Kyle felt his heart stop, start, stop and start again, beating to a rhythm that defied the stars. It was as if his heart had grown wings and taken flight, trying to escape the confines of his chest, like a bird trapped behind his ribcage, banging, crashing, fleeing, trying to break free. Kyle felt like the universe itself had grabbed hold of his very soul, keeping him rooted to the spot as his every sense stood at attention. He could hardly breathe, and didn't dare to take his eyes off the vampire as he slowly descended the stairs and came to a stop beside Heinrich.

The vampire's frosty, smooth skin seemed to glow from within like moonlight, he was tall and lithe, his movements graceful like a dancer as he moved across the room. He had long platinum blond hair like his father, but his seemed to shine like the bright afternoon sun as it framed his delicate, sharp features. 

His face seemed to be carved from glass and had a fragile beauty that seemed completely at odds with the strong maroon colour of his eyes. Even his sharp canines seemed to have been elegantly carved into fine points. Every single part of him seemed to possess an air of elegance that Kyle thought didn't belong in this dirty, musty dungeon.

The beautiful vampire wore the same simple, pressed white shirt, and black trousers paired with plain loafers as the other vampires, but somehow the outfit seemed much more refined on him. Kyle felt like he was looking at a goddess, and he could hardly believe such a person would be in any way related to the maniacal Elder that had fathered him.

“This is for you.” Heinrich gestured down at Kyle, as he turned to face his son.

The vampire was already shaking his head, “No.” He said, his voice was light and lilting. 

Kyle thought he sounded like an angel.

“No.” The beautiful vampire repeated, looking down at Kyle before quickly looking away again with a frown.

“Father, please,” The vampire begged, “I don't want to do this. Don't force me to do this.”

Kyle felt confused, not knowing what to make of the beautiful vampire who had refused the easy meal he was offered. Honestly, he had expected to be attacked as soon as the Elder's son had entered the room. At the back of his mind, he recalled Heinrich saying that his pack would be killed if his son didn't kill Kyle. Somehow that threat made a bit more sense now that the vampire was actually before him, and refusing to kill him. 

To Kyle, it seemed like Heinrich's son didn't have it in him to kill anyone, even a random werewolf who he had absolutely no connection to. Despite his situation, Kyle felt hope bloom in his chest that perhaps his situation might not be as dire as he had initially thought it to be.

“He said he doesn't want to, so why not just let me go?” Kyle said.

“Nice try,” Heinrich said, “But as I said, if he doesn't drink every last drop of your blood I will kill your whole pack.”

“Please, just leave them out of this.” Kyle whispered, feeling all the remaining strength drain from his body before the overwhelming presence of the Elder. 

He didn't know exactly how Heinrich planned to find his pack, but Kyle knew that if they killed him and used his body as bait, it wouldn't be long before his packmates fell into the trap. It would be easy enough to just dump his body close to the accident site where Robyn and Anastasia had crashed, and wait for the pack to come searching for their leader. 

Kyle just felt lucky that vampires didn't have senses strong enough to scent out his pack in the same way he had done before getting captured. Unlike werewolves, vampire senses were range limited and could not work further than about a large rooms distance. 

I can't let them use my body to trap my pack, Kyle thought. 

Rather than his own death, the thought of all his packmates being killed had him feeling utterly sick to his stomach.

“I will do whatever you want, just leave my pack alone.” Kyle pleaded, even while knowing that the Elder would never comply.

Heinrich's son turned to him and Kyle thought he caught his brow wrinkle in worry for barely a second. Kyle shook his head, disregarding what he figured must have been a misunderstanding on his part. The beautiful vampire clasped his hands together in front of him, his long, sharp nails digging into his skin and drawing blood. 

The bright red spots stood out against his smooth skin, and Kyle wondered at how it could be so red for vampire blood.

“The survival of your pack depends on my cowardly son.” Heinrich said, his voice cold and determined as he looked down at Kyle, red eyes glowing in the dim light as he sneered.

He then turned and stood in front of his son, forcing the beautiful vampire's face up with a rough hand on his jaw. Heinrich squeezed tightly, his long, pointed nails digging into skin and drawing blood. The beads of blood dropped down, and spotted his son's crisp, clean white shirt.

Kyle felt himself grow uneasy at the harsh way in which the Elder handled his own son. If Heinrich treated his son in such a way, what worse things would he do to Kyle's pack if he ever got his hands on them? The thought alone had the werewolf's blood running cold and he swore to never let it get to that stage. He would do whatever he needed to do in order to protect his pack.

