I can imagine, I replied finding it tiring to even think to her.  My lungs drew a tired breath.  Wow, I thought.

    Yes, I know.

    Colette took my hand and pulled me to my feet.  My knees wobbled, I felt light headed.  I shook unsteadily on my feet.  My hand kept a firm grip on the wall, using the stone to steady my legs.

    We continued down the corridor, the torches flickering, casting eerie shadows in the hallway.  She pulled me along, until we came to a large iron door.  She nodded and the door creaked open.  It was the first time I had witnessed Colette command any of the inanimate objects, they typically obey uncommanded.  I wondered why.

    Some things need acknowledgement, was her only comment. The door opened into a huge chamber illuminated by iron braziers and torches, the smoke wafting into small cracks and disappearing into the air above.  The room appeared to be a medieval torture chamber with various machines designed for the torment of a human body.

    An iron maiden hung from the center of the room, empty but still menacing looking.  Two racks were resting on the cold stone floor pointing towards the iron maiden.  There were two men affixed tautly to the racks, the machine pulling their limbs taut.

    They were moaning softly, lost in a world of pain and delusion, desolation and despair.

    Why are they here? I thought to Colette.

    She smiled.  They are the ones who sought me out to destroy me.  Humans, like you once were, kept alive to help keep me alive, an ironic punishment for their treachery.  They had sought me out, as you had, but for a totally different reason.  They wanted to kill me, to rid the world of me, this one said, she was pointing at the thinnest of the two men.  She paused, swallowed and finished aloud, "they failed."

    The men moaned louder when they heard Colette's voice.  It felt that she had finished her thoughts for their benefit to inform them of our arrival. Now, she thought to me, we must feed.

    Their blood called my name, seducing me with the promise of strength. I was tired, worn out and I needed to feed, needed to feel their blood flowing over my tongue.  It was a need, an addicts need, burning, blurring my eyes, my mouth arid.  I stepped forward on weak knees.

    Slowly, Colette thought to me, don't overfeed.  She flashed me what she meant, and I acknowledged with a silent nod.

    I wobbled forward to the man to my left.  His chest was bruised, his arms and legs pulled taut in the rack.  His chest hitched as he drew in shallow breaths.  Spittle dripped from his mouth.  He mumbled something incoherent and then shrieked madly.  He shook violently at my approach, his bonds limiting his actions.

    I took a deep breath and looked into his blank eyes.  He could not see me, I doubted he could hear me.  He knew I was there, though.  He could somehow sense my approach.  His face looked worn, tired and gaunt.  His hair was hanging dirty and unkempt.

    I could smell his fear.

    I bent forward and bit into his throat. Sweet bliss and hot pleasure poured into my mouth.  His blood, coppery and strong, burned my tongue with delight.  The taste was orgasmic, the smell bringing tears to my eyes.

    Colette bent forward and bit the throat of the other man. She fed deeply, the blood giving her strength, invigorating her.  I felt the same, the blood of this man rejuvenation my sore and worn out body.  I continued to feed, pulling his blood into my mouth.

    Yes, Colette thought, grow stronger as you feed.  Accept his gift, and it is a gift, the gift of life eternal.  Grow stronger, become.

    Become?  I pondered the word. Become what, I wondered.

    And in my head the answer came. Become eternal.  Eternal, the images that flashed into my mind blurred, danced by with the speed of thought, eternal.  Thousands of images appeared; the cosmos, the sun, the past, all dancing in my mind, Colette sending me the thoughts rapidly.

    Eternal, I drank deep, pulling the blood into my mouth as became eternal.  This bound man writhed in agony as my teeth bit into his neck.  I drew his essence into my body, drawing strength from his gift.  Colette was right, it was a gift.

    I became eternal, like Colette.  This latest experience drawing my acceptance into Colette's world deeper, longer.  Longer, try eternal, I thought.  She had brought me here to accept me as one of her, a creature that would live forever.

    Remember, her words reached me, you are still mine.

    I know.  Thank you.  And tears formed at my eyes. Colette fed, drinking in the lifeblood of the bound man she stood next to.  I looked up, blood running from my mouth in a lazy river.  As Colette fed the torches burned brighter, their hot flames rising higher.  They took their strength from her and as her strength increased, so too did the strength of her home, her castle, and the possessions within.

    She stood, pulling her mouth off the throat of her supplier.  A single drop of blood lingered at the corner of her mouth.  I walked to her, leaning forward.  I kissed her lips, trailing my tongue over the rogue droplet of blood.  Colette groaned in delight.  I pulled away and watched as she ran her tongue up my neck, cleaning the rivulet of blood that trailed down my cheek and neck.  She licked the blood from my face, drawing her tongue up to taste the salt of my weeping.

