Choices

Summary:

The first time they met Kris knew Adam was different to everyone else, he just never
realised how different.

Work Text:

History

Vampires established a firm culture, society and hierarchy after The Dark Time when a
large number of their species were killed in the witch-hunts after some of their trusted
humans betrayed them. It was widely believed that the betrayal was a result of
Francoise Richard's 1657 book Relation de ce qui s'est passé a Sant-Erini Isle de
l'Archipel linking vampirism and witchcraft making the humans afraid of what their
vampires friends had done or would do to them.

Each country had a ruling vampire court led by the King and/or Queen, followed by a
council of Dukes and/or Duchesses, each of whom were in charge of a state or region.
Each Duke or Duchess had a circle of Lords and Ladies, one for each city, a vampire who
dealt with the day-to-day business and the petitions from their citizens.

Those who held the throne were not determined by their bloodline but by their strength,
skills, intelligence and wisdom; these traits were tested during a vision quest, a trial by
the first of their kind known only as The Ancient. On passing the trial, they were given a
mark on their right forearm that could not be replicated.

Each Lord or Lady kept at least one building as a sanctuary, a haven for vampires in need
of some sort of help. It could be anything from food, education, a job, home, or training
in controlling their natural instincts to hunt the humans. The sanctuaries had saved so
many vampires from going out of control and bringing them to the attention of the
humans. It was forbidden for sanctuaries to connect willing donors with vampires, any
Lord or Lady whose sanctuary did so would be executed. This was to prevent vampires
from using the haven as a food source.

The different courts had their own customs and alliances, but the word of the king or
queen of each court was law. There were of course, rogue vampires who indiscriminately
killed humans but these were outside the control of the courts. If a rogue vampire was
found, it was preferred that they be taken to the closest court to see if they could be
rehabilitated, if not they were quickly executed. The killing of humans was only allowed
if it sanctioned by the King or Queen, normally for crimes against the court or vampire
nation such as murder, blackmail or robbery.
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There were over three million vampires but the individual clans rarely contained more
than fifteen members. If members of a different clan mated, they joined the senior
partner’s clan. It had been that way for millennia and no one saw a need to change it.

In 1900, a mortal by the name of Nathan Harrison used his knowledge of theatre makeup,
biology, and chemistry to create a sun block to allow his lover, Anthony, to go out into
the sun with him. Unfortunately, his lover had used Nathan’s gift of the sun to find
himself more lovers. After Nathan discovered the truth, he told Anthony that he was
leaving only for Anthony to attack and turn him a fit of rage.

Once he had regained consciousness and realised he was a vampire, Nathan had sought
out the Lord of the city to petition for sanctuary, which was granted immediately when
the circumstances of his turning was disclosed. Grateful for the help, Nathan had
presented the Lord with his sun block.
The Lord had immediately taken the wonderful creation to his Duke who had in turn
requested an audience with the King. Realising how much this could benefit vampires the
world over, King Roche had sent a messenger to each ruler announcing and sharing the
miracle creation known as Harrison’s Gift and soon every court had a stockpile ready to
distribute amongst the clans.

No longer were vampire confined to hiding in the shadows, terrified of even the smallest
beam of sunlight. Now they were free to mingle with humans, even if they couldn’t fit in
completely since their otherworldly charisma tended to cause problems. Vampires turned
after 1901 never knew the pain of being on the outskirts of society and it was something
each of the older ones was happy about, never wanting another generation to suffer as
they had.

*******

He stumbled down the alley, the scent of decomposing food, alcohol, and human decay
almost overpowering him. Although he couldn’t see it, Adam knew that the Sanctuary was
nearby, he just had to make it there, and everything would be okay. He had been crazy
to think he could go outside without his thirst overpowering him but he couldn’t stand
being trapped inside the mansion any longer. Spying the building, he staggered towards
the door, ignoring his double vision and feverishly rapped on the door.

The door opened with a creak and a tall, silver haired male was staring down at him in
expectation. An annoyed, haughty look on his face, it was clear he wasn’t pleased at
Adam’s furious banging on the door.

“I can’t control it, Lord Graham.” Adam said desperately.

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Looking at the shaking form Lord Graham sighed saying, “You look like shit. How long has
it been?”

Desperately trying to focus Adam said, “Four days, I think.”

Eyebrows raising Lord Graham said, “I'm surprised you managed to make it here without
killing someone, then. Come in and I’ll have some food brought to you.”

Adam felt strong arms sweep him up as Lord Graham carried him, bridal style into a large
homely room. The curtains were gold and red and in the middle of the room stood a large
fireplace, a blood red rug lay in front of the fire on which a black and brown Jack Russell
slept with an occasional whine.

“As you know, my name is James Graham and this is my Sanctuary. Fiona will bring in a
drink for you, taken from the blood bank, if that concerns you.” Lord Graham said calmly.

Adam frantically nodded in agreement as tall, slender woman walked into the room
carrying a large goblet. All Adam could focus on was the scent of blood filling the air,
human blood that he could drink freely. Adam spared a quick look of thanks at the woman
as he took the goblet and gulped it down, feeling the pain of hunger lessen with every
mouthful. Once he had drained the goblet, Adam felt sanity return and with it shame
that he had been so out of control and foolish. He looked around to find the woman had
disappeared.

“I take it that you are feeling better now?” Lord Graham said, noticing the shaking had
ceased.

Adam smiled widely, “Yeah. Thank you so much for helping me, My Lord. I would have
attacked someone if I hadn’t found this place. Sorry for not introducing myself, my name
is Adam Lambert.”

“It’s a good job that you found us then. As I recall, the Lambert clan believes in only
using willing donors, right?”

Hearing the disbelief and barely veiled scorn in the Lord’s voice, Adam mentally sighed.
Adam knew some clans and courts regarded those clans who only drank from willing
donors a danger; fearing a repeat of The Dark Time. Some clans believed that willing
donors should be treated as they had been when vampires had been forced to hide in the
night. At that time willing donors were kept firmly under the control of the courts, every
aspect of their lives was controlled from the moment they consented to the day they
died. A donor could only work in businesses owned by the courts; they could only date

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another donor and they had to live on court land. Donors were kept in a gilded prison; if
they ever voice their desire to have a life outside of the court, they were killed.

The majority of vampire clans and courts felt it acceptable to drink from a mortal who
did not consent with the proviso that the mortal could not be killed nor remember it.
Most humans wouldn’t remember being fed on even if they did not consent because
brains repressed the trauma of the event, the few that did disappeared. Often people
thought it was a weird dream and there was no evidence to the contrary as the bite mark
was removed by the vampire after they finished feeding.

At Adam’s nod, Graham said briskly, “Since you arrived famished, I assume you do not
have a regular food source.”

Grief in his voice Adam shook his head, “Not anymore, he was killed and I haven’t had
time to get another one.”

Feeling he knew Adam from somewhere Graham concentrated before saying, “I recognise
your name from somewhere, one of my children mentioned it...Ah, you are involved in that
singing competition right?”

Adam answered happily, “It’s called American Idol. It has always been my dream to sing
in front of an audience, to have people listening to my music.

Shaking his head at the youngster’s foolishness Graham said, “To be so concerned about
being a singer you must be young. The obvious solution, Adam, is to quit the show and
return to your clan.”

Adam said passionately, “With respect, I am 130 years old and I will not give up. Singing
makes me feel just like when you drink the blood of a willing donor in love with you. You
know how that feels, Lord Graham; the sense of completion, exhilaration and passion.
Now we have the techniques and technology to age me so there is nothing to stop me
pursuing my dream.”

“Most unusual but I can understand your reasons. If you not going to see reason and
leave the competition, have you considered looking for a donor amongst the crew of the
show?” Graham said seriously.

Having previously considered this point Adam shook his head explaining, “I have but it
wouldn’t work. It needs to be someone I can get to at any moment and the only people
I'm constantly around are the other contestants and any one of them can be sent home a
moment’s notice.”

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Graham said matter-of-factly, “So you must find a donor amongst the other contestants,
one you trust with your life who you know will be in the competition a long time. If
necessary, they can be a temporary donor whilst you find someone more suitable.”

Adam knew there was only one person who could be a donor for him but he couldn’t do
that to Kris.
He knew Kris’ life would never be the same; he would be in danger like all willing donors.
Adam knew there had to be another way but he couldn’t think of one.

Adam nodded in understanding saying, “I'll find someone. I need to go, I'm supposed to
be at some magazine thing, and it’ll look strange if I'm not there.”

“Okay. Adam, if you can’t find someone let me know. Take some blood wine home with you
until find someone,” Graham said as one of the many maids walked in carrying three wine
bottles.

“Thank you for your help, Lord. May the moon shine on you and your clan,” Adam said
gratefully, giving the traditional goodbye for a Lord or Lady.

After a nod of dismissal, Adam walked out of the building with the bottles in a paper bag.
Composed of 80% blood and 20% wine, the blood wine was created to enable vampires to
fit in with humans. It gave vampires something to drink in a bar or club that was truly
enjoyable and nourishing.
Adam knew the blood wine was only a stopgap measure, after being on a diet of solely
blood wine for a while; a vampire would slowly lose his sanity, control, and energy before
dying. The duration a vampire could survive on just the blood wine varied depending on
the power and constitution of the vampire. Unlike the mythology, vampires were capable
of eating and digesting human food, it just didn’t do anything for them. Adam knew the
wine would buy him time to find a donor, it wasn’t just a matter of finding a consenting
human, a vampire, and donor had to be compatible. No one knew what made a vampire and
donor compatible; it was widely suggested that it was a combination of biology,
intelligence, and instinct.

The day he had met Kris, Adam had known that the man was a match for him and would
be the most compatible donor he had come across in seventy years. The only other man
who had been so compatible with him, Isaac, had been his lover until the man died in a
robbery. He would have to start going out more to find someone and put the word out to
his clan that he needed help. Eber and Leila, two humans who were friends with his Sire
and agreed to pose as his parents, might be able to find someone amongst their human
friends and family.

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Looking at his watch, Adam realised that he had just enough time to get back to the
mansion and hide the wine in his closet so that no one could stumble across it. If the
others found it, they would demand a drink and he couldn’t think of a way to explain why
he had it.
*******
Kris looked up as Adam walked into the lounge, dressed as normal in he always thought of
as Lambert chic, an eclectic mix of glam rock, punk and Goth styles that just seemed
right on Adam. Kris knew no one else would be able to wear such an outfit but Adam, he
had noticed when some of the fans at the Idol taping attempted such a feat.

Noticing that Adam was looking considerably paler and wearier than normal, Kris
wondered how he could get Adam to talk to him because he knew his friend was
suffering. Five nights ago, Kris had heard Adam leave their room at three a.m. and
worried, he had followed to find Adam sitting on the floor in the dark lounge. He had
just been able to make out tears falling down Adam’s face as he clutched his phone
against his chest, looking like he was shattered into a thousand pieces that would never
be correctly reassembled.

The next morning, Adam had been up early as normal and had seemed to be his normal
happy, sarcastic, funny self but Kris hadn’t been fooled. When Adam thought no one was
looking, his mask fell, showing so much pain that Kris was amazed that Adam was moving
about.

Kris knew he couldn’t let it continue, let Adam wither away in front of his eyes because
the older man was too afraid to share his real feelings. He had given Adam five days to
come to him for help and since the man wouldn’t or couldn’t do it, Kris was going to give
his help even if Adam didn’t want it.
There was a loud beep of a car horn then a stampede of footsteps on the stairs as
everyone rushed to get their favourite seats in the car. Wanting to avoid the crush of
people, Kris fell back giving Adam a grin when the man gave him a knowing glance. Finally,
it was safe to get into the car, so the pair strolled over taking their normal seats next to
each other.

“Adam, can we talk later?” Kris asked, knowing the rest of the contestants would hear
him but wanting everyone to know that he wanted Adam to himself for the night.

Kris knew that unless he staked his claim to Adam for the night, as it were, someone
would inevitably appear to drag Adam away. It seemed everyone wanted Adam’s attention,
even those not particularly friendly with him, sought Adam out.

“Sure. Is everything okay?” Adam questioned worriedly.

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Kris said softly, “Yeah. We’ll talk about it tonight. Have you had something to eat since
breakfast because you look pale?”

Hearing the concern in his best friend’s voice, Adam nodded, all at once loving and hating
Kris’ caring nature. He loved that Kris could tell that something was wrong and was
concerned enough to ask about his eating habits but he hated that Kris was so observant
because Kris would see almost immediately when he started to fade. Adam accepted that
unless his clan was successful in finding someone, he would die as there was no way he
would put Kris in danger because of his selfish needs.
*******
As the moon light reflected off the pool, Kris looked over at Adam, who was staring
straight ahead, seemingly lost in his thoughts. The pair had quickly moved to the poolside
once the rest of the contestants started retiring to bed, both understanding that they
needed to talk in private.

Kris asked gently, “Are you alright, Adam?”

“I’ve just been going through some things,” Adam said honestly with a shrug.

Kris reached out and touched his friend’s knee, noticing how Adam stilled at his touched.
He couldn’t understand why since they had always touched each other. He hoped that
Adam wouldn’t try to pull away from him because he truly didn’t want to see his friend
suffer.

Adam could feel the heat of Kris’s hand on his leg, the tantalising sound of Kris’ blood
beneath his fingers. The urge to grab Kris’ wrist and bite into the vein was there but
Adam resisted, focusing on the instructions his Sire had given him to control his urges.

“You’ve been a bit off since I heard you on the phone the other night and you look very
pale. If something is wrong, I might be able to help,” Kris said shortly, ignoring the
Adam’s flinch.

Adam said honestly, “A very close friend was killed in a car crash that night; I’ve been a
little upset.”

Shocked Kris said, “Oh. Do you need to talk about it?”

“Maybe later, it’s still a little raw at the moment. Thanks though,” Adam said with a
sincere smile.

Gently Kris said, “You have to start eating properly because it’s obvious you’ve been
skipping meals. Adam, I'm sure your friend wouldn’t you to get into this sort of state.”

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Thinking of the man who had been his best friend since they met Adam nodded, “Joe
would bitch at me if he was here but the problem is that he isn’t here.”

Seeing the pain in his friend’s eyes, Kris felt helpless, knowing there was nothing he
could do to ease Adam’s grief. He would be there for Adam when the man wanted to talk
and he would do his best to stop the others from hassling Adam too much.
*******
The vampire instructed calmly. “Adam Lambert has become a liability. His donor is dead
and he seems unlikely to take another. You will kill him quickly; no one can suspect he was
murdered.”

Nodding the man replied calmly, “As you will it, My Lady Morgan. I will contact you when
he is dead.”

Smiling coldly Morgan said, “Good. If you fail, you will die without being made one of us.
You may go now.”

Finishing the call, the man placed his phone into his pocket and looked out across the pool.
He was pleased at being given a chance to prove his worthiness for a place in the clan. He
would have to be careful when planning how to dispose of Adam. It would not be difficult
but he needed everything to go perfectly. If he messed it up, there was no chance of
him becoming one of the immortal vampires. With that thought in mind, the man headed
back into the Idol mansion and to bed.

*******

Nodding at Alison as she walked past, the man smiled, having studied their schedule for
the rest of the week, and found the perfect time and method to kill Adam. The man gave
Adam a quick glance; the vampire seemed to be enjoying himself, not knowing that soon
he would be truly dead.

It wasn’t that he hated Adam; it was just that the vampire’s death was the only way for
him to achieve his goal. He could not fail because of his attachment to Adam. He refused
to think of the Adam he had come to know, who had freely given his help despite them
being rivals in the show. He would kill Adam and mourn his passing, it was the only thing
he could do.
*******
Standing up from where he had been reading on the sun lounger, Adam grinned as Matt
walked over to him with a friendly smile. One thing he liked about this competition was
that the friendships that had developed.

“Adam, is everything okay?” Matt asked.

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“Yeah, I just need to put some more sun block on and I’ve left it inside,” Adam said with
a shrug.
Matt nodded offering, “Do you want me to put it on for you, so you don’t miss any spots?”

Adam debated how to answer the question, as he truly didn’t need the help but it had
been a while since he had someone touching him, even in a platonic way. Vampires were by
nature very tactile creatures and being trapped in the mansion, Adam hadn’t been able to
fulfil his needs. He did touch Kris a lot but that wasn’t enough, he needed more skin to
skin contact and he wasn’t around his friends or clan who would meet his needs without
thinking it strange.

“That would be good,” Adam said honestly before leading the way into the house.

Once in the bedroom, Adam passed the sun block to Matt who opened the bottle and
made a small sound of appreciation.

There were two variations of sun block, the one used depended on the preference of the
vampire and the conditions in which they would be using it. The first type was unscented,
particularly useful for the colder climates with only a small amount of sun, when wearing
sun block would be strange. The scented version that Adam tended to use had a citrus
scent with a small hint of vanilla and jasmine.

“This smells amazing, where did you get it from?” Matt asked softly.

“A friend gave it to me along with my moisturiser,” Adam answered with a grin knowing it
would work to cover the days that he was using the sun block and there was no obvious
need.

“Your friend has good taste. Lie down and I'll do your back first,” Matt said quickly.

Adam did as requested, wondering at the atypical behaviour from Matt. He was close to
the man but Matt had never been so eager to touch him before. He just hoped the man
wasn’t developing some sort of attraction to him because it would just end up causing
problems in the long run, especially as he wasn’t particularly attracted to Matt. Adam
knew it was probably just a result of his at times frustrating charisma. The intense
charisma was a trait that was both a curse and a blessing to most vampires, it made it
easier to catch their prey but it also meant that people easily became infatuated with
them. Unfortunately, the charisma could not be controlled or switched off, so vampires
had to learn to put up with it.

Straddling Adam's back and rubbing the sun block in small circles onto Adam’s skin, Matt
said, “I'm not going to ask what’s been going on but are you okay now?”
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“Yeah, I'm better.” Adam said honestly.

Gently slapping Adam’s ass Matt said with a grin, “Great. Turn over, and I'll do your
front.”

Kris walked into the bedroom, shocked at the picture in front of him he said nervously,
“Er...sorry for interrupting.”

Quickly leaving the room, Kris leaned against the door trying to figure out how he felt.
He had never thought of Adam and Matt getting together even if they were good
friends. It hurt Kris that Adam hadn’t mentioned being attracted to Matt. Kris ignored
the flare of jealousy at the possibility of Adam and Matt starting a relationship. He had
no right to be jealous and it wasn’t like Matt would be taking his place, Adam would still
be his best friend.

Forty minutes later, Kris smiled widely as Adam appeared seemingly out of nowhere and
put an arm around his shoulder. He was pleased that Adam wasn’t mad at him for
interrupting. He had noticed the pair coming out of the bedroom within minutes of his
departure.

Adam said seriously, “Kris, you weren’t interrupting anything, Matt was just helping me
with my sun block.”

“Sure he was, Adam.” Kris commented with a laugh before continuing, “It is up to you who
you sleep with but next time leave a sock on the door or something so I don’t barge in.”

Adam answered swiftly, “Honey, if I was going to sleep with anyone in the competition, it
would not be him. Now I am going out with my parents and I'll catch up with some friends
after so I'll probably not be back until the early hours."

“I'll cover if someone asks anything.” Kris said with a grin, having done so in the past,
when he had assumed Adam was out clubbing or with the boyfriend, he had briefly
mentioned.

“Thanks,” Adam said sincerely before walking out of the mansion with a rucksack.
*******
Hugging Adam tightly, Leila could see he was in need of serious help because he looked
paler than a healthy vampire should be. It was possible that the pallor was due to the
shock of Joe’s death but that scenario didn’t feel right.

“I'm sorry about Joe. He was a great man,” Eber said seriously once Adam had managed
to break free of Leila’s tight hold.

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Adam nodded in acknowledgement saying, “Thanks. I don’t want to just brush his death
aside but I need to find a donor soon. Do you have any friends who know about us that I
haven’t met yet?”

“I'm afraid not.”

“I had a feeling you might say that, Leila. Well, it was worth a try,” Adam said with a sigh.

Adam froze as he inhaled the scent of his Sire, the one scent that never ceased to make
him feel safe, loved, and give him hope. At least with his Sire by his side, he would have a
better chance of surviving.

“Sire,” Adam whispered reverently.

“Adam,” Paul replied softly as he appeared in the room, arms held open.

Adam fell into his Sire’s arms, knowing that he was in the right place. He had absolute
faith in his Sire to save him, if he could be saved. Adam was sure that once he explained
his reasoning for not wanting Kris as his donor, the older vampire would not push the
issue.

“We’ll see you later,” Eber said, smiling at the pair.

Once they were alone the pair moved to sit on the sofa, each placing their feet under
them, facing each other. Paul reached out and put one hand on Adam’s knee, knowing how
much the younger vampire must be suffering at the loss of his friend.

Adam said plainly, “I had to go to the Sanctuary yesterday. They gave me some blood
from the blood bank.”

“So much for that being our backup plan,” Paul said wryly.

Vampire law stated that a vampire in a recognised clan, over the age of 100 could only
receive blood from a Sanctuary in a country once every fifty years. When a vampire
received blood from a Sanctuary, the date, name and brief description of the vampire
was logged. At the same time, a notification was issued to the all Sanctuaries in the
country advising them of what had happened. The somewhat harsh system had been
developed for two reasons; firstly to prevent people abusing the Sanctuaries and
secondly as a way of removing the supposedly weaker vampires from the population. The
vampires who it affected most were clans who only used willing donors as other vampires
would freely attack any human if they were hungry. As a result, these clans seemed to
regularly have new members and often had 13 members, with the occasional clan having
twenty or so members.
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“So have you come across anyone that you find even the slightly compatible?” Paul asked
hopefully.

Adam nodded, “Kris would be perfect. He is as compatible as Isaac was but he’s out of
the equation. I care about him and I do not want him hurt because of me.”

