Vail nodded absently when Victoria pointed out the detail of the drawings. It was apparent that they hadn’t been crafted at the hand of an amateur. “Most likely a vampire,” he said thoughtfully in answer to her question. “From what I’ve been told, my ancestors were always secretive, and this book contains extremely detailed records of family trees. I can’t imagine how a human would have been able to get his hands on any of this information.” He also couldn’t think of any humans who would have bothered to learn about them in the first place. Aside from Lady Crest, every human he’d crossed paths with had either been terrified of vampires or thought they were better off dead. It was one of the reasons why he’d thought she was special when they had begun to get to know each other.

At her next observation, he knitted his brows together, perplexed. It could have just been an error on the part of the artist, but every other picture had been drawn so painstakingly that it seemed unlikely. He traced his fingers over the image, wondering why the author had considered that detail important enough to depict. Most vampires drained their victims to death, so it seemed strange to him that they had gone out of their way to highlight that part of the feed. [i]Unless a human has to be killed to be turned,[/i] he shifted his weight, suddenly apprehensive to read the ritual. They had come this far, though, so he cleared his throat.

“Our numbers are unsustainable,” he started, speaking slowly as he translated the Romanian script. Now he was certain the author had been a vampire. “There are humans who have learned how to kill us, and we do not repopulate quickly enough to survive the loses. However, Traian Aurel Sadoveanu has discovered a solution to this threat. There is a way by which we can turn mortal into immortal with the Bite, adopting humans into our community to survive our enemies and add strength and diversity to our bloodlines.

“It is perhaps a boon to us that the ritual does not stray far from the feed that we are inclined by instinct to partake in during the nights. Upon writing this account, I have successfully turned three humans, all of whom have become beloved members of my family. When I first encountered them, though, each one had been my prey. I hunted them the same way I hunt every man or woman whose blood entices my senses, but for these unique individuals, I offered hope before they died.

“What Sadoveanu realized, and what we have all come to accept as our saving grace, is that a human who drinks but a drop of a vampire’s blood in the minutes before his own blood is drained entirely may be reborn with that vampire’s blood coursing through his veins.” He paused, finally understanding the accompanying image. It was an intriguing concept. He continued reading: “If one decides to give this gift to his victim, he must then take the body to a secure location, as the transformation process can take up to a week to complete. Until the fledgling’s heart begins to beat again, he is vulnerable to those humans who would run silver through it to prevent him from waking.

“After the week of turning has passed, the fledgling will open his eyes as a vampire if he was among the fortunate half of humans whose bodies would accept their predator’s blood—wait, [i]half[/i]?” Vail faltered, startled that the success rate for the ritual was so low. “‘If, after seven days the human remains unresponsive, dispose of the corpse…’ That doesn’t sound promising.” He leaned into Victoria’s side involuntarily, unsure what to think about the discouraging information. As much as he wanted to rescue her from the Wynters and be with her forever, knowing that every other human who was turned in this manner died made him reluctant to try it at all.