by Devlin Chase
“Just be careful,” he’d whispered against her neck before letting her go.
“And get back as soon as you can.”
Cat’s car was still parked in the underground lot beneath her apartment block so Galena drove, handling Darien’s car as if she’d been born to it.
The apartment looked exactly as it had when she’d left it, although she couldn’t see why she’d expect it to be any different. The lounge and kitchen were untouched, but the bedroom still looked like a war zone and Cat shuddered as she remembered how easily Darien and Jacen had thrown each other around the small space. She didn’t linger beyond gathering a few changes of clothes and some makeup.
She checked her messages; one of which had her reaching for her cell phone which she’d left at home on the night she’d gone to Nylon.
Damn, she thought as she dialed; had it really been only two nights ago?
Sister Agnes answered the phone herself and the tension in her voice should have been enough to give Cat a head’s up. She heard the rattling of papers being shoved across a desk.
“It’s Sonia,” the nun said without preamble.
Cat felt her legs turn to water and leaned against the breakfast counter for support.
“What’s happened?”
God, if something had happened to the little girl and she’d been too busy hiding…
“She started running a fever yesterday morning.” Sister Agnes’s voice choked and it was a moment before she continued, her voice stronger.
“We had to have her hospitalized last night when we couldn’t get her fever down.”
Cat turned as a sound reached her from the door and found Galena standing at the threshold. She waved her in, seeing the look of concern in the older woman’s face and knowing that she probably looked as scared as hell.
“Catherine,” Sister Agnes’s voice was soft and full of apprehension. “The doctors think we might be out of time soon if we don’t do the bone marrow transplant.”
Catherine nodded before she realized she was on the phone. “Of course; I understand.”
The nun’s voice dropped even lower until Cat had to strain to hear her. “I’m sorry; I know it was presumptuous of me, but I spoke to the hospital administrator when I couldn’t reach you. I told them how much was in the account.”
Hope had entered the nun’s voice, becoming bolder. “They have agreed to do the procedure based on the amount currently in the banking account.”
Cat breathed a sigh of relief. While it wasn’t even close to the amount they needed, she would make sure that the hospital got every cent in payment for the balance, even if she had to work two jobs in order to achieve it.
Of course she’d technically been working two jobs already, hadn’t she? But she knew her days as a cat burglar were over; she’d never been happy stealing from her clients anyway and besides, she doubted that Darien would let her out alone at night to go and rob a few houses.
The thought almost made her laugh until she saw that she still clutched the phone in her hand.
Maybe, considering how good he seemed to be at things like investments and the stock exchange, he could teach her a few tricks and she could make the rest of the money that way.
“When do they want to do the procedure, Sister?” Her relief was almost palpable as she glanced at Galena, noticing that the woman made no pretense at listening to the conversation.
“Within the next few days; maybe a week from now. They’re trying to get her fever down and to stabilize her. They won’t do the transplant until then.”
Cat thanked Sister Agnes and assured her that she would be in contact within the next few days to organize the payment to the hospital, and that she would visit Sonia that evening, if the doctors allowed the visit.
She ended the call and went to stand at the window, staring down onto the busy road, her eyes blind to the traffic that flowed at an incessant crawl. When she turned back she saw that Galena was sitting on the couch, eyes focused in her direction.
“The little girl has taken a turn?” She asked, clearly familiar with Cat’s relationship with Sonia.
Cat nodded, unsurprised at how much Galena knew. Her life, or at least her day to day routines, were apparently an open book.
“She’s developed a fever so we have to move the transplant up, once they have her stabilized.” She didn’t want to discuss Sonia with the other woman. Right now she just wanted to do everything she could to make sure she was ready for when the doctors called her in.
Walking around the counter she went to the desk that stood in the corner of the lounge. Pulling out a drawer she found her identity book and her passport, pushing them into a side pocket of the large tote bag she’d tossed her clothes into. She pulled an assortment of papers from another drawer as well as a couple of sets of keys. The keys were to storage rooms she and Frankie kept to house their parents belongings. After her conversation with Darien she had so many questions surrounding the people she’d always assumed were her mother and father Perhaps she would find answers there.
“You may have to reconsider being Sonia’s bone marrow donor.”
Cat spun around to pin the woman with a glare, although the words had held no malice. But she still felt her anger seethe. Despite what Galena might know about Sonia, she didn’t know a goddamned thing about how she felt.
“Don’t go telling me what I can and cannot do, please Galena.”
The older woman raised her hands, not looking to argue, but the pent up fear Cat had felt constricting her chest since the moment she’d heard Sister Agnes’ voice, came bubbling out of her.
“I haven’t done all the things I’ve done just to abandon her now.” A tear ran down her cheek as she turned and shoved the papers and keys into the bag before zipping it up with fingers that trembled.
“I know that dear, and it’s not what I meant.” Galena was standing right next to her although Cat hadn’t seen her stand up.
A hand that was surprisingly strong reached out and rested on her own atop the bag, stilling her shaking.
“I’m saying that you are Ligata and it might make you an unwise, if not dangerous, option for Sonia right now.”