“I know that tone, you feel more for Kris than just friendship. If you bonded with him,
you can drink from him without him being in any danger.”

Adam wasn’t surprised that his Sire had picked up on his feelings and had come up with a
way to keep Kris safe. The human spouse of a vampire, known as a bonded human was
safe from all but renegade vampires. To attack a bonded human was a declaration of war
against a clan or sometimes the court itself, depending upon the social status of the
bonded’s vampire. It wasn’t even possible for Adam to drink the blood of another
vampire as he was unmarried. After being turned, a vampire could get nourishment from
the blood of their vampire mate; any other vampire blood was as effective as human food.

“How I feel about him doesn’t matter, Paul. He’s straight and married. He would never
marry me,” Adam said honestly.

Paul frowned, “Are you sure about that? Have you ever asked him?”

“No. I respect his marriage vows,” Adam said firmly.

Paul knew there was no way he could change Adam’s mind now that he had used the angry
yet determined tone. One thing he could say about his third youngest child, Adam was
certainly the most obstinate of all his children.

Paul sighed, “Times like this, I wish it wasn’t just Sanctuaries who could get blood from
the blood banks. I suppose you are on blood wine?”

Adam nodded saying, “I’ve got some bottles, but I haven’t drank any yet. I'm doing okay
today; I'll probably have some tomorrow. I'm trying to avoid drinking it until I really
need to.”

Paul said reassuringly, “Okay, we can work with that. We’ll have to have a round of meet
and greets. I can arrange that.”

“When are we going to have the meet and greets?” Adam asked eagerly.

“The ones in this state should be easy to organise so probably in the next day or so.
Adam, we’ll do everything we can.”

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Adam nodded knowing it was true, pleased that his Sire wasn’t patronising him by saying
that he would not die. There was a very real chance that he would die and Adam
accepted it, he would take the time he had to set his affairs in order. The majority of
his possessions, he was happy to leave most of his possessions to the clan but a few
effects he wanted to leave to specific people.

“How is your control around Kris?”

“Great at the moment but I don’t know how long it will last, Paul.” Adam admitted knowing
if he was going to attack anyone in the house, it would be Kris regardless of how close
the man was in comparison to his location.

Paul instructed, “If you start to lose control, call one of the clan since I'll be in England.
Eli Chevalier has asked for Ella’s hand so I have to negotiate the terms of their marriage.
Adam, stay with me tonight, there is no point being around temptation if you can avoid it.
You can go back to the Idol home at 0600, have some blood wine and get ready before
anyone wakes up.”

The head of the clan to which the youngest of a betrothed couple belonged had to
negotiate the settlements should the relationship end, pay for and finalise the
arrangements for the wedding. Culturally, it was acceptable for an engagement to last as
long as ten years. During the engagement, if either party had any form of sexual contact
with anyone else, the marriage was off and the offender had to pay compensation to the
other party.
*******
Getting into the mansion was easy as Adam simply used his heightened vampire eyesight,
hearing, smell, and speed to make sure no one saw him. Adam only used his supernatural
abilities fully when he was in danger of being killed or exposed, was somewhere
unfamiliar, or amongst his own kind. It was too dangerous for vampires to have their
senses heightened continuously around humans as it would either drive them insane or
cause too much attention.

Once inside, Adam made his way to his bedroom, grinning as he heard Kris snoring.
Walking inside the room, he headed straight for the closet and grabbed a bottle of
blood wine, since Kris was fast asleep; the vampire simply removed the cork and took a
large swig. He relaxed as he felt the gnawing hunger ease and his control return to his
normal level. Putting the bottle at the back of the closet behind all his accessories,
Adam grabbed his headphones and i-pod before heading to the lounge.
Lying down on the sofa, Adam switched on his i-pod and relaxed knowing that there
would be no one up for at least another hour since it was a Sunday and they didn’t have
to be in the studio until 0830.
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Twenty-five minutes later, Adam was amazed when Alison walked in and took a seat
opposite him with a grin. The girl was never up so early, which he considered only right
since she was so young.

At Alison’s concerned look, Adam smiled reassuringly saying, “I couldn’t sleep.”

Alison nodded, “I think a lot of us are having that problem. I’ve heard people wandering
around the last couple of nights.”

“It’s the pressure getting to us and we’re kinda stuck together 24/7,” Adam said
thoughtfully.

Alison nodded in understanding, having noticed people becoming increasingly tetchy and
restless over the last week. That wasn’t to say there were any major disagreements or
issues, normally a couple of hours away from each other was enough for people to calm
down and become friends again.

“Adam, you’d tell me if you were going to leave the competition, right? It is that just
you’ve been quiet...and you stayed out last night. You don’t look happy.” Alison said
nervously.

Adam looked at the girl in confusion, unsure as to why she could even think he would want
to quit. The competition might be getting more intense but it was nothing to him, after
all, he had experienced far more intense situations in the past.

Adam squeezed his friend’s hand answering, “I’ve never even considered quitting, honey.
I want this, this is my dream, and I'm not going to give it up. Ally-cat, this is place is just
a bit of a cage sometimes and I don’t handle captivity very well.”

“Great.” Alison said happily, switching on the TV and turning the volume down.
*******
Kris was surprised to see Adam wide awake, sprawled on the sofa, since the man hadn’t
come back before he had gone to bed at 01:00. Kris had stayed up late because he had a
melody in his head that he needed to get down on paper; unfortunately, he hadn’t found
the words to go with the music so he had put it aside for another day.

“Hey, Adam. Did you have a good time last night?” Kris said with a smile.

Adam nodded, “Yeah. I caught up a friend, Paul, in town from Chicago.”

Kris said sincerely, “I'm glad you had a good time. What time did you get in?”

14
Adam shrugged replying casually, “Oh about six. I fell asleep at Paul’s hotel so I'm good
to go.”

Curiosity getting the better of her Allison interjected, “Is Paul your boyfriend?”

Adam laughed, “No. Paul is straight and even if he wasn’t, he’s family. It would be totally
weird to sleep with him.”

“So how old is Paul? Is he seeing someone?”

Not wanting Alison to get any ideas Adam swiftly said, “Thirty four, too old for you. He’s
married to a beautiful woman by the name of Allura. It’s pretty unusual but it’s a family
name.”

“I was just wondering. That’s such a beautiful name,” Alison commented, she imagined
such a unique name meant the woman was teased a lot when she was young.

“Does anyone know if the others are awake?”

Adam nodded, “Yeah, Kris. I banged on their doors about twenty minutes ago and
everyone answered.”

“You are so the mom of the group,” Kris said, laughing at the look of shock on Adam’s
face.

Adam scoffed, “Yeah, right (!) Now, what do you want for breakfast?”

“I'm not that hungry so I'll just grab some cereal. You know, Kris is so right about you,”
Allison said with a laugh, ignoring Adam’s glare.

“Does that mean you all have to do what I say? If so, I can so deal with being called the
mom.” Adam said thoughtfully.

Seeing the mischievous, speculative gleam in his friend’s eyes Kris quickly replied, “You
wish (!) Now I am going for breakfast. Have you eaten, Adam?”

“Oh, the fun I could have ordering people around! I had breakfast when I got back. See
you’re as bad as me!”

Kris said candidly, “Only with you and our Ally. The others can take care of themselves.”

“I'm a big boy, Kris. I can look after myself.” Adam said upset.

15
Hearing Adam’s anger and disappointment Kris said frankly, “I know you can but you don’t
have to face the world alone. You and Ally are my friends, I believe in being there for my
friends. I like the others but I'm closer to you two.”

“Thanks,” Adam said sincerely.

Feeling a little left out Allison said, “I'm here for both of you as well.”

Adam smiled softly saying, “You guys know I'm always here for you, even if I do drive
you insane. Now, no more mushiness, we’ve got a busy day and we’ve got to get ready.”

Worried the mushy moment as Adam described it had upset the man; Kris let the matter
drop and headed to get breakfast sorted. He was pleased to see Adam had obviously
eaten that morning, actually paying attention to his advice.

*******

For the second day in a row, Kris watched in confusion as Adam sauntered over to a
group of people in their twenties. He was surprised at the wide smile Adam gave the
group, as if they were important to him. He wanted to walk over and demand to know
what was going on as some of the men were forcefully pushed towards Adam.

Feeling eyes on him, Adam looked up and locked eyes with Kris who stared back with a
strange mix of hurt and confusion. As much as he wanted to go to his friend and try to
explain what was going on, Adam simply didn’t have the time. It was only a week since he
had seen Paul but he was already starting to lose control, apparently, he was too
powerful for the blood wine to provide much sustenance. So far he had drank one and
half of the three bottles of blood wine and he knew that if he was lucky, he would be
able to ration the remaining bottles for another ten days. He knew it couldn’t last any
longer and he knew that unless he found someone he would soon have to ask his clan to
kill him before he became a danger. He knew it would tear at the hearts of his family but
he knew it was the only option; his family do the right thing and kill him as quickly as
possible.

Hugging his youngest brother tightly Simon said gently, “Hey Adam. How you doing?”

Breaking the embrace Adam said candidly, “A little shaky but I'm alright considering. I
wish we were meeting up because of something else, something good. Now introduce
everyone to me.”

16
Lauren grinned, “Still as bossy as ever, bro. Okay, this is James and Richard. They know
about everything and are willing to move here. James is a website designer and Richard is
the creator of the comic Fallen Knights.”

James was a tall, bronzed skinned man with wide cornflower blue eyes and thick light
brown hair that cascaded down his broad shoulders. He was dressed in a strange mix of
mix of black denim and bright yellow. Adam was concerned to note the cold, distant look
when the man looked at him, and the air of menace. James was certainly not the kind of
man Adam would consider a potential donor were he not desperate.

In contrast, Richard came across as apprehensive and demure, refusing to meet Adam’s
gaze. It was interesting that such a shy man was willing to become a donor; of course, it
was possible that the man was just nervous with strangers. Richard had deep brown eyes
and fine, straight, shoulder length blood red hair. Richard had the build of a dancer and
moved with a grace and fluidity that told Adam he was right in his assessment.

As soon as the men had moved closer and he was able to breathe in their scent and
absorb their presence, Adam knew neither was even slightly compatible with him. There
were degrees of compatibility meaning as long as the donor was even slightly compatible
a vampire could survive on their blood. The problem was the less compatible the donor
and vampire, the more often a vampire needed to feed on the donor. Adam had been
lucky with Joe in that he only had to feed every two days; some of his clan had to feed
every eight hours. The reason the typical vampire had to feed so often was because,
they had never found someone compatible or if they did, no lasting relationship was
formed.

Adam accepted the chances of finding someone as compatible as Kris was unlikely but he
would be happy to find someone even slightly compatible. He could cope with that until he
found someone else more compatible. Kris’s presence had completely captivated him
within seconds of them meeting. Kris soothed him whenever he was feeling at all
stressed and aroused him but Adam was experienced with hiding his desire. Kris was
everything he wanted and it hurt to know that he would never have the man.

Adam said seriously, “Nice to meet you both. It is amazing that you are so willing to
uproot your lives for me, but you won’t have to. Neither of you are right for me but
thank you for offering to do this.”

“Okay, well I wish you the best of luck,” Richard said honestly as he and James moved
back out of the way.

17
“Now, this here is Adrian Banks. He’s a doctor here in LA specialising in emergency
medicine.” Simon said seriously, as he gently urged his friend forward.

Adam shook the short, green eyed, lavender haired man’s hand firmly and smiled
sincerely. He was amazed that so many were willing to consider being his donor since
they knew it could result in their death.

Adrian said seriously, “Adam, I will not give up my career. If I am the right one for you,
I want you to know that first and to know that I’ve decided that it would be a good idea
to have a supply of my blood nearby for when I am not available.”

Impressed by the man’s foresight Adam said, “It’s good that you have considered such
things and I'm sure you will be a great donor but not for me.”

“Sorry, man.” Adrian said softly.

Grinning Adam flippantly replied, “Hey, it’s not your fault.”

Once the doctor had moved out of the way, Elijah moved forward with his three friends.
He hoped that one of his friends would be the one for his brother because he couldn’t
bear the thought of his brother dying.

“This is Alex, Justin, and Steven,” Elijah announced, pointing at each man as he said their
name.

Alex was an alabaster white, tall man with azure blue eyes and thick curled dark brown
hair that framed his freckled face. He was wearing a crimson shirt, tight black jeans,
and a pair of crimson trainers. He seemed very excited and had a maniacal smile that
most would find intimidating.
Justin was a muscular man with glassy grey eyes, and a green Mohawk. He was wearing a
cream coloured tank top, brown leather pants, and a jade bracelet. Justin seemed bored
and eager for the experience to be over, making Adam wonder if the man was serious
about becoming a donor or just wanted an all expenses paid trip to LA.

Steven was a thin man with greasy ash-blonde hair tied back into a ponytail, brown eyes,
and a birthmark on his left cheek. The man gave Adam a friendly smile, whilst rolling his
eyes at Justin who had started humming.

Adam said softly, “Hi guys. Thank you for coming out here and offering to do this. I know
it would seriously uproot you all. Luckily for you, none of you are a potential donor.”

Justin asked hesitantly, “Adam, can I get a picture with you before you have to leave?”

18
Adam laughed at the apprehension in the man’s voice, as if he would refuse such a
request. It was the least he could do for someone who was willing to help him. He nodded,
gesturing for Elijah to take the picture. Adam quickly moved next to Justin and smiled
widely before the camera flashed.

“Adam, do you want to go out with me tonight? We can go clubbing or eat, whatever.”

Admiring Alex’s forthright question Adam answered, “I'm afraid not. I don’t want to risk
going out and munching on the humans.”

“Well that’s certainly the most unique refusal I’ve ever had,” Alex said with an easy smile.

Curiosity getting the better of him Simon said, “Bro, that guy’s been glaring at us since
you came over. If looks could kill, I would have died when I hugged you. Is he your
boyfriend or something?”

Adam shook his head saying regretfully, “That’s Kris, my roommate and best friend.”

Simon snorted, “That’s not a friend or roommate’s glare. He looks angry and jealous.
You’ve got some serious ruffled feathers to soothe.”

Adam was surprised at Simon’s words because he knew there was no way Kris would ever
be attracted to him. Adam was sure it was just that Kris was upset at being left out and
not knowing who Adam had abandoned him for, only to be expected really.

Adam said firmly, “I'll sort it out. Have you heard about Ella’s engagement? Paul’s gone to
sort everything out.”

“Cool, I'm sure Eli will treat her right. We better get go and let you get back to your
work, Rock star.” Lauren said, smiling at Adam’s annoyed look at the nickname.

Adam nodded his head and with a wry grin walked away from the group. He hated the
nickname his older sister had given him once he got his role in Wicked. Adam had always
loved music and since he became a vampire, he had performed in clubs around the world.
The clan knew of his ambitions to have a long, successful career as a recording artist and
singer. Adam had refused to use the clan’s contacts within the music industry to achieve
his goal, wanting to work his way from the bottom, knowing that any success would be
because of his hard work and because people liked his music.

“Hey, Adam, do you know them or something?” Kris asked, curiosity getting the better of
him.

19
Seeing the concerned look Adam reassured, “I know some of them, the others are their
friends. With everything that’s happened, they wanted to make sure I'm doing okay.”

“It’s good they are there for you. Are you going to meet up with them later?” Kris asked
casually, not wanting his friend to know that he didn’t want Adam to go out with his
friends.

For the last week, Kris had not been able to spend a lot of time with Adam and it
annoyed him. He needed Adam, to soothe him and just talk to him because he was
starting to lose it and Adam was the one he could talk to about everything. Kris knew if
he told his family that he hated the attention he was getting whenever he went out, they
would just think he was being ridiculous since he had wanted this since he was a child.
With Adam, he didn’t have to explain everything because the man was there,
experiencing everything with him. He and Adam had a close friendship that was borne
out of shared experiences. Kris knew the intensity of the show and his experiences had
changed him from the man he was before Idol.

Adam said with a grin, “No. I can catch up with them later. Now has everyone decided
where we are going for dinner tonight?”

Kris nodded, “Yeah, we’re having Thai.”

“Now let’s go back so we can get ready!” Adam said with a grin, wanting to have another
drink of blood wine before they went out.

Looking at his watch Kris said, “Well, we’ve got a couple of hours until we’re getting
ready, so enough time for even your primping. You don’t have to spend so long getting
ready though, you’re not exactly a troll.”

“Thanks,” Adam said a wry grin.

*******
“Adam, can I ride alone with you to the restaurant? I need to talk to you.”

Adam frowned at the request, wondering when he had become the agony aunt of the
competition. He didn’t mind it most of the time but now he was trying to keep in control
and he didn’t need the distraction. With a mental sigh, Adam realised he couldn’t say no
and on the plus side, it would mean he didn’t have to travel with Kris whose blood was
becoming more and more tempting as the days went by.

“Sure,” Adam said with a nod.

20
The idol contestants had decided the best way to avoid being recognised was to split into
groups of two to four people and arrive at a location a few minutes apart from each
other. It worked most of the time and they tended to always go in the same group. Adam
always went in a group with Kris and Alison, since he was comfortable around them.

The original top ten night out was, in essence an attempt to make nice and find some way
of sharing a house without going insane. Since it worked so well, a mutual decision was
made to make the house night out a regular weekly event. They always went out on a
Thursday night since they needed cheering up after saying farewell to one of their
number. Thursday night dinners were uplifting unlike the post-elimination goodbye dinner
on a Wednesday night. Truthfully, Adam felt the post-elimination dinner could be cruel
to whoever was kicked out because they were not given enough time to process and come
to terms with what they had lost.

“You ready to go, Adam?” Kris asked with a smile as he walked into the lounge.

Adam smiled apologetically saying, “Kris, I'm riding with Matt. He needs to talk to me
about something.”

Seeing the look on Kris’s face, Adam quickly walked over and grabbed his hand, pulling
him further into the corner of the room so no one could overhear. He could see Kris
didn’t like the idea of him travelling with Matt.

Kris said coolly, “What can be so important that it can’t wait until after dinner? Does he
want to go out with you or something?”

Bemused Adam shrugged saying, “I’ve got no idea, Kris, but I don’t want to date him. You
know everyone likes to use me as a free therapist.”

Not wanting to sound like some stalker Kris hesitantly explained, “Yeah. It’s just...he has
been spending a lot of time with you and well...it doesn’t feel right.”

As soon as he finished speaking Kris realised that it sounded like, he was a stalker or a
jealous lover but as possessive as it was, Adam was his. He didn’t want Matt taking his
place. He had noticed how for the last week, Matt had been sneaking looks at Adam when
he thought no one was paying attention. He had no idea what the look was for but it made
him uncomfortable.

“You two ready to go?” Alison asked with a grin as she looked at her friends who were
deep in conversation.

21
“Yeah, honey. I'm going with Matt so I'll meet you there,” Adam said with a friendly
smile.

“Oh. Okay,” Alison said with a pout, having been looking forward to gossiping with Adam
and Kris like always.
*******
As the car darted through the streets towards the restaurant Adam looked over at
Matt who was nervously biting the inside of his cheek. He had never seen the man look so
uneasy and he couldn’t think of why Matt would be feeling uncomfortable around him.

“Adam, you’re my friend,” Matt said sincerely.

Adam smiled saying reassuringly, “You’re mine too, Matt. You can tell me anything.”

“Thanks now I am sorry about this but I have to do it,” Matt said seriously.

There was a loud screech of metal as the pair were thrust forward, their seatbelts
roughly pulling them back to their seats, in a flash the car rolled over twice. Opening his
eyes Adam realised they were pinned in place, the metal crushed around them barring
their escape, he was amazed they were still in one piece.

As the scent of gasoline hit him, Adam quickly unfastened his seatbelt, turning to the
seat next to him only to find Matt unconscious with his head bleeding. The scent of
blood overwhelmed Adam, his fangs descended in anticipation, closing his eyes, he
ruthlessly pushed down his bloodlust. Releasing the hold on his hearing, Adam was
dismayed to realise no one was nearby and it was up to him to get them out of this mess.
It was amazing that there was no one nearby since they were in LA, making him think
they were off the main streets for some reason.

Knowing he could end up causing Matt more injuries but that they had to get out before
the car exploded, Adam kicked the metal using his enhanced strength. As the metal
started to buckle, Adam continued his attack until finally there was a hole big enough to
get Matt through.

Unfastening Matt’s seatbelt, Adam picked up his friend as gently as possible and quickly
moved out of the car. Placing Matt onto the cold ground, Adam wrenched off his jacket
and placed it over Matt to prevent his friend going into shock. Satisfied that Matt was
as comfortable as possible, Adam rushed to the front of the car to help their driver.

Adam carefully opened the driver’s door, not wanting the woman to fall out. He was
quickly dragged towards the driver as the woman dropped a lit match with a cruel smirk.
Adam felt a rush of heat against his skin, a loud explosion ringed in his ears, as he was
22
hurtled backwards, landing with a crunch. He could hear the muffled sound of people
rushing towards them, a familiar scent filled his nose seconds before darkness
encroached.
*******
Worried that Adam still hadn’t arrived at the restaurant considering everyone was
supposed to be there twenty five minutes ago, Kris took his phone from his pocket and
pressed speed dial. He frowned at the ‘this phone is unavailable message’, it didn’t make
sense since there was always a signal in LA and Adam always had his phone on.

“Kris!”

Kris jumped at Alison’s scared and shocked yell, running back into the restaurant, he
barely had time to breathe before Alison was in his arms with tears streaming down her
face.

“What’s happened?” Kris asked bewildered.

Danny pointed at the television so Kris turned to it, seeing footage of a smouldering
overturned car. Suddenly the footage changed to the outside of a hospital in front of
which stood a young, serious looking woman in her early twenties.