    My hand gripped hers, locking our fingers together.  Her skin was warm, her grip firm and comfortable.  Like matching pieces in a jigsaw puzzle our hands belonged together, perfectly aligned.  A perfect fit.  Perfect, I thought, and Colette could read my meaning.  She smiled to me in her mind and with the warm, red lips of her mouth.

    She pulled my by our intertwined hands away from the dungeon. Behind us the torches extinguished themselves, casting the two bound men into darkness, both in the room and in their worn and tattered minds.

    We followed the glowing torches back through the cramped, cobwebbed lined stone corridor.  We slowly ascended the stairs, climbing back into the castle proper.  We have guests coming, I thought to Colette, seeing two men approaching the desolate beach in my mind.  It was where I had sought Colette out, and I knew they were seeking her as well.

    I know.

    You do?

    Yes, I have seen them for the last ten minutes.

    She had been seeing the future centuries longer than I had.  This was, in fact, the first time I had seen into the future.  Just a brief glimpse of strangers approaching, no intent, no discernable features, just shapes in the sea haze.

    Then, a brief chuckle, this could be fun, Colette thought to me, leading me towards the front door. I felt the ground shudder as Colette bade the castle to materialize for our approaching guests.  This could be fun, she had thought, she knew more than I and was not letting on.

    I tried reading her thoughts, but could not penetrate the trap of her mind.  As she was able to read the thoughts of others, so could she protect her thoughts from them.  She had not prevented me from peeking inside her mind until now.  I wondered why.

    You'll find out.

    As she was able to keep her secrets, I found that I could not.  My mind would always be open to her probing thoughts.

    We walked through the stone corridor, the candles flaring into brilliance as we approached, and silently extinguishing as we passed.  We turned down the main hallway, pausing to stand before the slowly opening door of the castle.

    The sound of the ocean whistled in our ears, sounding melodic in its calming tones.  I could smell the ocean spray, could hear the shrill cry of seagulls as they flew along the beach seeking dinner.  From the distance I heard the faint sound of the approaching men.  I heard their whispers, and I heard their blood.  Singing to me, calling me like a Siren's song.  I longed to sing back.

    Colette smiled and together we stepped out onto the beach. Read their minds, she thought to me as we awaited our visitors.  From the tone of her thought I knew she already had.  Perhaps that explained her cryptic, this could be interesting, thought.

    I tried to read their thoughts, but could not find them in the sea spray.  They were approaching.  I knew in time I would be able to read the minds of approaching visitors from greater distances.  And time...

    ...eternal...

    ...I had.

    We waited on the soft sand, the ocean smelling strong in the cool air. I heard the sounds of the sea life, the ocean talking to me.  My senses were more tuned to my environment since I became.

    I shut my eyes and slowly I could see our guests approaching.  They were roughly two hundred yards away and rapidly drawing near.  "Hello," I heard one call out in my mind, then faintly, as a barely audible whisper the sound reached my ears, "hello."

    The water lapped against our naked feet. We stood there silently until the two men materialized from the haze.  They were tall, one older than the other.  The older one, his hair turning gray, spoke calmly, "we know what you are.  We are here to put an end to your life."

    I was shocked.  Colette had known, of course, why they were approaching. I looked at the two men, they did not appear menacing in any way, no where as strong as the vampire that I had seen Colette dispatch decades ago.

    The younger man, his unkempt hair red, freckles lining his face looked confident in his companions ability.  That or he did not know precisely what he was in for.

    Colette thought to me, probe the young one.  Learn.  Have fun.

    Yes, I replied.  I crossed the expanse of his consciousness and climbed inside his mind.  He was a child, seventeen years old.  The man next to him was his grandfather.  He thought he was here to help his grandfather retrieve two thief's.  He had no idea what we were.  So the elderly man had started with a bluff.  I had bought it, but Colette had not.

    I had learned.  But what did Colette mean, have fun?

    She smiled, toy with them.  Learn to use your powers.  Will things to happen, and they will.

    I nodded in my mind, Colette reading my acknowledgement.  I thought to the young one.  Your shoe is untied, your shoe is untied, your shoe is untied.

    The young child bent forward to tie his shoe.  He looked surprised to find that the shoe was not untied.

    "What is it, Keith?" the old man asked, reading the incredulous look on his grandson's face.

