The Dark Vampire: Last True Vampire 3 Read Online Free Page B

darkness.
    Death was painless. The fire that raced through Bria’s veins was anything but. A scream ripped from her throat as she thrashed against the sensation that she was burning from the inside out. What was happening to her?
    “Try to stay calm, Bria. You’re almost past the worst of it.”
    How long had she been in this state? The voice that spoke low next to her ear belonged to Mikhail, the vampire king. She remembered the commanding timbre and she stilled as the memories of what had happened came rushing back to her.
    The queen. Her mandate that the king help them. It couldn’t be possible, could it?
    Memories swirled in Bria’s mind, visions of lives that had been snuffed out centuries ago. Dhampirs in her coven whispered about the legends of a collective vampire memory. She’d always thought it was a myth. . . .
    Scents reached her nostrils in an assault that overloaded her senses. The artificial light of the bulb beside the bed nearly blinded her and a riot of color swirled in her vision. Strength unlike anything she’d ever known surged within her and Bria choked as she tried to suck in a sharp breath. Her lungs refused to inflate with air and the sound of her own heartbeat was now absent from her chest.
    As was any sense of herself. An empty, fathomless chasm opened up inside of Bria and she clutched at her chest as though she could somehow fill the void.
Gods.
The vampire king had turned her!
    Not her soullessness, the assault on her senses, or her past isolation and loneliness troubled Bria in the wake of her transition and newfound strength. It was more than she could have ever imagined. Ever
hoped
for. Surely now her uncle wouldn’t keep her shut inside the compound. Not when she was so strong. So utterly capable of taking care of herself. She hadn’t found freedom through death. Instead, she’d been freed in her rebirth.
    “She’ll need to feed soon.” A male whom she didn’t recognize spoke. The timbre of his voice was deep and rich and sent a pleasant shiver over Bria’s skin. Maybethey’d let her feed from him. He sounded good enough to eat.
    “It’s taken care of.” Her uncle spoke, but his voice sounded different to Bria’s heightened senses. “I’ve called in a member of my coven.”
    “Good idea,” the male said. “She might go easier on someone she knows.”
    Were they worried about her? Surely she could feed without killing someone. Fire raged hot in her throat and Bria reconsidered her control. Her fangs throbbed in her gums and she was possessed with a need to sink them deep into yielding flesh and glut herself on blood.
    “Bria? Can you hear me?”
    “Claire, for the love of the gods, would you please stay clear of her fangs? There’s no telling what she’ll do in the grip of bloodlust.”
    “Pfft. You worry too much, Mikhail.” A smile curved Bria’s lips. She liked this female. “Bria? Listen up; let’s show these boys that they have nothing to worry about. Whaddya say?”
    When Bria turned on the mattress to face Claire, she was greeted by a feral gold stare that would have stalled the breath in her chest had she any to fill her lungs.
    “Claire?” Bria asked.
    “Yup. You got it. Now, do you know what’s happened to you?”
    The events of how she’d gotten there were hazy. Bria remembered that she’d wanted to die. That her life balanced on a razor’s edge. “I’ve been turned.” Even her own voice sounded strange in her ears. It distracted her thoughts and would take some getting used to.
    “That’s right. How are you feeling?”
    “I think I’m all right.” The words rasped in her too-dry throat. “The thirst . . .”
    “We’re going to take care of that,” Claire replied. Hergaze slid to the vampire king. “Think you can hold on and not bite anyone until your dinner shows up?”
    Bria smiled at Claire’s teasing tone. “I can.”
    “Told ya,” Claire said to Mikhail.
    Bria searched the room for her uncle and found him tucked away in a