Tainted Blood (52 page)

“All clear, for now. Stay close to me.” Carter had become this quick and agile creature. Not to mention the increased strength he’d recently developed. He was still nowhere near as quick or strong as Oliver, but I was impressed and did not doubt his ability to keep me safe. Not then, anyway.

Unfortunately, it was a different scene when we rose from the floor. Things did not look as if they were siding in our favor anymore. Felix was bleeding, badly, from his neck again. He was slowing down, becoming sluggish as he fought off a variety of attackers. He was on the main floor making his way toward Amber. It seemed most of the vampires that were protecting her, as she detained Morgan, had been detained themselves. It was just her and Vance trying to keep a group of Morgan’s followers from getting to him and mostly likely fleeing with him.

A rather large, heavily built man lumbered for them. As he did so, the angel, who had moved to the top of the classroom, spread his wings and leaped. His dark wings brushed over us as he soared down to the bottom of the class. It awed the other side long enough for our team to immobilize their remaining members and put an end to the chaos.

Cyrus heaved Morgan to his feet, and as Felix steadied himself against the wall near them he said, “Morgan, your betrayal is monumental. You will be punished accordingly.”

I thought Mr. Morgan was going to cry.

Cyrus then escorted Morgan up the steps and out of the room. The students hiding under their desks were reassured by Professor Amber that all was now fine and that each one of them could get an escort home if they needed. Jack was one of the first to jump to his feet and request an escort. Most of the others followed suit.

After a while, it was just the four of us: Felix, Amber, Carter, and me, left in the room. A room that was destroyed, bloody, and broken. Everyone else had been removed or ushered out by the remaining Brookehaven Vampires. I was somewhat surprised that neither Paul or Ashton had shown their faces. Somewhat. Ashton wasn’t one to do the dirty work himself. Not unless he had no other choice.

An injured Felix rested against the teacher’s desk. Blood had stopped flowing from the open gash in his neck but it was slow to heal. He’d lost a lot of blood, again, and it had clearly taken a toll on him. He was paler than usual as he propped himself against the front of the desk.

“Here,” Amber said as she crossed the space between them and stood in front of him, “let me help you.” Her first aid kit was sitting on the desk beside him, and she reached for it as his eyes followed her every movement.

Carter and I took a seat on the bottom step together, leaning on each other, as we waited for Amber to finish cleaning and examining all of Felix’s wounds. Once she was sure she could do no more for him, she wiped a last streak of blood from his face. Her hand lingered on his cheek as he closed his eyes and leaned into it.

“Thank you,” his gruff voice told her quietly.

She said nothing. Her hand dropped and her eyes regarded his as they opened and focused on her. She looked away, uncomfortably, and in a low voice she told him, “You need to feed.” She stepped closer to him so that she was almost between his legs and pulled the collar of her surprisingly unmessed dress to the side. She arched her beautifully pale neck, exposing it to Felix. He hesitated for a moment, stammered out an “uh” as he stared down, longingly, at her exposed flesh.

I shifted uncomfortably, as did Carter, but we couldn’t stop watching what was unfolding in front of us.

Felix’s large fangs slid down and he bent over Amber, hesitated a moment more, then sank his fangs into her slender,
delicate
-
looking
neck. A small cry escaped her but it didn’t seem to faze him. His enormous arms slipped around her small frame, engulfing her as he pulled her against him, moaning as he drank.

Carter and I shifted again, but still, we couldn’t look away.

Amber trailed her fingers along one of Felix’s arms as he drank from her. Eventually, he broke the connection between them, and after making sure the bite marks were fading from her neck, he thanked her in a tone that should have only been used in private.

Dam
n
, I miss
Oliver!

Amber smiled at Felix and this smile was real and loving and I so badly wanted to see how this story began as well as see it play out before my eyes right then. But I wouldn’t get to. Amber’s smile faded and her eyes swept past us and up the steps. Carter and I both looked up the steps behind us to see what had caught Amber’s attention, as did Felix.

