Chapter 50: Pink Verbena, Part 3

She looked at William, who still stood unmoving, unaware, nearby, and wrinkled her nose. "Must I touch him? He tried to kill François, and nearly killed Gilles - and probably wanted to hurt you and Aubrey and Papa and Elisabeth too."

Ruthven bared his teeth. "Which makes him ideal for practice. If you do something wrong, only he is hurt, rather than a family or friend."

Carmilla winced.

"My lady, you are a blood drinker," Ruthven said, voice still gentle, but firm. "It is your nature to drink - I promise you will grow used to it." He yanked hard on William, who dropped obediently to his knees. "The most common practice is to feed from the wrist. This causes little pain and is easy enough to fix should something go wrong. The throat is the best place to bite, but takes experience, for it leaves both vampire and human vulnerable."