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Bruno could admit when he had miscalculated. He should have followed his own rule, should have brought one of the others with him. But he hadn’t intended to do more than look at the newest crime scene to see if there was anything they had missed on the first sweep, to see if he could find any of the killer’s blood to get a scent from.
They had been investigating a rash of murders that appeared to have been committed by a vampire, but something about all of it seemed off. The bodies were clean and the bite wounds were almost too neat—which could indicate an organized killer, but there was something almost clinical about the injuries. Something wasn’t adding up and Bruno and the others had been working nonstop to try and figure out what they were missing, especially since two bodies had showed up this week instead of one. The killer was escalating, and Bruno knew they didn’t have much time left.
Which is why he was re-checking the crime scene while the others researched and patrolled the streets each night.
Unfortunately, with vampire related murders, there was always a rash of hysteria brought on by the press poking their noses where they had no business and jumping the gun as usual. And this brought out the worst of humanity’s do-gooders in the form of freelance ‘hunting’ mobs.
These men were little better than mercenary thugs. Bruno had dealt with them on multiple occasions, forced to break up hunting parties that would have resulted in massive political issues if they had started just killing any of the vampires they set their eye on.
It seemed like this was going to be another case of that because no sooner had Bruno started his investigation than he had been set upon by one of these mobs.
He would have preferred to settle things more diplomatically but none of the men were exactly willing to listen to reason and even a silver stake in one of their shoulders did little to dissuade them from their mission.
They had silver bullets and holy water and though his cloak had protected him for the most part from the latter, the bullets had torn through.
He had fought viciously and he had escaped, just barely. But they were hunting him and he knew he wouldn’t get far with his injuries. The silver was still in him and he could feel his vitality draining with the blood that poured from his neck where they had tried to take his head.
He bundled his cloak against his injuries, gritting his teeth, trying to staunch the blood so that he might at least run without leaving a trail obvious enough for a child to follow.
But he knew he needed to find someplace to hide before he simply collapsed. If he could get the silver out, then a few hours of rest might allow him the strength to keep going. Or at least enough to call a cab and get back to headquarters. It was unfortunate that he was on the other side of the city where the shop owners and people on the streets wouldn’t recognize him.
He staggered down another alley, hearing the mob shouting to each other somewhere behind him. In his state, he couldn’t tell how far, he just knew that they would find him soon if he didn’t do anything.
He glanced around. He seemed to be on a street full of shops. Any one of those was likely to be empty this time of night. He started checking every back door, hoping that perhaps a shop boy might have carelessly left one unlocked before leaving for the night.
Luck seemed to be on his side because after trying the third door, it gave and he staggered inside the dim interior of the establishment.
An oddly sweet smell permeated the air, comforting, warm. The smell of sugar and butter and yeasty bread. Bruno took another step forward, knocking into something that fell over with a clatter.
He suddenly caught the sound of a heartbeat as a light appeared, followed by a sharp gasp.
Through blurry eyes, Bruno blinked, trying to hold out a hand to assure the figure he meant no harm.
“A-apologies,” he rasped, throat burning, blood bubbling up to choke him. “I just need…place to rest…”
He felt the world tilting as he finally lost the strength to stand, allowing himself to succumb to the darkness for better or worse.
~~~~~~~
Maria stared at the man lying on the floor of her storeroom still in complete shock, clutching the lantern in a white-knuckled grip.
“Um…signore…? Are you well?” she asked finally, not knowing what else to say.
He didn’t stir and she pressed her lips together with a firm determination as she stepped forward. She wasn’t interested in housing a drunk for the night, especially since she was trying to get a head start on the week’s orders.
“I’m sorry, signore, but you can’t stay here,” she told him and reached down to shake his shoulder.
His cloak was soaked and she instantly pulled her hand back, only to realize it was stained red.
“Dear Lord,” Maria gasped, horrified as she crouched, setting the lantern on the floor. Cautiously, she pulled the cloak away from the man’s body.
It was hard to tell with his black on black clothing, but the darker patches concentrating around his hip and shoulder told her that the blood was his, especially when she saw the garish gash across his throat that was still oozing crimson beads like some macabre necklace.
Maria hurriedly un-knotted his cravat and wrapped it as tightly as she dared around the wound. “Signore!” she cried. “Signore, please, you have to wake!”
His eyes flickered briefly and Maria felt her heart leap into her throat as she saw the crimson pupils. Was it just a trick of the light, or was he really…?
“Y-you’re—”
A harsh knock sounded on the front door of the shop, startling Maria with a jump.
“Anyone in there?!”
A hand latched around her wrist and she glanced down, frozen as the crimson eyes locked onto hers.
“Don’t let them in,” he whispered in a harsh rasp before his eyes rolled up in his head and he fell limp against the floor again, completely unconscious.
Maria sat there for a brief moment before the knocking continued insistently and she pushed herself to her feet, quickly scrubbing the blood from her hand as she made her way to the front of the shop, trying to act casual.
Several rough looking men in dark overcoats stood there. She could clearly see hunting paraphernalia on their belts, but they didn’t have the organized look of most Hunters.
“Can I help you?” she asked through the door, glad she had at least remembered to lock this one.
The man in front tipped his hat. “Sorry to bother you, signorina, but we wanted to warn you that a dangerous vampire is on the loose. You haven’t seen anyone suspicious around, have you?”
Maria tried to school her expression, contemplating. Should she hand the injured vampire over to them?
“Could I see your credentials?” she asked.
“Excuse me?”
“You’re Hunters, correct?” she asked pointedly.