Cat squeezed her eyes shut, tears leaking through regardless, staining her cheeks and dropping onto Galena’s hand.
There was so much she didn’t know about, things she hadn’t been aware of until a few days ago. She felt lost, adrift, ashamed.
“I’ve done some things I’m not proud of,” Cat whispered hoarsely as she felt Galena’s other arm wrap around her in an embrace. It made her feel even worse and her tears fell faster.
The older woman rubbed her back, soothing her. Fuck, she was turning into a real cry baby of late and she fought back the tears as she freed up her hands to swipe at her cheeks.
Galena’s voice was soft. “Sometimes we have to do bad things for good reasons.”
Cat turned red-rimmed eyes toward her. “My father used to say that,” she whispered before her eyes became hard. “Or at least the man I thought was my father.”
Galena’s face gave nothing away as she grabbed the bag and hefted it off the table as though it weighed no more than a clutch purse. She suddenly seemed in a hurry to get out of the apartment and Cat had the feeling the woman was pulling back, not wanting to answer any questions about her parents. It felt like avoidance and it rankled.
“Come on young lady,” Galena called briskly as she headed out the front door.
“We’re going to need to shake some ass if you want to catch Frankie before he gets to campus.”
Smiling despite herself, Cat followed her from the apartment, knowing that she would most likely not be returning. It saddened her to realize that everything she considered important from her life could fit into one bag, with plenty of room left over for clothes.
***
Darien was pacing in the kitchen, wearing a walkway around the table, when Cat and Galena entered through the back vestibule.
Giving her no opti
on but to drop the heavy tote bag, he was across the room in an instant, his arms wrapping around her and pulling her hard against him.
“You took so long,” he breathed into her hair as Galena studiously walked past, leaving them alone.
“I was getting worried.”
Cat felt smothered, even as she reveled in the territorial way in which he was embracing her.
“Can’t breathe,” she managed to choke out, his arms loosening instantly as he peered down at her, his eyes narrowed with concern.
“Did I hurt you?”
Cat smiled as she slid her hands up his chest. He was wearing a long sleeved t-shirt, three buttons open at the neckline. Without breaking the circle of his embrace she slipped her hands around his neck.
“Not at all,” she murmured, fascinated at the way the fluorescent light played on his skin. The golden skin that covered the hollow where his collarbones met looked so inviting that she just couldn’t resist leaning up on her tiptoes and planting her mouth over the spot.
Darien’s breath hissed in and, when she looked up into his face a moment later she could see the tips of his fangs protruding as he eyed her with such smoldering intensity that her own eyes widened.
‘I missed you too,” she managed on a breathy sigh an instant before his mouth possessed hers in a way that had the last of her breath gasping.
It was a kiss of passion and possession, the heady scent of cinnamon swirling in the air around them as he took her mouth, his arms locked around her and pulling her so tightly she could feel the ridge of his erection straining against her belly.
The air heated up around them, raising her own passion and, it wasn’t until Darien moaned against her mouth that her eyelids fluttered open and then she was pulling back from him in horror as she took in the soft glow that was pulsating through the skin of her hands.
“Oh, God, what the hell is happening?”
Her cry was filled with anguish as she struggled to free herself from Darien’s embrace.
She was panicking and on the verge of losing it, but he pulled her against his chest, his grip assured even though confusion clouded his eyes which, like her skin, were glowing with a faint translucence.
“Come here,” his commanded softly and she felt some of her panic subside. His relentless grip pulled her forward and she shook as he wrapped his arms securely around her once more.
“What the fuck is going on?” Tears spilled onto her cheeks.
She could feel Darien shaking his head. “I’m not sure but I think it has something to do with your change.” He sighed. “I think it’s close now.”
Cat forced her head up, to look into his eyes. She could see concern shimmering within the translucent blue of his irises. But he smiled, although it was tentative.
“I’m hoping that whoever arrives tonight from the Obscura will be able to tell us what to do.”
Cat remembered how he’d moaned as the heat had risen between them. “Did I hurt you?”
It seemed odd, to be asking him the same question he’d asked her just moments before and the irony was not lost on him as he smiled. His fangs were still visible, evidence that he was still aroused.
“I have to admit that I liked it.” His eyes smoldered again, sensuality darkening the blue an instant before they flared again. “And no, it didn’t hurt.”
He grinned lasciviously. “Well, not in a bad way anyway.”
She felt a fever of desire flare up at his smile, grinning as she snapped her hand at his shoulder but his own hand flashed out, gripping her wrist as his grin widened.
“What do you say we head downstairs? I’m dying to find out if you glow all over.”
***
Less than half an hour later Darien was picking himself up off the floor while Cat huddled in a corner, hands covering her face while tears leaked between her fingers. Blood ran in a thin rivulet over her collarbone, down to the swell of her breast.
Thump. Thump. Thump. It sounded like someone was going to take the door off its hinges.
“Go away,” Darien called out as he walked over to the bed. His body ached all over, but that’s what you got when you slammed into a wall at the speed of a train.
