BloodSworn

by Stacey Brutger

  She wandered into the hallway, almost tripping over the shifter who was waiting for her. With a blush, she hurried to the infirmary.

  Glenda smiled when she saw them. “There’s food in the fridge.”

  The shifter immediately pulled out a sandwich and made himself at home. Trina waved away the offer. “I’m fine. I wanted to check on Drew.”

  Glenda nodded toward the ward. “I just got him settled. Go check.”

  The anxiety that something had changed during the night eased when she saw Drew hooked up to an IV and resting comfortable.

  A clean bandage encircled his throat, and she peeked beneath. The bite was almost healed, only a tiny scar remaining.

  That quick healing meant the infection wasn’t a fluke. It wouldn’t just wear off because she wished it.

  She grabbed his hand and pulled up short.

  They’d tied him down.

  Indignation shot through her, and she worked to loosen the first straps.

  “No! You can’t.” Drew woke at her touch, and he shook his arm, smacking her hand away from the cuff. When she didn’t reach for them again, he calmed a little. He nervously licked his lips and confessed her greatest fear. “I can hear him in my head. I was afraid what would happen when I fell asleep.”

  Trina’s heart broke at his fear. She wanted to reassure him, tell him he was being paranoid, but he could very well be right.

  Drew smiled at her expression. “Don’t worry. The bastard will die soon enough. In the meantime, we spoke with Dorian, and he said a serum could be created by using the witches’ own blood. It will knock me out and prevent others from getting in my head as well. To the outside world, I’ll be dead.”

  “Merrick and I will stop him.”

  Drew’s eyes grew heavy under the drugs, his body relaxing. “I know.”

  Trina checked on the other patients to give herself time for her anger to cool off. She wanted to rage at Glenda, but knew that she’d offered Drew a comfort. That small fact cooled off her temper enough for her to enter the other room without wanting to rip into the other woman. “Were you able to make any headway on what I left you?”

  Glenda shook her head, a defeated slump to her shoulders. “I saw your results, but I couldn’t duplicate them without magic. We have a short supply of that around here.”

  “Let’s test with fresh samples and see what we find.” Trina turned to gather the supplies when Glenda raised her hand.

  “You’re bushed. Sit. Rest. Let me take care of it.”

  Trina smiled and sat, pulling her notes closer. “I think we’re on the right track.”

  Trina absently fingered her hat, blushing when she remembered the last time she’d worn it.

  Glenda stopped at her side with a vial. Trina turned the page and held out her arm.

  A sharp sting made her looked up.

  But much too late to see that the needle was attached to a syringe.

  Trina yanked her arm away, giving a startled yelp as the needle tore from the curve of her elbow. She put pressure on the wound and launched to her feet, the chair toppling to the ground between them. “What did you do?”

  “I’m dying, and the vampires promised they would heal me…for a price. You.”

  “Dying? From what?” Trina glanced at the shifter seated at the table, only to realize that she hadn’t heard from him since they’d entered. Glazed eyes and a waxy complexion indicated that he’d passed out. Trina felt a pang for not noticing sooner.

  There would be no help from that quarter.

  “Parkinson’s.”

  Trina stared at Glenda. “You don’t show any symptoms. The disease takes years—”

  “Years to slowly die. Years to have my body fail. I would lose everything.”

  Trina had thought the doctor had been afraid of the shifters, the way she kept her distance from them, but the whole time she’d been afraid they would find out the truth. It was stupid of Trina not to have picked up on it sooner. What doctor would continue to stay and treat patients when she feared them? “There are medici—”

  “Drugs don’t work anymore. They’re not covering the symptoms. The shifters won’t tolerate weakness in someone supposed to heal them. The vampires promised me my life back.”

  “You mean the illusion of life.” Trina stumbled as the drugs sped through her system. She tottered to the door, her legs like two toothpicks, her body heavy.

  She had to warn Merrick.

  Glenda shrugged. “All they want in payment is you.”

