Blood Cure

by K. A. Linde

  At the time, she hadn’t known that was a good thing. She’d felt like prey trapped in a predator’s gaze.

  Maybe she still was.

  But now…she liked it.

  “I estimated you at six miles away from me when I sensed you in the city the day you came to get Jodie.”

  Reyna’s jaw dropped. “Six miles?”

  “I thought it might be because of the extreme situation I was in, but I’ve confirmed it.”

  “When did you do that?” she gasped.

  “While you were sleeping.”

  “It’s been snowing since we got back. You drove six miles away in this snow without anyone knowing?”

  “Ran.”

  Reyna’s eyes doubled in size. “Through the snow.”

  He nodded once.

  “And really, six miles? How long does that take you?”

  He grinned and lifted an eyebrow as if to say, Wouldn’t you like to know. Secrets, secrets.

  “I always topped out around six miles. We could stretch that, but I think our time would be better spent figuring out if there are other things we can do. Other advantages we have.”

  “I have a thought about that,” Reyna said. “When we walked into the safe house, I was worried. But I noticed how calm and in control you were. I wanted to feel that way and I kind of just…did. I don’t know if I did it because we’re connected, but it was like I tuned in to you.”

  “I noticed that.”

  “What are you feeling right now?”

  He arched his eyebrow. “You tell me.”

  Reyna gritted her teeth and concentrated. She hadn’t really done anything when it had happened last time. She had just wanted to feel Beckham’s confidence and she had. She’d wanted to be able to weather the storm and she had. She’d slipped right into it like pulling on her boots.

  She assessed him. He looked calm. Not a bit nervous that she wouldn’t be able to do it. The opposite of how she felt.

  Mostly she felt like an idiot. When she could feel him across a crowded room, it wasn’t like she was looking for him. It was like he was just there. She knew precisely where he was. She simply had to think about it and he was there. No process to it at all.

  Still, she tried reaching out with her mind and feeling for his emotions. She tried to nudge against what made Beckham Beckham. Which mostly meant standing there and staring at him in deep concentration, and nothing happened.

  She blew out a heavy breath. “Epic fail. There’s nothing. Maybe it was a fluke. Maybe I just was calmer and more confident because you were there.”

  “I feel nothing from you. Though I can see frustration written on your face.”

  “Well, yeah.”

  “Again.”

  And again. And again. And again.

  Nothing.

  She tried every way they could think of. She could sense him standing there. Could count every breath. Knew when he opened and closed his eyes. Could tell where he was standing in the room with her back turned and her eyes closed. But reaching beyond that was an exercise in futility.

  Beckham was there.

  He was standing right there.

  But he was a blank slate. As ever.

  And she was as equally mystifying to him.

  They moved on to trying to mind reading. Reyna was excited about this one. Not that she wanted Beckham in her head, but she wouldn’t mind unraveling some of his greater mysteries. But all they ended up doing was staring at each other for long stretches of time and asking, “What am I thinking now?”

  “You want to eat lunch,” Beckham said.

  “Yes!” Reyna shouted. She jumped in the air in excitement. “You got it. You finally got it.”

  “Your stomach grumbled.”

  She sank back into the chair. “I’m so transparent. You don’t need to read my mind.”

  “At times.”

  “And you’re so closed off, I’d probably get to read your mind and find locked filing cabinets inside.”

  Beckham’s lips curved on one side in amusement. She knew that was his way of saying Of course you would.

  “We should break for lunch. You need to keep your strength up.”

  “Me?” she asked. “Look at you.”

  He tilted his head to the side. “Are you suggesting I’m not strong?”

  “I’m suggesting you’re still not a hundred percent and need to eat more.”

  His expression said I can take care of myself.

  “I don’t need to read your mind or grasp your feelings to know that you are still recovering. The little bit that you drank from me last week is nothing, Becks. We both know blood packets aren’t enough. Maybe this isn’t working because you’re flagging.”

  Beckham snapped his eyes to hers. “Flagging?”

  “Yeah.”

  His nostrils flared. “Are you trying to pick a fight with me?”

  Reyna’s lips quirked. “Yes.”

  “Explain.”

  “I thought I’d see if heightened emotions worked. But yeah…no luck.”

  He shook his head and rummaged through a bag that Reyna had completely ignored since they’d gotten there. It was full of food. She ate in silence, trying to figure out what the fuck they were doing wrong.

  They spent hours staring at each other, boosting emotions and fighting, trying to get a reaction to make the powers work. When she opened herself up to sensing him, it was there. But beyond that was a brick wall of nothing. A wall of air that separated her from him. Imaginary and frustrating as fuck.

  Somehow it was worse than exercising. She was warm in the one room and felt none of the calm thinking power that Beckham had claimed the cabin gave him once upon a time.

  All she felt was frustrated, achy, and tired.

  “Maybe we can’t do anything else,” she suggested.

  “Perhaps.”

  “This is all a waste of time. There are other things we could be doing.”

  Beckham shrugged one shoulder.

  “Aren’t you annoyed?”

