by Kallysten
"We'll go back for them,” Kate murmured as the truck started.
Daniel nodded, his face turned to the quiet ruins and the dead they were leaving behind. He and Kate made plans almost the entire way back to the camp. Blake closed his eyes after a moment and let their voices roll over him like waves. Kate's hand anchored him to the truck, but sleep had never seemed so appealing.
"Blake? Will you?"
He started awake, blinking owlishly at Kate and Daniel, both of whom were looking at him. Kate's expression was expectant; Daniel's, wary.
"What?"
"Will you stay with the squad?” Daniel asked, his tone gruff. “The job's not done."
Blake hid a yawn beneath his hand. “Not sure. Have to talk to Marc."
The two of them nodded and resumed their planning, unaware of Blake's frown at his own words. They had come out automatically, a standard reply for any decision that he wanted to discuss with his Sire. Part of him wanted to repudiate them—he had left Marc behind, after all. He couldn't manage to, however. As bitter as the truth was, he wanted to see Marc, wanted to look on his face for a sign of pride that Blake had helped close the breach, an acknowledgement that his turning hadn't been a mistake. He hadn't thought of Marc since he had started fighting, but the tug was still there, calling him forward, the sensation becoming clearer as the truck approached the camp.
"We might come into a fight,” he said abruptly, remembering what Marc had said about demons attacking the camp. “Marc was preparing your soldiers for it when I left."
Daniel frowned at that, exchanging a worried glance with Kate. He pushed himself up from the bench and stumbled to the back of the truck, close to the cabin. On his orders, Simon sent a message to the camp through the radio. The reply came in quickly, grim though positive. The camp had indeed been attacked, though the fight had ended now. The gates were wide open when they arrived there, and Daniel slipped out of the truck before Simon had even turned off the engine.
"Shouldn't you go with him?” Blake asked Kate, though he still didn't let go of her hand.
"He knows where to find me if he needs me."
They helped each other out of the truck, both wincing as the movements disagreed with their respective wounds.
"He also knows I'll send a medic to chase after him soon,” she added, grinning through the pain, “so he'll do as much as he can before that."
Before Blake could reply, Marc appeared in front of them. The tug inside of Blake finally let go, and he immediately started missing it. The feeling disappeared when he took in Marc's worried expression.
"You're hurt,” Marc said, almost accusingly.
Blake was too tired to do more than raise an eyebrow at him. “So are you,” he replied. Even without looking, he could smell his Sire's blood and the stinging smell of disinfectant.
Marc gave Kate the same hard look. “And you're hurt, too. Weren't you supposed to be resting?"
Curious as to how she would reply, Blake glanced at her. She looked embarrassed. He chuckled; if he had told her she should have been resting, he was sure her answer would have been much more vocal.
Still frowning, Marc turned back to Blake. “How bad is it? Let me see."
Grinding his teeth, Blake let Marc fuss over his arm. The careful touches of Marc's fingertips sent a few flashes of pain through his arm. Marc flinched every time Blake winced.
"There are two medics inside. Better have them look at it than let it heal on its own."
Blake nodded, though the words weren't anything he had hoped to hear from his Sire. Unconsciously, he tightened his hand on Kate's.
"The breach is closed,” she said suddenly. “And it's all thanks to Blake. It'd never have happened without him."
Mark looked at her in surprise, then turned to Blake again. Blake couldn't recall ever seeing flames like those in his eyes, not unless he was angry. His scent, though, held no trace of anger.
"See?” Marc said, his voice shaking. “This, right here. You being a hero even when you claim you don't care about any of it. That's why I came back to you. That's why I was always going to come back, Childe."
The last word hid the trace of a question. Blake answered it with a small smile. Leaning in, Marc kissed him. The touch wasn't as delicate as Kate's earlier, but the urgency behind it was unmistakable. Unable to resist, Blake tilted his head and answered the kiss, pressing his tongue against Marc's. His scent shifted, just barely, and Blake realized what unfamiliar thread had colored it until that instant: fear. When had Marc last been afraid because of him? And why was a simple kiss enough to reassure him? He pulled back and slowly shook his head, trying to appear stern. He was still hurt. This wasn't as easy as Marc wanted it to be.
"You're not forgiven yet,” he warned. “You should have told me about Jen."
