Chapter 43

Out of the shower, clean clothes located, I dug through the blood-crusted clothes I had peeled off for my cell phone only to discover that the battery was dead. So with a sigh, I put it on a charger and went downstairs to find Warren sitting with Kris in the common area, deep in discussion.

“Where’s Leo?” I announced. “My phone’s dead so I can’t call him to tell him I’m alive.”

They both turned to look at me, almost in unison, though Warren hesitated just a moment. Kris’s expression was indecipherably blank, while Warren’s face had pity written all over it. Neither of them spoke.

“What?” I tried, but got no response so I continued in a fast babble, hoping to save myself from saying something incriminating. “Look, I didn’t start that bar fight and Leo was there but they knocked me out. I don’t know what happened after that.”

Warren came to me and folded me in his arms. “Oh my poor dear, it’s been a long night. Come sit with me and have a drink. You’ll need to get your strength back.”
Confused, I allowed him to maneuver me to a seat next to him, facing Kris. The longer I didn’t know what was going on, the more fear welled up inside me and my hands shook as I took the cup Warren offered me.

They silently watched me take a long drink but I wasn’t comfortable so I spoke before taking another drink. “Will one of you tell me what’s going on, please? I can’t tell if I’m in trouble or not and I’m getting anxious.”

They looked at each other but Kris spoke first.

“Your cover was blown on your tracking assignment. You told me just before the fight broke out. I called when your check-in wasn’t normal. Leo happened to be in the area and got there before I did.”

I nodded before another sip. “I remember that,” I lied catching on to the hints that Kris was giving me of the beginning of the night.

He swallowed and I waited. “When I got there you were on the floor with one of them knocked out on top of you and Leo feeding on another before he ripped him apart.”

I nearly dropped the glass in my hand. Leo didn’t drink from vampires, did he? “Leo doesn’t…” I began, but stopped because I wasn’t sure any more.

“I wouldn’t believe it either if the bartender hadn’t recorded it on her phone,” Warren interjected before I could try again.

Pieces of the crazy puzzle were coming together in my head. I knew what it meant to be caught drinking from another vampire--death--but I was still surprised at the fact that it was Leo and not me who had been caught. It explained why his blood was so potent to me but it still didn’t make sense in my heart. Why hadn’t he told me? Or had he told me and I couldn’t remember it?

“So he’s… have you…? How long does he have before…?”

Warren touched my hair. “Sweetheart, it’s not safe to keep him alive. We have to go through with it at dawn.”

I felt my heart drop. I didn’t know what to do. I had to fix this. “No… but he doesn’t… I would have… you can’t…” I tried desperately but words were being choked out by tears.

Warren tried to console me but I pushed his arms away and managed to stand in the same instant that Kris cleared his throat and made everything freeze.
“Sir, I think it would be okay for her to see him. He’s not violent now and has been very cooperative so far.”

Warren hesitated, collecting me in his arms only for me to push my way out again. “I’m not sure that will make things any easier.”

“If you’re uneasy about it, then make it stop!” I protested despite them not listening to me any longer. To them I was no more than a toddler throwing a tantrum.

“I’ll stay with her. It might give her closure,” Kris continued.

“Raven, darling, we can’t have a vampire around killing our own. It’s unnatural. He has to go. There’s no changing that.” He sighed, still trying to console me despite his prior lack of success. Then I finally stepped out of his reach and he looked at me before looking over at Kris again. “Kris, I’m trusting you not to let him drink from her. This whole thing has taken enough from her already. Do you understand?”

Kris nodded. “You have my word sir.”

“Bring her to my balcony afterwards. I’d like her to be at my side for the proceedings.”

Kris nodded again and took me by the arm. I let him pull me out of the house as I tried to get rid of the tears. He shoved me into the passenger seat of his car and slammed the door. We took off down the road, well over the speed limit, before he started yelling at me.

“Do you have any idea what you’ve done? If you hadn’t left, none of this would be happening and Leo wouldn’t have his head on the chopping block!”

“Why was he drinking their blood?” I plead weakly.

“I’m guessing that he was covering your idiot ass.”

“I wasn’t trying to find him. I was trying to find Warren to get rid of Orin. I don’t even know why my tracking spell took me there because I used my blood. It should have taken me straight to Warren.”

“What?!” he exclaimed, blowing through a red light. I thought we had made it through the intersection but the second after that thought was filled with screeching tires, busting glass, and the hard crunch of metal on metal. There was no time to scream or brace; there was only fear and pain while gravity switched directions and left my mind muddled.

Then everything stopped.

It was quiet.

As if the whole world had stopped.

There was the sizzle of liquid on a hot surface somewhere but directions weren’t working in my brain yet.

I felt myself blink but I couldn’t see anything. There was something sticky on my face and in my eyes.

My head hurt as I blinked. It was pounding in time with my heart, except that I realized that I shouldn’t have a heartbeat. There was definitely something pounding in or on my chest though.

Then my sense of smell kicked in.

There was a lot of blood. Human mingled with vampire but there was so much more vampire.

“Raven?” I heard someone groan, barely audible over the sizzle.

I felt my mouth open but words didn’t come out. It was more like a moan.

I heard metal groan as it moved or bent but I couldn’t see it and I couldn’t understand where I was or what was happening.

“Hey, are you okay? Can you get out?” someone yelled from somewhere that felt very far away.

“I’m okay but she’s pinned and I’m not sure she’s conscious.”

“Kris.” I think that came out of my mouth.

“I’m calling for help!”

I couldn’t move my arm when I tried to wipe my face. When I tried the other, I didn’t feel anything at all.

“There’s been an auto accident. I need the clean-up team out here ASAP. There are humans present.”

I kept blinking but it was getting hard not to let the darkness take over. There was a taste in my mouth, burning my tongue and making me want to spit.

“Raven, can you hear me?”

Who was talking to me? I couldn’t think of a name that went with that voice.

I couldn’t think of anything.