“You will kill this accursed werewolf, or you sentence his entire pack to death.” Heinrich said, “Your weakness is a disgrace and will have no place within my bloodline.”

The Elder then shoved the vampire away, causing his nails to rip deeper into his son's skin. The beautiful vampire stumbled but kept his footing, glaring down at Heinrich's feet. Kyle could immediately tell that there was no love lost between the two of them, even without having to sense the vampire's emotions.

Heinrich reached into the pocket of his suit jacket and pulled out a forest green handkerchief, which he used to wipe his son's blood from his nails. He then handed the dirtied handkerchief to Arran, before turning to leave the room. Arran folded the handkerchief and put it into his back pocket, smiling warmly at the Elder.

“Lock them both down here,” Heinrich said to Arran, “Do not open this door until my son has made his first kill.”

“Yes, Elder Heinrich, I will have two of our best guards at the door.” Arran said, his deep red eyes looking at the Elder's son with disdain.

And with that Heinrich left the room, Arran and the vampire at the dungeon entrance following closely behind him.

“I'm sorry. This is all my fault.” Heinrich's son sat down against the wall across from Kyle.

The room felt bigger than ever before and Kyle wanted nothing more than to close the distance between them. It went against reason, but he couldn't help feeling a strong need to be as close as possible to the vampire.

With only the two of them in the room Kyle felt hyper aware of every single move the vampire made. His scent tickled Kyle's nose, a warm, full, bitter smell that contrasted against his delicate features. Despite himself, Kyle wondered what he tasted like, what his skin would feel like under his hands.

Gods, Kyle thought, he is just so beautiful.

“What do you mean?” Kyle asked, pushing his inner thoughts aside as he belatedly responded to the vampire.

“The thing is,” The vampire twisted the ends of long blond hair between his elegant fingers, ”I have yet to make my first kill.”

Kyle frowned, “How though? I thought you needed to make a kill to completely turn into a vampire. Also, what the hell does that have to do with me?” 

“Oh, uhm...” The vampire stared down at his lap, completely avoiding Kyle's gaze. “I wasn't turned. I was born a vampire.” 

“My father brought you here because werewolf blood is especially irresistible to vampires. He figured I would not be able to resist killing you,” The vampire said, his voice barely above a whisper.

He didn't say it, but the vampire thought that the werewolf smelled delicious. He made sure to stay across the room, just in case he gave in to the urge to sink his teeth into the strong tan neck that seemed to be gently calling his name. The open wound slowly dripped blood down the side of the werewolf's sculpted body, enticing the vampire in a way he had never thought possible.

I wonder what he tastes like, the vampire thought before immediately pushing the thought out of his mind.

“What the hell does that even mean?” Kyle asked, confused. “You were born a vampire? How can a vampire give birth when they're undead?”

As far as he knew, vampires had all been humans at first, who would then be turned by an older vampire, and only became fully vampire once they had successfully made a kill. If they failed to make a kill, the process would be reversed and they would die within a few days at most. 

Any human would need to die and be reborn during the process of becoming a vampire, thus becoming undead, and as a result any life within them would be killed. Meaning they had no ability to give life to any offspring. So Heinrich's son claiming to have been born as a vampire went against everything Kyle knew about vampires.

The vampire didn't answer him and instead just stared down at his lap. Kyle figured that he didn't want to talk about it, and he decided not to push the issue. Any ally was welcome, and Kyle wanted to at least try and get the vampire on his side. As he had seemed to be so against killing the werewolf, maybe it'll be easier to gain his trust than Kyle had expected.

“What's your name?” Kyle asked, changing the subject and trying to bridge the gap between them.

Maybe with us becoming more familiar with one each other, he might eventually be willing to help me get out of here, Kyle thought, its a long shot, but I need to try.

“Eryk.” The vampire answered, his light, lilting voice making the word sound like a song.

“That's a beautiful name,” Kyle said. “I'm Kyle.”

“Thank you.” Eryk said, a blush delicately painting his cheeks red.

Kyle stared, shocked, “Holy f*ck, you're blushing.”

Eryk's blush flared brighter and he covered his face with his hands.

“I thought vampires couldn't do that. You know, with you being undead and all.” Kyle remarked, genuinely shocked to see the vampire's milky skin flush with warm colour.

“Like I said, I was born a vampire. I'm not undead.” Eryk said, his pretty voice muffled behind his hands. 

Kyle felt laughter burst out of his chest, and before he could stop himself he said, “You're cute.”

Eryk went completely red.