Zero

by R. E. Carr

  Georgia blinked a few times. There was a little beep.

  “Ninety-nine,” Gail said, furrowing her brows. “I wonder if you are having a reaction.”

  “Reaction to . . . what?”

  Paige tugged uncomfortably at her yoga pants, as they pinched her tail in the back and felt tight across her tummy. Kyle took a small sample of her blood as she waited by the counter with her great-grandfather. Every once in a while, she would glance over at the stranger in the chair.

  “Well, that went as well as expected,” Kyle muttered. “Paige, you have to believe me, I just need some answers—”

  “I need answers too, including where that asshole Kevin is,” Paige replied.

  Kyle turned to Steve. “I need a sample of your blood as well. I’ve got some test strips—”

  “Can you tell me why I feel like hell?” Steve asked.

  Before Kyle could answer, Georgia stormed into the room with surprising speed for a convalescing woman. She grabbed Steve by the arm and whirled him around. A second later the slap echoed throughout the room.

  “Asshole!” she swore, before turning and storming away at the same speed.

  “I can think of one reason,” Kyle muttered. He took advantage of Steve’s stunned state to snatch a syringe. “I still think she might be a latent werewolf.”

  “I need a minute,” Steve said. He chased after Georgia with a harried, “Excuse me.”

  Toy, Kayleigh, and Nadia circled the rest of their pack. “I think it’s time we get some supplies and hunt,” Nadia growled. “Those bastards aren’t getting the jump on us again. Kyle, think you can handle it?”

  “I’m here to help,” Javier called from his corner.

  The werewolves glared at the flippant vampire. “You trust him?” Nadia whispered to Paige, who shook her head. “Don’t trust anyone at this point,” she muttered back, glaring at Kyle.

  Kyle looked away in a huff, complaining that he was only trying to help. Paige wandered over to the chair. Jonathan stared at her, confused.

  “Did I buy you a drink?” he asked. “Everything is a little hazy.”

  “Yeah, you could say that.”

  “Are those tiny fingers?” he asked, looking at her hand.

  “For now.”

  “There is something about you . . . something I should know, right?” He squinted and stared at her. Finally he shrugged. “Naw, got nothing. You think I can get out of this chair though? It’s been a while and nature is calling.”

  Paige shook her head and walked away. She took a seat next her mom, and used most of her strength to choke back tears. Maria just let her daughter curl against her and whispered, “It sucks, but we’ll figure something out, kiddo. We always do.”

  “I’ll figure this mess out,” Georgia muttered. She curled up in the passenger side seat of the rental the Jaeger’s credit card had provided, staring out the window and watching a few cars putter around the strip mall lot. She slumped lower as she saw Steve wandering around the building, clearly looking for someone. She gave him her best go away look, so naturally he made a beeline for the car.

  Georgia locked the doors, forcing him to fumble for a few minutes before he could join her inside. Once he was in, she opened her door and stomped her way across the parking lot. Unfortunately, her dizziness left her winded only a few spots away, where Steve caught up to her.

  “Sweetheart—”

  She whirled around, a little too fast. Steve steadied her and she didn’t immediately have the strength to jerk away. “Don’t you dare call me that,” she said, as she slumped against him in defeat.

  “Um, Georgia?” he asked.

  “Were you just not going to tell me?” she asked. “I had to hear from Gail that you . . . ugh . . . while I was unconscious . . . really?”

  “That I what? Saved your life?” he asked. “What did she say?”

  “Just tell me the truth, please. Did you bite me?” Georgia asked, still keeping her head buried in his chest. Steve in turn buried his face in her hair. She could feel him nod.

  “Damn it, Steve,” Georgia said, finally with the strength to push away. “While I was unconscious?”

  “You were bleeding internally! I was using my venom to help you clot, I swear—”

  “Were you faking the whole ‘not being able to bite me’ thing? Why? So I’d get close to you? Feel sympathy for you? What was it?”

  “No! I thought you were going to die. I couldn’t let that happen. When I saw you there and they said I could help . . . I just lost it—”

  “You mean you lost control,” Georgia said softly as she began to walk away.

