Chapter 453
Katelina woke hours later to find the plane stationary and everyone asleep. Though she couldn't see outside, she knew the sun was burning in the sky.
She reached over Jorick's slouched form and laid her hand on the window shutter. The sun had always been a concern for Jorick and her friends, but she'd never feared it. Now, sliding the window back could mean death. Not the kind of death she'd been through already, but real, total, death. The kind that there was no coming back from.
She dropped her hand to her lap. The skin was pale and youthful, like a freshly scrubbed child. She marveled at the way her fingernails gleamed and sliced them across the arm of her seat. To her surprise the material gave way.
Jorick stirred next to her. After his usual gasp he met her eyes and offered her a smile. "Good morning, little one."
She didn't bother to correct him. After all, it was her morning now. Now and forever.
The words had a terrifying ring that stole her breath. Jorick frowned and took her hand. "I know this isn't the way we planned it. I understand your initial panic, especially considering who-" He didn't finish, but she knew he meant "Who turned you." With a low growl, he continued, "Beyond owing a debt to that-Neanderthal, there's nothing to be afraid of."
"Except the sun. And my mother. God, Jorick. What am I going to tell her?"
He shrugged. "Do you need to tell her anything? You're an adult. You could just stop visiting her."
"No, I can't. She may be a crazy old lady who's dating a guy half her age, but she's still my mother. God, how will I hide this? When I don't age in a few years, she's going to notice!"
Jorick rolled his eyes. "We might get lucky and she'll die first."
Katelina smacked him. He pulled away and rubbed his arm, an amused grin on his lips. "That almost hurt for once."
Xandria stirred next to her, probably woken by their argument. She yawned loudly, and Katelina balked at her morning breath. God damn, the girl needed some mints!
Verchiel's chipper voice came from the seat behind them. "That's the way you all smell. Or at least, you used to smell. Just another perk of immortality."
"I need to pee," Xandria announced and strode toward the bathroom.
The other vampires woke, one after another and Sadihra announce it was safe to disembark.
As everyone gathered their luggage, Verchiel pulled a battered Ziploc bag from his pocket. "I forgot. This belongs to you." He thrust the bag at Katelina, then followed the others out the door.
It took Katelina a moment to recognize the disposable camera and odd junk she'd lost when Arlen and his goons attacked them. It was sweet that Verchiel had taken the time to collect it.
Jorick scoffed. "More likely the Chinese Executioners found it and put it in with his personal effects."
It was warmer outside than she expected, which was just as well since she'd lost her coat somewhere. Her eyes skipped from the collection of buildings to the other planes, then on to a parking lot where three black SUVs were parked.
Sadihra motioned everyone to wait and looked them over, as if mentally ticking them off a list. Katelina could almost hear it, "Jorickcheck. The redheadcheck. One prisoner"
"Boris?" Sadihra demanded. "Where is he?"
The Russian vampire flickered and became solid next to her. Sadihra latched onto the cuffs around his wrists. "It will do you no good. We have vampires in the stronghold who are immune to those tricks."
Boris muttered something that sounded like a curse. Sadihra turned back to them. "The human woman, who does she belong to?"
All eyes turned to Xandria. "Sanjay, but he's still with the old guy."
Sadihra frowned. "One of you will need to claim her, or she'll be confiscated. Unclaimed humans are not allowed. And a claimed human without their master is even worse."
Oren spoke up, "Jorick's-fledgling took responsibility for her."
"Then mark her and be quick about it," said Sadihra.
It took Katelina a moment to realize they were talking to her. "Me? I don't know how."
Oren rolled his eyes. "She's supposed to drink from you, but we're in a hurry so skip that and just bite her."
Bite her. Katelina cringed. They wanted her to bite a girl in the middle of a parking lot while they all watched?
"If you don't want to, someone else can claim her," Sadihra said impatiently.
Jorick interjected. "I think that's for the best."
Katelina weighed the possibilities and found them lacking. "No, I'll, uh, do it." She stepped closer to Xandria and tried to ignore the stomach rumbling smell of her blood. It was like spaghetti and garlic bread. "Where should I do it at?"
"There are traditionally favored spots, such as the neck or shoulder," Sadihra said. "But you can do it wherever you want."
The thought of biting another woman on the neck seemed strange. "Right. The arm it is." She gave Xandria an apologetic smile. "Sorry this is weird."
Xandria held out her arm. "It's fine. I don't want to be confiscated or whatever."
Katelina steeled herself. If she didn't think of it as bizarre, then maybe it wouldn't be. It was no different than drinking from Boris. It was just a platonic, blood-sharing moment like that. One of those important, lifesaving
She raised Xandria's arm to her lips and the thoughts disappeared. The smell of her blood was strong. With no more thought than it took to bite a sandwich, she clamped down. Warm wetness flowed into her mouth, salty and tinged with a thousand flavors. There were sounds in her head, soft whisperings and over-bright visions. She saw a short, bald, Arabic looking vampire cringing at Malick's feet. He stood and dragged her to the corridor.
"What is it now?" she asked in a voice that wasn't hers. She wished they'd leave. She could deal with Sanjay but these other vampires made her nervous.
"He has a use for you."
The scene was replaced by Cyprus, with his long auburn hair and haunted eyes. He leaned back in a chair while another vampire tapped Morse code on a radio key. "He says the Black Vigil will be in Uzbekistan the day after tomorrow."
"Why would he betray them?" Cyprus asked.
"He says their leader is a bitch and he's had enough of them coming to him for help and never compensating him."
Cyprus frowned and looked at her, as if he'd felt her scrutiny. Her heart skipped a beat and she smiled. He returned it and turned back to the radio. That was part of what made him attractive. Unlike the rest of the assholes he didn't treat her like a second class piece of meat.
The room faded and was replaced by the lunch room in Malick's desert stronghold. She could hear screams in the background, so loud they made it hard to eat.
"It's just a prisoner," Sanjay said. "The master wants something from her."
Her voice was still wrong when she said, "He won't get anything but a corpse if he keeps that up."
"Katelina!"
The scene disappeared as Jorick ripped her away.
Verchiel caught Xandria before she hit the ground. "You got a little enthusiastic, Kately."
Katelina wiped absently at her mouth to find blood. Xandria's blood.
"It's all right," Jorick assured her. "We shouldn't have expected you to do that when you hadn't fed. She'll be fine, and the bite will do as a mark. Come. Our ride is waiting."
Verchiel hefted the unconscious woman over his shoulder like a bag of potatoes. "I'll get her this time. Next time you have to carry your own victims."
"She's not my victim!"
Jorick glared at Verchiel and tugged Katelina toward the waiting vehicles. Her eyes moved to Xandria's slack face. She was torn between guilt and the desire to bite her again. The second thought sickened her, and she looked away.
"We'll feed once we reach the stronghold," Jorick said.
They'd barely reached the SUV when Micah appeared from behind the vehicle. He clapped a hand on her back. "Good job, slave. At this rate we'll make a real vampire out of you yet, not one of those so-called-vegetarian-pussies."
Katelina drew back with a scowl and Jorick snarled, "Don't touch her."
Micah snickered. "Until that debt's paid I can do what I want. Eh? Eh?" He punctuated each word by poking her in the shoulder. "So pipe down and"
Katelina slammed Micah back against the vehicle. Surprised at herself, she let him push her away.
"Thank God. I was afraid you were gonna be a wimpy bitch."
Jorick flashed his fangs, but Sadihra moved between them. "You can kill him later. We're on a schedule now."
