Free Blood Gifts by Kara Lockley

angrily at
the vampire. Luke took the last stake from the bag and threw it at
the vamp. It plunged into his heart and killed him instantly.
    "Oh, My God, Karina," Luke said, kneeling
next to her.
    She coughed from the smoke and then winced
because that caused her pain from the stake wound.
    "Two more," she said. The last thug and Geric
were rushing forward to try to wrestle Luke away from her. The thug
had a stake in his hand.
    Luke angrily waved his hand and sent the vamp
with the stake sailing into a burning wall. He held him there with
his mind until he burned up.
    Geric glared at both of them as he quickly
turned and ran out of the barn, back toward the farmhouse. This was
not a battle he could win. Though, Karina wasn't sure she could
either.
    Luke scooped her up in his arms and shielded
her as he burst through the burning wall at the back of the
barn.
    She could breathe again, outside in the fresh
air. If only it didn't hurt so much. Luke laid her down in the
green grass of the field. The sun was just coming up.
    She could barely breathe from the pain of her
injury and too much smoke inhalation. Her wound was bleeding, and
she'd already lost blood from when Luke had drunk from her. Using
her powers had drained her energy too. She didn't know anything
about modern medicine, but if she had to guess she'd say she was
dying.
    "He won't stop coming," Luke said. He kneeled
on the ground and pulled her into his arms.
    "I understand why you don't want to be a
vampire," he said. His voice was uneven, emotional. "I can feel
your heart slowing, Karina," he sounded desperate.
    She could barely focus. She could tell she
was slipping away. Soon she wouldn't be conscious to make the
choice she knew he wanted her to make.
    She looked up at him, she could barely see
him anymore. And she barely felt pain anymore. She knew that wasn't
good.
    "I know if you make me a vampire, I'll be
good like you," she said. She felt tears leaking out of her eyes.
The sunrise formed a halo around his head. "I don't want to die,"
she said. "Please… make me like you."
    She could see the tears in his eyes as he
lifted his wrist to his teeth and bit himself. He lowered his wrist
to her mouth.
    "Drink, Karina, drink," he said. She sucked
on his wrist, feeling his warm blood flow into her mouth, tasting
its bitter metallic taste. She felt her body rejecting it, she felt
revulsion. But it was a lifesaving elixir to her and she forced
herself to keep drinking.
    After a minute, Luke gently pulled his wrist
away from her.
    "How do you feel?" he asked. "Is it
working?"
    She wanted to answer, but she felt pain all
over suddenly. She started to convulse in his arms and she heard a
scream escape her lips involuntarily. She arched her back as her
muscles tightened up. She felt her entire body shudder and then
relax. She was half conscious, but she felt the pain in her abdomen
lessen dramatically until there was no pain at all. She felt energy
tingle all through her body, healing her, making her stronger. She
gasped clean air into her lungs, air she would never need again,
but it felt so good as it rushed through her lungs.
    Her eyes had been closed, but now they popped
open. She stared in wonder at Luke above her. He looked worried. He
looked beautiful, more than before. The colors were deeper than
before, everywhere she looked. Everything was sharper. She almost
thought she was seeing colors she'd never seen before. And
auras.
    She braced herself against Luke as she
quickly stood. He stood too and she stumbled like a newborn colt.
She had no idea how to work these new muscles. Everything was
foreign to her now.
    "Are you…" he said, looking amazed.
    "Yes," she said. She reached down to touch
her healed injury. "You did it. You saved me." She stumbled forward
awkwardly and wrapped her stronger arms around him, holding him
tight. He held her just as tightly.
     
     

Chapter 20
     
    Karina woke with frost on her skin. That
couldn't be right. The sounds of a forest were