Chapter 106
Rain drops fell through the naked branches of the trees and slowly melted the snow to expose patches of scrubby grass. A rusty light pole leaned next to an old barn and gave out a strange pink light that made the scene surreal.
Katelina scrunched herself into the black coat and questioned what in the hell she was doing in the middle of nowhere. Oren had sent word when they'd woken that he'd meet them at this god forsaken location. Jorick hemmed and hawed about whether it was a trap but, in the end, there they were; sloshing through slushy snow in freezing rain. What was with him and meeting outside in the winter?
Something moved in the barn's shadow, and then Oren slowly seemed to materialize as he stepped out into the light. His blonde hair hung damp around his face, his eyes were cold and his expression was unreadable.
Jorick steered Katelina towards him and commented impassively, "So, you came."
"Yes, I came." Oren's eyes flicked to Katelina and then to Jorick. "I didn't expect you to be here, though."
Jorick sneered. "And where else would I be? Cowering like a rat with something to hide? One would think Micah's word would be enough for you."
Oren held up a pale hand, "Others make judgment, but I do not."
"Really? It was your idea in the first place," Katelina grumbled.
"No, it wasn't," Oren answered, speaking to Jorick and not her. "I merely said it would look suspicious to others, and I was right. You had barely taken three steps before they were clamoring about your guilt and I can not prove them right or wrong."
At those words Jorick stopped walking. He clenched Katelina's arm tightly and his annoyance throbbed through her mind. She gave Oren an angry glare that said she wanted to slap him, and a retort rose to her tongue, but Jorick spoke before she could.
"Then I wash my hands of it."
Oren slumped and weariness washed over him. "What would you have me do?" he asked. "They're already fighting amongst themselves, factions threatening to tear one another apart." His eyes sent a silent appeal that his hardened voice didn't echo. "I'm no leader, Jorick. I didn't ask you to take command out of politeness!"
"One becomes a leader by being one. You give them too much leeway. Take control Oren." He clenched a fist tightly in demonstration. "How long did you run a coven? Did you learn nothing?"
The blonde sighed heavily and his eyes momentarily filled with pain. "No," he said softly. "Jesslynn ran it. You know that as well as I. She commanded, I obeyed."
Jorick squeezed his eyes shut in frustration and then reopened them. His fist dropped uselessly to his side. "If you want to win against Kateesha, things will have to change, Oren. You need to decide who you can trust and who you can't."
"And who can I trust? You? Micah? Anya? Thomas? Which one? Who lies, who tells the truth? Can you tell me that?"
"Read their minds," Jorick said simply. "It's a gift you should have perfected by now."
Oren's laughter was hollow and cold, like the rain. "You know very well it's one I didn't fully inherit from my master. I can only see the thoughts of weaker minds clearly, or thoughts that a stronger will wishes me to see, and those are often masked." His eyes bored into Jorick, though the older vampire didn't flinch. "Things are simple for you, and you expect it to be so for everyone else."
"Things are simple, only most people refuse to see the simplicity. I don't understand this craving for complications so many of you possess."
The cold wind sent a sheet of rain driving into them, but the vampires paid it no heed. Oren crossed his arms over his chest defensively. "Humanity has changed since you were brought into the world Jorick. Society evolved."
The raven haired vampire chortled, while Katelina tried to huddle into him. "No, society is the same as it's always been, it's a misconception each generation likes to live behind; trying to convince themselves they're so different from those who came before. It is a wearisome circle, trying to revitalize itself."
"The world is weariness!" Oren interjected. "Did you not say so yourself?"
Jorick shifted uncomfortably and stole a glance at the woman beside him. "Once. But things change." He met Oren's eyes. "Do you think you'll mourn Jesslynn for all eternity? Is that what you want? To spend the long centuries alone and miserable as an eternal penance?"
"Why not?" Oren demanded. "Wasn't that your plan?"
Katelina scowled at Oren and Jorick answered softly, "Perhaps. But not all my choices are the right ones. Even I can admit a mistake."
