Firstborn, a Port Charles supernatural tale by Sue Castle. Rated NC17, no copyright infringement intended. (note : while Caleb continually calls Jack a boy, Jack is in his mid-twenties. Just a babe in arms to a vampire, but an adult to us humans)

It had been too long since he'd walked in the sunlight.

For decades, his bastard twin had imprisoned him in the old monastery. Confined him to the caves, to the dark. To oblivion. As if he hadn't caused himself enough pain when he'd struck out at Olivia and destroyed his chance to create his own family.

His brother didn't count. How could Michael matter, when his entire existence revolved around denying Caleb any semblance of a life? The blessing had been carried through their family for generations. Now, thanks to Michael's frigid damned faith and Caleb's own uncontrollable temper, their line would die with them.

At least, that's what he thought. Until he saw her.

The boy with her was peripheral, unimportant at initial glance, because all of Caleb's attention was focused on the young woman. It was Olivia. Not the Olivia he had struck down so many years before, on the eve of their wedding day, in a fit of rage he'd regretted with every breath since. But Olivia reborn, with the same beautiful face, dark eyes, passionate body. The boy spoke, and he called her 'Livvie.'

Caleb smiled, feeling warmth inside for the first time in too many years. She was, indeed, Olivia. And she would be his.

He made himself transparent, waiting for the right moment. His Olivia kissed the boy and whispered, "I love you, Jack." Caleb shook his head, unseen and unheard in the shadows of the foliage. That wouldn't do. There could only be one in her heart.

The boy was obviously attached to her, and as long as he remained on the scene he would be an obstacle. Caleb intended to deal with him as he dealt with all obstacles. Destroy him. Harvest him, or kill him, to be blunt. Drink him dry and toss him aside, leaving Olivia free to be with the one to whom she belonged.

Caleb.

The boy played into his hands, leaving Olivia by the fire as he wandered into the forest in search of wood for their fire. Caleb followed silently. When they were far enough from the campsite that she wouldn't hear the screams, he stepped out in front of the boy, intending to introduce himself. It was only polite to address one's food before ending its existence.

The boy didn't appear to appreciate the etiquette involved. First he tried to run away. Then he tried to fight. To Caleb's surprised appreciation, the boy turned out to have spirit. Moving faster than the human eye could follow, Caleb ducked under the tree branch the boy heaved at him and tackled the boy, pinning him to the fallen leaves.

Even faced with overwhelming odds (for what chance had a mere human against a vampire?) the boy continued to struggle. Caleb straddled the boy's body, holding the strong arms above the boy's head, but the wriggling and heaving were distracting. The boy managed to free a hand, bunching it into a fist and driving it against Caleb's mouth directly over his left fang, splitting the lip and drawing blood.

Caleb pinned the flailing arm again, easily enough, but the boy's ability to give him even a slight injury impressed him. He transferred custody of the wrists to a single hand and raised his now free left hand to his mouth. His own blood tasted strange on his tongue, appeared nearly black against his pale fingertips. It had been too long since he'd last harvested. His blood was sluggish in his veins. Perhaps that was how the boy had managed his lucky punch.

He looked down at the wild-eyed, squirming human beneath him. No, the boy was still fighting. He had to know he'd never win, but he was still fighting, and it wasn't mindless struggle. Caleb could see both the knowledge that he was defeated and the determination to continue unto death in the boy's fierce eyes.

He was captivated. He was also hungry. In that instant, his decision was made. It would no doubt be easier to capture Olivia's heart if the boy was dead. But Caleb's life had been too easy in the past several years. Dead boring. Literally. He could use the challenge, and he could use the boy. This much spirit, coupled with animal intelligence and an angular beauty Caleb appreciated, would make an excellent beginning to the family he intended to create.

His firstborn son.

Bending down, pushing aside the instinctive defensive block with ease, he buried his face in the sweaty warmth of the boy's neck. The skin was soft, salty, and smelt of woodsmoke, fear and desperation. A heady mix. Caleb licked once along the heavily-beating artery, inhaling the scents and moaning softly with anticipation. The first wash of bright, clean blood across his tongue, the rippling of the muscles of the throat against his chin, the surrender of the fragile skin to his fangs, intoxicated him.

Even as his life's blood pulsed from him, the boy continued to try to struggle. The unsteady motion of his body beneath Caleb's only intensified the pleasure of the act. Reining in his enthusiasm for the finest meal he'd sampled in a long time, Caleb forced himself to pull back before the rush of blood could slow to a trickle. This time, it wasn't about death. This time, it was about a whole new life.

Tightening his hold on the weakly thrashing arms pulled above the boy's head, Caleb stroked his free hand over the body now barely quiescent under him. Experience mated with desire imbued his touch with the uncanny ability to arouse, and the boy was no different than any Caleb had taken before him. Soon he was keening softly, and his movements had taken on a different sort of desperation than he'd originally shown. Instead of trying to escape, he was pushing up against Caleb, arching as much as he could under the vampire's weight.

His eyes were open, and though the fight had gone out, the fire remained. Caleb gave over his caresses of the boy's chest and abdomen, moving lower to unfasten his jeans and close his fingers over the erection pressing there. He pressed gently, then stroked firmly, and the keening lost power as breathing became irregular. Caleb leaned closer, peering into the dazed eyes, now almost as hungry as Caleb himself had been.

