Vampire in Conflict

by Dale Mayer

"She will, but she has to let go of that human lifestyle first. Otherwise, she'll always be torn."

  "She has many human friends and few vampire ones. Not sure she can make that switch."

  "As the vampire bonds strengthen, she will see where she stands much better."

  "And me, where does any of this leave me?" That was the real issue he'd wanted to bring up. Cody didn't know what to do about Rhia. About Tessa being so young. About the heat that flared between them. A heat he couldn’t do anything about.

  "Patience. Tolerance. Look after her and if you are serious, stand by her side and love her as she walks through this maze." Goran's steady voice helped stabilize the shakiness inside. If there was one thing his father had experience in, it was relationships. Maybe not long term ones…but definitely longer than most humans had.

  "And Rhia?

  "Give her time. Don't forget, to her, Tessa is still young – her little girl – the same young girl that went to the movies with her human friends." Goran reminded him. "Rhia missed seeing much of Tessa's transformation."

  "I understand that. Tessa is young."

  Goran looked at him. "Second thoughts?

  "Hell no. But waiting for her to be ready is going to be a bitch," he said forcefully.

  Goran started to laugh.

  Cody rolled his eyes and pushed his father out of the Tessa's room so as to not wake her. Tessa might not need blood to keep going, but he and father did and he could use some sustenance right now.

  ***

  Rhia sat in the small security office and watched the cameras roll. They'd been switching camera views to find Tessa and track her back to the stairwell where she'd woken up. They'd picked her up at she'd entered the hallway from the fire exit. Rhia had gasped at the sight of Tessa barely managing to stay on her feet. Obviously disoriented, she probably had no idea her nails were extended. A defensive motion that made Rhia see just a little of what her daughter had been through this last week.

  Serus wrapped an arm around her shoulders. She leaned in closer.

  The security guard backtracked the cameras to that same exit but it was just out of sight. Many people had walked the halls, but there was no one suspicious and no one carrying her daughter. Then again, that stairwell wasn't covered by any cameras. Of course it wouldn't be that simple.

  "How could this happen with no record of anyone around?"

  The security guard shrugged. "I can't say. We don't have security cameras in the stairwells."

  A longer shuddering gasp escaped Rhia's chest as her lungs squeezed in tight on themselves. "What could have happened?"

  "I'll go through all the security feed we have for the entire hospital over that hour she was here, but it's going to take time."

  Serus tugged Rhia back a bit. "Please do so, and call us if you find something. We'll go home and keep watch over our daughter."

  Rhia let Serus tug her out of the security room. She was angry and tired and hurting…and she wanted answers.

  "How could they not know what happened to her?"

  "They don't know yet. Maybe he will find something and maybe he won't. Let's leave quietly so as to not cause any more disruptions."

  "Like I care about that," she scoffed in a low voice. "Not now that one of them has hurt my daughter."

  "And we don't know that," he replied, trying to keep his voice low enough so the security guard couldn't hear. "We are vampires inside the human hospital, so how can we know for sure that there aren't others like us here?"

  She frowned, hating his logic. She wanted to lash out at something. Anyone.

  Back at home, she realized she had a target.

  Cody.

  ***

  Ian held his breath. The footsteps had stopped. He could hardly breathe, his chest had squeezed so tight. Now he waited, not knowing what to do.

  What he wanted was to get the hell away.

  He studied the room and realized that even if he was in good vampire hands, he still wanted out.

  He reached for his cell phone for the millionth time, once again realizing it wasn't here. That wasn't good. Then again, he didn't have his clothes on either. He looked down and realized he had on a scary variation of the dreaded hospital gown. It was bare from the back, judging from the fresh air he felt. He figured his folded wings covered part of him but they weren't long enough to cover everything. How could he escape with his butt hanging out?

  The room was damn small and had no cupboards. So where were his old clothes? Like his boxers?