"Can you?" Oren asked with false curiosity, his eyes on Katelina. "I wonder."
Katelina's lips turned into a hard, unrelenting line. This was a waste of time; a play performed so they could later hide behind the excuse that they'd tried, and she was sick of it.
She glared at Jorick and thought as loudly as she could manage, "Either get on with it or forget it. This is stupid."
He didn't so much as look at her, but his next remark made it clear that he'd heard. "Either you believe Micah or you believe Thomas. The choice stands before you, and it's one you must make on your own."
The blonde was silent, so Jorick spoke again, "When you've decided, let me know." He looked at Katelina and managed the barest hint of a smile. "Let's go," he said simply, drawing her away.
Oren watched, but didn't say a word to stop them.
***
Back in the safety of the motel room, Katelina warmed herself before the heater. Freshly showered, she wore nothing but a fluffy towel. Jorick lay on the bed where he'd flung himself, silent and brooding. She could feel his frustration and concern, but decided they could discuss it when they were back where they belonged. The thought of the small house by the sea cheered her, and she asked brightly, "So, can we go home now?" Silence greeted her and she scowled as she guessed the real answer. "What's the point? Oren thinks you're in with Kateesha, and I say let him."
"No, he doesn't," Jorick murmured without looking at her. "But the others do and he fears they'll revolt, so he must be careful."
"Careful?" Katelina snorted and rolled her eyes. "So? Let's forget the whole thing. You've said yourself this isn't your war-"
"But it is."
"How?" she demanded as she turned to face him, her hands on her hips.
Jorick looked at her as though she'd lost her mind. "Have you forgotten already? You nearly died, Katelina. I can't just let that go."
She licked her lips uncertainly and looked away. What was she supposed to say to that? "Yes, well-"
"There's nothing to say," he cut in, answering her unspoken thought. Then he sighed heavily. "Oren was right. Kateesha isn't going to leave us alone. I don't care about her war, or her followers, or any of the rest of it, but it's time I dealt with her once and for all."
Katelina could see his logic, but she hated it. "What's to stop her from actually finishing me off, this time? After the mess with Claudius you said I needed time to heal, but after nearly dying I don't? What's changed?"
"You have," he stated flatly and then stiffened as his regret washed through Katelina's mind.
Something sick settled in her stomach. "I've changed? How?"
"The Linking-" he trailed off and then gave a sigh of surrender. "You've been linked, Katelina. That makes you-. Different." He met her angry gaze. "You won't get sick as easily as you once did, and you should be stronger and faster, and have increased stamina."
"I thought you said you didn't know anything about the Linking?"
He shrugged. "I know that much. You can't ingest vampire blood without some changes."
"Blood?" she asked weakly. "Whose blood?"
"Whose do you think? Your fairy Godmother's?" He rolled his eyes. "Mine of course. You have to ingest a little bit of it."
"Your blood?" She'd dreamed that; or rather he had. A nightmare, or that's what she'd thought it was. She'd assumed he'd been having a nightmare about turning her.
He interpreted her silent thoughts, "No, that was it."
She closed her eyes and, though she wasn't sure she wanted to know, asked, "How much blood?"
"Enough. Does it matter? It wasn't the first time."
He flinched as her eyes bulged and she demanded, "What? When?"
A sigh escaped his lips. "At Claudius' after- After the attack. It wasn't a lot, just enough to heal the worst of your injuries. You'd have bled to death otherwise, and you had a concussion."
She clutched her towel as if it could shield her from the conversation. "Were you planning to tell me that?"
"No. I wasn't. You survived and that was the important part."
A sound at the door interrupted them. Jorick sat bolt upright but, before he could move, the lock clicked, the door flew open and in stalked three Executioners; Beldren and Zuri, who'd been at Jorick's house a couple of weeks ago, and a female with dark bobbed hair. The sight of her made Katelina's blood run cold. She remembered her vividly; the woman's cruel face was etched in her dreams, lit by the glow of a roaring bonfire.
It was the Executioner Senya.
