The Kingdom Journals Complete Series Box Set

by Tricia Copeland

“Okay, so if this one doesn’t work, we try another.”

  Pushing back from the table, she spun in her seat. I followed her back to the infirmary where she insisted that they order the other five chelating compositions.

  “These aren’t cheap medications,” the doctor told her.

  “I have to have my magic, order them.” Turning on her heels, she strode from the room.

  “Sorry, she’s a little on edge.” I jogged to her retreating form. “Hey. Everything’s going to be okay. We’ll figure this out.”

  “And what if we don’t?”

  “We will.” I forced her to face me. “You need a distraction. Let’s take a walk through the gardens.”

  “I need a good hard run or a plate of chocolate.”

  “I don’t think a run is good for you right now, but I’m sure we could scrounge up some chocolate.”

  “The walk will do.” She rolled her eyes.

  Janine and I kept her occupied. We strolled through the sunrooms and into the aviary. We read by the pool and soaked in the hot tub. I figured it wouldn’t be a good idea to rub everyone’s training in her face, so I avoided the gyms. The next morning, she beat me to the infirmary.

  “It didn’t work. We need to try the next chelating agent.” I heard Camille speaking to the doctor as I entered the medical ward.

  “I don’t want to tax your system. These drugs can cause kidney damage,” the doctor insisted.

  “I’ll get vampire blood, anything, just give me the next one. You got it, right?” She jumped up onto the exam table and turned over her arm.

  “Yes, but…” The doctor’s eyes cut to me.

  “I’ll donate my blood. Does she need it intravenously?”

  “No, she’ll need to drink it.”

  Camille’s nose scrunched up, but not a second later, she jutted her chin out. “Fine, I can do that.”

  “I’ll—” I wasn’t sure how to proceed.

  “Greta will help you.” The doctor cocked her head to the woman across the room.

  Greta injected a needle into my vein and drew a pint of blood while the doctor inserted the IV for Camille’s meds. Once she drank the blood, and took the vitamins, the doctor started the chelation IV drip.

  “You’ve got to stay healthy,” I told Camille once the doctor left.

  “Camille,” Janine’s eyes pleaded with her, “please, be smart, there’s no rush.”

  “I need my magic back. What if they did something that is irreversible?”

  I stared into her eyes. “Between all the brilliant, supernatural minds here, we’ll find something.”

  “What is everyone else up to?” Camille asked.

  As we waited for her IV bag to empty, I reviewed how Tyler and Grady were training together, and Alena and Hunter studied the compound’s layout to look for weaknesses.

  “Are my eyes getting lighter?” She widened her lids and leaned towards me after an hour.

  “The bag’s only half empty. The doctor said it could take a day for the medicine to spread through your whole system.”

  She slumped back against the cushion. “That means no.”

  “We’ll figure it out.” I laid my hand on hers.

  After the treatment, we ate a big brunch and settled in the library to study spells.

  “You probably should be training with the others,” she noted as I picked up a third book.

  “I’ll run later.” I’d waited till she went to sleep the previous night to go to the gym.

  My days had taken on a rigid schedule. In order to ward off the dreams, I worked my body to exhaustion in the evenings and woke early in the morning. The kitchens were stocked with human blood, and no one except Camille questioned me drinking it. When she asked, I told her all the vampires had made it a regular item in their diets, and I figured I should stay strong too.

  Camille’s leg bounced beside me, refocusing me on her problem. “You’re a patient person.”

  I shrugged. “When it comes to you.”

  “So, what do you feel impatient about?”

  “Waiting to hear if we can use Marcus to get information to my Dad.”

  “You should call Anne yourself.”

  “You think so?”

  “Yes. It’s your dad.”

  We spent the day as we had the last. By nightfall it became obvious the chelation treatment had failed again. I’d been so sure of the outcome, it took me by surprise that she was facing this hurdle. Camille seemed in good spirits, and I tried to follow suit. The next morning when we entered the medical ward, the doctor insisted on testing Camille’s kidney function before giving her another chelation drug.