The woman said calmly, “Twenty five minutes ago, two idol contestants were brought in,
both of whom are in a serious condition. It is not yet known which of the contestants
have been hurt and there has been no statement from Fox.”

Kris turned away from the television asking, “Does anyone know what hospital that was or
where it is?”

“Yeah,” Anoop said with a quick nod.

“Why does it matter?” Danny said confused.

Unable to believe how dense Danny was being Kris said calmly, “We’re going there. Adam
and Matt are hurt, we should be with them.”

Alison said firmly, “If you don’t have to come with us Danny, you can just stay here and
eat. We’ll be with our friends.”

“I'm coming with you,” Danny protested indignantly.

The five singers rushed out of the restaurant, flagging down two taxis to take them to
the hospital deciding it would be quicker than waiting for one of their idol cars to arrive.
Kris squeezed into a taxi with Alison and Anoop, feeling the girl’s hand slightly trembling

23
so he held it tight, feeling it was his duty to make sure she didn’t fall apart.
*******
Awareness returning Adam did not react as he took in the scents and sounds around him,
recognising the disinfectant, illness, and sorrow that filled a hospital. Realising he was in
the hospital, Adam frowned wondering why he wasn’t in the morgue since he was dead. As
a familiar scent reached him, Adam smiled in relief; he was in good hands now.

“Hey Adam, it is Adrian. How are you doing?”

Adam smiled widely at the doctor relieved that his brother had such useful friends and
knowing that there was no way he would be able to repay the man for his kindness. Now
he could continue in his current incarnation, providing he survived until they found a
donor.

Surprised Adam said, “I'm good. How did you know I was here?”

With a graceful shrug Adrian replied, “Simon followed you. I don’t know why but he said
that he’ll talk to you later. He called me and I made sure to be here ready for you and
called in a couple of the nurses that know about vampires. We’re telling everyone that
you’ve got a concussion and a private room due to your fame.”

“That makes sense. So why am I getting a blood transfusion?” Adam asked in confusion.

Smirking Adrian said, “Well, I know that technically you can’t get blood from the blood
bank but if you were unconscious you cannot be responsible for someone giving you a
transfusion.”

“Sneaky, very nice,” Adam said in admiration.

“It’s one of my better traits,” Adrian said with a wide grin.

“You better remove the transfusion now I'm awake. How is Matt?”

“He’s in surgery, Adam. I'll give you more information when I get it. Do you want to have
any visitors?”

“Thank you for everything, Adrian and I’d love to have visitors.”

“Okay. I'll be back to check on you later and Simon will come by with some stuff.”

Adam nodded in understanding, watching as the doctor left the room. He was amazed by
how quickly everything had changed and mystified by Matt’s apology before the crash.
Matt hadn’t done anything to apologise for, he was a good friend, if a little standoffish
at times. Adam knew the question of Matt’s strange behaviour would have to wait until he
24
could speak to the man in person. He was relieved Simon had been looking out for him, he
would have been in the morgue if not for his brother. He just hoped that Simon would
have some more information as to who had set up the car crash and was trying to kill him.
It was unfortunate that the driver had perished in the fire because he would have loved
interrogating the woman as to the identity of her employer.

*******

Walking into Adam’s hospital room, Kris was struck by how his friend looked better than
he had for the last thirteen days. It was worrying that Adam actually looked better in
hospital after a car crash, obviously, something was seriously wrong with his friend.

Seeing Adam’s eyes opening Kris quickly moved forward and gently clasped Adam’s hand
in his. He didn’t want Adam to get upset about being in a hospital since a concussion could
easily cause temporary memory loss.

“Adam, it’s okay. You’re safe in hospital. Do you need anything?” Kris said gently.

Adam gave a small smile at Kris’ soft, caring, honeyed voice asking about him. He adored
the way Kris relaxed with him and didn’t care about his sexuality. The other contestants
were not homophobic, they were just not used to his in your face attitude.

During his long life, Adam had encountered a lot of homophobia and had been forced into
hiding his sexuality and refused to hide. He had waited a long time for society to evolve
into being a place when homosexuality was acknowledged and accepted, he refused to
hide anymore. In 1903, Adam was attacked and left for dead in an alley by his brother
after the man found out about Adam’s sexuality. Even now Adam could not clearly recall
what he had said to Paul when the vampire had found him bleeding and broken but
whatever it was had compelled Paul to turn him.

“Hi Kris. I'm amazing as always,” Adam said casually.

Kris said delicately, “Sure you are. Do you remember what happened?”

Having thought up a suitable story Adam said, “Not really, we were driving towards the
restaurant and we hit something, I don’t know what. The next thing I can remember is
waking up in the car and smelling gasoline. Matt was unconscious so I got him out and put
him flat on the floor. I remember going to help the driver, I must have blacked out
because the next thing I know I'm in here and Adrian walks in.”

Kris nodded in understanding and gently squeezed Adam’s hand, unable to believe how
close he had been to losing his friend. It was amazing that Adam hadn’t been hurt

25
further. Given Adam's sickly appearance, Kris was unsure if the man could have could
have coped with more serious injuries. Kris had put Adam’s pale, weary appearance down
to the death of Adam’s friend two weeks ago but now he was sure that Adam was
seriously ill and apparently determined to deal with it alone. Now was not the time to ask
Adam about everything, but once Adam was out of the hospital, he would find out what
had been going on.

Kris looked up as the door opened, recognising the man as one of Adam’s friends who had
accosted him just hours earlier. Kris couldn’t help the sharp shard of jealousy that hit
him, remembering how tightly the man had held Adam. He was dismayed to see Adam
looking at the stranger with a mix of love, joy, and hope on his face. Kris couldn’t silence
the unbidden thought that Adam had never looked at him like that.

Simon said seriously, “Adam, I’ve been worried about you. How are you doing?”

“I'm okay,” Adam assured his brother.

Knowing his brother had a tendency to play down his injuries Simon admonished, “This is
me you’re talking to.”

Confused at the angry look Kris was giving Simon and realising it must be confusing for
Kris to have someone just barge in, Adam smiled reassuringly. As Kris smiled warmly back
at him, Adam resolutely ignored the amused and victorious smile on Simon’s face.

“Kris this is Simon, he’s a friend from college.” Adam said, pointing at each of them in
turn.

Kris smiled politely, wondering if the pair had slept together because he was sure that
Simon was more than just a friend of Adam’s. The pair were too familiar with each other,
there was too much of an undercurrent for them to be just friends.

“Hi, it’s nice to meet you,” Kris said politely, his parents had taught him to be civil to
everyone, even those he disliked immediately.

“Ditto,” Simon returned flippantly, waiting for the man to disappear so that he could
speak freely.
Simon said quickly, “Oh, Adam, I spoke to your parents and told them you’ll be okay so
they’ll probably be here tomorrow.”

Kris glared at Simon, angry that the man should presume to interfere and stop Adam’s
parents from coming to see him. Kris knew Adam was close to his family and as a friend,
Simon should have realised Adam would want his family around since he was hurt.

26
“Kris, are the rest of the house out there?” Adam asked softly, knowing that it would
make his life easier if he could use them as an excuse to send his friend away for a while.

Realising he had left the group with the promise to come back ASAP with any
information Kris said regretfully, “Yeah, I better go and let them know you’re awake and
coherent.”

Feeling as though he was abandoning his friend Kris stood to leave, gently squeezing
Adam’s pale hand, to let the man know he would be back soon. Kris hoped Simon would be
gone when he got back to Adam, he didn’t like the way Adam had ignored him when Simon
appeared.

Once Kris was gone, Simon smirked at his brother and quickly moved closer, he hated to
see Adam suffering. He laughed at Adam’s annoyed look, even at his age Adam still hated
how everyone worried about him and tended to go into mothering mode.

Simon quickly reported, “I looked into the background of the driver, Melanie Kelly. She
does not have any criminal convictions and no links with any homophobic groups nor has
she ever displayed any signs of homophobia. I asked around and rumour is that she has
some sort of connection to one of us. No one knows what kind of a connection though.”

“Fabulous,” Adam said dryly.

“You look a little better,” Simon commented noticing Adam’s eyes had lost their slightly
glassy look and that Adam had a healthier colour.

“The blood Adrian gave me wasn’t a match but at this point I'll take anything I can get.
It should give me a few more hours at least.”

“Hopefully. Adam, I love you but you are worryingly calm about dying.”

“Pretending it’s not happening won’t help,” Adam replied honestly.

Over the last week, Adam had made peace with the fact that his true death was near.
His only sorrow was that his death would hurt those he cared about but he knew that
over time the pain would ease. Adam’s only fear was that he would fade into obscurity, as
self-centred as it was, he wanted to be remembered because he knew this would keep
him alive in a way.

Simon said sharply, “That doesn’t mean you can give up, Adam.”

27
Dryly Adam explained, “I'm not, I'm just being realistic. The chances of me finding a
donor are tiny and I don’t want to sit around feeling sorry for myself. I'm going to spend
however long I’ve got fulfilling my dreams. Simon, it’s okay.”

Simon shook his head, “It is not okay. I don’t know how we will go on if you die, you are
the glue that holds us together.”

Squeezing Simon’s pale hand Adam said comfortingly, “You’ll find someone else to be your
glue, someone better than me who won’t be constantly second guessing themselves.”

“There isn’t anyone better than you. Now I'm going call the others and let them know
how you are doing.”

“Okay. I’ll see you tomorrow,” Adam said seriously, knowing his brother wouldn’t leave
the hospital unless he asked.

Outside the room, Kris fell back against the wall, unable to believe what he had just
heard. Adam was dying. For a second Kris wanted to scream and shout that it wasn’t fair.
Kris didn’t since he didn’t want to upset or worry Adam, ruining whatever time they had
left. He wasn’t sure if he should go in and tell Adam that he knew or keep quiet. Kris
knew he couldn’t go on pretending that it wasn’t happening, behaving as if Adam would
always be beside him when his heart was breaking because it could never be.

Kris acknowledged that logically he should leave the hospital to get changed so that he
could at least look decent and give Adam a chance to rest but he didn’t want to leave. He
was afraid that he would come back to find Adam had died without him having the
chance to say everything that was bubbled up inside him. He wanted Adam to know how
he felt, how much he loved the man.

Kris knew that were circumstances different, he would be with Adam in every sense of
the word but he was married. He might not be in the position to have Adam as his
partner but his heart would always beat for Adam, he loved Katy but he saw now it was
more of a safe intense love, not the fiery, explosive, all encompassing love he had for
Adam. Although it would tear him to pieces to watch the man he loved fade away and
closer to death’s embrace with every hour that passed. Kris swiftly decided that he
would have to tell Adam that he knew the man was dying and that didn’t change anything,
he still going to be there.
*******
Matt woke up with a groan, his head aching, and throat feeling scratchy and sore, he
frowned at the white, sanitised hospital room. He hated being in hospital, being forced
to stay still. Matt was surprised that he was still in one piece knowing from his brief

28
moment of clarity during the crash that it had been more brutal than planned. He could
vaguely remember Adam placing him on the ground and whispering that everything would
be okay and not to move. It made him feel like a heel to have the person he was trying to
kill be so considerate and helpful to him.

The door of the hospital room opened to reveal Kris with a shaky smile, apparently lost in
thought. Matt knew that should anyone discover he was responsible for the crash, he
would be bruised and bloodied courtesy of Kris, the normally calm man seemed to lose his
temper easily when it came to Adam.

Back when the top ten lived in the mansion Matt had watched agog as Kris, incensed by
Danny’s snide comments at Adam, had jumped out of his chair and punched the older man.
Adam had quickly restrained Kris, whispering in Kris’s ear in soft, soothing tones; as he
calmed Kris practically melted into Adam’s embrace. It had been then that Matt had
realised how deep the relationship between Adam and Kris was, he had noticed how
Adam’s eyes changed to amber as Danny had approached them. Matt knew he had to
make sure Kris wasn’t bewitched by Adam and somehow coerced into being Adam’s donor.

Matt had watched how one of his friends had become a donor for Elliot Hanson and had
her life completely controlled by them, she was no longer Kim Flint, she was Elliot’s donor.
It took months but he finally managed to convince her to leave the clan and they made
plans to meet up at a small rundown motel. He had arrived at their room to find her body,
her face frozen in a picture of fear, still clutching her phone, on the screen was his
number. She was shot in the stomach, a trail of blood showing she had tried to get to the
first aid kit lying on the bed.

Matt vowed that day to get revenge on the clan who had stolen her life away, reducing
her to little more than a plaything before killing her. For her he was willing to become
the very thing he hated, a vampire. It was the only way to get the strength and backup
he would need to exact justice for her killing.

It took a lot of work but he had found a clan that agreed to turn him into a vampire
providing he fulfilled two missions for them, the only problem being at the time he had
no idea what the missions were. He had been given the right to turn down one mission if
he chose to without any consequences. The first mission was relatively easy, some
evidence a rival clan had on one of them sleeping with the queen, the second was to kill
Adam. A mission he had failed to fulfil as of yet, but he would do it, he had to for Kim.
He hadn’t even considered refusing the mission, knowing it would keep Kris safe from the
Adam’s machinations.

“How you doing, Matt?” Kris asked gently, pleased to see the man awake.
29
“Pretty good, how’s Adam?” Matt asked, part of him hoping that Adam had fallen into a
coma so that it would be easier to finish him off.

Vampires were easily killed by head trauma, fire, sunlight, and having their heart pierce
by silver, contrary to popular belief vampires were not killed by wooden stakes to the
heart, garlic, holy water, or crosses. Vampires had encouraged the disinformation since
it kept them safe, some vampires were even teachers in mythology.

“He’s got a concussion, he’ll probably be out soon. So what do you remember?”
Matt shrugged then winced at the move saying, “Only the car spinning and Adam getting
me out.”

“Adam doesn’t remember much either. The driver died.”

“Oh. Do you know where the doctor is?”

“Nope but he’ll probably be here soon. Matt, I'm glad you are alright.”

“Thank you and I'm glad Adam’s okay. Now go and get some sleep, Allen. You’ve got panda
eyes and that is not a good thing.”

“I will now, I just wanted to make sure you were both okay,” Kris said with a smile before
leaving the room.

Kris walked back to Adam’s room, and peaked inside the window, pleased to see that
Adam was asleep. Kris had managed to convince the other contestants to go earlier
saying that he would let them know if anything happened.

“Sir, you’ll have to leave.”

Kris looked at the nurse who just spoke to him before saying resolutely, “I'm not leaving.”
“You’ll have to, it’s hospital policy. Sir, your friend seems to be doing well and the doctor
said that he’ll be out soon.”

Kris said seriously, “What time can I get in to see him?”

“Visiting hours are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m,” The nurse answered quickly.

“I'll be back at ten sharp,” Kris said quickly, wishing he could stay but not wanting to
force the point in case he was stopped from seeing Adam.

Kris walked out of the hospital, his mind focused on how he was going to tell Adam that
he knew everything and that no matter what happened, he would always love Adam. He
was so caught up in his thoughts, that he didn’t notice the man watching him with a
30
calculating smile.
*******

Since vampire politics was the motivation for Adam’s attempted murder Simon knew
whatever clan was behind it would try again soon. The fact that Ms Kelly was a driver
employed by the network spoke to him spoke of a long-term carefully orchestrated plan.
Whoever the clan was would have someone else well placed, probably someone involved
some way in the show to carry out the next assassination attempt. Simon knew the only
way to ensure Adam’s safety was to conduct thorough background check on everyone
Adam had close contact with, starting with the contestants since they were around
Adam the most. He knew Adam would not like him snooping around but tough. It was up
to him to protect his brother, even if Adam hated it. Booting up his computer, Simon
started typing knowing that the rest of his siblings were busy talking to others in the
underground or harassing their friends within the court for information. Soon they would
have more information and would able to rip apart whoever was trying to kill Adam.

Across town, Kris had just arrived at the hospital relieved that he would be able to
spend a lot of time there since the producers had said rehearsals would start after
13:00. Kris knew the time was only changed because the network were trying to think of
some way to salvage the show with Adam and Matt being unable to perform for at least
another week. Kris didn’t care what idea they came up with since there was nothing he
could do to change it. He was happy to go along with it, providing they took it easy on
Adam. He knew no one from the network knew Adam was dying because they were still
treating him like normal, he was sure if they knew the truth the judges would be taking
it easy on him.

With a wave at the nurse he remembered from the night before, Kris headed for Adam’s
room, one hand clutching the rock star bear he had made earlier. It was the reason why
he was only pulled up outside the hospital at 11:00, he had been determined to make the
teddy pair as much like Adam as possible. He had toyed with making a Kris bear but had
decided it was a bit too stalker like and would probably just confuse or scare his friend.

He opened the door to Adam’s room, only to find that the bed was empty, he was
confused since he hadn’t been called to say Adam was coming home. Spying a nurse
nearby, he walked over I the hope that she would have any more information.

“Excuse me, but do you know where Adam Lambert is? He was in that room,” Kris asked
pointing at the room in question.

The nurse nodded saying matter-of-factly, “Oh, he’s gone, dear. I reckon it was around
forty minutes ago.”
31
“What? How? He was okay last night,” Kris said in disbelief, feeling tears welling up.

A mortified look on her face the nurse said quickly, “Oh god, no. He hasn’t died. He’s just
been moved to another room. The doctor said he should be able to leave after rounds
this afternoon.”

“Thank god, where is he?” Kris said with a shuddering breath.

The nurse said blushing, “He’s in room 143. Just carry on down this corridor, take the
second left, then the first right and he’s in the second room on your left. I am so sorry
for confusing you earlier, Sir.”

“Okay, ...er thanks,” Kris said eventually, not really seeing why he should thank her when
she had terrified him and almost brought him to tears but he knew it was only polite.

Kris quickly followed the woman’s instructions, eager to see Adam and reassure himself
that the man was alive. Today, he would tell Adam that he knew the truth and hope the
man didn’t flay him alive with his words for eavesdropping.

Pasting a smile on his face, Kris opened the door to Adam’s room, surprised to find the
man lying in bed with his eyes closed and i-pod on. Seeing the rhythmic movement of
Adam’s chest, he wasn’t sure if the man was asleep and he should come back. He quickly
pushed aside that thought, he loved Adam and needed to be there even if he was just
watching Adam sleep. He knew this could be one of his last chances to see Adam with
masks and armour thrown aside.

Since Adam didn’t react when he walked into the room, Kris quickly made his way to the
uncomfortable looking brown faux-leather chair. The chair squeaked as he sat down,
causing him to dart a look at Adam, pleased to see the man hadn’t stirred. Holding
Adam’s lax hand in his, Kris was shocked by how cold it was, Adam was never cold. He
quickly pulled the blankets to cover more of Adam’s body. Since Adam was asleep, Kris
decided to take the chance to put his thoughts in order because he didn’t want Adam to
feel ambushed.

Kris said softly, “Adam, I love you and I always will, were I not married I would take you
into my arms and never let you go. I want you so much but I can’t cheat on Katy. I need
to talk to her about everything. It’s weird really, I’ve never looked at another guy and
wanted to be with him.”
Although no one was around Kris blushed admitting, “When we met, all I could think
about was what it would be like to kiss you, would our first kiss be shy and tentative or
passionate and needy. As we spent more time together, I started to think about being in
bed with you, tasting every inch of you, feeling your powerful body against mine. It’s not
32
just about sex, I want to spend every day with you, sharing every moment of joy and pain.
I want to wake up to your face and go to sleep with your kiss on my mind. I want to do
boring things like, go out shopping together, argue over what we’re watching on TV, and
go to boring parties and amazing clubs. I want to take you to meet my family and feel
your arms around me as we watch another boring vacation slide show.”

Adam lay still as Kris’s words washed over to him, unable to believe what he was hearing.
He didn’t want to know this, didn’t want to know how deeply Kris felt for him when the
man could not be in his arms. Since he couldn’t listen to Kris’s heart wrenching words any
longer, Adam made a point of fidgeting slightly before slowly opening his eyes.

“Good morning Adam, I heard you’ll be leaving after the doctor comes back to see you.”

“Yeah. I can’t wait to go home, have a long hot shower, and get changed into some fresh
clothes.”

“I can’t do anything about the shower but I’ve brought some new clothes for you and I’ve
got you a little present.” Kris said holding up the teddy bear with a nervous smile.

Adam grinned widely at the bear, it was amazing, and not the kind of present he would
have expected Kris to pick. Taking it from Kris, Adam carefully looked at it, loving the
spiked hair and the microphone in hand. He marvelled as he realised the bear had a pair
of spiked heeled boots on and a black choker.

“It’s amazing, really amazing. Thank you, Kris.” Adam said squeezing the man’s hand
tightly.

With a sad smile Kris said softly, “I'm glad you like it. I was on my way back to your room
last night when I heard you talking to Simon and I know everything. It doesn’t change
anything between us and I'm not going to abandon you. I'm here for you 24/7.”

Adam froze, desperately trying to remember if he had mentioned his nature the
previous night because he couldn’t see Kris accepting his vampire status so well. Most
people ran for their nearest church, synagogue, or mosque once they found out. It was a
reaction Adam could understand and probably would have had if he had found out about
vampires before he was turned.

Kris’s voice cracked as he said, “I know you are dying and you need a donor. Adam, I don’t
know how you feel about it but what about seeing if I could be your donor?”

“Kris, it’s not that easy.”

“Yes it is, Adam. I'm not going to let you die if I can help it, I can’t lose you.”
33
Relieved that the cameras in his room had been disconnected thanks to Adrian, Adam
tried to think of a way to explain everything in plain English. He wanted, needed Kris to
know what he was letting himself in for, so that the man would realise just how much it
would change everything.

“Kris, just listen to me and do not say anything until I am finished,” Adam said eventually,
fumbling around for a way to start the conversation.

