“You’re hungry.”
He growled low in his throat as her scent washed over him. Giovanni loved the fragrance of her skin when she first woke. His fangs descended, but he shook his head.
“I took too much yesterday. I’ll drink a bag later.”
Beatrice frowned. “I don’t like it. You’re not as strong from the bagged blood. I can tell.”
She was right, but he shrugged anyway. “I’ll be fine.”
“I don’t want you ‘fine,’ I want you as strong as you can be.”
“Beatrice—”
“I know you don’t like feeding from other humans, but we’re going to have to figure something out eventually.”
He rolled away from her, annoyed she had brought up the argument that had plagued them for months. “Can we not talk about this here?”
“You’re not going to be able to feed from me forever. Not if you want me to—”
“I don’t want to talk about this when we are about to go into a very unknown situation!”
She glared at him and sat up in bed. “And I don’t want you going into an unknown situation at anything less than your strongest. It’s not smart.”
He snarled, pacing the small cabin, but she didn’t back down. Instead, she rose to her knees, brushed her dark hair to the side, and took a fingernail to her neck, scoring it so deeply she bled.
Giovanni hesitated only a second before he rushed her, licking at the thin line of blood that marred her skin for a second before he latched on. He could feel the quick bite of her nails on his shoulders when he pierced her neck, but the flash of pain was quickly overwhelmed by pleasure as his amnis spread across their skin, and the rich, warm blood flowed down his throat.
She held his head to her neck and arched her body against him, but he took only a few deep swallows before he stopped and sealed the wounds by piercing his tongue. He closed his eyes and looked away from her, angered by her actions.
“Gio?”
He shook his head and walked to the small washroom attached to the cabin.
“Don’t do that again,” he said before he shut the door.
The boat from the mainland left at midnight, ferried by a young water vampire who greeted them with a nod and a polite smile. They climbed aboard the small junk and walked toward the seats the pilot indicated near the bow of the vessel. Giovanni’s senses were on alert, but he could only feel faint traces of old energy signatures and the expected hum of their escort.
“Just us,” Baojia murmured in English, his eyes scanning the water around them. “Nothing in the sea, either.”
He nodded and placed a hand on Beatrice’s back to lead her forward. They had come to an uneasy truce since their argument earlier in the evening, and he caught her eye, giving her a slight smile as they took their seats. As soon as they were seated, the young water vampire held out his hands at the stern, propelling them forward in the dark water and toward the hidden island in the Bohai Sea.
“How does he know how to get there?” Beatrice whispered, looking around the boat, which was devoid of any modern navigation equipment.
She had dressed in her typical uniform of slim black jeans and a black T-shirt before they left, but had failed to bring a coat in the warm summer air of the city. The wind on the water was brisk, so he put an arm around her and drew her closer as he answered.
“Penglai Island has a particularly strong energy signature because of the high immortal population. Even I can feel it, and it is not my home.”
“And you’re sure they’re expecting us?”
“We wouldn’t be going if they weren’t.”
“Tell me what to expect again,” she said. “I feel like I’m going to forget.”
“There will most likely be some sort of reception when we arrive, since we are expected and friends of Tenzin’s.”
“Why is Tenzin so important?”
Baojia chuckled quietly. Even Giovanni had to smile.
“Tenzin’s sire is one of the Eight Immortals, Beatrice. The one I think your father sought out, Elder Zhang Guo.”
He heard Baojia mutter something under his breath, clearly displeased by their destination.
“So, what? Tenzin’s really important, then?”
“Tenzin could be one of the Elders if she wanted,” Baojia said. “Unfortunately for them, she’s too smart and has too low a tolerance for bullshit.”
“She’s older than most of them, Beatrice. And far more powerful.”
“And her father’s one of the main guys? Is he a good guy?”
Giovanni glanced back to their pilot. Though he was smiling and looking straight ahead into the night sea, he knew the vampire was memorizing their every word.
“Elder Zhang Guo is a great and powerful immortal. We are fortunate that he chooses to see us. He is deserving of great respect.” He nudged her shoulder when she frowned at his rote answer, and she looked up at him. Giovanni made sure she caught the long look he gave the unknown vampire out of the corner of his eye, and he saw her mouth part as she nodded in understanding.
“I’m looking forward to meeting him, then,” she said in a cheerful voice. “And to seeing Tenzin. It’s been weeks since I’ve talked to her.”
Giovanni smiled. Beatrice had proven to be a natural at the more political side of his life, and there was no way their pilot had missed the implied intimacy between the legendary wind vampire and the young human woman.