The Vampire's Curse, A Paranormal Romance (Undead in Brown County #2) (14 page)

Ignoring the quiet impotent presence of the doctor, I sat by her side and gathered her still form up against me. Her breathing had grown ragged, echoing brokenly through her. She moaned very quietly, her breath hot through the thin shirt I wore. I wanted to be in her veins, fighting it out of her myself, making real use of all the rage that had consumed me over the preceding hours.

I kissed her softly on the forehead.

“
We think there’s a way to save you, my love. It won’t be pleasant, but there’s a chance at least.” I spoke these words with the reverence and severity of a man in love. Perhaps that was exactly it. There wasn’t nearly enough time to peruse the matter at all. All that mattered to me was that she lived. Later I might have the leisure to sort through the emotional turmoil of it.

Turning to the doctor, I addressed him calmly, “Call Katie on her cell phone. Explain the situation. Ask her to come as quickly as she can. I think I know how to save Sarah’s life, but if it all goes to hell, she should have her sister here with her.”

Chapter 17 – Sarah

The physical pain had become more than just a mild annoyance, but it was still nothing in comparison to the dreadful guilt that squeezed itself into every tiny cell of my body. I couldn’t seem to move away from it. Katie was suffering because of me. Though she may have had no conscious realization of it, her dreams could come crashing down around her once she realized what she was to become. I felt only a small hint of doubt that my sister would become a vampire after what I’d seen between her and Alex.

My body felt numb in most places. My fingertips tingled but afforded no real sensation of touch against anything, although I felt sure that I was in my own bed. My ears picked up some distinct sounds, but they faded in and out like a radio being tuned back and forth to different stations.

“…
blood…Katie.”

The sounds grew fainter. Then I heard nothing and could see nothing. Blackness engulfed me from all sides, but the expected rise of panic did not come. I was simply floating along on a tide of uncertainty, wondering if there would be some divine light at the end of my meandering and hoping that wherever I ended up, I would find myself secure in Michael’s embrace.

Chapter 18 – Michael

The doctor had done as he was bid. He called Katie on her cell phone and had explained that Sarah seemed very sick and that it would be a good idea to come home as soon as she could. Whatever the girl’s response, it was done. If she came or not, it mattered little to me. If Alex came with her, I would not be able to kill him, though my heart cried out for such revenge.

Victoria and Jones returned an hour before dawn. They did not arrive alone. Meekah’s slim figure, dressed exquisitely in a cool sky-blue linen traveling suit, appeared behind Jones when I met them at the boundary of the containment field. With Sarah unable to give permission for the three of them to enter, nor for myself to leave, we seemed to be at an impasse.

The doctor had remained back at the house with Sarah, so it was up to me to explain what was happening. Victoria’s expression went from mildly worried to full-blown sadness in just a few minutes. Halfway through my commentary, Meekah held up one heavily jeweled hand to speak.

“
The doctor has been in contact with Isaiah.”

“
That wouldn’t surprise me.” I grumbled.

Victoria nodded firmly, “He is probably on his way here now. How do you want to handle this, Michael?”

A deep sigh issued forth from Jones, “You’ll not be letting that woman go, will you, mate?”

“
Not for anything, Jones. Not while it’s in my power to save her.”

There was a rustle of wind and movement near us in the trees, and I sensed at once that Sarah’s murderer was close at hand. But it was the form of a lithe young woman who leapt down to the ground before us all.

“
Katie.” I nodded at her cautiously. She appeared to be in the throes of the change. There was a brightness to her eyes and skin that hadn’t existed the last time I’d seen her. She moved with a different kind of purpose, an unconscious grace that spoke volumes about what she might soon become.

She wasted not a moment on pleasantries, but came right to the point with hands on her slender hips and her dark eyes narrowed.

“
Is Sarah any better?”

“
No. She’s rather worse than she was, actually. You might thank your new boyfriend for that.” I replied coldly as the others stared at her.

She laughed. “He’s hardly my boyfriend. Why are you all standing here?”

“
An invitation is necessary, girl.” Meekah said.

“
Oh,” She rolled her eyes. “Well, come on then. All of you.”

Victoria glanced at her uneasily. Jones shifted his weight and crossed his arms.

Katie looked back at us over her shoulder, a roguish smile tinged with bitterness on her pretty face, “Relax, bloodsuckers. I’ve as much right as Sarah to hand out invitations here.”

Meekah’s dark eyebrows rose slightly and she shrugged, stepping forward. As she met no resistance, she turned back to Victoria and Jones, “It’s all good, lovebirds.”

It was a silent walk to that big house. Not a word was spoken between the five of us as we approached it. Alex was nearby. I could smell the fiend all around us. It occurred to me that he might go straight to Sarah inside the house, but the moment my suspicions became aroused, Victoria reached out with one of her tiny cold hands and squeezed my arm. It was a signal we’d used in the past. She was asking me to wait.

Sadie came bounding down from the front porch at the first sight of Katie, but stopped abruptly once she got caught the new scent of her former mistress. The dog whined, looked around at all of us in a desperate moment of confusion, and then tucked her tail between her legs and retreated towards the barn.

“
Katie, what has happened between you and Alex?” Victoria’s question was innocently uttered, as not to provoke the girl. We were making our way up the stairs to the porch.

When the girl turned to answer, there was fire in her eyes. Whether it was directed towards Victoria or the situation in which she’d found herself was yet unclear, but the tone of her voice was increasingly self-depreciating.

“
I’ve been used as a pawn, if you have to ask. I thought you could read minds or something.”

“
Not always and certainly not just bloody anyone.” Jones said.

As Katie, Jones and Meekah ascended the stairs to see how Sarah was doing, I pulled Victoria aside and into the kitchen, where only the light above the sink had been left to ward off the inky black night through the first floor of the house.