    "Nothing pop. Just thought.  Never mind."

    Smiling I thought again, you are standing in fire, and it burns, you are standing in fire and it burns.

    "Ouch," he shouted jumping back.  He looked around for the flames that had burned him.  His pants were smoldering, gray tufts of smoke drifting off the blue jeans.  He pounded his pants leg, trying to put out the small flames that licked the material of his pants.

    "Stop it, you bitch," the older man shouted.

    Colette smiled, and asked coyly, "stop what?"

    He glared at her, his eyes burning with hatred.  "Stop your mind tricks."

    "Sir, I don't know who you are or why you are here, but I would appreciate a more cordial tone."

    She was playing with him, taunting him into action with the softness of her voice.  To me she thought, continue with the young one.  The old one is mine.

    I extended my mind and grabbed one of the seagulls that circled overhead. I manipulated the tiny brain of the bird, urging it to fly to our location. With a devilish grin I prompted the seagull to swoop lower.  The bird, under my control, defecated on the young mans head.

    "Fuck," he hissed in disgust.  "That bird just shit on me."

    I couldn't help but laugh at his distress. I released the bird and watched as it squawked in distaste.  The young man wiped the small pile of excrement from his head, spitting out words of contempt.

    Colette giggled.

    I wondered what else I could do.  Have fun, two simple words that meant so much.  I extended my mind again, probing the sea depths.  I found a crab and smiled as I took control of it's blue body.  I walked it out of the ocean, walking with its awkward sideways gait.  I urged the crab to crawl up to the young man and with a grin I prompted the creature to use its large pincer to grip the skin just above the mans shoes.

    "Dammit," he shouted, kicking his foot in pain.  He kicked at the scurrying crab.  The creature again under its own control.

    Colette grinned at the old man, her voice tinged with the underlying power that I had felt, "do you really think you can destroy me?" She did not deny his charge of being something...else, just countered his threat with the raised timbre of her voice.  "Do you really think you can hurt me?"  She closed her eyes and the wind picked up, howling in the open sea air.  The sea grew violent, waves crashing in a thunderous crescendo, the salt water lapping violently against our feet.  The fog grew thicker, blurring the two men that stood only two feet away.

    "I mean really?"

    The sky grew darker, the sun being obscured by the incoming clouds. Rain began falling in sheets, blanketing the earth in its cold fury.  We became soaked, our hair sticking to our skin.

    My mouth opened at the raw display of Colette's power. The rain fell in sheets, the thunder echoed as lightning danced majestically in the dark sky. Again she asked, "do you really think you can hurt me?"

    The old man looked into the violent heavens, awed at the storm that Colette had called up.

    "Grandpa..." the young man squeaked, his voice filling with terror.

    The old man lowered his eyes from the sky and spoke calmly, shaking his head, "no. Perhaps, foolishly, I did.  But now..." his words trailed off.

     Colette grinned a Cheshire-Cat grin.  She had won, as she knew she would. What should I do with them? Colette thought to me.

    Has this happened before? I knew the answer even before I asked it.  Of course it had.  

    Had I been there?

    Yes.  The last pair to try it are trapped in the dungeon under the main floor.  They are the ones we fed upon earlier.  I don't take kindly to people wanting to destroy me.  She turned to the pair that stood sodden in the cold rain, "what should I do with you?"    

    The man looked older now than he had when he had first arrived.  He aged ten years watching the storm come in, the display of Colette's power.  He replied, tears forming at the edges of his eyes, "I don't care what you do to me, but please," he paused to indicate his grandson, "leave him out of this.  I dragged him along with me, he had no idea what he was getting himself into."

    Colette's smile turned ice, "I think that will be perfect."  She stepped in front of the younger man, "I will not harm your grandfather."

    The young man smiled, relief washing over his face as Colette promised his grandfather would be okay.

    "As for you," she stepped forward and bit his throat, sucking the blood from his body.

    "Noooo!" the old man screamed, dropping to his knees in despair.  "No," he cried, rocking in muted frustration.

    Colette stepped back and turned to the old man, "he is one of us now. If you feel you must hunt our kind, remember him."

    Colette grabbed my hand and together we walked back into the castle.  I could hear the man wailing in despair in the gray mist.  "No," he wailed. "No, please no."

    In my minds eye I could see him kneeling in the wet surf, the cold water washing over his pants, and tears streaming down his sunken face.  He looked older, desolate and lost.  He had come seeking a vampire, knew he would find one.  He had not expected to leave with one.

