Shiela Stewart - [Darkness 03]

by Embracing Darkness (epub)

  Jonah didn’t have a chance to say anything to Basil before he vanished again. “Vamps to your right,” he warned Dante and tried to pull his legs from the car.

  “You’re not going out there, Jonah.” Raven pulled forward and his door swung towards him. It was a good thing he was fast or his foot might have been caught in the door. “Jesus, woman.”

  “Tell your friend to jump in.”

  Shaking his head, he called out to Dante. “Get in.” She came up beside him, slowing enough for him to grab the door handle and yank the door open. Dante jumped in, breathing heavy.

  “Is there another entrance?”

  “Yeah, around back,” Jonah informed her, then held on as she swerved to their left and sped off. “Jesus, Raven, you’re a maniac.”

  “I’m saving our asses.” She made a sharp right around the house then came to an abrupt halt right by the back door.

  “Don’t know who you are but thank you,” Dante said, then rushed from the car and yanked Jonah’s door open. “Come on, man.”

  “Um…” This was a delicate situation he wasn’t sure how to address.

  “I’ve got you,” Raven said, stepping beside Dante, moving in towards Jonah.

  “You’re not carrying me. Get the chair,” Jonah insisted when she reached out to him.

  “We don’t have time.” And ignoring his protests, she hooked her hands under his knees and pulled him from the car. Then she bent down and grabbed hold of his waist and pushed him over her shoulder.

  “What the hell are you doing?” Dante wanted to know.

  “I can’t walk,” Jonah admitted as Raven grunted, struggling to stand with him over her shoulder. “Stop it, Raven, before you hurt yourself.”

  “Seriously, Jonah? You can’t walk?”

  “Seriously. Stop her before she hurts herself.”

  “I’ve got him.” Dante stepped in and grabbed Jonah under the arms. He pressed him to the car, then scooped a hand under his legs and carried him to the door. “Jesus, man. Was it the accident?”

  “Now isn’t the time,” Jonah said, not wanting to get into this discussion right now. Hooking his arms around Dante’s neck, he was more than a little embarrassed at having to be carried by his friend. The instant they entered the house he could smell and see the smoke. He heard sobbing and didn’t recognize the voice to be Trinity’s.

  “Basil,” Dante yelled as he hurried through the house.

  There was debris everywhere, plaster, furniture, glass, and the alarm system Jonah had worked on before he’d been kidnapped was ringing loud and clear.

  “I’ve got the chair,” Raven announced, racing in behind them. “Jesus,” she gasped.

  “Gypsy!”

  “Put me in the chair, Dante.” He knew the guy wanted to go to his woman who was running towards him now. And when Raven nudged him, Dante didn’t waste time putting him down. There wasn’t room for him to wheel around, but at least he wasn’t being carried.

  “What happened? Are you okay?” Dante asked, taking Gypsy into his arms and checking her out.

  “I saw these cars pull up and then a bunch of vamps came out. They started piling something near the front steps. I called Trinity to come look. She was near the door when it blew in. They must have had explosives or something. She’s not responding to Basil. She can’t be dead. Jonah?”

  He nodded. “Yeah, it’s me. Where is she?”

  “Back there. We have to help her. She’s bleeding. Cooper’s checking her out. You’re a vampire?” she said to Jonah.

  “Go, I’ll figure out a way to get there.” He waved them on, then turned to Raven. He felt no need to acknowledge Gypsy’s comment. “Think we could get me through all this crap?”

  “I’ll move stuff out of the way as best I can. Explosives? The vampires used explosives? Why would they do that?” Raven asked as she began moving debris out of his way.

  “To kill Trinity and Basil.” He wheeled himself forward while she cleared a path. And then he saw them. Basil was crouched over her, Dante and Gypsy standing beside her, and Cooper was near her head.

  Was she alive?

  “We can’t stay here, Basil. They’ll be coming in here any moment now.” Dante coughed from the heavy smoke in the room.