The men shifted, starting to look annoyed.
“We’re independents.”
“I see,” Maria replied.
“Would you perhaps allow us to take a look in your shop, signorina? We want to make sure you’re safe.”
“I appreciate it, but since I’m by myself tonight, I’m not comfortable with that,” Maria told them. “I have not seen anyone suspicious, but if I do I will make sure to report it to the Napoli Hunters division. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a lot to see to.”
The men did not look pleased, but Maria drew the blinds on the door, dismissing them.
She shook with nerves as she hurried back to the storeroom, making sure to lock the back door before she crouched next to the vampire again.
Was she making a huge mistake keeping him here in secret instead of handing him over to the hunters? Perhaps it was some kind of vampire spell, but she felt she trusted this man more than the ones on her doorstep, especially if they had been the ones who had done this to him. She had seen the patrols—trigger happy men of the area joining up to hunt anything with even the notion of fangs. It was reasonable enough to conclude that the man on her storeroom floor was probably not the murderer. Especially not when he didn’t try to drink her blood the instant he saw her, even as injured as he was.
But that left her with the conundrum of what to do with him. He was obviously badly injured and until he was well enough to tell her who he was and where he was from, she couldn’t really do anything.
Maria made her decision then with a huff of determination. She would care for the man herself until he was well enough to return to wherever he belonged.
The problem would be getting him someplace comfortable.
Thankfully, she kept the small apartment above the shop, but there was still a flight of stairs to contend with. Maria set her shoulders in determination. He certainly couldn’t stay on her storeroom floor. She would have to make it work and hope she could get her injured guest up them as gently as possible.
It took a great amount of maneuvering as Maria dragged him unceremoniously up the stairs mostly with fistfuls of his cloak and sometimes with her hands under his shoulders, trying not to trip on her skirts as she did. He did not rouse the entire time, which was somewhat worrying, but she couldn’t tend him until she had more light.
She thought briefly about the batch of pastry she had started below in the kitchen. It seemed like she would not be getting the head start she had intended after all. Caring for her surprise visitor was suddenly much more important.
She finally got him upstairs and slid him across the floor to her bedroom. She fetched an old blanket to lay down first, then heaved him up onto the bed, first his upper body and then his legs.
He sprawled limply as Maria briefly took a moment to wipe sweat from her brow and pin back the loose strands of auburn hair. What to do? She should first collect the supplies she would need to tend him.
She fumbled around her flat, picking up everything she thought she might need. Linen sheets for bandages, putting the kettle on for hot water. She had some salves which she grabbed as well, carrying everything back to the room. She put on as many lights as she had, carrying a small table over to the side of the bed to set out her supplies on.
While the water boiled, she studied the injured man briefly before she rallied herself and got to work.
She pulled his cloak away first, now able to see the extent of his injuries. The blood had already soaked through the cravat around his neck and she could see red and blistered skin beneath his now open collar.
Maria swallowed hard as she reached out and started to unbutton his waistcoat with trembling fingers. “My apologies, signore,” she whispered, face heating.
As she delicately opened his shirt, she couldn’t help a gasp as she saw all the scars covering his body. Some older than others, but all of them denoting a violent life. He also sported intricate tattoos on his chest, wrapping around his ribcage. Was he perhaps a sailor or a soldier?
She felt slightly woozy as she rolled him onto his side and pulled his shirt and waistcoat off. Aside from some bruises there were blistered spots that looked like burns on his upper chest and lower arms. Had that been caused by holy water, Maria wondered? Either way, it looked painful.
But there was more blood soaking the high-waisted trousers and she knew she would have to remove them to see the full extent of his injuries.
“Forgive me,” she whispered, trying to loosen the buttons as professionally as possible, attempting not to brush his bare skin as she did so. Her face was already flaming when she peeled the trousers down over his hip, revealing a mess of blood and flesh that made her light-headed.
She stopped to remove his boots, stalling. But there was nothing for it, she had to make sure she tended all his injures. She couldn’t allow her mortification to stand in the way of tending her wounded guest. It was for necessity, nothing more, she reminded herself. She had to look at him like a patient as if she were a doctor and he not a man. A beautiful man…
Maria was shocked by that sudden observation, and quickly shook it away as she took a deep breath and removed the rest of his clothing.
She bashfully looked away as she draped a towel over his waist, then glanced down, seeing more of the blistered burns down his right thigh.
With the first part of the task done, Maria felt ready to get on with it and she went to retrieve the hot water, returning with a steaming bowl.
She bravely removed the blood-soaked cravat from around his neck and had to swallow down the nausea that welled up upon seeing the wound. It was indeed garish, and it was a wonder it hadn’t killed him. But then, she supposed it was a little harder to kill a vampire than that.
Still, it would undoubtedly need stitches, especially to keep him from losing more blood.
She made a wash of salt and lavender and placed a rolled towel under his neck before flushing the wound. His eyes flickered briefly at this, crinkling at the corners in pain and his fingers twitched, but aside from that he was worryingly unresponsive.
She patted the wound dry and tilted his head to the side, retrieving her needle and thread. It was slightly awkward—sewing flesh was a lot different than clothing or embroidery. But she somehow managed and after putting several stitches in, she wrapped his neck with clean linen folding an extra pad across the wound.
She flushed the wound in his side as well, but decided against stitching it since the flesh around it was so tattered she was afraid the stitches would tear.
After bandaging it tightly, she plucked up a burn salve she kept in case of bakery accidents and spread it over the patches of blistered skin.