“Kris, being my donor could be dangerous for you and I don’t want you to be hurt. Being a
donor isn’t as easy as it sounds, it will seriously disrupt your life. Can you honestly say
you won’t freak when you realise what a commitment you have made? Kris, vampires are
brutal and there are many who would happily tear every donor limb from limb. Kris, look
at me and tell me it doesn’t scare you.”

Kris stared at his friend in worry, he had no idea why Adam was suddenly thinking he was
a vampire, clearly, the concussion was more severe than he had imagined. Before he could
say anything Adam’s face changed before his eyes; Adam’s eyes became a deep green
colour as long white, sharp fangs descended. He couldn’t believe what his eyes were
showing him, how Adam’s appearance had changed. Kris quickly pinched his arm to make
sure he wasn’t dreaming.

Satisfied it was happening Kris looked at Adam and instead of the expected
overwhelming fear, all he felt was concern, hope, and curiosity. He had been fond of
vampire tales as a child but he had never heard of a vampire having green eyes.

As crazy as it seemed Kris knew it was true so he said quickly, “You’re really a vampire!”

Adam arched his eyebrow saying with a sigh, “Yeah. Now do you want to hear my sorry
story?”
Kris nodded quickly, needing to know how Adam had been made into a vampire and what
he could do help, that wasn’t that something he had never imagined thinking.

Watching Kris move into a more comfortable position Adam said softly, “I was turned in
1903 by Paul and became part of the Lambert clan. My clan has always used willing
donors instead of indiscriminate hunting. It’s not like just anyone can be a donor, it has
to be someone the vampire is compatible with, it’s a bit hard to explain, but a vampire
knows if a human is compatible. We make sure that any donor is told everything so they
know just what they are letting themselves in for. Just because a human is compatible
doesn’t mean they can be a donor, we have to choose carefully who to tell about us
because if the wrong person found out it could mean our death. Kris, if you become my
donor then we will be spending a lot of time together and I can’t let you tell Katy about

34
us because if anyone finds out, we will all be killed. It is permitted for a vampire to tell a
donor about their nature and vampire world but that’s it.”

A quick look at Kris told him the man wasn’t about to freak out so Adam continued, “I’ve
had many donors over the years who I have had different relationships with, there was
really only one donor I have had a serious romantic relationship with, so you don’t have to
worry that I'll pounce you. Isaac was a donor I found almost as compatible as you. We
were lovers for a long time and I can honestly say that he was only love. How often a
vampire needs to feed from a donor depends upon how compatible they are. I only had to
feed from Isaac twice week, with other donors I’ve had to feed every three hours. Joe
was my last donor and had been since we met four years ago. I only had to feed from him
every two days.”

“So you haven’t got any donor at the moment?”

“Nope but I can hold on until I find someone else, Kris.” Adam said reassuringly.

Kris said wryly, “Right. Adam, how long have you been without blood and how long can a
vampire survive?”

Adam said calmly, “I haven’t been able to drink any human blood since the day you
confronted me about acting strange. I managed to get blood from a sanctuary and it was
a onetime only deal. I got a drink from them called blood wine that I’ve been using.
Adrian gave me a blood transfusion, which has given me probably another day. As for how
long a vampire can live without blood, it depends on the vampire. I think the record is
twenty days before going insane and having to be killed.”

“Adrian knows about you?” Kris asked jealous since Adam had only just met the man.

“Yeah. He’s a friend of my brother Simon and one of his relatives was a donor for my
older sister, Katarina before she died.”

Satisfied with Adam’s explanation Kris said, “Okay. Adam, the obvious solution is to use
me as a donor and we can sort everything out with Katy and living arrangements later.
Now do we do this here?”

“Are you sure about this, Kris? I don’t want you to freak out about it later or accuse me
or pressurising you.”

Slightly insulted at the idea that he wouldn’t be able to handle it Kris said passionately,
“Adam, I'm sure. I wouldn’t still be offering if I didn’t want to. I love you Adam and I am
not going to watch you die when I have the power to stop it.”

35
“We can do it at home. Adrian said he’ll be discharging me soon.”

Kris answered, “Great. Wait, how can you go out in the sun?”

Adam explained thoughtfully, “There is a form of sun block created to give vampires
protection from the sun which works wonderfully. It can last for 24 hours at a time but
if possible, I reapply it every eight hours. It’s the same sun block that Matt was helping
me put on earlier. I’ve got two versions of it, one stored as a moisturiser and one as a sun
block, which one I carry around depends on the circumstances.”

“So the sun can’t hurt you but can you still be hurt by crosses and garlic?”

Adam laughed softly, “Neither of those can hurt us, Kris. The vampire nation just
encouraged the old rumours to give us more protection should anyone discover the truth.
The sun can still kill us if we’ve got no protection. We can be killed by being stabbed by
silver in the heart, being burnt until there is nothing left, by decapitation or massive
head trauma.”

“You’re lucky the crash didn’t do you more damage then.” Kris commented thoughtfully.

Adam was just about to explain that the crash had all the hallmarks of being an
assassination attempt when there was a knock on the door. He grinned when the door
opened to reveal a smiling Adrian.

Walking into the room Adrian opened the chart he was carrying saying, “Afternoon Adam.
You’re doing well so you can go home. If you to get any headaches come straight back.”

Adam nodded, “So when can I leave? Please say soon, Adrian. As much as I love your
company, I hate this place.”

“I'm pleased to announce you can leave now providing you’ve got transport. Your
discharge papers are at the desk.”

“Wonderful, let me get changed and I'll be out of your hair.” Adam said getting out of
bed.

Adrian smiled, “I think that’s my cue to leave. Bye Adam and I mean this in the nicest
possible way, I don’t want to see you soon.”

Once Adrian had left the room, Adam threw off the hospital gown and unconcerned
about his nakedness, changed into the clothes Kris had brought, amused to see that they
were his favourite. Once he was dressed, Adam looked over at Kris, swallowing at the
hungry look on the man’s face.

36
“Let’s go then,” Adam, said picking up the bag on the floor and his rock-star teddy.

Kris nodded and the pair headed to the front desk to get Adam signed out and home
where he belonged. As he watched Adam signing the discharge papers, Kris realised that
Adam’s skin was always warm and that didn’t make sense. It was something he would have
to ask Adam about later, once he knew that his vampire was okay.

*******

As they walked out to the hospital Kris said, “I'll call the studio and let them know we’re
going to be late that way you can eat somewhere private.”

Adam reassured, “I'll be okay until after rehearsals. I want to do this right, Kris. I want
us to be somewhere comfortable and safe when I drink from you.”

Kris nodded in acceptance, still worried about Adam’s sickly look but knowing the vampire
wouldn’t be swayed. Kris could see Adam falling into the darkness of death’s embrace
with every minute he went without blood.

As they were hailing a taxi Kris felt his phone vibrate in his pocket, taking it out, he saw
a text message from Alison. Opening it, he was surprised to read that the rehearsals
were cancelled.

“Alison said rehearsals are cancelled but we have to be there at six tomorrow morning
instead.”

Adam nodded in understanding, knowing that everyone would find the early start
difficult. He had never found it a problem since vampires didn’t need to sleep much, he
could easily cope with just three hours sleep if he was healthy. Sick vampires tended to
sleep more, typically seven hours a night.
*******
Now they were in their bedroom, safely away from prying eyes and ears Kris knew it was
time to get started. He had noticed on the short drive from the hospital to the idol
house, Adam had started to go pale and slightly absent minded. To Kris it meant that
they didn’t have long to at least start the process of getting Adam healthy again, well as
healthy as a vampire could be anyway.

“So how do we do this?” Kris asked earnestly.

“Are you sure about this, really sure?”

Kris glared at Adam, annoyed that the vampire still doubted his word, he wouldn’t get
Adam’s hopes up if he wasn’t 100% sure he could follow it through. Grabbing a piece of
37
paper from the bedside table, Kris quickly scrawled on it ‘Do Not Disturb’ before
affixing it to the outside of the door. The idea for the paper signs was first proposed
Anoop shortly after the group moved into the house, and knowing how claustrophobic it
could become, everyone had swiftly agreed. The paper signs were law in the house and
those who disregarded them were ignored until they apologised.

“Now we won’t be disturbed, so I guess my neck would best, good blood supply, right?”

Adam nodded saying quickly, “Yeah but if you’re not comfortable with that, it’s fine.”

“Why wouldn’t I be comfortable?” Kris asked confused.

“Some don’t feel safe having a vampire that close to a major artery.”

“I trust you, Adam. So what will it feel like?”

Adam shrugged admitting, “It won’t hurt you. The way it feels when you given informed
consent differs from person to person. The most common reaction is having a feeling of
complete peace; second, there’s a brief kind of connection created between donor and
vampire. It doesn’t harm anyone just let’s you know how you are both feeling. The rare
effect is the thing the myths get right; occasionally it can create a need for the donor
and vampire to be together. It can’t make you sexually attracted to each other. It’s
more a spiritual thing; it is like finding the one person who makes you feel protected,
content, loved, and needed.”

Smiling reassuringly Kris said seriously, “Right, they all sound just fine with me.”

“Neck it is then! Just sit down on the bed,” Adam said with a smile.

Kris smiled reassuringly at Adam, knowing that for some bizarre reason the vampire was
uncomfortable. Getting onto the bed, Kris grabbed Adam’s hand and pulled him closer,
until they were sitting side by side.

Kris bared his neck, his breathing remaining steady as Adam bent down slightly, one hand
moving to the back of the man’s neck. As sharp teeth broke through his skin as though it
were tissue paper, Kris let out a small sigh of relief. He had worried that Adam wouldn’t
actually follow through. As blood was gently sucked from his neck and into Adam, Kris’
felt as if it was right, as if his whole life had been leading up to this moment. He wasn’t
scared, for all that Adam was a vampire, an elite predator, Kris knew he was safe. Adam
would never hurt him as proven by the vampire’s willingness to die rather than feed on
him.

38
Adam removed his teeth from Kris’s ever so beautiful neck and gently licked the lightly
bleeding wound, watching as the skin closed. He couldn’t help but grin as Kris smiled up at
him with accomplishment, joy, and pride in his eyes. Before Adam could say anything, he
was gently pulled down onto the bed as Kris lay down.

“Are you feeling okay?” Adam asked gently.

“Yeah, just a little sleepy,” Kris said with a smile.

Adam reassured, “That’s perfectly normal, just rest for a minute.”

“Okay but you have to stay with me. I don’t like it when I can’t see you. Just don’t leave,
promise me Adam.”

Looking at Kris’s pout, Adam mentally cursed, it was typical of his luck that Kris would be
one of the rare cases. He truly loved the man but Adam knew he was going to go insane if
Kris was at his side all the time. He already found it difficult to be around Kris without
acting on his attraction.
Adam crooned gently, “Kris, don’t worry that’s just a side effect of my feeding. Just go
to sleep and you’ll feel better when you wake up. I'm not going anywhere.”

His tiredness loosening his normally amazing ability to censor his every word Kris said,
“It’s not. I always feel like this. I wish you loved me, we would be amazing together. I
need to talk to Katy and my parents because I don’t think Katy and I should be together.”

Adam closed his eyes, determined to ignore his instincts demanding that he tell Kris how
much he wanted to spend forever with him. Kris would never want to be doomed to his
existence, watching those he loved die. Adam stilled as Kris moved closer to him, head
coming to rest on Adam’s chest.
Adam felt content for the first time in decades, all it took was Kris’s complete
acceptance. He was amazed by Kris’s willingness to let down his guard around him. How he
yearned for them to truly be together but he had learnt a long time ago that love was as
much pain, despair and misery as it was pleasure, hope, and happiness. Hearing his phone
ringing across the room, Adam smoothly got out of bed, smiling at Kris’s moan of loss.

Adam whispered, “I'll be back soon, just close your eyes.”

Picking up his phone Adam saw it was Simon calling and quickly accepted the call saying,
“Hey, bro. What’s up?”

“You sound good, happy even. What’s happened, Adam? Are you still in control?”

39
“Kris offered to become my donor, he is just so accepting, and it’s amazing. He actually
chided me for asking if he was sure about doing it.”

“Good, you need someone to stop you from being fatally stubborn. Is Kris there now?”

“Yeah,” Adam said confused as to why it mattered.

Simon said firmly, “Good, you might need him. Adam, just stay calm until I’ve finished
talking and then you can have your hissy fit.”

“I don’t have hissy fits!” Adam protested.

Simon admonished, “Quiet, little brother. I know you told me not to because they are
your friends but I’ve been looking into the pasts of people around you. I had to call in a
lot of favours but I have found someone connected to our world. Matt Giraud had a
friend who was a donor for one of the Traditionalist clans and when she tried to leave,
they butchered her and Matt found her body. Given his past and that he made sure to
get you into a car alone, it looks like he’s the one who tried to kill you.”

Shocked Adam whispered, “Are you sure about Matt?”

Simon said regretfully, “Yes but I don’t know how he managed to get the driver onside.
We need to get him alone and get some answers. It feels bigger than a human with a
grudge so just be careful and that goes for Kris.”

Adam nodded saying coldly, “No one is getting to Kris.”

Simon smoothly replied, “Just remember, you have to be in one piece to keep Kris safe.
We’re going to grab Matt tonight. You can meet us at 01:00 in Ethan’s old warehouse.
There’s plenty of room and no one to get worried when he starts yelling.”

“See you later then,” Adam said with a grin, waiting for his brother to hang up before he
ended the call.

Adam turned to find Kris hugging his pillow and with a grin, he jumped back into bed,
adoring the way Kris moved into his arms. He would take advantage of having Kris close,
of feeling the man’s weight on his chest and the musky scent of Kris filling his senses.
Perhaps it would help quench his urge to have Kris lying underneath him, whimpering in
pleasure as their bodies made love.
*******
Waking up Kris smiled as he realised he was still half on top of Adam, his head resting on
Adam’s pale chest and his arm possessively around the vampire’s waist. He stayed still,
feeling as though his life was perfect, as if nothing in the world existed but the two of
40
them. The heat from Adam’s body reminded Kris that he had at least four questions to
ask Adam about vampires, some of which were a little private. As Adam opened his eyes,
Kris looked up into his face and though yet again how amazing Adam was in every way.
Looking at the clock on the bedside table, Kris saw that it was now 18:30 and he was
surprised no one had been in to disturb them regardless of the sign system.

“Hey Kris,” Adam said happily, making the man jump.

“Hey,” Kris replied, not moving from his comfortable position.

“Are you going to move?” Adam asked casually.

Smiling at Adam’s calm question Kris answered, “Not right now. At least here, I can be as
tactile as I want and do not have to put up with scowls from people who don’t understand.
Can I ask you a few questions about vampires? If they get too invasive just tell me to
get lost.”

At Adam’s nod of acceptance, Kris asked excitedly, “Do all vampires have green eyes?
Why don’t you feel cold? Does magic exist? Does being turned affect a vampire’s sexual
orientation? Do some vampires really sleep in coffins? How come you still eat human
food?”

Deciding it was best to answer the questions in order Adam said, “All vampires have
green eyes when their fangs descend, which a vampire can mostly control. A vampire’s
eyes can glow brightly depending upon the age and control of their emotions. A vampire’s
fangs always come out when they are feeding, having sex with their mate or very angry
the last one can be avoided if the vampire has enough control. A vampire’s eyes change to
amber if they are very angry and manage to stop their fangs from coming out. ”

Once he was satisfied, Kris had digested the information Adam continued, “The blood I
drink keeps me warm and magic exists but I don’t know anyone who uses magic. Despite
what the books might say, a vampire’s sexual orientation doesn’t change on turning nor do
most us go around seducing everyone we’re attracted to. I’ve never heard of any vampire
sleeping in a coffin, it sounds uncomfortable. I eat human food because I’d stick out like
a sore thumb otherwise and well...I like the taste of it.”

“Cool. How big is your clan?”

Thinking of his family Adam smiled fondly answering, “There are sixteen of us, three of
whom married into the clan. My father is Paul, who I mentioned to you and my mother is
Allura. I have four older sisters; you already know about my eldest sister Katarina, she
committed suicide in 1959 after her wife died in a car accident. My sister Lauren is
41
married to a lawyer called Travis. Ella is getting engaged to Eli so long as Paul approves
of the match. Stacey is married to Jessie Baker. My oldest brother Simon is married to
Mia. My other brothers are Ethan, Elijah, and Oliver. My younger sister, Sandra is single
and loving it, she declared years ago that she never wants to get married and the baby
of the family is Louise. The ages of my siblings and I vary from 450 to 85. A vampire
isn’t considered to be an adult until their hundredth birthday.”

Kris groaned, “That’s a big family. We better get up.”

Adam asked delicately, “Er...are you still feeling like you need us to stay together?”

“Yeah. We’re together most of the time, it’s not like people will notice.”

Adam had to admit that Kris had a point, the problem being that meant he would have to
take Kris to the warehouse. He wasn’t sure if he wanted the man to see Matt being
questioned since it would probably be a little unpleasant. Kris rolled away from Adam,
remaining on the bed and facing him with his head propped up on one arm. Seeing Kris
was comfortable Adam decided it was time to talk about Matt.

Adam calmly stated, “I’ve got to meet up with my brothers and sisters tonight about the
car crash. We’ve found someone who caused the crash in the hope of killing me.”

“Who was it?” Kris said an angry gleam in his eyes, he just hoped there was some of the
scum left for him after Adam’s family were done.

Adam sadly admitted, “The evidence points to Matt. I don’t know why exactly and we are
going to ask him about it when he’s brought to an old warehouse to answer a few
questions.”

Grabbing Adam into a tight protective embrace Kris said, “I won’t let that deranged
bastard anywhere near you. I mean it, Adam. They better leave a piece of Matt for me,
I'm going to make him rue the day he decided to lay a hand on the most amazing person
I’ve ever met.”

“Thanks. Kris, this is not going to be very nice to watch. We can be pretty brutal when
we want to be.”

Kris insisted, “I'm going with you and he deserves everything he gets. He tried to kill you
and it’s not like our justice system can deal with this. It would mean exposure for your
world.”

Adam relented, “Okay. Now we need to get out and say hello to our housemates before
they decided to break the door down.”
42
Standing Kris sighed in agreement, taking a deep breath to help him keep in control of
his emotions. No matter how much he wanted to rip Matt to pieces for trying to kill his
Adam, he had to pretend everything was normal and that he was concerned for the scum.

Quickly making themselves presentable, so it wasn’t obvious that they had been in bed,
the pair walked out of the bedroom. Exchanging quick smiles before heading upstairs, as
soon as they stepped into the kitchen Alison bounded over and tightly hugged Adam.

“I'm so happy you’re okay. I was really worried. You are feeling okay, right?”

“I'm good Ally, I just needed to have a little sleep after coming home.”

“Good. I’ve made you dinner, I was going to call you.”

“Thanks and I wouldn’t have minded.” Adam said with a grin, following the girl to the
table and sitting down.

Adam thought it was adorable that the girl was looking out for him so much, Alison
seemed to have the mothering skill down pat, he couldn’t wait to see what she was like if
she did have children.
The rest of the contestants appeared as if out of nowhere and sat down at the table, as
if they had been waiting for Adam and Kris to join them. Everyone loaded up their plates,
passing the dishes around until everyone was satisfied. For a few minutes, everyone was
silent whilst they ate then as if on cue Danny and Alison started talking.

Alison asked, “So does anyone know how Matt is?”

Adam nodded, “He’s okay. The pin in his leg went okay and he should be out tomorrow. He
was just being kept in for observation really.”

“Are you going to be excused from singing this week?” Danny asked quickly.
Adam shrugged, “I don’t see why, I've just missed out on the rehearsals for the group
number. I already know my song. Matt should be okay as well, there is no reason why a
broken leg would stop you performing.”

Kris’ phone rang breaking the conversation and with an apologetic smile, he looked down
at the phone to find it was Katy calling. For a second, he was angry at the call
interrupting his time with Adam, immediately after he felt guilty. It wasn’t her fault
that he wanted to be with Adam. He couldn’t cheat on her, he couldn’t go on pretending
that everything was rosy between them when Adam was all he could see, Adam was the
one he wanted to be with for as long as he lived. He just wished that Adam loved him but
even though his love was unrequited, Kris would still have to end things between him and

43
Katy, he couldn’t prolong the charade because it wouldn’t only cause more pain in the end.
Moving away from the table, Kris walked out into the hall knowing he had to make the call
quick.

Wanting, needing to be back with Adam soon, Kris curtly, “Hello.”

“Kris, is everything okay?”

Smiling Kris said honestly, “Yeah. It’s great, Adam is out of hospital. How are you?”

“I'm good, missing you of course.”

“Katy, we really need to talk. Can I phone you later?”

Worried that Kris hasn’t said he missed her Katy said carefully, “Yeah. What time?”

“Around ten, if that’s alright?”

“Sure it is. Speak to you later,” Katy said seriously, ending the phone call and knowing she
wasn’t going to like what Kris would say to her later.

Walking back into the room Kris was just in time to hear Alison make their plans for the
rest of the evening. Kris knew Adam would agree to them even if no one else did, the girl
had terrible puppy eyes.

“Anyone in the mood to watch a film? I’ve got Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Blood and
Chocolate, Children of Men and Evolution.”

Danny asked, “What’s Blood and Chocolate about?”

“You’ll just have to wait and see!” Alison said with a grin.

Kris concluded, “So it’s Blood and Chocolate?”

“Yep. Come on,” Alison said excitedly.

Everyone trooped into the lounge to watch the film, Kris sitting one side of Adam with
Alison sitting on the other side. Kris’s legs were pressed up against Adam’s as they
settled in, he ignored Danny’s frown since the man never approved of him and Adam
being close.
*******
As the film credits sprawled across the screen, Kris patted Adam’s knee to indicate that
he needed to get up. He smiled when Adam winked at him before yawning loudly.

“I'm going to bed,” Adam said with a smile.