  “She needs medical aid of which I don’t have.”

  “Let me look at her.” Raven stated as she hurried to Trinity’s side.

  “Who the hell are you?” Basil snapped, leaning protectively over Trinity.

  “She’s with me,” Jonah piped in and all heads turned his way. “Raven’s a nurse, she can help.” Basil eased back to allow her in. “Dante’s right. We can’t stay here for much longer. Those vamps are going to be coming in here momentarily. We could go to the hospital. That’s where we’ve been staying.”

  “She needs medical aid,” Cooper said again and received a nod from Raven.

  “Okay.” Basil gave in and taking hold of Trinity, vanished.

  “What the hell….” Raven gasped, falling forwards.

  “Basil and Trinity have special abilities. I’ll explain it all later but right now we have to boogie.” The flames were dying down which only meant the vamps would be entering soon. If they hadn’t figure out how to come in the back way first. “We can all fit in Raven’s car.” He spun his chair around and saw the first vamp coming towards them. “Shit!”

  “We got this cased,” Gypsy said, grabbing a hunk of wood on the floor and racing towards the vamp. Dante followed grabbing his own weapon from his weapons belt.

  They took out the vamp with no problem, then led the way to the back entrance where they were confronted by another two vamps. Gypsy took one and Dante the other while Raven pushed him to the car.

  “You know a lot of vampires,” Raven stated in a hurried breath as she pushed his wheelchair out the door. Cooper raced ahead of her and opened the passenger side door.

  “Yeah,” Jonah said as Cooper helped him into the car. And now he was one too.

  ***

  They managed to get to the hospital without being followed. He’d explained why Basil and Trinity had special abilities, going over how she’d attained them without going into all the details. She’d taken it in like a trooper, only asking a few questions even though he knew she’d had more. Dante and Gypsy had had their own questions, but he’d only given them the bare minimum.

  Yes, he’d been injured in the accident and therefore couldn’t walk. Yet. Yes, Chaos had held him, and yes, Chaos had turned him and Raven had saved him. But that was as far as he wanted to go.

  They’d left the wheelchair behind, so when they arrived at the hospital, Raven had to run and get another one. The instant they entered the hospital, Basil was waiting for them.

  “About time you got here.”

  “We don’t have your abilities, sir,” Cooper reminded him, rushing to Trinity’s aid. “Your assistance, ma’am?” he asked of Raven.

  “You got it. Let’s get her into a room. This way.” She held her hand out to the triage rooms and Basil followed with Trinity in his arms.

  Jonah held back with Gypsy and Dante while the other three took care of Trinity. “I can’t lose her again.”

  Dante laid a hand on his shoulder, gave it a squeeze. “I know.”

  ***

  While Basil laid Trinity on the bed, Raven got the supplies together that they would need. Trinity had contusions and would most likely need some stitches. Self dissolving would be best given the fact that she was a vampire and healed quicker.

  “Are you a doctor? I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name.”

  “Cooper, and I was in the medical field a long time ago. I have plenty of medical knowledge, not to worry. I’m going to check her for internal injuries,” he informed Basil who was hovering right by her side.

/>   “Okay.” But he didn’t let go of her hand.

  Raven could see the love in this gorgeous dark haired blue eyed man and envied it just a little. “We’ll take excellent care of her,” she reassured him.

  Cooper began the exam by placing his hands on her rib cage then slowly feeling his way down. “She might have some cracked ribs but I can’t be sure without an X-ray.”

  “Do you know how to run one?” Raven asked as she dabbed at the cuts on Trinity’s face.

  “No, but I’m sure I could figure it out.” Cooper grabbed the stethoscope Raven had placed on the tray table along with her swabs and antiseptic. As he put them to his ears, he listened to her heart, frowning a little as he moved it down to her chest, then to her belly. His head tilted then he shifted it a little and continued to listen.

  “What?” Basil wanted to know.

  “Does she have internal bleeding?” Raven asked.

