by Nina Croft
Chapter Seven
“You look like total shit.” Sebastian peered in through the open window of the vehicle.
He’d appeared as soon as Connor pulled up in the underground garage. Anya and Tasha were close behind, but they were pretty much ignoring Connor as they tried to see into the back of the truck.
Tasha frowned. “She is in there, isn’t she?”
Connor nodded.
“Why didn’t you phone?” Anya asked. “We were about to set off to search for you.”
“Your sister has a habit of frying cell phones, and computers, and probably anything else she gets close to.”
“Including people, if you’re anything to go by.” Sebastian studied him through narrowed eyes. “So the implant didn’t work?”
Connor twitched uncomfortably. He glanced from Anya to Tasha and away again. He supposed he was going to have to tell them what had happened at some point. They needed to know the facts if they were going to help Keira and maybe the girls would have an insight into what had gone wrong. But he really wasn’t up to the whole “we were fine until she came” conversation. He wasn’t sure he ever would be, but he’d work himself up to it.
“To a point,” he said eventually when it became obvious they were all waiting for an answer.
“What point?” Sebastian persisted.
Connor frowned. “Later.” The word came out more as a growl than he’d intended. Sebastian quirked an eyebrow, but nodded.
“Is the room ready?” Connor asked.
“Well, it’s done as we discussed. I hope it will be enough.”
So did he.
Connor rubbed his forehead, the headache had faded through the long day, but it was still an unpleasant memory. Now exhaustion tugged at his mind, his eyes ached, and his stomach growled for food.
He climbed out of the truck and stretched, trying to ease the kinks from his shoulders.
“Hey, did I mention you look like shit?”
“Yeah.”
“Why don’t you go upstairs and get some food and rest and we’ll see to her.” He nodded toward the back of the vehicle.
“No.” Again, the word came out harsher than he’d planned. What the hell was wrong with him? But he needed to see Keira was safe and all right before he could rest.
Sebastian pursed his lips. “Is there something you’re not telling us?”
“Like what?”
Sebastian shrugged. “Never mind. We can talk later. For now, let’s get her out of there and settled.”
Connor moved to the back of the vehicle and opened the door, trying to ignore the women attempting to peer around him. He checked Keira’s pulse; it was steady, but she was still deep under. He picked her up gently and held her cradled against his chest. Her lips were slightly parted and she was breathing lightly but evenly and that wave of tenderness washed over him again.
Mine.
The word whispered through his mind and his arms tightened. He looked up to find all three watching him, their faces blanked of expressions. Sebastian he presumed on purpose. But he suspected Tasha and Anya were “speaking” to each other.
He cleared his throat. “Lead the way.”
He followed them out of the garage, down another two flights of stairs to one of the lower levels. Finally, Sebastian led him through a door into an antechamber and then into the room itself. It was small, with a narrow cot bed, a table, a single chair, a fridge in the corner, and a tiny bathroom.
“It was the best we could do in the time,” Sebastian said.
But obviously, someone—Tasha and Anya presumably—had gone to some effort to brighten the place up with a scarlet bedspread and matching cushions. There were pictures of horses on the walls and a bright woven rug on the floor. Flowers in a vase. Still, it was hard to hide that it was essentially a small, windowless metal box.
A camera hung from the ceiling in one corner of the room, pointing at the bed. He supposed it was a necessity, but he hated the thought of other people watching her sleep.
Tasha ran in front of him and stripped down the bedspread. He laid Keira on the soft cotton sheets, tugged off her shoes, and then pulled the blanket over her. She immediately curled onto her side and snuggled into the pillow.
He wished he could lie next to her and hold her, be there for her when she woke, but he knew it was impossible, and he forced himself to turn away.
Once outside, the exhaustion dragged at him as he realized he’d done it. She was here and safe for the moment.
The outer room had been set up like an observation station, with a desk and monitor, a couple of chairs and a small sofa pushed against the back wall. He rifled in the desk, found a piece of paper and a pen, and scribbled a quick note so she wouldn’t feel so alone when she awoke.
I’ll be close by.
Connor.
Then he went back into the room and placed the note on the table where she would see it when she woke. When he came back out, they were all still there. He got the distinct impression they’d been talking about him.
Anya came to stand beside him and rested her hand on his arm. “Connor, go to bed,” she said. “We’ll watch out for her.”
He knew it was sensible. He glanced at the monitor—someone had switched it on—and saw Keira sleeping. He had no clue how long she would stay that way. “Don’t go in there if she wakes,” he said. “And come and get me if there’s any change. And—”
“Connor, go to bed.”
He glanced at Sebastian who regarded him with an expression of wry amusement that Connor wasn’t sure he liked. Actually, he was sure—he didn’t like it.
He closed his eyes, counted to ten, and forced the tension from his muscles. When he opened his eyes, they were all still watching him.
“I’m going to bed,” he announced, turned around and stalked from the room.
***
She was warm and dry. Positively cozy—all she had ever asked for when living on the moors.
