After I had seen my little brother take on a vampire, throwing him so hard into the car next to us that it had left a huge body-sized dent, I didn’t feel as nervous for him as I had before. He was strong, and smart enough to know that that wasn’t enough.

The bright white lights of the gas station made it hard to tell if the sky had lightened, and I’d been half asleep when we pulled in. The streets were deserted, and the gas station was still closed, so Milo paid at the pump.

A semi-truck sat idling in the parking lot, and an SUV with one headlight drove by. A kid wearing a gigantic hoodie even though it was seventy-degrees walked past. Otherwise, we were alone.

I let go of Jane’s hand and moved so I could look all the way around the car. It would be impossible for someone to still be following us, even if that someone was a vampire. We’d been speeding all over the metro area, so they couldn’t follow by foot, and I’d be able to see a car.

Milo knocked on the window so we would unlock the doors and let him back in, and Jane jumped. Under the harsh light, I saw how pale he looked. His hands shook as he opened the car door, and in the rearview mirror, I noticed his eyes had a frantic quality to them. Perspiration stood on his neck, and he had the air conditioning on in the car so high, I was freezing.

“I think we’re in the clear,” I told him.

He didn’t say anything, but his jaw tensed as he clenched his teeth. I watched the nervous way his eyes flitted about, and the shallow way he breathed. He started the car hard, and the engine brayed in protest.

The vein stood out in his neck as his body tensed up, and he reminded me of a junkie in need of a fix.

“Milo, are you okay?” I asked as he struggled to get a hold of himself.

I don’t know how he had even held on this long. Maybe getting out of the car and realizing that everything was alright let his other senses kick back in, and he noticed how hungry he truly was.

“I lost blood, Alice, and the adrenaline did something to me,” he said through gritted teeth. “If I hold off much longer, it’s going to be dangerous.”

“What is he talking about?” Jane asked and met his eyes in the rearview mirror. “Are you okay?” He locked on her eyes, and I saw her breathing change, getting deeper and more sensual.

“No, Milo, let’s go back to the house,” I said. I gripped the headrest of the passenger seat so tightly, my fingers hurt.

Ignoring me, Milo put the car in drive. Instead of turning out onto the road, he drove behind the gas station, where everything was hidden in darkness. He went somewhere private, and the hair on the back of my neck stood up when he parked the car.

“Milo, come on. There’s other things,” I begged him, but his mind had been made up. His hunger was too strong to ignore.

“Alice, shut up,” Milo told me quietly. His eyes rested briefly on me, and they were all primal thirst, and nothing else. “Close your eyes. Or get out if you need to. This will only take a minute.” Then he fixed his eyes on Jane, who stared at him with stupid adoration. “Jane, do you trust me?”

“Yes,” she nodded, sounding like a brainwashed zombie.

He turned to face her and placed a hand on her neck, rubbing her veins with his thumb for a second. Abruptly, he yanked her to him. He was half leaning in between the seats, and with extraordinary swiftness, he sunk his teeth into her neck.

She inhaled sharply, and I heard the subtle sound of tearing flesh. Closing my eyes, I pressed my back up against the door as far as it would go. Jane moaned softly, and I wanted to throw up or cry or scream or laugh.

It started feeling like forever, but I’m sure it couldn’t have been that long. I stayed in the car because I wanted to be sure that he didn’t go too far. I opened my eyes, and somehow, in my reflexive urge to escape, I ended up standing on the backseat. I was all crouched down, with my knees bent and my back against the window with my head pressing against the ceiling.

Jane’s eyes had rolled in the back of her head, but I could hear breathy moans, so I knew she was still alive.

Milo’s fingers were knotted in her hair, pushing her neck hard against his mouth. He was turned away from me, so I couldn’t see his face, but I saw the way his mouth was on her, the way the blood leaked around it.

All I could think of was the time I saw a starving dog eating a dead raccoon on the side of the road. The way the dog held the leg in his mouth was the exact same way Milo held her neck.

“Okay, Milo, that’s enough.” My words came out small, sounding nothing like myself.

I had been bitten before, but it was an entirely different thing to watch a vampire bite someone else. It was terrifying and nauseating.

When he ate, it became obvious to me for the first time that vampires weren’t human. They may have possessed the appearance and some semblance of humanity, but that – my brother – feeding on Jane, that was pure animal.

“Milo! Stop!” I repeated. Jane’s eyelids fluttered, and her breath got shallower. She was passing out, and death wouldn’t be that much farther behind it. “Milo! You’re killing her! Stop!”

When he still didn’t stop, I knew I had to take action, but it scared the hell out of me. Tentatively, and almost gently, I slapped him on the shoulder. I figured that like a wolf, Milo would turn to snap at me and take my entire hand off.

He didn’t seem to notice though, so I slapped him again, harder this time. And again and again, until finally, he dropped Jane and collapsed back into the front seat.