Crap, they probably spoke Portuguese. “Senhor?” Rurik taught me to say some key phrases, somehow where is the bathroom? didn’t seem appropriate.
With a deep groan, I tried to move. Sharp, exploding pain blinded me. A cry escaped my lips and I squeezed my eyes shut. That wasn’t happening.
Fuck.
“Senhor?” My voice came out strained and weak. The room spun in a slow arc.
Nausea roared in my stomach and a wave of warmth rushed over my body. I blinked and once again. Had the laundry pile fallen on its side? No, I had. I tried to swallow, but a desert parked itself in my mouth and throat.
I recognized these symptoms from after Dragos fed on me a long time ago, too much blood loss. The pain faded as if it belonged to someone else. “Well, buddy, maybe you can help me out.” I giggled then it turned into a sob.
A distant bang startled me and reality slammed me out of my self-pity. I listened.
What did it mean? Another bang, as if a door kicked in and shouting filled the silence.
Something akin to hope soared in my heart. I lifted my head and stared at the door. “I’m in here!” The shout, born of desperation, echoed in the room.
Not a minute later, the door splintered open and Rurik stepped inside. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth and a splatter of it marred the pale skin of his chest. He still wore the same outfit he danced in on New Year’s—a pair of tight, black pants with no shirt. Maybe less time had passed than I thought.
He knelt next to me. “Rabbit.” Relief visible in his face, he pushed the curls from my cheeks. “All will be well.” His lips pressed against my forehead for a short kiss. “Tane and Colby’s forces have taken over this complex.” A dark storm of anger thundered within his eyes as his gaze slid to my back. He licked his lips as he stared at what must be a mess. “I’m going to kill him.”
Which him did he referred to? Ah heck, he could go kill them all. I wrapped my hand around his. “Check on that guy in the corner before you go on a murdering rampage.”
My flip comment brought a small sardonic smile to his mouth. “I want you to feed from me first so you can heal.” He raised his wrist to his mouth to open a vein.
“Wait.” After all the noise and action, nothing stirred from the corner. Dread settled in my gut. “I don’t think my nerves will let me until you see if he’s okay.”
“Fine, except I smell death.” He sighed and crossed the room in three steps then removed the clothing that covered the person. “We’re too late.” His soft voice carried more than regret, it carried recognition.
“Who?” I grimaced as I tried to lift and turn my head. Eric sat slumped against the wall, his throat torn out. I wasn’t any kind of forensic expert, but I could tell he’d been there a while. They must have thrown the clothes on top of him. The smell released from under the fabric roiled over me and I retched. Nothing came out. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d eaten. I heaved again, and this time Rurik cradled my head. “I can’t feed here. Get me out.”
“It’s going to hurt.”
“I don’t care.” After last night, I understood pain.
He frowned and his eyebrows drew together. With a gentle touch, he slid one hand under my shoulder. The brush of his fingers on my open wounds sent an electric fire through my nerve endings.
I cried out. “You’re right, it’s too much.” My mind raced. The smell of rotting flesh grew stronger. God, I was such a wimp.
“I can block some of your pain, but I’d have to link with your mind.”
“Yes, yes, do it. Just get me out of here, Rurik. Please.”
Tears welled in his eyes. Any doubts about him fostered in my dark hour left my belfry like a colony of bats. “I’m going to kill Luckard.”
Like his hands, his mind touched mine with an expert’s ease. The trauma of this ordeal destroyed what mental shielding I usually sustained. I didn’t have any special abilities, any human could do it with practice and concentration. My thoughts were so scattered I couldn’t spell my own name.
His presence surrounded me and soothed all the aches with love. I breathed easier.
He couldn’t take it all away but made it tolerable.
He lifted me in his arms and sped me from the room. Outside the door we ran into a tall, dark haired woman.
She appraised us with cool amber eyes. “My Master asked me to check on your status, Ms. Bence.”
“You can tell your Master to shove—“
Rurik managed to cover my mouth with his fingers. “She’s been hurt and I’m very displeased. I need a place to tend to her wounds.”
“I’ll relay the message.” She reached for a radio hooked to her belt.
“No, you’ll accompany us to a room and guard our backs while she feeds, Gwen.”
Who? How did he know her name? She’d pulled her long brown hair into a tight braid that hung to her behind. Almond shaped, hard eyes stared at him then she nodded and led us downstairs to a worn couch. “This should do.” She stood with her back to the wall and rested a hand on the gun holstered on her hip next to the radio.
Rurik sat with me on his lap. He bit into his wrist and offered me a fix.
I glanced at Gwen.
Tall and strong, her attention was to the entrance.
With the tip of my tongue, I tasted the temptation, hating the satisfaction it provided.
“Bashful?” Rurik’s incredulous question made me jump. “Do you want me to ask her to leave the room before you bleed to death?” He whispered, an undertone of frustration apparent.
Gwen ignored us.
Good, I couldn’t bear an audience. I wanted to nod but the sweet scent of his blood drew my attention. My hunger roared to life, cutting off all thoughts. On the edge of starvation, I jerked his wrist to my mouth. If I was bound to Tane why did I crave another’s blood?
I pressed my mouth to his wrist and drank. The heat of his blood couldn’t compete with the burning heat on my cheeks. Each salty swallow eased some of the hunger, not all of it though. These last few weeks something seemed missing like an essential vitamin. I knew what now.
Tane.
My gut clenched and I pulled away from Rurik. “Enough.”
“You haven’t even begun to heal.”
Gwen faced us. “Time to go, she says she done.” With a stiff jerk of her head, she gestured for us to follow and marched deeper into the building. Wooden stakes attached to the back of her belt caught my attention.
“Bitch.”
I raised an eyebrow at Rurik, he rarely swore.
He took my face between his hands. “I can’t shield you indefinitely. My strength wanes, I haven’t fed and my daylight rest took place in the trunk of Gwen’s car. Feed some more, at least until you’re healed enough to tolerate the pain.”
“How long have I been here?”
“You’ve been missing a full day.”
I’d been unconscious most of it. “Luckard?”
“Escaped, but the others have been caught or killed.” His eyes narrowed. “I’ll hunt him down.”
“Did you say a combination force of Tane and Colby’s men did this?”
He grinned. “I have a growing appreciation for your ex-boss. He used a cell phone to somehow find you.” Rurik, like most old vampires, understood technology as well as my late grandmother. I’d caught him trying to turn on the television with the portable phone once. “Tane attempted to contact his people with his mind, but the drug still flowed heavy in his blood. He couldn’t tell them the exact location and Colby lacked the forces to storm the place. He and Archios, Tane’s second-in-command, worked out a deal.”
“Who’s Gwen?”
“She manages Tane’s security.”