Turning to Leisha, Nikita searched her face. “How are you feeling today? It must be difficult to heal so slowly.”
“Much better. I may be healing slowly, but I am still healing.” She took a bite of crispy bacon. “Thanks for being such a great help last night.” The man had always been good to Leisha. Nikita had been there when Leisha discovered Ellery was dead and hadn’t told anyone how upset she’d become. But now she wondered if his motivation to stay last night was more about impressing Samantha.
“Think nothing of it,” he said and started eating.
If they were interested in each other, there wasn’t much Leisha could do about it now, so she dug into her food. On her third bite, her lips started to tingle. She ignored the sensation, assuming it was related to her pain killers or some human reaction to the food. On her fourth bite, her fingers went numb. She dropped her fork.
Samantha was looking at her with her brows drawn together. “Are you okay, Leisha?”
Unable to find her voice, she nodded. Yet she clearly was not fine.
A clank filled the air. Both girls looked over at Nikita. He’d also dropped his utensil and was studying his hands, his head tilted to the side. Suddenly, the entire room was silent, the only noise forks and spoons clattering down on the tables and floor.
Leisha tried to look around, but found she could no longer move. Her body wasn’t responding to her brain’s commands.
That’s when the pain began.
It felt like acid was slowly working its way up her legs, into her torso, then arms and head. She wanted to move, to scream, to somehow eradicate the fire rising through her. But she could do nothing. She realized that she was holding her breath and tried to release it. But her body still wouldn’t respond.
Suddenly, her eyes teared up, the hot liquid streaking down her cheeks and dripping onto her arms. Then, whatever power was holding her seemed to let go. The agony was gone; she could finally breathe. She bent her head, gasping. She saw red splatters leaking down her arms.
Before she could process the bloody tears, every one of her senses overloaded. The light was blinding, her clothes were chafing her skin. The body odor in the vicinity made her want to vomit.
The room suddenly filled with screams. Screams of every frequency and pitch that made her wish she were deaf.
Leisha felt paralyzed, in a different way now. She also felt something else. It was strong in her mind and her control over it was entirely too feeble.
The Hunger was back.
The silence in the room was ominous. A foreboding crept up Samantha’s spine as she glanced between Leisha and Nik. They both looked frozen in place, staring straight ahead, but they didn’t seem to be seeing anything. When she saw bloody tears tracking down Leisha’s face, she knew what was happening. They were turning back into vampires.
She sat motionless when the screaming began. It was as if a button was pushed, allowing all the vampires to move. They howled like tortured creatures, some covering their eyes, others their ears. Leisha fell into the latter, while Nikita had his eyes squeezed shut and was gripping the table, thick marble crumbling under his fingertips.
Something whooshed past her. She looked over and saw Jonathon on the floor, trying to fight off two vampires biting any flesh that they could reach. Samantha’s blood ran chill. She knew they had to get out of there. She lightly touched Nik’s arm. His other hand shot out faster than she could see and he roughly moved her hand off him. She knew that he was probably fighting off The Hunger and her touch provoked it.
Hesitating, Samantha leaned towards both her comrades, and spoke low, trying to sound as calm as possible. “I have to leave now, but I can’t get past vampires here. Would you two come with me?”
Leisha and Nik both nodded their heads while keeping their eyes shut. Each hunched over when they stood; Samantha hoped that they were not in too much pain. She led the way, glancing back every few minutes to make sure they were following her trail. She wondered how they knew where to go since neither had their eyes open.
Samantha was almost to the door when something heavy slammed into her from the side. As the air whooshed out of her lungs, she fell to the ground, hitting her head on the floor. She looked up in time to see Annette, eyes unfocused and frenzied. Instinct kicking in, Samantha threw her arms over her head in a defensive position. Annette’s teeth ripped into her right forearm. Samantha cried out in agony as searing pain ran all the way to her shoulder.
Annette had only gotten a few swallows in before Nik was there. He gripped Annette’s jaw, forcing her teeth out of Samantha’s arm. Samantha immediately scrambled to her feet. She saw Nik holding the vampire down, trying to avoid Annette’s gnashing fangs.
“Go!” he yelled.
Samantha hesitated a second, but knew there was nothing she could do to help him. Besides, she’d seen a vision of him later in the future, so she knew he’d survive this night.
Leisha was still behind her as they made their way through the mayhem. The hallway wasn’t nearly as crowded but there were a few human servants surrounded by several vampires. The creatures used their hands and teeth to rip off their clothes, exposing the servants’ vulnerable flesh. One of human servants looked up at Samantha. She could see the sheer panic in the young woman’s face. Samantha slowed, racking her brain to think of how she could save them. It was only a second before she felt herself being picked up. She screamed until she looked into Leisha’s face, her friend’s eyes still squeezed shut.
Nausea flooded her stomach as Leisha took off, moving faster than Samantha could track. They suddenly stopped at the elevators and one of the doors slid open at a snail’s pace. As soon as there was enough space to squeeze through, Leisha moved them into the car and pressed the button to close the doors. Three vampires were rushing toward them when the elevator closed. The car moved slowly as they headed up, but at least they were alone.
