Out of Light into Darkness

By T.A. Chase

In a world where humans are treated like cattle, one man must find the courage to love and heal the vampire who owns him.

Andor's been a vampire for centuries and has never experienced weakness in his long life. Yet something runs through his blood, bringing darkness to his sight and his world. His herd of humans has been compromised by a rival, yet there is one man whose blood is pure. Unfortunately for Andor, Sven ran away from him months ago.

Sven left Andor's herd when he realised Andor would never see him as anything other than a blood donor. Being dragged back like a spoiled child doesn't sit well with him until he discovers Andor needs him.

Blindness and danger swirl around Andor and Sven as they deal with their own attraction. Will Sven's blood and love be enough to keep Andor from slipping further into the darkness threatening to claim the vampire?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Pride Publishing
• Release date: Aug 30, 2010
• ISBN: 9780857152749

T.A. Chase

There is beauty in every kind of love, so why not live a life without boundaries? Experiencing everything the world offers fascinates TA and writing about the things that make each of us unique is how she shares those insights. When not writing, TA's watching movies, reading and living life to the fullest.

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A Total-E-Bound Publication

www.total-e-bound.com

Out of Light into Darkness

ISBN #978-0-85715-274-9

©Copyright T.A. Chase 2010

Cover Art by Natalie Winters ©Copyright August 2010

Edited by Claire Siemaszkiewicz

Total-E-Bound Publishing

This is a work of fiction. All characters, places and events are from the author’s imagination and should not be confused with fact. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, events or places is purely coincidental.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any material form, whether by printing, photocopying, scanning or otherwise without the written permission of the publisher, Total-E-Bound Publishing.

Applications should be addressed in the first instance, in writing, to Total-E-Bound Publishing. Unauthorised or restricted acts in relation to this publication may result in civil proceedings and/or criminal prosecution.

The author and illustrator have asserted their respective rights under the Copyright Designs and Patents Acts 1988 (as amended) to be identified as the author of this book and illustrator of the artwork.

Published in 2010 by Total-E-Bound Publishing, Think Tank, Ruston Way, Lincoln, LN6 7FL, United Kingdom.

Warning: This book contains sexually explicit content which is only suitable for mature readers. This story has been rated Total-e-burning.

OUT OF LIGHT INTO DARKNESS

T.A. Chase

Dedication

Thank you to all my readers who have become more like extended family. Thanks to Claire for taking a chance on my blind vampire. And as always, thank you, my love. You stand beside me no matter what happens.

Chapter One

Shadows blended, graduating from light grey to the darkest black. They neither stayed still nor moved in any direction. The harder Andor strained to make out any tiny detail, the more the lights pulsed with a weird life of their own.

A cough drew his attention to a larger shadow standing where he knew the door to his study was.

Yes?

He’s arrived, sir.

They had sent Tony to inform him. Andor recognised the hesitation in the young man’s voice like Tony weighed every word before he spoke.

Good. Where is he now?

Andor didn’t move from where he sat, not wanting to appear weak in front of any of his herd.

In his room, sir. Malachi escorted him there before sending me to tell you.

A heady surge of relief swept through Andor. It had almost killed him when Sven left the compound, yet he stayed away from the young human. He hoped Sven would have returned on his own, but with Andor’s health and very existence in jeopardy, he couldn’t wait any longer. Hopefully, he’d be able to convince Sven to help him instead of forcing him to give Andor what he needed. Also, with Sven back home, Andor wouldn’t have to worry about something happening to the human meant to be everything to Andor.

His door isn’t locked, is it?

No, sir. Malachi has someone watching it, but there’s nothing to keep him here.

Tony was right. There wasn’t anything to keep Sven at the compound, yet Andor hoped the mortal would be angry enough at being forced to return, he’d stick around, if only to chew Andor out.

Thank you, Tony, and relay my appreciation to Malachi. Tell him he may have his choice from the herd as an award.

Certainly, sir.

Unhappiness filled Tony’s voice and Andor knew the young guard hoped Malachi would choose him instead of one of the humans making up Andor’s herd.

Good night. He waved, dismissing the messenger and the dark block he assumed was Tony disappeared through the black square behind it.

Andor rubbed his eyes. Damn vision was fucked and not having fed for a week didn’t help matters. Being an older vampire, Andor didn’t have to feed as often as the younger ones, but with the poison still ravaging his body, he should have been feeding every other day to try and combat it.

Standing, he remained still until he oriented himself with the large desk at one end of his study. No one had been in his suite of rooms since he awoke and there wasn’t any way they could get in while he slept. It was one of the many precautions Malachi instituted when he’d come to work for Andor.

He made it across the room without mishap, hating the shuffling steps he had to take to insure he didn’t run into a coffee table or a piece of furniture he’d forgotten was there. There was truth in the cliché, ‘you never know what you have until it’s gone’. He never knew how much he relied on his eyes until they had been taken from him, or at least, his eyesight had been stolen from him.

