"You want to kill off allvampires?"
"Every single one ofus."
"Then you're on my side," I say and shake my head. "We should fight together. Don't make meforget."
"I'm on no one's side but God's," he says and looks away again. "If I do this, perhaps I'll get back my immortal soul and then I can die inpeace."
He wants todie…
"I want to take up my mother's fight," I say. "Please let me remember. You have the manuscript. I want you tosucceed."
He shakes his head quickly. "Pleading won't work on me, Eve. I'm committed to my path and it doesn't involve pretty pre-med students, however much I'd love to corruptyou."
He presses against me and if I wanted to run, I should have done it while he was still a few inches away. As soon as I feel his body against mine I lose all strength to resist. When he touches my cheek again, my eyes close briefly from this rush of euphoria and every sensible thoughtflees.
"So lovely," he says, his voice a whisper. "And since you're going to forget this, perhaps just one kiss. You're so like Sleeping Beauty in your innocence. I'd love to awakenyou."
"Don't," I say, struggling to emerge from the drugged-like state he's put mein.
"You won't remember me," he says and strokes my cheek, "but you'll remember my kiss. I can't erase physical memories – just the knowledge of how they came about so this kiss will play in your dreams, in your fantasies. Every human you kiss from now on will always seem somehow inadequate. You'll always wish you could meet someone who would kiss you like this, but you won't, willyou?"
And then he takes my face in his hands and his lips press against mine. They're cool and pleasant and even though I intend to fight him and try to pull away, I can't. In a moment, his lips warm against mine, and his breathing becomes more intense, one hand dropping to my shoulder, then down to my hip, pulling me against his body. His lips part and mine do as well without me even being aware of it. His tongue touches mine, cool and wet, and a jolt of desire rushes through mybody.
Then, something bizarre happens. It's as if the wall between us – the wall that separates two people – disappears. I feel his senses, the press of my lips against his, the scent of my hair in his nose, the pounding of my heart in his ears, the warmth of my body against his coldness, the soft mounds of my breasts against his chest. I feel myself as he feels me and his desire for me is so much more intense than anything I've ever feltbefore.
On top of it all, I feel his bloodlust – his desire for my blood and it almost chokes me with its intensity. My knees weaken, my legs likejelly.
He breaks the kiss, our lips parting, and I'm panting, my heart racing. He smiles as if he enjoys how much he's affectedme.
"Now,cheri," he says, and takes my face firmly in his hands, his voice husky. "It's time to forget." He stares into my eyes. "You're going to leave the building and once you step outside, you'll look around and wonder why you're here. Then you'll remember that the idiot who told you he'd meet you failed to showup."
He pauses, shaking his head as if he regretsthis.
"You'll go home and delete my email. Then you'll forget the email and my name. You'll forget you ever saw the manuscript and you'll rip up and burn any other documents you still have that mention it or me or mybrother."
"Please,"I think. "Don't make meforget…"
"You'll decide to continue your studies in music instead of medicine and put all your mother's files into storage and forget where you stored them. Soon, you'll forget about vampires entirely. If you ever see me again, you won't think twice about me and move on as if I'minvisible."
I'm leaning against the wall, him pressed up against me, and I'm listening to him but nothinghappens.
"Do you understand,Eve?"
I try to brand his name and face on my memory, the kiss, trying to remember the first lines of the story – the image of the full moon stained red from the smoke, the crusades splitting up the brothers, and a vampire taking their lives. Perhaps I could go to the language lab and use a computer, send myself an email describing all this before the memory wipe takeseffect…
"I said, do youunderstand?"
I struggle to speak, barely able to evenwhisper.
"Don't do this,Michel."
He frowns and adjusts his hand on myface.
"Forget me, Eve. Forget the manuscript, forget my name and face. Forget that vampires exist. Do youunderstand?"
"I don't want to forget." I say, my voice breaking. I take hold of his hands, trying to pry them away. "This is my fight as well. Your brother gave that manuscript to my mother for a reason. I don't want to forget this. I want retribution for herkiller."
"This is very strange."He steps back and releases me, rubbing his forehead as if he's confused. "I can affect your emotions but I can't compelyou."