Her Warrior for Eternity (13 page)

The breakfast room was at the back corner of the east wing, facing a garden she could see well even in the dark with her sharper eyes. Its decoration came as somewhat of a surprise after the opulent and heavy style in the hallways and Jeremy’s room. The large, airy room was furnished with mid-20th-century modern style in light-coloured wood furniture, sleek and functional. Two long tables dominated the room and she counted that they could seat about sixty people.

“How many are you?”

He shrugged. “It varies. At the moment there’s about fifty of us here.”

Only four men were present at their dinner. Jasper and Nicholas she had already met. She smiled at them and they smiled in return. “You look great,” Nick said.

Jeremy growled. “Keep your distance, boy.” But the other man only grinned.

“Relax, vampire.”

“Is this about the fight still?”

Jeremy looked at her as if he had no idea what she was talking about. Then he nodded. “Kind of, yes.” He guided her to the opposite end of the table from the other men. They exchanged glances, grinned, and moved to their end too.

“She has to learn,” one of the men said in a deep, resonant voice.

Jeremy introduced him. “This is Marcus Hamilton. He’s Lord Foley’s great-great-great-great-grandson, but his sons generally refer to him as cousin, because he’s the same age as Gabriel, Foley’s First Son.”

He was a huge and powerfully-built man, seemingly in his early thirties like most warriors she had met. His dark-hair had a roman cut and his classic features were strong and quite beautiful. She could sense his power, infinitely more potent than the other men’s. He sat calmly in his chair opposite her, but she found him utterly terrifying.

“Marcus is at the top of our food chain. I asked him here just in case I’m not strong enough to keep your Rider in check.”

She made an instant resolution to restrain the Rider herself, no matter what it took. Marcus Hamilton was too frightening to allow him anywhere near her. She cleared her throat, trying to come up with something to say. “I met a man very much like you earlier. With long hair.”

Marcus smiled, which softened his stark features a little. “That would be Gabriel, Alexander’s First Son.” So presumably even more powerful than this guy. What would Lord Foley himself be like, if even his grandson many times over was this frightening?

Jeremy introduced the other stranger. “And this is Sebastian Hamilton.” He looked exactly like Marcus, only he had blond hair with slightly darker eyebrows, and blue eyes. They made him look more beautiful and less frightening. He didn’t feel as powerful either, but the name had to be an indicator.

“Let me guess, your great-great-grandson?”

Marcus smiled. “No, he’s Alexander’s youngest son. But he is three centuries younger than me.”

Her head spun. “You mean vampires can reproduce for centuries?”

“Of course. Most of us won’t even start before we’re at least a couple of hundred years old. The Rider is too much of a hassle before that.” She clearly had adjusting to do about the whole longevity thing.

They settled down to eat. She was ravenous, even though Jeremy had provided her with breakfast less than an hour ago. She had always been a good eater, as she burned more calories with running than she was able to take in, but she seemed to have lost all control.

The table was filled to overflowing with various meats, salads, potatoes and other side dishes – an insane amount of food for only four eaters. “Does being a vampire make one hungry?”

“Yes,” the men answered in unison. “All two-natured need more energy than humans,” Sebastian added from the other side of the table. The smile he gave her made him look almost overly handsome.

Someone growled in her mind and she stiffened. It hadn’t sounded like her newly-acquired second nature. She looked around, but the men were concentrating on their eating, not indicating in any way that they had made the sound. But she had a hunch of the source.

“Are vampires able to communicate mind to mind?” she asked carefully.

The men exchanged glances, not to brush her off, but to see who would answer. Jeremy put down his utensils. “Yes, but not all of us, and not with everyone. Alexander can reach us all, and his sons pretty much everyone too. I can communicate with Jas, because we’re blood relations, and with a couple of other warriors.”

“And me?” He looked sheepish and she smiled, amused. “It was you who just growled in my mind. How did you do that?”

He shrugged. “We’ve had each other’s blood.” She had a notion that it wasn’t the whole story, but she let the matter be. There was so much she had to learn. She couldn’t get stuck with every detail.

“Tell me, where did you find the encryption protocol that protects your laptop?”