Kate nodded at his side. “You should have told us. We wouldn't have followed her so blindly if we'd known."
Marc looked from Blake to her and back, glancing down at their hands.
"You're right. I should have told you. I'm sorry."
It wasn't the first time he had heard his Sire apologize, but somehow, this time, Blake believed the words.
"So ... what now?” he asked, as much to Marc as to Kate.
He watched as their eyes met. She looked away first while Marc remained blank-faced.
Kate cleared her throat. “The squad will be moving to Claremont for a while, until all demons that remain in the City and around it are killed. Then we'll move to a different town, and help them close the breach there. If you wanted to stay ... The squad needs fighters like you."
She looked down at her feet as she said it, rather than looking at either of them, but the blush coloring her cheeks revealed she was addressing both of them. It hinted that she might want them to stay for other reasons as well, but now was not the time to press her about it. Blake brought her hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles, all the while keeping his eyes on Marc. Marc tilted his head toward Kate and gave Blake a questioning look. He nodded.
"We'll stay,” Marc said very slowly. “At least for a while. To see how things go."
He wasn't talking about the squad and the fight anymore, and Blake was sure Kate understood that. If anything, her blush darkened when she gave a shallow nod in reply to Marc's words. Blake smiled. He had rarely been as uncertain about what the future held for him, but he couldn't wait to find out.
The End
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Coming in 2009 in Blurred Bloodlines
Kate stared in shock at the space where, just a second earlier, the breach had winked out of existence. The shout that had been rising to her lips died there without a sound. She dropped her sword and clutched at her throat, touching the two bite marks there. She blinked once, then a second time, and still the breach was gone.
"Oh my God. Oh no, please no..."
She ran amongst the last of the fights toward the circle of mages, already shouting.
"Simon! Open it back up!"
He turned to look at her, his joy fading in front of her panic.
"What?"
She seized his arms and clutched them. “You have to open it again, you've got to—"
He shook his head and cut her in, each word slicing at her heart. “We can't do that, Kate. We've got no idea how. And even if we did, why would we?"
She opened her mouth but no word came out. How could she express the horror she felt when the image of the breach disappearing filled her mind, obliterating everything else. She let go of him and turned on her heel, looking around with a sudden hope. Marc. Marc would know what to do. Marc would know if...
Her eyes found him, crouching near a rock maybe fifty yards away. She ran again, paying no mind to the demon bodies on her path.
"Marc!"
He turned his face toward her and slowly stood, giving the body at his feet a last glance. She threw herself into his arms and clung to him.
"Is he ... is he alive?” she said in between dry sobs
.
His arms closed around her. “He asked me to do it,” he said against her hair. “I swear. He'll wake up tomorrow and tell you—"
She pulled away and looked at him, dumbstruck. “What are you talking about?"
He frowned at her. “Daniel. What are you talking about?"
Her heart constricted in her chest. She looked down, already knowing what she would see. At their feet, Daniel looked like he was merely asleep. The trace of blood on his neck only emphasized how pale his skin was. She turned her head away and rested her cheek against Marc's shoulder. If he hadn't been holding her still, her knees would have buckled beneath her.
"Blake. A demon...” She swallowed hard. “A demon pushed him through the breach before they closed it."
Marc's arms tightened around her until she could barely breathe. She asked again, the words coming out in a murmur.
"Is he alive?"
...
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About the Author
Kallysten's most exciting accomplishment to date was to cross a few thousand miles and an ocean to pursue (and catch!) the love of her life. She has been writing for fifteen years, and always enjoyed sharing her stories and listening to the readers’ reactions. After playing with science fiction, short stories, poetry and fanfiction, she is now trying her hand, heart and words at paranormal romance novels.
To see her other stories, visit:
original.kallysten.net
Other story in this series available at Alinar Publishing:
Aria & Will
In an indistinct future, humans and vampires are allied against the savage demons that relentlessly attack their cities. In the fortified town of Newhaven, a centuries-old vampire, Wilhelm, is slowly losing track of why he fights. Meeting the human child Ariadne and watching her grow up to become a fierce fighter reminds him of his purpose and gives a face to the humans he tries to protect. As years pass, however, and Aria becomes a young woman, then a vampire, his protectiveness slowly turns into love...
www.alinarpublishing.com
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