  He knew he'd been sleeping for days, but surely the hospital staff wouldn't have tossed his clothes. At the back of his mind, he heard Wendy mention washing them for him. Had she taken them away? Cause that wouldn't be good. He wanted to get the hell out of here.

  Like now. It seemed like he'd been waiting since forever for Wendy. How much longer would he have to wait?

  And damn, those scary ass footsteps started up again.

  Coming his way.

  ***

  Jared couldn't believe he was back in the same damn group home. Okay, it was better than his uncle's place, and whatever happened to that old geezer, anyway? He'd told the cops about him and his sister, but Jared had no confidence that anything had been done. There had been no time for one thing. Just time enough for his father to have died when the mountain came down. Although there were rumors that the military were still bringing out survivors. But he didn't know if they meant survivors as in people that had been hanging at the blood farm or survivors as in those that had been part of the rescue crew. He'd seen dozens of soldiers around when he'd shown them the tunnel entrance. He doubted they'd made it out.

  But how could he find out? He knew Dr. Taz's name but felt bad calling him. The man had been run off his feet before. He couldn't imagine what his life was like now. Jared also wanted to contact the Human Council and find out what was going on. Only they wouldn't share any information with him.

  He felt cut off and cut out.

  And hated it.

  Surely there was something he could do to help.

  He wandered in the direction of the kitchen for a glass of milk and maybe a piece of fruit. The other kids here appeared happy to see him, but they didn't know or seem to care much about where he'd been or what he'd been through. Then again, they wouldn't likely believe it. Hell, he damn near didn't believe it.

  And what about Tessa? He'd tried to help her out in the morning at school, then he'd lost track of her during the day. He'd been a celebrity at school, and that had felt decent. Better that than a pariah.

  Still, this issue obviously wasn't mopped up. And he wanted to be part of the cleanup crew.

  At least to help him gain closure. And if he was really lucky, his aunt and uncle would get locked up for the rest of their lives and he wouldn’t have to deal with them any longer.

  The back office doors were closed. Just a sliver of light shone through. He realized he hadn't seen any of the staff in a while. Normally there were a half dozen staff on duty at any given time. Right now, as best he could tell, they were in the office having a meeting. He tiptoed closer.

  "I tell you. Half the Vamp Council is already gone. We could just finish the job and wouldn't have to worry about them anymore. Wouldn't have to wonder about our missing relatives and or if our kids are going missing in the near future."

  "You're talking crazy talk. The Council might rule the vampire clan, but the entire species isn't living here. They are all over the planet. We'd have to take them all out before we could be safe, and you'd never know if you ever got them all or not." There was a pause then the same voice spoke again. "We'd never be safe – ever."

  "But they do sleep at night. It would be easy to go from house to house with a special gas and kill them all while they slept."

  Ah shit.

  Jared hated to hear this kind of talk, but knew this wouldn't be an isolated incident. If these men were talking like this, then many others were, too. He had to warn his friends. After everything they'd done
for him, he couldn't stand by and let them be murdered.

  He'd been texting with Tessa earlier. He quickly sent out another one. "We've got trouble. Need to talk."

  ***

  David sat at Jewel's bedside. She looked terrible. He was glad he'd decided to come here while the rest of his family went looking for Tessa. It had felt disloyal at the time, but now seeing the shape Jewel was in…

  "David…"

  He leaned forward. "I'm here, Jewel. You're supposed to be sleeping."

  She gave him a sleepy smile. "I've done nothing but sleep." She stared over his shoulder, worry sliding into her gaze. "I heard the doctors talking earlier."

  "And," he reached over to clasp her hand in his. "What did you hear?"

  She couldn’t meet his gaze, "Something about the paralysis possibly being permanent."

  He started. "What?"

  "Both Ian and I. Neither of our wings are responding to their treatments." She lifted her gaze to his, and he could see the fear deep inside. "I need to be able to fly, David."

  David winced and immediately shifted over to the bedside. "Remember, the doctors don't know what we're dealing with here. And therefore, they don't know what will happen."