The bed was soft and the pillow deep and she snuggled down for a moment longer. She didn’t want to open her eyes, she was so comfortable, but something tugged at her memory.
Connor.
Making love.
Nearly killing him.
Taking the pills.
Her eyes opened. She was no longer on the moors, that much was clear. She lay on a bed in a small room, with no windows. For a few seconds claustrophobia threatened to overtake her. She’d spent a year in a cell when she had first become telepathic and the nightmares still haunted her from that time. She breathed in deeply and forced the panic down. Someone had left a bottle of water on the table and she drank, trying to get rid of the dry, sour taste in her mouth. Then she saw the note. Picking it up, she ran her hands across the script. Was he close?
She examined her surroundings some more. A fridge stood in the corner, hopefully with some food—her stomach rumbled at the thought. And a camera hung in the corner of the room, but at least they’d made no attempt to hide it. Were they watching her even now? Was Connor watching her?
She pushed off the blanket and swung her feet to the floor. Her legs shook a little, but she locked her muscles and managed to stand. A couple of shaky steps took her to the small bathroom, and she leaned over the sink and splashed her face with water.
A mirror hung above the sink and for the first time in years, she stared into her own face.
She was pretty. Sort of. Her face was too thin, but she was okay, not horrible anyway, and her eyes were unusual.
Back in the bedroom, she studied her new home. A huge bunch of flowers stood on a shelf by the door, all sorts, mixed colors. Leaning down, she breathed in the sweet scent. A note was propped underneath.
Welcome, love Tasha and Anya
Her sisters.
***
“She’s awake,” Sebastian said. “Perhaps we should call Connor.”
“I’m here.” Connor stepped into the room and closed the door behind him. Anya sat at the desk, watching the monitor, S
ebastian stood behind her. Tasha was curled up on the sofa, yawning.
Connor crossed the room and stared down at the screen. Keira sat in the bed, a plate of food perched on her knee. He wanted to go to her, comfort her, and tell her she wasn’t alone, but that would be stupid. And painful.
He’d known she was conscious. Something had startled him awake. Could he sense her even through these walls? Not a headache but a slight buzz in his brain.
“So tell me what happened with the implant,” Sebastian said.
Connor sighed. As he’d suspected, he was no more prepared to talk about it now than he had been before. He’d been thinking about what happened and he reckoned it was probably safe for Sebastian to go in there. He didn’t like the idea, but she needed to talk to someone, and Sebastian was shielded. Neither of the girls were; they didn’t want to block their telepathy. Sebastian should be okay as long as he didn’t try and make love with Keira and he wouldn’t do that because Anya would kill him. And she was an assassin and good at it. Or Connor would kill him. Either way he’d be dead.
“I think it melted,” he answered Sebastian’s question.
“So they don’t work with her, even double strength?”
“No it worked at first, but it’s buggered now.”
“So it’s unsafe for me to go in there?” Sebastian asked.
God, he was persistent. Connor shifted uneasily. He so didn’t want to have this conversation. He took a deep breath, shoved his hands in his pockets. Opened his mouth, saw Anya and Tasha waiting expectantly for his words, and closed it again. Perhaps he should talk to Sebastian alone.
Sebastian frowned. “Come on, Connor. What happened?”
He could do this. “It was fine, no problems, we talked—I’ll go through that later. Then…”
He watched as Keira took a bite of her sandwich, licked the crumbs from her lips and heat flickered along his nerves.
“Then later on, we were making love, and she came, and my brain exploded.” He said the words as quickly as possible then waited for the fallout. It never came. Nobody appeared in any way shocked. In fact, Tasha nodded.
“Tasha reckoned that’s what happened,” Anya said.
Sebastian grinned. “I said not likely, you’re such a miserable bastard. But at least you were making a good job of it.”
“Fuck off,” Connor growled.
“So I should be okay?” Sebastian said.
“Just don’t get her excited, because it fucking hurt.”
“Did it force you to shift?”
“Yeah, I’d have been dead otherwise. I was very nearly dead anyway.”
“You like her don’t you?” Tasha murmured.
He turned at the question and shrugged; it was nobody’s business but his and Keira’s. He’d had to tell them about the making love, because of the implant, that didn’t mean he had to expose the rest of how he was feeling.
“Of course he likes her,” Anya replied when he said nothing. “You saw how he looked at her.”
Okay, so maybe nobody else realized it wasn’t their business.
“We could wait for Jack,” Tasha said. “He could always keep me out of his mind.”
“No, I’ll go in.” Sebastian replied. “Perhaps we’ll save the vampire for when she’s more settled. Jack can be a little…overwhelming.”
Connor took up position behind Anya as Sebastian disappeared behind the first set of doors. A few seconds later, he appeared in the room. Keira almost jumped.
“Is there audio?” Connor asked.
“Yes, just a second.” Anya pressed a few keys and Sebastian’s voice came through clearly.
“I’m Sebastian Quinn.”
“Is Connor all right?” Keira asked.
“He’s fine.” He nodded at the camera. “He’s in the next room watching over you.”
