A WHISPER OF ETERNIT

Page 56



"Milk?Tea?Hot chocolate?"

"No."

"Well, I'm sorry, but I'm all out of fresh blood." "Do not mock me."

His eyes narrowed as his gaze moved to the pulse throbbing in her throat. Maybe it was only her imagination, but she would have sworn she could feel his fingertips caressing her neck, feel his breath on her cheek, followed by the heat of his mouth and the sharp prick of his teeth…

She jerked her head up and the sensation disappeared. "I think you'd better go." "Do not see that boy again."

"Don't tell me what to do!"So much for being meek and lowly. "I'll see whoever I wish, whenever I wish."

He took a step forward. "If you see him again, I will not be responsible for what happens." "Is that a threat?"

"No, my best beloved one, it is a warning. If you care for the boy, you would be wise to listen."

The look in his eyes, the soft menace in his voice, sent a shiver of unease down her spine. Even though he wasn't a vampire, it occurred to her that he would be a very dangerous man to run afoul of.

"You still do not believe me," he murmured. "Perhaps this will convince you."

Before she could ask what he meant, he was engulfed in a sort of silvery haze and then, between one heartbeat and the next, he was gone and in his place she saw a fine gray mist.

She felt the blood drain from her face. This was not some hypnotic suggestion, not some magician's trick done with mirrors. It was the same silvery haze she had seen that night in the kitchen.

The mist swirled around her ankles, drifted upward until it surrounded her like a cold gray fog. "Stop it!"

The sound of her voice had barely died away when he stood before her once more. Witha bravado she did not truly feel, she said, "Can you turn into a bat, too?"

"You still do not believe?" he murmured, and before she knew what he was doing, he had pulled her against him.

The next thing she knew, she was standing in a dark alley watching Dominic.Watching him lift a homeless man out of his ragged blankets and into his arms. Watching his fangs lengthen. The man struggled a moment, then went limp. Dominic bent over the man's neck and when he lifted hishead, his fangs were