Cassie’s voice trailed off. She dropped to her knees and laid her head on Michelle’s chest. “She’s dying,” she bit out to no one in particular.
Utah stared in disbelief and horror at the woman he loved more than anything. Yet he couldn’t touch her.
Warmth enveloped him, lifting him from the dirt floor with almost a caress. He turned his head to see his sister standing in the brilliant beam of light surrounding the pit.
“Come, brother. It’s time for us to go.”
Tears spilled from Utah’s eyes. “Leanne. God, how I’ve missed you.”
“We’re free now,” she whispered, holding out her hand. “We’re finally free.”
His body continued to rise until he stood before his beautiful sister. “I love you, Leanne. I will always love you. But I can’t go with you.”
Leanne’s gaze moved to Michelle’s still form. “She won’t last much longer, brother. Bring her with us.”
More tears spilled forth. He wrapped his arms around his sister’s form and bid her goodbye. “I will see you again someday. But today is not that day.”
He watched in sorrow as she slowly faded from his sight.
Turning back to Michelle, Utah gathered every ounce of strength he had left and forced himself to her side.
“She’s not going to make it,” Cassie whispered, sorrow seeping from her pores.
Utah pulled himself closer, his hand going to Michelle’s one more. He could feel a tiny spark of her warmth. “Change her!”
Cassie jerked her head in his direction. “She would never forgive me for—”
“I don’t give a shit if she hates you for eternity! Change her,” Utah snarled.
“Please.”
All eyes swung toward Lani. “I don’t know what you are, Cassandra, nor do I care right now. But If you have the power to save my baby, you do it, or I will kill you myself!”
“I’m a vampire,” Cassie hissed, presenting Lani with her fangs. “Is this what you want for your daughter?”
Lani glanced down at Michelle’s still form and then shifted her gaze back to Cassie. No fear appeared in her eyes. “I don’t care what she is as long as she’s alive.”
Utah touched the blonde on the shoulder. “Cassie, please. I’m begging you…”
Without uttering a word, Cassie batted him away, jerked Michelle’s upper body up from the dirt floor, and sank her fangs into her neck.
Utah watched as Cassie’s eyes rolled back in her head. She drank so long that he was beginning to second-guess his decision to ask this of her. “Stop! You’re killing her!”
“She’s already dying,” Malik quietly informed him. “Cassie is attempting to save her.”
Cassie suddenly pulled back, bit into her wrist, and then placed the open vein over Michelle’s mouth.
Utah held his breath, wanting to pray but knowing he couldn’t. He glanced up at the last remnants of light that remained near the ceiling. He’d made his choice, and that choice lay on a dirt floor, fighting for her life.
Long moments ticked by with Cassandra feeding Michelle her blood.
Malik eventually rested his hand on his wife’s arm. “That’s enough, love. You don’t want to give too much. You’ll weaken yourself.”
Cassie remained where she sat for another ten minutes before finally pulling her wrist free from Michelle’s mouth.
Utah glanced between Cassie and Malik, reaching once more for Michelle’s hand.
Heat traveled up his arm, slamming into him with enough force his back bowed. He looked down at his body, relieved to find himself in solid form again.
“Michelle?” Utah scrambled closer. “Michelle, baby, can you hear me?”
Cassie blew out a shaky breath. “She’ll sleep for about two days, but she’ll survive.”
Lani threw herself into Cassie’s arms. “Thank you. Thank you for saving my baby.”
Cassie returned her hug. “I didn’t save her, Mrs. Collins. Your daughter died on this floor tonight. And when she wakes, she will never be the same. She very well might hate us all…”
“I’m taking her home,” Utah informed them, his strength returning with every second that passed. He slid his arms beneath Michelle’s limp body and stood, holding her high against his chest.
Lani hurried to his side, her eyes widening. “I can see you.”
“Probably because I’m holding Michelle in my arms.,” Utah offered. He sent Lani a pitying look. “I’m sorry for everything, Mrs. Collins. I know he was your husband.”
