Benjamin was weary of killing. It weighed on him like filled in soil above a new coffin and he wanted no more of it. But he needed the sustenance and when the flow of blood began to fill him, it was very hard if not impossible, to stop. Plus, this woman, coming towards him, her blood's scent was amazing.

He waited until she was almost directly in front of him and stepped out from the shadows and into the moonlight, yet left no shadow himself. She looked behind herself, over the dew kissed sidewalk, hearing steps, stopping and gazing right through his spirit and the invisible mist of himself, trying to find the source of those nearby footfalls. It was then Benjamin said, "Melissa, don't be afraid," though he knew in his own mind that she should be, as everyone should. He was one of the oldest, certainly one of the most gifted, one of the most dangerous creature on the face of the earth.

Still searching, her eyes saw nothing. Melissa listened, then, shakily, asked, "Where are you? Who are you?"

Benjamin did not answer.

She searched, her eyes darting wildly to and fro, but it only frightened her all the more, seeing nothing.

Then he took her in the blink of an eye, her body jerking with his sudden attack that made her go limp in his arms as fast as his fangs sank into the soft pliable tissue of her neck, the hollow fangs siphoning the red nectar from her carotid artery witch filled him with unfathomable pleasure, as well as for the woman.

His own body trembled with her taste. That had only happened on very rare occasions. Very rare. She was beyond any pleasure he'd known, actually, and he speeded up his theft, his thoughts racing, wanting every drop then gasping as he realized he would kill her within a minute's time. He was thinking he would change her into one of his kind, but hesitated. He always hesitated to do that...

He felt her frame tremble as Melissa shook with the immediate surprise and awe at being overwhelmed so suddenly with this awful yet exquisite experience. She gripped something like a man's coat, he lifted her thoughts and emotions from her mind, and tried to cry out but couldn't, her ecstasy was so great. With closed eyes, now, not wanting or caring that she'd been assaulted, she felt only the pleasure of those moments and desperately, desperately wanted them to continue.

Benjamin released his hold on her and she collapsed to the damp cement of night. He stood watching her squirm as she came out of her very real transit of pleasure. Her eyes found the face of the ringed moon without seeing him and they filled with its reflection. Her face in awe of the natural world and her position on awakening. Her mind was in shock. But with the slightest tilt of her head, she began to see him standing over her prostate body as his outline began to form out of the darkness, staring up at his shadowed face.

He knew this Melissa could not see his eyes, his brow ridge hiding their intensity, but his features and the shape of his figure did not escape her. And in those half hazed moments, she came to a realization of who he was and what had just happened, he read her thoughts. She had been attacked and the dark wet stains on her finger tips taken from her throat confirmed that he had just bit her on the neck, and knew what that indicated, but could not, or, would not believe in the thought of actual vampires. Those kind of things were not real, she couldn't bring herself to accept. This was just some deranged, dangerous nut, she thought, that had drugged her unawares and deserved a lethal injection in some penitentiary, somewhere. He was going to rape and kill her, she was sure of that, and retreated frantically from the invisible image.

Melissa pushed herself away, steadily, over the cold paving, and when she had moved sufficiently beyond his reach without a response from him, she got to her feet, spun, and ran for all she was worth, right into his arms. He moved in a flicker of thought, she discovered, like so many others before her, and it made him laugh, inwardly.

Benjamin held her without effort as she struggled for he was immensely strong. She cursed, called him names, though her screams were muffled, he made sure of that, pulling in the air around, causing the sound to act as if it wasn't traveling beyond the borders of the two of them and their own tiny area.

"You cannot escape, Melissa. Stop your struggling. I will not disturb you any further tonight," but in saying so, he knew he was lying. He probably wouldn't be able to resist her.

She continued to fight, however, even though he knew she felt very tired. She claimed she would kill him, but finally seemed to understand, in her fatigue, the reality of fleeing. She knew she couldn't.

"I'm going to take you home," he told her, holding her arms without concern. Then with a free hand, waved it in front of her eyes. Her lids grew heavy. They closed and she fell away into his arms.

She was relaxed in the extreme, her first sensations told her mind, and felt a rush of wind, then lovely warm air cradling her naked flesh, her mind dizzy with some intoxication.

Melissa felt with her hands and feet rather than seeing. She was in a huge bed, she thought, the bedspread and blankets pulled back. When she opened her eyes a little, discovering the most magnificent, luxurious, and decadent bedroom she'd ever seen, colored in deep, dark, warm hues, she felt perfectly at ease. There was a sweet fragrance in the air, too, like some distant smell of softly scented flowers from another age or world. This wasn't her home but she breathed in the sweet air in deep gulps, filling her lungs. It was so inviting, alluring, almost, thrilling, and so perfect. Nothing else mattered.