Storm (Blood Haze: Book Two) A Paranormal Romance

by Tara Shuler

  “I don’t know,” Max admitted. “I didn’t wait

  around to find out.”

  “How did he find you?” I asked.

  “He called me and said he had you at your

  house. I sent you an email, but after a few

  minutes you didn’t respond, so I just dropped

  everything and hopped on a plane back to

  Georgia.”

  “Oh, Max! Why didn’t you contact Jamie?

  That must have been after I sold my computer

  and bought a plane ticket. I sent you an email

  with the word ‘lake’. I thought you would meet

  me there.”

  “When I got to your house, he got my

  computer. He said he had you in a secret

  location, and he’d kill you if I didn’t tell him

  what ‘lake’ meant. Not that he needed me to tell

  him.”

  “What do you mean? Why wouldn’t he need

  you to tell him?”

  “Because he can read minds.”

  “He can… read minds… Oh, my God!”

  “What?”

  “I was thinking about Kai and the motel in

  Chicago while I was in the clearing!”

  “If he saw Kai in your thoughts or mine, he

  can view him.”

  “What?” I gasped. “I thought hunters had to

  meet a vampire before they could view them?”

  “Alexi is an Elder,” Max explained. “He has

  multiple abilities. He can read minds, he can

  view, and there are other abilities, but I can’t

  remember them right now. That’s why I was

  shocked you defeated him so easily.”

  “Where’s your dad?” I asked. “You haven’t

  mentioned him.”

  “He’s dead.”

  “Oh, Max,” I whispered, putting my hand on

  his arm. “I’m so sorry. What happened?”

  Max’s jaw clenched, and I saw his eyes turn

  cloudy as tears threatened to spill.

  “If you don’t want to talk about it, I

  understand,” I said gently.

  He took a deep breath. “No, it’s fine. I’m fine.

  After a group of hunters confronted my dad, and

  me I admitted I was in love with you. I told him I

  loved you more than my own life, and that I’d die

  to protect you. I guess he could see how much

  you mean to me, so he stepped in front of me and

  told me to run – to go find you. I hesitated, but

  he attacked them, and I jumped in my car and got

  away as fast as I could.”

  “But you didn’t see him die?” I asked.

  “No, but…”

  “Max,” I said, looking deep into his eyes. “If

  there’s even the slightest chance he’s still alive,

  we’ll find him. I promise.”

  He took my hand and placed it against his

  cheek. His eyes closed, and he brushed his face

  back and forth against my palm. The he kissed my

  palm gently.

  “Do you really think…”

  I put my fingers against his lips. “I feel it.”

  “I hope you’re right,” he whispered.

  “I don’t know how, but I know he’s alive,” I

  told him.

  Somehow, I could feel his father. I couldn’t

  explain it, and the feeling was very faint. But I

  could feel a connection to him through Max.

  When he placed my hand on his face, I could

  suddenly feel this pull, and I knew without a

  doubt he was well, and we would find him.

  *****

  Chapter Seven – Grace

  We landed in Chicago, and hailed a taxi. We

  went straight to the motel, and Jamie greeted us

  outside. Streaks of tears stained her face, and her

  eyes sagged with worry.

  “Any word?” I asked.

  “No, none,” she answered. “Will won’t

  answer his phone, and I don’t know what’s going

  on.”

  “Alice!” called my mother, running over to

  give me a hug.

  “I have our bags in the taxi,” I said. “All of

  them – the ones from the van. I picked them up

  from the house.”

  “You were in Georgia?” Jamie balked.

  “Yeah,” I admitted. “No time to explain. Get

  the bags in. I have to go to the bathroom.”

  I went straight into the bathroom and closed

  the door. I had felt a connection to Max’s father

  when I touched him, though it was faint. I was

  hoping desperately I could make a connection

  with Will or Kai. I tried touching myself, but it

  didn’t work. I felt nothing at all. Then I

  remembered that my mother had said Jamie and

  my brother might be falling in love.

  “Jamie, I need you,” I called.

  I sat down on the bed and pulled her down

  beside me.

  “Think about Will,” I told her.

  “What? Why?” she asked.

  “Please,” I begged. “Just do it.”

  She closed her eyes, and within seconds, I

  could feel a strange pulling sensation. It was

  much stronger than my connection to Max’s

  father. Perhaps it was because I knew Will

  personally, or because he was my brother, or

  even because he was nearby. I wasn’t sure.

  “I feel him,” I whispered.

  “You… feel him?” Jamie asked skeptically.

  “It’s hard to explain,” I told her. “Come with

  me. We’re going to find him.”

  We got into the taxi just as Max was taking

  the last of the bags out. “I’m coming with you,”

  he said.

  “Get in,” I told him.

  “Be careful,” called my mother. “Bring your

  brother back safely!”

  “I will, Mother,” I promised her.

