“Oh, that’s nice,” Rose muttered sarcastically.
“And I couldn’t apologize because you wouldn’t wake up,” Kallias continued, his brows creasing in pain. “But now, you’re awake. So…I’m sorry.”
“Oh, good,” Rose said dryly. “So, I can die now?”
“Would you stop making jokes about this?!” Kallias snarled.
She laughed—that laugh immediately followed by a sharp cry of pain. She flashed a pained smile. “Just making sure you’re still in there,” she quipped.
“If vampires could age, I’d have gray hair because of you,” Kallias said.
“If vampires could age, you’d be a fossil by now,” Rose countered.
“Now that Rose is awake, I think I’m going to go out and celebrate,” Erik announced. “Someone told me about a really nice strip club downtown.”
Rose turned her head to scowl at Erik, wincing as another wave of pain coursed through her. “Are you really using me as an excuse to go to a strip club?”
Erik shrugged on his leather jacket and grinned at her. “Yep.”
Kallias didn’t seem to hear them. “We need to get you some clean bandages,” he said absently. “These are soaked through with blood already.”
Rose looked up at Kallias, her eyebrows lifting. “There’s a hole in my chest. I don’t think clean bandages are going to make that much of a difference.”
Kallias wrapped his hand around her smaller, softer hand, another wave of anxiety rushing through him as he noticed how feverish her skin felt. He doubted that was a good sign. “I don’t want to leave. I’m worried about you.”
“I’ll be fine,” she assured him. “Where do you have to go tonight?”
“I told Aaron that I wouldn’t leave the tombs until your injuries were healed…at least a little more than they are now. And surprisingly, he actually understood,” he said. “So, instead, I’ll go to the bar and question the vampires there, like we did that first night. Maybe I’ll have more success with it tonight.”
Rose tried to offer him an encouraging smile, but with so much pain coursing through her body, the smile wound up looking a little forced. “Well, in that case, it sounds like you have nothing to worry about. If anything happens, you’ll be right down the hall. You can be here within seconds. It’ll be fine.”
“Stop reassuring me,” Kallias said. “I should be me reassuring you.”
“Yeah, but someone—cough, cough, Kallias—is a perpetual pessimist,” she teased, “so even when I’m totally fine, I have to assure him I’m not dying.”
“First of all, you’re not totally fine. At all,” Kallias said, scowling at her and suppressing a laugh at the same time, “And second, I’m pretty sure you’re supposed to actually cough when you do that, not just say the word cough.”
“Oh, nice…give the dying girl a hard time!” Rose complained.
He rolled his eyes. “I thought you said that you weren’t dying.”
She smiled. “Context is everything.”
He shook his head at her and stood, towering above the bed. His brown eyes flashed with worry again. “Are you sure that you’ll be okay while I’m gone?”
“I’m fine,” she promised. “The worst is over, I think.”
“Promise me that you’ll stay in bed,” Kallias said, his brows furrowing.
“I was actually thinking about doing aerobics…and yoga…and running a marathon,” Rose said sarcastically, “even though I can’t even lift my hand.”
Kallias turned to look at her when he reached the door, his hand on the doorknob. “It’s nice to know that even deadly injuries can’t stop your sarcasm.”
“Give me sarcasm, or give me death!” Rose exclaimed dramatically.
Kallias shot a disapproving scowl at her before leaving the room.
—
Erik approached the vampire slowly, watching as the thin, brunette man knelt over a human’s corpse and sliced two jagged holes in the human’s neck. “So, that’s why none of the victim’s bite marks have healed,” he realized, raising his eyebrow at the vampire. “They’re not really bite marks. Well, not anymore.”
The vampire rose to his feet, his brown eyes narrowing suspiciously at Erik. “Who are you?” he asked, sweeping his gaze up and down Erik’s body.
“Erik Olafsson,” Erik answered. He grinned as the man’s eyes widened at the mention of his name. “I’m sure your psychotic boss has mentioned me.”
