta against the other side of it, slamming it shut. He lifted her up and she wrapped her legs tightly around his body, squeezing hard enough to make any man choke, but not the vampire. Detta shimmied his jacket down his arms and he tossed it aside. She pulled his wife-beater over his head and he willingly let it go. Detta stared at his body, running her hands over his thin but sculpted frame. She maneuvered her hands behind her back, inching them closer to the zipper on her dress before slowly sliding it down. The material slackened before falling around her hips, trapped on her body until Marko decided to take it off. Marko took off his gloves and ran his fingers along her bare skin, looking for the first time at her exposed breasts. He cupped one in his hand before leaning his face to her's for a kiss, the cold of his skin sending shivers throughout her body.

"Fuck me first before…" she whispered into his mouth as he teased her.

Marko shook his head, drawing himself back. "It'll be too painful for you."

Detta lifted herself off of the door, Marko now bearing her weight as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders, pressing her bare chest to his. "Please."

Marko took a step and they were both up in the loft. It took Detta a moment to realize what had happened, for the dizziness to catch up with her. She stared wide-eyed at him, still clinging to his body.

He chuckled. "We're fast."

Detta threw him a devilish look. "I hope not."

He picked the dress up over her head and tossed it into a corner as she kicked off her boots.

"You're vulnerable right now," he growled.

She pressed herself on top of him as he sat down on the edge of the bed, letting her straddle over his lap. "Why don't you take advantage of it?"

In a flash, Marko had Detta flipped on to her back, he now in the dominant position. The room spun as it caught up to her, the movements too fast for her mortal head. He stood up and stepped out of his own boots and removed his pants, all the while staring hungrily at her body. Detta pushed herself back on the bed so he had to crawl to her, which he did, like a beast. He laid his naked body on top of her own again, a thin layer of silk keeping them apart. He kissed her lips, her neck, her breasts, each time sending shockwaves through her body. She knew now what that feeling was—his power, something that she now knew he possessed. He was so much stronger than her, in every sense of the word, every lustful touch he laid upon her rocked through her body like a gale, her moans running ahead of her. He wandered down her body, kissing her skin, his lips lingering just below her navel, a gentle kiss amidst savagery.

He slipped her panties off and returned his body to her's, their faces even. He ran a hand along her hair as she moved a leg up the side of his body, the friction of their skin could have emitted sparks. Her eyes danced over his face, trying to read him. Apprehension.

"You're hesitant," she whispered.

He moved his head down, nipping at her earlobe and she palmed his back with both hands, trying to pull him closer. "I don't want to hurt you," he whispered back.

She brushed her other leg up his side, locking her ankles together at the small of his back. "Do you want me to beg?"

She felt the apprehension sinking from his body when he answered. "Yes."

"Please," she whispered.

"Louder."

"Please!" Her voice was throaty and sounded like a low growl.

"Louder," he snarled in her ear.

"Please, Marko!" she howled and he thrust into her.

Detta wailed when he entered her, a sensation that teetered precariously on the edge of pleasure and pain. She dug her nails into his back, he sliding his hands down to her ass, lifting her hips to meet his own. Every thrust shot this excruciating pleasure through her body, feeling like she was being torn apart from the inside but loved every second of it. Her screams were masked by moans covered by screams. The more she responded, the harder he thrust. She dug her nails harder into his back, feeling moisture condensing around the tips. She had drawn blood. His moans became louder and louder, wailing when she tore into his back. He lifted himself up, holding his body over her's, his eyes flaming but his face remained human. She lifted her leg up, joining her hips with the rhythm of his own.

In another swift movement, he had rolled them over, Detta now straddling his lap and he sitting up to face her. Detta did the grinding his time, leaning back to feel him inside her. Marko moaned, feeling his way along Detta's body. The pain of him echoed through her, feeling it on every inch of her being. Her soul felt shattered. After this, there was no more innocence. Marko held her close, his face showing signs of his eventual climax. Detta's face was contorted in a mixture of the deepest pleasure and the most excruciating pain one could feel. Marko held her closer, guiding her hips. His moans became guttural, snarls, his voice rising from his throat. Detta was getting closer. Just hearing him was enough for her.

They finished together, his ecstasy shooting through her body like a thousand knives. She wailed, tears streaking down her face, holding tightly onto Marko. His hands were at her sides, his nails digging into her skin. The pain mixed into her pleasure, blood dripping down her waist. She looked at Marko as he reared his head back, exposing his vampire face; fangs glistened in the moonlight, and then threw his head at her neck, tearing into her skin.

It was pure anguish. Detta cried out as he bit in, her life flowing from her body and down her lover's throat. She could feel the blood dripping over her shoulder, down her back, onto her breasts. She clamped onto his hair as he drank, careful not to move and cause any more pain. She felt her strength rapidly depleting, getting sucked away by the vampire in her bed, in her. Her hands slumped from his hair and he eased her head onto his shoulder, her shallow breathing bouncing back into her face.