    I looked at Colette, she was quiet, lost in thought.  What's wrong? I asked.

    Nothing, she smiled at me.  Just thinking of all the times people had come hunting me like this.  How often I have had to defend myself against the hunters.  It is getting, she paused searching the centuries as the rushed past her mind, weighing heavily, old, she finished.

    Behind me, I heard the muted sounds of the wailing man. Colette held up her hand, motioning me to stop.  Watch, she thought to me.  Watch and learn.

    Colette exhaled and the castle faded from site.

    "Noooo!" a desperate sound, weak and lost, like a child unloved.  I watched in my mind as the man crawled on his hands and knees, the water washing over his prone body.  "Please," he implored, desolate.  "Please." He continued crawling, inching forward on his knees.

    The young man slipped to his grandfather, sliding down to kneel by his side, "it will be okay, gramps."  His voice was jaded, hard and bitter.  The old man moaned in despair.   "No.  It won't be.  It will never be." His voice croaked in abysmal desolation.  He inched forward again, seeking the castle, seeking help from the pain he was feeling.

    His voiced reached us in the castle, sounding closer yet just as weak, "I beg you."  Finally he utter the words Colette had been waiting for, "I'm sorry."

    Colette smiled and eased the castle back into the visible world. We turned and left the confines of the castle, our footfalls echoing off the stone walls.  We walked along the sand and stopped in front of the prostrate man, his eyes sodden, his cheeks wet with his tears.

    "Please," he whimpered, glancing at Colette.

    "What do you want?"  Her words were soft, tender, gentle.

    "Keep him," his voice croaked as his pleading tore through his chest.

 "Keep him, please, I beg you.  I beg you, " his words were pleading, lost in an abyss of emotional suffering that I doubted he would ever be able to climb out of.

    I scColetted his mind, he was not there.  He was in a void of black desperation, a cavern of darkness where light would never again shine.  He was lost in a pit of despair, his grandson lost due to his meddling, his foolishness.

    One last, "please, " and that was it.  He placed his hands over his eyes and wept, a blubbering mass of emptiness.

    Colette turned from him and held her hand out to the young man, "come," she whispered.  "You are mine now."

    The young man nodded mutely and took her hand. See what I mean?  Colette thought to me.  Did you learn?

    I thought about what had happened. Colette had displayed her power, had taken control of another and had destroyed a man whose sole intent had been her destruction.  She did it with calculated ease and did not put herself at risk.

    I thought my reaction to her.

    Yes, there was no risk.  Always do what you must with minimal risk.  She was thinking from experience.

    I had been with her in the past, when she had confronted that other vampire.  She had displayed herself for what she was and as such had put herself at risk. Centuries had taught her that discretion was best in her dealings with the general populace.

    I did learn.

    She escorted her new conquest into her home, the castle fading away, and with it the sounds of the broken man..

    "What will happen to him?" the young man asked.

    "He will go home, beaten.  He will live though.  He is a strong man, he will recover, but he will never forget.  He learned a hard lesson, but he did learn."

    Colette led us to her bedroom, the bed becoming from its recessed position on the floor.  The bed had made itself, the satin sheets neatly placed on the bed.  She thought to me, draw us a bath.

    I walked over to the sunken tub and turned on the water, adjusting the flow to a warm temperature.  I picked up a bottle of pear bubble bath and poured a dollop into the water.  The bath began to fill with the fragrant bubbles, as the water continued to pour into the tub.

    Colette began undressing her newest charge.  She pulled his shirt over his head.  His hairless chest was smooth and soft.  Colette ran her hand over his abdomen, "nice," she whispered into his ear.  She blew a soft burst of air into his ear, and then slowly inched her tongue into the cavity.  She tickled his ear and then trailed her tongue down his throat, pushing against his jugular.

    She could feel his pulse throb in his throat.  I could hear her moan in delight as I continued filling the tub.  Colette lowered her hands and unfastened his pants.  She pulled them off and then lowered his underpants as well.  He stood naked before her, his young cock standing firm.

    "I...I...I'm a vir... virgin," he stammered, his cheeks blushed crimson.
    Colette smiled into the warm air, "wonderful." She took his  hand and led him to the tub.  "Get in," she said.  Her voice was soft, tender.  She knew she did not have to force him.  Force would not work, she just had to guide him.

    He climbed into the tub, the warm water sliding up his naked legs.  He sat in the tub, the bubbles coming up to his nipples.  Colette got in and sat across from him, looking at him, studying him.  I turned off the water, the room growing quiet.

