I had to believe him-I didn’t have a choice. Death wasn’t exactly an option I was open to, especially when I was so close to regaining my freedom, so I drank. The blood burned, feeling as though it seared a path of scar tissue down my throat as I swallowed. I’d never experienced anything like it. The sensation was like trying to describe how a nightmare would taste, or what flavor death might have. My body tried to reject the invader, and my limbs flailed and thrashed as though suffering a seizure. Zach pinned me down and held me still as best he could, continuing to pour the poison into me. I had no idea how it could be helping, it felt as though the blood was killing me faster.
Finally he removed his wrist and smoothed the fingers of his other hand over the torn skin, closing the wound. Then he pressed his hands against each of the puncture wounds caused by Laura’s heel, one after the other. The pain was phenomenal, unimaginable, a spear of agony that sprung from my core out to my skin. I didn’t remember it hurting that badly when she’d caused them in the first place. I screamed loud and long, the sound filling the room until I sank into the blessed oblivion of unconsciousness as my newfound talent for fainting finally resulted in something good.
Chapter Twenty-One
The soft, rapid clicking of a keyboard woke me, and I dragged my eyes open to stare at an unfamiliar ceiling. By now I was getting used to the running theme of fainting and waking up in an unexpected place. I’d gone through most of my life without fainting a single time, and yet somehow during the past few weeks I’d developed the constitution of a Victorian heroine suffering from the consumption. If I survived this whole ordeal, I was joining a gym and toughening myself up. And quitting smoking. Again. For real this time.
Lifting my head, I studied the room. Yup, definitely not my suite, or my apartment, and also not Castle Silverleaf, though the bed was nearly as large. The place was the definition of master bedroom-it was probably larger than my entire apartment. Antique wooden furniture decorated the space, and a familiar vampire hunched over a laptop in an easy chair across the room, a stack of newspapers on the table next to him. Though Zach’s hair was a bit mussed and the top buttons of his dress shirt were undone, it reminded me of when I’d arrived at his office here in the tower because he had the same intent expression as he studied whatever important work was plastered on the screen. The sight was somewhat of a relief. It was less embarrassing to wake up in Zach’s bed when he was fully clothed on the other side of the room, engrossed in some business dealing. Curious, I glanced down at myself, easing the covers aside to discover that I was wearing a set of boring cotton print pajamas I’d ordered from one of the catalogues. While it was a little mortifying that he’d probably dressed me, I was pretty positive he’d behaved himself.
Sensing my movement, Zach looked up from his laptop, seeming surprised. “You’re awake,” he said, setting his work aside. “How do you feel?”
“Like I got stomped on,” I replied, my voice rough and gravelly. Everything ached, thankfully not as terribly as it ought to considering how close to death I’d been. Crossing the room, he picked up a heavy earthenware mug from the bedside table and moved to help me sit up.
“Here, drink this.”
“No more blood,” I protested in a piteous whine.
“No more blood, it’s herbal tea. I added a potion to it that will help ease the pain and regain your strength more quickly.”
I nodded my thanks and took the mug, holding it with both hands as I sipped at it. The liquid was dark and lukewarm, and it smelled faintly of mint. If there was a potion stirred into it I couldn’t smell it, but then again alchemy is the most difficult magic for me to detect. Potions tend to smell like their ingredients, or whatever they’re added to.
“You were an alchemist?” I’d figured him for a sorcerer, since so many necromancers start out that way.
“Yes. I’m the first magician in the Harrison family.” He smiled dryly. “It was a bit of a surprise for my father.”
I looked down at the tea and froze. Zach was an alchemist. “You put potions in my food, didn’t you? To do the spell that bound us together.”
“Part of it,” he admitted. “Your weakness for sweets was very helpful. As was the fact that you’re a heavy sleeper.”
“You son of a-”
“Catherine, if I hadn’t cast the spell, you would be dead right now. I wouldn’t have known Laura attacked you until your body was found in the morning. Would that be better?”
“No.” He had a point, as much as it pissed me off to admit it. “Thank you. For saving me, I mean. How did you do it, I’m not-I mean, I’m still…?”
“Alive? Yes, you are. It takes more than that to become a necromancer, and a lot more to become a master. You should get used to the terminology, by the way. Many of the elder masters consider being called vampire a grave insult, and they don’t deal well with being insulted.”
“Uh-huh. Why did I have to drink from you?” I wrinkled my nose at the very idea of it. Yuck.
“I’m sorry, but I couldn’t heal you without it. Usually to heal a wound, like a bite for example, we use the magic within the person’s own blood to do it. You’d lost so much blood that you didn’t have the strength to repair that much damage. I had to give you mine so I would have something to work with. It won’t happen again, I’ll make sure you stay safe.”
“Really. Did Lovely Laura suffer some sort of unfortunate accident while I was asleep?”
“No, she didn’t, but she’s not getting anywhere near you again.”
“My hero. You know, I don’t think these bruises will match my dress for the party,” I joked half-heartedly.
“I’ll find a makeup artist to cover it for you. You should be well enough to make an appearance, but we won’t stay long at the opening.”
“Is Laura going to be there?” There was no way I could deal with her after this-she was number one on my hit list now. Maybe when I got out I could join up with the Silverleafs and we’d slay her mightily together, one big, happy, vengeful faerie family.
“Yes she is, but if she even looks in your direction, she’ll be asked to leave.”
“Asked with extreme prejudice?”
“Yes. I’m sorry she attacked you, this is entirely my fault.”
“You two were…” I paused, searching for a polite term, “…involved, huh?”
He shifted uncomfortably and then nodded. “I was one of her most prized pets, but that was years ago. Laura tends to go through men rather quickly.”
“Like she goes through shoes?”
The vampire chuckled, but it was a hollow sound. I could tell there was a story there, but he wasn’t going to discuss it. “Why’d she go after me like a jealous wife if you’re not involved anymore?”
“Aside from the fact that she doesn’t agree with my politics in this case, it’s one of Laura’s eccentricities. She has no problem moving on to a new pet, but she expects all of her former ones to pine for her for the rest of their lives. She hasn’t cared as long as I’ve had short, empty relationships with other women.”
“And I’m different?”
“You are, yes.” Avoiding elaborating on that topic, he changed the subject. “Catherine, I know you must leave tomorrow, but you need to be careful when you do. Magicians who haven’t become necromancers don’t typically ingest our blood, and there can be dangerous side effects. Rare, but there is a risk.”
I frowned down into my mug and considered his words. “I’ll be careful.”
“Good. Now, I’d like to test how steady you are on your feet.”
For the next several minutes Zach let me lean on him as I tested my wobbly legs doing laps around the room. At first it was a struggle, but as we continued to move I realized most of the problem was in my head. Sure I had plenty of aches and pains, but he healed my injuries very well and they’d been reduced to bruises and sore muscles. Once he was convinced I wasn’t going to crumple like a wilting flower, Zach gave me free reign of the room and also the ginormous master bathroom and retreated with his laptop into the main room.