Free A Touch Too Much by Chris Lange

made love to her. She probably should have worried about being unable to treat the deep wounds, yet there would be no infection of any kind. She wasn’t human anymore.
    Still unwilling to process the dreary thought, Liv let exhaustion catch up with her as the lighting fixture above her head began to blink. Eyelids heavy, she still had the presence of mind to draw the curtains shut in the bedroom. She wasn’t about to disregard Rogan’s warning this time.
    Outside an eastern glow already brightened the sky, and rays of sunshine would hit the window soon enough. As she came closer to the bed, she swatted a bug on the nightstand. Oh, God, and she had to sleep in this foul place! Yet there was nothing she could do but grin and bear it.
    Sleep called her. In spite of her weariness, Liv took a moment to stash her bag and jacket on the chair closer to the door in case she had to take off in a rush. Definitely too fond of spy movies! As she lay down on the none too clean bed, she thought she heard a soft, scratchy noise coming from the corner of the room. A good secret agent would have jumped to his feet to investigate the scraping. Instead she let sleep claim her.
    Against all odds, Liv felt good when she woke up. Good, and ravenous! As much as she wanted to linger, the full meaning of her sharp hunger jerked her out of bed. She needed to feed. She wouldn’t feed.
    She had pulled the drapes so tight last night that a deep gloom still ruled the place. Prompted by instinct, she put her shoes on, and carried her handbag to the bathroom. In the mirror, her reflection told her the transformation into a vampire hadn’t yet begun. Scary as it was, something else grabbed her attention. Her neck!
    Only two barely visible scars remained right where Rogan’s fangs had sunk in. Eyes widening, Liv held her breath as she prodded her throat with a cautious finger. Apart from a tiny dimple, her skin felt as soft as ever and completely healed. No pain there, no wound.
    Almost transfixed, she gazed at her neck. Seconds ticked away, suddenly broken by a recurrent sound—the scratchy noise she had heard before falling asleep. Irritated by this insistent grating Liv turned around. At the door, she peered into the bedroom. She spotted it at once, and all coherent thoughts fled like a flock of hunted birds.
    Her mind ablaze with panic, she bolted towards the exit, threw the door wide open, and burst out into the sunlight.

Chapter Thirteen
     
     
     
    Instantly struck by hot, golden rays, Liv froze. Her mind went blank, and for a minute she couldn’t remember the reason she wasn’t supposed to stand outside. Heart pounding, eyes riveted to the bedroom door, she willed herself to cool down, to recapture a semblance of rationality. But the sight of the monster inside was branded in her mind, and the simple act of breathing had mutated into an insuperable obstacle.
    Bathed in mid-afternoon summer sunshine, Liv began to sweat. Poised to flee, still looking at the door, her panic attack on the verge of wearing off, she kept on drawing air in and out of her lungs. Nothing moved. Finally the silence surrounding the motel reminded her of the current situation, and she felt a wild urge to run to cover. Too late, though!
    Freaked out by the mouse, rat, or whatever gigantic rodent was in there, she had been standing in the sun for at least a minute. How long did it take to fry up on the spot? How long could a vampire withstand such a treatment before bursting into flames?
    Liv licked her dry lips. Startled by this new development, she raised her head to squint at the fiery ball glowing bright in a cloudless sky. Stretching her arms out, she offered herself to the hot caress, taking new pleasure in the warming sensation that should have been forbidden to her.
    As wonderful as the sun on her skin felt, she had other fish to fry—number one being the huge rodent in the room. Holy mackerel, she had slept right beside the hateful creature for hours! Could life