When she had finished that, she took up a clean cloth and worked on cleaning the rest of the blood off of his body. As she was scrubbing dried blood from his face, Maria couldn’t help but notice again just how beautiful this man was. Straight nose, full lips, high, prominent cheekbones. She softly brushed back his bangs to clean a scrape on his temple, then gently rubbed the kohl from around his eyes. He didn’t look any different from another man like this, eyes and lips closed, hiding his true nature.
Maria finished her task almost reluctantly and tucked several blankets over the man to keep him warm. And to cover him so she would stop being tempted to stare.
She gathered his blood-soaked clothes and took them to her washroom, dumping them into the bathtub, which she filled and started to soak, attempting to scrub the worst of the stains out. She would stitch them up later when they dried.
That done, she hung them up to dry. At least black wouldn’t show the stains…
Her clock chimed the time and Maria startled, flying into a frenzy as she realized she needed to get back to her daily batches or none of the orders would be filled in time.
As reluctant as she was to leave her invalid, she was sure he would be unconscious for a while yet.
She hurriedly exchanged her original apron for a clean one, worried about blood transfer and headed down to the kitchen just as her shop boy arrived.
“Good morning Miss Gallo,” he called with a yawn.
“Good morning, Armo, I’m afraid I’m a little behind this morning. Why don’t you wash up and help me out in the kitchen before Miss Angelina gets here?”
The boy nodded eagerly and hurried off to wash his hands.
Maria got a second batch in and hurriedly started a third, trying to keep her mind on the task at hand and definitely not on the wounded vampire who was currently lying in her bed upstairs.
But soon enough she was busy between opening the shop and baking, having Armo man the front while she attempted to catch up with the morning’s orders before they were picked up.
She could still hear the gossip from the customers though.
“I heard they were hunting the killer last night. Not the Hunters, but the men of the town.”
“Why won’t the Hunters do anything about it?”
“Well, perhaps it’s because they’re made up of too many of the beasts themselves.”
Maria frowned, disappointed in the mob mentality that was currently permeating the town. There was no excuse for suddenly turning on the Hunters who had protected their city for years just because they couldn’t find the actual killer within a day or two. Even she served vampires on occasion when they needed desserts for entertaining mixed company.
She heard a sudden thump coming from upstairs and her heart skipped a beat. Was her guest awake?
She hurried out to the front and called to Armo. “Armo, I need to step out for a minute. If I’m not back in ten, please take the next batch out of the oven.”
“Will do, miss.”
She hurried up to her apartment and toward her bedroom.
She had to admit she was slightly nervous to open the door, not sure what she would find on the other side, but as she stepped in, worry outweighed everything as she saw the injured vampire lying on the floor by the bed in a tangle of blankets.
“Oh, are you all right?” she asked, as she hurried forward, hands hovering.
He coughed slightly, and shifted, raising a shaky finger to point at the other side of the bed. “Sun…”
Maria realized then that she had left the curtains half open and felt mortified. “Oh, oh my, I’m so sorry.” She rushed to shut them fully, stopping the beam of morning light that fell across the bed. “I hope you aren’t terribly hurt from that?”
He didn’t reply and Maria watched cautiously as he tried to push himself up onto his elbows, but seemed incredibly weak. He coughed, and winced, reaching up to grab his throat.
“Let me…let me help you back into bed,” Maria said helplessly.
His eyes opened briefly as she reached down to offer him her arm, bracing it under his shoulder to help heave him upright.
The man gasped as he forced himself upright.
The blankets started to slip.
“Oh.” Maria quickly looked away, flushing, as he snatched at the blanket around his waist.
“Clothes?” he rasped.
“They’re…they’re drying, I washed them.”
He didn’t reply, slumping back onto the bed, seeming to already be unconscious again.
Maria hurriedly tucked the blankets back around him, worried. He seemed very badly hurt. She hadn’t realized vampires could get hurt so badly. She had thought their regeneration worked faster. But perhaps it had slowed down now that it was daytime…
Either way, she couldn’t afford to stay with her injured guest any longer right now. Making sure he was as comfortable as possible and that there was no other errant sunlight seeping into the room, she hurried back down to the bakery.
She found she was counting down the hours until she could close the shop, as the sun began to set and people trailed off, heading back to their homes early due to the current events. She sent Armo and her other shop helper off as well, hurriedly finishing her cleaning before she rushed back up to her apartment.
She was relieved to see her guest right where she had left him, but her relief soon disappeared as she realized that he did not seem to be in very good condition.
“Signore?” she called softly as she approached him.
His breathing was labored, wheezing, and his face was pale aside from the scarlet across his cheeks. Maria pressed the back of her hand to his forehead and was worried to find how warm he was.
She hurried to find a cloth and a bowl of water and returned with them to the bed. She wrung the cloth out and pressed it to his forehead, pushing his damp hair away from his face.
A soft moan escaped his throat and he shifted, leaning into the coolness. Maria sat on the side of the bed, pressing the cloth to his face and neck, wondering what she could do to help ease his fever. Would aspirin even do anything for a vampire?
Pausing briefly in her ministrations, she started to check over his injuries. The stitches in his neck seemed to be holding and he was no longer bleeding so that was good. The burns still looked bad, but she would wait a little before she applied more of the cream.
It was when she carefully peeled the blankets back from his side that she realized she might have found the cause of his fever. The whole area surrounding the wound looked red, and as she peeled the bandages away, she gasped.
The wound itself looked like it was festering despite the fact she had cleaned it, and the whole area was swollen and inflamed, trails of dark veins stretching from it, creeping over his abdomen and down his thigh.
