Bitten by the Vampire by Bonnie Vanak Page A

He could dematerialize and escape. But he couldn’t take her. He’d already told her he could not.
    Pain pricked her heart. So this was death. It was peaceful, yet sad and still, because it removed her from the man she loved. The realization was like a knife lancing her heart.
    I love you, Lucien. I always will. I’m sorry I can’t stay….
    â€œGo,” she gasped. “Jones did this. He’s outside. You can escape. Please…save yourself. Just do me a favor, and kick his ass.”
    Maybe she was meant to die in a fire after all. Tears gushed from her eyes.
    â€œNever without you, he said fiercely.
    Lucien pulled her down to the ground, then into his sheltering arms as if to protect her from the flames. Shielding her body with his. Mara buried her head into his broad chest.
    â€œI’m so scared.”
    â€œDon’t think about it, sweetheart. Hold me, just hold me. If I’m to die tonight, then damn me to the fires of hell. I’d rather burn there and hold you one last time than spend a lifetime without you.”
    â€œLucien, he’s winning. Jones always wins. You said he can’t be touched. I hate him. I hate him!”
    Blackness consumed her. Talons emerged from her fingernails. The demon had not been absorbed by Lucien after all. Remnants still lingered deep inside her.
    Tenderly, he cupped her face, forcing her to meet his gaze. “Let go of the hate, Mara. Let go of the thoughts of revenge. Focus on the white light. Let it vanquish the flames.”
    Mara squeezed her eyes shut and reached for her angelic side. But as her skin heated, she found it impossible to focus. “I can’t!”
    â€œThink Mara. When you were being dragged to the furnace, terrified and seeing your death before you, what brought out the white light?”
    Thoughts whirled in her mind like a sinister vortex. Then, shining through the bleakness and despair came a single pure thought.
    â€œMy mother. She loved me so much. I thought about her.” Mara coughed violently. “But she’s dead! I can’t stop thinking about Jones and how much I hate him! It’s the only thing I have left!”
    â€œNo, it’s not. You have me. I love you.”
    Eyes watering, she looked up at him in shock.
    Lucien’s fingers caressed her skin. “I was too scared to admit it, even to myself. I didn’t want to lose you and now, there’s nothing left to lose. Look at me, Mara. Focus on my love for you. Look at me, my love. Concentrate on me. Feel our connection and what we share.”
    Her eyes closed. With all her might, she focused, and suddenly the blood link they shared surged like an electrical current. Mara saw deep into Lucien’s soul, seeing not the previous blackness and emptiness, but a soothing peace he now savored, all because of her.
    â€œIf I lose you, I lose myself,” he whispered. “You are my life. Let the white light shine. Surrender to it.”
    Then his voice deepened, became a whiplash of command. “Live Mara. Let go, and live.”
    White light hummed and sang inside her. It burst out of her fingertips, radiating from her body. Tendrils of it misted the air, then with all her might she hurled it toward the flames. Into the heat it raced, cooling the fire, dousing it like a torrential downpour, creating a vortex that suctioned away the deadly smoke and heat. It suctioned the smoke from her lungs and spiraled into Lucien, drawing out the smoke from his.
    The vortex spun faster and faster, inhaling the fire like a hungry mouth, and then with a glimmer of sparks, it was gone.
    Blackened embers and ashes scorched the room. Lucien’s face was covered in smoke, his dark eyes moist. He framed her face tenderly with his hands and pressed a gentle kiss to her swollen lips.
    Mara’s heart raced. “Petra! She’s outside with Jones.”
    They raced out of the garage and ground to a halt.
    In her human form, Petra lay