  “Don’t do this. They will never let the shifters live if they gain control of my blood.” She shook her head, and the room spun. “You don’t want that type of life. You would become nothing more than a slave.”

  “Unless your miracle cure can help me like the shifters and vampires, I have no choice. I want to live.”

  “Magic can’t cure diseases.” Trina stopped arguing. Glenda had already made her decision. Her fear of being trapped in a disease-ridden body was too strong.

  “It won’t be so bad. I’ll be able to help the vampires. We’ll be considered valuable.” Glenda smiled as she constructed a new life for them. “We’re in this together. If you’re a good patient, I’ll do what I can to sneak some of your samples back to the shifters for their cure.”

  Blood splotched to the floor. Trina stumbled, her eyes unable to focus, and knew she’d never make it to the door in time. With her last thoughts, she summoned up her magic and called for Merrick’s beast.

  Chapter Thirty-two

  Merrick was grabbing for a shirt when Beast went ballistic. A mournful howl echoed in his ears, one so full of rage that Merrick nearly doubled over.

  Nearly shifted.

  He would’ve marveled at the return of his beast if not for one thing.

  “Trina.” Beast only reacted like that for her.

  He sprinted to the door, hitting the intercom on the way. “Get to the lab.”

  He didn’t wait for a reply. He jerked his shirt over his head, running full out down the hall, his bare feet giving him traction.

  The world narrowed down to getting to Trina. The walls crowded closer as if to slow him down, and he used Beast to increase his speed. There was no pain, no hesitation. Weston met him at the corner and followed with guns drawn.

  Merrick threw himself into the room, the silence making his heart twist in his chest. The first thing that hit him when the door whooshed open was the scent of her blood.

  Specks of it were splattered on the floor.

  He had to force Beast to the back of his mind in order to slow down and think. They couldn’t rush or they might miss something important. It wasn’t a risk he was willing to take.

  He walked over to the shifter sent to protect Trina. His pulse was weak, his skin clammy. He gave him a wallop, but the cub remained unresponsive. “Get one of the techs to see if they can wake him. I want to know what the hell happened.”

  The rest of the lab appeared to be empty. Maybe more telling, Trina’s books were spilled over the counter in disarray, her pen on the floor where it had fallen next to the overturned chair.

  He picked up her bag and inhaled, gathering her scent, relieved not to smell the slight decay that would signal death. Her stake fell out, and he grabbed it. He didn’t spot her knife, so at least she had some protection.

  “Gather the men. Have the Den searched top to bottom and hunt down Glenda. I want to know if they took her as well.” Merrick picked up the chair and threw it against the wall. Metal twisted, and the plastic seat shattered. “How the hell did no one sense the vampires?”

  How could he not have known she was in trouble?

  The door slammed open and Judith and Victor sprinted into the room. Merrick advanced on Judith. “Did you help them take Trina?”

  Judith didn’t run, but bowed her head, offering up her throat. “The wolves recognize your concubine. We would not move against you after she’d prove herself.”

  Merrick gave her a smile that caused her t
o flinch. “Gather the wolves for the hunt. If you get her back, you will have your spot in the Den.”

  Her head shot up and a fierce smile crossed her face. She spun and marched out the door at a near run.

  Weston pocketed his phone. “No sign of Glenda. Last report shows she signed out five minutes ago.”

  Merrick touched Trina’s drying blood, kicking himself for not guarding her personally. “That’s around the time Trina vanished. Find them. Now.”

  It was time that this stopped. He would get Trina back and kill anyone who got in his way.

  The vampires had missed something important. The shifters had their own secret weapon…as long as they could control him.

  In two long strides, he slammed open the door to the CreedMark ward. Drew was in the last bed with a tube in his arm. Merrick jerked out the needle. “Get him up and ready to travel as soon as he wakes.”

  Without another word, Merrick turned on his heel and went to his room to finish dressing. The sight of the bed stopped him short as memories of Trina’s warm form pressed against him haunted him. He tore away his gaze, clenching his fists as he fought not to lose his mind, and lifted down the great sword.