  “This was an experiment. As valid as any other.”

  “Ugh!” Reyna grumbled. “Let’s try again tomorrow or something, because I’m tapped out.”

  “I think we should keep—”

  “I’m human, all right? I have limits.”

  Reyna couldn’t help it. Her frustration was getting to her. She’d thought this would be an easy endeavor. That she’d just magically be good at it, whatever it was. Like they’d been with sensing. But if she was capable of more, it wasn’t going to come easy. Not by a long shot.

  “We don’t have much time.”

  “I know,” she said with a sigh.

  She turned and there he was. In her awareness, she’d walked right into his arms. They wrapped tight around her body, pulling her against him. She melted into the embrace. He held her as if she was adored, cared for, loved.

  She knew that her annoyance and frustration wasn’t actually directed at him. That it shouldn’t even be there. But she’d felt so useless for so long that sometimes it just exploded out of her. She loved that he knew what she needed.

  His hands splayed across her back. She felt the urgency in his movements. And suddenly all the pent-up energy exploded between them.

  Beckham pushed her back against the wooden cabin wall. He grabbed her hands and pinned them high above her head. Then captured her lips in a searing kiss. Her head spun with the intensity, the swift change of emotions.

  “I need you,” he growled into her mouth.

  “Yes,” she gasped.

  He fumbled her jeans down and tore her panties off. He inhaled deeply at the strong scent of her arousal. He freed himself from his pants. She watched him stroke himself once, twice, three times, mesmerized. She wet her lips and he presse
d forward to kiss her again.

  His hands moved to the backs of her thighs and lifted her clean into the air. Her legs wrapped around his waist. Her hands left the cabin wall to fall to his shoulders. She felt his cock hard against her opening. She groaned in anticipation, wiggling her hips to try to tempt him inside.

  But he held her hips steady and plunged into her when he was ready. Her head fell back against the wooden wall. She saw stars. This was pure perfection. Everything about it was wonderful and overwhelmingly perfect. She loved Beckham so much. And the way their bodies connected over and over again. Deep, hard, and unyielding.

  An ache was building inside her. Starting in her core and moving out to her fingers and toes. Waves crashing within her.

  Her eyes met his. She saw the same desire mirrored on his face. The same devotion and love. Then she turned her head to the side and directed his eyes to her neck.

  She heard his sharp intake of breath. Felt the brush of a kiss over the artery. Her blood pumped energetically through her veins with the tempo of his vigorous fucking. Then she felt his fangs pierce her skin.

  She gripped his shoulders as ecstasy shattered through her. She cried out in pleasure as her orgasm rushed through her body. Between his fangs in her neck and his cock in her pussy, she was a goner.

  “Oh fuck,” she groaned.

  Beckham came a few thrusts later, roaring with pleasure as he released her neck and tilted his head back.

  Her heart was thrumming violently. Her body rushed through with all the adrenaline and vamp venom. She felt alive. Alive and refreshed. Yet somehow exhausted.

  And still so madly in love. Not just the love that she felt for Beckham…but the love he felt for her.

  Their eyes flashed together. Here it was. Deep, undeniable, incredible, masterful love. Impossible and euphoric love. Hopeless, happy, desperate, perfect love.

  She felt it all. Took it from him and gave him her own.

  “Do you feel that?” he gasped out.

  “You love me,” she whispered.

  “I love you.” Beckham’s eyes were wide with wonder. As if he couldn’t fathom all the emotions ripping through him. “And you feel…so deeply.”

  She grinned. “Yes.”

  Beckham kissed her again through his awe. They had time for hypotheses later. Right now they were feeling the full depth of love for the first time. And neither wanted to move from the moment.

  Chapter 15

  “You’re saying that you could actually feel Beckham’s emotions?” Washington asked. He was rubbing his hands together and looked giddy. “Not just an increase in your own emotions but distinguished your emotions from his?”

  “Yes,” Reyna said. “It was definitely different.”

  “What triggered this?”

  A blush crept up her neck and onto her cheeks.

  “Oh!” Washington said. “I see.”

  “Also blood,” Reyna added. “He drank my blood.”

  “Good. He needs to. Where is he anyway?”

  Reyna waved her hand. “Preparing. Do you have any theories about this? Do you think it’s the blood? Does it mean when he drinks my blood it’s amplified?”

  “It’s possible. But of course many things are possible in this scenario.”

  “Yeah. I mean…the first time he sensed me was when Penny was having her mayoral banquet. He hadn’t drank my blood in months at that time.”

  “But you also weren’t that far away either.”

  “True.”

  “So, perhaps the blood does act as an amplifier. It also could be that your relationship itself amplifies the abilities you’re developing.”

  “A blood amplifier,” she mused softly.

  “I’ve been investigating your blood match and how you each react to the other. It’s quite extraordinary. Most blood when combined…think about it like a blood transfusion. It either accepts the blood as the correct type or it rejects it. As you know, the correct blood type between a human and a vampire is important because it allows us to retain human consciousness. Some of us have the preternatural ability to do so already, but many of my kind were brutal murderers and the more who were made, the harder it was to conceal them.” He tsked in frustration. “The interesting thing about your blood is that when the blood is combined, it neither accepts nor rejects the other.”