"Jack." His voice was softer than the wind through the trees, but the boy heard him clearly. Some of the haze cleared from the wide eyes, but the hunger grew fiercer, as Caleb moved his hand more strongly upon Jack's body. Content that the struggle was over, Caleb loosed the pinned wrists, not surprised when the arms remained upflung, the hands curled against the leaves.

Raising his own hand to his mouth, he drew a fang across the vein, opening it for Jack. Patiently, with skill both innate and well-studied, Caleb waited for the exact moment of climax before placing his dripping wrist flush against Jack's open mouth. The boy swallowed convulsively as he spasmed into Caleb's hand, his eyes clenching shut and his body shaking as he came, falling halfway over the line into a new life as he did.

The first step was complete; the exchange of blood. The second would come later, when Caleb was certain of the boy's fitness to become the first of his new family. Then, and only then, would Caleb allow Jack to kill.

Orgasm left Jack satiated and pliant, but Caleb was energized. This was the first step in a new life, and he wanted to celebrate it. Besides, the rush of fresh blood in his veins always did make him horny. He grinned at the thought.

Jack was beyond protest as Caleb stripped him efficiently. The more he uncovered, the more convinced he became that he'd chosen well. By the time Jack was nude, Caleb was completely aroused. The boy was lovely, strong and fit, smaller than he, but well-formed. Flesh lust rose to replace blood lust as Caleb traced the contours of Jack's shoulders, down the trembling chest to the heat at the groin, spent now but still flushed with exertion.

Unbuttoning his shirt with one hand, leaving it hanging open around him, Caleb unfastened his trousers and stroked himself. Jack's eyes had fallen shut as he recovered and Caleb paused long enough to whisper a kiss over a closed eyelid.

"Jack," he commanded softly. "Look."

Teary eyes opened reluctantly, and Caleb smiled. It slipped into a more feral expression than he intended when the tip of his fang caught in the split from Jack's fist, the tiny spike of pain pleasing him. Apprehension began to grow again in the boy's eyes. Before it could take complete hold, Caleb leaned down and pressed his mouth against the still sluggishly-bleeding bite mark.

Jack moaned, and Caleb smelt arousal twinned with fear. The best combination. Maintaining the bite, sucking not hard enough to kill but strongly enough to make the most of the sensation, Caleb shifted his thighs between Jack's legs. There was the slightest sound of protest, but Caleb pushed forward and the sound disappeared into a gasp.

Even around a throat-ful of delicious blood, Caleb couldn't stop the smile. It kept getting better. Spirited, beautiful, and a virgin. At least to this. Taking his time, since he planned on keeping this one, Caleb licked regretfully at the bite and left it to feather kisses all along Jack's throat and jaw, distracting the boy from the initial pain until he adjusted to Caleb's presence inside him. Jack was panting, the sound trapped and needy above his ear, and Caleb growled. Yes, he'd made a good choice.

As he settled into his rhythm, Jack's legs came up, crossing behind Caleb's thighs, pulling him in closer. Encouraged by the embrace, Caleb thrust harder, drifting closer to Jack's mouth with each soft kiss until he finally claimed the opened lips with his. His tongue passed over Jack's with the same steady stroke as his cock in Jack's body, the lingering ghost of his own blood in Jack's mouth adding spice to the taste of the kiss.

He made it last, impressing the experience deeply into Jack's mind and body, claiming the boy in every way possible. Jack might attempt to run, hide, or repress what happened in the woods that night, but it would always be within him. Caleb made certain of that. When he finally allowed himself to let go, Jack came with him. The warmth against his belly felt good. Caleb nuzzled the drying blood on the soft skin of Jack's neck and sighed happily. He'd been cold for so long. It was so good to finally be warm again. And this was only the beginning.

Dressing Jack as carefully as he'd undressed him, Caleb helped his new protégé to his feet and led him to a nearby tree stump. Jack nearly fell as he tried to sit, and Caleb guided him down. Once relatively secure, although he still swayed slightly from exertion and blood loss, Caleb knelt in front of Jack and ran his fingertips gently over Jack's cheek.

"You're mine now, Jack," he said quietly. "You can try to fight it, try to forget it, but you're mine." He leaned forward, cleaning the last of the blood from the side of Jack's throat with his tongue. The boy didn't flinch; in fact, he edged closer to Caleb. "Welcome to the family."

Leaves rustled behind them, and Olivia's sweet voice came clearly through the darkness. "Jack? Where are you?"

Caleb smiled, then brushed an open-mouthed kiss across Jack's lips before making himself invisible. Jack blinked, twice, then touched first his mouth, then his neck, with a shaking hand. Footsteps sounded in the underbrush, and Olivia stepped through the trees, her hand reaching for Jack. Caleb stared hungrily at her, the reincarnation of his old love, then at his new fledgling. The beginning, of his new beginning.

The heart of his new family.

He drifted back through the woods, heading for the monastery, mind alight with plans. There was so much to do, and Michael wasn't going to stop him this time. It was going to be a busy summer.

... the beginning