44
Alison asked concerned, “It’s only 21:00, are you sure?”

Adam nodded saying, “Yeah. It’s surprising how lying around hospital can make you tired.”

“I'll see you tomorrow then. Did you know the rehearsals are starting at five tomorrow
morning?”

At Adam’s nod, Kris stood up eager to make his excuses so that he could go downstairs
with Adam where he could freely lie down with his head on Adam’s shoulder. Of course,
he had to have an uncomfortable conversation with Katy. He just hoped it wouldn’t get
loud because he didn’t want to worry Adam.

Kris said, “I’ve got to call Katy so I'm going to do that and go straight to bed.”

Once back in their room, their pair fell into their normal night time routine with Adam
heading to the bathroom first for thirty minute pre-bed routine. Once Adam had
disappeared, Kris took his phone out of his pocket and dialled Katy’s number.

“Katy, I need to tell you something really difficult.” Kris said sitting down on the bed.

“What is it?” Katy asked, fear in her voice.

Kris swallowed saying seriously, “I don’t think we should be together anymore.”

“Who’s the woman you’re sleeping with?” Katy said sadly.

“Katy, there’s no woman.”

Hearing the truth in her husband’s voice Katy said, “It’s Adam, isn’t it?”

“What? No, I'm not sleeping with Adam.”

Katy said candidly, “You’re in love with him though. I guess I should have known, you’re
always touching him and you gave him that smile. The smile you used to give me, the smile
I haven’t seen since you’ve been living in that house.”

“I'm sorry, Katy.”

Holding back her tears Katy whispered, “So am I. Kris, I'll keep quiet until after the
show. Kris, I don’t want to see you for while, I'll appear at the public things, but that’s
it.”

“Okay. Goodbye,” Kris said softly before ending the call.

45
Walking into the bedroom, Adam noticed the tears in Kris’s eyes and debated whether to
go over. Finally, his concern and love for Kris won out and he walked over to the bed and
sat down next to the man.

Putting an arm around the man Adam said softly, “Are you okay, baby?”

Leaning into Adam’s embrace, Kris let his head fall onto the vampire’s head saying, “Not
really. I just told Katy that we shouldn’t be together. I'm not in love with her enough.”

“Oh. Anything I can do to help?” Adam asked his mind reeling since Kris thought his love
wasn’t returned and he still broke up with his with wife.

“No, just be here.” Kris said gently, loving the feel of Adam’s arms around him and
wishing Adam could love him.

Adam vowed, “I'm not going to leave.”

*******
Kris smiled reassuringly at Adam as the pair walked inside the dilapidated warehouse,
noticing how the dust flew around as they walked towards the stairs. Kris was relieved
that Adam had insisted on holding his hand as they walked through the building because
he had no idea how he would have managed to avoid breaking a bone otherwise.

As they stepped onto the top floor Kris froze at the sight of Matt trussed up like a
bizarre present. He couldn’t help the surge of anger as he looked at the man whose eyes
begged for help. The man didn’t deserve help since he had brutally tried to kill Adam and
then had to nerve to act as if he was a concerned friend.

Seeing the eight other people standing around the room, three directly behind Matt, and
one at each side, Kris could only assume they were Adam’s family. Kris noticed they were
all studying him, Kris was sure it was to determine if he was going to be able to keep
quiet as Matt was dealt with.

Adam let go of Kris’s hand and stalked over to the man he had once called friend whose
person. Removing the gag from Matt’s mouth, Adam looked at the man, surprised by the
hate and disgust in his eyes. Seeing Matt was looking over at Kris, the vampire growled
lowly.

Adam snarled, “You do not look at Kris, you do not talk to Kris. You do that again and I'm
going to rip those eyes from your head.”

Matt said angrily, “Fuck off, you bastard. You do not control him or me.”

46
Adam smiled coldly, “We know you tried to kill me. Now, Matt, we can make this easy or
difficult. If you cooperate I won’t let my family tear you to pieces.”

“Kill me if you want but you’ll still end up in pieces as you should be.”

At that snarled response, Kris quickly ran across the room and punched Matt in the face,
smiling at the sound of the man’s nose cracking. Kris couldn’t stand by and watch the
cruel, cold, coward attack Adam. Adam quickly pulled Kris back, not wanting the man to
get so worked up that he did something he would regret.

“Matt, I know Kim was murdered by a clan but that is not something we condone. We do
not kill anyone unless we can avoid it.”

Two hours later Matt had various cuts and bruises across his body as Adam’s siblings
dealt with the man. Adam and Kris did not take part in the brutal questioning, sitting on
one of the many sofas, talking in hushed tones as they waited for Matt to say something
useful.

Deciding it was time to bring out the big guns, Simon put up his hand, and the swarm of
vampires moved back, circling their prey knowing that he would break eventually. Fangs
descending, Simon grabbed Matt’s head and pulled it back, ignoring the hiss of pain.
Simon moved forward and forcefully bit into Matt’s neck, hearing the man scream out in
agony, it wasn’t something he liked doing but 9 out of ten times it convinced people to
cooperate.

Matt begged, “STOP, please! It was ordered by Lady Morgan and I don’t know why.”

As soon as Matt started talking, Simon quickly sealed the wound but stayed behind the
chair in case the man he did something stupid or didn’t spill everything he knew.

Across the room Kris asked, “Adam, why did Simon’s bite hurt Matt?”

“We can a bite painful if we want to, it’s just a matter of practice and technique,” Adam
stated calmly.

“Lady Morgan. Why would she try and kill you?” Simon wondered aloud.

Lauren said in incredulously, “No way...she can’t be that petty.”

Adam frowned, “Are you talking about Donald?”

Lauren nodded saying, “Yeah.”

47
“It was over fifty years ago. She can’t still be upset because I turned down her son!”
Adam said in shock.

“Why else would she want you dead?” Ethan said wryly.

“True,” Adam said with a shrug.

“So does it help to know she’s behind it?” Kris asked confused.

Adam shrugged, “Kinda. We need some real evidence against her because she’s fairly high
in the court. She won’t give up easily, so I'll have to be on my guard for a while.”

“She’s not going to get to you, Rock star. I'll get in touch with Lai and see if she can
help.” Lauren said referring to the scullery maid in Morgan’s household.

Adam nodded saying, “Okay. Take Matt back to the hospital and I'll catch up with you
later. Come on, Kris. We better get back and ready for rehearsals.”

Reaching for Kris’s hand, Adam waved a quick goodbye to his family before heading out
the warehouse, feeling a little guilty that Kris had to watch Matt’s interrogation. He was
surprised at how calm Kris had been, not making any moves to stop anything, just
occasionally flinching when Matt’s screams got loud.
*******
Adam’s pale skin glistened in the candlelight as Kris slowly made his way down Adam’s
neck, lightly biting the juncture of Adam’s neck and collarbone, laughing at the low moan.
Kris took a deep breath, taking the scent of Adam into his lungs. His head spun at what
was happening, after so long he had Adam in his bed, submitting to his touch.

Kris sucked, worshiped Adam’s nipples with his mouth soaking up the gasps and needy
moans falling from Adam’s blood stained lips. He continued on his mission to make Adam
fall apart at his touch, kissing and biting his way down Adam’s body, loving the marks he
had created on his lover’s skin and wishing they could last forever, an eternal memento
of their first night together, proof of him claiming Adam as his.

Finally he reached Adam’s cock, hot and throbbing, desperate for release, Kris felt need
rushing through him, the need to feel Adam’s cock inside his mouth allowing him to taste
the very essence of Adam

He opened his mouth and gently moved forward, knowing he couldn’t go too quick or the
moment would be over too soon. Licking the tip of Adam’s cock, Kris groaned at the taste,
it was more addictive than he had ever imagined. Slowly he moved his mouth down, taking
as much of Adam into his hot, wet mouth.

48
Needing more, Kris quickly let the weeping cock fall from his mouth and turned over,
giving himself completely to Adam. He shivered as Adam’s kissed his way down his spine,
placing hot, wet kisses until Kris could hear himself brokenly begging for more.

Kris moaned in desperation as his lover’s tongue traced patterns on his skin, he gasped in
lust and amazement as Adam’s tongue slowly made its way down his skin before finally
moving to the crease between his ass cheeks. Kris gasped as Adam’s tongue circled his
hole, before the tongue gently, yet insistently started stabbing at the opening until it
surrendered. Adam’s tongue moved in and out with a maddening slowness.

Kris begged, “More, please Adam, it’s too much. I need you inside me, making me yours
forever.”

Kris could have wept when he felt Adam’s cock at his hole, slowly he felt the cock moving
into him, making him feel full in a delicious way. The thrusts inside him were slow, letting
him get used to the feeling of Adam’s hard cock inside him.

Adam thrusts got harder, their bodies moving in an age old dance of love. Sweat slick
bodies moved against each other, claiming each other with growls and moans. Kris let out
a long moan as he felt one of Adam’s hands move to his hips as the speed and depth of
the thrusts increased.

“I'm close, Adam. So close,” Kris panted.

Still thrusting, Adam grabbed Kris’s hair, pulling his head back, biting into his neck. At
the feeling of Adam’s fangs piercing his skin, the erotic sensation of Adam taking his
blood, his very essence into him, Kris came screaming his lover’s name.

Kris’s eyes flew open as he came, dismayed to see that Adam wasn’t lying sated beside
him, that it had all been a dream. He wished Adam was n the room, it would have made it
so much easier to reveal his feelings.

Kris was aware that Adam probably didn’t love him in a romantic way but the look Adam
had given him on the way back from the warehouse gave him a small hope, Adam had
looked at him with a strange mix of fear, protectiveness, and love. Kris had no idea if it
was platonic love but he was pinning his hopes and dreams that it wasn’t.

The bathroom door opened to reveal Adam, a towel slung lowly on his hips, Kris looked at
the water drops making their way down pale, inviting skin and swallowed. He couldn’t
pounce, he had to take it slowly. As he walked past Adam and into the bathroom, Kris
missed the look of shock on Adam’s face.

49
Adam watched Kris leave the room, amazed at what his senses were telling him; he had
been in the shower when he heard Kris crying out his name. He had rushed out of the
shower, the scent of Kris’s come was almost overwhelming and Adam was awed to realise
Kris had come thinking about him.
It was 15:30, they had just come back from rehearsals three hours before and headed
straight for their room to get cleaned up. He had watched with a smile as Kris almost
immediately fell asleep, taking care not to wake the man knowing the early morning trip
to the warehouse would have exhausted him.

Walking out of the bathroom to find Adam dressed Kris decided to bite the bullet,
knowing the worst that could happen was Adam would say no.

Kris bit his lip saying nervously, “Adam, do you think want to go out for dinner tonight?
Just the two of us, I mean.”

“Like on a date?” Adam asked softly, both shocked and pleased that Kris was actually
asking him, that the man was sure of his feelings.

Kris said passionately, “Yeah. Not that you have to say yes out of duty or pity. I know it’s
a long shot but Adam, I love you more than I can ever express. Just give me a chance,
please.”

Adam looked at Kris trying to decide if it was a good idea, every instinct he had was
screaming at him to say yes. His logical side was saying it wasn’t a good idea and that Kris
would be at risk if they developed a deeper relationship but a part of him reasoned that
Kris was already at risk.

Adam said eventually, “I’d like that. Where do you want to go?”

“How about we go for Thai?” Kris said knowing it was one of Adam’s favourites.

“Great. So what time?”

“How about 20:00?” Kris said, knowing that it would give them a chance to get a little
rest.

Adam smiled, “Cool, baby.”

Kris smiled excited and hugged Adam, never wanting to let go, pleased when Adam’s
strong arms circled his waist. He had no idea how long they stood there with him
enveloped in the Adam’s embrace, feeling cherished and loved like never before. He felt
himself harden and blushed, knowing Adam would feel it. Quickly letting his arm fall from

50
Adam’s back, Kris moved back and quickly headed towards his closet, feeling Adam’s eyes
on him.

Knowing Kris wanted some time to get his hormones under control Adam said quickly,
“I'm just going upstairs. Is that okay?”
“Okay, I'll see you in a bit,” Kris said relieved.

Hearing Adam leave the room, Kris sighed in relief and turned his attention to his
clothes. Kris had no idea what he was going to wear on their date but he wanted
whatever it was to blow Adam’s mind.
*******
Kris watched from the sofa as Matt walked into the mansion, noticing the cold glare
Matt gave Adam. He was confused when Matt smiled at him with concern burning in his
eyes. Matt had no right to smile at him when by rights, the man should be buried in an
unmarked grave as befitting a traitor.

Matt smiled, “Hi everyone. I'm going to put my things away, can you give me a hand, Kris?”

“Sorry, I'm a little busy.” Kris said calmly.

Kris didn’t want to be anywhere near Matt. It was bad enough that Matt had to live in
the same house as he and Adam. Kris would have to be on his guard to make sure Adam
was safe.
Giving Kris a worried look, Alison jumped up from her chair and walked over to Matt,
eager to help him get settled. She took one of the bags from the floor and led the way
to Matt’s room, resolving to talk to Kris later, if she could get him away from Adam. She
had noticed the pair were always together since Adam’s return from hospital, she just
knew one of them, probably Adam, was going to end up hurt.

“Kris, you should be nicer to Matt, he’s just got out of hospital.” Danny preached.

Kris said calmly, “I don’t care.”

As soon as Adam sat down, Kris moved closer until his head was sitting on Adam’s
shoulder, letting out a sigh of contentment when Adam’s arm looped around his waist.

“Something you want to tell us?” Lil asked amused.

Kris said honestly, “Adam and I are going out tonight, if any of you hold us up, I will
fucking kill you. Whatever emergency you seem to have can wait until tomorrow. I’ve
waited too long for this to have it ruined.”

“Out like on a date?” Anoop asked confused.

51
Kris just stared at the man in disbelief eventually saying, “Obviously.”

Danny asked carefully, “Er...What about Katy?”

“Not an issue,” Kris said seriously.

Danny protested, “It is an issue. You’re married to her.”

“Not for long. Katy and I are getting divorced,” Kris said frankly.

Kris was happy when everyone seemed to get the idea that he wasn’t going to tell them
anything else and returned their attention to the TV. Kris closed his eyes in contentment,
everything was wonderful, and even though he knew it wouldn’t last, Kris wanted to make
the most of it. He couldn’t wait to take Adam out on a date, the date he had been waiting
for since practically the first day they started living together.
*******
Matt sat in his bedroom, in self imposed isolation, his injuries from the interrogation
still smarting. The vampire he now knew to be Simon had healed the agonising bite
before coldly explaining that if ever tried to hurt Adam again, the clan would hunt him
down and kill him. Matt knew the clan would follow through on their threat.

As much as he despised how Adam had manipulated everyone, Matt truly wanted to be
turned and to do so, he had to pass the tests. Killing Adam was one test he would never
be able to accomplish now. He’d be lucky to get within fifteen feet of the vampire
without everyone watching him ready to attack. The biggest danger for him was Adam
himself because the vampire would kill him if cornered or angered so he would have to
play nice with the vampire. He had no idea how to explain to Adam that he generally liked
him, it was just Adam’s species and manipulations he hated.

One thing Matt would do, despite the danger to his life was save Kris. He knew the man
was being coerced or had somehow fallen into Adam’s thrall because there was no way
the man could change so much without an outside force. Kris was disturbingly attached
to Adam; it seemed as if the man truly couldn’t focus without the vampire. Matt had
realised how much influence Adam exerted over Kris when the man had sat there calm
and quiet as he was tortured. He knew it would take time to get Kris alone but he would
definitely do it eventually.
*******
Adam was sitting in the lounge waiting for Kris to get ready, he had been amused when
the rest of the housemates gathered in the lounge, pointedly avoiding looking him in the
eye. Eventually he heard footsteps coming up the stairs and grinned, Kris had taken even
longer than him to get ready, which was saying something. As Kris walked into the room,

52
Adam’s mouth fell open in shock. What on earth had happened to his plaid loving Kris?
Kris was wearing form fitting black jeans, a tight red t-shirt, with a black blazer and
black cowboy boots.

“You look amazing.” Adam said sincerely.

“You too. Are you ready to go?”

Adam nodded, smiling when Kris grabbed his hand as they walked down out of the
mansion. Once outside, Kris reluctantly let go of Adam’s hand knowing neither of them
wanted the media storm that would descend once people found out about their
relationship until after the show had finished.
Twenty minutes later, their taxi pulled up outside their restaurant and Kris paid before
the pair got out. Not wanting to tempt fate, Adam had suggested they use a taxi instead
of risking another driver being on Morgan’s payroll.

“This place looks great. How did you find it?” Adam said looking at the building.

Kris blushed, “I searched online and went by the reviews. So if you don’t like it, I'm
sorry.”

“I'm sure I'll love it,” Adam reassured as they walked inside.

Once their orders had been taken, the pair relaxed and for a second just stared at each
other, amazed that they were finally having the date each one had been dreaming about
for months. Adam had to admit Kris had picked the perfect place for their first date, it
was cheesy in a good way, had low lighting and the tables were situated to give everyone
privacy.

“So tell me about your family,” Kris said motivated by his curiosity and knowing that
Adam hadn’t been able to talk about them a lot.

Thinking of his family Adam said affectionately, “They’re great. We tend to be loud when
we’re all together, it doesn’t happen that often though, around three times a year. We’ve
all got our own careers and lives, we would go insane if we had to stay together forever.
Anyway, my family are pretty easy going and I'm sure they’ll like you.”

Thinking of his own family Kris said, “It’s a shame you don’t get to see them a lot. You
must miss them, I miss my family already.”

“I do but I’ve been living away from the clan for a long time. We tend to have flying
visits to each other even if we don’t meet up with everyone. Mom and Dad fly to see each

53
of us at least twice a year, they want to give us all a chance to have some alone time with
them.”

Nodding in understanding at Adam’s words Kris asked, “That’s nice. Why do you have to a
hundred before your adult?”

Adam was stuck for words as he had never before explained to his partners about
vampire culture. He hadn’t seen the need to since his clan were rarely involved in the
often petty politics of the court.
Adam said carefully, “Being an adult means you are ready to become branch out by
yourself, to perhaps even form your own clan. It is forbidden for a vampire under the
age of a hundred to turn a human, with the proviso that you can turn your spouse. All
vampire courts follow the same traditions, each vampire spends at least their first
thirty years with their Sire. After that, most of us go off in smaller groups to
experience the world; I went with Simon and Elijah. By a hundred, most of us have sated
our wanderlust, have matured, and have made connections in the world that will help us
and our clan.”

Kris nodded slowly, “Complicated but it kinda makes sense. It would be bad for vampires
to go run around turning anyone they felt like it. So how old were you when Paul turned
you?”

“Twenty four. I lived in England, I was born into a wealthy family and was able to get a
great education. While at Oxford, I met a lot of great people who were gay or lesbian, I
would have gone insane without them. Oscar Wilde had been imprisoned for
homosexuality and we all knew that it only by staying close to each other, closing ranks
as it were, we could stay safe.“

“It’s great that you had people to support you. Adam...how did you meet Paul?” Kris asked,
not wanting to directly ask how Adam had died.

Thinking back to the most terrible yet wonderful day of his life Adam said, “My brother
found out I was dating Spencer. I was on my way back from one of the many underground
gay dives when my brother appeared and attacked me. I was left for dead when Paul
appeared out of the ether. He asked me if I wanted to become part of his family. I said
yes, I knew what I was letting myself in for, Paul let me see his true face and told me he
was a vampire.”

“Oh Adam.” Kris said gently, not knowing what he could do to comfort his love, what could
he say about Adam being murdered by his own flesh and blood.

“It’s okay, Kris. I’ve dealt with it,” Adam said steadily, flashing a reassuring smile at Kris.
54
Adam was touched by how upset Kris was on his behalf, true it had hurt for around
twenty years that his brother had killed him, but the pain was eased by the fact that
Paul had chosen to turn him, giving him a loving family and the chance to live forever. The
downside to a long life was watching those he loved die but so long as he remembered,
they would never completely fade away. True, remembering those, he had lost hurt but
each one had affected his life, had made him who he was today and consigning them to
the past would dishonour them and him.

Taking Kris’s hand Adam asked gently, “Kris, is everything okay with you? I noticed
before the accident that you don’t seem happy sometimes. Whatever you need, I'm here
for you. I'll be anything you need, Kris.”

Kris said sadly, “Oh, Adam, you don’t need to be anything, anyone other than yourself.
I'm dreamt of this for so long but...I just...I didn’t realise it would be like this.
Sometimes I feel trapped and when we go out people keep staring at me. Don’t get me
wrong, I want this, I want people to listen to my music, I want my music to reach people
deep inside. I just...I get claustrophobic sometimes and I know my family won’t
understand and that makes me feel terrible. I feel like a chasm has developed between
my family and me since being in the competition, meeting people...okay meet you, has
changed me. I’ve evolved and I'm worried that they won’t understand.”

“I understand, Kris. Yeah, you’ve changed but that’s part of life and I'm sure once the
family get used to the new you, it’ll be okay. Kris, I'm always going to be here and that
has nothing is going to change that. It has nothing to do with you being my donor, it’s
because I...lo...care about you...you might not believe it but nothing is going to make me
leave.”

Adam could have cursed that he had as good as admitted he was in love with Kris, it was
far too early for him to be making proclamations of love. His past had taught him it was
best to see if a lover could deal with him being a vampire before declaring his love. Most
couldn’t, hence the reason he had only had three important relationships. Kris had the
power to bring him to his knees with a look or glance even if the man hadn’t realised it
Adam could feel Kris was going to be the great love his life; if the man could cope with
having a relationship with a vampire. It wasn’t that he thought Kris didn’t love him, he
knew the man did but he knew mortals found it difficult to be with a vampire; who would
never age, who would probably out live them. Some of his previous relationships had been
ruined when his partner aged and suddenly started to hate him or automatically assumed
he was cheating.
Kris smiled widely, hearing the Adam had stumbled off his words and started to reveal
that he loved him. He was giddy he could hardly contain it, Adam loved him, truly loved
55
him. He just had to convince the vampire that they could be together, that his feelings
were never going to change.