  Cooper pulled the stethoscope away and swung it around his neck. “I’d like to perform a sonogram.”

  That she knew how to run. “We have a portable in the back. I’ll get it.” She hurried from the room, stopping briefly to give everyone a brief rundown of what was going on before hurrying to get the machine. When she came back, Basil was holding Cooper by the shirtfront and looking extremely dangerous. His teeth were bared and if she wasn’t mistaken, his blue eyes were glowing.

  “I just need to check her internal organs, Basil. Just to be sure.” Cooper clamped onto Basil’s hands and pried them from his shirt. Giving it a stiff yank, he turned to Raven. “Can you work this?”

  She set the hand held machine on the bed. “You bet. I do it all the time.” And she got busy setting it up while Cooper prepared Trinity’s belly. She placed the transducer on Trinity’s belly then looked at the screen.

  “Scan the uterus.”

  She looked up at Cooper, then did as he asked. She shifted the device then heard it before it came to view. “That’s a heartbeat.”

  “As I suspected.”

  “She’s pregnant!” Raven said as she leaned in closer to the screen to get a better look. There it was, a tiny little peanut with tiny arms, legs, a head complete with eyes and ears. The heart was pattering beneath its chest in its quick flutter. From what she could tell, the fetus was approximately seven to eight weeks old.

  “What?” Basil turned to Cooper. “She’s pregnant?”

  “Yes. And from the looks of it, she’s several weeks along,” Cooper informed him.

  “I’d say about eight weeks. Congratulations.” Raven smiled up at Basil.

  “Eight weeks? She was pregnant when she died? How is that possible?”

  Cooper turned to him, placing one hand on Basil’s arm.

  “Vampire gestation isn’t the same as a human’s, remember. Just as we don’t age as humans do. It’s possible she got pregnant right after she returned.”

  “She’s pregnant,” Basil said again, then leaned down to kiss her head. “Did you hear that, love? You’re pregnant.”

  Her eyes fluttered open, closed then fluttered open again. “Basil?”

  “Yes my love, I’m here.” He stroked her face lovingly.

  “Is everyone okay?”

  He laughed and kissed her cheek. “Everyone is fine. How do you feel?”

  “Sore. What did you say about being pregnant?”

  “You’re with child, my love. We’re going to have a baby.”

  “Okay.” Then she drifted off to sleep.

  “Trinity!”

  “She just needs rest, Basil. She’s fine. No internal injuries aside from a few bruised ribs. She’ll be fine,” Cooper reassured with a hand on Basil’s shoulder.

  Raven left them to fill the others in on Trinity’s progress. She envied the love between Basil, Trinity, and Cooper. That was a family, and she so missed having her own.

  “How is she?” Jonah asked the instant she came into the waiting room.

  “She’s doing fine. No major injuries aside from a few contusions and possibly a few cracked ribs. Cooper is still assessing her but I thought I would come in and let you know that she’s okay. She’s pregnant,” she added lastly and watched Jonah’s eyes widen. She’d been worried about telling him considering…

  “Seriously?”

  She nodded. “Yeah. About eight weeks though Cooper says a vampire’s gestation period is different than a normal woman’s. She’s asleep right now but I’m sure Basil wouldn’t mind if you went in to see her. I know how worried you are for her.”

  He closed his eyes, hung his head as he replied. “Just knowing she’s good is all I need.” Then he gave his chair a turn and wheeled off.

  She let him go, knowing he needed some time alone.

  ***

  With men all around him, Chaos walked up to the ruins of what had once been the front entrance to Basil’s home. A home that had belonged to the king. The rubble was still smoldering in some places, but Chaos paid no never mind to it as he stepped over it to get inside. The high pitched alarm that rang out was enough to drive a sane person over the edge. Chaos did his best to ignore it. “Can that be shut off?” he asked simply, scanning the ruins. The explosives had done a number on what had once been a fabulous home.

  “No one’s found the source yet.” Fritz advised him.