Lani glanced over to the place where Jack’s dead body lay. “He killed all those people, and shot my daughter. He can rot in hell.”
“How is it that Utah was able to stay here and not forced to go with the other souls?” Cassie asked Lani.
A far-off look entered Lani’s eyes. “I don’t know, but I know someone who might.”
At everyone’s questioning look, she continued. “He’s a shaman who lives on the Shoal River. He’s the reason for Michelle’s vision, and why we ended up here tonight.”
“Michelle’s vision?” Utah studied Lani’s eyes.
Lani sent him a gentle smile. “I’ll let her tell you about that when she wakes. Malik and Cassandra can give you a lift back to Michelle’s. I’m going to call the police and tell them where they can find the bodies buried in that pit.” She met the gazes of everyone in that room apart from Michelle’s. “None of you were ever here.”
* * * *
It had been over forty-eight hours since Michelle had been shot in that basement. Two days since she’d ingested the blood of a vampire. Utah was beyond worried.
“You’re going to drive yourself crazy, hovering over her bed like that. She’ll wake up when she’s ready, and not a minute before.”
Utah turned and faced Cassandra. “How long did it take you to wake?”
“Not long.” Cassie sent him a reassuring smile. “But I knew what I wanted. I knew I wanted Malik to change me, and I was more than prepared for those changes.”
She nodded toward Michelle. “She, on the other hand, was shot and killed. Her body has gone through so many changes at once, her mind is probably in denial. Not to mention she was shot by her own father, and probably thinks you went on to another plane and she’ll never see you again.”
Utah’s heart squeezed. “What can I do?”
“Unfortunately, nothing but stay by her side and wait for her to come back to you.”
A moan came from the bed, and Utah’s gaze shot to Michelle. “Michelle, honey?”
Malik and Lani entered the room, both with expectant looks on their faces.
“I think she’s coming around,” Utah breathed, bending to kiss her beautiful lips.
Michelle’s eyes fluttered open, and panic entered their pale blue depths. She jerked her head to the side, staring at Utah as if he’d grown two heads. “Am I dead?”
“In a manner of speaking,” Cassie whispered, drawing Michelle’s attention to the foot of the bed.
Michelle sat up faster than Utah’s eyes could track.
“Whoa,” he breathed, grabbing onto her shoulders. “I need you to lie back, take deep breaths, and we’ll try to explain everything. Okay?”
Tears entered her eyes as she stared back at him in wonder. “You’re really here. I’m not dead or dreaming?”
“I’m really here, love. And I’m never leaving your side again.”
Michelle lifted her hand, turning it left and right in front of her face. “What’s happening to me?”
“I changed you,” Cassie blurted, dropping the mother of all bombs in the room.
Michelle stilled, her hand frozen in front of her and her eyes glued on Cassandra. “Changed me as in how?”
Lani stepped forward, moving to stand next to Cassie. “I told her to do it. I wasn’t about to let you lay there and die. I couldn’t lose you.”
Utah saw the second that realization dawned. Michelle shifted her gaze back to Cassie. “You made me like you? I’m a va
mpire?”
Everyone in the room froze in dread, each probably wondering who Michelle would attack first.
With tears sparkling in her beautiful eyes, Michelle opened her mouth…and laughed. The sound echoed through the room, warming Utah’s heart in a way it hadn’t been warmed since he lived.
“Thank you, Cassandra Devain,” Michelle whispered through her tears. “I’ll never be able to thank you enough.”
Cassie looked as shocked as Utah felt. “You’re not angry with me?”
Michelle threw back the covers, kissed Utah on the lips, and turned to face one of her closest friends. “How could I be angry at the one person who made it possible for me to spend eternity with Utah Baines?”
More laughter erupted as everyone joined in the merriment.
Michelle suddenly sobered, taking Utah by the hand. “Your sister?”