The vampire made a sound of discomfort and his eyes flickered briefly. His mouth moved and Maria instinctively leaned in.
“Signore? Please tell me what I can do?”
“The…bullet…” he rasped, pointing a shaky finger at his side.
Maria felt her heart sink. “The bullet’s still in there?” She should have checked that before, but she hadn’t realized it was a bullet wound at the time…
He nodded, face scrunching up in agony. “Silver…it’s…can’t heal…”
Maria felt even more horrible that she had unknowingly prolonged his agony. “Wh-what can I do?” she asked.
He exhaled shakily. “Do you have…forceps? Something…I…I’ll do it…just need something…to…get the bullet…”
Maria hurried to search around her apartment for something that could be used and came up with a pair of tweezers.
“Will these work?” she asked.
He pried his eyes open and nodded.
Maria quickly fetched more supplies, sanitizing the tweezers before pressing a cloth underneath his side to catch any blood.
He held out his hand shakily. Maria pressed her lips together worriedly but handed over the tweezers.
“Prop me up?” he gasped.
Maria hurried to help him sit a little straighter and pushed another pillow behind his back. He gritted his teeth and pushed the blankets down around his waist. Maria flushed, but stayed where she was in case he needed help with anything.
He took a shuddering breath as he pressed his free hand against the wound and Maria had to focus on the wall as he pulled it open enough to get the tweezers in.
Except he was shaking so much he couldn’t seem to aim them very well.
After several attempts and muffled sounds of pain, Maria turned back to him and boldly reached down to stay his hand.
“I can do it,” she told him before she realized what she was saying.
He shook his head, woozily. “I can’t make you…”
Maria took the forceps from him. “You obviously can’t do it yourself right now.” She had no idea what she was doing and she swallowed hard, trying to pretend confidence. “Lie back.”
The man shifted slightly, wincing as he reclined on the bed again. Maria stared at the wound for a brief moment before she steeled herself and pushed the tweezers in.
She instantly felt him tense with a bitten-off cry and instinctively put her free hand on his ribs to press him back. She pulled back almost instantly, flaming in mortification as well as apology considering his burns.
She finally felt the tweezers hit something and he inhaled sharply.
“I—I think I found it.”
He nodded, giving her the go-ahead and she maneuvered the tweezers to clamp the bullet tightly, pulling it out as carefully as possible.
He still let out a strangled cry, hands gripping the sheets under him as he seemed to attempt not to pull away,
Maria gasped in relief herself as she pulled the bullet free and quickly discarded it into a bowl.
“It’s out,” she said.
He didn’t reply, having falling limply onto the bed, breathing shakily.
Maria pressed her lips together and cleaned the wound again, bandaging the area, then dabbed the sweat from him body before wrapping him in blankets again.
She didn’t realize until then how badly her hands were shaking.
She got up hastily to clean up and collect herself, fully realizing what her current situation was. Did she really just dig a bullet out of an injured man who was currently unconscious in her bed?
She really didn’t want to dwell on that much more, and instead finished cleaning up, replaced the cool cloth on his forehead, and then went to make herself some dinner.
She wasn’t very hungry after that, but she knew she had to eat something. She’d been too anxious to eat anything all day.
She hoped that her invalid might be able to heal better now that he no longer had the bullet in him, but he had seemed so weak she worried that he might need blood and if that were the case…was she in danger?
But Maria pushed those thoughts to one side as she cleaned up her kitchen and went to see the state of the man’s clothes.
They were dry by now and she gathered them up and retrieved her sewing kit, sitting down by the bed to work as she watched over him, painstakingly repairing the holes those men had made in his clothing. It was a lot easier to deal with than the ones in his body.
As she moved on to the waistcoat, she found a thin wallet tucked into an inner pocket. Curious, she pulled it out and opened it. It was stained with blood, probably because it had been resting right over his bullet wound.
Inside was a card with a small portrait of the man, the rest hardly visible due to the blood. She pulled the card out and looked at the back, seeing the unmistakable seal of the Hunting faction of Napoli.
So this man, this vampire, was actually a Hunter? An official one too, if the seal was any indication, unlike those men who had come to her door.
Maria’s eyes traveled to the name on the license but couldn’t see more than that it started with a B, nor could she see which faction he was from. She glanced over at the unconscious figure briefly before she set the license on the side table. If he didn’t wake by morning, she would try to get in contact with one of the divisions. Someone would surely know who he was.
Maria finished up mending his clothing before she folded the clothes neatly and set them aside. She got up and found her nightgown and robe, heading into her washroom to change for bed.
She pulled extra blankets out of her linin trunk and settled on her chaise for the night. Glancing once more at her injured Hunter, she blew her candle out and tried to get some sleep.
~~~~~~~
Maria woke at her usual time the next morning, taking a moment to remember why she was sleeping on her chaise, but as soon as she remembered her guest, she got to her feet, glancing over to her bed.
He seemed to be sleeping more peacefully now. She peeled the now dried cloth from his brow and checked for fever. He was still slightly warm, but the fever wasn’t nearly as bad.
She let out a small gasp of shock as a hand shot up and snatched her wrist. She suddenly found herself staring into clouded red eyes.
“My apologies, I was just checking on your fever,” she said.
He blinked slowly, seeming to relax again, and released her. “I failed to thank you last night,” he said, voice light and hoarse. “You have been extremely hospitable.”
“You were injured. I couldn’t in good conscious leave you out on the street,” she said, a bit self-conscious. “Especially with those hunters out there.”
She suddenly remembered the credentials she had found in his clothing. “You’re a Hunter too, aren’t you? A legitimate one.”