  “Damn it, Georgia, I love you!”

  “You don’t even know—”

  “Yes . . . I . . . do,” he said softly. “Georgia, please . . . please just talk to me.”

  “You love me? Is that why you bit me . . . when I couldn’t even stop you? Did you force your blood inside of me too? Is that why you seem so different? Why I almost . . . oh my god, I feel sick!”

  “Georgia, I swear, I didn’t . . . I didn’t give you even a drop.”

  “Gail saw you with blood on your lips. You kissed me! And to think, I felt . . .” She retched slightly, gagging as she fought against a phantom metallic taste in her mouth.

  “Gail hates me! Of course, she’d tell you that. Damn it, the blood was from that asshole Milton. I had to bite someone to . . . to get it up. It’s been a while. Georgia, I swear, I didn’t—”

  “I’m having an allergic reaction, you asshole. A reaction to vampire blood—”

  “It’s not true. I didn’t. . . I didn’t, Georgia!”

  Tears welled in her eyes as Steve held out his hands toward her. “I’m an asshole Georgia, I’ve never denied that, but you know me. Do you really think, I’d ruin my one chance . . .?”

  “Yes, that’s exactly what I think. Trust me - if Gail really hated us, she wouldn’t tell me this. She’d tell me how you gallantly saved me, so I’d throw myself at you, so I’d live a lie, because that’s what I deserve, right? Right?”

  She finally walked away, leaving Steve stunned. She made it as far as the sandwich shop in the strip mall when she saw a shadow stretch beside her. She had to stop and sit on the edge of the planter.

  “What now?” she asked, wiping the tears off her cheek. “Did you want to tell me how delicious I was?”

  “I drank a sip, enough to figure out what goddamn blood type you had so they could save your life. I used my venom to stop the damage Lorcan did when he was draining you dry. That is all.”

  Georgia wiped her eyes again and shook her head. Steve kept a respectful distance of a few feet. He gnawed at his lip.

  “You don’t understand, when I woke up, you were . . . different. I thought . . . things.”

  “Did you ever think that maybe, just maybe, that—?”

  “I don’t love you. I love Ren, Steve.”

  “Ren is gone. You know that.”

  “He is still alive—”

  Steve drew a little closer. He leaned in and said softly, “No . . . no, he’s not. You saw the thing that replaced that Jonathan guy. Hell, you saw Arthur in Italy—”

  “And you stole Ren’s memories of me. You helped drive him away! How could you ever think . . .?”

  “You know he’s gone,” Steve said, still keeping his voice dreadfully calm. “And I didn’t give you any of my blood. Hell, even if I did, you know as well as I do it wouldn’t change anything. Nothing of my kind affects you! Anything you felt, Sweetheart, was all you.”

  She sat in stunned silence while Steve paced back and forth. Eventually she buried her face in her hands. Steve finally stopped pacing and crouched in front of her.

  “I mean what I said, and I don’t regret what I did. I only regret not telling you the truth sooner . . . the whole truth.”

  “That you bit me?”

  “No - that I love you, and that I have for a long time. There . . . I’ve said my piece. Believe what you want.”
>
  He started to walk away. The lump rose in her throat.

  “Steve,” she mouthed, but he was already too far.

  30

  “Has anyone seen Georgia or Steve?” Paige asked as she noticed the clock in the lab. Javier looked at the clock as well.

  “Judging by your great-grandfather’s confession the other night, I don’t think it’s too hard to guess what they sneaked off to do,” Javier offered. “She was angry, and anger often leads to the wildest of passions.”

  Both Paige and Maria turned a little green at the thought. Gail and Kyle were so engrossed in whatever science had stolen their attention that they didn’t even look up, but Gail muttered a little.

  “What was that, mi amor?”

  “Well, I’d rather know where they are while the pack is out, and we still have no idea what the sheriff or Kevin are up to,” Paige growled.

  “Do you think I could get a piss break?” Jonathan moaned again.

  “I’ll take him down the hall,” Javier sighed. He turned to Gail and made her look at him. “If only to stop the constant moaning. When I come back, why don’t we have a nice supper, and perhaps engage in some passions of our own?”

