Venice Vampyr - The Beginning

Now Massimo stood near the door, a gun pointed at him. And considering he was a Guardian and knew how to kill a vampire, Raphael was sure it was loaded with silver bullets.

From the corner of his eye, he saw how Isabella had snatched the bed sheet and pressed it against her naked breasts. His own modesty was the least of his concerns now. He calmed his mind and tried to think the situation through. If he could stall Massimo long enough, either his brother or one of his friends would show up. If they’d continued tailing him like they’d done the nights before, they would be here soon. Very soon.

“Massimo! What are you—?” Isabella’s question was a mere gasp.

“My love, I think you should know something about your late husband’s dear cousin,” Raphael drawled and glanced at the man. “Would you like to explain it to her or should I?”

“Please do,” Massimo replied with an evil grin. “It’ll be the last time you speak to your whore, so enjoy.”

“I’d appreciate it if you didn’t call her a whore. She’s my wife.”

Massimo only snorted.

“Isabella,” Raphael addressed her, “Massimo is here to kill me. I suspect he already tried a few days ago by pushing me into the canal.”

“Alas, I can’t take credit for that. One of the other Guardians deserves that praise.”

“What Guardians?” Isabella interrupted, her voice high pitched.

Raphael kept his voice calm as he answered her, knowing her nerves were at breaking point. “Massimo is part of a group of men who hunt vampires and kill them. Just like your late husband was.”

Isabella gave him a shocked stare. “Giovanni? No! That can’t be. Giovanni was a good man. He wouldn’t kill anybody.”

“Yes, he was a good man, that’s why he was one of us. A protector of the human race, a Guardian. Until they made him one of them. Until they turned him against his will.” Massimo’s voice was full of hatred. His jaw clenched tightly when he continued, “He came to me and told me what you monsters did to him, how one of you bit him and fed him vampire blood. He told me he’d continue fighting against your kind, but it wasn’t possible, of course.”

“Oh God!” Isabella gasped. “Not Giovanni. Please, say it’s not true.”

Raphael saw the tears building in her eyes as she looked at him. Would she hate him now for what his kind had done to the man she’d once loved? He searched her eyes for a sign that would tell him whether she would remain his. But her tears made it impossible to see beyond her immediate grief.

“Yes,” Massimo droned. “He did that to you. He made you a widow.” He pointed at Raphael. “He took the man we loved.”

“I did no such thing,” Raphael protested. “Yes, a vampire turned him, but it wasn’t me, and it was certainly none of our kind who killed him.” He took the gamble. If he was right in his assessment of Massimo, the man wouldn’t be able to resist the bait.

“Killed?” Isabella echoed. “But he drowned.”

Raphael nodded. “Yes, he drowned because he was vampire, and vampires don’t have any natural buoyancy. They can’t keep themselves above water. Just like I couldn’t.”

“Yes, and Giovanni knew that,” Massimo interrupted. “He knew when I pushed him into the canal that he wouldn’t survive. He looked at me. He couldn’t believe that I’d done it, but he should have. He of all people should have known that I couldn’t let him live. He’d become a creature so vile, there was only one thing to do. He should have understood. I loved him like a brother. I did it for him.”

A sob tore from Isabella’s chest. Raphael looked at her, but she turned away from him and let herself fall face down into the sheets, facing away from him. Had he lost her? Was this what this meant, that she would hate him now for what one of his brethren had done?

“Isabella. I’m sorry.”

She didn’t respond.

“Well, it appears all has been said.” Just as Massimo cocked his gun, Raphael’s sensitive hearing picked up the sound of the front door opening.

“Wait.” He had to stall him just a few more seconds until help arrived. “At least tell me how you figured me out. I deserve that much, don’t you think?”

Massimo chuckled, but it wasn’t a friendly sound. “Nothing easier than that. A servant told me that you nearly drowned in the canal. So I made inquires and found out that one of my fellow Guardians had pushed a vampire into the water that same night. It was easy to figure out from there that it was you. You might have escaped death once, but now, vampire, you’ll die.”

A shot rang out the moment the door burst open. Raphael closed his eyes and steeled himself against the pain the silver bullet would inflict on him seconds before his life force would drain from his body.

“I love you, Isabella,” he whispered his goodbyes as the shouts of his brother and Lorenzo filled the room.

“What in hell?” Dante cried out.