  Chaos simply nodded. “I take it Trinity and her misfits have escaped?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Chaos’ hands clenched at his sides. “And I suppose no one saw where they headed?”

  “No one saw, sir.”

  Was it too much to ask to have competent help? “Was the purpose to this tactic not to take Trinity and Basil out?”

  “Yes, sir.” Fritz lowered his head.

  “And yet it failed. And to top it off, my idiot men let them waltz right out of here.” Grabbing the first thing in his sights, a chair, Chaos uplifted it and sent it flying across the room. “I want them found. NOW!” he bellowed, making his men cringe.

  “Yes, sir.” Fritz quivered.

  Chaos turned around to the sound of footsteps and saw several of the men who had been captured by Basil and Trinity coming his way. And in that crowd, he saw Daniel.

  “I found them in the dungeon, locked up.” Seamus, one of his men explained enthusiastically.

  “I want a full scale search of the city. No one rests until Trinity and Basil are found.” Having said that, Chaos stepped over the rubble and walked out. His guards still surrounding him. He had nothing to say to the captured men, including Daniel.

  “Chaos, sir, wait up,” Daniel called as he hurried to catch up.

  “I have nothing to say to you, Daniel.”

  “Sir…”

  Chaos stopped and turned on Daniel, narrowing his eyes. “You chose your fate when you went to your brother, after I expressed that you steer clear of him. You went behind my back and met with him and in turn, you were captured. I want nothing to do with you now, Daniel.” Lifting his head, Chaos marched off, leaving Daniel standing gaping in his wake.

  No one disobeyed Chaos.

  Chapter Ten

  In his room, Jonah sat in his chair looking out the window from across the cot that was in his way. There were no street lights on, no lights in any of the houses, and no one moving about. He didn’t even know if it was supposed to be day or night.

  Seeing Trinity lying on the floor, bleeding, had brought back the memories of seeing Ariel on the floor of the car, bleeding, fresh into his mind. He was glad Trinity was safe and feared that is she hadn’t been, he might just have gone completely over the edge. He was grateful she was alive and doing well.

  Jonah wasn’t sure how he felt about her being pregnant.

  If Ariel had survived, their children would have been born close together. Would seeing Trinit
y’s child always remind him of what he’d lost? He worried it would.

  He heard the door open but didn’t; turn. He didn’t have to for him to know who had entered. He knew it was Raven the instant she entered simply from her scent.

  “Are you okay?

  “Is everyone staying here tonight or going back to the Castle?” He didn’t want to reply because truly, he didn’t feel all right.

  “They’ve decided it’s best to stay here.” She turned him around and knelt down at his feet. “I knew when you found out your friend was pregnant that it would hurt. I’m sorry.”

  She was always so kind, so sympathetic and right now he was feeling really vulnerable. “Am I a bad friend if I just can’t find it in me to be happy for her right now?”

  She took his hands in hers and shook her head. “You’re still grieving for something you will never have and knowing your friend will, hurts. It’s understandable.”

  “We’d been trying for so long to get pregnant, and when we finally succeeded, it was taken away in a snap. I am so damn angry about it.” He couldn’t hold it in any longer and let the sorrow flow. His eyes burnt with the tears and all he wanted to do was curl up in a ball and will himself away.

  When Raven climbed onto his lap, he instantly went into her arms and leaned his cheek on her breast while she stroked his hair. He held onto her letting the tears flowed, as the pain he felt inside came crashing down. She placed her cheek on his head and simply let him cry. He felt safe, warm, and comforted. And it helped having her there to lean on.

  She kissed his head then looked down at him, wiping his face dry. “Feel better?”

  He sniffled, nodding. “What would I do without you?” He smiled in weak attempt at humor.

  Smiling, she lifted his face then leaned down and kissed him right on the lips.

  He was too shocked to do anything but reciprocate. It was only a light and very brief kiss, but he felt it deep within his core. And when she pulled away all he could do was smile back.