  The metal warmed to his touch as if eager to spill vampire blood once more. He didn’t carry any other weapons besides Trina’s stake.

  They needed to move light and fast.

  Beast approved, crouching close to the surface, waiting to be called. By the time he walked into the courtyard, a crowd had gathered.

  Front and center stood Eden and Dorian, arguing with Weston to be allowed inside the Den. They whirled when they spotted him. “Where’s my sister?”

  Merrick ignored her question. There was nothing to say. He’d failed to protect Trina, and it was his fault she was gone. He’d been careless. Now he would fix it. “Cast your spells to locate her, and I’ll get her back.”

  Eden deflated as if hoping for a different answer. “I tried. I’ve been trying for the last hour, ever since my connection to her suddenly died. It’s like she’d just vanished. We came here to check on her. The vampires must have her bound her powers or hidden somewhere I can’t reach her. How could you have lost her?”

  Without Trina there to protect from the truth, Merrick spoke his mind to her sister. “You threw her away when she was a child and needed your protection the most. The witches bound her powers and left her to fend for herself. The vampires have been hunting her for weeks. And despite all that, she came out of hiding and risked her life to save your worthless hide. You want to repay her? Find her!”

  The poison he spewed didn’t make him feel any better. Merrick pinched the bridge of his nose. All that mattered was getting Trina back.

  “Things weren’t that black and white back then. I was a child who’d just lost her parents as well. I kept my distance to keep her safe. Despite what you think, I’m not going to let her go now that I have her back.”

  Judith loped toward them, a mass of wolves in both forms following close behind. “We managed to track Glenda across town. When we entered her quarters, everything had been cleared out.” Judith curled her lips. “The human betrayed us. I have my wolves searching for any sign of her. They’ll find her.”

  He nodded, but would they find her in time? She could’ve taken Trina anywhere. A giant bear in human form lumbered toward him, nodding his head. “No one should lose a mate. I’ll fight.”

  Merrick shook the bear’s hand, grateful for the show of support, not to mention the destructive force of his beast. “Split into two teams. I want one to guard the Den. The rest will come with us.”

  “What do you need me to do?”

  Merrick turned to see Drew behind him, visibly shaken and sweaty, but standing on his own. “Can you reverse the connection between you and the vampire and track back to him?”

  Drew’s gaze grew distant, his skin turning a pasty shade of green that didn’t bode well for their plan. “I can’t give you a location, but I can tell you a direction.” He pointed toward the outskirts of the city. “Once we get closer, I should be able to narrow it down to a building.”

  A vicious smile curled his lips, and when Merrick caught the bastard, he would die.

  Chapter Thirty-three

  Trina woke groggy. She shifted into a better position, but her arms refused to move, her hands stiff and numb. Confused, she glanced down to find her wrists strapped down, and a line in her arm. It took her fuzzy brain a second to comprehend they were draining her of blood. She would’ve laughed if her mouth wasn’t so dry from the drugs.

  Trina vaguely remembered waking and struggling. She might not have been able to escape, but she didn’t have to make it easy. She hadn’t even seen the punch that knocked her silly. Her jaw still ached, but it had been worth it when her hat dropped to the ground without notice.

  The cost of her rebellion was that she had no clue where they’d taken her. She couldn’t see anyone in the room, but felt them hovering over the bag of blood. “All you’re doing is killing me. You won’t be able to access any magic that way.”

  “I think I’ll take that chance.” The King came into view and smiled. Insanity clouded his eyes, and Trina wondered if exposure to magic had done that to him or something else.

  Trina shrugged, ignoring the way the room wouldn’t stay focused, the way her eyes drifted shut.

  “The instant the blood leaves my body, it decays. The magic weakens then burns out altogether. Five minutes tops. Like normal blood. Can’t you taste the difference between bagged blood and blood direct from the host?”