Her mind in vampire matters, Marcus’s question took her by surprise. “I’m sorry?”

He smiled and she realised he was every bit as handsome as Sebastian. More so, as she preferred dark hair to blond. And his eyes were green. Very nice.

The growling in her head was deeper now. This time she saw Jeremy frown too. She blew him a kiss and turned back to Marcus, who continued.

“I’m in charge of our tech department. I’m brilliant with computers, but I couldn’t break the code. It’s like nothing I’ve come across before. It’s amazing.”

She felt absurdly pleased with his praise. “That’s because you haven’t. It’s mine.”

It was uncanny how she could feel everyone at the table freeze. “Indeed?”

Marcus was frightening again, but she had her professional pride, so she nodded calmly. “Yes.”

“That’s a steep claim from someone who hasn’t even graduated yet.”

“You don’t need a degree to be able to do things.”

“And how is it that some firm hasn’t snatched you already? Or the government?”

She had actually toyed with the idea of working for the secret service. She wondered if they would accept vampires or if she would have to kiss that dream goodbye too. “That’s because I haven’t told anyone about it.”

Marcus smiled, slowly. It was a predator’s smile that froze her immobile with fear. “In that case, would you like a job?”

“I … umm…” With him? She couldn’t work for someone who frightened her that much. She glanced at Jeremy for courage and saw him smile, happy with the idea.

It was the only offer she’d had. Who knew if she would have others now that she was a two-natured, and it was almost like working for the secret service to work for the Crimson Circle. And maybe Marcus wouldn’t be so frightening once she knew him better. She gave him a resolute nod. “Yes, I’d love a job. But I haven’t graduated yet.”

“You don’t need a degree to be able to do things,” Marcus threw her words back to her with a smile.

Relief made her dizzy. That was one less worry about the future. At the heels of her relief, an awareness rose. And it wasn’t her. It was her other side. It pushed forward, fast. Too fast for her to be able to stop it. One moment she was happily discussing her work, and the next she wanted to kill everyone at the table.

NO!

With the last fragment of her will that was her, she pushed up from her chair and dashed out through the French doors into the garden. And then she ran.

Chapter Fourteen

Jeremy shot up, his chair flying backwards with a clatter as it hit the floor. He was about to dash after Corynn when Marcus halted him. “Let her run. It’ll calm her down. It’s not like she can get out of the manor grounds.”

A high wall surrounded the estate, but that wouldn’t keep a vampire from leaving. Fortunately, it was secured with magic too. Marcus was right; she wouldn’t be able to flee.

But he couldn’t stay put. “She might hurt herself.” He couldn’t remember the shoes she was wearing, but he was fairly sure they hadn’t been proper trainers, but something unsuitable for a cross-country jog.

“Okay, but don’t try to restrain her. Not alone, anyway. Call us if she becomes violent.”

“I’m sure I can control her.” But he wasn’t as confident as he sounded. A woman as strong and stubborn as her would surely have a Rider to match. And her second nature wouldn’t be deterred by any notions of friendship or attraction towards him.

He stepped out through the same door Corynn had used. The night was quiet; the manor was far enough from the closest roads for the sounds of traffic to reach here. But no place was truly quiet for a vampire. He opened his vampire sense to scan the area.

His Rider enhanced his senses and provided him with all sorts of information. The night turned into day as his eyesight improved. He could hear little animals scurrying in the grass. He could detect the miniscule changes in Might and distinguish between his warrior brothers, the staff working in the kitchen, animals – and her.

She had covered over a mile already and was mid-way to the eastern border. She was a great runner as a human, but with vampire strength, speed, and stamina she was unstoppable.

As he ran after her, he kept his scan open and so knew when she reached the wall. He sensed her collide with the barrier of magic there, and his heart almost stopped beating for the fear that she had hurt herself. While it was meant for keeping intruders out, the barrier effectively kept runaway vampires inside the grounds too. She wasn’t the first new vampire around here whose Rider had bested them. He remembered going on a rampage a couple of times himself.

