Sunday, April 29, 2012

A New Beginning...

I just want to say thanks to everyone who has stopped in to give me feedback. Honest opinions are always welcome, even if you dislike what I have to say.




MAD LOVE

Chapter One





          Don’t do it. Do not even fucking think about it. Even as he told himself not to get involved, he knew he was kidding himself. The minute he heard the whimper, so soft no human ear would have been able to hear, Madden knew he was going to find the source. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath before entering the ally to search for the source of the noise.
Being born a vampire was rare and Madden was a Born. He was one of the lucky ones. Those that survive childhood often die during puberty when they gain their powers. As if being a Born in a vampire society of Converts wasn’t bad enough, he gained not one, but two extra abilities beyond what a converted received. He was able to locate the living and the dead with a thought. He also possessed a gift that all vampires coveted…immunity to sunlight.
Being a day-walker made him different, but it was his compassion for others that made him a pariah in vampire society. Madden didn’t believe humans and shifters were walking blood bags. He decided early in his life that eternity was to long to spend alone.  Other species had more worth than the sweet, hot, rich blood that flowed in their veins. Madden didn’t see anything wrong with being friends with, or loving, humans and other paranormals. 
He had been told once that his fondness for the Others would lead him into trouble. It looked like today was his day. Madden knew he wasn’t walking into a trap. That didn’t stop the rush of foreboding sweep through his body. Today was the day. His whole life was about to change
He was getting closer to the wolf. The amount of blood he sensed implied massive blood loss. It was injured and the overpowering smell of blood made Madden’s fangs tingle and threaten to drop. It was then that the scent of the wolf took on a subtle change that he recognized as a shifter. Madden paused and took a quick glance around the dark ally seeking reassurance that they were alone.
                   Halfway down the ally the wolf’s scent was over powering. He scented fear, death and acceptance. The combination wasn’t something he had come across before. Fear and death. Acceptance and death. Never all three. It was intriguing. Offering the wolf the mercy of a quick painless death was now out. Madden would use his blood to heal the wolf. If it turns out that the wolf was not worthy he could always end it at any time.
          “Listen up wolf, you’re hurt and in no shape to fight.” Madden said as he slowly advanced towards the shifters hiding place.  “If you fight me, you won’t have a chance in hell of making it out of this ally alive. However, I can promise I will give you a chance at survival if you don’t resist.”
Madden rounded the corner of a dumpster and came to a halt at the body of a thin young gray wolf. It was lying on its side in a large pool of blood. A hunting knife was sticking out of its chest.  The pain and blood loss left the small wolf unable to do anything other than track Madden with his eyes. The only reason the wolf still lives was because he was a shifter. Being a shifter wouldn’t save the young wolf now.  Due to the wolf’s small size and malnourished state, the massive blood loss and internal injuries meant death for the boy.
 Madden crouched down close to the wolf. He braced a hand on the wolf’s chest and grabbed the knife hilt.


          “You know what I am, boy.” The wolf let out a whimper followed by a long pain-filled whine. “This is how it’s going to happen. I’ll use my blood to heal you, then you are going to shift and we are going to have a little chat. Fuck me over and I’ll end your ass.”
          “On three. One…two…” On the count of two, Madden jerked the knife from the wolf’s body. The wolf let out a strangled howl and passed out.
Madden used the tip of a fang to make a small slice across his index finger. Holding his hand over the wolf he allowed several drops of his blood to fall into the wound. His vampire blood worked fast. The bones and muscle mended back together mere seconds before the edges of the wound began to knit closed. The blood had done its work. The only thing left on the wolf’s body to show he had been injured was a small scratch. His blood will soon root out any lingering debris and push it thru the scratch.
Madden didn’t know why, but he had the urge to stroke the wolf. He couldn’t seem to stop himself from touching the wolf’s body. He ran his fingers around its eyes and muzzle. His hands had a slight tremble as he massaged its neck and chest. He was stroking the wolf’s neck when it regained consciousness.   
“In a few hours you will be completely healed. You’ll be weak from the blood loss, but you won’t die.”
The wolf lay quietly, tracking Madden with his eyes as he stood up and backed away. Shaking with weakness the wolf slowly got to his feet. While the blood did wonders for the knife wound, it did nothing for the emaciated condition of the wolf. After it staggered down the ally a few feet, the wolf looked back at Madden and waited for him to follow.
Madden followed the wolf deeper in and further away from the street. At the end of the ally the wolf ducked behind a dumpster and disappeared. Madden pulled the dumpster away from the wall. Hidden behind the dumpster was a hole in the side of the old building. The hole was just big enough for Madden to squeeze his six-four, two hundred and twenty pounds through.
Now I know why you are so dirty, little wolf
Madden wasn’t a prissy man. He hadn’t lived for more than a hundred years without getting dirty a few times, but crawling around behind a dumpster in New York City, during the middle of summer, made him cringe.
Once inside, what little light the full moon gave was gone. Using his vampire instincts Madden was able to locate the wolf on a flight of stairs to his left. The wolf gave him a quick glance and with a quick sharp yip he raced up the stairs without looking back again. Halfway up the wobbly decrepit staircase Madden was beginning to wonder if hearing the wolf’s story was worth risking injury. While he wouldn’t die from the staircase collapsing, he wouldn’t be a hundred percent if he were walking into a trap.
Once at the top of the stairs Madden could sense another life form in the immediate area to his right. Inhaling deeply, he could tell it was a shifter. Mentally bracing himself for an up coming fight, he was shocked when he walked through the door.
His wolf was licking the face of a squirming wolf pup.