  "But they said our vampire genes should have fixed the problem by now. As they haven't…" and she let her voice trail off. But the worry in her beautiful eyes damn near broke his heart. Maybe sleep was the best thing for her.

  He said as much to Jewel.

  "I've been trying," she whispered, "But it's hard to not worry."

  "And yet the worry itself is going to hinder your healing." He smiled down at the most beautiful woman in his world. He reached up and stroked back the hair lying on her cheek. "Remember what Tessa did? She told her vampire genes to kick in. Maybe yours have been suppressed by the drugs, but I bet if you told yours to knock it off and to get into the game, they'd be happy to help."

  She laughed in delight. "I'll try."

  David's new phone went off. "Hopefully that's Cody."

  He frowned. "Interesting."

  "What?

  "It's from Jared. He wants to talk. Says he's heard something. Something bad."

  Chapter 6

  Tessa woke up to hard voices, and a tension so thick in her room she couldn't imagine the state of affairs downstairs. She sat up carefully, feeling a sense of déjà vu. Delighted to find that her headache was gone, she stood up – and was forced to wait for the room to stop swaying. She'd have chosen a shower, except it sounded like she was needed more downstairs.

  She tested the door between her and Cody to find it solidly closed.

  Not good. As fast as she could, she raced down the stairs to the living room.

  Her mother stood in the middle of the room ripping a strip off Cody. Yep. Déjà vu.

  "You will not date my daughter. She is too young."

  Oh shit.

  Cody never said a word. He stood tall and straight, his hands behind his back. Neither did he do anything but stare over Rhia's head.

  He wasn't going to defend himself. And from the looks of it, both Serus and Goran were out of their element.

  But Tessa wasn't.

  She strode between Cody and Rhia and stood tall, her feet planted apart, her hands on her hips.

  "Stop it," she snapped. "Leave him alone."

  Rhia, now in a full rage, turned her gaze on Tessa. "What are you doing out of bed?"

  Tessa snorted. "I was woken up by your screaming."

  "Do not push it, young lady."

  "Me?" Now Tessa could feel anger of her own rising to the forefront. "You want to do this now? Then you damn well better pick on someone who can fight back. Cody respects you too much. He won't fight back. But I'll be damned if I let you kick him like this." Tessa lifted her nose in the air. "You've got a problem with his relationship with me, then you come to me. Not him."

  Rhia was livid. "You think you're so grown up that you can argue with me like this?"

  "When you are in the wrong, I will. I have to. There is no one else here willing to go against you when you get like this. And that." Tessa glared at her mother. "Is wrong."

  "Are you saying I'm wrong?" Rhia gasped. The shock and pain poured from her features.

  "And overreacting." Tessa nodded her head. "Yes."

  And just like that, in a rush of emotion stealing the ire from her spine, Rhia collapsed on the closest chair. "You are too young," she wailed.

  "For what?" Tessa said, aware of Cody relaxing slightly behind her. The door between them eased open a crack.

  Stay quiet for a bit longer, she whispered mentally.

  He snorted. I'm staying silent until I get the hell out of here.

  No. It will be fine. She just has to accept us.

  I don't think that she's willing to do that.

  "What are you doing?" Rhia asked suddenly, a new worry in her voice.

  "Talking to Cody telepathically. Telling him that you will calm down in a minute or two." Tessa tilted her head to one side. "He doesn't believe me."

  "Don't put words in my mouth," Cody protested.

  Tessa and Rhia ignored him.

  "So it's true?" And damned if her mother didn't look crushed.

  "Why does our mindspeak upset you?" Tessa studied her mother, trying to understand.

  Then Cody piped up. I don't think there is any understanding this. She can mindspeak with your father, so why is she upset with us being able to as well?

  "Mom," she said gently. "Why does that upset you?"

  Rhia sighed heavily. "I wanted you to wait. To live a little first. You have your whole life ahead of you." She flung her hand toward Cody. "It's one thing to date or have a fling," she quickly interjected, "But to bond like this? It takes away your choices."

