Mary Anne, sensing my unease, nodded once and walked to the bed. She set the bucket down. “Samuel?” she said. There was no response.
I hesitantly moved next to Mary Anne. Looking from her to Valerie and lastly to Samuel, I shifted uneasily, and said timidly, “Samuel? Samuel, pray answer me.”
I was about to repeat his name when he moved. “Sunshine?” His voice was barely audible, his eyes still unopened.
“Aye,” I answered, my voice shaking slightly. Mary Anne took one of the cloths from me, wetted it, and began cleaning Valerie’s wounds. Her movement sparked me to action.
“I’m going to clean off your wounds, Samuel,” I told him quietly. Knowing there wouldn’t be a reply, I wetted another cloth and started to carefully clean his face. My movements were gentle, but still a small cry of pain left his lips. “I’m sorry,” I whispered, ignoring the drowsiness I suddenly felt. I touched his singed hair. “It will be all right, Samuel.” Even though it was dawn, I knew there was no time to sleep, at least not yet.
A moan from Valerie made me look up. Samuel spoke again. “How is she?”
I glanced towards Mary Anne and Valerie again. Mary Anne shook her head. She was holding a third cloth. The other two were lying in a bloody heap on the floor. She addressed Samuel’s question. “She is still alive. She has a chance, Samuel, though I can’t understand how.”
Samuel winced and then nodded slightly. I threw down my dirty rag and grabbed a fresh one. I knelt down and cleaned the area by his left eye more thoroughly. “Mary Anne, if Valerie is to survive she will need blood, will she not?” I whispered.
Mary Anne looked up at me. “Definitely.”
I pondered this. Finally, I said, “Get Adam out of bed. He’s the only one who was not trapped in the house when it caught fire. He is probably the strongest one of us right now.”
Mary Anne nodded and left the room.
I turned my attention back to Samuel. His shirt was burned. “I need to tend to the rest of your burns, Samuel,” I told him tenderly. I saw him let go of Valerie’s hand reluctantly. Laying aside the cloth, I helped him take off his shirt, carefully taking off strips of cloth one at a time. Some of the cloth clung to the skin as I pulled. I could feel his muscles tighten, but he barely made a sound, even though the pain must have been intense. Samuel closed his eyes again after I finished separating the burnt cloth from his burnt skin.
I picked up the cloth and began cleaning the burns on his arms and chest. Luckily, he didn’t seem to have any other wounds. I heard voices outside the door.
“Where did Richard go?” That was Mary Anne.
“He fled when the house was under siege,” Adam answered.
“That scoundrel!” Mary Anne snarled as they entered the room. “What a puny idle-headed coward!” she continued, glowering.
“What?” I asked, looking up.
Adam was the one who answered. “Richard ran the second we got back from hunting. How fare thee, Julia?” He asked the question hesitantly.
I looked at him for a long moment. “Fine, I think.” I gestured towards Valerie. “Feed her, will you?”
“All right,” he replied and followed Mary Anne to the bedside. A moment later, Adam was dripping blood into her mouth from a cut on his forearm. I was relieved to see Valerie swallowing the blood. She didn’t deserve to die. That coward Richard did. Mary Anne was studying the scene as intently as I was.
“The reflex to drink offered blood is still there. That surely is a good sign,” Mary Anne mumbled.
Adam glanced at us. “Are you two all right?”
Mary Anne shrugged. “A hurt leg, nothing serious.”
“I’m fine. Are you all right?” I had been worried about him, but the severity of Valerie’s and Samuel’s injuries had taken all my attention.
“A little sore, that is all.”
I nodded and, turned back to Samuel. I had cleaned off all as burns the best I could. His head suddenly rolled to one side and his breathing became deeper. He had finally fallen asleep. I rose and let the rag fall to the wooden floor. I looked towards a chair next to the bed and discovered Adam had also dozed off.
“Can you carry him back to his room, Mary Anne? I’ll be fine here for a few minutes.”
“I can, with help,” she replied.
