Chapter 16

"Vervain."Huitzilopochtli slid a hand through my hair. I felt it snag, my hair caught by the metal plates of his gauntlet, but I didn't care. Pain, pleasure; I wanted all he could give me.

He pressed my face against the gold of his breastplate and the light shining off it was suddenly too bright. I closed my eyes and rested against him. There was an odd feeling of movement, an ecstatic sense of weightlessness, and then my body became heavy again, my newly formed lungs taking a gasp of air.

The glare of the sun was gone and the pressure from his hand released. I looked up and found him smiling viciously at me. I frowned a little as I began to notice how warm I was. Sweat was beading on my brow, and I realized the heat was coming from him. His armor was singing my clothes. My vision cleared, the pain jerking me free of his magic, and I screamed.

Huitzilopochtli laughed and let go of me so that I fell back onto the black marble floor. The cold stone was a relief after the scorching pain, and I had to stop myself from rolling over to press myself against it. It wasn't the time to lick my wounds. It was time to figure out what the hell was going on and the best direction to run in.

Frantically, I looked around me and found that the park had been replaced by a large room of stone and glass. White marble walls penned me in, shot through with thick veins of gold. Floor-to-ceiling windows ran the length of the room to my left, devoid of curtains so that the menacing jungle outside could peer in. The furnishings were all stone; not marble, just some white stone that looked as if a forklift would be needed to move it. There was a long table and four chairs, two on each side. How were you supposed to move those chairs? Maybe you just slid in and made do. And why was I thinking about furniture when I needed to be thinking of a way out of this?

I scampered to my feet; accompanied by the sound of my blades scratching the marble floor. Good, they were still extended. I settled into a fighting stance and eyed the man before me steadily even though my throat was constricting in fear. The memory of wanting him hit me, and I had to struggle not to vomit. He'd taken my mind as easily as the Sun takes the sky from the night; as if it were already partially his, to begin with. I'd never met a god who could turn me against myself. How do you win against someone like that?

The others were right; I was out of my league, and I was about to die.

Huitzilopochtli's head rolled smoothly to the side as he smiled again. He held my eyes with the steadiness of a snake watching its prey as he began to unfasten his armor. First, the gauntlets came off; thrown casually onto the table. Then he undid his bracers; they landed with a loud rattle near the gauntlets. By the time he unbuckled his breastplate, a thin trickle of sweat was making its way down my stomach. I was running hot and cold with fear and adrenaline. Should I rush him while his hands were busy or should I just run blindly from the room and hope to find a way out? Neither seemed like a good option, but if I were going to die, I'd rather it be as I stood my ground.

"I apologize for the heat."He pulled the breastplate over his head and then started on his legs. "It's a part of me; I'm God of the Sun but also of War, and battle excites me. The Sun pours through me, and its heat can only be cooled by blood. It's why I must return to this room first after a battle. It's fireproof."

"Smart thinking there, flamer."I couldn't help it. It's like as soon as I settle in to fight, my mouth starts the smack talk. It's as ingrained as the stance, just a reflex. Even fear couldn't choke it back. I almost closed my eyes and groaned. This was not a guy to backtalk to. Why couldn't I just be the strong and silent type?

Huitzilopochtli finished with his armor, completely ignoring my insult, until all he wore were a pair of loose pants and a thin, black, cotton tunic. He picked up a gold pitcher I'd failed to notice. With nonchalance, he turned it over his head and a thick, red liquid poured out to cover him. I gasped when I realized what he was bathing in. Steam rose off his body and the air became scented with the tang of fresh blood. Fresh blood over a fire. The thick liquid sank into his skin; tinting his dark complexion with a reddish glow for a moment. A deep sigh seeped out of him, like a man sinking into a hot bath after great, marathon sex.

"There."His wicked smile returned and with it, I caught the glint of fangs. "Now, we can be civilized."

I shook my head and gaped at him, more horrified that the monster resided in such an elegant package than in the monstrosity itself. He lifted the pitcher to his mouth and drank the rest of the contents like a frat boy downing a beer. My stomach lurched as my body began to tremble and I knew it wasn't from holding my fighting stance too long. Cold realization had hit, and I suddenly knew how he'd stolen my will with his eyes. I was finally meeting the Vampire God, the source of all those little Buffy-plaguing bastards. This man wasn't just a monster; he was their king.

"I've always wondered who made the vampires,"I said it casually, but my voice shook a little.

