Wolf Games: Island of Shade (The Vampire Games Book 5)
Page 23
Then, like a whole city powering down, those memories vanished. As if they'd been plucked directly from my brain. I held onto the very last one for as long as I could. One that had occurred just moments ago. Cass's mouth forming the words, “I love you,” and then, “They can't control our hearts.”
Yes they can, baby. I'm sorry.
Then she was gone.
“Sedate him. I don't want him waking up until we get out of here.” Ulvic's voice.
A needle dug into my neck and I drowned in confusion, my thoughts struggling to realign.
“Ulvic?” I murmured as someone rolled me onto my back. I blinked up groggily as Ulvic loomed over me. He looked different, his hair thicker, a beard growing on his chin. Strange.
“It's alright, Alpha,” he said soothingly. “I'm here.”
I smiled dreamily, clutching his arm before falling into a peaceful darkness.
Today is going to be a good day.
Epilogue:
Varick
Raskdød was in bad shape. The Helsing castle evidently hadn't had any visitors since its destruction. I'd half-wondered if distant family members would have turned up to pilfer it. But even the armoury was fully-stocked. A fact we took quick advantage of, setting ourselves up in the east wing which had avoided most of the carnage. Snow had fallen inside parts of the west wing. And it satisfied me to my core to see the destruction Jameson had caused there. I'd repay him the favour as soon as I could. But for now, we had no leads on where he, Cass or the others might be. For a time, I'd been tempted to take a boat and start searching the high seas at random. But Selena had convinced me it was pointless.
I sat in the bedroom the two of us occupied. For the most part, we'd taken up residence in the east tower which was full of rooms for the spectators. I'd chosen a room that wasn't too similar to the one I'd been a slave to for all those years. A black rug sprawled across the centre of it and the king-size bed was a four-poster, unlike my own had been. The similarities were in the red velvet armchair, the exposed brickwork walls and the general chill in the air.
I knew this castle like the back of my hand. And that was something I had taken advantage of since our arrival. I gave Brendan access to a part of the laboratories which hadn't been purged by fire. And he'd spent his days since setting up his work, including all of the kit we'd brought with us from The Sanctuary.
The door opened and I glanced up, finding Selena standing there in jeans and a t-shirt. It was strange to see her looking so at home in this place. After everything that had happened to her here.
“Brendan wants you to come downstairs. He's ready to do the tests.”
I nodded, a little tremor of nerves rolling through me. Since I had learned of my miraculous ability to heal, I'd had little rest. But nothing else had occurred that led me to believe I was truly turning back into a V. Still, that didn't expel the idea entirely. So I felt as anxious as Selena looked as we walked side by side down the spiral staircase.
She didn't ask me of my concerns. We'd already discussed them extensively, and she knew how riled up it got me. Instead, she slid her hand silently into mine and I drew comfort from her closeness.
When we arrived in the laboratory, I was impressed to see how well set-up Brendan was in the place. A metal gurney had been propped up against a wide hole in one of the walls. It looked like a grenade had taken it out. A plain blanket had been thrown over the gurney to keep the draft out.
The lab worktops were now filled with Brendan's blood samples and the various machines he used to conduct his experiments.
He turned to me, his eyes heavy with dark circles. He'd been working day and night on his preparations and I was eternally grateful for it.
“Take a seat, Varick.” He gestured to a reclined chair with shackles on the arms and headrest. I dropped into it, trying not to recall the times I'd been strapped into this thing in the past. The cruel torture Ignus and his father had put me through...
Selena kept to my side, her hand resting on my shoulder.
Brendan approached, pushing a little trolley full of scientific instruments. I wasn't afraid. I trusted Brendan with my life. He'd more than proved himself to Selena and I since we'd met.
“I don't think the shackles will be necessary,” Brendan said, chuckling.
A grin caught my mouth. “So long as you're not planning on dissecting me?”
Selena playfully slapped my arm. “Don't even joke about it.”
I laughed, watching Brendan as he picked up a scalpel.
A rattle of sound caught my ear and I glanced over to the propped-up gurney. The blanket flapped a little in a breeze.