Moments later, Matthew appeared in the doorway. They hoisted Adam between them and left. I spent the few minutes I was alone gathering up the bloodied rags and studying both Samuel and Valerie. When Mary Anne came back in, she was carrying an extra pillow and blanket. “Sleep now, Julia. You have had a severely taxing night. I’ll stay up now and you can relieve me later, when it gets closer to nightfall.”
After hesitating a bit, I agreed. I took the blanket and pillow to a corner. I spread the blanket on the dust-covered floor and lay on it, putting the pillow behind my head.
***
I awoke to Mary Anne’s insistent shaking. “Julia. Julia, wake up.”
I slowly opened my eyes. “What time is it?” I asked drowsily.
“Late afternoon.”
“What’s wrong?” I asked, instantly alarmed. I quickly sat up.
“Nothing is wrong. I just need some sleep. I thought you would want to take watch now.”
“How are they?” I asked, trying not to sound so sleepy. I looked up at her. A faint smile curled her lips.
“Valerie is still alive. She’s the good quiet patient. She hasn’t made a sound all day.”
“How is Samuel?” I asked, rubbing my eyes.
Mary Anne’s eyes darkened slightly. “I think he is in a lot of pain, Julia. He’s been moaning in his sleep all day.”
I got to my feet. “I will stay up. Sleep, Mary Anne. You look exhausted.” She nodded.
As soon as I stepped away, she lay down. I dragged myself towards the chair next to Samuel and the bed where Valerie lay. I couldn’t remember the last time I had been up during the day – for any reason.
Samuel moaned softly. I wondered if he would be more comfortable on the bed, but my gaze locked onto the raw, reddened flesh of his torso and arms and realized it would probably cause more pain if I tried to move him.
I leaned forward and nudged some hair away from his face. “Samuel?” I whispered. He turned his head slightly and moaned again. I glanced at Valerie who was breathing shallowly, but steadily. She seemed to be fairly strong, all things considered. I looked back at Samuel. I stroked his singed hair. “It is all right, Samuel. I am here,” I said. “Just rest.”
Strangely enough, my words calmed him. Samuel stopped moaning and seemed to drift into a peaceful sleep. From what Mary Anne had said, this was the first time all day he had done so. I smiled faintly and got up to check Valerie’s wounds. I refastened the bandages, expecting some kind of noise or indication of pain from her but she remained silent. I was slow to realize it was because she was still deeply unconscious. Once the realization struck I hit my head with my hand. “Ow!” I gasped, realizing I had used my injured hand. “Well, I’m certainly awake now,” I muttered, and sat back down.
The hours before nightfall were fairly uneventful. Samuel only moaned a couple of times and I was able to soothe him both times. Shortly before Mary Anne woke, Valerie, although still silent, shifted positions very slightly.
“Any problems, Julia?” she asked sleepily from the corner, opening her eyes.
“Amazingly, no,” I answered. “Samuel calmed down a few hours ago and Valerie’s condition seems unchanged for the most part.”
“Good.” She stood and brushed off her dress. There was a knock on the bedroom door.
I sighed and got up to answer it. “Aye?”
Christy stood in the doorway, her hands filled with clothes. “How is Samuel?”
“He is sleeping, Christy,” I answered, stifling a yawn.
“And Valerie? Matthew wants to know.”
“Unconscious. But alive. Did you know? Sharon was killed before the fire,
and Richard ran off without helping.”
“Somehow Richard’s cowardice does not surprise me. I found some clothes in the room we are in. Matthew and I thought they could be useful. We are all going hunting. We will be back soon.”
“Be careful, Christy. Do not do anything unwise.”
“We will be careful. Take care of the other two,” Christy answered, and gently shut the door behind her.
I informed Mary Anne of their plans. “Christy brought these over. They look a little big, though.” I held up the men’s shirt, but Mary Anne barely looked at it.
“As long as they are careful, they will be all right,” she answered distractedly. I nodded and resumed my seat beside Samuel. Mary Anne sat beside Valerie. “I would have moved Samuel to the bed, but with so many burns I decided it would cause him too much pain,” she said quietly.
“I was thinking the same thing, and came to the same conclusion.”
