Chapter 119
Jorick's words came, soft and warm. "How long have you been awake?"
His voice brought Katelina back to the small room, and she answered truthfully, "Not very long. Oren's the only one I've seen and he just yelled a lot." She bit her lip and then continued, uncertainly, "Why didn't you answer me?"
Jorick blinked, and then understanding dawned. "You mean the Linking?" She nodded and his shoulders relaxed. "You drank enough of another master's blood to undo any mark I left upon you."
A strange disappointment flickered through her. "Oh. So it's gone?"
He offered her a wan smile. "Yes, you should be happy. You hated it so."
"I don't know. It was kind of comforting, actually. I mean, I knew where you were and what you were doing." She swallowed hard. "I'm not- I mean, Kateesha-"
"Linked to her?" he asked. "No. For the Linking to work, you have to be 'connected' to the vampire at the time of ingestion; they have to bite you as well. You would probably be attached to her, after a fashion, though. More like an attraction, or a deep fondness or possibly even an obsession, depending how much of her blood you drank. But, since she's dead, the only effect you're likely to be left with is a strange kinship with those she turned."
"So Kateesha's really dead?"
"Yes, little one, she's dead. You don't think she'd let you wear her clothes were she alive?"
Katelina gasped in horror and looked down at the red dress. "What? Her-"
"She didn't seem to need it anymore. I managed to claim that one and another, before Torina had them all gathered up."
Katelina plucked at the dress absently, then looked back to Jorick. "But who..." she sought for the right words. "Who put me in it."
"I did, last night." Katelina blinked and he went on, "The battle was last night. You slept through the rest of the night, all of the day and most of tonight as well. You had a lot to recover from. I hear that you killed her rather efficiently," he teased. "And you were quite proficient in claiming the coven, too." He turned suddenly serious and strange emotions stirred in the depths of his eyes; emotions Katelina didn't know how to deal with. "You shouldn't have done that. It's never happened before. Not once, in our recorded history, has a mortal claimed a coven leader's heart."
"I'm sorry." Her eyes dropped from his face to the open collar of his shirt and she tried to gather her thoughts. "I-I thought you were dead." She drew a ragged breath and tears tickled her voice. "Nothing mattered anymore."
He cupped her chin in his hand and forced her to meet his eyes. "Whether I live or die, Katelina, there are things that still matter."
"Don't tell me that their laws matter!"
"I don't mean the Laws. They want to put you to death, Katelina. If I was dead then who'd stop them? I don't want anything to happen to you." He clutched her tightly and then slowly released her so he could study her. "You thought I was dead?"
Her face flushed and she looked away from him. "Yes. Kateesha drank your blood and you looked-." She trailed off, unsure how to continue.
"Gruesome?" he suggested. "Withered? Yes, that happens when we run out of blood. Luckily, Kateesha - or probably Claudius, since this was his stronghold to begin with - was thoughtful enough to have a stash."
"But I gave you blood!" she argued stubbornly. "Nothing happened!"
Jorick drew back in surprise. "When?"
"When you were all- dead. You said blood would heal you, but it didn't! It didn't do anything!"
It was obvious that he didn't know what to say. "Katelina, you," he broke off and shook his head. "I wouldn't have expected that," he said quietly. "You didn't need to do that. The quantity that was needed-" He cleared his throat noisily. "No one mentioned it."
"I doubt they noticed. I'm not sure where they were at the time. It's all a blur."
He nodded, but continued to look at her as though she'd just dropped from outer space.
"What?" she cried, suddenly embarrassed. "You act like I did something wrong!"
He stroked her cheek absently. "Wrong? No, not at all. I wouldn't even call it uncommon, particularly. Some vampires keep a human," he paused and added, "companion to feed on, and The Guild has their own network of blood donors, of course. I've even heard of humans who think it's fun to be fed on. It's just a shock that you'd give your blood to me willingly. You're always so disgusted by the idea of what I am."
Her eyes dropped away and she asked quietly, "Am I really?"
"So you've said." He sighed deeply, then wrapped his arms around her and buried his face in her golden hair. "It's all right. It doesn't matter."
She closed her eyes and listened to his heart beat. Though comforting, it couldn't drown out the fears in her mind. "It does matter. I don't want you to think that I- That I find you-" She rushed on before he could interrupt her. "It bothered me, some, at the beginning. I mean, to think about you being a vampire but now it just- It just doesn't seem important anymore." She pulled back and tilted her face to peer into his. "I don't know if it ever really was."
He started to answer, but stopped. "I doubt anyone knows what they really think."
She could only agree with that statement, and dropped her head back to his chest. There were so many things to say, but the saying didn't seem important. It was as if he already knew, anyway.
"Don't worry, Katelina. We'll find a way out of this."
She looked up, confused at the heaviness in his voice. "Out of what? This thing with Oren? Why can't we just leave?"
"I wish it was that easy. There are things that have to be settled first. They'll have to find a solution the majority agrees with. Right now, the remnant of Kateesha's coven is kept under lock and key, but it will only hold them so long. They won't swear allegiance to a mortal; it's unheard of. If a decision isn't reached soon they may choose a new leader themselves and rise against us. There'd be more blood."
Katelina really couldn't care less. "So? We'll be miles from here. Who cares what happens to them?"
Jorick cocked a solitary eyebrow. "Even if I didn't care about them, they'd still want your blood."
"Let them want it. We could go somewhere they'd never look."
"And what then? We'd disappear into the night, and you think other vampires won't recognize us?" He sighed heavily and cupped her face in his palms. "It will only take a little while, I promise. Once they've agreed to overlook your actions, we can leave and go where ever we wish, without having to look over our shoulders."
She couldn't believe what she was hearing. "You're saying we should play along? Isn't there another way?"
His voice turned matter of fact, "I could turn you, but even then you'd be new and weak; no match for those with old blood. And that's who The Guild would send. Could you fight them? It wouldn't be just one or two. It would be a death squad, sent to annihilate, while they forced me to watch. I won't do that, and you can't ask it of me." His voice caught in his throat. "I won't lose someone else. Not like that."
It was impossible to ignore his sentiment and she surrendered. "I just want away from this nightmare."
"I know, but first let them sort things out. Go along with them for now. Oren is still their leader and, unless I'm mistaken, they won't overthrow him just yet. They've come fresh from the victory he led them to, and they won't forget it for some days. Should they try, I'll remind them who's the strongest here."
Her shoulders sagged with resignation. "All right, Jorick. But I hate this. They'll make me go back to that room and leave you here."
"Very likely, yes. There's some sentiment that I convinced you to take the heart as an act of vengeance because they doubted me. They won't want us together for fear I'm using you still." He offered her a wry smile. "Despite the fact you're a weak human, you can be awake in the daylight, and it makes them nervous."
"It should," she muttered darkly, and imagined a mass staking, starting with Oren.
Jorick gave a soft laugh and pulled her to him. "You've gotten vicious. Perhaps it's the company you keep?"
She started to answer him, but he claimed her mouth in a powerful kiss. Their lips meshed and she folded against him. Her fingers tangled in the long dark hair at the base of his neck. She could taste him; sharp and tangy, and at that moment nothing else mattered. Not Oren, or the other vampires, or their stupid war. Just Jorick and his warm kisses.
He broke contact and, as her head dropped to his chest, he murmured softly, "I love you, Katelina."
Without even thinking she whispered in return, "I love you too, Jorick." And, despite everything, she knew she truly did.
