Sangue Debolezza Ch. 03

Dr. Darrah went to Mikhail's parents' funeral.

She was not religious, but out of respect to Mikhail she went. He looked gorgeous in a suit, yet tragic.

An old priest led a procession with two coffins were brought into the church. Inside the churchgoers sang "Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One, have mercy on us" three times.

Inside the church, the caskets were opened. From where she was sitting Darrah couldn't see the bodies, but she could see a bowl with a candle placed in each, and a crucifix placed in the casket. Everyone in the church was holding lighted candles.

She sat and heard only snippets of what was said.

Blessed are those whose ways are blameless, who walk according to the law of the Lord.

Blessed are You, O Lord, teach me Your statutes.

With the Saints give rest, O Christ, to the soul of Your servant where there is no pain, nor sorrow, nor suffering, but life everlasting.

Turn to me and have mercy on me, as you always do to those who love your name.

For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.

"Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life."

"God of spirits and all humankind, grant rest to the souls of Nicholas and Mariana, now asleep in a place of light, a place of renewed life, a joyous place," the priest said.

"In a blessing falling asleep, grant, O Lord, eternal rest unto Thy departed servants and make their memory to be eternal."

"Memory eternal! Memory eternal! Memory eternal!" the churchgoers repeated.

She saw Mikhail go up to the coffins and kiss the foreheads of his parents.

She followed the line of attendees to the caskets. Darrah looked at an older version of Mikhail and a beautiful older woman. Both had crowns around their heads. Both were holding crucifixes.

They never got a chance to grow old together. They never got to enjoy grandchildren and the satisfaction of a long life well lived.

They are why my work is so important, she thought to himself. This cannot go on.

The caskets were removed from the church. "Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One, have mercy on us," the crowd sang three more times.

She didn't go to the burial. A few hours later, she went to his family's now-empty house, where Mikhail now lived alone. His sister had been missing after the attack, and was feared to have become Turned that night.

Mikhail was sitting at the kitchen table, still in his suit from the funeral, his tie loosened.

Darrah said nothing, but went over to him. She took his head in her arms and held it to her, tears flooding her eyes. Her heart hurt for him.

She said nothing. There was nothing to be said. She resolved he wasn't going to be alone, not that night.

Mikhail and Darrah made love that night, more slowly than in the hospital. She showed him where to pleasure herself. He did. In addition to being drop-dead gorgeous in her eyes, he was smart, and learned quickly.

Afterward, she held him and asked about the attack. Her scientists had no information about Turning. The sexual component of a vampire attack was little known as well.

"What do you remember?" she asked.

He didn't say anything for a while.

"It's all right," she said. "It wasn't your fault."

"I woke up, and he was in my room," he finally said. "He said ... I'm going to fuck you, and then you will be mine. Just like your sister, he said. I couldn't move. I couldn't do anything.

"He took my clothes off. He ran his ... cock all over my body. He put it in my mouth."

She didn't say anything.

"He put ... things in my head. I was in a room full of vampires. I was on a table. They were all fucking me. One would get done, and another one came up. They kept on fucking me. Men and women."

Darrah carefully put her hand down to his penis. His memory of the mind rape had made him hard.

"And then he ... turned me over. And then he ... fucked me in the ass. And then he turned me over. And I ..."

She knew what he was trying not to say — that he had orgasmed during his rape.

"And then he bit me."

"And then what?"

"He was on top of me, and then he got off me. And then he fell to the floor. I got up. He was just laying there on the floor.

"I got up and went into my parents' bedroom. They were dead. I looked for my sister. I couldn't find her."

She said nothing, just held him as his tears flowed.

"There wasn't anything you could do," she said. "We know that vampires can hypnotize.

"We've been investigating vampire attacks worldwide for several years. My group is tracking this group of vampires that seems to attach not merely for blood, but for sexual pheromones."

It was just his family's bad luck that the vampire had chosen Mikhail last.

"And you killed him."

"How?"

"We're not quite sure how it happens, but ... there's a disease that vampires can get. It's called Sangue Debolezza. When a vampire gets the disease, it dies. We're not sure how yet. Until a few days ago we weren't even sure the disease existed. But now we do. We've seen it. That's what all those tests were about.

"It was in the body of the vampire that bit you. And it's in your body. You're a carrier. The vampire bit you, got the disease, and died. Your body killed it."

"How do you know all this?"

"I've been working on this for years. We're a group of scientists who are trying to eradicate vampirism worldwide. It's an epidemic most people don't know about. And it's spreading. Your sister was probably a victim, and she may be spreading it."

Mikhail was silent. Darrah knew that what she said next was going to change his life. She wished she could avoid what she was going to say and they could run away together. She couldn't do that. Not for the world's sake.

"Until now we've believed the only way to stop its spread is to kill each vampire by a stake through the heart, or silver, or fire, or water, or sunlight," she said. "You're the first person we've found to be a carrier of the disease. There may be others, but no one knows who they are. For now, you're the only one."

"How?"

"I don't know. Perhaps something inherited from your parents. A genetic mutation. It may a million to one thing. But you have it. You can kill vampires with your body."

Mikhail said nothing.

"There's something else," she said. "I think — we think — there may be a way for vampires to be cured. And you're the solution there too."

"Me?"

"It's because you can kill vampires. Perhaps you can save them too."

She explained the biology involved. Mikhail appeared skeptical.

"It's the idea that a small amount of something bad for you will trigger the body's defenses," she said. "The levels of disease in your blood will kill; we know that. There is less blood in your semen; that may be enjoying to cure them. Female vampires, anyway."

She left out a few details, including their multimillionaire financial sponsor, whose children also been killed by vampires. She also left out the fact that she was the inly scientist who believed that vampires might be sexually cured.

Mikhail still appeared skeptical, but agreed to do what she asked.

"There is one other thing," she said before pausing. "The vampires may well not want to be cured. They may have to be forced. So ... I want you to rape me."

"What?" Mikhail had been raised an upright man by his parents. Sex was a several-day-old reality in his life, and he had been taught to never force himself on a woman.

"We have to know if you can. I want you to force yourself on me and not stop no matter what I do to you. Please."

Reluctantly, Mikhail pushed her down on the bed. Darrah screamed and struggled. She slapped him in the face. She dug her fingernails into his back, drawing blood.

She kicked at him, and between kicks he spread her legs wide, pushed inside her up to his balls, and used his body weight to hold himself inside.

Darrah struggled but couldn't move. And then while she struggled he started thrusting. And then she stopped struggling and wrapped her legs around him.

She climaxed hard, and then he climaxed hard.

He collapsed onto her. And then he looked at her. Tears welled in Darrah's at the look of hurt and shame in his eyes.

He started to move, but her legs kept him in place. "I'm sorry," he said.

She shook her head and held his face in her hands. She pulled his face to hers. They kissed tenderly.

"I won't let anything happen to you," she said, and after a while they made love again. Then they fell asleep, Mikhail's arms holding her all night.