He sighed in relief when he sensed her rise and start running again. She kept to the wall, as if scouting it for weaknesses – something her Rider would do. But Alexander’s magic didn’t have flaws, so he didn’t have to worry that she would escape. Then again, she might be in charge of the route as well. It was more practical to run by the wall. A forest grew right by it, but there was a wide gangway clear of vegetation between the wall and the forest to make patrolling along it easier.

Now that he knew where she was headed, he changed his course to intercept hers. As he closed in on her, he tried to reach her mind, but her Rider wasn’t as receptive to him as she was. Or it was blocking him intentionally. He would have to do this the hard way.

He chose a spot behind the trees so she wouldn’t detect him until it was too late, and braced for a fight in case she was feral. But it wasn’t a beast on a rampage that emerged around a bend. She was running resolutely and at her customary pace. Impressive.

He stepped out to block her path and she screamed in anger. “Do not stop me. I have to run. Otherwise it’ll win.”

Bemused, he stepped aside. He had prepared for a daring rescue, but obviously that wasn’t needed. She was perfectly able to rescue herself. He let her take a lead and then followed. She might still need him later.

It was a repetition of their previous run together, silent and focused. But she wasn’t human anymore. She could run faster, and she was more agile and could easily avoid low-hanging branches and the debris that cluttered the forest floor. Her running had been graceful before, but now she was mesmerising to watch. Jeremy was having trouble minding his own step, his attention claimed by her.

He found it incredible that only two weeks ago she was injured and her
promise fulfilled
. She didn’t tire at all. He lost the count of how many times they went around the entire estate, following the wall. A marathon didn’t cover the distance they ran. It was an endurance race, not against the clock or other competitors, but one’s own limits.

But when she wouldn’t pause even to drink, he began to worry. Superhuman or not, she needed to hydrate. But she was fighting for control with her Rider, which didn’t usually occur this early in a new vampire’s life. He didn’t dare to interrupt.

He wished there was something he could do for her to make the fight easier, but each vampire had to do it alone, the struggle internal. For the first time in his long life he was useless and helpless, and he didn’t appreciate the feeling. Robbed of all other options to participate, he kept at her heels, pushing his aching feet and thirst out of his mind. As long as she needed, he would be there.

He lost the sense of time. It wasn’t until a change in the night air heralded morning that he put a stop to it.

“The sun will come up soon. Let’s get you to bed.”

“I don’t want to stop yet. The Rider might win.”

“Trust me, you already won.” He couldn’t hide the pride in his voice. “You’ll pass out once the sun rises and the Rider will too.”

Sighing, she headed to the manor. He kept an eye on the horizon so that the sun couldn’t surprise them. He hadn’t needed to worry about the daybreak in ages, but now he would have to learn the habit again. It would take time before she remembered to do it herself. Not that he would allow her to be in a situation where a sunrise would compromise her safety.

She didn’t slow down when they reached the manor. The warrior guarding the front door opened it hastily for her as she ran through without pausing. The warriors gathered in the foyer after the night’s patrol watched bemused as she jogged past them and up the stairs, all the way to his room.

Only when he closed the door to his room after them did she stop. “I need a shower.”

He smiled. “Yes you do. But you have to be quick. The sun is almost up.” That got her moving. The need to follow her to the shower was so strong he had to physically restrain himself. It wasn’t merely that he wanted her; he needed to take care of her, to make sure she was physically all right. But his help wouldn’t speed things up at all.

She was impressively quick and had time to spare when she emerged from the bathroom, drying her hair with the towel. She limped a little and he went to her and swept her up in his arms so she wouldn’t have to walk. She giggled as he carried her to the bed. “I’m hungry.”

“I bet you are. But you don’t have time to eat. So here.” He offered his wrist to her. He would have preferred the vein in his throat, but time was against them.

She hesitated. “Won’t that bring the Rider out again?”

“No, the opposite.” He settled down comfortably next to her on the bed. “Drink.” And she obeyed, thirstily.

Never, until her, had he realised that the simple act of feeding someone could be so pleasurable. He felt every pull deep inside him, arousing and exciting, and grew impossibly hard even as he was losing blood. He wanted her, madly. Maybe if he was very quick–