He nodded tiredly. “Yes.”
“Do you have a name, Hunter?” she asked then. “Your license is stained with blood, and, well, I think it’s only proper I know your name after digging a bullet out of you.”
A small smile tugged at his lips. “Bruno Bucciarati, signorina. I find I would also like to know the name of the woman who was brave enough to dig a bullet out of my guts.”
She flushed slightly. “Maria Gallo.”
“Miss Gallo,” he said softly. “Thank you.”
Her face heated impossibly further and she quickly ducked away, adjusting his blankets. “I should probably change your bandages. If that’s all right.”
“Do as you must,” he replied, eyes sliding shut wearily.
Maria felt extremely self-conscious checking Bruno’s injuries while he was conscious. Downright mortified, actually.
“Your tattoos,” she finally blurted just to break the awkward silence. “Are you a sailor?”
“My father was,” Bruno replied softly with a distant yet fond look in his eye. “I had them done in honor of him.”
“I assume he’s no longer with you?”
Bruno shook his head. “No. He was a good man, though.”
Maria felt a pang of sympathy. “My father died a few years back as well. The bakery used to be his but I run it now.” She finished spreading salve over the holy water burns and pressed fresh gauze against the spots to keep them clean.
“I’m sorry to hear that.” Bruno said, eyes traveling to her hands as she worked. “You’re quite good at this for a baker.”
Maria smiled. “My mother was a nurse. She taught me a few things before she died.”
“You’re all alone here,” Bruno realized.
Maria glanced at him, not sure whether she should be cautious or not. “Yes,” she finally admitted.
“Then I am doubly sorry for imposing on you like this.”
“I’m glad you did,” Maria told him. “I can’t promise all of the other shop keepers on the street would have been so gracious finding a vampire in their storeroom.” She stopped, feeling bad that she had brought it up. “I’m sorry, it’s just…with everything going on…”
“I understand, believe me,” Bruno replied. “Hence why you surprised me.”
She moved on to the bullet wound, pushing back the blankets as modestly as possible before she unwrapped the bandages.
Bruno inhaled sharply as the wound was exposed to the air, shutting his eyes. “How does it look?” he asked hoarsely.
“Not infected,” Maria said with relief. “But it doesn’t look like it’s healing either. Is that a bad thing?”
Bruno furrowed his brow, tilting his head to see the wound for himself. “Wounds made by silver are slow to heal. I would…well, drinking blood is the only thing that really helps.”
Maria felt his eyes on her pulse point and pulled away with some discomfort after rebandaging the wound.
“I didn’t intend for you to give me any,” he said quickly, sinking tiredly against the pillows. “Anything from the butcher shop will do. If my purse made it, you can use my money to pay.”
“The butcher won’t be open for a few more hours,” Maria said slowly, pressing her hands nervously together. She knew that waiting even that long would mean that Bruno had to suffer for longer than necessary, especially since she could technically supply him with what he needed right now. Did she had the courage to allow a vampire to drink her blood though?
Steeling herself, she asked cautiously, “Fresh blood is more nutritious, isn’t it?”
Bruno blinked his eyes open. “It is.”
Maria set her shoulders in determination. “Then I’ll give you some of mine.”
His eyes widened slightly. “Miss Gallo, I assure you that’s not necessary. Pork blood will do me fine.”
But she put her foot down, shaking her head firmly. “I’ve made my decision. I’ll give you some of my blood.” She started to push the sleeve of her robe up, baring a pale forearm, but hesitated. “Only if…you want it, that is.” She honestly wasn’t sure what the etiquette was for offering blood to a vampire, and hoped she hadn’t made some sort of faux pas.
Bruno gave her a sincere look. “I would never want you to force yourself to give me blood, Miss Gallo, but I assure you the gesture is greatly appreciated at the moment and will help me quite a bit.”
Maria nodded and took a careful seat on the side of the bed, holding her wrist, suddenly very awkward. “I…um…”
“I don’t have to bite you if you’re uncomfortable,” Bruno said softly. “You can use a knife instead.”
Maria contemplated it but shook her head. “A knife wound won’t heal as quickly. It’s okay, I…I feel like I can trust you.”
Bruno gave her a look that she couldn’t quite read, but gently took hold of her wrist. She couldn’t help but shiver slightly at his touch. His hands were rough from work, calloused, but his touch was gentle. He drew her arm toward his lips and she could feel his breath on her bare skin.
“It will pinch, but it won’t hurt terribly much,” he assured her.
Maria nodded, heart beating fast in anticipation as Bruno pulled her arm to his mouth.
She inhaled sharply as she felt his fangs pierce her skin before he covered the area with his mouth and started to suck.
Maria felt an instant flush wash over her, pressing her free hand to her lips. It wasn’t an entirely pleasant sensation, but it wasn’t horrible either. Bruno’s fingers curled around her palm and elbow to steady her, his hair tickling her skin. Her whole body seemed overly sensitive in that moment. The swift loss of blood was slightly intoxicating. She shut her eyes and focused on breathing, listing to Bruno’s steady swallowing.
She wasn’t even aware that he had pulled away until he squeezed her hand.
“Thank you, Miss Gallo, I already feel better,” he said.
Maria forced her eyes open and gently pulled her hand from his, reaching for a cloth to clean the barely leaking puncture wounds on her arm.
“I’m glad,” she said, picking up a small bandage.
“Allow me,” Bruno said, reaching out and taking the bandage, wrapping it around her arm and tying it neatly. He surprised her by kissing her knuckles before letting her hand go, a soft smile on his lips. “Once again, thank you.”