Mary Anne checked on Valerie again. She shook her head, and her eyes were filled with sadness. “That place had been our home for almost a decade, Julia. Now it is gone. Sharon is gone . . . Valerie’s barely hanging on. I have known Valerie for just about as long as I have known Samuel and Matthew. Over four centuries . . .”
“Oh, Mary Anne.” I had never heard her so melancholy. I reached across to touch her hand. “They will recover. We will stay here until they get stronger, and then we will find another place.”
Mary Anne attempted a quivering smile. “Aye. You’re right, Julia.”
I smiled and withdrew my hand. I un-bandaged my injured hand carefully. It had healed somewhat, but there were still angry cuts all over the skin. I turned it over and shook my head. “I shouldn’t have done this.”
“Samuel’s silly little fledgling,” she said with affection. She looked around the room. “I wonder if there might still be some needles and sewing materials around here somewhere. Some of us need fresh clothing.” She roamed around the chamber, opening drawers and cabinets. “Some of us need fresh clothing.”
“Samuel and Valerie certainly will.”
“Jeffrey and Christy need fresh clothing too. Aha, here we are. Two needles, some cloth, and a little thread. I think we can make alterations to the clothes Christy and Matthew found so they will do for Samuel and Valerie. ”
“Here, Julia,” she said, handing me some of the sewing materials. “Concentrate on making Valerie’s and Samuel’s clothes first. They obviously cannot wear the clothes they have on.”
I nodded and started sewing. Sewing was one thing — the only thing, seemed —the vampires did not have to teach me.
Mary Anne cleaned Valerie’s wound again. She removed the bloody clothing to better see and reach the wound. She took some of the thread and silently stitched up Valerie’s wound. She changed the bandages again and finally covered her with a light blanket. She sat down and also began sewing. The next hour passed in silence.
I was in the process of reattaching a sleeve to a dress when Samuel moaned. I glanced up, startled, to see him stirring. I laid my needlework aside and turned towards him. “Samuel?”
Samuel turned his head towards me. His eyes fluttered open and met mine. “Julia?”
A smile broke over my face. “Aye. How fare thee?” I asked, my hand hovering in midair. I didn’t want to touch his skin for fear of hurting him.
“Sore,” Samuel muttered in a hoarse voice. Solving my dilemma, he painfully reached out and took hold of my hand.
My eyes blurred with tears. “I’m sorry, Samuel. I did not know until I got outside that you were still in—”
Samuel squeezed my hand, interrupting me. “Don’t, Julia. I am glad you are safe,” he whispered. A pained smile touched his face.
Mary Anne glanced up. “I am glad to see you are awake, Samuel. You’ve been unconscious for about a day. Would you like some water?”
Samuel nodded slightly. “Yes, please, Mary Anne. Just a little, to moisten my mouth.”
“I’ll be right back,” she said and left the room.
Samuel looked back at me. “Is everyone else all right?”
I hesitated, but I knew he would find out soon whether it was I or someone else who told him. “Sharon and some of Beth’s group did not survive. Richard returned with Adam and he left without helping as soon as he saw we were under attack. And Valerie is still on the bed beside you, unconscious but alive. Everyone else is all right.”
Samuel sighed. “Damn Richard,” he said, but his voice was flat. Grimacing, he rose from the chair slowly. I saw no hope in his eyes. He looked at Valerie and then stared vacantly at the wall.
My breath caught. “Samuel . . .” I whispered, standing up.
The door opened and closed again. Mary Anne paused a second and walked to us. She held out a glass of water. “Here, Samuel. Perhaps you should sip it slowly.”
He seemed not to hear her. Then, as if returning from another place, he glanced at her and reached for the glass. “Thank you,” he said.
Mary Anne looked sharply at me, apparently alarmed, as I was, at the detached tone of his voice and manner. I gave a helpless shrug, but she seemed to understand better than I did. < Talk to him, Julia. He feels guilty over what happened. He thinks it is his fault.> This, she communicated telepathically. Out loud she said, “I’m going to go explore the rest of this place.”