Andor had been a god in the vampire society he travelled amongst, but now he was pathetic and helpless. Weak when being weak could get him killed. There were those waiting in the wings for his downfall. The loss of his eyesight was only the beginning of his decline in power, if he couldn’t do something to stop the deterioration or assert his power in a different way.

He found the top of the chair at the desk and slowly eased down into the seat. Pulling himself closer to the desk, he fumbled with the drawers until his hand found the right one and he tugged it open. Andor reached in and grabbed the box he’d tucked at the back of the drawer. He rested it on his lap while he trailed his fingers over the engraved words along its top.

Elessa, he murmured. I could love him as much, if not more, than I loved you, but he fears me and what I offer.

He closed his eyes, and rested his head back against the cushion of the chair. His head pounded from forcing his eyes to focus on something, to draw details and colours into his brain. He longed for the way things used to be, but knew in his soul, they would never be the same. His grip tightened on the wooden box in his hands.

Centuries passed like the trickling of water through a riverbed. Minutes and seconds built on each other until years had gone by and he’d lost anything that made him human. His only connection to what he once was hated him and had run away instead of taking his rightful place at the head of Andor’s herd.

Elessa would tell him it was wrong to think of the humans he fed off as cattle, but what else were they? He housed and fed them. In return, they gave him their blood. It was just like any rancher or shepherd. Was that the reason why Sven ran away? Or was there more to Sven’s leaving than Andor treating humans like livestock?

Opening the box, he pulled out a small frame. He ran his fingers over the bumps and swirls left by the oil paint. The pain in his heart made him gasp. Gods, it hurt to know he’d never be able to look on this portrait and remember her face. Without this image, he feared he would forget what Elessa looked like. Yet even now, Sven’s face often became super-imposed over Elessa’s in his mind.

It had only been since Sven turned eighteen that Andor had thought about feeding from him. Most humans experienced pleasure from the connection and Andor wasn’t ashamed of the fact that he took advantage of that to feed and fuck whoever he drank from. Men or women, it didn’t matter as long as Andor got their blood.

What am I to do, Elessa? He is one of yours and I can’t make him do anything he doesn’t want to do. He could almost hear her laughing at him. Yes, my heart is involved this time. The first since I held you dying in my arms. If you were alive, you would enjoy this. I could love him, yet he is disgusted by me.

No answer came from the painting and he put it away before returning the box to the desk drawer. Inhaling deeply, he straightened his shoulders and climbed to his feet. It was time to face the lion in his den. He made it to the door without incident and found Malachi waiting outside in the hall.

The hallway is clear. I had all the furniture removed, so you will only need to worry about running into the walls, but the carpet covers the middle of the floor until about two inches away from the wall. When you feel the edge under your foot, you know the wall is close.

Tony said Sven is in his usual room.

Yes, sir. Summon me if you need me. Malachi’s voice faded, though Andor knew the man stood in the darkness behind him, watching and keeping an eye out for him like any loyal dog would.

Sven’s room was four doors down from Andor’s on the opposite side of the hallway. Andor tried to move confidently, trailing his hand over the wall, across the doors, counting them, even though it was only Malachi who watched him. Agonizing minutes later, Andor stood outside Sven’s door. He knocked and waited. When there wasn’t any answer, he turned the knob and stepped in.

Anger hung in the room. Andor understood. No one appreciated being dragged back home like a wayward child.

Reviews for Out of Light into Darkness

[serenayates · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This was a good story about a blind vampire, who is more arrogant than is good for him, and the human who falls in love with him - and suffers a great deal before they figure out that they belong together.

Andor, the vampire master, was a very hard character to like. He's arrogant, reclusive, thinks of humans are cattle and pines after a lover who died centuries ago. Yet, the man who clearly loves him now, barely gets any consideration. In that sense, Andor is exactly as you would expect a centuries old predator to behave. He does mellow a little bit toward the end, but not enough for me to change my opinion about him. A very well drawn character, albeit one who is lacking charm (in my personal opinion) and the ability to truly grow and change.

Sven, on the other hand, does the only thing that is right in his situation. Hopelessly in love, recognizing that he will never be seen as something other than food by Andor, he leaves. Unfortunately Andor is very possessive and has him picked up and returned to his compound. Sven is the one making almost all the adjustments in this story. He gets a few concessions from Andor, but my guess is that he's hoping for more, because where they end up certainly isn't where Sven wanted to be before he considered returning on a permanent basis.

Overall I think the plot was an interesting variation on 'vampire clans fighting for power', the characters were well drawn and convincing, and the story had me involved in what was going on. If you like your heroes very macho and a little gruff, you'll like this book even more than I did.