  Gail stared deeply into Javier’s eyes. “No, I think I’ve caused a terrible mess, and I want to help. Don’t you think you owe me that, Javier?” she asked softly. Javier paused, then gave her a little nod.

  “Of course, mi amor. Come on old amigo, let’s drain the Pendragon!”

  As soon as Javier dragged the still-bound Jonathan out of the room, Gail let out a little gulp. “I think I’ve made a terrible mistake,” she confessed to Paige.

  “What?” Paige asked, rising to her feet.

  “Histamine,” Gail replied, wringing her hands. “Georgia was having a reaction to something, and I thought Steve had given her his blood. When I told her, she was furious, and I fear . . . I fear she may never speak to him again.”

  “So, if it wasn’t his blood, what was it?” Kyle asked, now interested.

  “It’s a reaction to miasma, which is very similar chemically to vampire venom,” Gail said, her face downcast. “I mean, I figured out how she could detect the sheriff. Georgia seems to react to one of the compounds in miasma, the one that inspires fear and obedience. If a vampire gives off large quantities of that, then she feels ill. Vampires who rely more on the other type of miasma, the one that makes you not notice a vampire, don’t react with her as badly . . . I think. I need to run more tests. Of course, if a vampire is repressing their miasma, she wouldn’t react at all.”

  “It’s OK, I’m sure they will come back and we’ll explain, apologize, or whatever,” Paige said. “Actually, you can explain, because I am not going there with those two, OK? Is there anything else?”

  Gail looked slightly squirrely before handing a notebook with a thumb drive attached to it to Kyle. “This was in the box with the sedatives. Another gift from the sheriff,” she said nervously. “It’s a bunch of data in Russian, I think, detailing the work of a Dr. Antonova and her breeding program . . . pretty sure it’s for werewolves.”

  Paige let out a low growl. “More . . . help,” she finally spat out. “I don’t trust it.”

  “I don’t trust it either. Look, I know you all have your reasons, but she tortured me. Kevin tortured me. If we stay here too long, she’s just going to trap us. It’s what she does, and I’ve got this horrible feeling . . .”

  “What horrible feeling?” Paige asked.

  “It’s something . . . Javier said,” Gail choked out, looking at the door. “I didn’t . . . I couldn’t, because—”

  “Gail, please,” Paige said softly. “If there is something we need to know, now would be a pretty damn good time to hear it.”

  Gail stared nervously at the door. “Javier is a spy, and he owes the sheriff. He’s also more powerful than he lets on. I think he let Steve beat him, to . . . to avert suspicion. You see, he’s a lot older than he lets on.”

  “How old?” Paige asked.

  “Old enough to have known the sheriff before she was the sheriff, and . . . he told me that they were lovers,” Gail blurted out. “He fought a vampire known as the Beast to try and claim her. That’s how he lost his leg, but he lied and told everyone that werewolves did it! I think that—”

  “Javier is working for the sheriff, and he just took Lorcan,” Paige finished. Both she and Kyle hurried out the door, only to find that a metal chair and the handcuffs were all that remained by the back exit.

  “I’m sorry,” Gail said, bursting into tears. “His blood, his blood is inside me—”

  Paige sniffed the air, detecting the faint sweetness and smell of blood. The rumble of an engine echoed through the parking lot. Paige roared as she watched their van peel onto the street.

  “Fucking bloodsuckers,” Paige snarled. “How could we be so stupid? The second he was strong enough—”

  “He played us all . . . including me,” Gail said, trembling. “I’m so sorry.”

  “We’ll find them,” Paige said, watching the tail lights disappear. “Somehow, we will find them both.”

  Paige stared pensively at herself in the bathroom mirror. She tugged at her growing ringlets, all the while searching the corners of her vision for any flickers of green. “Come on, I’m miserable and desperate. Isn’t that your cue, Lorcan?” she asked the shadows in the lavatory. No one replied.

  “Where are you?” she asked.

  Nothing. Then a tiny thump. She stared in awe at her stomach. “Seriously . . . now?”

