Page 91 of Once Bitten, Twice Mine

“Ah, so this is Miss Caroline Blythe.”

The vampire Dr. Murnau caught wasn’t Valeria, but a man she had never met, but recognized all the same. So this was The Count.

CHAPTER 24

“How do you know who she is?” Dr. Murnau asked, frowning as he turned to her. “I never once mentioned your name. I didn’t want to risk your safety.”

“Don’t flatter yourself, mortal,” the man said from his place on the floor. His deep voice was smooth and hypnotic; she kept her gaze over his shoulder because it would be too easy to fall under his spell. “I don’t need to get my information from you. I knew of her long before I came to your backwards little village.”

“You’re The Count.” Her hands shook, but her voice was steady. Even though he could smell her fear, she wanted to appear strong.

“The mortal has a brain at least. Let me get a good look at you.”

Caroline turned to him, taking a big step towards the iron cage even though everything in her screamed not to, but the desire to obey was too strong.

He looked her up and down, his green eyes pierced her in such a way she wouldn’t have been surprised if he could see inside her. They were such a sharp green, unlike anything she had ever seen on a human. When she was a little girl, she had seen a wolf with eyes like that while playing in the garden at night. Those eyes had her frozen in fear until her father scooped her up and brought her inside. She asked him if he had seen the eyes, but he instead chided her for playing outside after dark.

His thick, shoulder-length hair was a rich chocolate brown and looked so luscious she wanted to run her hands through it. His skin was flawless, without blemishes or scars, and the most even skin tone she had ever seen. His striking green eyes were lined with thick lashes that fluttered as he looked her up and down. His full pink lips pulled into a frown. He was an attractive man, but it was like admiring a painting.

“I suppose I can see your allure if I squint,” he finally said, with a hint of an accent she couldn’t place, but there was a familiar cruelty in his tone.

“I would rather you didn’t find me alluring.”

Dr. Murnau looked between them, his brow furrowed. “Do you know each other?”

“We have friends in common. Now I see being caught by this mortal was divine providence.”

“How did you catch him?” She asked, turning towards Dr. Murnau.

“I caught him next to a body, unfortunately. He was dazed, and I was able to get him in iron.”

“My mother would be so disappointed to know I succumbed to blood drunkenness. I’m sure you’re familiar with that, aren’t you, Caroline?”

She remembered the day she found Valeria with a fever when she hadn’t gotten fully in bed at dawn, but she wasn’t sure if it was blood drunkenness. Despite spending so much time with Valeria, she knew very little about vampires.

She turned to Dr. Murnau. “I’m not sure if I’ve ever seen blood drunkenness.”

“All of that time together and you still couldn’t get her to spill any secrets?” The Count shook his head. “I’ll have to reward her for not breaking all of my rules.”

Rage flashed through her, and she almost took a step towards the iron cage, but his eyes flashed with delight, so she stopped herself. Losing her temper wouldn’t do her any good. She would need all of her faculties if she wanted to best this devil.

“What are you? How are you able to be up right now?”

It was midday. No light permeated this basement, but that didn’t stop the truth that the sun was out. She had seen what happens to vampires when dawn hit. He shouldn’t be conscious right now, let alone taunting her. The one thing Caroline knew for certain was that he was dangerous. Far more dangerous than Valeria.

“Is this what you want to do? Sit around and ask me questions?”

“Yes,” Caroline said without hesitation. There were things she needed to know, questions she had been too afraid to ask Valeria.

“I’ll answer your questions, but not his.”

“There’s no way I’m leaving her down here alone, you fiend,” Murnau said, striking the wooden stick against the iron bars again.

It was the most animated she had ever heard him, even if his aggressive loudness was likely to get them both killed.

“Then I suppose you’ll never get the answers you desire,” he sighed, stretching his long legs in front of them before crossing his ankles. They nearly reached the bars of the cage, which meant he would tower over her while standing.

“He’s held in iron, and I won’t get any closer to the cage. If he could get out, he would have already done so.”