“Everything’s fine,” he snapped through gritted teeth as he reached for his robe. The banging wasn’t stopping.
A voice growled through the solid wood.
“I’m gonna break this door down if you don’t open it first.”
“Yeah, okay. Hold on.” Limping slightly he pulled the duvet off the bed and carried it over to where Cat sat. Draping the soft weight over her to cover her modesty, he leaned down.
“Stay like this, okay? I just need to get rid of Angelo.”
He didn’t ask her if she was alright. He had to make sure Angelo didn’t come crashing through the door; then he would be back to make sure she wasn’t hurt and to assure her that everything was alright.
The problem was, he didn’t know if everything was alright. Hell, he didn’t even know what had happened. One minute he’d been sinking into her willing flesh, delighting in the knowledge that she did, in fact, glow all over when she was aroused to the state he’d had her in within minutes.
The same eerie pulse had radiated out from her as he kissed her neck and, Oh God, the power he’d felt rippling through his own body.
He’d nuzzled harder, scraping his fangs along her delicate skin, when she’d arched her neck, baring herself to him.
“Bite me.” Her voice was low and husky and she’d stared up at him with eyes heavy with passion. But she was lucid enough to know what she wanted and damn him, but he’d been willing to oblige.
She’d arched up off the bed as his fangs slid in deep, her moan of pleasure the loudest she’d made yet and he’d started to suck; only to become totally overwhelmed.
Her blood was like nothing he’d ever tasted before, rich and sweet and so full of energy that he’d nearly reached his own climax right then.
As Cat writhed against him he could feel the familiar swell of energy radiate from her tensed body and that was when everything had gone to hell in a hand basket. The wave had surged outward, so powerful that it had ripped him from her at both hip and neck, flinging him across the room as if he were nothing more than a rag doll.
Cat had screamed; but whether it was in pain or fear he didn’t know. Then she’d leapt from the bed and huddled in the corner of the room as her tears came.
He’d heard the sound of running feet and then the pounding on the door had begun.
Now he opened the door a crack and saw Angelo and Riley, their faces lit with concern. Riley took one look at Darien and whistled. “Either that was really awesome sex or some bad shit’s going down in there.”
Angelo was staring at Darien’s arm.
“You’re bleeding.”
Darien looked down, seeing the thin trail of blood that wound its way down his hand. He lifted his arm before anything could drip onto the carpet and pulled up his sleeve.
A gouge in his flesh ran from wrist to elbow although the trickle of blood was already drying as the wound began to close on its own. True to his nature, the gash would be healed by the following morning.
“I must have caught it on the dresser,” he mumbled as he turned to look over his shoulder. Cat still sat in the corner of the room, wrapped in the duvet with only the top half of her head visible. But at least she’d stopped crying although she was looking in his direction with eyes that were numb with shock.
Darien stepped into the passageway, closing the door softly behind him.
“Uhm, something seems to be happening to Cat.” The explanation sounded lame, even to his own ears.
The others just gaped at him.
“Is she Ascending?” Angelo’s voice was gruff with concern as he stared down at the carpet, surprising Darien, who’d seldom seen the vampire take more than a passing interest in humans before.
Sensing the scrutiny Angelo raised his head.
“What? I need to know ‘cos
the other one’s gonna go through it just now.”
Darien grimaced. “Well, unless you’re having sex with him when it starts I don’t think you have anything to worry about.”
Angelo growled, the sound low and threatening.
Darien lifted his hands, some of his usual composure returning. “Just saying, that’s all.”
Then he became serious again. “I need to get back in there,” he gestured toward the closed door. “She’s not taking this too well.”
Riley nodded, his usual joviality gone. “Well, holler if you need us; but you might want to keep your distance for a while mate. I don’t know about you, but I don’t have the first fuckin’ clue what to do if she goes into some kind of full blown Ascension.”
He stared at Darien. “You better hope the Council knows what to do.”
He slapped his hand on Darien’s arm, grinning as the vampire winced.
“Ah, come on mate. Suck it up. It’s good to hurt every once in a while.”
He turned and strolled off down the passage, his final words tossed casually over his shoulder.
“It makes you feel more alive. And when can you honestly say you felt that emotion last?”
Angelo was still staring at him, a frown creasing his brow.
“I was going to get a few hours of down-time in before I have to head back to Frankie’s. You want me to hang around?”
Darien shook his head. There was nothing Angelo could do for Cat. Hell, he didn’t even know what he could do to help her right now. Somehow he doubted there would be any repeat of the violent energy bursts if they only occurred while they were making love which, considering how badly he wanted to be with her, filled him with about as much joy as getting hit by a car.
Angelo watched him through narrowed eyes for a moment longer as if he wanted to say something. But he turned and walked off down the passage to his own room, the door closing silently as Darien turned back to his own door.
Cat was dressed again in jeans and a t-shirt, her hair pulled back in a ponytail. She didn’t look up as he entered the bedroom, but continued smoothing down the duvet she’d put back on the bed. The wounds in her neck had stopped bleeding but still looked raw. A flick of his tongue over them would close them entirely but he doubted she would allow him that close.