Maria turned quickly to start cleaning up, desperately hoping to hide her red face. “I will also get some blood for you from the butcher when I go out today. On that note, I can send a telegram to your headquarters as well. Where should I have it sent?”
“I’ll write the address for you,” Bruno said.
Maria brought him some paper and a pen and he wrote out the address.
“I appreciate you contacting my team. I fear I’m too weak to go do it myself, especially during the day.”
Maria nodded. “Just rest then, please. I hope the blood will help.” She motioned to the chair sitting by the bed. “Your clothes are over there, I cleaned and mended them for you.” She glanced at the clock. “I need to get to work, but I’ll be back to check on you later to see if you need anything.”
Bruno offered her a small smile. “You’ve already done enough. I’m just going to be resting right now. That’s the easiest way for me to heal after I’ve had blood.” He shut his eyes and was asleep again within a few seconds.
Maria quickly dressed and got about her duties for the day.
Armo and Angelina showed up at their usual times so after the morning rush, Maria asked Angelina to watch the shop for her so she could run her errands.
She went first to the telegraph office and sent a message to Signore Bucciarati’s team to inquire at her bakery about his whereabouts. Then she stopped by the butcher on the way back to get some pig’s blood for him.
“Entertaining?” the butcher asked her with a raised eyebrow, obviously aware that she didn’t usually buy blood.
“Oh, I’m just picking something up for a friend,” Maria said quickly as she accepted the wrapped jar and went on her way.
***
The butcher watched her go with narrowed eyes. When she had disappeared down the street, he called his errand boy from the back and gave him a note to pass on.
Half an hour later Lombardo, who headed up the freelance hunting party, showed up.
“What is it, Pietro?” the man asked.
“You told me to tell you if I saw anything odd,” the butcher said. “Well, the girl from the bakery just came in and bought fresh pork blood.”
Lombardo nodded thoughtfully. “That is odd, thank you for telling me, Pietro.”
He headed out of the shop to where a couple of the other freelancers waited.
“Well?” one of them asked.
“Looks like the signorina does know something after all. She just came in and bought blood.”
“We were certain that the blood trail stopped at the bakery,” the other man pointed out, his hand going to the heavy crucifix hanging from his belt. “Looks like we’re going to be concluding our hunt tonight.”
“Let’s just hope the fang hasn’t had enough time to recover fully,” Lombardo said. “We need to strike tonight if we’re going to put him in the ground where he belongs.”
~~~~~~~
Maria took a couple moments to check on Bruno throughout the day but he was sleeping heavily so she stored the blood in her ice chest and continued her day until it was time to close up shop and she saw Armo and Angelina out, bidding them good night.
So far there had been no telegram from Bruno’s team, nor had anyone shown up. She hoped they would get the message soon for Bruno’s sake.
Maria fixed up something for her supper then heated the blood for Bruno before bringing it up to the adjoining apartment.
To her surprise, she found Bruno sitting up on the bed, dressed in his trousers and a loose black shirt, glancing at the scar on his neck in her hand mirror.
He looked up as she came in and offered a smile.
“You’re looking better,” she said, relieved.
“Mostly thanks to your kind offering,” Bruno told her. “The bullet wound is still slow to heal, but the rest of my injuries are much better.”
“Well, I brought you some more blood,” Maria said, nodding to the tray she carried. “I was wondering if you would join me for dinner?”
“I would be happy to.”
She set up her little table and helped Bruno into the chair, handing him the mug of blood as she took up her spoon.
“I hope it’s okay,” she said.
“It’s perfect, I appreciate you warming it,” he said as he sipped. He glanced over the table at her. “As nice as your hospitality has been, I have to ask whether you were able to get a message to my team?”
Maria nodded. “I sent a telegram earlier but there’s been no reply.”
“It’s possible they’re out looking into the case,” Bruno said.
Maria frowned slightly. “I assume you were looking into the recent murders.”
He nodded. “Yes.”
“So you think a vampire could really be involved?”
“That’s what the people seem to think,” he replied.
Before Maria could ask what he meant by that, there was a loud knock on her door downstairs.
She pushed her chair back. “I wonder if that could be your teammates?”
Bruno started to push his chair back, steadying himself on the table in order to stand. “If you can lend me a hand down the stairs…”
Maria pushed him back into the chair. “Just stay here for now, it might not even be them. I’ll be right back.”
“Be cautious, Miss Gallo, ask for their credentials before you let anyone in.”
She nodded and hurried downstairs as another, more impatient knock sounded.
“Just a moment!” she called as she hurried to the front of the shop and drew the curtains aside.
She stepped back briefly as she saw the same band of freelance hunters who had showed up the other night. Unease instantly washed over her, especially at the man’s predatory smile.
“Good evening, signorina. Mind if we come in to take a look around?”
“Yes, I mind,” Maria snapped from the other side of the door. “I told you the other night that you’re not welcome here.”
“Well, I’m afraid we’re going to have to insist.”
He nodded to one of his men who came forward with a baton, raising it.
“What are you doing?” Maria demanded, then leapt back with a sharp cry as the man swung, shattering the glass around the latch of the door and reaching through the hole to unlock the bolt.
She scrambled back, searching for something to use as a weapon as they men came inside.
“Where is he?” the leader of the hunters demanded, herding Maria back against the counter. “Where’s the fang?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she snapped.
“Maria!”
She looked over with the rest of the hunters to see Bruno coming out of the back of the shop, one hand against the wall to steady himself. He glared at the hunters with steel in his eyes. “Leave her alone—it’s obviously me you came for.”