“
What is in the doctor’s head?” I urged as quietly as I could.

“
He’s spoken to Isaiah and urged him to come early. There’s no malice there, Michael. The man is genuinely concerned about Sarah.”

“
So Isaiah is our only hope for her?”

She nodded briskly, “As far as he knows, yes.”

“
What about Alex? Any idea what he has planned?”

Her gaze lowered to the floor, and I watched the doubt wash over her face.

“
He’s in agony. He hates himself for what he’s done. He loves Sarah desperately and wants her to get well. Katie has been released from his compulsion.” She finished with a slow shake of her head, “There’s so much pain here, Michael.”

“
Indeed. Unfortunately, I think we’ve all had a hand in it in our own way.” I admitted with no small amount of consternation.

Katie swept in, her face a mix of horror of anguish, tears tracing down her cheeks like little rivers, “She’s going to die, isn’t she?” She turned to me with hooded eyes that were heavy with her own internal suffering.

“
Did the doctor tell you about Isaiah?” I asked.

“
He only said that there was a vampire coming here whose venom may be able to save her. But it’s no sure thing, is it? What if it doesn’t work? Will you turn her into a vampire?”

From the corner of my eye, I caught movement. Someone had moved into the kitchen from the dining room. When I fully turned my head to see, Alex was standing there. He didn’t move closer to the others or me. He seemed unsure of himself.

“
Please don’t turn her.” His tone was shallow and haunted. He looked like a man who was about to lose everything. Meekah had come in from the entryway by the stairs and looked upon Alex with unveiled wonder.

He returned her stare with a blank look, “I’m sorry for what I’ve done. More sorry than you can imagine. If she dies because of me, you have every right in the world to destroy me. I’ll beg you to do it. But don’t turn Sarah into one of us. She’d grow to hate herself, and everything we all adore about her will be lost forever.”

“
Isaiah is at the boundary.” Victoria whispered, “I can feel him there.”

“
Anyone with him?”

It was Meekah who answered, “Six guards…” She closed her eyes, and her head turned one way and then another, the slender neck and jaw firm with her abundant pride in her ability, “And there’s an old woman and a young man. He’s dark. Straight black hair pulled back.”

Katie hurried towards the front door and called over her shoulder, “Sarah can’t wait much longer. I’m bringing them up here.”

“
No need.” Said Victoria slowly, “They’ve come through the boundary.”

Every pair of eyes in the room became fixed on her in absolute astonishment. Katie took a few hesitant steps towards Victoria, “But how…”

“
The young man with them is a Pawnee.” Meekah said roughly.

Chapter 19 – Sarah

During rare moments of mental clarity, I could feel an increasing pain in my chest that made me want to scream. My heart felt like it was being gripped by a ruthlessly hard hand, squeezing and kneading the organ with endless brutality. It gave me cause to forget about the guilt. I could hear my own voice rise in pathetic moans and feel the waves of pain move from my chest down through my abdomen and legs.

When I had contemplated death in the past, it had never occurred to me that the pain would be this severe. But surely, death was the dark thing coming for me. Whatever the mysterious cause, whatever the dastardly reason for it all, I was bound to take my last breath very soon.

A release from the pain seemed a glorious thing in those moments. If I should never see the sun sending down warmth and brilliant light upon my home again, it did not matter. If I should never again set my gaze upon the blindingly white snow in the hills of Brown County, it mattered even less. However, there was still a responsibility left to me that I must continue to shoulder and drag on. It had to be carried forward.

With that one clear thought branded upon my suffering body, I gathered every fragment of strength and reserve left to me and vowed to fight the pain. Whatever this thing was that had invaded me and tried to take over, I was dead set against letting it win.

Chapter 20 – Michael

The old clock on the fireplace mantle was just striking seven o’clock when we stepped out of the house to meet them. I fumbled in my jacket pocket for the crystal Victoria had given me. It would be essential to have it handy once the sun came up.

When we stepped out onto the porch, we observed the group before us with trepidation. Isaiah, tall and imposingly stern with a violently victorious expression shining in his eyes, was accompanied by a half dozen guards. Each of them was an experienced fighter and had proven their allegiance to Isaiah and the council repeatedly. Next to Isaiah stood a figure very familiar to me, having been tutored extensively under her gentle ministrations when I first became a vampire.

Theodora had not changed at all in my sight. She still walked and spoke like a queen, which was entirely appropriate considering her position in the world back when she was human. She nodded at me formally with only the hint of a smile showing.

The young man standing on the other side of Isaiah was a mystery, to be sure. He was well over six feet tall, lean and powerful with silky dark hair swept back away from his face and tied at the nape of his neck. He was undoubtedly Native American, judging by the classic brow and straight nose, as well as the coffee color of his eyes. Although, when I studied him more thoroughly, I realized that he was looking at nothing. He was unreachable.

Gesturing at the native, I addressed Isaiah in a curt tone, “Compulsion is a bit of a low trick for you, Isaiah. Surely you realized we had to let you into the containment field in order to get this business done.”

“
Well, I find it’s always prudent to have a plan B.” He said while brushing a bit of lint off his wool coat with a gloved fingertip. He looked over our group, tilted his head minutely and smiled.

“
So where is Alexander? I’m very anxious to meet this extraordinary young man.”

Katie sighed, “We don’t have time for this.”

Teddy spoke up suddenly, her eyes portraying the worry that she carried, “She’s right. Let’s do what we can for Sarah, and then we can all hopefully sit down and have a meeting of the minds.”

Isaiah’s eyebrows went up, “Is the girl truly at death’s door?”

“
She is. Your venom may be powerful enough to reverse the damage.” Katie said.