“Are we going to be safe in our hotel room?” Samantha’s voice quavered.
Leisha nodded. “They’re not in their right frame of mind. They won’t be thinking about stairs or elevators right now. They’re basically wild animals. What you should be worried about are the people outside, in the street.”
Samantha swallowed past a very dry throat and tried not to think about it, or what she had witnessed downstairs. “How are you and Nik able to think past The Hunger?”
Eyes still closed, Leisha shook her head. “Don’t know. Maybe our instincts to protect you are stronger.” She crouched down in the corner of the elevator and put her head in her hands. “Though you should definitely lock your door against me tonight. In fact, I don’t think I should even enter our hotel room with you.”
This is just getting better and better, Samantha thought, but she decided not to comment. Once at their floor, they swiftly went down the hall and to their room. As Samantha was putting their card through the lock, Leisha crouched down again. When the door opened, she looked down to see the vampire had fallen completely to the floor and was in the fetal position.
Chewing her lip, she tried to think of what she should do. Though Leisha was having a hard time controlling herself, Samantha knew she couldn’t leave her friend out here like this. If any of the other vampires found Leisha this vulnerable, Samantha wasn’t sure if her friend would see the next day.
Bending, Samantha pulled the vampire from under her shoulders, literally dragging her into their suite. Her arm screamed in protest, and Samantha was aware of the blood dripping from her wound. She left Leisha in the kitchen and snapped the dead bolt into place on their door, then went back and dragged Leisha into her bedroom. Once there, Samantha looked around as she debated trying to help her friend into bed. When she heard Leisha whimper, Samantha automatically bent to check on her.
That mistake made it all too easy for the vampire to pull her down. Samantha landed on her knees and over Leisha. Before Samantha realized what was happening, she felt sharp teeth biting into her throat, hard. Samantha knew struggling would only
widen the wound at her jugular and possibly kill her, so she forced herself to stay still as she felt Leisha sucking through the stinging bite.
“Leisha, I’m glad to donate some blood,” her voice cracked. “But please don’t kill me!” The latter was said with an edge of hysteria; she hoped that Leisha understood.
As if in answer, the vampire raised a hand and placed it over her forehead. Her fingers tightened to an almost painful pressure on Samantha’s head. Suddenly, there was tingling through her mind and at the wound on her throat. The sensation spread down her torso and through her limbs, making her feel heavy and fatigued. Time stood still; it seemed like that odd feeling would consume her body.
The tingling suddenly stopped, but then so did everything else.
As if through a fog, her head slowly fell towards the carpet, her vision gradually fading to black.
Chapter 12
Leisha woke up feeling wonderful. Her ribs were healed and there was no pain in her back. No sore muscles or aches of any kind. Her senses were back to normal and she smiled as she opened her eyes. It was so nice to be able to see so clearly, even in the shadows, and to have such clarity.
Turning on her side, she realized she was on the floor of her hotel room, and so was Samantha. The stench of dried blood almost consumed her sense of smell. Leisha looked down to see red-brown flakes all over her clothes and hands. As flashes of memory returned, she gasped and sat up.
Samantha was pale and cold to the touch. If Leisha didn’t have her heightened hearing back, she’d think her friend dead. As it was, her heart beat steadily, if faintly.
Leisha was ashamed to see the savage wound at her neck. It was clotted and looked as if it had healed quickly, but it would be incredibly painful for a while.
Of course, now that she’d made Samantha a human servant, it would heal faster than normal. Leisha stopped at that thought. She had made Samantha her human servant.
Something she had never planned to do.
But she remembered how out of control she’d been last night. When she had bitten into her friend and the sweet ambrosia of coppery liquid had hit her tongue, all cohesive thought had fled.
At least, until she’d heard Samantha pleading that she not kill her. That was when she knew the only way her friend could survive. She would become a human servant. It was an act of desperation, but now Samantha would have to pay the price.
Her life, her humanity, was ultimately changed and it was all Leisha’s fault.
Blinking back tears, she picked the teenager up off the floor, carried her to the other bedroom, and settled her comfortably on the bed. She noted the wound on her forearm was a lot deeper than the bite on her neck. Leisha could spot a bit of bone through the torn flesh. The vampire looked through Samantha’s toiletry bag in her bathroom. She found a small bottle of hydrogen peroxide and cotton pads, along with some ointment.
She returned to Samantha and noted her breathing and the movement behind her eyes. Leisha wasn’t sure if the girl was sleeping deeply enough. Sighing, she began cleaning the wound on her arm first with the peroxide. The girl whimpered but didn’t wake. Once finished cleaning her arm, she bent and did the same to her neck. Leisha hadn’t seen any bandages in the bathroom, but applied the ointment to both wounds. The maids could deal with the mess that got on the sheets. That is, if there were any left alive.
She exited the room, grabbed a candy bar, and sat on the couch. She was going to have to do some major groveling to Samantha. The poor girl should never have come with her.
Finishing the chocolate, Leisha leaned her head back and breathed deeply. It was at that moment she realized something was off. She was once again a vampire, and felt like her usual self, but her body didn’t feel . . . right.