“Signore Bucciarati….” Maria trembled, terrified for the injured vampire as he faced down the hunters like a fox to a team of ravenous hunting dogs.
“That’s right, we did,” the man said with a smirk. “But I’m not gonna pass up the opportunity to make one last victim to prove a point.”
“So, my suspicions were correct after all,” Bruno said darkly, reaching for Maria and pulling her behind him. “Very well, if you wish to take us we’re hardly going to make it easy on you.”
There was a brief flash from his hand and Maria watched a knife sail through the air, thudding into one of the hunter’s shoulders. He jerked back with a cry as Bruno shoved her forward.
“Get out of here and run for help.”
“What about you?” she demanded.
“I’ll hold them off, just go—agh!”
The twang of a crossbow sounded out and Bruno went down with a silver-tipped bolt in the back of his knee. Maria grabbed his arm, throwing it over her shoulders as she tried to heave him to his feet, heading for the back door.
The hunters had obviously anticipated the move, though, and to Maria’s horror, a couple of the men had gone around back to close off their escape—she really needed to start remembering to lock that door.
Bruno turned to shield Maria with his body, but one of the hunters had a canteen of holy water and she cried out, spinning them around to catch the liquid against her back. A bit splashed onto Bruno’s face and hands, but he was mostly unscathed.
He reached down to pull the bolt from his leg, groaning as it came free. The hunters were surrounding them, weapons held at the ready.
“Release the girl, beast,” one of them snarled.
Bruno only held Maria closer, tilting her away from them as one prodded him with the tip of a sword. “You all disgust me,” he snarled. “Making victims to aid in your crusade against the supernatural? You are no hunters, you are simply murderers.”
The head hunter snorted. “So what? As long as a few more vampires die because of what we did then that’s a win in my book. Starting with you, fang.”
Bruno shoved Maria away as the hunters descended on him. He wrenched the sword away from one of the hunters and swung. He slashed one of the hunters but the man with the baton slammed it into his injured side, forcing Bruno to double over with a cry of pain. One of the other men caught a loop of silver wire around his throat and yanked, forcing Bruno off his feet, choking as he clawed at the wire burning the flesh around his neck.
“Stop!” Maria cried out, rushing forward and grabbing Bruno’s sleeve, reaching to extricate him from the wire.
The head hunter grabbed her and hauled her away from him. “Come here, we’re not done with you yet either.”
Bruno tried to force himself upright but he was kicked back down and one man pressed his boot into his stomach, grinding his heel against his bullet wound.
Maria felt tears prick her eyes in desperation as she tried to struggle in the man’s grasp. He pulled a sharp awl out of his belt, holding it up threateningly in front of her.
“Hold still, sweetheart. Let’s make this look good, hm?”
He grabbed her chin, wrenching her head to one side to expose her neck.
What was left of the door suddenly burst open to the sound of shouting and hurried bootsteps.
“Bucciarati!” someone cried.
The hunters turned to face the new arrivals and Maria kicked the man hard, forcing him to release her. She scrambled toward Bruno, pulling the wire from around his throat as he gasped.
“Are you okay?” she demanded, holding his face between her hands.
Bruno forced a small smile and placed a tired hand on her wrist as a Hunter with long golden hair hurried over, crouching beside them.
“Bucciarati, are you alright?” he demanded.
“I’ll be fine, Giorno,” Bruno croaked and urged the blonde and Maria to help him to his feet before he called out hoarsely. “Don’t let any of these men escape. They’re the ones responsible for the murders.”
“We know,” a man wearing dark glasses with his silver hair tied back said grimly. “We’ve been hunting them down all day. We just barely got back to the mansion to find the telegram.”
“You’re all fools!” the freelance hunter snapped at them as he was being restrained by a tall, dark-haired man in a loud waistcoat and cap. “You’ve let the monsters into your midst! You’ll never be able to stop them now—we’re all dead!”
“Shut the hell up,” the silver haired man snapped, decking him in the jaw. “Narancia, go for the police. Giorno, you take Bruno home.”
The blond nodded and turned to Maria. “If you would, I’d appreciate you coming too, signorina, that way we can get the full story.”
Maria nodded, realizing she didn’t want to be parted from Bruno at this moment anyway and helped him out to the waiting carriage with Giorno’s assistance.
The next few hours were a blur.
Maria and Bruno took turns explaining what had happened while Giorno tended Bruno’s injuries in the small infirmary room of the Hunters’ mansion.
“Now it’s your turn,” Bruno said. “How did you figure out it was Lombardo and his crew?”
Maria handed Giorno fresh bandages which he used on Bruno’s injured leg. “Fugo and Melone were able to determine that the ‘bite marks’ on all of the victims were made with a manual device. There was no trace of saliva and they didn’t scab over in the same way vampire bites do due to the enzymes they carry. The freelance hunting parties have been making themselves trouble over the past few months so it wasn’t much of a stretch to think that one of them might be stirring the pot even more.”
“I just can’t believe they would go that far.” Maria commented. “It’s horrible to think they would go to such lengths just to feed their own prejudice.”
“Humans are a strange type of monster,” Bruno said. “But the precise reason Hunters exist is to be unbiased when dealing with all races and species. Whether to exonerate or condemn.”
Maria nodded. “I think it is a noble calling indeed.”
Giorno finished up with the bandages and Bruno laid back tiredly on the small cot, propping himself against the wall.
“I’ll get you some blood,” Giorno said and turned to Maria. “If you could come to the kitchen with me, I’ll make you some tea.”