“There's a lot of odd noises down here. Mainly the wind,” Brendan reassured me, stepping closer. “Now, if you'll allow me to, I'd like to do a little incision on your arm?”
“Of course.” I offered it and he gently placed the edge of a scalpel against my forearm. He didn't cut at first, simply held it there, lifted it, then returned it to my skin. “Good,” he murmured.
Selena shifted closer, watching her father. “Why's that good?”
“This is a silver blade. If Varick is turning back into a Vampire, I would expect some reaction to it. But there's nothing.”
I released a small sigh of relief, but knew the tests weren't over yet.
Another rattling, metallic sound carried from the concealed hole in the wall. Brendan cleared his throat, grabbing my attention again. “I'll just make a small incision.”
I nodded and he sliced the blade across my skin. Almost the second he lifted the scalpel, the cut healed over, the skin stitching back together.
Brendan made a couple of notes on a pad before wiping the blood from my arm with an antiseptic wipe. He placed the scalpel down, picking up a thermometer and instructing me to open my mouth. I held the cool end beneath my tongue for a couple of minutes before he concluded my temperature was as normal as any human's. After a few more tests, from blood pressure to heart rate, he concluded my body was functioning in an entirely human way, apart from the healing.
Brendan stood back, looking stumped. “Well I think it's safe to say you're not turning back into a Vampire. But there are a few other tests I'd like do...”
The lights blinked and went out.
“Darn system keeps failing,” Brendan grumbled. “I think there's water in the fuse box. Give me a moment and I'll have it back on.”
I gazed at him, then to Selena. And she gazed back at me, too, a brow creasing her forehead.
“I can see,” she announced.
“Me too.” I sat upright, reaching out to her.
A clamour of noise reached my ears and the upright hospital gurney flew across the room. A screech followed a blur of movement. A snarling, haggard V flew toward us from the hole in the wall, his eyes bloodshot and wild, his clothes nearly entirely burnt from his body, the rest of his skin caked in soot.
“Varick!” Selena grabbed my arm, dragging me to my feet.
The V's nostrils flared, glancing between Selena and I before diving at her. I lunged for his throat, just as he swiped his claws. Selena screamed, stumbling backwards. I saw red, grabbing the Vampire by the neck and slamming it to the ground. I followed it down to the floor as it battled to get up. But I didn't let go, choking and choking until a harsh snap sounded through the air. I gazed down at what I'd done just as the lights flickered back to life, making me squint against them. Blood was pooling around me as I knelt over the dead Vampire. And I knew it was dead because its severed head was clamped between my hands.
I threw it aside, unable to believe what I'd done. What I was capable of doing. Adrenaline surged through my muscles. I felt as strong as I'd been as a well-fed V.
“Varick,” Selena gasped and I turned to her, spying the slash marks torn across her abdomen, her t-shirt in tatters. My stomach lurched sharply. But somehow the gouge-marks on her skin were healing, knitting over, dissolving by the second.
Brendan stepped toward us, his eyes on Selena as her s
kin healed.
“Impossible,” he gasped.
I stood, moving to her side, checking her over to be certain she was alright. Glancing back at her father, I spoke in a low growl, “What the hell is happening to us?”
He shook his head, his face paling as he looked from the Vampire I'd just beheaded with my bare hands, to Selena's now-healed wounds. “Good Lord...I have no idea.”
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COMING SOON
Wolf Games: Severed Fates
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V Games
V Games: Fresh From The Grave
V Games: Dead Before Dawn
ALSO BY CAROLINE PECKHAM
THE VAMPIRE GAMES NOVELLAS
A GAME OF VAMPIRES (SERIES PREQUEL)
THE VAMPIRE GAMES: SEASON 1
V GAMES
V GAMES: FRESH FROM THE GRAVE
V GAMES: DEAD BEFORE DAWN
THE VAMPIRE GAMES: SEASON 2
WOLF GAMES
WOLF GAMES: ISLAND OF SHADE
THE RISE OF ISAAC SERIES
CREEPING SHADOW
BLEEDING SNOW
TURNING TIDE
WEEPING SKY
FAILING LIGHT
THE RISE OF ISAAC NOVELLAS
FALLING FIRE (PART ONE)
FALLING FIRE (PART TWO)
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