Chapter 10

Pain gnawed at me, reaching out like strong tentacles clenching and relaxing in a terrible pattern. I didn’t get up off the floor because I was too confused. He shot me. I was saving him and he shot me.

“That wasn’t fair Leo. We were just starting to have fun,” Kris laughed.

“We should have had that talk before you pulled that. Call off your dogs and let’s go up to your apartment,” Leo grumbled, picking himself up off the floor.

“How else was I going to get that kind of reaction from her? She can see through everything else I’ve tried,” Kris returned as he herded the trio out of the office and into the hall.

Alone, Leo came toward me slowly, unsure how I would react. The pain was making me more cautious of him than before and the anger was hovering just below that ready to pounce. I retreated against the glass of the window and shot him a dangerous look of distrust and revenge.

“I know I shot you but there wasn’t another way to make you stop. We’re out in the open and he’s the Commander of The Guard. They would have to execute you for that no matter who you are. I’m really sorry Raven,” he explained, stopping his advance after I retreated. Instead he extended his hand to me as if I were automatically going to take it.

“I’m not going anywhere with you!” I spat. “You shot me!”

“It’s done now. We’re going to get a drink and you have to come with us... There’s no choice there either.”

Not to mention the fact that I wasn’t going to make it far before I was too dizzy to walk. The pain was intensifying with every pulse and spreading further through my body. I could no longer feel my arm.

“Come on, let me help you up. We’re heading up to his apartment.”

I swatted his hand away angrily then went back to holding the wound.

Kris came back to collect his gun from the floor and rolled his eyes at us. “Just pick her up and let’s go. That was a nitrate round and she’ll pass out before we get her to drink something.”

I watched the anger boil behind Leo’s eyes before he practically jumped to his feet. “You had nitrate rounds in your gun?” he demanded stepping right up to Kris.
Kris shrugged. “Hurts like hell but she’ll live.”

“What the hell were you thinking? Were you going to shoot me with one to see what she would do? Why the hell did you let me shoot her? She had already finished your damn exercise!”

Kris puffed his chest authoritatively. “If you have a problem with how I train my own personnel, then maybe you shouldn’t be on The Guard. She’s going to be fine and she passed my test with flying colors. Now calm the fuck down, pick her up, and let’s get a drink.”

I heard Leo grumble under his breath but he took the order anyway. I didn’t make it easy for him, squirming and dodging but the pain won in the end and I consented to be carried.

Kris lived in an apartment floor of The Nest in a part of the building that needed special clearance to get to. The elevator won’t even let you out on that floor without an ID card but I was too focused on the pain to remember much of the ride up or anything the men might have said to each other until I was placed on a couch.

Kris poured us each a glass of blood and passed two to Leo before sitting in a recliner across from us. “So tell me your story. What kind of trouble did you cause this time?”

Leo sat next to me and threw back a glass of blood like a shot of alcohol. Then, setting both glasses aside, he started rolling up the sleeve of his left arm.

“What are you doing?” I hissed, still feeling hostile with the pain driving my hunger and mistrust.

“Just give her the cup Leo. She needs it,” Kris added.

“I don’t want to be fed like some pet. I want answers. What the hell was that?”

Kris smiled. “Calm down. I was never going to hurt him. You know I can’t lose one of my best men.”

I grit my teeth and narrowed my eyes at him. I didn’t know him or what he might have done to Leo. I didn’t know what had possessed Leo to shoot me either. I didn’t like any part of this situation.

“She lost her memory,” Leo sighed.

There was an awkward silence for a long moment. I stood, pissed-off and confused, ready to shout something but I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t know who to trust and I just wanted out; so I went for the door.

“Raven, you aren’t leaving,” Leo protested.

“Or what?” I growled. “Are you going to shoot me again?”

Kris stood and stepped in front of me, blocking my way to the door. “Where would you go? We don’t need you disappearing again. Warren was irate the last time. What do you think he’ll say now?”

“So what? Am I your prisoner then?” I spat.

“Don’t test me Raven,” Kris warned.

Leo stood to try to break us up but we were both posturing like roosters puffing out our chests. “Guys, calm down. We don’t need to start anything here.”

We both brushed him off and went back to posturing.

“You have no idea who you’re dealing with and still you want to fight. Sit down before you get yourself hurt again,” Kris boomed.

“I’m not your soldier and you don’t control me,” I returned with no fear.

Kris wasted no more time posturing and hit me on the bullet wound hard enough to knock me back onto the couch. I let out a yelp of pain that came from beyond my control and barely had control of the tears that followed. “Shut up and drink something while we figure out what’s going on.”

I held the wound, trying to stem the flow of blood. I knew that I was being weakened by whatever nitrate was but I also didn’t trust them with my secrets anymore. The problem was that Leo already knew and he seemed to trust Kris despite the kidnapping.

“Listen, Raven, the whole thing was part of your training with Kris. Obviously, he didn’t hurt me and your muscle memory helped with the others. Can we please move on?” Leo explained.

“Why did you shoot me?” I growled, trying not to show that I wanted his blood more than ever.

“Why *did* you shoot her?” Kris mused. “I was just about to tell her that she passed.”

Leo looked at me and I read from his eyes what he was going to do before he did it. Then there was blood open to the air, fresh and ready, seeping from where he had bitten his wrist again.

I couldn’t fight it. The urge to drink and stop the pain was much too powerful for me and I exposed my secret within seconds.