The Dark Gifts Birthright Read Online Free PDF Page B

and another annoying chuckle, he turned and
walked away.
    His brusqueness rushed through her, giving
birth to that primal instinct. She hurdled towards him. He met her
mid air, wrapped his arms around her, and landed lightly on his
feet. Liz growled and snapped, trying to sink her fangs into his
neck. His grasp eased just enough for him to spin her around.
    “This is becoming redundant,” he whispered in
her ear.
    Once again, his breath caused vibrations
within her. Her anger refused to allow the reaction to gain
strength. "You killed me, you monster! Y-You took everything away
from me.”
    “I did, but you didn’t stay dead. So, no
harm, no foul. Right?”
    She didn’t answer. The muscles in her face
pulled tight. His humor washed over her in an overbearing wave. Her
life, all of it, was gone. She had already suspected there was no
way to better the situation, but now she understood that she
couldn’t even kill the man who had done this to her. Worse than
that, she didn’t even know if she wanted to. To journey to a
Council of Vampires seemed too much, like far more than anyone
should have to bear in one day’s passing. Bit by bit, her body
relaxed against his as a deep sadness replaced the anger.
    Michael sighed and loosened his grip.
Grabbing hold of her hand, he led her into the cabin.
    She tried to yank free as she stumbled behind
him. “Let go of me.”
    “Come in, we have a lot to talk about.” He
looked over his shoulder. “Hopefully you didn’t expel all of Amos’s
unwilling donation. Otherwise, you should be fine until tomorrow
night.” He turned around and continued walking, pulling her behind
him.
    “I said let me go.” Liz said through clenched
teeth as she yanked hard and pulled him off balance.
    Michael faced her. His eyes glowed. “Do you
really want to do this again? It didn't go so well for you last two
times.”
    Liz squared her shoulders, pushing her chin
up in defiance.
    “I could just carry you.”
    She didn't want to be that close to his body
again. Did she? Relenting, she followed.
    Once inside, she sat at the table and let her
eyes wander around the small cabin. Nothing about the place
screamed vampire . He pulled open a cupboard door and placed
two wine goblets on the counter. Opening the fridge, he pulled out
the large carafe.
    “Everything in there is rancid you know,” she
said.
    “It’s not rancid, Liz. It’s people food and
you’re not human anymore. If you had done a little more digging,
you would have found the carafe of blood I keep in here and
wouldn’t have needed to slaughter all those poor innocent deer or
attack my sentinel.”
    “You’re kidding me, right? You killed me last
night. Drank my blood, and now you‘re preaching to me?” Crossing
her arms over her chest, she sulked in her seat muttering, “You’re
insane. Totally, undeniably, insane!”
    “There is a difference.”
    “Explain this so-called difference, would
you? I don’t remember giving you consent to rip out my throat.”
    “Technically, it was a bite not a rip. And I
wouldn’t have taken much if you hadn’t fought so hard. Even then,
you shouldn’t have turned. I planned on leaving you on a bench at
the boardwalk where your friends could find you. But you changed
and ran.”
    “I felt your anger and hate. It was brutal.
If you’d found me last night, you would have ripped me to shreds.”
She couldn’t believe the nerve of this guy. And why was she just
sitting here having a conversation with the lunatic, like being
turned into a vampire was nothing at all?
    Michael’s broad shoulders slumped as he
sighed. Liz watched as his perfectly manicured hand slid down the
wine goblet’s stem. Something about the way it moved over the glass
made her insides tingle. Her tongue darted out of her mouth, moving
over her lips. Frustration melted, leaving her with an odd feeling
of desire. She wasn’t certain whether she wanted the man or the
blood.
    Michael circled the rim of the glass with