"Ah, yes."Huitzilopochtli slid into one of the chairs and brushed his thick, shoulder-length, ebony hair back with the natural movement of an aristocrat. "Please, join me, and I'll be happy to tell you about them."

I eyed the graceful hand he swept toward the chair on his left and thought about it. Evidently, Huitzilopochtli wasn't going to come right out and kill me that very second so it would probably be best to save my strength. I'd leave the claws out just in case. If nothing else, it would buy me a little time. I mean, really; I didn't exactly have a lot of options.

"I guess it's a story worth hearing."I shrugged.

Then I straightened and walked around the table as I shook out my tight shoulders. I slid into a seat across from him instead of the one he'd indicated. Huitzilopochtli laughed velvet softness all over me again, and I rubbed my arms to try to stop the shivers.

"I could have you on this table; naked and writhing in a second."His eyes glowed a moment as they passed over me. "I could make you beg for me to fill you and then beg for me to empty every last drop of you until you died in ecstasy."

The shaking started again, but I tamped it down along with the nausea. I was the Godhunter. I ate gods like him for breakfast. Okay, maybe that wasn't the best choice of words. I tried to give him my menacing glare, but I had a feeling it was falling a little short.

"You forgot to add 'Resistance is futile.'" I met his eyes… briefly. I had no idea if he needed eye contact to control my mind or not, but I wasn't gonna take any chances.

"You're fascinating."Huitzilopochtli frowned, but it was quickly replaced with a greedy smile. "I'm not easily fascinated. Maybe I'll let you live awhile longer. You may prove entertaining."

"Thanks."I smirked. "I'm so relieved. Do I get a collar and a Princess Leia costume?"

Huitzilopochtli's eyes widened for a second before he let out a sharp bark of laughter. There were no velvet tones to it, and I had a feeling it was genuine, perhaps the first genuine thing I'd seen him do so far.

"You're refreshing as well."He leaned an elbow on the table; placing his chin on his palm with a precise movement. "What were you doing there today in the company of Gods, little witch?"

"You first,"I stalled, "you said you'd tell me about vampires."

"Indeed."Huitzilopochtli made a small grunt of approval. "Very well. Vampires; I don't know who came up with the name, many believe it was the Slavs, but I created them. Originally, it was an accident. I didn't know I could make humans like me. I was with a lover, and I got . . . carried away."

I made a very unladylike snort, but he ignored me and continued.

"I took too much blood and feared for her life so I quickly worked a spell for her to accept my blood as a replacement for hers. I thought I could do what you humans now call a transfusion, and I believed that the spell would make her blood compatible with mine."

"Worked a little too well, did it?"I leaned back against the cool stone and crossed my arms carefully to avoid the blades.

"Yes, it worked very well."He shook his head. "Isn't that how most great scientific advances are discovered; through accident? I gave her the transfusion, and she immediately glowed with health and improved vitality. I was more than pleased until she began displaying the signs of need."

"Need for blood?"

"Yes."Huitzilopochtli actually looked a little sad. "She grew warm. I thought at first that she was having an adverse reaction and perhaps had even developed a fever, but she kept getting hotter until it was obvious what she needed."

"You gave her blood?"

He nodded solemnly, and I pictured it in my head. Having a god for a lover, believing you were safe and special. Then having your lover almost kill you, turn you into a monster to save you, feeling as if you were about to spontaneously combust, and then discovering the only thing that could cool you down was a blood cocktail.

"She must have been terrified,"I said.

"She was."There was a note of sorrow in his tone. Wonders never cease. "My priests asked to be changed afterward; preferring to take blood to survive instead of living only off my life energy as they had been before. They embraced the change, but she never forgave me. In fact, she left cursing my name when she was finally able to survive on her own. She, in turn, created more like her and over the centuries the curse altered, evolved, and became what it is today. It astounds me still, how fast it spread worldwide. I believe she did it on purpose, betraying me as I betrayed her, but I still miss her."

"I'm sorry."Holy hell, was I feeling sorry for Big Poppa Vampire? Yeah, I guess I was. Love is love no matter who feels it, and the loss of it hurt like a bitch. The mere fact that he had felt it made me think better of him. A little.

Huitzilopochtli smiled gently at me and his eyes softened. "In trying to save her, I lost her. Is it not the way of love?"

"Yeah."I twisted my lips into a smile. "Love sucks, especially for you guys."

Huitzilopochtli threw himself back into his chair in a surprised fit of laughter. When he finally calmed, he had tears in his eyes. "Oh yes, little witch; I think I'll keep you for awhile."