A Heart For The Heartless

If this woman’s blood was so delicious that it made him feel overwhelmed, it meant that she was indeed his human mate, one that he had been curious about for more than a century. The idea of it took form in his head, and every second he spent with her right now only helped solidify it further.

She was the first human to ever make him feel this way. His instincts were practically telling him to claim her and take everything he wanted.

No doubt that it would be foolish of him to drain her of her tasty blood and kill her right here. The mate bond would punish him if he ever did that.

He had never kept a human before, but this one might prove its worth.

It would also be interesting to explore this unusual mate bond. If his enemies ever found out that he had a mate, they would surely use her against him.

There was no doubt in his mind. His decision was now made.

Mikhail slowly let go of her chin and ran a finger through his wrist with a sharp nail, drawing blood in the process.Content (C) Nôv/elDra/ma.Org.

Josef and Sarim’s eyes widened in realization.

“S-Sire!” Josef exclaimed.

“Sire, your blood… you can’t…” Sarim began, alarmed.

As an elite vampire, Mikhail’s blood was naturally what they called priceless. Unlike normal vampires, his blood had the special ability to heal whoever drank it.

In the turning process, vampires needed to drain as much blood as they could from the human to weaken their state. After that, they needed to make the human drink their vampire blood. The human would turn into a vampire within three days, and after that, those turned humans needed to drink human blood or else they would die in 24 hours.

By doing this, it meant that Mikhail should not bite and then drink from this beautiful woman for at least three days, or else she would turn into a vampire against her own will.

Vampires could drink other vampire’s blood, but that was considered taboo and disgusting, so Mikhail did not intend on turning her.

He would have to find some other human to feed on after this. It was a small price to pay for having this woman by his side for the rest of her mortal life.

“Drink,” Mikhail commanded, offering his wrist towards the woman.

The woman only stared at him. She looked dazed, but there was still a flash of defiance in her eyes, one that intrigued Mikhail even more.

‘What an interesting human,’ he thought to himself.

“I won’t turn you into a vampire,” Mikhail said. “My blood will help you heal from your wounds. In exchange for your life, you will be mine. And mine only.”

The woman’s gaze narrowed. “…I would rather die,” she snarled.

Even her voice was charming, albeit her quiet fury.

Mikhail was starting to like this human. She would make a good and interesting blood source.

Possibly a worthy mate as well.

“What’s your name, human?” he asked.

The woman’s eyes flashed with surprise for a fraction of a second. Then, she glared at him. “I’m not falling for that,” she said. “I’m aware of what happens when we give our names to vampires.”

“How awfully brave of you despite being on the verge of dying,” Mikhail remarked in amusement. “This is quite admirable.”

“…I’d rather die than be indebted to a vampire!”

There was pure venom in her voice that only made exhilaration run through Mikhail’s veins. Even though she tried her best to hide it, there was a hint of underlying fear in her tone, something that Mikhail’s sharp ears didn’t miss.

She was trying to be brave, the poor thing. She was even glaring defiantly into his eyes.

It only made him want her more.

“I’m afraid you’re mistaken about something, human,” he said softly. “I don’t need your name in order to control you.”

His smooth voice seemed to trigger a change in her. Her eyes suddenly glazed over a little, and her features started to soften ever so slightly.

He smiled.

Vampires could do mind control if their abilities were strong enough. However, they needed the human’s name – their real name, not a fake one, and not an alias – in order to control their minds. Some vampires were crafty enough to trick it out of the humans’ lips, while some managed to thanks to their deep persuasion.

After all, vampires were natural charmers. It usually did not take them long to wrap a human around their little finger.

But elite vampires like Mikhail didn’t need to do that. They could control humans with only their voice, which was much easier and faster.

He only asked for her name because he found her interesting.

“Now drink from my blood and heal up.”

He pressed his wrist against her lips. She still refused to drink it, so he spoke to her again in his gentle voice to make her obey his order.

“Drink up,” he repeated softly.

Josef and Sarim just watched the entire scene, unable to stop their master. Mikhail was much more powerful than even the two of them combined, so they had no chance.

Of course, they were loyal to Mikhail. They just couldn’t understand why Mikhail wanted to keep this human in particular.

“Why aren’t you drinking?” Mikhail suddenly asked, and for the first time, there was a hint of emotion in his voice. An emotion that was akin to genuine confusion.

Because even though he used his persuasive voice on her, the woman still didn’t obey him. She was still glaring at him defiantly, breathing heavily through her nose instead. Beads of sweat were pouring down her face, a testament to how much she was enduring the pain. The cold was helping in slowing down the bleeding, but it wasn’t enough to buy her more time.

She was clearly suffering and in urgent need of medical help, but she refused to be helped out by a vampire.

“How can this be?” Mikhail wondered aloud, puzzled and slightly fascinated at the same time. “Are you immune to my mind control?”

It quickly made sense in his head, though.

How could he have forgotten? She was, after all, his human mate.

Josef and Sarim stared in shock, unable to believe what they had just heard. A human, being immune to mind control? It was unheard of!

And Mikhail Ivanov’s mind control had always been flawless!

“Could it be…” Josef said, his voice filled with uncertainty. “That she’s…”

“But it’s merely a myth!” Sarim argued.

“…It’s called a myth by most people, but it’s not unheard of,” Mikhail suddenly interjected, gazing at this woman with newfound interest, one that grew stronger as the seconds passed. “Wyonne and Quintus had human mates before, many decades ago. Those humans had also been immune to their mind control, and they even claimed that those humans’ blood tasted the most delicious of all.”

Mikhail suddenly grasped the woman’s chin and tilted it upwards, making the blood from his wrist drip down to her lips. When she still refused to open her mouth, Mikhail effortlessly parted it open, forcing her to drink his blood.

“Your strength cannot compare to mine,” Mikhail told her with a smile. “A mere human cannot contest a vampire’s strength. Resistance is futile.”

The woman glared at him, but couldn’t do anything at all.

She wasn’t stupid. If she struck back, Mikhail would apprehend her like it was nothing. Not only that, but he had two strong bodyguards with him.

She would never stand a chance.

“I’ll take you with me,” Mikhail said in a smooth tone of voice. “To my home, my darling.”