Two hours later . . .
"How's she doing?" Shane whispered as he and Reaper watched Shamira go through her strength tests. Vampires were stronger than humans, so having a standard gym was impractical. Instead, they had a set of hydraulic equipment that was derived from the stuff used to test the power of heavy-duty industrial machines.
The big black man didn't bother to glance at his clipboard. Reaper probably never forgot anything he heard or saw. His brain would probably explode with information in about a century or so.
"Well, she's bench-pressing about half a ton, she did the twenty-yard shuttle run agility test in 1.5 seconds, did the hundred-yard dash in 4.23 seconds, scored higher on her shooting proficiency than anyone here besides me --" He paused. "Shane, have you ever met a fledgling so advanced?"
"No," Shane said. "Shadow H
Several days later . . .Shamira liked having a routine again. Strangely, being a fledgling vampire wasn't so bad. She didn't need much sleep, couldn't gain weight, didn't have any more periods, and could eat anything she wanted. She slept from sunup until the middle of the afternoon, even though she could navigate in daylight if she chose.She was still wearing sweats all of the time, but at least they were her own sweats. The modified Desert Eagle hung in a low shoulder holster underneath a light jacket, and the snakewhip was wrapped around her waist. She'd been practicing with the whips a lot the last couple of days and had made great progress. And while she would never admit it, she enjoyed the sound of it cracking."What's the name of it again?" she asked. She liked Henry. He had a nice smile on top of a gorgeous body, but he didn't feel the need to
"I can't believe that," one of them said, making the others laugh.She grinned vapidly at him. "You're funny," she slurred, enjoying this game immensely. She almost forgot that her life was on the line here. "Handsome too," she hummed. "Isn't he handsome?" she asked one of the other guys."Gorgeous," the second man replied.She made as if to step past them, then stumbled. Her primary target reached out and caught her, groping her chest while he did so. She let him support her as he leaned her against the wall, his body against hers.A couple of things happened. First, she could feel an immediate swelling in his trousers as he asked if she was all right. Second, she felt a certain warmth in her own loins. It wasn't that she was particularly attracted to him, but he obviously was to her. And the idea of being taken in a public place
Back at the house . . . Shamira stood in front of her closet, staring at all the nice if somewhat risqué things that they had bought just a few days earlier. She wanted to leave. She wanted out of this nightmare, but she couldn't take any of these things. None of them were really hers. She had no suitcase, no money of her own, no wallet . . . even the sweats that she was wearing were borrowed. She was a vampire, but she felt more like a ghost. She was hanging around this world, but did it really have a place for her? She wanted her old life back. It might not have been much, but it had been simple. "What are you thinking?" came a warm, masculine voice behind her. "That it's time for me to go," she replied, turning to look at Shane. "I don't think I can do this." "I think you can, but t
The next afternoon . . .There was a lot on Shamira's mind, so she decided to unwind in a most convenient manner. She went and played golf. She hadn't picked up a club in about four years, but she still understood the basics, and muscle memory took care of the rest.It was still unseasonably warm, so she was in a fairly snug pair of shorts and a muscle shirt. The hardest part of golf was keeping herself from using her vampire strength. That would be cheating, and she refused to cheat at a game that you can play by yourself.She had just sliced on a par three and was clambering back into her cart to enjoy a good cursing of the gods of golf and drink down one of the cokes in the cooler she had brought when she heard the low humming of another cart and the crushing of gravel beneath those solid little tires. Banshee and Shane pulled up, and Shamira actually got a snicker
She nodded. "I'm sorry I've been so freaked out recently. I promise I'll get better. No more running off. I may not like or even understand why you do things the way you do, but how much right do I have to bitch if I just walk away and do nothing? You keep the peace. And these guys don't follow you out of fear. They respect you and they like you. I've had worse bosses in my life." The research that he'd been working on now seemed like the most trivial stuff in the world. He'd been hoping she'd come around, and so she had. She was standing in his office, on her own two feet and without any coercion on his part. He got out of his chair and offered her his hand, which she shook. "You'll stay on then?" "Yes Sir. Just point me to the books on all this magical hoo-hah that you guys get mixed up with and I'll study it." He grinned. "I hope you're a fast learner."
'This is so not good for my back,' she thought. She felt a slap on her ass and noticed that Shane was looking at her expectantly. This was another moment where she would be blushing if she could. Her jaw started moving but the sound was strangely absent. He raised his hand again --"Women," she whispered heatedly. "I want to be with . . . dominated by a woman. Or multiple women. Multiple people, public places." Then the flood came. Acknowledging the path of being a sexual being had been hard. That night, she had taken the first step down the path. Now, she was drawing Shane a topographical map.Shane was suppressing a grin. It was like he and his household had won the sex dreams lottery. Then he wondered if she'd ever really been happy. "I want you to be honest," he said when she finally ran out of ideas. "Why haven't you ever indulged yourself? Keeping all your desires in
'Okay,' Shamira thought as she prepared to face a brave new day, 'I need to get some cotton sheets. This silk stuff really isn't that comfortable.' Earlier that night (or morning), she had done things that she never would have imagined herself doing. She had been chained up, physically manhandled, had hot wax tripped all over her, and had been violated in every orifice that she could think of. The man who had made Shamira a vampire, one Shane Stapleton, had introduced her to a world that had only existed in her fantasies before. He had told her to call herself a whore, and she had. She had enjoyed it. She had enjoyed all of it. Now, she was wondering what the hell she'd done. After a set of mind-blowing orgasms and wild sensations, Shane had unchained her and brought her back to her bedroom. Shane always slept, and in reality slept, alone as a security precaution. He was an important vamp and the head of this house, so she understood the precautions. But waking up alone made her th
----------- -----------At dinner . . .----------- -----------Shamira was a little alarmed at what she was seeing. She had been getting ready to enjoy a nice medium-rare NY strip steak when Shane's dinner had arrived. And by dinner, he meant the wife of a district appeals court judge. She was a woman who was still quite comely in her mid-forties, with the body of someone who had worked long and hard to keep from losing her youthful figure. It had worked.She seemed to know everyone at the table except Shamira, whom she greeted warmly. Then she had straddled Shane's lap and he had bitten into her neck. The rest of the table just grinned and went back to eating. Mrs. Tabitha Grunholdt, the lady in question, was grinding against Shane's lap as he drank from her neck."She's something, isn't she?" Renata asked. The werejaguar leaned in and whispered, "She and her husband have an open relationship. Not surprising since he's a closet homosexual AND a Republican. She was able to get her kic