    Bathe us, Colette told me, start with him.

    In my mind I nodded, yes Mistress.

    I dropped to my knees.  I picked up a sponge and dipped it into the water.  With the sponge saturated with the soapy water I inched it over the boys back.  He shied away from my touch, fear and trepidation spurring his body to react as if he was shocked.

    Colette watched the gray eyes of her new charge.  She could read his thoughts just by peering into the expanse of his orbs.  The fear of the unknown, the heated desire burning through his loins and the terror of the creature across from him.

    "You don't have to fear me, Keith," she whispered to him.  "I won't," she paused.  She was about to say bite, but that would not be true, instead she continued, "hurt you."

    He relaxed briefly, but I could still feel him tremble under the soft material of the sponge. I dipped the sponge into the water and my hand came around to wash his chiseled chest.  He was shaking slightly, still scared of the situation he found himself in.

    Colette brought her hands up and gripped his face between them.  She held his head, looking into his eyes.  I heard her thoughts as she tried to connect to him.  Keith, it is okay.  It is okay.  She kept repeating the words, like a mantra.

    Keith could not receive her thoughts.  His mind was closed.

    Is that normal?  I thought, my hand dropping to bath his legs.

    Yes, sadly.  She thought back.  I told you that it had been a very long time since I had connected with anybody.  That is what makes you so special. The connection we share.  It could be partly due to fear, but I doubt it. His mind is closed to receive my thoughts.  She smiled, fortunately I can read his.

    Colette pulled the sponge from my hand and stuck it under the water to caress Keith's erection. She ran the soft cloth along his penis, softly stroking his member.  He shook at the touch, the hard surface of the tub blocking his motions.

    "Please," he whimpered.  To me he sounded like his grandfather had less than an hour ago, small and lost.  "Please," he whimpered again.

    Colette pulled the sponge from the water and handed it to me.  Bathe me, she commanded.  I took the sponge and began washing her back, sliding the sponge over the softness of her skin.

    Colette brought her hand down and took hold of Keith's erection.  As I bathed her she slowly massaged his erection.  Her grip was soft, her stroking easy.  She was easing his introduction to the joys of the flesh, slowly masturbating him.  She leaned forward, kneeling, to press her lips to Keith's.

    I used her position to bathe her soft ass, running the sponge over the lovely globes. I trailed the sponge down to wash her legs, ending at her feet.  I brought the sponge up and washed her back again.

    Colette kissed Keith, her tongue dancing into his pliant mouth.  He sat there nervously, accepting the attention being lavished on his body, but not aiding.  He submitted to Colette's caresses and her probing tongue.  Her hand moved faster, masturbating Keith's erection.

    Keith pulled his mouth off of Colette's lips.  "Please," he whimpered again.  His face contorted into a rictus of desire as Colette stroked his erection.  "Ple..." he began, ending as his ejaculate spilled into the warm water of the tub.  "I'm s... sor...sorry," he said, his head hanging in shame.

    Colette whispered in his ear, "there's nothing to be sorry for."

    And he cried.

    Colette shifted forward and wrapped her arms around Keith's neck.  She pulled him into her breast, comforting him like a lost child.  "Nothing to be sorry for," she repeated.

    Keith sobbed in despair.  The emotions he was feeling poured out of him with his tears.  The loss of his grandfather, his family a dream of the past now, only his life here with Colette remained.   He rocked in Colette's soft arms, crying softly.  He felt alone, cut off from the world.

    I sat back on my haunches, waiting patiently for Keith's sobs to subside.

    Colette held Keith for almost ten minutes before his tears receded. "You will be happy here," she whispered in his ear, her voice calming.

    Like a child being solaced by its mother, Keith whimpered, "promise." He seemed frail, younger than his seventeen years.

    With a smile Colette replied, "I promise."

    Keith brought his wet arm up and wiped his eyes.  He looked weak, frail in his tears.

    Colette thought to me, bare your throat, he needs to feed.

    I tilted my head, my neck taut.  Shutting my eyes I awaited the stinging bite.  I could hear the water of the tub slosh as Colette and Keith repositioned themselves.

    "Are you sure?" Keith asked, sounding tired.

    "Yes."

    I felt the sharp teeth of Keith bite into my neck.  I could hear my blood seep into his mouth.  Keith moaned, the sound loud in my ears.  He drank deep, my blood strengthening his weak body.  He swallowed again and again, draining my blood.

    "Enough," Colette said, reaching to pull Keith from my neck.