“Is free now, thanks to you. They all are. The screams I’d been hearing for the last three years? They weren’t from the ones in that fire. They came from the ones in that pit. That’s why I was still here. Meeting you was meant to be. It was fate.”
Michelle tilted her head to the side. “But I saw you in the light. Why didn’t you go into the light?”
Utah realized every person in the room waited for his answer. “I think each of us has a destiny, a reason for being here. I know in my heart that your destiny wasn’t to leave by the light that night, Michelle. And since you are my destiny…”
Michelle’s lips sealing over his, cut off the rest of his thought.
Utah kissed her back with everything inside him, noticing the room’s occupants swiftly clear out.
Michelle suddenly pulled back, her hands going to either side of his face. “I love you, Utah Baines.”
“I love you too, Michelle. For the next thousand years and beyond…”
Epilogue
One Year Later
Michelle sifted through the boxes in the attic, laughing as she showed Utah some old pictures of her as a child. “I’m missing my front teeth in this one.”
“Even toothless, you were beautiful.”
She wistfully sighed. “I can’t imagine my life without you in it. I’m so happy, I feel like I could explode.”
Sobering, she asked, “Did you go see your mother in the nursing home today?”
He stood and trailed over to her side. “I did. There are times that I wonder if she can sense me there. She turns in my direction, staring at nothing in particular and simply smiles.”
“I’m glad you’re visiting her, Utah. And I’d be willing to bet that she feels your presence, every time you’re there.”
Utah lowered to his knees in front of Michelle. “Are you sure you’re happy?”
She frowned, setting the photo album aside. “Happier than I’ve ever been. Why would you ask me that?”
He shrugged. “I know that you loved being a dispatcher. Resigning had to be harder than you’re letting on.”
“I’ll admit it wasn’t easy. But the alternative would have been worse. Even if I worked midnight shifts, I’d be clocking out at seven in the morning. It simply wasn’t feasible. Besides, I love spending my nights with you.”
Utah leaned in and placed a kiss on her lips. “What time is your mother coming by?”
Lani had given Michelle, Jack’s house. She’d felt it only right that her daughter should get it since it was his bullet that had taken her life.
Michelle knew there was more to it than that. Lani didn’t want any memories of Jack. Not to mention, she’d been spending far too much time with Ned Riverwind.
Lani had been able to see Utah since the night Michelle had been shot. According to Riverwind, Michelle’s White Buffalo totem had been responsible. It was Michelle who bridged the two planes, making it possible for the souls to cross over, and Lani’s spiritual eyes to be opened.
Utah remained a ghost, but he was no longer tormented by the screams, and for that, Michelle would always be grateful.
Lani had surprised them all with the astronomical insurance policy she’d had on Jack. She’d taken it out on him years ago when he’d first been elected as a judge in Walton County. She’d always feared someone would take a shot at him, never guessing that it would be her. Lani had split the insurance money with Michelle and bought herself a small house on the Shoal River.
Imagine that, Michelle thought with an inward giggle. Lani now lived less than a mile from Ned Riverwind.
“Mom won’t be here for another hour. She and Ned are eating dinner first at Scruples.”
“What about you? Are you hungry?” Utah whispered, his eyes becoming hooded.
Michelle shook her head. “I still have plenty of O Negative in the fridge. I’m good for another week.”
She reached up and popped the button free on her blouse. “But I sure hope you are.”
“I’m always hungry.” And he proceeded to show her exactly how much.
~The End~
Read Below for a Sneak Peek into the Pages of Ruby and the Beast—A Modern Day Beauty and the Beast Tale.
For 18 and older.
Chapter One
Ruby Atwood stepped off the plane at the Louis Armstrong International Airport in Kenner Louisiana a little before noon.
She glanced around at the familiar scenery with a heavy heart. Though Louisiana would always be her home, it would never be the same after today.
Trailing off toward baggage claim, Ruby fought the tears that had been threatening since landing. She’d been notified by the New Orleans Criminal Investigative Division that a man resembling Charles Atwood had arrived in the morgue after a shooting at Barone’s Gentlemen’s Club the night before.