  She left the restroom and stepped out into the hall. The voices of the pack echoed from the lab, and she could hear fragments of plans and other furtive whispers. She looked at her phone and saw three texts from Mom.

  “Still no sign of Steve,” she replied quickly to Maria’s questions. “Get some rest. I’ll TTYL.”

  She wandered for a while, checking that Pearl was sufficiently busy before slipping into the break room. Paige stopped cold as she heard soft sobs, and saw the trembling shoulders of Gail Filipovic slumped over one of the tables. A trashy vampire romance splayed near one hand while a sports bottle full of blood shook in her other. The miserable vampire jerked upright as Paige’s shadow crossed the table.

  “Gail?” Paige said gently.

  “I didn’t know vampires could still cry,” Gail replied softly, not bothering to turn around. “I mean, I know biologically I still have tear ducts, but I somehow thought I’d be more jaded . . . tougher . . .”

  “Less human?” Paige offered. She got two cups of water and took the seat opposite Gail. Gail’s nose had gone full Rudolph and her eyes were puffy and bloodshot. “I keep waiting for that too,” Paige sighed as she slid one of the cups to Gail.

  “It’s awful. Part of me knew he was up to something, that he always had his own agenda . . . but . . . I just love him so much,” Gail said, her lip quivering. “Is that just because his blood told me to, though?”

  Paige gnawed at her lip for a bit. “I don’t think so. I mean, it’s a high and all that, but I think there have to be some feelings in there too for it to really work.”

  “You mean like you and Lorcan?”

  “Oh, that’s all kinds of complicated,” Paige replied. “I’m not sure I even really know him, and he didn’t even—” she stopped, her eyes welling up.

  Gail retrieved the little pack of tissues that had been squished under her and offered them across the table. Paige took one for herself. The vampire touched her flaming red nose. “I probably shouldn’t use these any more. Stupid cellulose!”

  Paige let out a sad little chuckle. Even Gail joined in after a moment.

  “He has to be in there,” Gail offered. “Right? I mean, it would be silly to expect a few thousand years of vampire personality to just turn on overnight? Maybe he’s just . . . booting up?”

  “You think?” Paige asked sadly. She furrowed her brows. “He did instantly hate Kyle, and leered at Georgia. Maybe you’re right, and I’m just at t
he tail end. Ugh . . . poor choice of words, Paige.”

  “Maybe you can help him remember,” Gail offered weakly. “Aren’t you going to look for him?”

  “Well if you were Javier, where would you hide with a newborn, confused vampire-werewolf hybrid? Would he take him straight to the sheriff? Think! You probably know Javier better than anyone.”

  Gail furrowed her brows and toyed with her book. “When we first came to town, Javier scared away the vampires that controlled the strip near the airport. There are lots of places controlled by bondsman . . . access to blood. Maybe it would be a good place to start.”

  “It’s something, but if the sheriff . . . and Kevin . . .”

  Gail’s eyes darkened at the mention of that name. “I keep having the same nightmare,” she whispered, looking at Paige’s healing hand. “Kevin. I know he did . . . things to me, all in the name of testing vampires’ ability to make us forget. Jonathan was just like me, a guinea pig, but unlike me, the more they did to him, the less the miasma worked. The more they hurt him, the stronger he became.”

  “It’s just like you guys said – the perfect host. He was beaten, broken—”

  “He had nothing left, not even me,” Gail said. “I had forgotten him too. Do you think it was the sheriff’s plan all along, or just a lucky accident?”

  “What difference does it make?” Paige growled, rubbing her head. “No matter what we do, these bloodsuckers just keep messing with us. Sorry, present company excluded. We’re never going to get ahead. We can’t even fight them.”

  Gail stared right at Paige. “Do you really think that?” she asked. “I dunno. In the short time I’ve known you, you don’t strike me as a person who lies down and takes it. I mean, if Lorcan really is the love of your life, isn’t he worth fighting for?”

  Paige eyed the romance novel. “I think you’re confusing real life with a book,” she dismissed. “I don’t think your average romance is prepared to deal with the crap I’m dealing with.”

  “Oh, you’d be surprised. I mean amnesia and a secret baby are kind of common,” Gail offered.