  “How is that possible?”

  “The blood is perfectly matched but instead of assimilating, it links.”

  “Links?” Reyna asked with a bewildered expression.

  “Yes. One of your red blood cells attaches itself to one of his red blood cells. It creates entirely different blood.”

  “But what does that mean? What are the implications of it?”

  “I’ve only had it a short while. I’m still amazed that this is even happening.”

  Now Reyna understood the giddiness. Washington was discovering an entirely new form of blood. He was on the way to a breakthrough in modern hematology.

  “Do you think that our blood connecting in that way is part of the reason we can sense each other?”

  “It’s a distinct possibility.”

  Reyna’s head turned toward the door before Beckham walked through it. It was a little freaky actually knowing exactly where he was without even knowing she knew.

  He tilted his head to the side. She nodded, then he disappeared once more.

  “Extraordinary. You actually knew he was there before he entered, didn’t you?”

  “Yeah. I did.” She hopped up from the stool she’d been sitting on. “Thanks again.”

  Reyna left Washington in the laboratory with his experiments. Her mind was still filtering through all the information she’d learned. A blood amplified. That was…intense. It meant Beckham was going to have to drink a lot more of her blood to test this out. She didn’t think he’d be thrilled with that.

  Reyna pulled on her heavy winter clothing and then met Beckham at the back door. Zoya was discussing something with him in a low tone.

  “Everything all right?” Reyna asked.

  “We’re ready to go,” Beckham said.

  “Sir,” Zoya said.

  “Just be careful.”

  Zoya nodded her head once.

  Reyna followed Beckham out into the cold. “Are you upset that they’re going to go check the camps?”

  “No. My circle is perfectly capable.”

  “But you don’t like that Jodie and Meghan and Tye are going with them?”

  Beckham arched an eyebrow. “Just get in the car.”

  “They’ll be fine. My circle is perfectly capable too. They’re just taking some pictures. Why are you so tense?”

  Beckham turned and faced her fully. She nearly ran into him. He caught her by the shoulders and then tilted her chin up. “Tense is in my nature. You should calm down.”

  Reyna released a deep breath. “Okay.”

  Beckham opened the door to the van and nodded his head. She rolled her eyes at him then climbed inside. The engine was already running and Gerard sat in the driver’s seat. Reyna crawled into the backseat and was surprised to find Gabe seated there already.

  “Hey,” he said with a wink.

  Beckham hopped into the passenger seat. “What is he doing here?” he asked Gerard.

  “Making contact with someone I think can help,” Gabe said. “Plus, if I was in that house another fucking minute I’d go insane.”

  “Who is this contact?” Beckham asked.

  Gabe shook his head. “It’s a guy who knows a guy. Last resort kind of person. He’s the one you go to if you want information, and we need more information on Harrington. If anyone knows, it’s him.”

  “Okay, let’s get moving,” Reyna said. She knew that Beckham and Gabe didn’t get along, and they just needed to get into the city.
>
  They pulled away from the mansion on the hill and down the road, which had been shoveled all the way to the gate and beyond. Reyna did not want to know whose unfortunate job that had been.

  “We should move into the city. This driving an hour to do anything fucking blows,” Gabe grumbled. “You’re a bajillionaire, right, Beckham? Don’t you have somewhere we can hide out?”

  “If I had a place like that, we would already be there,” he said calmly. He pulled out a cellphone and started typing away at it. Just like old times.

  Gabe grumbled under his breath. She heard a few choice curse words, but he dropped the subject.

  The rest of the drive was mercifully silent. Gerard dropped Gabe off first, a few blocks away from his club, Ferrier House, which was a human nightclub and fighting ring. It also dealt in drugs and had for a while been a black market blood bank. Being head of the Irish mob had its perks.

  Beckham slid his phone into his pocket, relief evident now that Gabe was gone.

  She leaned back and closed her eyes. She wondered if she could sense that in him. She let it come to her in the way that feeling his presence came to her: gentle and effortless. There he was, sitting right in front of her. His emotions were locked down, but ringed with fading annoyance. She was right. He still didn’t trust Gabe.

  Reyna got lost in the feeling. She knew how Beckham felt about her. Believed him when he said he loved her. This was what he never unleashed. It felt like she was swimming in even the smallest emotional feeling.

  A hand brushed against her knee. Her eyes jerked open. She’d been so lost in his emotions that she hadn’t even sensed him tuning in to her.

  “Don’t do that,” he said harshly.

  Reyna retreated.

  “Not here.”

  Reyna nodded. She put her own emotions away and locked them up in a filing cabinet like Beckham did. It was better to hold on to Beckham’s calm and confidence.

  Gerard parked the car on a slushy street. The city had plowed and de-iced the roads. Businesses were open. Things were returning to normal. It felt so distant from the country, where they’d been residing.