As her father’s only living relative besides her nine-year-old brother, Cameron, it was left up to Ruby to identify the body. And she had little doubt that it was her father lying in that morgue. She’d been frantically calling him all night and morning to no avail.
Poor Cam, Ruby thought, grabbing her bag and heading toward the front to hail a cab. He must be terrified.
Cameron’s mother, Lucy Peters, a known prostitute and heroin addict, had left only days after Cameron’s birth, leaving Ruby and her father alone to raise him.
The fact that Cameron hadn’t suffered any obvious adverse effects from the drugs his mother had taken during her pregnancy was a miracle in itself.
“Excuse me,” a woman murmured, pulling Ruby out of her reflecting. “Do you have change for a dollar?”
Ruby shook her head. Growing up in New Orleans, she knew just about every scam that could be run. And this woman was definitely a con. “I’m sorry, but I don’t carry cash.”
Without bothering with a thank you, the woman scurried off in search of her next victim.
The hot Louisiana sun baked the sidewalk with its scorching rays as Ruby made her way outside in search of a cab.
Keeping her fingers wrapped tightly around the handle of her bag, she brought her hand up and flagged a taxi that sat along the curb.
The cab driver quickly pulled forward and rolled down the window. “Where to?”
“Southside Medical Center on Canal Street,” Ruby returned, climbing into the backseat.
The cab took off with a jolt, darting in and out of the airport traffic like a seasoned NASCAR driver. “Here for a visit or heading home?”
Ruby met the cabbie’s gaze in the rearview mirror. “That all depends on what I find when I arrive.”
But she knew. Somewhere deep in her heart, she knew that her father would be lying on a cold slab in the basement of that hospital.
Obviously sensing that she didn’t feel up to chatting, the cabbie shifted his attention back to the road and the manic drivers in his path.
Ruby turned to stare out the window, a feeling of dread settling in her gut. What was she supposed to do without her father? Moreover, what would Cameron do?
Twenty minutes later, the cab slowed to a stop in front of Southside Medical Center. “That’ll be forty-five dollars
.”
Ruby dug two twenties and a ten out of the pocket of her jeans and handed it over the seat.
“Would you like for me to wait?” the driver murmured, looking over his shoulder.
Hesitating, she glanced at the hospital’s entrance before gripping the door handle, grabbing her bag, and stepping out. “No, thank you. I don’t know how long I’ll be.” She closed the door behind her.
The hospital loomed in front of her, an overwhelming presence of death and gloom. Though most would see it as a beacon of hope, Ruby only saw finality and despair.
A homeless man sat propped against the wall, unwashed and obviously hungry, if the size of his wrists were any indication.
Ruby wondered if he had family somewhere who missed him, or if he was alone in the world with nowhere to go and no one who cared.
She fished out another twenty-dollar bill from her pocket and handed it to him. “Get yourself a hot meal.”
His faded brown gaze lifted to meet her own. “God bless you.”
Ruby managed a weak smile, activated the sliding doors, and stepped inside.
“May I help you?” an elderly woman asked from behind a small brown desk.
Ruby noticed she wore a volunteer’s vest. “I’m looking for the morgue.”
The older woman’s eyes flickered with compassion. She stood and half turned her frail body toward the hall. “Do you see the elevators?”
At Ruby’s nod, she continued, “They will take you to the basement. Once you get off the elevator, take a left, and the morgue will be down on your right.”
“Thank you,” Ruby murmured, trailing off in the direction of the elevators.
She pressed the Down arrow, waited for the doors to open, and then stepped inside, switching her bag to the other hand.
The elevator lurched downward with a quickness that rolled Ruby’s stomach before jerking to a stop in the basement.
Ruby steadied herself while waiting for the doors to open, then stepped into the hall and took a left.
Passing several doors along the way, she finally came to the one that read Morgue.
Fully Engulfed: BBW Paranormal Romance (Scruples Book 3) Page 13