  “Your labs still look fine,” the doctor reported an hour later.

  “See!” Camille told her. “The vampire blood is working. I’m good to try another.”

  “Are you doing anything to keep up your stamina?” the doctor asked when she hooked me up to an IV.

  “I’ve been drinking human blood and taking vitamins.”

  “Good enough for me.” She inserted my IV needle and then turned to Camille. “Give him a few minutes. I want you to be in tip-top shape before we start the drug.”

  Camille amused me with stories of her childhood antics. I grew sure that they were more for her benefit than mine, as her eyes never strayed from my face. As I watched the blood flow through the tube to the bag, and her smell wafted to me, I remembered the sweet taste of her blood. Thinking I might be the most perverted person on the planet, I shook my head.

  “What are you thinking?” Camille cocked her head.

  “That I love you.” I mentally slapped myself for not being able to come up with anything better.

  She rolled her eyes. “You’re going to tell me you love me in an infirmary.”

  “I’ve told you I loved you a thousand times.”

  “More like ten.”

  “Really? I’m sorry.” I tucked her hair behind her ear and lifted her chin to meet her eyes. “I love you.”

  “I love you too, and I’m sorry.” She kissed my hand. “It’s my fault I’m in this mess. If I’d listened—”

  “Hey.” I ran my finger down her arm and clutched her hand. “No regrets. Everyone’s safe now.”

  “Except your dad, and I don’t have any magic.”

  “We’ll fix it.”

  Tears formed in her eyes. “What if we can’t?”

  “We will.” I squeezed her hand and pulled her to me, kissing her. Her lips were soft and warm, her skin smelled of honey, and I wished we were alone.

  The sound of someone clearing their throat erupted from behind Camille. “Do you want to donate all your blood?”

  Camille’s faced turned blood red as she backed away. “Yeah.” She cleared her throat. “Don’t give too much.”

  “I’m fine.” I winked at Camille as Greta approached.

  Camille returned to her exam table as Greta lifted the bag of blood from the table. “I told you to come get me when it reached this line.”

  “Sorry, I got distracted.”

  “Oh, I could see that lover boy. I guess your girl over there will have some extra juice today.” She put a cotton ball to my arm and slid the needle out. She retreated to find a Styrofoam cup for the blood.

  I crossed the aisle to sit next to Camille. “Do you think it would be better chilled?”

  “It’s better to get it down fast.” She crinkled her nose, and I wondered how one person could be so sexy and cute at the same time. I would never tire of looking at her face, black eyes and all.

  She picked up a lock of her hair. “Do you like it darker?”

  I shrugged. “It doesn’t matter to me. I’ll always think you’re beautiful.”

  “Always is a bold statement for a seventeen-year-old.”

  “It’s true.” I picked up her hand.

  “Okay, no more lovey dovey.” Greta appeared at the foot of Camille’s bed. “This girl needs to drink this so we can start the chelation therapy, take three.”

&nbs
p; I took the cup from Greta and handed it to Camille. While she drank, I poured ice water into a glass. When she’d finished the blood, she took the cup of water and swished her mouth and swallowed the rest.

  “That bad?”

  “I don’t mean to be offensive, but yes.” Camille covered her mouth.

  “No worries.”

  “Okay, let’s get you hooked up.” Greta hooked a fluid-filled bag on an IV pole.

  We read from a spell book I’d brought from the library. When we got to a healing spell, Camille asked about the canaries she’d kept in the castle. With a sigh, I explained how I’d used one to hide my vampire nature from the elders at the initiation ceremony.

  I couldn’t look at her and crossed to the other side of the room. “I’m sorry.”

  “Will you come here?” Camille demanded.

  Eyes aimed at the floor, I approached her. Folding my arms over my chest, I looked into her dark eyes. “I did a lot of things I don’t want you to know about.”

  “Dad told me about the guards.” She tugged at my arm, and I relinquished it to her grasp.