Gwen was descending the steps. She smiled down at Carter and me and we smiled back up at her.

“Her?” I heard Amber question in a tone that was very contradictory to the smile she’d just given him.

Carter and I both snapped our attention back to Amber and Felix as Amber was pulling herself free of Felix’s grip.

“What are you talking about?” Felix asked her, his regular bravado returning.

Amber crossed her arms over her chest and stood very regally.
Her eyes, on
the other hand, well, if looks could kill… She stepped away and Felix reached for her and she spun out of his reach, a whirl of dress and hair, and then she headed toward her home under the classroom.

Gwen had just stepped past Carter and me and she was standing close by when Felix turned to the three of us and said, “Give me just a moment.” Then hurried after Amber. “Ambrose,” he called after her.

He caught up to her, just out of sight but not out of earshot. What they thought were hushed voices carried very clearly to the three of us, especially Felix’s voice.

“We are not on a date, Ambrose. She is one of my temporary field partners.” We heard Felix tell her. Carter and I glanced up at Gwen, her
diamond stud nose ring
catching a sparkle from the overhead lights as she smiled down at us.

“You pompous ass!” Amber shouted at Felix, and her voice seriously carried. “Do you take me for an idiot? Do you honestly think I cannot tell she is the woman you bedded last night?”

Holy crap! Carter and I both looked up at Gwen in surprise. Her smile faltered and she turned away from us uncomfortably as she said under her breath, “Well, this is awkward.”

Felix said nothing in response, and I could just imagine the dumbfounded look on his face. But Amber continued. “Do me a favor, Felix. Keep yourself and your conquests away from me.” I could hear her heels on the hard floor as she headed down her corridor.

Wow… Just, wow… At that moment I was wishing I had Felix’s telepathic powers so that Carter and I could communicate. We shared a glance and he didn’t look as surprised as I felt. I narrowed my eyes on him and he frowned at me. “What?” he asked. I rolled my eyes. Men!

Felix ducked out of the hallway and headed for us. “You guys hungry?” he asked as he ushered the three of us up and out of the English room. Vance was waiting outside the doors with a few other vampires along with Cyrus the angel. They squared away the last of the details for the evening and then Felix took Cyrus, Carter, and me to the Pancake House to celebrate the successful removal of Morgan and “other unwanted menaces,” as Felix put it.

As the four of us parted ways with the others and walked to Felix’s SUV, Felix grumbled something about Amber.

“What was that?” I asked.

“Nothing,” he said with a grin, but I could’ve sworn he’d grumbled something about what did she expect of him and something about his roots… It was like word vomit, there was really no making sense of it.

Felix wrapped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me against his side, grinning down at me. He pulled Carter close on the other side. “You two did splendidly tonight. Thank you for your help.” He let go of us, and Carter and I climbed into the back of Felix’s SUV while Cyrus and his wings slid into the front passenger seat. Cyrus made his wings surprisingly compact, but I imagined sitting on them as he rode in the car couldn’t be all that comfortable.

Carter called Kiera once we were on our way to the Pancake House, she and Zoey agreed to meet us at the restaurant. Grandma Levesque had been in charge of keeping Zoey and Kiera safe and in lockdown until the excitement was over. Her job was done, too.

Since Zoey’s place was so close to the Pancake House, they were waiting in the parking lot as we arrived. Kiera about jumped on Carter when she saw him. The angel laughed at her affection which caused Kiera and Zoey to notice him for the first time. They were in awe just as Carter and I had been.

A quick introduction
was made in which Cyrus pointed out that he had not yet been introduced to Carter and me either.

“So,” he said in a charming, unaccented tone, his pale
greenish gray
eyes focusing on me, “this is Delaney.” His smile could definitely make your knees weak. That is, if you weren’t already madly in love with another.

I glanced at Felix for support and questioned why Cyrus knew about me. I got a simple response in my mind. “Oliver,” was all he said. Ah… Of course. Everyone seemed to know about me. I wasn’t sure how I felt about this.