    Keith hissed in anger, pulling his mouth from my throat and turning to face Colette, baring his bloody teeth in anger.  "I wasn't finished."

    The change in Keith's demeanor surprised me.  He went from frail and lost to threatening with just a mouthful of blood.  Blood, the essence of life, gave strength to the teen.  Then it hit me, it was not the blood that changed his demeanor, it was his age.  He was a teen, angry at the world, forced into submission by the rules that society and parent foist upon him. He felt he knew how things worked better than any adult.

    In outrage, Colette hissed back. Her fangs glistened with saliva, her eyes opened into feral eyes.  "How dare you," she snapped, her shock at Keith's actions, "how dare you challenge me."

    He is just a child, I thought, trying to soothe the ire I heard pumping in Colette's veins.

    I heard her reply, I know.  Her words to me were icy, cold and empty.

    Colette hissed and whispered, "freeze."

    Keith held still, unable to move.  His fangs were still bared, his face frozen in a rictus of anger.  He appeared to be a life-like statue.  The red in his cheeks evident, even in his immobility.

    Colette held him firm with her mind.  I could see his muscles tense under his naked body, straining like a coiled spring about to explode, only there was no place for that energy to release to.  Keith's body, held tense, strained against his skin.  He appeared to be trying to speak, his face held firm, his throat constricting.

    Colette closed her mouth and released Keith's throat.

    "Please," he whimpered, no longer sounding threatening, "I am burning up." His tense muscles, flexing under his skin strained, trying to move. Being unable to ease that tension, the heat of his straining body escalated his body temperature.  Sweat poured from his body, running down his face and arms.

    "Please," he whimpered again.

    Colette watched him suffer, watched his skin flex and dance as it strained to move.  Colette held him still, waiting for him to collapse.

    Keith's legs gave way and he fell to the ground.  His left arm fell into the water of the spa, landing with a loud splash.  He lie motionless, his eyes rolled up into his head.

    Colette released his body and I watched as the coiled spring of his muscles eased.  He was passed out on the floor, lifeless in his collapse. His chest rose and fell with each breath, the only indication that he was still alive.  Sweat clung to his body, the light of the candles reflecting in the moisture.

    He will learn, Colette thought to me.  He is young, she acknowledged my earlier thought.

    Yes, young, I agreed. We thought back and forth discussing the newest member of Colette's home.  I asked about his grandfather and Colette waved her hand.  Before me a white mist appeared, cool air rushing to fill the room.  A picture of Keith's grandfather appeared.  I could hear him speak as we watched spellbound.

    "I lost," he admitted, bowing his head in shame.  He stood before a small group of men in a small room.  The men sat in leather high-back chairs, rocking slowly.  Each man sat in front of a wooden desk, papers strewn in a haphazard mess.

    "What do you mean, you lost?" the first asked, his bald head reflecting the fluorescent light of the room.  His voice was deeply resonant, echoing powerfully in the small room.

    He lifted his head, "I lost.  She beat me."  His tone was defiant, almost challenging.

    From his left a younger man dressed in an immaculate black suit, looking remarkably like a slick used car salesman, spoke, "please, Nathaniel, explain."

    He looked at the man who had spoken, his voice tight as the memory of the confrontation played over in his broken mind, "she is," he paused looking for the word, "unstoppable."

    "Unstoppable?" the bald man asked, incredulous.

    He turned, looking each man in the face, staring at each member of the city council as if daring them to defy his description.  "I mean unstoppable.  She called forth the weather and the sky lit up with bolts of lightning more impressive than any I had seen before.  She controlled my sight, willing her home into an invisible state.  If I had to guess, I think she actually willed the huge estate into an alternate reality.  She," he paused, hitching his throat at the memory, "she...she took Keith.  Bit him. Made him one of hers.  And I was impotent to stop her."

    He fell to his knees, his face in his hands, weeping softly. "Keith," he sobbed rocking, his head held in his shaking hands.

    The group of men looked at the man wearing blank faces. They were unsure of how to continue.  They had placed all their hope on Nathaniel, the strongest of them, to stop the creature.

    The creature, was that valid? the bald man asked himself.  His council hunted her for what she was, but what was she, really?  She had never openly attacked anyone that he knew of, with maybe the exception of Keith.  But that was in self defense if truth be told.  He tossed his thoughts like pizza dough, spinning his mind in crazy circles.