  Say what? Tessa shook her head. "Wait. Are you saying I should go and date anyone other than Cody? In fact, I should go and date a lot of guys and not Cody?"

  I wouldn't try that if I were you. Cody's heated voice growled through her mind.

  I won't, but I'm trying to get my mother to see how silly she's being.

  "No, I don't want you to date anyone," Rhia cried.

  Serus stepped forward. "Rhia, honey, you're not making sense."

  And then Tessa got it. All the anger slipped away. It will be okay, Cody.

  She walked over to her mother and crouched down in front of her. "Mom, I know what the real issue is here."

  Rhia reached out to gently tug on Tessa's new bangs, a wry smile on her face at the new look. Then, exhausted and frustrated, she said, "Good, because I don't."

  "Neither do I," snapped Serus.

  "You're not ready," Tessa said simply. "For me to grow up. For me to be an adult. For me to not be your little girl anymore."

  Tears filled her mother's eyes. "No," she whispered. "I'm not."

  ***

  Cody stared at Tessa's mother. She'd always been the most welcoming and warm-hearted woman he'd known until this weekend when she'd found out about Tessa and him. After being at the hospital tonight, she'd really blown her top. He hadn't known what to do. His father and Serus had been frozen at his side. Both of them wanting to defend Cody's position but not knowing how to without making things worse.

  Then Tessa had shown up to defend him. Again. God, he loved that girl.

  She spun around and stared at him.

  Damn.

  He hadn't meant to say that. She narrowed her gaze and let him dig his ass in a little deeper. At least, I didn't mean for you to take it the wrong way.

  Tessa sniffed and spun back to her mother. "I'm not going to jump into anything. This mindspeak thing came on quickly for us. There was no preparation or choosing. It just happened, but with it came a bond that's hard to describe. It's new; we're still learning how it works. We're forever treading into each other's thoughts." Tessa flinched. "In a big way."

  "You can read each other's thoughts?" Rhia sat forward. "So you can both talk to each other, hear each other, and you can hear the other pe
rson's thoughts, even when they aren't talking to you?"

  "Sometimes." Tessa nodded. "And feel his pain when something happens to him, and sometimes other emotions." She shrugged. "We have a door between us that we can close or open at will. Earlier, I had shut the door because the noise level at the hospital had been horrific. I closed the door to help save him and give myself one more layer of silence to help combat the pain." She smiled wryly. "And that meant he didn't hear me when I got hurt."

  "I felt it though. Like a blinding pain on the side of my head." Cody lifted a hand to his head. "That's how we knew you were in trouble."

  "Even though the door was closed?" Tessa thought about that. "That's new."

  "I think that if one of us is in trouble, it won't matter if that door is closed or not. The urgency of the situation will still come through. I just wish you'd seen your attacker. If you'd thought about it then, chances are good I'd have gotten a name and we'd be on the hunt for him now."

  The frustration in Cody's voice finally caught Rhia's attention. She stared up at him for a long time. "You really care about Tessa, don't you?"

  Silence.

  Tessa smiled. It's okay to answer. I won't hold it against you.

  Ha. Cody's warm smile whispered through her mind. If she had any idea how much I care, she'd kick me the hell away from you.

  Maybe not. Maybe she'd realize that I'm not just the next notch on your belt.

  Cody nodded to Rhia. "Very much."

  She ran a gentle hand over Tessa's hair. "I can fight a war, organize a massive sweep over a big blood farm operation, and any number of other things I'd had to do lately, but I'm completely undone at the concept of my baby growing up." She shook her head, the gentlest of smiles forming on her beautiful features. "You make sure you only do what you're comfortable doing, do you hear me?"

  "I will," Tessa said promptly, knowing that could mean anything or nothing.

  Make it anything.

  "And Cody?" Rhia's voice sharpened to razor edges.

  "Yes?" He straightened.