Adam had never enjoyed a first date so much but then it was an unusual first date since
he wasn’t normally sharing a room with a man he wasn’t dating. He had seen Kris in such a
black mood that had everyone else in the house avoiding him and looking at Adam as
though he were either incredibly brave or incredibly foolish for actually talking to Kris.

Adam knew that Kris probably wouldn’t like what he had to say but there were a few
issues he wanted, needed to address before they started seriously dating because if
they didn’t it would tear their relationship apart. He loved Kris but the man’s hyper
overprotection while cute was going to become a problem. Adam couldn’t stand being
protected by anyone, he found it stifling especially given his age. He had been coping
with his own problems and dangers since he had decided to go out to explore the world
at the age of fifty five.

Whilst he had spent twenty years wandering around with his brothers, after that he had
mainly gone it alone. Admittedly, he had got into a small amount of trouble when he had
spurned Donald’s advances at the only high society ball he had ever attended and
probably would ever attend. It had been foolish to refuse the vampire in such a public
setting but he had become annoyed at Donald’s insist attempts at pawing at him and
weird declarations of devotion. It was the only time that he had used his age to get out
of a difficult situation, letting Paul excuse his actions as a mistake due to Adam
inexperience with the higher levels of vampire society.

Steeling himself Adam said gently, “Kris, I don’t want to hurt you but you’ve got to stop
this overprotective thing or our relationship is dead before it begins. I can take care of
myself and I don’t need another mother hen, I have enough of them in my life. Kris, I
want a partner, not a nursemaid.”
Kris stared at Adam, ignoring the brief stab of pain. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust in
Adam’s ability to protect himself it was just that the thought of losing Adam, tore his
heart into shreds. He would not let his admittedly zealous need to protect Adam ruin
their chances though, he would somehow tame his instincts

Squeezing Adam’s hand Kris explained, “I...I just don’t want to lose you. Adam, I don’t
know what I would do if I did. I'll try to stop it and if I start suffocating you, just tell
me.”

“Thank you,” Adam said seriously, knowing that Kris meant every word.

56
One hour later the pair walked out of the restaurant sharing a soft smile as they hailed
another taxi and held hands, taking care that the driver couldn’t see. Adam felt desire
burning through his veins as he looked at Kris, the knowledge that Kris was his to touch,
to kiss was enough to make him feel weak. He watched in fascination as Kris bit his lip
and then licked the cut, the scent of the man’s delicious blood filling the air. Try as he
might, Adam couldn’t control his growl when Kris turned to look at him, mischief and lust
burning bright in those beautiful eyes. Adam closed his eyes trying to stop his natural
urge to pounce and kiss Kris, only breaking apart when the man needed to breathe.
The car pulled up outside the mansion and Adam threw money at the driver, knowing he
was paying too much but just needing to get out of the car and into the house where he
could kiss his love.
As soon as they stepped inside, Adam growled and pushed Kris back against the wall,
capturing the man’s lips in a hard, desperate, hungry passionate kiss. He moaned when
Kris gently nipped his lip, loving that Kris was so free with him, quickly Adam returned
the gesture and bit into Kris’s lips, the taste, and scent of Kris’s blood was a heady
mixture.

As they kissed, Adam’s hands were on Kris’s waist, whilst the man’s hands were
underneath his shirt, exploring and teasing, pulling their bodies closer together. Adam
growled in lust as he felt Kris’s hands between their bodies, undoing the buttons on his
shirt. Hearing a sound nearby, Kris growled and ground his body against Adam, loving the
vampire’s resulting shiver.

“Guys! Guys!” Danny said desperately, not wanting the pair to get even more amorous in
front of him but more importantly Allison and Lil.

“What!” Kris snarled at the interruption.

“Take this to your room, there’s a young girl here!”

“So what? They’re hot together,” Alison said with a smirk.

Reluctantly moving away from Kris, Adam grabbed the man’s hand and pulled him towards
the stairs, ignoring Lil and Alison’s whoops, Anoop’s comment about putting his
headphones on and Danny’s rant about them flaunting themselves.
*******
As soon as they stepped into the bedroom, their lips met in rough, desperate kisses as
they pawed at each other’s clothing. Adam laughed lowly when Kris gave up on
unfastening the buttons of his shirt and simply ripped it off, buttons flying across the
room. Soon they were both naked caressing smooth skin, as they kissed devouring each
other, never wanting to let go.
57
Pulling away from Kris, Adam looked at the man and marvelled how Kris was shaking with
desire at his touch. He was going to make the man his in every way, Kris was playing with
fire even if he didn’t know it. As much as he wanted to make their first time slow and
easy, Adam was too worked aroused for it happen.

Adam said huskily, "You have no idea what I'm going to do to you. Kris, this isn’t going to
be making love nice and gentle, this is going to be fucking. I'm going to fuck you so hard
and rough that you’ll feel me for weeks.”

Aroused more than ever before Kris begged, “Yes, Adam, please...do it. Fuck me until I'm
hoarse from screaming your name.”

Adam smirked dangerously and pulled Kris tight against him, hands moving to grip Kris’s
hard cock through the denim, loving the way Kris arched into his touch. Adam continued
his teasing until Kris pleaded for more, the man's face flushed with desire.

“Stop teasing me, Adam. Just take me please, make me yours.”

Pleased by Kris’s desperate plea, Adam rewarded it with a small nip to the man’s neck. He
pushed Kris back onto the bed, needing to see Kris writhing at his touch, to taste every
inch of Kris.

Kris gasped slightly when he landed, feeling the soft mattress underneath his skin,
before he had time to speak, Adam was on him. Adam’s mouth trailed across his skin,
biting lightly whenever he shivered, learning every one of Kris's erogenous zones.

Finally Adam’s mouth moved down to Kris’s cock, running his tongue around the crown
until Kris had reached down and was pushing Adam’s head further down, making the
vampire take more of his cock.

Kris cried out in distress when Adam let his cock fall from his mouth, he was desperate
to come. He couldn’t stand any more teasing; he reached down to his cock only for his
hand to be smacked away.

Adam said firmly, “That’s mine. If you touch yourself, I'm going to tie you down the bed
and make you watch in a mirror whilst I fuck you, your cock bound, not letting you come
for hours.”

Kris quickly moved his hand back to his side, and whined in distress, he had never been so
hard in his life. He was completely at Adam’s mercy and they both knew it. Adam quickly
flipped Kris over, parting Kris’s ass cheeks with a dirty laugh at Kris's gasp. Adam just

58
blew on Kris’s hole, before giving it a slow caress with his tongue, feeling Kris stiffen
beneath him, the man’s hands tightly holding onto the bedcovers.

“More, stop fucking around, Adam. I want to feel your tongue inside me, tasting me.”
In response Adam teasingly licked at the hole, the taste of Kris filled his senses, making
Adam’s cock even harder. Adam quickly plunged his tongue into Kris, over and over
feeling Kris tense in time with his thrusts.

“Fuck me, Adam. Take me, fuck me now,” Kris pleaded.

Pulling open the drawer of the bedside table, Adam grabbed the lube quickly prepared
himself. Without warning, Adam inserted one slick finger into Kris’s ass, moving quickly
and deeply. He knew he wouldn’t be able to last much longer and he wanted to feel Kris
tight around him when he came.
Removing his finger, Adam lined up his cock and in one thrust, entered Kris’s sweat slick
body. Not wanting to hurt Kris, he stilled letting the man get used to the feeling, waiting
until Kris pushed against him to start thrusting.

“Yes...do it, Adam. Fuck me!”

Adam felt his fangs descend as he thrust into Kris, hitting the man’s prostate again and
again. Adam grabbed onto Kris’s hair as he thrust, showing the tantalising neck, calling
for him to drink from his love. Adam’s thrusts became frenzied and deeper as he
stepped closer to the edge, knowing it wouldn’t take much longer before he fell. He
wanted Kris to step into the abyss with him, to share in his pleasure. Adam quickly
started stroking Kris’s cock in time with his movements, using his considerable skills and
experience to bring Kris to the edge.

“Adam...Adam...harder,” Kris gasped out.

Kris whimpered and moaned under Adam’s onslaught, the world disappeared as Adam
moved inside him. Kris had never been so aroused, desperate, and loved before in his life.
Adam was claiming him with each thrust; Kris wanted to spend his whole life feeling this,
feeling Adam inside him.

"Mine," Adam whispered darkly.

“Yours, always yours,” Kris vowed passionately.

Knowing he was about to come, Adam pulled Kris’s head back and bit into the man’s
throat, the taste of his lover’s intoxicating blood was enough to send him careening over

59
the edge. He came, burst after burst finding their home inside Kris, marking the man as
his from the inside.

The combination of Adam drinking from him and the feeling of the vampire’s come filling
him sent Kris into orbit. He came loudly screaming Adam’s name, knowing everyone could
hear him but not caring.
Adam pulled out and lay next to Kris, both of them panting and smiling. Gazing into
Adam’s still lust tinged green eyes, Kris pulled the vampire towards him and the pair
exchanged soft, passionate kisses, both tired but happy.

“Kris, let’s get in my bed, that way no one has to sleep in the wet spot.”

Kris grinned, appreciating his lover’s suggestion. It was so Adam to think of such a
mundane thing after fucking him so hard he would have problems walking the next day.

At Kris’s nod of agreement, Adam picked the man up and carried him to the other bed,
moving the covers out of the way with one hand before placing the man gently onto the
bed. Quickly Adam got into the bed, putting one hand around Kris’s stomach, grinning
widely when Kris moved closer, head falling onto Adam’s chest.
*******
Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, Kris woke up and looked across the pillow at Adam, a
giddy smile on his face. Adam was the embodiment of lust lying there, hair adorably
mussed, a soft smile on his face, his nakedness giving him an air of vulnerability that
made him even more entrancing.

Kris grinned at the small twinge when he moved, a reminder of how wonderful the
previous night had been, how completely Adam had claimed him. Kris knew for the rest of
the day he would probably feel a little sore but in a good way, it’d feel like he had Adam
inside him for the rest of the day. A quick look at the clock told him they had three
hours before they had to have breakfast, plenty of time to show Adam just how much he
loved him.

Kris moved quickly to kiss his way down Adam’s neck, grinning at the vampire’s hiss of
desire. He kissed his way down Adam’s body, content to just take his time exploring
every inch of Adam. Kris just placed a kiss on the inside of Adam’s thigh; he hummed
appreciatively when Adam’s hands went to the back of his head.

From between Adam’s outspread knees, Kris looked up; eyes meeting Adam’s now aroused
green eyes causing Kris to smile wickedly. Kris moved to just lick the tip of Adam’s cock,
tasting the pre-cum. It was a taste he could easily become addicted to, he was sure that
Adam wouldn't mind if he did. Fearing he wouldn’t be able to take all of Adam into his

60
mouth, Kris slowly slid his mouth down the hard cock. Above him, he could hear Adam
panting, begging for release and for just a minute Kris revelled in the power, he had to
make Adam so uninhibited.

Adam said breathlessly, “Oh yeah, Kris. Your mouth is just perfect. I need to come baby,
so much.”

Kris sucked harder whilst moving one hand to Adam’s ass and gently caressing the soft
skin. On noticing a hitch in Adam’s breathing whenever he went near the vampire’s
asshole, Kris swiftly placed one shaking finger into Adam. Kris searched for Adam’s
prostate, finding it, Kris stabbed in time with his mouth on Adam’s cock.

“I'm going to come, Kris. You feel so good,” Adam said passionately, eyes an aroused
green.

Seconds later Adam came, Kris greedily drank as much of his lover as possible. Adam’s
cock fell from Kris’s mouth as the man slid up the bed, kissing Adam roughly, letting
Adam taste himself. With a pleased smile, Kris lay down and cuddled into Adam, ignoring
his own arousal.

Kris gave a strangled gasp as Adam’s hand moved to stroke his cock, using just the
perfect grip and speed to bring Kris to orgasm quickly. Kris knew there was no way he
could hold on for long, he just surrendered to the ecstasy of Adam’s beautiful, soft
hands interposed with quick, wet kisses. Soon Kris was coming; Adam’s hand never ceased
its stroking guiding him through his climax.

Adam brought his hand up to his mouth, full of Kris’s come, and unflinchingly looking Kris
in the eye, drank the man’s essence, laughing dirtily at the resulting shiver. Kris had
given him a hell of a wake-up call; he would have to do it to Kris sometime.
*******
“Man, you should have warned us just how loud you are,” Anoop complained as Kris and
Adam walked into the kitchen where everyone had assembled.

Adam smirked, “What can I say; I'm vocal when someone blows my mind in every way.”

“From what I heard, it wasn’t just your mind getting blown,” Lil said with a laugh.

“I don’t believe that’s any of your business,” Kris said deceptively calm, making everyone
but Adam nervous.

The housemates recognised Kris’s back off now before I destroy you tone and rapidly
decided it was best not to tease. Kris used the tone whenever anyone insulted Adam. Kris

61
had always been quick to defend Adam whenever anyone said anything derogatory or
painful. Therefore, it was not that much of a surprise to the other contestants to find
he had feelings for Adam. The surprise was that that Kris so swiftly decided to divorce
Katy and start a relationship with Adam, it seemed as though the man was certain he and
Adam were it for the long haul.

Anoop smiled, “Anyway, it sounds like you had a good time. Although, I never knew you
could hit those notes, Kris. Has anyone seen Matt?”

Lil nodded answering, “He’s still holed up in his room. I don’t think he’s left it since
coming back from the hospital.”

“I'm sure he’s fine,” Kris said curtly before heading to the cupboards in search of
breakfast.

“What do you feel like having for breakfast, Adam?”

Flashing Kris a quick smile Adam answered, “Scrambled eggs and toast, honey.”

Adam found it adorable that Kris was so determined to make breakfast; he was relieved
that he had talked the man out of bringing him breakfast in bed. Adam could only imagine
the teasing that would have caused, not to mention it was best that they get out of bed
as quickly possible before his urge to pounce Kris took over and they missed rehearsals.

“That is so cute,” Alison said with a grin as she hugged the pair.

With a lopsided smile, Kris said sincerely, “Thanks, Ally.”

Adam said with a grin, “Now, let’s go and kick ass in rehearsals.”

Placing a quick kiss to Adam’s neck, Kris nodded in agreement, grabbing a bottle of water
to take with them.

Matt walked into the room eating a piece of toast and watched Kris being manipulated
right in front of his eyes. Adam had one hand looped around Kris’s wait, stopping the man
from moving away from him. He couldn’t believe no one had noticed how Adam was holding
Kris hostage. Seeing he wouldn’t get the chance to talk to Kris alone, Matt nodded in
agreement to head to the studio.
*******
At the studio, Kris could feel eyes on him and looked around trying to find whoever it
was. Adam had been called away as soon as they arrived at the studio for some reason
and Kris had watched him go before turning his attention to the music in front of him.

62
Kris loved Adam with everything that he was but that didn’t mean he would lay down on
his own sword when it came to the competition.

Kris would not let anything prevent him from giving his all to the show, he wanted to win,
wanted to become a recording artist and he would make that happen. Kris was certain
that Adam felt the same way; he had seen the hunger in Adam’s eyes when he talked
about having a record contract. Adam was important to him but that didn’t mean he had
to surrender his dreams for their relationship to survive.

As Matt approached, Kris reflexively clenched his fists; it wouldn’t do to hit the cold
hearted attempted murderer in front of people. He could be civil around the man for
Adam’s sake, Matt would have to be suicidal to attempt to hurt Adam after the way the
clan had extracted information from him. He was certain Matt wouldn’t attack him since
the man seemed to be under the delusion that Kris needed to be saved from Adam.
Nothing could be further from the truth, Adam had given him so much, such pure love,
and devotion that Kris felt humbled and at the same time terrified that he wouldn’t be
able to show his vampire just how in love he was. Although he would never tell Adam, Kris
feared that memory of Isaac would ruin their relationship; he could tell from his love’s
tone that Isaac had been Adam’s first love. He couldn’t compete with Adam’s first love
because no one ever forgot their first love.

Matt said gently, “Kris, I'm saying this as a friend, I'm worried about you.”

Slapping aside the hand Matt was holding out to him Kris snarled, “Get the hell away
from me, Matt. I don’t want to be near you, I can’t even stand to look at your murdering,
cruel, traitorous face. You tried to kill Adam, the person I love and you are expecting us
to be friends?!”

“Kris, you don’t understand what’s happening, what Adam has done to you.” Matt
protested, looking straight into Kris’s face for some sign of comprehension.

Kris said intensely, “No Matt, you don’t understand. All Adam has done is love me, to
make me feel like I'm the centre of his world and I'm humbled by it. I love him more
than I ever thought possible. He’s not manipulating me or whatever fucked up thing your
imagining, Adam would never do that.”

“Kris, are you listening to yourself? Adam has snared you in his web, he's taken
advantage of you,” Matt said seriously.

63
Kris said darkly, “What, do you expect me to let you off scot free when you tried to take
Adam away from me? If I had my way, you would already be dead but it would cause too
much attention. Just don’t think this is over, after the show you will pay for your crimes.
I'm sure I can get Adam to let me deal with you.”

“Calm down, Kris. You have to understand, I'm doing this for my best friend. I have to
avenge her death.”

Kris warned coldly, “I don’t care what your motivation is, just keep the fuck away from
Adam. If you lay one hand on Adam, I'll make what the clan did to you look like a soft
caress. Remember, Matt, Adam is my world and if you take him away there is nothing to
stop me destroying you. The only reason you are still alive is at Adam’s grace, he believes
you might be redeemed.”

Matt swallowed and backed away seeing that Kris was obviously lost, he was too far
under Adam’s spell to be rescued. Kris had somehow been brainwashed but he didn’t have
the resources to save Kris from the vampire and fulfil his quest for revenge. As cold as
it may be, he had to think of himself and of his mission before Kris. He could try to
deprogram Kris later, assuming he could be saved. If Kris couldn’t be saved, it would be
best to kill him before Adam could turn him.

Needing to calm down, Kris decided to get some air so that he didn’t yell at the next
person who spoke to him. He didn’t want to take out is rage, pain and fear out on some
hapless person who happened to cross his path.

Walking outside, Kris breathed in the air and felt himself feel a little calmer. He was
relieved that it was working because he didn’t want to terrify everyone with his bad
mood. He had just turned a corner when he felt strong arms grab him, holding him tightly.

“So, this is the one? He doesn’t look like much. He can’t be that much of a danger,” The
black haired woman holding him said derisively.

The woman in front of Kris said lowly, “I know but we’ve got out orders and I like living
so shut up. We have to get going before anyone notices.”

Kris was flung up across the black haired woman’s shoulders as the women ran, so quick
that their surroundings were nothing but a hazy blur. Kris realised that he was being
held hostage by vampires, he just hoped Adam realised something was wrong before he
became lunch or someone tried to use him against the singer.

64
Inside the studio, Adam froze feeling the absence of Kris’s presence in his mind. He had
never told his mortal but the sex combined with the feeding had made them a small
connection between them, allowing each to detect the other’s location.

Walking outside, Adam followed Kris’s scent, hoping that his fears weren’t coming true.
Kris’s scent disappeared in a small out of camera view corner that was filled with the
perfume of a vampire he could never forget, Crystal Du Bois. She was the only female
who had tried to seduce him, apparently, she hadn’t realised that being gay wasn’t a
matter of choice; it was something you were born with.
*******
“I need you here, I need everyone here now,” Adam said desperately as soon as he heard
the call connect.

“Calm down, Adam. What’s happened?” Simon asked, hoping Kris hadn’t freaked out and
abandoned his brother.

Pacing Adam said, “Crystal’s taken Kris. She’s fucking insane, who knows what she could
be doing to him? God, I can’t lose him, I just can’t. I’ve waited so long to find him. He’s
the one for me, Simon. Were it not that I would be forcing him to watch his family die, I
would make him one of us.”

Angry that Adam was once again suffering Simon said, “Fuck! I'll call mom and dad so
they can sort out the politics. I'm coming to help you and I'll round up some of the
others on the way. We’ll meet you at the camera blind spot. Don’t go after them alone,
who know what backup they have. Where are you?”

Taking a deep breath to get in control Adam said, “Outside the studio, we were just
taking a break from rehearsals. Lil said that Matt was talking to Kris before he left the
building. If this some misguided plan to rescue Kris from me, I will tear his body to
pieces and leave them for the animals to eat. I wouldn’t put it past Matt to side with a
bitch like Crystal.”

Simon was worried about his volatile little brother’s ability to remain in control. Every
fibre of Adam’s being would be demanding that he rescue his mate and tear his
kidnapper limb from limb. Adam would probably do it without anyone there to rein him in
and Simon had always been the one Adam listen to most of all. Adam was the fastest of
their clan and if he went to rescue Kris by himself, it was unlikely they would catch up in
time to stop him from getting himself killed.

65
Simon said gently, “Just stay calm, Adam. We are going to get him back, just stay in
control. Bro, go and make some excuses, we can’t have people wondering where you and
Kris are.”

“Right, I should have thought about that...” Adam said before ending the call, images of
what Kris could be going through running through this mind.
*******
Looking around the room he was being held in, Kris was shocked to see the windows had
bars on, he would have thought they would be visible from the outside. It was apparent
that whoever was holding him wanted to make sure there was no chance of him escaping.

Not that there was much chance of it happening given his current position. He arms were
behind his back in tight handcuffs, which were starting to dig into his skin. He had a
feeling that whoever held him wasn’t just going to let him wait unharmed for Adam to
appear, since he knew the only reason someone would kidnap him would be to get at his
love. Kris noticed how the female vampire who had carried him was studying him as
though he were a sample under a microscope.