  “When I was younger, I had a lot of rage issues. My anger would come out of nowhere, and I had a hard time controlling it. That’s why I started martial arts. It gave me a way to vent my energy. I hated how the feeling seemed to consume me. Wanting to hurt the people who did this to you, to your dad, brings all that to the surface.” I took her hands. “I will never hurt you or anyone you love.”

  “You think I ever thought you would?”

  “I don’t know. I’m not even sure I can forgive myself for taking those lives.”

  “My dad and I are alive because of you.”

  “The end doesn’t justify the means.”

  “Was there any other way?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Stop.” She lifted my chin so I had to look at her. “I love you. I trust you. It doesn’t matter.”

  “I will always protect you.”

  Greta approached us. “So, what are we thinking? Is it working?”

  I took a step back. Camille looked at me. “Is it?”

  “Remember the doc said it took a while to get through your system.”

  “So, no.” Camille slammed the book shut. “So, we’re zero for three.”

  “There are three more drugs.” Greta’s eyebrows shot up. “We’ll repeat the blood test for kidney function tomorrow. If it still looks good, we can try again.” She unhooked the IV line and slid the needle from Camille’s vein.

  All the praying and hoping couldn’t change the fact that the chelation drugs weren’t working. Over the few days, the color drained from Camille’s cheeks as the drugs took more and more of a toll on her. The doctor had wanted to stop, give her a rest between the treatments, but Camille begged until the doctor caved. On day six, the team gathered around Camille as the last of the final chelating agent drained into her system. I’d held them off for the first five days, but I couldn’t stop the influx when they learned the final drug seemed to have failed.

  “She has to have her magic.” Alena paced the room.

  Hunter grabbed Alena’s shoulders. “Everyone knows that. Rehashing the problem isn’t going to help.”

  “Okay, what will?” Alena approached Camille. “Can we pull the toxins to one spot with magic and drain them out?”

  Orm shook his head. “I tried that.” I can’t get a hold of them.

  “Maybe we need more power. Everyone link hands.” Alena put her hand around Camille’s wrist, and the rest of us linked hands. We started a chant designed to draw out toxins.

  After thirty minutes of the incantation, Camille looked the same.

  “Leeches?” Alena asked, looking to the doctor.

  “We’d have to place them all over her body. They are usually used at the site of a wound. These toxins seem to be widespread. It would be very painful, and I’m not sure it would work.”

  “You have morphine, right? Or some other—”

  “Alena.” Tyler stopped her inquisition. “We’re not putting leeches all over my sister. Look at her, she’s wasting away as it is.”

  “I’m fine.” Camille pulled down the sleeve of her sweatshirt as Greta bandaged the latest IV sight.

  I walked away from her bed, thinking. Turning, I pointed to Orm. “We think they used a fine powder of loadstone, right?”

  “Yes,” he confirmed.

  “And the loadstone is magnetic. We can draw the toxins to a site using a magnet from another loadstone and then drain them. We were wearing bracelets in LA. We have plenty of them.” I ran out the door and down the hall to my room. Finding my bracelet, I jogged back to the infirmary.

  “Why didn’t I think of this before?” I fitted the bracelet on Camille’s arm.

  “Still, we can’t drain all her blood,” Janine commented.

  “We can give her more.” I spun to face the doctor. “You have her type, right?”

  “I have everyone’s type.”

  “Good, get it. Tyler, Grady, bring your bracelets. Maybe a stronger magnetic pull will draw the toxins faster.

  Camille spun the stones on her arm. “Are my eyes light yet?”

  I leaned down to look into her eyes. “Not yet, but this is going to work. It’s the best idea yet.”

  “Let’s hope so.” Alena put her hand to her hip and paced away.

  “Look.” Camille pulled the bracelet away from her skin. A black ring had appeared under where the stones touched her skin. “It’s working.” She flung her arms around me.