Sebastian approached the bed slowly as if uncertain. He glanced up at the camera. “I’m okay, I think. I can feel something, like a buzz, but it’s manageable.” He turned back to Keira, pulled up the small chair and sat by the bed. “Welcome,” he said. “I won’t stay for long, but I wanted you to know you’re not alone.”
“What’s going to happen to me?”
“We’ll do some tests. See if we can work out what was done to you. Maybe we can reverse it, or somehow help you control it.”
“Do you think that’s possible?”
Connor recognized the hope in her voice, and he prayed they would find some way to help her. Tomorrow when they were both stronger, they would start the tests.
Sebastian shrugged. “I honestly don’t know, but we’ll try.”
She nodded and Sebastian got up. “There’s paper and pens in the drawer over there. Make a list of questions and we’ll get answers for you. Now I suggest you sleep. We’ll start work tomorrow.”
“Okay. Will you tell Connor…” she trailed off. “Never mind.”
She curled on her side as Sebastian left the room. Her eyes were open and she stared at the closed door, where he’d disappeared. She appeared so small, hunched on the bed. Connor couldn’t bear to think of her alone in a strange place. Almost without conscious thought, his tugged his T-shirt over his head.
Tasha whistled, but Connor ignored the sound. Being a werewolf had almost cured him of any modesty. They usually stripped before they shifted—it saved having to replace their clothes every time.
Sebastian came through the outer door as he kicked off his boots.
“What the hell are you doing?”
“She shouldn’t be alone. Not on her first night.”
“You’re going to shift?”
Sebastian sounded shocked, but then Connor had never shifted except when he had no choice. He nodded and pulled off his jeans.
Closing his eyes, he willed his wolf to the surface. He shivered as the magic rippled through him. Then he was standing on all fours. His senses more acute, he could scent the others in the room and the metallic smell of the walls. It made him uneasy; he wanted to be outside, back on the moors. Wolf had liked the moors.
His claws made clicks on the tiles as he headed for the door. Sebastian opened it for him, then the inside door and he stepped into the small room.
Keira gasped as he appeared and then a smile curved her lips. He padded across the floor and leapt lightly on the bed. The narrow cot was hardly big enough for the both of them, but she scooted over and he stretched out beside her so their bodies touched all the way along.
He lifted his head to face the camera and curled his upper lip in a snarl. The green light turned to red. He laid his head down and she turned onto her side and wrapped her arms around his shoulders, pressed her face into his neck.
A sense of peace stole over him. He closed his eyes and slept.
Chapter Eight
“Can you reverse it?” Sebastian asked.
Connor pressed his fingers to his eyes trying to ease the pressure. His head ached constantly. He knew it was Keira, however hard he tried to deny it.
And he wasn’t the only one affected.
Headaches. Nausea. They were all suffering.
Only the vampires were immune.
After a week, he knew Keira was beginning to despair.
He held up the X-ray of her brain and pointed to the dark patch of scar tissue. “I doubt they knew exactly what they were doing,” he said. “They probably just blasted a laser at her brain to see what would happen and then decided to dispose of her when it didn’t work.”
Sebastian traced a finger down the film. “So what does it all mean?”
“That there’s fuck all we can do.”
“You can’t operate?”
Connor ran a hand through his hair pressing his skull. “We don’t know enough about that section of the brain to even try. We could do irreparable damage. And besides, the scarring is too bad.”
“Maybe once we’ve all moved out, she can stay without doing too much harm. Might give the people in the neighboring buildings a headache, but they won’t kno
w the cause.”
“And she might give them all brain cancer.” Connor had to point out.
“You think she caused her mother’s cancer?”
Connor didn’t want to consider it but he knew he had to. “I don’t know, but it’s a distinct possibility. For us it’s okay, each time we shift we clear anything. But for humans…”
“Send her back to Scotland?”
No way was Connor letting her return to the moors to live out her life alone. “That’s not an option.”
“You know there is one thing you could try,” Sebastian said, his tone bland.
Yeah, Connor knew. He’d been trying not to think about that particular route. He’d always sworn he would never change anyone. But things were different now.
“Would it work?” he asked.
“There are no guarantees.”
God, Sebastian could be annoying. “But what do you think?”
“I think if she survives, then it will work. I’ve seen amputees regain their limbs after they shift. Blind people see again. So yes, I believe it would heal the damage to her brain.”
Connor latched on to one thing. “If she survives?”
“Many don’t. Some go insane and have to be killed. Some just don’t recover from the wound.”
“Thanks,” Connor muttered.
“You need to be aware of the dangers if you go ahead with this. You both need to be aware.”
“What are the chances?”
“With normal humans only about one in ten survive. But you’re strong and that’s important.”
“Would she be better off with you doing it?” Connor’s wolf nipped at his insides at the thought of Sebastian touching her, but he had to ask.
Sebastian shook his head. “No. You might not want to admit it but you’re as strong or stronger than me and you’re much younger.”
His wolf settled.
“The other factor in her favor is both her sisters survived,” Sebastian said. “She has to be very close genetically. I think there’s a good chance. But will she accept it?”