Appearance wise the black haired vampire seemed to be younger than her flame haired
companion but Kris knew that appearances didn’t mean a thing. Judging how the pair had
spoken to each other earlier, Kris deduced that the red headed vampire was the
dominating one in their macabre partnership.

An analytical smile on her face Crystal commented, “So this is the mortal who has Adam
under his spell. He doesn’t look like much; I can’t see what would make Adam attracted
to him.”

“It doesn’t matter why Adam loves him. Our brief was to get him and that’s it.”

The door opened as a tall, regal looking black vampire walked inside the room a cold smile
on her face. Kris noticed she was wearing a gold ring with the initial M on it. Stomach in
knots, Kris concluded that this was Lady Morgan and if so, chances were he was going to
be used to hurt his love. She was imposing figure at 5ft 6in with tiger-eye gem coloured
brown beady and long, full-bodied grey hair. His captors turned together and bowed
their heads in respect at the stranger.

“Crystal, Jennifer, well done for completing your mission.” The black vampire said proudly,
looking at Kris she continued, “Adam will soon come to get him and when he does, I will
have my revenge. The loss of his bonded will bring him to his knees.”

Crystal smiled coyly, “Thank you, Lady Morgan. Does he have to be in one piece when
Adam gets here?”
66
Lady Morgan said quickly, “You can’t kill him. I want to see Adam lose the most precious
thing in his life just like I did when he drove my son to suicide.”

Crystal shrugged, “I can do plenty to him without killing him. Come on, prey. It’s time we
had a little talk about you taking my Adam.”

Kris snorted in disbelief; Adam was gay for fuck’s sake! He knew Adam would have told
her. He couldn’t imagine what was going to happen to him, the spark of anger and insanity
was a worrying sign. Kris struggled when Crystal grabbed hold of him and quickly moved
to through the house, throwing him on the floor of a large bedroom.

The bedroom was decorated in a happy colour scheme of sunflower yellow and midnight
blue, a vase of yellow roses sat on the windowsill, all of which was perfectly normal. On
the left side of the room, a pair of iron manacles lay ominously attached to the wall,
beside which on the table sat three sharp daggers, one whip and ceramic bowl.

Kris snarled, “Let me go, you insane bitch! Adam’s not yours, he could never be yours.
He’s gay and he will always be gay!”

Slapping him across the face Crystal growled, “Shut up, prey. Adam loves me, he just
hasn’t realised it. I don’t know what you did to make Adam bond with you but you shall
pay for taking advantage of him.”

Ignoring the flaring pain Kris said, “Get real, you can’t change someone’s sexuality. He
loves me, he will never love you.”

The next thing Kris knew he was arms were held in the dark, iron manacles, his legs
blessedly free, giving him some chance to defend himself. Kris knew the callous vampire
was about to begin the torture but he would not give her the satisfaction of hearing him
scream.

“Enough talking, prey. All I want to hear from you are screams and begs for mercy,”
Crystal said calmly.

Crystal picked up the first silver dagger and moved towards her captive, determined to
make him pay for ruining her chances with Adam. It was the first time in thirty years
that she was in the same town as Adam and she was horrified to realise Adam had a
lover. So long as Kris Allen, the mortal who by rights she should be hunting as prey, was
in Adam’s life, she would never have Adam as her husband. She knew Adam loved her, he
just hadn’t realised it because of all the mortal scum that clouded his mind.
*******
Adam hugged Simon tightly when the he arrived at the front gate along with Mia, Ethan,
67
and Elijah. Adam was relieved that Ethan was with them because he was the only one of
the clan nearby who had any medical experience. During the 1970s, Ethan had been a
surgeon and after leaving that hospital, he had kept up with the techniques and journals.

Adam knew it was a sure thing that Kris would need medical attention after being at
Crystal’s mercy. Everyone knew Crystal played hard with whatever unfortunate mortal
happened to capture her attention, admittedly she normally didn’t kill them but taking
Kris was about revenge, making her unpredictable. He led the way to a security camera
blind spot and accepted the tight hugs from his family.

“So what did you tell everyone?”

“Kris has food poisoning and I'm going to look after him. Everyone immediately assumed
we were disappearing to have sex so no one is going to ask any questions. I didn’t realise
they thought Kris and I are so unable to control our hormones.”

“In this case, I'm happy they feel that way.”

Adam nodded in understand before looking at Simon, waiting for the male to help
organise the rescue effort because they all knew he was too emotionally involved to do
so himself. Adam knew he would have the vampire world in turmoil as he rescued Kris, no
one would escape his wrath starting with the Dubois Clan.

While Crystal and her sister Tamara were freelance mercenaries, Adam knew the head
of their clan had to give his consent for any action the pair took against another vampire,
which included the partners of a vampire. Even if the pair hadn’t t known, Kris was his
partner on taking their assignment, they would have known as soon as they inhaled Kris’s
scent, which entwined with his own.

“Adam, have you got their scent?”

“Of course,” Adam said angrily.

Simon soothed, “I was just asking because I needed to know if you wanted some help
tracking them.”

“I can do it,” Adam said resolutely.

Simon nodded instructing, “Adam and I will take point, Ethan in the middle with Elijah at
the rear. Now, let’s go.”

On Adam’s lead, the group started moving at full speed, quick enough to avoid detection
on any cameras. The group of moved through the city, Adam becoming increasingly

68
agitated the closer they got to Kris’s position. Suddenly Adam stopped at the rooftop of
a large house, Adam growled as the scent of his love’s blood filled his nose. Adam started
to move forward, only for Simon to grab his arms, holding him in place.

“You can’t go in there alone. Let me come with you,” Simon said seriously, knowing how
dangerous the mercenaries were.

Adam shook his head, “No, it’ll be easier for me to go in undetected. Just stay out here
and deal with any reinforcements. If something starts to go wrong, just get Kris out of
there. Promise me, Simon.”

“I promise. Just be careful,” Simon said, putting his hand up to stop anyone else from
saying anything.
*******
Adam entered the house carefully, knowing the sisters would know he was coming but
wanting to have the element of surprise. He inhaled deeply, the scent of Kris filling his
nostrils, with a low growl he started moving up the staircase.

Reaching the top of the staircase, Adam was unnerved that no one had tried to stop him.
It was too easy for him to get so far into the house; clearly, someone wanted him to
reach the upper level.

“Adam, you have until the count of two to get in here before I kill your little lover.”

Adam froze at the sneered demand, he recognised the voice but he couldn’t put a face or
name to the voice. He knew it wasn’t someone he had been around in the last ten years
but that wasn’t saying much.

Terrified that Kris was going to be hurt, Adam quickly walked towards the room listening
carefully for any possible traps. He hadn’t gotten to his age without learning a thing or
two about protecting himself. Throwing the door open, Adam screamed in denial at the
sight of Kris bleeding profusely from a neck wound.

Kris was pale and sweating, his eyes glazed over as he gasped for breath, blood falling
from his neck into a pool beneath him. Standing above Kris, smirking triumphantly was
the vile Lady Suzanna Morgan, still holding a bloodied dagger. Crystal Du Bois was
watching from across the room with what Adam assumed was meant to be a seductive
look on her face.

Lady Morgan said gleefully, “Hurt’s doesn’t it? You drove my son to suicide, you killed my
son. Now you will know what it feels like to lose the centre of your world.”

69
Adam heard Kris’s heartbeat slowing and ran to him, fearing that his love was going to be
cruelly pulled from his life; he had seen enough to know the injury could easily be fatal.

“I...it’s...okay...doesn’t hurt much. It’s...not your fault. Love you.”

Adam frantically shouted for Simon, knowing that the rest of his family would deal with
Crystal and Lady Morgan leaving him free to help Kris. There was a whoosh of air
seconds before Adam’s family arrived, their faces full of anger and determination.

As the rest of his siblings dealt with the two female vampires Adam sighed in relief as
Ethan appeared at Kris’s side. Whispering reassuringly Adam held onto Kris’s hand as his
brother assessed the man’s injuries.

Looking at his patient Ethan saw the blood pouring from the man’s neck and frowned,
Adam was holding the wound but blood was still spurting out. He could see that they
would not be able to get Kris to the hospital in time to save him. It would kill his brother
to lose Kris; he had never seen his brother so attached to a lover in such a small space of
time.

“I’m sorry, Adam. He’s dying. We’re not going to be able to reach the hospital in time,
even with your speed.” Ethan said softly.

“Leave us!” Adam said to the room at large, not reacting when everyone left the room.

There was only one way he could save Kris and although his heart and soul screamed out
for him to do so, Adam feared that he would be condemning Kris to a life of misery and
loss. Stroking Kris’s hair, the vampire knew he would have to ask his lover’s permission to
reassure himself that he Kris would not hate him. Before he could say a word, Kris
groaned.

Kris said weakly, “Turn me...Adam. L...love you. Want...be wi’ you f’ever.”

Adam felt tears coming to his eyes at Kris’s plea, how he wished Kris would be asking to
be turned years in the future. Adam would not refuse, he didn’t have the strength to do
so, and Kris might end up hating him.

Seeing Kris’s eyes starting to fall Adam asked urgently, “Kris, blink three times if you
can understand me.”

Adam stared into his love’s eyes, seeing them close three times and swallowed. The rest
of his existence depended upon this moment, on what Kris would choose to do, if he could
endure a life in the darkness.

70
Adam smiled sadly, “Good, baby. Are you sure you want me to turn you? Blink twice if you
do.”

At Kris’s two slow blinks, Adam placed a soft kiss onto his love’s lips before gently lifting
Kris’s head onto his lap. He quickly drank Kris’s blood, knowing he had to work quickly
before Kris faded away. Pulling away from Kris’s neck, Adam bit into his own wrist and
waited for Kris’s heartbeat to slow. Turning someone had to be done at exactly the right
time, the very second before the heart stopped. Sometimes even giving the blood at the
correct moment didn’t work, sometimes people just died.
As Kris reached the perfect moment, Adam lifted his hand to his love’s pale lips and
prayed to every deity he could think of that it would work. He felt Kris drinking his blood
and let out a sigh of relief at least they had passed the first stage.

As Kris’s heart stopped beating, Adam gently picked up his now dead love. Wanting to
give Kris somewhere comfortable to wake up, Adam walked out into the corridor and
scented the air to find a room that had not been occupied recently.
*******
Adam sat staring at Kris’s body waiting for some sign that the turning had worked, that
Kris would be with him forever. He instinctively growled at Simon as the older vampire
walked into the room; Adam was sure his brother would understand it wasn’t personal.

Simon said carefully, “Adam, I’m taking the Du Bois and Morgan to the Sanctuary so they
can be kept under guard until they can be tried. You can come to the Sanctuary
tomorrow.”

Adam nodded in understanding, his eyes not leaving Kris’s body in case he missed some
sign of his love coming back to him. Hearing his brother leave the room, Adam felt
himself relax as his primitive side said that Kris was safe and no other vampires would
appear to steal his mate. He had no idea how much time had passed when he felt it, the
presence of another vampire.

Kris opened his beautiful eyes and Adam cried in relief, seeing sanity there not anger,
fear or loss. He just hoped Kris would continue to feel that way once he got used to the
problems that came with being a vampire.

“Why are you crying?” Kris asked worried that Adam regretted turning him.

Adam smiled, “I’m just happy, I was worried it didn’t work. I was terrified I would lose
you forever.”

Hearing it was the truth Kris said, “You’re never going to lose me. We’re going to be
together the rest of our lives or unlives, I guess you’d call it and it be amazing.”
71
Kris arched up and licked the blood tears from Adam’s face, tasting himself and
delighting in Adam’s aroused groan. He was pleased that being turned hadn’t changed
Adam’s attraction to him, that Adam didn’t now find him grotesque.

Adam laughed when Kris pulled him down until he was straddling the younger vampire,
before he could say anything Kris’s mouth was on his. They kissed with a hunger and
happiness they had never experienced before, Kris’s head swam with the realisation that
he would be with his love for so long as he was on this planet. Kris broke the kiss, needing
to say just how much he loved Adam.

“I love you, Adam. Nothing could ever change that.”

Caressing Kris’s face Adam said ardently, “I love you too and I’m so happy that we can be
together until we turn to dust.”

Seeing the hunger on Kris’s face, Adam bared his neck, shaking with desire as the scent
of blood automatically made Kris’s fangs descend. Kris had always been beautiful but as a
vampire, he was simply breathtaking, his pale skin making his brown eyes even more
seductive.

Kris bit deeply into Adam’s neck feeling his mate doing the same thing to him. The blood
freely passed from one to the other in a never-ending circle that only served to make
Kris stronger. Adam wanted Kris to be as strong as possible, healthy and ready for
anything, more importantly he wanted Kris with him for a long time. Many vampires
rationed the amount of blood they gave their mates, wanting to be the strongest of the
couple but doing so was abhorrent to Adam. He couldn’t see why anyone would want to
hurt someone they love; he could never hurt Kris.

As they broke apart Adam realised they had to get going before someone wondered
where they were, not to mention he wanted Kris safe in their room. He wanted time to
celebrate Kris’s turning the right way, by making love until sunrise.

“Are you up to moving, baby?”

“Yeah but how am I going to go out in the sun?”

Adam reached into jacket and pulled out a tube of sun block, he always carried it just in
case. He would able to cover the parts of Kris that would be left bare to the sun; it
would be enough until they got home. Since Kris wasn’t used to his new abilities, Adam
would carry his love to the idol house, that way no one would suspect they hadn’t been at
home the whole time.

72
Adam grinned, “This will be enough until we get home. I’ll carry you, it'll be safer and I
can get us into the house without being seen.

Not saying anything, Kris held his arm in front of him and smiled softly as Adam
massaged the cream into his skin. Kris felt himself purr and ducked his head in
embarrassment.

Tipping Kris’s face up, Adam said gently, “No need to be embarrassed, baby. It’s hot to
know that I made you purr, I’ll have to see if you do that when I make love to you.”

Ten minutes later, Adam was satisfied that he had managed to make Kris as safe as
possible from their natural enemy. Standing, he reached his hand out to Kris who quickly
moved into the loving, protective embrace and held on tightly.

Placing a quick kiss on Kris’s head, Adam said, “Okay. We’re going now, just keep hold of
me.”

“Always,” Kris vowed.

Seconds later the pair were leaving the house at full speed, eager to get back home
where they could relax and reaffirm their love.
*******
Kris flinched as they sneaked into the house just as Alison started laughing with Lil and
Anoop. He had never realised just how piercing their voices could be, he sighed in relief
as Adam’s hands came up to his ears, helping to muffle the sound.

Adam felt guilty as he watched Kris’s face contort in pain; he should have warned his love
about the increased sensory input. He had been so worried about getting Kris somewhere
safe from the sun that he hadn’t considered the simple dangers. He rushed them to
their bedroom, eager to start Kris’s training early instead of making love. There would be
plenty of time for sex after they had gotten Kris a little more in control; he wouldn’t
even be able to move without going insane from his now very sensitive hearing.

Gently placing Kris on the bed, Adam went to his closet searching for his headphones. He
had a set of full ear headphones that he had been using after Joe’s death when
starvation had made his control over his hearing erratic. Finding the headphones, he
returned to the bed, Kris was still covering his eyes, trying to stop himself from
screaming out in pain. Adam smiled comfortingly as he sat on the side of the bed, gently
lifting Kris’s head up and placing the headphones on his young love.

73
Kris grinned as the sound levels became bearable again; Adam was simply amazing to
come up with such a creative solution. Seeing the guilt in Adam’s eyes, Kris whimpered in
distress, pulling his lover close and capturing the man’s lips in a reassuring kiss.

“Kris, I’m sorry. It’s my fault you’re in pain. I should have taught you how to control your
senses before we came home. The Morgan house was soundproofed and it would have
been easier for you. Just keep the headphones on until we’ve got your hearing under
control.”

Kris said with a small grin, “Hey, we had more important things on our minds, like my
survival. Now I guess we won’t be having sex until I’ve got control so we best get started.”

Adam nodded in agreement and tried to think of some method that would keep Kris safe
but allow him to test his abilities. The problem was a shortage of places nearby that
could be used for training. Adam knew people would get suspicious if they weren’t at the
house for long periods. Adam reluctantly admitted that they would have to use their
room for the basic training or Vamp 101 as he now thought of it.

“We’ll have to use this place for a while. Kris, your hearing range is far more sensitive
than any human’s is, you can hear even the smallest whisper from a mile away. Obviously
you can’t go around 24/7 with such sensitive hearing, it would drive you insane. I'm going
to teach you to control your hearing so you can keep it at human levels or increase it as
needed. ”

“Okay, how long will that take?”

“It depends; first I am going to teach you how to return your hearing to a normal mortal
level so you can actually be around people without going insane. Now I want you to close
your eyes and focus on my voice, just my voice. Everything else fades away; the only
sound that exists is my voice, listen to my voice, only my voice.”

Kris closed his eyes and did as Adam gently ordered; surprised at how easy it was to blot
out the other sounds but then Adam’s voice was captivating.

Adam looked at Kris, seeing the younger vampire had done as he suggested, so the first
step had worked. The next part involved some visualisation techniques and he wasn’t sure
what would be the best image to use since it had been so long since he had to use it.

“Good. Now I want you to focus, on imagining a slider going from one to three, a slider
just like a volume control on your computer. Just focus on the slider, Kris. Can you see
it?”

74
Kris scrunched up his face trying to focus on Adam’s words, sighing in relief when he
managed to see a slider in his mind. A metallic black slider numbered from one to three
in red numbers.

“I can see it. It’s black with red numbers on.”

Adam said proudly, “Great, now the slider controls your hearing and you can change it to
suit your needs. Your hearing slider is completely under your control. Now it goes from
the lowest setting, one to the highest, three. At one you can’t hear anything, normal
human hearing is a two and a three is at this level.”

Kris nodded in understanding waiting for Adam’s instructions; he knew his love would
come up with the perfect way to help him. Adam seemed to have an amazing talent to
solve problems and explain things in a way that was easy to understand.

Adam said gently, “Concentrate, move the slider down, Kris. You can do it, it might seem
a little difficult at first but you can do it. Move the slider down to two, just concentrate
on it.”

Kris focused on the image in his mind, working hard to do what Adam was telling him. He
felt it work slowly as he started to move the slider down, each minute movement felt like
it was a hard won battle. After what felt like days, his hearing was back to normal human
levels. Kris let himself fall forward into Adam’s arms, feeling all of his worries about the
future, about he was going to adjust to life as a vampire, fade into nothingness.

“Okay, it’s down.” Kris said with a tired sigh.

Adam smiled proudly, “That’s great, baby. Are you feeling up to briefly seeing the
others? We should at least speak to them and stop them from wondering what we’re up
to.”

Kris nodded in agreement and stood up, taking Adam’s hand, together the pair made their
way upstairs. Kris grinned slightly at the frequent worried looks his lover was giving him,
he could do this and if not Adam would be there to stop him from hurting someone.

“Hi guys. You feeling better, Kris?” Alison said brightly.

Kris nodded quickly, he had never felt so wonderful and he wanted to shout from the
rooftops that Adam was his forever. Kris knew he would have to match his family die but
as selfish as it may be, he could lose them so long as he had Adam. Adam would be by his
side forever, together they would deal with all the pain and grief that the future might
bring.

75
“Great, just don’t give me details of what you’ve been doing all day. I don’t want to know
that much about your sex life, hearing you last night was bad enough.”

Adam smirked, “We weren’t going to give any, Danny.”

“You’ll have to make up for missing rehearsals.” Lil said calmly, knowing the pair already
worked their asses off to survive in the show.

Lil knew the pair were talented and despite Kris’s occasional bouts of insecurity, the man
was an amazing singer. She was sure Adam would help with Kris’s confidence because the
man’s insecurity could see him leaving the show.

“I'm sure we’ll be okay,” Kris said calmly.

Out the corner of his eye, Kris could see Matt watching him closely with a puzzled look
on his face. It occurred to Kris that now he could make sure Matt left Adam alone, he
didn’t think Matt would try to go after two vampires.

“Do you want anything to eat?” Anoop asked, deciding that he should be nice and make
something to eat; he noticed that Kris was a little paler than normal.

Kris shook his head, “I'm good, and we had something to eat earlier.”

Not wanting people to question the now frosty atmosphere between himself and the
couple Matt said, “We’re having a movie night, if you guys want to join us.”

“I'm still a little tired so we’re just going to bed,” Kris said with an apologetic smile.

“It’s only eight o’clock!” Danny said in disbelief

Danny was sure that the pair had already spent the day having sex. He couldn’t believe
they were so insatiable that they would want to give up spending time with their friends.
Of course, it was possible that they were avoiding the group because of the strange
tension with Matt. He had noticed since the accident that a weird sort of vibe had
formed between Adam, Kris and Matt. Surely, Matt didn't have a problem with the two
men dating. Danny wasn't bothered that the pair were dating, he wasn't homophobic, he
just didn't approve of cheating or PDAs. It wasn’t hate, although he knew it had
something to do with it, there was also a sense of anger and fear. It was a strange
combination and he couldn’t think what could have happened to create it.
*******
Although he should be exhausted since he and Adam had just spent four hours making
love, Kris found himself lying awake, mind still reeling with what had happened in such a
short space of time. Everything had changed for the better and he found the
76
competition to be one of the things he was least worried about which was strange
because for so long he had been panicking about his performances.

Now his worries were so much bigger such as how was he going to avoid accidently
hurting someone before he was trained in his new abilities. He was worried about what to
tell his family because he had to tell them something. It might be against the rules but
he couldn’t exactly disappear and his family would start to notice even if he did use
makeup and whatever techniques the vampire nation had developed to age his appearance.