He removed his fangs from her body, a hand gently placed on the back of her head. With her chest pressed against his, he could faintly feel her heart beating. She was still alive but barely. Detta rolled her eyes upwards, trying to look at his face but not being able to move anymore than that. Marko brought his hand to his neck and tore into his flesh with his nail, creating a fissure in his skin, blood oozing up from within. His didn't flow forth like Detta's had. It pooled to the surface, filling the tear at his neck. It was just out of Detta's reach.

"You must feed," he said, looking down at her.

He dabbed the blood with his fingers and brushed it onto her lips. He slipped his finger in her mouth and deposited some of it onto her tongue.

"I will not be responsible for your death," he whispered to her. "Take it."

Detta's tongue crawled out of her mouth to lick the blood from her lips. It was gorgeous. The colors that she saw she had never seen before. Everything was in sharper focus, the smell wafted up to her nose; she could feel Marko's blood in his veins. Just as quickly as it came, it was gone. She tried to move her head closer to the taunting blood but couldn't. What little strength it had given her wasn't enough to sustain her.

"Help," she croaked, goading Marko to move her head closer.

He gently nudged her along, touching her lips to his wound. "Take it."

Detta licked at the wound, taking in more blood. All of the colors came back. She could see like it were day. What was shrouded in shadows before was now as clear as a piece of glass. She continued to lap at the blood, feeling her strength coming back to her. Marko was breathing heavily, his grip tightening on the back of Detta's head. She was able to lift her arm up, place her hand on his back. She continued to drink and she was able to lift her head, then her body, able to carry her own weight again. She drank greedily from Marko, obsessed with his blood. He held her close, making sure she got her fill. She could feel her teeth descend, her fangs. She wanted more blood. She bit into him, making her own wound like he did to her. Marko cried out, his grip a frenzy in her hair. His strength would have hurt her before but now she felt invincible. She drank deeply of his blood, her appetite insatiable.

He wrenched her head back from his neck, a snarl on his vampiric face. Detta's fangs were drawn, her face having angles that a supermodel would envy, a seductive yet grotesque look.

He sneered at her, his blood on her face. "Welcome back."

He dove for her lips, their blood mixing together in their mouths. They both felt it; a connection completed. She felt him pulsing through her body, could hear his whispers without him speaking—she knew who he was now. They came together again, all of the pain she had felt before had turned to ecstasy, a pleasure she had never felt before. Her senses danced around her body, mingling with his own. It was overwhelming. They were part of each other now.

Detta stood in the bathroom watching the faucet as the water heat up when Marko rushed in, shutting it off. "I wouldn't do that if I were you." He plugged the sink and let the water run, letting it fill with warm water. He grabbed a towel, dipped it in and brought it to Detta's naked body, letting the warmth drip over her. "Standing water. Always make sure it's standing."

"Why can't it be running?" Detta closed her eyes, savoring the feeling of being bathed. She felt him shrug.

"Don't know. But it burns."

She opened her eyes and looked into the mirror above the sink. She wasn't shocked or startled; it was just rather interesting to see herself transparent. Behind her where she knew Marko to be standing, stood nothing in the mirror and the towel seemed to be washing her of it's own accord.

Marko saw the look on her face and smiled. She could feel it. She could feel everything he did, everything he felt, everything at all.

"You're not a full vampire yet. You have to kill first before that happens. But you think your senses are strong now," he spun her around to face him, his face cleaned of her blood, "just you wait." He draped his arms around her shoulders and pulled her into him, kissing her. She felt him frown and pulled back.

"What is it?"

"It's weird. I've never felt a kiss quite like yours. There's something more there."

"Is that bad?" she asked, her eyebrow raised.

"Nothing to do with you is bad," he said, kissing her again.

"You've protected me," she said, into his lips.

He murmured, placed a finger onto her forehead and walked into her bedroom, gathering his clothes. "You're not out of the woods yet. David knows."

"How—"

"Not now. I know you have a lot of questions but I don't have a lot of time," he motioned towards the window and the lightening sky. "Time is on your side now. Don't be in such a rush. You'll get all the answers you want but what you need now is patience."

Marko put on his jacket as Detta wrapped a towel around her body. His fingers reached out and yanked it away, a smile beaming on his face.

"Don't cover up."

He stroked his fingers against her skin and she smiled, feeling that stroke in her toes.

"What about me?"

"The sun won't hurt you, just make you sleep."

He walked over to the window and drew the shades, then walked back over to her, picked her up and tossed her on the bed. She laughed as she bounced, enjoying the whooshing sensation in her stomach.

"Tonight."

Detta nodded as Marko walked down the stairs and out the door. The impending sunrise loomed and Detta's eyes began to get heavy. She was surprised at how quickly her internal clock had adjusted but it might have been the vampiric blood coursing through her veins that was telling her to sleep. She wrapped herself in the sheet, holding it up under her nose, inhaling the scent that Marko left behind, and lay her head down onto her pillow. Sleep danced happily on her mind. Through her closed eyelids she could see the first rays of sunrise sneak in through the shades but she drifted off long before the sun hauled itself over the horizon. The new half-vampire lay sedate and serene on her bed, her mind waiting for the coming night.

Reviews are always appreciated.