    Was it wrong, he pondered, to hunt her because she was different.  Or were his fears based on her power, which Nathaniel had determined to be vast?  Perhaps, he reasoned, a different introduction was needed.  Was it better to extend the olive branch of peace in lieu of sending out a hunting party?  He would ask the other members of the council, but he knew that a group of men would be sent to the vanishing castle in an effort of peaceful negotiations.

    Nathaniel pulled his hands from his face.  "She took my grandson," he sobbed weakly.  "She took him from me."  He repeated the words as if trying to convince himself that it was just a nightmare, and that it did not really happen.  Reality, however, flowed from his eyes in salty rivulets.  "She took my Keith."

    The vision faded, the mist dissipating in a cool breeze.  Will they send another group?

    Yes.  They will, she thought back.

    When?

    They will argue in committee for seven weeks, and a vote will be taken by the council.  The vote will be two to two, but Nathaniel will break the tie in the hopes that I will release Keith back to him and vote to send an emissary.

    The question begged to be asked, will you release him?

    She smiled and answered aloud, "I don't know," looking at the collapsed boy still unconscious by the spa.  He will prove difficult, this one.  It depends on him.  If he wants to stay, then, no, I won't release him.  He will decide by his actions.  His defiant nature will decide for him.  Can he overcome it and be one of us, or will he balk and threaten at every turn?

    She finished with a flourish, in effect, it depends on how well he can be trained. She thought to me about her past, and the training she had done once before.  She waved her hands and a small book appeared in her hands. Here, she said, offering me the book.  Read this at your leisure.

    I opened the book, the pages worn with age.  The cover was dark amber, a brownish-yellow with the texture of leather.  I looked at Colette's flowing script, the feminine curls on the many words.  I scColetted the pages quickly, catching fleeting glimpses of her words...

    ...another vampire confronted me yet again, threatening...

    ...the wedding was beautiful, I have never...

    ...the blood moon shining down as the chanting grew louder...

    ...training is coming along nicely.  He shows amazing...

    Each time I turned the page decades passed and more of Colette's past became revealed to me.

    Yes, she sighed, it is a diary of sorts.  I used to keep a journal, feeling it would be fun to relive my past.  Now, however, centuries later I find I can relive the event by actually going there.  Much like when I took you to that prairie where the vampire accosted me with the villagers.  Much more powerful experience than reading the words on the page.  Still...

    She faded off as Keith stirred. She watched him as his hand left the water and rubbed his temples.  He moaned in pain as his fingers crossed his bruised cheekbone where it had struck the porcelain edge of the tub.  He sat up, his back to us and wavered slightly.

    He turned to face Colette, "what the fuck did you do to me?"

    A look of shock crossed Colette's face.  He was still being defiant, angry at his impotence.  "Excuse me?" she asked, totally amazed at his display of ire.

    He looked from Colette to me and back to Colette.  With arrogance he spat, "I asked, 'what the fuck did you do to me?'"

    Can you believe this? she thought to me.

    No.  I can't.  I have to wonder if I was that difficult at that age. Again I tried to explain away his actions and words.

    Keith stood up and crossed the room to stand proudly in front of Colette.  "I don't know what you did, but I want to feed.  I want blood. His, yours, I don't care, but I will feed."

    It was not the immobility he had suffered that prompted his actions, it was the blood pounding in his veins that brought forth his arrogance.

    Colette smiled, "don't threaten me,"  her voice was soft, calm.

    "Or what?"

    His defiant tone echoed in the candlelit room.  He stared at Colette, his hands clenched into tight fists.  He looked like a petulant child, his fists on his hips, his breathing ragged.  He glared at Colette, his eyes demanding an answer to his question.

    "Or what?" Colette echoed, aping his tone.  "Do you not remember what I had just done?"

    He shook his head. "You didn't do anything to me."

    Colette's smile faded into a thin-lipped line of anger. "Listen to me. I am only going to tell you this once.  I will not tolerate disobedience or defiance.  I value a strong will, welcome it.  However, you will not raise your voice to me.  Do you understand?"

    "Fuck you!" he shouted.

    Colette shook her head, "fine.  We'll do it your way."

    I shook my head in disbelief.  His words confused me, "you didn't do anything to me," his words had come sharp.  I wondered if he didn't remember or was it arrogance that prompted his response?  Was he looking for a fight? I could not understand his challenging tone.

    Colette waved her hand at Keith and he screamed in terror.  His voice warbled as tears fell from his eyes in a flood.  He ran in circles, seeking something that he could not see.  "Don't kill me," he shrieked like a defenseless child.  "Please," his voice grew weaker as his sobbing continued.

