The Blood Bride (Blood Secrets) (29 page)

Her gliding gait was mesmerising, her hips swaying slightly to and fro. She mounted the stairs and the muscles of her backside clenched and released, while she made her way along the landing, slipping through the door and heading towards the large built-in wardrobe. She stopped, snatching clean clothing before heading into the bathroom.

Hope left the door open. He reclined upon the bed, listening to the sounds of her movements. “So? Now that I know you have news, it would be unfair to make me wait.” The water rushed from the head of the tap and he closed his eyes, imagining her stepping beneath the spray, the water beading over her luscious curves. The ever-present arousal raised its head and he opened them again, willing away the sexual awareness that had dogged him unceasingly since meeting her.

“Yes. Well, we have your test results back. They are all negative. Which means the factors in your blood are now absent.” He stopped, waiting for her to absorb the information.

“So?” She stopped talking for an instant, and he would swear he could almost hear her thinking, though she had mastered the ability to erect a barrier between them when she needed to. Right now the barrier was like a block wall. She was probably weighing up the information. “Okay. He obviously doesn’t know yet. Do you think that will work for long?” He heard the quick, efficient twist of her hand when turned the shower off and the way she pulled the towel from the rack. He strained hoping to hear the rub of the fabric over her skin.

How he wanted to go to the bathroom and make love to her, sinking within her body as his arousal demanded. But he couldn’t, not now. That was for later, when there was time to show her how much he cared. Right now they had to solve the problem. He refused to be sidetracked into forgetting—it was one that needed a swift resolution, as time bled away.

Sounds filtered through the open door, that of clothing slipping over her skin, and he curled his fingers, as the heat simmered below the surface once again. “Do you want to get straight back to work?”
Keep it light and innocuous,
he thought. As far away from the temptation that would wrap him back into the veil of sensual thoughts.

She came back through the open doorway. “Yeah, I guess we should.” In her eyes he could see the same awareness that wavered between them. Her cheeks were slightly flushed, and her beautiful violet eyes were glinting with arousal. He stood quickly.

“Let’s get out of here.” His words sounded rough once more, but he was unashamed of the reaction to her. She was his life mate, the one he had waited empty centuries for.

She moved forward, twining her slender fingers through his and drawing him close, her lips whispering over his. The kiss nothing more than a promise, but even so, the electric touch of her set him aflame.

Xavier pulled away regretfully, putting space between them. “Come on.” He led the way out of the room.

* * * *

Once more she concentrated on the vision glowing before her. She was sure she knew the building. The smoke haze choked her, and the sound of crying humans was so loud she wanted to clap her hands over her ears. The humans who had escaped wore smeared white coats. Lost in the middle of the nightmare, she was sure this was important as she looked around, seeing the fear in their eyes, smelling it in the acrid, coppery tang of their body odour. Their hearts beat and blood pumped faster than ever before through their veins. Her mouth ached, and she fought to control the unfamiliar urges her body experienced.

The leather grip of the weapon in her hand moved as she flicked it to and fro, waiting for the moment they would appear. They would come, she knew it instinctively now. They always appeared in her dream.

Xavier waited beside her, as did Javed and the house guard. Each of them held their favoured weapon—Javed, a long scimitar that looked both ugly and beautiful, and Xavier carried a long slender sword in his hand. At his hip, she could make out the ultraviolet gun.

They waited, standing still, searching back and forth, scanning the grey choking cloud. They would soon be here.

The crunching and crashing from the building finally ceased, and all she could hear were the humans as they moved and huddled in groups, crying out. A scream rent the air while the ghostly dust started to dissipate, and finally they saw the hunters.

They moved with an unnatural grace—a predatory army. A moment of hysteria descended, gripping her.

A thought occurred before she could beat it back. What if they didn’t prevail? What if these creatures, these Brethren won the day? Then what?

Who would be the defence of the humans then? “No. I won’t let that happen.” She voiced the words, taking strength in them.

“It will be okay, Hope. Breathe. Watch. Look for a weakness.” She could hear his voice as it filtered through the grey cloud. He was there. With her.

Then the Brethren moved. Circled. Looking for a gap they could exploit in their formation.

Javed feinted as one tried to launch a forward assault. He parried the attack while everyone watched in silence. The Brethren vampire lifted his sword and Javed parried again, holding his opponent off. The sound of grunts and clashing steel filled the air.

The others had engaged, but this was the main game, she knew. Javed got the upper hand and a quick silent thrust was followed by a jerky movement. It finished with a rolling head falling to the rubble strewn ground.

A roar filled the air, and finally the circle around them broke free from the mystical arrangement. The Brethren vampires surged forward, as their animalistic grunts filled the air.

Clangs and cracks met with the sound of whips and chains and they each found an opponent. One tried to engage her. She flicked her whip, felt the movement of it in her hand, wielding it with accuracy. It snaked through the air and she hit the one who came at her.

He ducked and dived, slid and slipped, trying to move out of the way of the flying leather.

The scent of blood was pervasive. Her jaw ached. She fought against the urge to drop the weapon and tear at him, to rip his throat and drink him dry. The vampire tried to wrest control, pulling on the leather, but she restrained her instincts, instead flicking it free of his hold. She watched, moving forward, advancing on the opponent. He moved back. Swipe. Into the arcing blade of one of her guards and the sound of flesh hitting the ground filled her with a mixture of pride and disgust.

She turned, seeking another opponent. Now wasn’t the time to be squeamish.

The humans watching were howling with fright now, but she blocked the sound and advanced on another Brethren. He swiped gore and sweat from his fine Italian suit, then raised his rapier. The feral look in his eyes met her gaze. Crack! Once more the whip flayed at the air. He ducked and the dance of death began again.

