Read Online A Vampire's Soul by Carla Susan Smith - Free Book Online Page A

ever going to be able to actually put into practice anything he told me. Every vampire I’d met so far could flatten me with one hand tied behind his or her back. Including Vladimir, the not-so-aristocratic matinee idol.
    As it turns out, killing a vampire isn’t that easy.
    â€œSo, the whole stake-through-the-heart thing isn’t true?” Aleksei’s scornful laugh was enough of a reply in itself. “Vampires cannot be killed like that. Is stupid fairy tale.”
    â€œWhy not?” Curiosity got the better of me. “I mean, you do have a heart, right?”
    It was a pointless question because I already knew the answer. I’d been lulled to sleep by the steady, rhythmic beat of Gabriel’s heart on more than one occasion, and I wasn’t about to forget those other times when it went all jackhammer in his chest, usually as he was coming. I suspect most women get an incredible rush knowing they can evoke this type of physical response in a man. Knowing I could do this to a vampire was suddenly a hundred times more delicious.
    â€œYes, I have a heart,” Aleksei said, “but becoming vampire makes other changes.”
    â€œThat recessive gene again,” I said with a smile.
    He grinned back and tapped his sternum with the tips of his fingers. “Is true. It protects heart with muscle that is very strong.”
    â€œStrong enough to stop a knife?”
    â€œYou want to try?” he challenged me.
    It was Anasztaizia’s lack of reaction that told me it was a fruitless challenge on my part, even though I was tempted for maybe half a second or so. “Just asking,” I said with a nervous, shaky laugh.
    â€œThe only sure way to kill a vampire is to cut off head and burn body.” He emphasized the point with a dramatic slashing gesture across his throat.
    Of course it was. Why didn’t I know that?
    â€œIs that the only way?” I asked, because if there was a psycho-vampire bitch out to get me I wanted to be sure I had all the bases covered. Just in case.
    Aleksei shrugged. “Well, there is also staking out in sun.”
    â€œDoes the sun have to be shining or will plain daylight do?”
    He stared at me with suspicion. “Why do you want to know this?”
    â€œBecause sometimes having the proper information can make all the difference,” I told him. “So, which is it?”
    â€œDaylight is for weakening, sunlight for burning.” He leaned forward, his expression almost gleeful. “But I should tell you no human can kill a vampire. Only one vampire can kill another vampire.”
    The superiority of his tone was just a little too smug for my liking. It explained why he’d suddenly overcome his initial reluctance to answer me. I was no threat to any vampire whatsoever. And that really pissed me off. Granted, I could see how decapitation might prove a little tricky for someone not blessed with homicidal, maniacal tendencies—as well as a very big axe—but I was infuriated at how easily he dismissed the resourcefulness of the human race.
    â€œYou don’t think a human could stake a vampire out in the sunlight?” I asked, pursing my lips.
    Aleksei adopted the kind of exaggerated patience rarely seen outside of a first-grade classroom. “First you must catch vampire and overpower him, something you have not the skill or strength to do. Even the weakest vampire will always be stronger than the strongest human.”
    It took me a minute before I realized he wasn’t being a condescending asshole, he was just stating facts, and respecting me enough to be bluntly honest. I notched down my irritation, trying not to let it cloud my thinking.
    â€œBut what about crosses, holy water, and garlic?” I asked. “Couldn’t those be used to subdue a vampire?” The look on Aleksei’s face said his estimation of my IQ had just crashed through the floor. “Oh, sorry,” I mumbled,