    He continued to run around the room.  He slipped on the edge of the tub, his left foot sinking under his weight.  His shin skidded against the porcelain side of the spa and a small stream of blood seeped from the wound. "Noooo," he cried in desolation.

    He pulled himself from his prone position and continued to run around the bedroom.  He came to the bed, the sunken surface collapsing under his weight.  Once again he fell to his knees.  He pitched forward, his hands scraping against the carpet that made up the edge of the bed.  He sucked in a painful burst of air through clenched teeth.  "Please," he wailed, pulling himself up to continue streaking through the room.

    Come, Colette said to me in my mind, I am hungry.  We should feed.

    Of course, I said, walking to her side.  I took her hand and she led me from the room.  The door opened but Keith seemed oblivious as he tore through the room seeking some unseen exit.  The wound on his leg opened with his exertions and more blood flowed from the small cut.  I heard him wail again, a desperate, lost, weak and wet sob of despair, "no."

    The door closed behind us as we turned left towards the man still tightly bound to the wall. Keith's desperate wail faded as the door clicked shut behind us.  I heard him cry, and a loud thud echoed as he ran into the wall.  What did you do to him? I thought to Colette.

    Colette sighed a deep exhalation, shaking her head.  In his mind he is being hunted by an animal.  He can hear it, see it, smell it, it's breath only inches behind him.  He is trapped in a forest, running nowhere, running from something that is not there.  He is feeling terror at the most primal level, and it should shock him into capitulation.

    Her next two words surprised me, I hope.

    You can not see his future clearly, I thought to her, why is that?

    Colette smiled, the future is difficult.  The more I know the people I am scrying the better my accuracy in foreseeing the future.  Keith is being problematic, he does not want to be here, as you did.  As such he is fighting me.  I am trying to sway his thoughts, without actually planting thoughts into him.  I want him to make the decision to be here, I am trying to guide him.  He needs to learn not to threaten me.

    I nodded.  I understand.

    We walked down the hallway, turning into the room with the bound man. He was asleep, as well as his upright position would allow.  His ring gag allowed copious amounts of spittle to drip down his face.  He stirred as the candles blared into brilliance.

    He moaned behind his gag, coming awake.  He tilted his head, needing to offer his throat to Colette as we needed to feed.

    She thought to me, we will do this as last time, her words were calm.  I will feed on you as you feed on him.

    I nodded mutely, of course.  I stepped forward, pausing as I heard his blood flowing in his veins. I lowered my mouth to his throat.  I bit into his throat and pulled his blood into my mouth. I swallowed heavily, drinking my fill of his essence.  I twisted my head, feeling his skin part under the spikes of my teeth, offering my throat to Colette.

    Colette stepped next to me and sank her teeth into my throat. I reveled in the exquisite pain as her teeth slipped beneath the surface of my skin. She drank deeply, pulling my life's blood from me as I pulled the crimson ichor from the bound man.  Once again we fed in an odd threesome.

    I pulled my mouth from the man's neck and held still until Colette finished feeding.  I could feel my strength returning as his blood filled me.  I grew more alert, more aware of my surroundings.  Concentrating I could hear the soft whisper of the candles flame as they danced in the hidden currents of the room.

    Colette pulled her mouth from my neck.  I smiled at her.  Bending forward I slowly licked my blood from Colette's face.  The bitter coppery taste of my blood melted on my tongue.

    Colette bent forward and cleaned my face, drawing the few drops of blood that fell from my mouth onto her tongue.  She lapped at my face and my cock responded.  My erection bobbed at the erotic feeling of her licking my mouth.  Her mouth licked my lip, it popped back down with an audible click.

    My mouth closed on hers and we kissed passionately. Colette's tongue slipped into my mouth, dancing against my teeth.  Shall we go check on Keith?

    She took my hand and led me from the room.  We had fed and I had felt my strength return.  I found it weird that I had not realized a loss of strength, only that it was an amazing feeling to have that waning strength return.

    We turned right and headed back towards the room where Keith was running from his unseen assailants.  As we approached the room, the door opened.  I could hear Keith wail in terror, his footfalls echoing mutely from the room.

    We turned into the room and watched as Keith staggered around the room. The wound on his leg was bleeding profusely and dark splotches of blood was visible in various places around the room.

    "No," he cried in a weak voice.

    "Don't move," Colette whispered to the lumbering teen.

    Keith froze in his tracks.  "They're coming.  Getting closer.  Help me," he shouted into the room.  "They're here, oh..." his voice choked off and he collapsed to the floor.  I watched his body twitch twice and then was still.