Again and again she replayed the scene. The fight was vicious, but the Brethren outnumbered them. Exhaustion started to pull, when she saw Javed fall. She cried out, but too late for him to move away. Saw the blade separate head from shoulders.

“Noooo!”

Xavier moved forward and she knew. This was the minute she would relive over and over again.

They moved forward, circling around him, swords and chains raised. Her stomach roiled, knowing what was to come, but still dreading it.

Estersham moved out of the grey dust cloud that swirled around them.

“Finally. My friend, you should have joined me. I would have preferred that. However, the girl, once she joins my army, will more than make up for the disappointment of your intractability.” He grinned, the look in his eyes feral as they glowed a deep burnished gold. His teeth, so long and ready to rip and shred, had descended. Drips of crimson running down his chin. Her stomach roiled.

“No. You will not kill him. I will not let you.” She cracked the whip, anger lending her speed and agility. She ran at him. Some of the Brethren moved in front, like a living wall of protectors.

“Nooooo!” The whip slashed and cracked in the air. She hit one across the neck, watching as it curled around in her deft movements and she jerked, tearing the ligaments and flesh. She screamed as she moved forward and for the first time, the scent of fear rose from the Brethren. In her eyes they had seen something. She didn’t dwell on their faces, though. Estersham sucked in a breath.

“You are no longer human?” He hissed the words, anger evident in the cold English tone of his voice.

“Just worked that out, did you?” She stalked forward. A cry broke her stride, and she twisted back, in time to see the knife sever Xavier’s head.

“Xavier!” The primal howl rent the air.

She opened her eyes and panted, sucking air into her heaving body. “Xavier!” This time the sound was broken by the vicious sobs tearing from her being. “Xavier!”

Slowly she became conscious of the warm arms around her bitterly frozen frame.

“I’m here, Hope. I have you.” The words soothed the hideous sense of loss and despair and she gulped for air, exhaustion pulling at her senses. She let the heat of his body seep into her. Drew comfort from the closeness and scent of him.

“It’s okay. I’m here and alive. You are with me.”

“It happened, but this time it was different. This time he found out. He knew. And I think I have a better idea of where.” The words tumbled out, low and broken, but she now knew they just might have found the key. The one they had been searching for.

“Where, Hope? What did you see?” This time, it was Cressida speaking quietly.

“Cressida? Why are you here?”

“Because the whole household heard you.” No matter her words were quiet, they may as well have been shouted and Hope winced. “It has been getting gradually louder with each night. You were close this time, though, weren’t you?” The soothing words demanded an answer nonetheless.

“Yes. White coats. The humans are wearing white coats. We need to check factories, laboratories and places where they wear those sorts of coat.”

“Well done, Hope. I know it has been an ordeal, but now we have a fighting chance. Tonight I need you to focus on those types of location. Can you do that?” Her gaze was steady.

“Yeah, I can do that.” Hope raised her eyes one last time to the woman, the vampire Councillor. “I can do that.” She would beat Estersham. There was no way she was going to lose Xavier and the sense of belonging that she finally had found. The conviction in her voice must have reinforced her commitment to Cressida, as she left the room and once more, it was just her and Xavier.

He pulled her against his body. “So what happened?”

But she couldn’t answer. The pain of the loss she had experienced was unbearable to her now. She refused to give in to the tearing pain. Not now. If she did, it would swallow her and she’d be lost.

“I can’t, Xavier. Not now.”

She felt the nod, a jerk of muscles against her, and burrowed into his arms. “Just hold me. Please?”

They lay like that for a long time.

* * * *

Evening came and they rose, with limbs that ached tiredly—the ongoing pressure of the constant stress wearing them down. He could see the dark circles and grey pallor in her face. Lack of sleep and the demands of her dreams were draining her. If it wasn’t so important, he wouldn’t keep pushing, but as it stood, time was running out. They had to find the answer, because otherwise it would be too late for all of them. They had to solve the problem, and the knowledge weighed more heavily as each day passed.

“Sit down, Hope. I’ll grab your sustenance and then we can start. Are you okay with that?” He waited, watching her until she responded.

She nodded—the movement jerky and graceless. Since waking in the night, he had felt a distance growing between them, as if she was retreating behind a shell, and he wanted to knock down the wall she was building, but didn’t know how. It angered him, but he acknowledged the sense of helplessness. Xavier had already attempted to use the link, but somehow she had managed to lock him out.

Xavier didn’t know what else to do, so he waited and watched. Impatience ate at him as effectively as acid. How long could she continue like this? Her behaviour was both robotic and jarring. Yet in her eyes he could see determination, so instead, he moved to the side, retrieved a goblet of the heavily blooded wine and moved back to where he had left her. She had already booted the machine and was working through the list of properties, clicks and flicking paper meeting his gaze.

He waited by the doorway, knowing she hadn’t yet noticed him.

“I won’t lose him. I need to find out where. When.” She muttered the words.

Xavier watched her shoulders slump again, and a general air of loss and sorrow fell upon her. So much had happened in such a short time. Even while he stood in the shadows she straightened again, her spine once more aligned. “This isn’t going to help anyone.” His heart constricted while he closed his eyes against the burning sensation that built behind his own eyelids.

Knowing she wouldn’t wish him to see her like this, he made a thudding noise, alerting her while he stumbled his way back into the room.

Hope turned slowly, her eyes shone with the tears she fought to contain. “I’m ready to start again.” The unnecessary words were teamed with a hand movement. It was to keep his gaze from her face, no doubt, he told himself.