Impressively, the man’s eyes widened even more, practically bulging out of his head. He looked past Erik, as if he were looking at someone behind Erik.
Erik felt a cold wave of dread wash over him. “Who are you looking at?” he asked pointlessly. Because as he asked it, he turned around and saw her.
“Psychotic?” Alana scolded. “That’s what you call the love of your life?”
“That’s my nice name for you,” Erik said bitterly.
Alana leaned against the brick wall behind her, the outer wall of a four-story apartment building. Tonight, she wore a lacy, white dress that hugged her thin figure, with long, lace sleeves covering her arms, and absolutely nothing covering her legs. Her dark blue eyes watched him, sparkling with amusement, and her pale blonde hair spilled over her shoulder, almost as white as the dress. She tapped an uneven rhythm against the wall with her long, glossy fingernails.
“How long have you been there?” Erik asked after a long moment.
“The entire time,” she said with a seductive smile, “but you didn’t see me…because I was controlling your mind…preventing you from noticing me.”
Erik nodded, frustrated by how easily she could manipulate him. “How many times have you done that,” he asked, “in the last twelve hundred years?”
Alana smiled. “More times than I can count,” she bragged.
Erik dragged his hand through his wavy, blonde hair. “All of these years, I thought I was free from you, but you were watching me, stalking me…”
“Of course,” Alana said happily, almost innocently. “I love you.”
He sighed, “That’s not…love, Alana.”
Her brows furrowed. “What do you mean? Of course it’s love.”
“Never mind,” Erik said. “I was hoping that you and I could talk.”
Alana stepped away from the wall, her white, high-heeled shoes clicking against the pavement as she approached him. “I noticed that you’re alone.”
He nodded. “I figured you would prefer me that way.”
She giggled at that. “I do,” she assured him. She glanced past him, at the brown-haired vampire who stood by, watching them. “What are you waiting for, you idiot?” she growled at the man. “I want to be alone with my boyfriend.”
The man turned about three shades paler and immediately fled the alley.
Alana rolled her eyes. “It’s hard to find good help these days.”
“That’s what you get for trying to replace me,” Erik said with a grin.
She looked up at him, her dark blue eyes sparkling in the moonlight. She reached up and traced his clean-shaven jaw with her forefinger. “Oh, Erik. I could never replace you,” she murmured, leaning forward on her toes to kiss him. He bent down and returned the kiss, relishing the feel of her soft, wet lips against his. She smiled at him as she pulled back. “Is anyone looking for you?”
“No,” Erik assured her. “Kallias has other things to worry about.”
Alana’s smile widened. “Do you want to come back to my place?”
Erik stepped back, offered her his most charming smile, and then, swept his arm out in a melodramatic yet chivalrous motion. “Lead the way, my lady.”
Alana giggled, “Still charming, aren’t you?”
18
More Than Infatuation
Rose’s consciousness continued to fade in and out, and she could feel, instinctually, that her condition was getting worse, not better. When she awoke a second time that night, the first thing that she noticed was the unbearable pain that burned throughou
t her body, like knives in her chest and fire in her veins. The second thing she noticed was the set of piercing blue eyes that watched her.
Kara sat on the edge of the other bed, leaning back lazily on her hands, her blue-and-black hair flowing over her right shoulder, as she stared at Rose. She wore an extremely thin leather jacket that hung open over a skintight black shirt that clung to her muscles, and as always, she wore a pair of skintight, black leather pants that molded to every slight curve of her lean hips and legs. She looked prepared to go out into the cold night, and yet, instead, she lounged on the bed, watching Rose with those intense, cornflower-blue eyes of hers.
“Kara,” Rose rasped, the pain leaving her voice strained and hoarse. She tried—and failed miserably—to push herself into a sitting position. “What are…”
Before she could finish her sentence, Kara raced to her side, pressing gently on her shoulder to hold her still. “Don’t. You’ll worsen your injuries.”
Rose stared up at her. “What are you doing in here?”
Kara tilted her head to the side, her sleek, blue-and-black hair falling over her shoulder. The lines of her face smoothed, and her icy blue eyes softened with affection. “You’re beautiful,” she murmured. “Do you know that?”