I nodded my understanding. Samuel did not say a word. Mary Anne left again. Samuel finished the water, and resumed staring at the wall. I suddenly felt his weariness, both mental and physical. And his almost ravenous hunger. I felt this sensation briefly, but it was almost overpowering. I couldn’t comprehend how the hunger was not drowning out every other sensation. Was it because he was older, stronger? I was not sure. It was only rarely that he let me glimpse his thoughts and feelings.
It was at that moment that I realized I cared for him just as much as I cared for Adam; it just wasn’t in the same way. I could sense the pain he was suffering from his burns; I could sense, too, the agony that seared him because of the tragedy that had occurred. And I was seized by an overwhelming desire to ease that pain the way he had eased mine.
Without preamble, he spoke. “I was a fool. I should have realized it was a trap. I was so worried about you that I let my guard down.” Bitterness imbued his next words: “And Richard! That he would—”
“Samuel,” I said quietly. But he didn’t seem to hear me. He was too engulfed in his own world of anger, guilt, bitterness, and betrayal. I moved up behind him and very carefully put my arms around his waist. His body was tense.
“Samuel, stop. It will not do any good. None of us expected it. They would have simply broken the door down anyway. We all did the best we could. Richard is a loathsome coward. You saved Valerie’s life.”
“She is not out of danger yet,” he answered tightly.
“If you had not pulled out the stake and gotten her out of the house, she would not have a chance at all. Blaming yourself cannot change what happened, but it could hinder your healing now.” I surprised myself with those words, not sure where they had come from, but confident that they were true.
My arms tightened reflexively around him. Finally I felt him relax slightly. He moved just enough for his hands to cover mine. “Julia . . .” he whispered, as his fingers gently stroked mine.
I spoke softly. “You are starving, Samuel. You should take blood. It will help you heal.”
I felt him begin to pull away from me. “I am not strong enough to go out and hunt,” he said harshly. I refused to let him go.
“Then feed from me!”
Samuel shook his head and tugged away. I could feel the distance widening between us, and it was not just physical distance. He was withdrawing from me, putting up mind shields, blocking me out telepathically. I faced him. “Samuel, I am worried about you!” I cried out in frustration.
“Do not be,” he said quietly. “I do not have to feed now. And I do not want to feed from you.” His eyes focused again on the wall.
&nb
sp; “Do not be foolish, Samuel. I want you to feed from me. You are half-starved.” I stepped closer to him. “Samuel, please,” I pleaded. Slowly, deliberately, I brushed my hair aside, exposing my bare neck. I raised my eyes to look at him.
He was now staring at me, transfixed. I saw hunger in every tense muscle in his body. I took another step closer. “Julia, no. Don’t you understand?” he asked in a strangled voice. “My thirst is so great that if I start feeding from you, I will have no way of controlling it!”
“I just fed two nights ago. I am still mostly at full strength. You say you are too weak to go out and hunt, and I agree. But if you don’t feed now your thirst will be beyond any control. I am strong and the only one in here right now able to feed you.
“You and Christy have both told me what happens when the blood thirst gets out of control. A vampire becomes so desperate they’ll go after anything that can satisfy the hunger, the need, especially if there’s prey around that is weaker. I know you do not want to hurt Valerie. So please, Samuel, take my blood. I trust you.”
Samuel’s breath was coming in short gasps. His eyes were fixed on my throat and I saw the blue disappear as his pupils dilated. His lips parted with an agonized moan as he struggled against the thirst and lost the struggle.
“I trust you,” I repeated softly. Samuel reached out and pulled me the last few inches or so to him. I felt his overpowering hunger as he bit into my throat. I forced myself not to recoil at the sharp pain that raced through me. There was nothing gentle about the movement this time. It was like the ferocious desperation of a starving wolf.
At first, his drinking was savage. I began to wonder if I had made a mistake, if his thirst was already out of control. I also began to fear that he would accidentally tear out my throat, his teeth were ravaging the flesh so deeply. It was certainly not small neat puncture marks.
Lost Soul (War of Destiny Book 1) Page 21