  The taxi driver must have thought I was

  insane, because I kept sending him in circles and

  telling him to make quick turns out of the blue. It

  was hard to tell exactly where to go, because all I

  could feel was a pulling sensation that reached

  out from my torso and led me faintly into a

  specific direction. I had to hold Jamie’s hand to

  keep the connection. She squeezed my hand

  tightly, and I could almost feel her love for my

  brother flowing through her skin.

  “Wait! Turn right! Right there” I shouted at

  the driver, pointing down a dark street.

  “Are you sure?” he asked. “There’s nothing

  down there but an old warehouse that’s been

  closed for years.”

  “Yes, I’m sure,” I said.

  “Can I just stop here?” the driver pleaded. “I

  think that’s private property.”

  “How much?” I asked.

  “Thirty-two dollars,” he said.

  I tossed him a fifty-dollar bill – the last of my

  money.

  “Keep the change,” I said quickly.

  Max, Jamie, and I got out of the taxi, and it

  pulled away immediately. The driver was

  obviously freaked out by our strange behavior

  and just wanted to get away as quickly as

  possible.

  “This way,” I said, still clinging to Jamie’s

  hand.

  The alley was barely illuminated by the gray-

  blue light of the moon. It passed behind the

&
nbsp; clouds every few seconds and made it difficult

  for Jamie to see. I clutched her hand and helped

  her stumble along.

  At the end of the alley, which was situated

  between two newer warehouses, a parking lot

  opened up. At the opposite end of the lot, a high

  chain link fence surrounded a dilapidated old

  building. The front doors were chained and

  padlocked, and most of the windows were

  broken, but covered with bars.

  At the far right end of the fence, it had been

  cut and was partially pulled back. I led Jamie to

  that spot and held the fence back while she went

  through, and then Max and I followed her.

  Since the front doors were padlocked, I

  guessed there must be another way in. I shivered

  in the chilly night air, and a sudden feeling of

  dread washed over me. I froze.

  “Something’s wrong,” I whispered.

  “What?” Jamie and Max asked in unison.

  “This warehouse… it’s kind of like the one

  we were held at in Georgia,” I answered. “And I

  get this feeling of… evil… lurking in the

  shadows.”

  “Evil?” Jamie breathed.

  “I don’t know how to explain it. Not evil,

  exactly, but… unfriendly, maybe,” I said. “I just

  feel it. Max, I’d feel better if you got Jamie out

  of here.”

  “I’m not going anywhere without Will!”

  Jamie hissed.

  “And I’m not leaving you, Alice,” Max said.

  I sighed. It was a good feeling to have people

  who loved me so much, but both of them were

  physically weaker than I. Of course, I had been

  feeling extremely drained since the incident with

  Alexi in the clearing.

  “Problem,” I noted. “I haven’t fed in a while. I

  might not be able to defend you both.”

  “Use me,” Jamie offered.

  “What… you mean… no, no!” I stammered. “I

  don’t… well, I don’t do that to women,

  especially friends.”

  “Will’s already explained it to me,” she said.

  “He said it doesn’t hurt, and I won’t even

  remember it tomorrow. Just do it.”

  “You’ll be paralyzed for up to several hours,”

  I told her. “We can’t risk that. You’d be too

  vulnerable.”

  “Oh, that’s right,” Jamie agreed. “Maybe we

  should leave and come back once you’ve fed?”

  “I’m not leaving them in there!” I hissed.

  “Something’s not right here, and I won’t abandon

  them – not even for a few minutes.”

  “I’m just as strong as you are,” Max pointed

  out. “You’re not alone.”

  “A hunter as strong as a vampire?” I asked

  incredulously. “Not that I doubt you, but I’ve

  never heard of that before.”

  “Well, I may or may not be as strong as you

  are when you’ve fed,” he said. “But I may even

  be stronger than you when you’re weakened by

  hunger.”

  “That may very well be true,” I told him. “But

  when I’m this weak, and we don’t know what

  we’re facing, it’s a huge risk.”

  “What other choice do we have?” Jamie

  asked.

  Just then, a fat rat scurried in front of us. I

  heard its tiny fingernails clicking on the cement,

  and its little black eyes shone brightly in the

  moonlight.

  “There’s one option,” I said, shuddering and

  wrinkling my nose. “It’s disgusting.”

  “Whatever it takes,” Jamie said.

  I nodded. Within a few minutes, I’d rounded

  up enough rats to make a meal and I fed. Rat

  blood is truly disgusting. It’s bitter and gets cold

  quickly. Other animal blood is tastier, but rats –

  which often live off rancid garbage – taste

  terrible. Animal blood doesn’t contain the right

  makeup of minerals and other compounds, so it’s

  also not as effective as human blood. But it’s

  better than nothing.