The sudden compliment and the unusual softness in Kara’s expression stunned Rose so much that it took her almost a full minute to respond. “Yeah, right,” she scoffed, laughing nervously. “I’m practically on my deathbed.”
“Yeah,” Kara agreed. “Your skin is bluish-gray. You have dark circles beneath your eyes. Your lips are as pale as your skin. And…you’re still beautiful.”
Rose stared up at Kara, blinking slowly, as a warmth unfurled through her body, a pleasant warmth, a warmth completely unrelated to the severe fever that currently plagued her body. “I…” she trailed off, unable to voice a response.
“Listen,” Kara sighed, “I need to apologize for leaving last night.”
“No, you don’t,” Rose said, frowning. “You didn’t have a choice.”
“I did have a choice,” Kara argued. “I could have told Aaron no. Or I could have done what he asked and then come back to the room afterward.”
“There was a lot of blood,” Rose said. “You would’ve been miserable.”
Kara shook her head. “While yes, that much blood was certainly difficult to be around, especially considering it was your blood and I’m attracted to you…”
“You are?” Rose interrupted, her cheeks reddening.
“The blood wasn’t the only reason that I stayed away,” Kara finished.
Rose watched her curiously. “Well, then, what was the other reason?”
Kara’s fingers seemed to act of their own accord, her fingertips gently gliding over the bare skin of Rose’s shoulder, raising chill bumps on the pale, sensitive skin, soothing the aches that throbbed in every muscle of Rose’s body. Rose’s eyes fluttered closed as Kara’s featherlight touch affected her on a level she didn’t understand. “You were in so much pain,” Kara sighed, “and you were so weak. I couldn’t watch you suffer like that. I couldn’t watch you…die.”
Rose opened her eyes, her mouth falling open in surprise. “Kara…”
Kara forced a fake, pained smile. “But I think I can make it up to you.”
“You don’t need to make anything up to me,” Rose assured her, her brows furrowing. “You didn’t do anything wrong. You had every right to leave.”
“Regardless,” Kara said, licking her lips, “I brought someone for you.’
“S-someone?” Rose stuttered, glancing around the empty room.
Kara smiled. “She’s waiting in the hallway with Elise.”
“Um…when you say that you brought someone for me,” Rose sputtered, her brows creasing with worry, “what exactly do you mean by that?”
Kara laughed softly. “Nothing like that,” she assured her. “Although…if you want, I do know of a few women who would be more than willing to…”
“Uh, no,” Rose interrupted. “I appreciate the thought, but…no.”
Kara grinned. “I have a human friend who is a doctor. From what I understand, she is at the top of her field. And…she knows about us—vampires.”
“When you say human friend, you mean an ex-girlfriend,” Rose assumed.
Kara shrugged. “If you want to call her that.”
“You fed from her,” Rose said. “That’s why she knows about us?”
“That, and she’s been bound to me once or twice,” she confirmed sheepishly. “Anyway, I snuck her down here to see you. I think she can help.”
Rose laughed softly, wincing as the laugh caused pain to lance through the sore muscles of her chest and stomach. “You just got into trouble for sneaking us into the Tomb of Blood, and now, you’ve snuck a human in, too?”
Kara shrugged one shoulder. “Aaron knows how I am. If he were going to kill me for it, he would have killed me centuries ago. He needs me too much.”
“What exactly do you think a human doctor can do for me?” Rose asked. “I doubt any human hospitals have experience with injuries like this one.”
Kara smiled. “Let’s find out what she can do, shall we?”
Rose watched nervously as Kara turned and walked toward the door. Kara pulled the door open and ducked her head through the opening. A moment later, she stepped back to allow a woman in a long white coat to slip into the room. The woman wore her brown hair short and cropped closely to her head, and she carried an oversized black bag over her shoulder that looked more like a duffel bag than a medical bag. Her brown eyes scanned the room and froze when they landed on Rose. Her eyebrows lifted, and her mouth dropped open.