  I could have held her forever, but with the room crowded with her mom, dad, and brother, Alena, Hunter, Chalondra, and Orm, I squeezed her shoulders and released her. Greta hooked up a bag of new blood to her right arm and another IV to her left arm to drain the toxic blood. When we fit the additional bracelets on her arm, the veins around them turned black. Minute by minute, the color spread up her arm.

  “My hand feels numb.” Camille lifted her hand and curled and extended her fingers.

  “The toxins are building up in her arm. What if it clogs her veins?” I asked.

  “Perhaps we should use a couple different sites.” The doctor slid two bracelets from her arm and fit one around each ankle.

  “Isn’t it dangerous to draw so much blood at one time?” Janine asked as she prepped two additional puncture sites on her legs.

  “Not if we’re replacing it. At this point it’s like a blood transfusion.” The nurse hung the extra bags.

  “Maybe we could filter her blood instead?” Tyler asked. “Run her blood between the stones.”

  “We already did a transfusion. The toxins are in her cells,” I told him.

  “Right. I forgot how many different medical procedures she’s had in the last three weeks.”

  “It’s working. Give it time, Tyler,” Camille told him.

  “Have you looked in the mirror? You’re wasting away.” He ran his fingers through his hair.

  “When we’ve exhausted every possibility, I’ll stop. You guys should go. I’m fine here.”

  One by one those gathered left until it was just Camille, Janine, me, Greta, and the doctor. They hooked her up to a heart and blood pressure monitor.

  “We should keep studying.” She held up a spell book.

  I forced a smile and took the book from her, opening to the page we left off on.

  Camille wound her hand around mine. “I’m okay. I’m going to be okay.”

  “I know you are.” I took a deep breath.

  Camille sighed. “That was convincing.”

  “I don’t like seeing you like this.”

  She cupped her hand to my cheek. “When this is over, we’ll lay on the beach in the sun for a month.”

  “You promise?”

  “I promise.”

  She reclined on the bed, and I read to her. One, two, three, four hours passed. The others came in one to two at a time to check on her. They hung a new blood bag as each one drained until they’d replaced her blood
with six pints of donor blood.

  “I think we should stop for the day,” the doctor announced mid-afternoon.

  “How are my eyes?” Camille looked wide-eyed at me.

  “I can see a little green.”

  “Please keep going.” She batted her lids at Greta and the doctor.

  “Fine, two more hours. After that I need a break.” The doctor spun and walked from the room.

  “Let’s try to push her to six.” Camille winked at me.

  By six they’d given her eight pints of blood. Deciding it would be a good idea to monitor her overnight, we stayed in the infirmary. Grady and Tyler brought us meals as the night staff trickled in.

  “The red meat should be good for me,” Camille commented as she lifted a bite of steak to her mouth.

  When we’d finished eating, she shoved me off the bed. “You should go work out.”

  “I’m not leaving you.”

  “I think I’m safe with my mom, dad, and brother. You need to stay strong. I know you’ve been working out every night after I go to sleep, so go. That’s an order.” She pointed at me.

  “Fine, but you’ll call me”—I looked to Janine—“if anything happens.”

  “Yes, I will.” Janine held up her phone.

  “Okay, I’m off.”

  I jogged to my room, changed, and headed to the gym. After I warmed up, I started my run. About ten minutes in, Alena joined me.

  “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you without Hunter.”

  “We do stuff apart.” Her nose shriveled up.

  “Okay, just an observation.”

  “How is Camille?”

  “Good, the color is coming back to her eyes. They’re going to do another round tomorrow.”

  She stopped, jutting her arm out to stop my progress. “You shouldn’t give her hope.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “She might not get her magic back even if they can siphon all of the toxins out.”

  “So, I’m guessing you’re more of a glass-half-empty type?” I shook my head and jogged away from her. I wouldn’t believe that there wasn’t some way to get her magic back.

  Alena caught up to me. “I’m a realist.”

  “So, what if she doesn’t get her magic back? Then, no go on the sword thing?”

  “Actually, we’re not sure. This is kind of a wing-it thing.”