  She hated to divulge secrets, but what good were secrets if you were dead? She had to stay alive long enough for Merrick to fetch her.

  And he would always come for her. Fear for him nearly suffocated her and part of her wished he would just leave her. He would get himself kill himself trying to rescue her.

  Unless she could escape first.

  When she shifted, she recognized the familiar lump of her atheme tucked in the back of her jeans. She felt a burst of excitement but tried not to let it show. “Why would I lie when you could easily wait ten minutes and find out for yourself?”

  The vampire hissed and whirled, snatching someone up just outside of Trina’s view. “Is she speaking the truth?”

  The King shoved the doctor forward, and Trina saw a pale shadow of Glenda. Fear widened her eyes, and her neck was wrapped in a bloody bandage. Fresh blood wept from the wrappings where the vampire’s fingers dug into the wound.

  Glenda clawed at the brutal griped then looked resigned. The vampire shook her like an animal with a treat. Despite everything, Trina interceded on her behalf.

  “She can’t speak with your hands crushing her windpipe.”

  The vampire hesitated and then dropped Glenda. “Answer.”

  Glenda collapsed on the floor in a heap, one hand at her throat as she skittered backward. “Most likely. Blood magic is different. It hasn’t been studied, but the legends say that you must wield the scepter, not steal the blood.”

  Her abject fear seemed to please the vampire, which probably saved Glenda’s life. The King absently lifted his hands and slowly licked his fingers free of blood.

  The vampire grabbed Trina’s chin, wrenched her face toward his and squeezed painfully as anger darkened his expression. While looking at her, he gripped the tube and viciously ripped the IV from her arm. “You’re not going to be a nice little human are you? There needs to be a way I can access your blood without you playing your little game of kill the King.”

  He gave her a considering look that shot deep foreboding through her. She trembled, unable to stop shaking, recognizing that crazy expression on his face. He’d thought of something, something that she wouldn’t like.

  “You have a partiality for those shifters. We’ll grab a few with no pack affiliations and give them your blood. It will dilute it, but I can counteract that by draining them.” He smiled, revealing teeth that had yellowed with age. His gums were inflamed, stained a dark
red.

  This close, she smelled the sour stench of rotten blood on his breath. Decay rose from his skin as if blood alone would no longer sustain him. She’d bet her magic had played a factor in that. His symptoms were so advanced that she wondered if he’d taken up drinking tainted blood, blood from his own kind, when human blood no longer satisfied him.

  “Or I’ll leave them alive. That way, if you try anything tricky, the shifter will take the brunt of your magic. I would only get the watered-down effects. To hurt me, you’d have to kill them. Since shifters can replenish their blood faster, I should be able to take a couple of doses a day to keep me strong.”

  Real fear shook her at his simple plan, so simple it could work, and she grasped at straws. “I thought shifters were bad for your health like cholesterol.”

  A booming laugh shook his too-skinny frame. Her ten-year-old self remembered him as a big brute of a man. The years had not been kind to him. The magic in her blood had poisoned him in such a way that he’d never recovered.

  “They are considered a delicacy. Bad for our health only because they’re the very devil to catch. They often kill any vampires not smart enough to get out of the way. Most of the time the shifters die from their wounds.”

  The conversation had put him in a good mood, and he headed toward the door. “I must make plans. Place her back under.”

  The longer Trina stayed awake, the more her head cleared of the drugs. As the fuzziness wore off, she glanced around the room. There were no windows. The walls were bare, the faded paint chipped or non-existent in places. She couldn’t pierce the darkness to see more, but the smell of mildew and mold didn’t offer much comfort.

  She had to let Merrick know where to find her. If she raised enough magic, they should be able to track it back to her.

  The recently spilled of blood on the floor should’ve helped, but the magic was reluctant to answer her call. Something was blocking her ability to cast. She tapped into her double vision, and the room practically glowed with magic. Thick lines ran down the sides of the room, constructed in the shape of a cage.