Kara flashed a knowing smile at the woman. “Like what you see?”
The woman’s face instantly reddened, and she managed to tear her gaze from Rose and shift it toward Kara. “Oh, I’m so sorry. It’s just…you’re all so…”
Kara smiled indulgently at the doctor. “It’s a vampire thing.”
Rose frowned as she watched the doctor approach her. She’d known, of course, that humans found vampires attractive, but Rose still had a hard time believing that any humans would find her so attractive, especially when she had a gaping hole in her chest and was practically dying. And yet, every time the woman glanced up at her, a flush would spread across her cheeks. The woman dropped her heavy bag on the empty part of the bed, and the medical tools inside it clanged together quietly. A hospital badge with the name Dr. Nilsen printed on it hung from the woman’s white coat, swaying back and forth as she moved.
“Hi,” the woman murmured, blushing, as she shifted her gaze back toward Rose. “My name is Liv Nilsen. I’m a physician from one of the local hospitals and a friend of Kara’s. Kara told me about your…predicament.”
Rose glanced questionably at Kara.
Kara leaned casually against the wall behind the doctor, her leg bent and the bottom of one of her boots propped against the wall. “She’s referring to your injury,” she provided, smiling, “and the fact that you’re a vampire, of course.”
The doctor pointed at Rose’s blanket. “Do you mind if take a look?”
Rose blushed. Even though the bandages covered most of her torso, she was still technically half-naked beneath the blanket. She nodded sheepishly.
The doctor stepped forward and gently pulled the blanket to rest around Rose’s legs, beneath the waistband of her blue jeans. Despite the heat that burned beneath Rose’s skin, the air that hit her bare skin sent icy chills through her body. The doctor let out a shocked gasp the moment she saw the soaked bandages. “Sorry,” she mumbled, recovering quickly. “It’s just…a lot of blood.”
“Tell me about it,” Kara muttered, her gaze darkening hungrily.
Rose flashed a weak smile. “Hearts tend to bleed a lot.”
The doctor laughed softly, “I suppose they do.”
Rose watched as the doctor began to gently unravel the bandages around her stomach. The doctor had a nice smil
e, Rose realized, the kind of smile that would make a patient feel safe and cared-for. The doctor’s voice was like that, too, smooth and soft with a thick Norwegian accent. Rose wondered if that was why Kara liked the woman: that beautiful smile and soothing voice.
“Am I hurting you?” the doctor asked as she pulled gently at the bandages covering Rose’s chest, slowly revealing the gruesome wound beneath.
“No, I’m all right,” Rose lied, her voice scratchy and hoarse.
“She’s lying,” Kara told the doctor. “Look at her. She’s almost in tears.”
The doctor glanced up at Rose, her brown eyes softening in concern. “I’m sorry,” she said sincerely. “Breathe deeply, okay? I’m almost finished.”
Rose nodded, tensing as terrible pain tore through her skin.
“Oh my,” the woman breathed as soon as she managed to uncover the gruesome wound. Her eyes widened dramatically. “Vampires can survive this?”
“Not usually,” Kara answered. “Rose is stronger than most.”
“Okay,” the woman sighed, nodding to herself, as if she were reassuring herself that she could handle this. She turned around to look at Kara. “So, you said that the main thing she needs is for her body to be able to focus all of its energy on healing her heart. So, I should address any other issues. Is that right?”
Kara nodded. “Anything that might prevent her from healing.”
“Right,” the woman said. She turned back toward Rose and smoothed the wrinkles in her coat. “Then, first, I need to address this infection.”
Kara straightened, her foot falling to the floor with a loud thump. “Infection?” she repeated, her brows creasing with concern. “Is that bad?”
“You didn’t notice how feverish she is?” the doctor asked as she opened her bag and sifted through the items inside. “Her skin is practically on fire.”
Kara appeared next to the doctor, staring down at Rose with a worried frown. “I noticed that earlier,” she sighed, “but I didn’t think about it, I guess.”
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