He looked down at Adam, surprised that the older vampire hadn’t woken up but perhaps
turning someone into a vampire exhausted you. Adam looked vulnerable when he slept,
calling to mind the pain and fear in Adam’s eyes the day before when Kris had lay there
dying in his love’s arms.

Although Adam didn’t show it, Kris knew that his love could be easily hurt by callous
comments and accusations. Kris would stand guard whilst Adam slept, no one with ill
intent would get near his love.
Kris had no idea how much time had passed when Adam finally woke up, he hadn’t been
keeping track, content to feel his black haired love in his arms. Kris reluctantly realised
they should get up since they had a meeting regarding the punishment of his kidnappers.

“Morning baby,” Adam said with a graceful feline like stretch.

“Hey, love.” Kris said with a wide grin before capturing Adam’s luscious lips in a
passionate kiss.
Breaking the kiss Adam said reluctantly, “We better get dressed. I want us to get to the
Sanctuary for when it officially opens, at nine. It will give us plenty of time to get ready
for filming tonight.”

“I guess that means we haven’t got time for you to fuck me,” Kris said with a pout, one
good thing about being vampire, he wasn’t hurting from the previous night’s energetic
sex.

With hungry eyes, Adam sighed, “I'm afraid not but I'll make it up to you later.”

“I'm looking forward to it. What’s a Sanctuary?”

Taking a second to get his thoughts in order Adam explained, “The Sanctuaries were
optional for each court until the Jacques Agreement in 1660 when it was made law that
there had to be one in each city in every vampire country. The vampire hierarchy for
each country is King and Queen, then the Dukes and Duchesses who all have a state or
province, then the Lord and Ladies. Each city has a Lord or Lady, normally over the age
77
of 250. Every Lord or Lady’s has a Sanctuary where vampires can go for help. It can be
anything from food, education, a job, a home to training. No one is allowed to hurt a
vampire in a Sanctuary. To do so is an immediate death sentence and it cannot be
overturned. To bring charges against another vampire, you have to petition the Lord or
Lady’s court that then arranges for the case to be heard. Lord Graham will preside over
the court and decide their guilt or innocence. He will probably decide on a sentence right
away as well since it takes up less paperwork and time.

“Wow, Vampire politics is complicated. We had better get ready then. At least the
others won’t say anything if we go somewhere alone,” Kris said reluctantly.

Adam laughed, “Wait until we have to go through the vampire rules of etiquette, a
necessary evil since it’ll stop you accidently insulting someone and ending up dead. Baby,
let me do the talking. It’s preferred that the head of your clan is present when you file
any charges. Each party represents themselves but if you are underage or injured then
the head of your clan will represent you.”

Kris nodded in acceptance of Adam’s request, he didn’t want to make some mistake and
cause problems. He just hoped that his kidnappers were punished, ideally put in jail to
get rid of the threat to Adam’s life. Now that he had found Adam, he never wanted to
be without him.

Adam smiled happily, “I can’t wait for my parents to meet you. They’ll love you.”

Remembering what Adam had said about his sister getting married Kris said quickly,
“Adam, are we married in vampire terms or will we have to have another service because
I want to be your husband.”

Adam nodded, “We’re married but the correct term in vampire society is mated. The
term goes back centuries, right to the first of our species. We will probably have a little
ceremony, if you don’t mind. You can invite your friends and family to see us get married,
it’s not like we will announce during dinner that we’re vampires.”

Kris suddenly said, “I want to tell my family about us being vampires.”

Delicately Adam said, “Yeah. Kris, whatever you want is fine with me but it could be
dangerous if they freak out and the Prefects find out. The Prefects are the vampire
police, the enforcers and they make up around a quarter of the vampires in each country.
The first Prefects were created around 1800 B.C in China.”

“What would the Prefects do? Kris asked apprehensively.

78
Adam smoothly answered, “Kill whoever freaked out and both of us.”

“Oh. I guess I should take some time to think about it.” Kris said dazedly.

Adam said supportively, “Whatever you decide is fine with me. Mia’s parents know about
her and they accepted it. I'll be there for you whatever you choose to do.”

With that thought in mind, Kris focused on getting dressed for the court appointment.
He wanted to give a good first impression, not to mention, he didn’t want to show Adam
up.
******
Seeing his love was nervous about walking into the Sanctuary, Adam gently squeezed
Kris’s hand wanting to let him know that everything would be okay. Walking inside, Adam
was pleased to see Simon there because he needed all the support he could get. Once he
had filed the charges, Adam hoped he could get his brother’s help because he had no
idea how he could train Kris to use his new abilities in the middle of the city. Every
vampire in Adam’s family had been trained far away from civilisation to prevent anyone
accidently hurting a mortal.

“Simon, this is my mate, Kristopher Allen.” Adam said pride and love colouring his voice.

“Welcome to the family, Kris. If you want some interesting about my baby bro, just let
me know. I’ve got hundreds of stories that I’ve been waiting to give someone.”

Kris said smiling, “Thank you, Simon.”

Seeing Simon’s complete acceptance had made Kris relax, Adam gave his brother a
grateful glance. His brother was great at making people feel at ease and the rest of the
clan tended to base their opinions of people with Simon’s reactions. Simon was an
excellent judge of character and those his brother instinctively hated had turned out to
be trouble.

Adam looked at his brother, “Have you heard anything from dad?”

Simon nodded in response saying quickly, “Yeah, he and mom have landed in LA and they’ll
be here soon.”

“Mom’s coming?” Adam said worriedly, LA wouldn’t survive his mother in a fit of pique.

Simon smirked, “Oh yeah, expect to be coddled to death. Dad said that she’s ready to
tear the Du Bois twins and Morgan to pieces.”

“Please say she hasn’t got Stacey with her?” Adam begged.

79
“You’re lucky, she somehow convinced Stacey to stay with Ella,” Simon said with a laugh
at his brother’s nervousness.

Seeing Kris’s look of confusion Adam explained, “Stacey is very protective. She has and
will use deadly force to defend the honour of our clan. She is a warrior to the core, a
rather amazing one at that. ”

“Basically, I best keep on her good side.” Kris said wryly.

Adam looked at the door as the scent of his parents filled the air, seconds later the pair
walked into the room, walking straight over to Adam.

Allura physically appeared to be in her late thirties with large lime green eyes, creamy
white skin, a small mouth, and a strong chin. Her fine scarlet hair was worn in a smart
business like bun. She exuded serenity that Kris felt seeping into his bones.

His mom swooped up Adam into a tight hug before he could even greet her. Breaking the
embrace, Adam pulled Kris even closer and grinned brightly.

Adam gushed, “Mom, this is my amazing mate, Kristopher Allen.”

Allura hugged Kris with a large grin before placing a kiss on his cheek, pleased that Adam
had finally found the one for him. Although it had happened in terrible circumstances,
she was happy that Adam had made Kris one of them; at least he would be by Adam’s
side forever. Of course, she still wanted to see the Dubois twins and Morgan suffer for
the pain they had caused her child. She knew how much it must have hurt for her baby
boy to watch Kris dying, knowing turning Kris might not work and he could lose his love
forever. At least now, she was there to make sure Adam and Kris were okay and help her
new son in law master his new abilities. She was amazed at Kris’s ability to be around so
mortals so soon after being turned without going on a killing spree. A newly turned
vampire didn’t just attack a human because they were hungry but because of their
natural hunting instincts.

Kissing the nervous vampire’s cheek Allura said in a faintly French accented musical voice,
“It is wonderful to meet you, Kris. We despaired of our baby every finding his match.
You’re a new vampire, correct?”

Before Kris could say anything Adam answered, “Yeah, I turned him after those bitches
killed him.”

Allura smirked, “Now son, don’t insult dogs. I will make sure the trio are held accountable
for their actions.”

80
“Good,” Adam said darkly.

Kris smiled, resisting the urge to fidget under Paul’s assessing gaze. He knew he wasn’t
convincing anyone but it was such a big deal, this was Adam’s dad. If they didn’t get along,
it would be an unending strain in his and Adam’s relationship.

Kris’s gaze spun to the central archway, a blonde female vampire, seemingly of
Scandinavian lineage walked just into the entrance hall carrying a large bronze bell. She
rang the bell four times, condescendingly looking at the assembled vampires.

The blonde vampire said grandly, “The Sanctuary is open. First, to see Lord Graham is
Adam Lambert et al. Is Adam Lambert here or a member of the Lambert clan?”

Paul strode into the room just in time to hear the announcement, pleased at the non-
reaction to Adam’s name. He had feared that due to Adam’s young age, the others of
their kind would scorn the idea of Adam taking charge of an appointment.

“I am Adam Lambert,” Adam said calmly, one arm possessively around Kris’s waist.

“Follow me,” The blonde said leading the way into the room.

Once inside the large reception room, Kris felt slightly awed by the ornately room. The
whole time he looked around, Adam kept one arm around his waist as though reassuring
both of them that nothing would split them apart.

Graham smirked, “I see you are well, Adam, and you have a new friend. He’s certainly
easy on the eye.”

Adam grounded out calmly, “This is my mate Kristopher Allen.

Placing a calming hand on his son’s shoulder Paul said, “On the behalf of Adam Mitchell
Lambert, I am here to charge Crystal and Jennifer Du Bois with kidnapping my child’s
bonded, Kristopher Neil Allen. I am also charging Crystal with torturing and attempting
to kill him. I am charging Lady Elizabeth Morgan with arranging his kidnap, authorising
his torture, murdering him.”

Looking at the young vampire Graham warned, “These are some very strong charges,
Adam. Are you sure this is the correct course of action?”

“I am,” Adam said surely.

Graham sighed, “So be it. The trial will commence in on Saturday.”

Bowing in respect and feeling Kris do the same Adam said, “Thank you, My Lord.”
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The Lambert clan left the room, uncaring of the chaos in their wake as the gossips of
the Graham household went about informing the other clans of what had happened.
*******
Sitting inside the penthouse suite Paul smiled reassuringly at his son’s mate saying,
“Kristopher, it is wonderful to welcome you to our family. May the moon shine on your
marriage and bring you joy.”

“Thank you,” Kris said hesitantly, unsure as to how he was supposed to respond to the
strange greeting.

Kris figured it was one of those vampire etiquette things Adam was going to teach him.
He just wished his love had given him a quick lesson before introducing him to his
parents. He had no idea if he was supposed to bow, as he had to do with the Lord, shake
hands or say something back.

Paul quickly reassured, “It’s okay, Kris. I'm not going to bite your head off. The greeting
is traditional when you welcome a new spouse into your clan. My son should have prepared
you.”

Adam said guiltily, “Sorry, I was going to do it last night but...I got a little distracted.”

Paul smirked, “Enough said, I remember what it’s like to be a newlywed.”

“Allura and I are going to stay here in LA to help you get used to everything, Kris. I know
it can be difficult. We’ll practice techniques here and we’ll find somewhere safe out of
town. You’re doing very well being around so many humans without attacking them.”

“Thank you. When can we get started?” Kris said eagerly.

Briefly looking at her husband Allura answered, “Tomorrow, you are filming today and you
need to be your best. Adam can help you more than anyone at the moment.”

“Okay, thank you.”

Paul smiled widely, “It’s our pleasure, Kris.”

“So what happens now with the trial?”

“All parties basically have to give a statement to court and present any evidence or
witnesses they have. At court, I can ask them any questions and vice versa.”

“So it’s not that different from a normal court...apart from the absence of a jury?”

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“I guess so. The main difference being that we don’t have lawyers, in our courts having a
lawyer is a dishonourable thing. Having a lawyer means you are not meeting the charges
head on but hiding away because of fear and guilt.”

Looking at his watch Adam said, “We better get going. We’ve got show things to do.”
*******
Watching Adam walk down to their room, Kris smiled softly as he realised he was alone
with Matt. Now he could warn Matt yet again to leave Adam alone, with his new abilities
to back up his warning, Matt definitely wouldn’t make a move against Adam. The thought
of Matt lying broken at his feet was satisfying and now, if he chose to, he could make it
happen in the blink of an eye. It was great to know that he could now protect Adam as
much as the older vampire had always protected him.

“Matt, can I have a word with you?” Kris more ordered than suggested.

Feeling nervous for some unknown reason Matt nodded, there was no reason why he
should be worried since Kris wouldn’t really hurt him. No matter what Kris said, he didn’t
have a violent bone in his body.

Kris waited until Matt had made himself comfortable and deliberately invaded the man’s
personal space, noticing how Matt instinctively backed away from him. Arms on either
side of Matt’s chair, Kris stilled to breathe in the scent of fear.

Just flashing his fangs Kris purred menacingly, “Matt, just a little reminder...you go near
my mate and I will rip you apart.”

“Your mate?” Matt squeaked in shock, unsure how was Kris able to walk around when he
had just been turned.

“Yes. Now, I have the means to destroy you so just remember my warning. You will
become my prey should you do anything to Adam.”

“Okay,” Matt said quickly.

Matt wanted to get, as far away from Kris as possible, he knew just how violent a
vampire could be when it came to their mate. He grieved for Kris who had lost his very
humanity. Now all existed was the vampire Kris, who cared for nothing but his mate.
Matt would leave the pair alone, there was nothing he could do for Kris and he had to
focus on getting his revenge.

Kris said pleased, “Good.”

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Kris moved away from the chair and watched as Matt fled the room as though the
hounds of hell were nipping at his heels. It felt good to publically declare Adam as his
mate, if only he could shout to the world that Adam was his husband. Suddenly, it
occurred to him that he hadn’t spoken to his parents about his impending divorce and
new relationship with Adam. He couldn’t tell his parents that Adam was his husband yet,
it would be best to wait until the divorce with Katy was final.

Walking towards their bedroom, Kris took his phone out and pressed speed dial. He
flashed a quick grin at Adam who was looking for something to wear to the studio. They
were due there in an hour.

“Hi momma, can you put me on speakerphone?” Kris asked with a grin once the call was
answered.

“Okay, we’ve got you on speakerphone now. What’s wrong?”

“I wanted to let you know right away before you hear it second hand or in some
magazine...I’m divorcing Katy.”

Kim Allen said shocked, “What? Son, if you’re having problems then you should try and
talk about them.”

“This isn’t something we can resolve by talking. I'm in love with Adam and my feelings
aren’t going to change. I’ve been in love with Adam for months and I can’t ignore my
heart. Katy and I are still friends but we’re not going to stay in a sham of a marriage.”

“Well, I guess that’s a good reason to get a divorce,” Kim said absently.

“Wait, Adam as in your roommate Adam?” Neil Allen asked softly.

Kris nodded, “Yeah. I love Adam Lambert and we are dating. To be perfectly honest, we
are going to be living together once the show is over. Even if you don’t approve, I am not
going to be without him.”

Neil said sincerely, “Kris you are my son and I will always love you but I need a little time
to adjust to your relationship with Adam.”

“Yeah...okay.” Kris said shakily.

“Son, I'm happy that you are in love but you might be moving a little quickly.”

“I can see why you feel that way but I'm not, momma. I’ve got to go; we’re due at the
show soon.”

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“Goodbye son,” Neil said ending the call.

Kris stared down at his phone unsure whether the call had gone bad or good, on one hand
they still loved him on the other they seemed to think that his relationship with Adam
wouldn’t last. He knew they would see how wrong they were when he and Adam visited
them.

“Everything go okay?” Adam asked quickly.

“I think so. Now let’s get ready for the show!” Kris said grinning.
********
Saturday night saw Adam and Kris standing in the large courtroom, waiting nervously for
the trial to begin. Adam watched as Kris’s murderers were escorted into the courtroom,
each one solemn and avoiding his face. Just because he had turned Kris, it did not make
what they did any less heinous, they had tried to take away the centre of his world.
Adam vowed to make sure the three were punished even if the court found them
innocent. It might take time but he could be patient and he had an eternity to make
them suffer.

“Good evening everyone, this court has convened to deal with the case of Adam Matthew
Lambert v Lady Elizabeth Morgan, Crystal Anne Du Bois and Jennifer Tamara Du Bois in
regard to his bonded Kristopher Neil Allen. Firstly, I will hear the case of Adam
Matthew Lambert v Jennifer Du Bois. Can both parties please take their places?”

Ready for anything Adam walked to the podium and waited for the Lord to ask his
questions. Jennifer had always been the more practical of the sisters so Adam hoped she
saw sense and told the truth about everything because doing so would lessen her
punishment.

Lord Graham said, “Miss Du Bois, I have in my hand a statement from your Sire Richard
Du Bois regarding this case. I am going to read this statement out.”

Holding the piece of paper Lord Graham read aloud, “I, Richard Du Bois am making this
statement of my own free will regarding my children Jennifer Tamara Du Bois and
Crystal Anne Du Bois. Without my knowledge, my children consented to fulfil a contract
given to them by Lady Morgan. This contract involved kidnapping Mr Kristopher Allen;
however, my children did not mean this mortal any harm. When my children took the
contract, they perhaps naively, understood that Mr Allen would not be hurt. My children
did not know that Mr Allen was the bonded human of Adam Lambert when they took the
contract. I admit that they should have aborted their contract when they realised that
Mr Allen was Adam Lambert’s but they were foolish and made a bad judgement call. My

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children hope that they can forgiven for their crimes and apologise wholeheartedly for
any pain caused. My children would like to make reparations to Mr Allen for three million
dollars to be paid to him immediately and await the just punishment of the court.”

“Jennifer Du Bois, do you truly regret your actions?”

“Yes. I was wrong to kidnap Mr Allen when I realised he was Mr Lambert’s. My Lord, I
truly did not know what was planned for Mr Allen; I never believed he was going to be
hurt. I know this is no excuse, my Lord but I thought the lives of my sister and I was at
risk if we did not complete the mission and I was afraid.”

Lord Graham announced, “Bearing in mind your confession, the word of your Sire I find
you guilty of all charges. You are sentenced to ninety years in the Minford penitentiary;
you will be eligible for release in 45 years. Now I will hear the case of Adam Mitchell
Lambert v Crystal Du Bois.”

After Crystal had moved to the podium Lord Graham looked at her, having noticed the
spark of rage and hate in her eyes when she looked at Kristopher Allen. It was clear to
him that she had meant everything she had done; she did not regret a single thing and
would hurt Kristopher Allen again if given the opportunity.

“Ms Du Bois. Do you have anything to say?” Lord Graham asked.

“Yes, I only acted to protect my betrothed. Kristopher Allen has somehow brainwashed
Adam, I was trying to make him reveal what he had done so that I could reverse the
effects.”

Looking at the paperwork provided by all four parties Lord Graham said, “I see no
evidence that you and Adam Lambert were ever betrothed. It is my understanding that
Adam is not attracted to females and I cannot fathom how he would enter into such a
contract.”

Adam said bluntly, “That is because I never and would never do so, my Lord. Crystal has
been obsessed with me since the say we met, foolishly believing that I was hers and
somehow didn’t realise I was in love with her. Kris is my mate, my love and always will be.”

“NO!” Crystal screamed in denial as she ran forward at full vampire speed.

As Crystal rushed towards him brandishing a silver knife from somewhere, Kris felt a
moment of panic before a male vampire appeared and dragged her away kicking and
screaming about how she had to kill Kris to bring Adam back to her.

Lord Graham asked, “Are you okay, Mr Allen?”

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“Yeah,” Kris said softly, as Adam placed softly kisses on his neck.

Adam couldn’t believe that he had almost lost Kris yet again; he continued kissing his way
down his love’s neck. Breathing in Kris’s scent, Adam felt himself relaxing knowing that
his mate was still with him and would be forever.

Lord Graham said loudly, “Given what Ms Du Bois has just done, there is only one
punishment suitable for her. She will be executed in accordance with the laws as in the
Sanctuary Charter. Now I will hear the case against Lady Morgan.”

“Lady Morgan, we will hear from you first. Did you arrange for the kidnapping of Mr
Allen, bonded of Adam Lambert with the intention of hurting and eventually killing him?”

Lady Morgan said frankly, “Yes and I don’t care what you do to me. I only regret that
Kris Allen still exists. He should be dead and Adam should be suffering, feeling as
though he has lost the centre of his world.”

“What precipitated this attack?”

Lady Morgan spat, “My only child, Douglas killed himself because he was rejected by
Adam. Douglas was my world, all I had left after my mate died. Adam deserves to suffer
for eternity.”

Lord Graham said calmly, “I hereby find you, Lady Elizabeth Morgan guilty of all charges.
Given the serious nature of your crime, your lack of remorse and the fact that you were
planning this for a long time, I sentence you to be committed to the Hope psychiatric
hospital for two hundreds. If after this time, you are judged to still be a danger, you be
put to death.”

Lady Morgan did not react to the sentence or to the exclamations of joy from the
Lambert clan. Her only regret was that she failed in her mission to make Adam Lambert
truly suffer.

Once Lady Morgan and Jennifer Du Bois had been escorted out of the large court, Adam
led the rest of his clan out of the room, hand still tightly against Kris’s waist. Beside him,
Kris was confused as to why Richard Du Bois would give a statement admitting his
children were guilty; he assumed that the head of the clan would be doing everything to
have them found innocent.

“Adam, why did Richard Du Bois make a statement saying his children were guilty?” Kris
asked confused.

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Adam answered patiently, “To preserve the honour of his clan, to us honour is everything.
Now the clan’s still regarded as honourable their alliances and businesses will not be
negatively affected by what has happened.”

“Oh, now what’s next?” Kris asked, not knowing what to do since he had been focused on
the trial.

“We get started on our eternity, Kris. Let’s go home,” Adam said with a wide grin.

Kris nodded and the pair left the building at full speed, ready to go home and celebrate.
With the demise of their enemies, Kris was looking forward to the future, to the
adventures yet to be undertaken. Kris never thought he would say it but being a vampire
was worth it if he got Adam forever regardless of how he would suffer loss and pain.

End

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