Struck (A Vampire Novel) ✔

Thirty-Seven

“Fine. What do you want to know?” I almost did a jig in excitement at his words.

“When were you turned?” I asked immediately, watching him intensely. He scoffed abruptly, the sarcastic sound quiet but clear.

“1598.” I paled considerably and widened my eyes in surprise. He opened his lazily, a sliver of amusement creeping into his expression. “I lived in hiding with my village in Scotland, on the Isle of Islay not far off from Loch Gorm. Not that it’s obvious, seeing as I lost the accent centuries ago.”

“You’re like a billion years old,” I said in a hushed voice. Jacobi chuckled in response.

“More like in the 400s. You shouldn’t ask a vampire their age, it’s rude.”

I ignored his comment without fail. “Why did Eve turn you?”

“Elysia,” He warned, his tone dark. I could feel his fierce but subtle anger pulsing inside my own soul, but it didn’t frighten me. If anything, it made me furthermore curious.

“Why don’t you want to tell me?”

Jacobi watched me, more alert than ever. His form had tensed uncomfortably against me and though I didn’t enjoy his discomfort, I sincerely wanted to know what made him so sensitive about his history. For a moment, I thought he wouldn’t say anything further, but then I could feel his resolve crumbling as he peered down to my pleading face.

“I’ve never told anyone that story,” He informed me cautiously. “That’s a long time not to tell anyone, Lysa. That’s a lot of people asking the same questions and not receiving any answers. Why should I tell you?” I didn’t hesitate or pull away. I looked into those intoxicating eyes and reached up to trace my fingers through that dark black hair affectionately.

“You can tell me anything. I won’t ever share your secrets,” I told him sincerely. Jacobi closed his eyes briefly as I ran my fingers through his hair slowly. Then he leaned forward and brushed his lips over mine. I tilted my head back, rising up to claim his lips demandingly. He pulled away before I could find satisfaction, leaving me nearly pouting at him.

“Eve was going to kill me,” Jacobi said quietly, bending his head down to press his forehead against mine. I held my breath, listening aptly to a story I knew he wouldn’t repeat. “My village was full of innocents but the Brion family was generation after generation of vampire hunters. I’d killed dozens of vampires and I was preparing to target the Royals.”

“You were a-“ I gasped, but he put a finger over my lips in warning, demanding my silence.

“Hunters,” He whispered sharply, “Are the vampires’ number one enemy. It’s unheard of to capture any for prisoners. It’s downright blasphemous to turn them. Do you understand?” I nodded my head, my eyes wide with shock.

“Eve found our hidden village and destroyed each and every one of the family Brion, save me and my young brother. She didn’t have it in her to harm a child, no matter who they are, and as for me… when she prepared to kill me, she had a vision. I never knew what that vision was or why it stopped her, but she instead took me as hers and turned me,” Jacobi explained quietly. “I hated her for the longest time. As her Kindred, she forced me to silence, ordering me not to attempt to assassinate any vampires. It was in my very nature to hate everything that I had turned into.”

Jacobi paused, looking away in deep thought.

“Things changed, the longer I stayed with her. I started to see that vampires weren’t what I had been raised to believe. At least, not the vampire society that Eve wanted us to grow to. I found I had unique abilities and the strength to build my own coterie. The sensation of the bonds, something no human and hunter has been allowed to feel, was life changing. Now I’ve been a Master vampire lifetimes longer than I ever was anything else and I’d never want to change that.”