Frowning, Leisha tried to take an inventory of herself. Her feet and hands were fine and functioning properly. Her arms and legs were the same. Her heart was beating at the normal rate for a vampire . . .
She sat up with wide eyes. “There’s no way,” she whispered to herself. She looked down at her flat stomach, where the second heartbeat was coming from. “It’s impossible.” Leisha had never heard of vampires procreating—ever. Doing the math in her head, she knew that even if vampires could get pregnant, there’s no way a baby could be developed enough in her belly to hear the heartbeat. The first time she’d had sex in ages was with Tafari, and that was only a week ago. None of this makes any sense!
A knock sounded at the door. It took Leisha a few minutes to tear her gaze away from her stomach. From the thing that couldn’t possibly be true. Schooling her features into a stoic expression, she opened the door, knowing it was Nikita.
“I came to check on the two of you.”
“We’ll be alright,” Leisha hedged. “What’s the damage report downstairs?”
Nikita shrugged. “Only two human servants survived, and they’ll be recovering for a while. Victor was able to keep most of the vampires contained, but a few got out. There are reports on the news of wild animals that killed a dozen citizens last night.”
Leisha shook her head. There had been several thousand human servants in the hotel. Though, she’d rather have them die than the entire town. At least they knew the risks when they joined the vampires. “So what’s Victor’s next move?”
“He’s called for an assembly tonight.” Nikita checked his cell. “In about two hours. All vamps are required to attend. I assume he’ll announce our next course of action.”
He looked around behind Leisha. “Where’s Samantha?”
“In her room, sleeping.”
He walked into the suite and towards Leisha’s room. “I smell her blood.”
Leisha noted the strong tone and was taken aback. Nikita was never emotional.
Though it was hard to admit, she forced through her teeth, “I lost control last night, but she’ll be okay.”
Face grim, he strode into the girl’s room and walked to her side. Leisha followed. Samantha’s eyes were open and full of questions as she was looking up at Nikita.
Reaching out, Nikita gently moved her head to the side and inspected the wound. His expression softened as he studied the girl’s face.
Nikita moved so fast he took Leisha completely by surprise. He whirled and punched her savagely across the face, sending her crashing into the wall.
“You said you wouldn’t make her a human servant!” He strode to her and lifted her by her arm. “Look what you’ve done to her.”
Samantha was out of bed in an instant, rushing over to them. “Stop, Nik! You probably would have done the same thing.” Almost reaching his side, she teetered and fell toward the floor.
Nikita immediately let go of Leisha, and caught Samantha before she hit the ground. He scooped her up and smoothly placed her back on the bed. “You need to rest. It will take sleep and a lot of fluids to get you fully recovered.”
Samantha nodded, her face pale. “Leave Leisha alone. She did the best she could.”
Nikita breathed in deep and his body relaxed. After a moment he went to Leisha and offered a hand to help her up.
“Sorry,” he muttered.
Leisha stood with his assistance. “I deserved worse than that.”
He studied her swollen jaw for a second. “It should be healed by the time the assembly starts.” He looked as if he were going to say something else, but he paused. His eyes grew wide and his head tilted to the side as if he were listening for something.
The shock on his face was the most expression Leisha had ever seen. “By God, it can’t be.” He stared at her stomach as if there were an alien in it.
“My sentiments as well.”
With effort, Samantha sat up against the pillows. “Hello, remember me? Care to let me in on the conversation here?”
Nikita turned to her. “You didn’t know she was pregnant?”
Samantha chuckled, then waited for the real explanation. After a moment, Samantha’s eyes grew round and she looked at Leisha. “Tafari?”
“H
e’s the only one I’ve had sex with in too many years to count.”
Jaw dropping, Samantha tried to stand again. Nikita was by her side in an instant, urging her to stay down. She sat back, but kept her attention on Leisha. “You’re carrying the prophecy child!”
Leisha glanced to Nikita. He wasn’t running out to tell Victor. At least not yet. Trying to have this conversation outside of his hearing range would mean leaving him alone, and she couldn’t do that. If he tried to run, I’ll have to kill him. It would be difficult. After all, he’d almost been a friend to her for four hundred years, but she’d do what she had to. “What makes you think that?”
Samantha pulled her hair behind her back with her uninjured hand. “You guys were temporarily turned human so that Leisha could get pregnant with the prophecy child. Why else would I be present at his birth?” She touched her forehead. “All the pieces are coming together. I can’t believe I didn’t think of it sooner.”
“There’s no way that we all turned human just so Tafari and I could, could . . . you know.”
Samantha raised her eyebrows while smirking. “Get it on? Fool around? Have sex? Make a baby?”
Leisha shook her head. “How could the forces that be know that Tafari and I would get back together?”
“I have visions about the future all the time, Leisha. Of course someone in the universe could know.”
Stepping back until she met the wall, Leisha threw her friend a helpless look. “But that still doesn’t mean this is the prophecy child.”
“Leisha,” Nikita said as if she were slow. “In the history of vampires, no one has gotten pregnant. Now you conceive right when we know that the prophecy child is about to be born. That’s too much of a coincidence for anyone to ignore.”
Sighing, she looked at the floor. “What am I going to do?”
Defiance Page 9