Once the intros were done, we headed for the entrance of the Pancake House and Kiera asked about other people being able to see Cyrus’ wings.

“Not to worry, Kiera,” Cyrus said to her in the same charming tone. I made a mental note to remember that angels were smooth talkers and another note to read that angel section as soon as possible.

A hostess seated us at a large booth and I got crammed between Felix and Cyrus while the others sat across from us.

After placing our orders, Kiera asked Cyrus several questions. “Why can’t anyone else in this restaurant see your wings?”

“Oh, you can only see them if I want you to,” Cyrus responded with his hands folded on the table in front of him. “Or,” he continued, “if you have some sort of paranormal line, then you can see them just as I can see what you or anyone is.” His eyes lifted from where they had been focused on his hands to Kiera’s gold-flecked, curious, blue eyes. “Has anyone ever told you that you look an awful lot like that little fairy from the Peter Pan movie?” he asked as the voice of Elvis crooned out of the speakers throughout the diner. Several of us snickered while Kiera gave Cyrus a look that was partly a glare and partly a sarcastic smile.

Kiera was not deterred by Cyrus and his ruggedly good looks, his dark wavy hair, and his pale, unsettling
greenish gray eyes
. The fact that she was directly across from this smooth talking and nearly topless angel didn’t seem to faze my little friend. Zoey, on the other hand, was having a hard time tearing her eyes away from Cyrus’ hotness. She also seemed to be at a loss for words, which for Zoey, was extremely rare.

Kiera continued asking Cyrus questions, just as she had done with Carter and me when she found out that Oliver was a vampire and Carter had a vampire line.

“Are angels rare?” she asked him, resting her elbows on the table and leaning into them.

“No, why do you ask?” Cyrus responded evenly.

“Because, I’ve never seen anyone with wings before,” she said, and it came out like that made everything so clear. Like the fact Kiera had never seen wings on a person meant it couldn’t be a real thing.

“Well,” Cyrus began, sitting back in the booth and stretching his arm out behind me. His dark wing was only inches from touching me, and it was hard to resist running my fingers along the dark feathers. I stuck my hands under my thighs in the hopes of controlling myself as Cyrus continued. “That is because I am a rare case, my dear.”

“How so?” She leaned across the table as far as she could without actually getting out of her seat and Carter gave her a weird look. It would appear that she was enamored by him as well.

Cyrus leaned forward too, pulling his arm out from behind me and brushing my arm as he did so. I didn’t like the way it made me feel when he touched me. I nonchalantly scooted closer to Felix who, in turn, wrapped his arm around my shoulders protectively. It was nice to have his comfort and protection but I desperately missed Oliver.

Zoey leaned forward on the table too, hanging on every one of Cyrus’ words as he began answering Kiera’s endless questions. “Typically, when we fall, our wings are removed before we leave our realm.”

“How,” Kiera asked most inquisitively.

I saw the hint of a devious smile touch at the side of Cyrus’ lips. “Are you sure you want to know?”

She and Zoey both nodded. Carter seemed leery of Cyrus. Apparently Cyrus’ allure did not work on Carter and he was seeing through the angel’s charm.

“Angels that are scheduled to leave my realm have their wings painfully ripped from their bodies just before they fall.” Kiera and Zoey’s eyes grew wide with horror. “When my kind awakens from our fall we are disoriented and in emotional distress due to the loss of our wings.”

“Why are your wings taken?” Kiera asked quietly.

“So that we will blend in with your world and not be spied by others. You see, without our wings, other paranormals, like my friend Felix here, cannot easily identify us. It’s a safety precaution.”

“When do your wings grow back?” Kiera asked.

“The only way to get our wings back is to return to the realm from which we came.” Before Kiera could ask her next question, Cyrus continued as if he knew what it would be. “In order to return to our realm, the one who has fallen must complete the mission bestowed upon them. When the task is complete, we may return, but some choose to stay. If we fail at the duty given to us, then we cannot return, ever”