  With me feeling slightly energized, we

  continued making our way around the

  warehouse, looking for an entrance. In the back,

  one of the bay doors where trucks used to be

  loaded was wide open.

  “Something is definitely wrong,” Jamie said.

  She didn’t need any special senses to know that a

  wide-open door spelled trouble.

  “It’s a trap,” I whispered.

  “I don’t like this,” Max said anxiously. “I

  can’t stand you being in harm’s way like this.”

  “It can’t be helped,” I insisted. “Let’s just go.”

  Max grabbed my arm. He wheeled me around

  and peered deep into my eyes. “If anything

  happens…”

  “It won’t,” I assured him.

  “But if it does… I need you to know how very

  much I love you,” he said weakly. “If anything

  happens to you…”

  “I’ll be fine,” I promised.

  “Just tell me you know how much I love

  you,” he whispered.

  “I know,” I said softly.

  He embraced me, and he kissed me gently. He

  caressed my cheek, and then reluctantly released

  me. Suddenly, the ominous feeling inside my gut

  increased. Something was definitely not right.

  “Max?” I whispered. “I shouldn’t do this.

  Every part of me is screaming that I shouldn’t.

  But… just in case… I…”

  “What?” he urged.

  I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. “I

  love you, too.”

  His mouth fell open, and I heard him slowly

  sucking in a deep breath. It shuddered slightly. I

  had told him this once before, but I’d since made

  sure to avoid it for Kai’s sake.

  “It doesn’t change anything,” I informed him.

  “But I need you to know.”

  He nodded in acknowledgement. I wouldn’t

  be leaving Kai for him anytime soon, and he

  knew it.

  “Let’s go,” I said, clutching Jamie’s hand.

  We entered through the big bay door, and in

  the dark, I could see nothing unusual. The

  warehouse was cleared out except for a few rows

  of industrial shelving – most empty aside from a

  few cardboard boxes. Some paper littered the

  floor. I noticed a small room in the far right

  corner of the room. I assumed it was the office.

  I squared my chin and stepped forward. Since I

  saw nowhere else they could be, I headed toward

  the office. As we got closer, I could see a faint

  glow of light escaping underneath the office

  door.

  Just before we reached the door, I heard a low,

  grating chuckle behind me. I whirled around,

  scanning the warehouse quickly. I saw nothing.

  Panicked, I stepped between Max and Jamie, and

  the chuckling voice.

  “Who’s there?” I demanded.

  From behind one of the rows of shelves

  stepped the dark, shrouded figure of Alexi. Once

  again, I saw those pearly white teeth gleaming

  inside the shadow
of the hood as he grinned.

  “Alexi,” I snarled.

  “So good to see you again, little one,” he

  growled. “Pity we didn’t get to spend more time

  together during our last encounter.”

  “Look, if you want me, I’m here,” I spat. “Just

  let them go.”

  “By them, I’m assuming you mean your

  brother and your beloved Kai. Am I correct?”

  “I mean all of them,” I shot back at him.

  “Hmm,” he said, eyeing me suspiciously.

  “Your feelings for young Maksim seem to

  have… evolved. I can feel it.”

  “Stop trying to read me, Alexi!” I demanded.

  “Oh, but it’s so much fun,” Alexi said. “You

  are

  quite…

  interesting.

  Perhaps

  even

  fascinating.”

  “And yet you want me dead,” I mocked.

  “Whoever said I wanted you dead?” he

  rhymed. “You know what they say about those

  who assume.”

  “If you don’t want me dead,” I began. “What

  exactly do you want with me?”

  He chuckled again. “Dear Alice,” he said.

  “You underestimate yourself and your value. Is it

  true you only recently discovered you have…

  abilities?”

  “It is,” I replied. “I didn’t know until I met

  you.”

  “Do you wonder why that is?” he said, slowly

  creeping toward me.

  “I haven’t thought about it,” I confessed.

  I stepped forward, widening the distance

  between Max and Jamie and me. I wanted them

  as far away from any confrontation as possible.

  “You’re a brave little thing,” Alexi said. “I’ll

  give you that.”

  “I’m not afraid of you, Alexi,” I snapped.

  “No, but there are things you are afraid of,”

  he countered.

  “Everyone is afraid of something,” I said. “I

  bet even you are afraid of something.”

  “I am indeed,” he agreed. “Not that I would

  tell you what that is.”

  “Of course,” I said. “Nor would I tell you.”

  “You don’t have to tell me, Alice,” he

  grinned. “It’s written all over your face, and

  etched in your mind. I can hear you screaming it.

  You fear losing the ones you love. Nothing else

  frightens you more.”

  I glared at him.

  “If you harm any of them, I will kill you

  myself!” I snarled.

  “Now, now,” he chuckled. “There’s no need

  for threats of violence.”

  “Alexi, get to the point,” I demanded. “Just

  tell me what you want with me. If you don’t want

  me dead, what do you want?”