Maria glanced at Bruno one last time before she followed Giorno down several hallways to the kitchen.
She measured out the tea into the pot as Giorno put the kettle on the stove to boil.
“I very much appreciate you taking Bucciarati in and looking after his injuries,” Giorno told her. “There are very few people who would do that for a vampire.”
“I just saw someone in need,” Maria said simply.
Giorno smiled. “Then you truly do have a pure heart, Miss Gallo. People like you do make up for people like Lombardo in the end.”
They brought the tea and blood for Bruno back to the infirmary, finding a young woman with strawberry hair sitting by his side. She stood up as she saw them and hurried toward Maria, eyes shining.
“You must be Miss Gallo, it’s so nice to meet you, I’m Trish Una.”
Maria clasped her hand with a small smile. “It’s nice to meet you too, Miss Una.”
“Oh please, call me Trish,” the girl said, beaming.
“Then I will insist you call me Maria.”
Giorno handed out tea and Maria sat, feeling Bruno’s eyes on her with a very fond look as he watched her and Trish talk. Her cheeks flushed slightly, and she was suddenly very aware of the fact that she would have to leave soon.
Once her tea was finished, she stood. “I probably should be getting back, unless you need me for another statement.”
“Nonsense,” Bruno said firmly. “Your door is broken. You’ll be staying here for the night.”
“Oh, well, as long as it’s no trouble,” Maria said, feeling relief flood through her.
“My dear Miss Gallo, I have imposed upon you these last few days, it is my turn to show hospitality,” Bruno smiled fondly.
“We’ll send someone to fix your door in the morning too,” Giorno assured her. “Since it was a casualty of an investigation it’s only right the city pays for it.”
“I can show you to one of the guest rooms,” Trish told Maria, tucking her arm through her elbow.
Trish lent Maria a nightdress and showed her where everything she might need would be.
After she bid Maria goodnight, she turned at the door. “I know Bucciarati can be hard to read sometimes,” she said. “But he wears his heart on his sleeve if you know where to look.” She smiled knowingly and shut the door.
Maria stood there for a few long seconds, contemplating Trish’s words and the implications of them.
Implications, she was frankly too tired to think about that night.
She crawled into bed and slept almost instantly, dreaming of beautiful red eyed men in the moonlight.
~~~~~~~
The next morning Maria opted to send messages to Armo and Angelina to let them know that the bakery would be closed until repairs had been made so she actually had a peaceful morning for once, taking tea with Trish in the parlor.
Part of her wished she could stay longer, but there was cleaning to do back at the bakery. She couldn’t help but think that her little apartment would feel a bit empty without Bruno there though. It was amazing he could have had that much impact on her life just being there for a couple days.
She went to find the vampire in question, one of the Hunters pointing her toward the office on the second floor.
When she got there, she found a large room with lots of bookshelves and maps spread everywhere. Bruno was sitting at one of the desks, speaking to the silver-haired man who Maria remembered was Abbacchio. He glanced up, tinted glasses hiding his eyes before looking back at Bruno.
“I’ll go to the Archives and take a look at that now,” he said a bit quickly.
“Well, there’s no rush, but…”
Abbacchio nodded to Maria as he passed and she stepped into the office, meeting Bruno’s eyes.
“Miss Gallo, I trust you slept well?”
“I did, thank you,” she replied, suddenly feeling very awkward. “I hope you’re feeling better?”
Bruno stood, a little stiffly, but he seemed stronger. “I am quite on the mend now, yes.”
They were both silent for a long moment, slightly awkward, before he said. “Miss Gallo, I would like to thank you again for everything you did for me. I don’t know if I can ever repay that.”
“You have no need to,” she assured him. “I only ask that…you call me Maria. I did pull a bullet out of you, after all.”
Bruno chuckled. “That is fair, I believe. Maria.”
The way her name sounded on his tongue sent warmth through her veins.
“In that case I also would ask that you call me Bruno.”
“Then I shall do that, Bruno.”
Another slightly awkward silence before Bruno said. “I can call you a carriage whenever you need to leave—but if you wish to stay a while longer…”
“I really should be getting back,” Maria said, feeling admittedly saddened by the idea. “But I hope you and the others might come see me at the bakery sometime? I’ll save the best pastries for you.”
Bruno smiled fondly. “Of course. And please feel free to come here any time, for dinner or tea…I know Trish is already very fond of you. She doesn’t have many women in her life. It would please me if you would come and see her.”
“I would love to,” Maria said, then decided to be bold and asked. “Would it also please you if I came to see you, Bruno?”
His face softened. “Yes, very much.”
Maria flushed and smiled. “Then expect me sometime, sooner rather than later.”
Bruno exhaled slowly then went over to the telephone sitting on the far wall. “Allow me to call you your cab.”
When the call was finished, she reluctantly bid him goodbye.
“I hope to see you soon,” she said and turned.
“Maria.”
As she turned back he was already walking toward her. She waited for him to pause, but he didn’t, continuing until they were a breadth apart. He slipped a hand to the back of her head and leaned in. The press of his lips against hers was a brief moment of heaven, but too soon he pulled away and she blinked up into his ruby eyes.
“My apologies,” he said hoarsely. “I just knew I would regret it if I didn’t do that.”
Maria silently reached up to take his face between her hands and pulled him back in. This time they lingered in the kiss for a few long moments and pulled away reluctantly.
Bruno cleared his throat. “I have Wednesday evening free. Do you like moonlight walks, Maria?”
Her heart fluttered. “I do, very much.”
“Then allow me to take you out on one?”
“I would like nothing more.”