The driver's grunt wasn't exactly a sound of agreement. A door slammed shut, then Nikki's scent surround him. He breathed deeply the sweet smell and allowed himself to relax a little. The need to sleep was almost overwhelming, but he refused to give in to it just yet. A moist cloth touched his face, gently wiping the muck and blood away. He forced open his good eye.
Her amber eyes were bright with tears. "You're a goddamn mess."
He would have smiled if it didn't hurt so much. "Yeah." Even that one word hurt, but he couldn't leave it there when there were questions that had to be answered. "Jake?"
Tears washed her amber eyes, trickled down her cheeks. He raised a hand, thumbing them gently away.
Something bad had obviously happened in his absence—though surely not to Jake. She'd be in a worse state than this if it was.
She dunked the cloth into water and gently wiped his mouth. "Mary's dead." Her voice was flat, but the drugs blocking his psychic abilities had to be fading because her pain was a tide of agony that overwhelmed anything he was feeling.
He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close. She buried her face against his chest, her tears searing his skin. He held her while she sobbed, offering her no words of comfort simply because there were none that could ever erase such pain. Only time could dim it.
After a few minutes, he croaked, "How?"
She sniffed and pulled away from his touch. "He snatched her from the airport. I guess we have to be thankful it was relatively quick. He cut out her tongue so she couldn't scream, then he drank her dry."
She hesitated, swallowing heavily. "Jake's with the police at the moment. He'll meet us at the boat when he can."
"Why… boat?"
She shrugged. "It belongs to a friend of Jake's. And we knew we couldn't risk leaving either of you at the hotel."
He nodded. If Farmer hadn't already discovered his escape, he soon would. And the hotel was the first place he'd look. Unless, of course, he'd reached out to Nikki. He might even now be tracking their movements. "The charm?"
"Arrived earlier this evening." She shoved up her sleeve, revealing the coin-entwined rope charm. "When I'm wearing it, Farmer has no sense of me."
He frowned. "How do you know?"
She hesitated, her gaze suddenly evasive. "Long story. I'll tell you when you regain some strength."
"Nikki—" She placed a gentle finger against his bruised lips. "Now is not the time for arguments or lectures.
Besides, we're here."
Masts rose beyond the tinted window. The car stopped, and a few seconds later the door opened. The smell of the ocean swept in, followed by the gentle sound of lapping waves.
The driver stuck his head in. "I'll give you a hand to the yacht, Miss, then I have to go pick up Mister Morgan."
"Thanks, Henry."
Hands grabbed him, hauling him out of the car as gently as possible. The driver was a big man and basically carried him down the jetty to the boat. Nikki moved forward, disappearing briefly from sight.
She came back with a key and unlocked the doors.
The driver deposited him onto a bed then straightened. "I'm off, now, Miss."
"Thanks."
The driver nodded, cast a dubious gaze his way, then retreated. Nikki took a deep breath then sat down next to him. "I'm going to have to reset that arm, aren't I?"
"I'll pull it straight, but you're going to have to splint and wrap it, because I'll be close to unconsciousness."
She bit her lip but nodded. "And blood? Your clothes are practically stiff with it. Will you need to feed soon?"
"I have, at the zoo." He touched a hand to her lips, wishing he could kiss them. I really will be fine .
Her eyes widened slightly, then a wave of love flooded the link, drowning him in its warmth.
God, I missed this.She brushed a kiss across his fingertips. I didn't realize until the link was gone just how much I'd grown used to having you so close.
Nor I.But now was not the time to show her just how much he'd missed it. Missed her. I'm going to have to sleep soon, so my body can begin to heal itself. We'll have to hurry to set my arm before then.
She nodded. What do we need?
Bandages. Something to splint my arm so it can't move while the bones are knitting.
She nodded again and moved away. He closed his good eye, listening to her searching through cupboards and drawers.
"Okay, got both."
He took a deep breath and looked at her. Undo the makeshift splint.
That's certainly a novel use for socks. Though her mind voice held a note of amusement, it was countered by the trembling in her fingers. She didn't want to do this—but then, neither did he.
The socks and the bar supporting his arm slipped away and agony threatened. He took a deep breath, fighting the tide.
"Okay, what next?"
I'll set the bone into place using my vampire vision, then you'll have to quickly splint and wrap it.
She nodded again. He switched to infrared vision and looked at his arm. His flesh disappeared, became instead a glowing beacon of sinew, veins and bone. The break was fairly clean, despite the fact one end of the bone had punctured skin.
He took another deep breath then grabbed his wrist and pulled. A scream tore up his throat. He swallowed the scream and sucked down air, battling the urge to be ill, fighting the darkness and the pain that made his head swim and threatened to sweep him into unconsciousness. Sweat rolled into his eyes.
He blinked furiously, staring at his arm, watching the bone slide back through skin and into place.
Now.
She quickly began to splint and bandage his arm. The darkness threatened again, but he forced it away, watching his arm, making sure the bone stayed in place while she worked on it.
But once she'd finished, he finally gave in and let unconsciousness sweep him away.
Footsteps echoed on the deck above them. Nikki rose and walked quietly to the door. The night air was free from the taint of evil, so it couldn't be Farmer or any of his fledglings. Though how they'd find them so quickly she didn't know. Still, she'd learned the hard way never to underestimate the bad guys.
She grabbed the broom handle she'd sharpened to use as a weapon and edged up the ladder. Shoes and jeans came into sight, then a torso. It was Jake.
"You want something to drink?" she said, backing down the ladder again.
He shook his head. He looked haggard, old beyond his years, and just about ready to drop with exhaustion. It was his thirst for vengeance getting him through this, nothing more. "I just want this all over with."
Didn't they all. She sat down at the table and wrapped her hands around the coffee cup. "Did the police say anything?"
He shrugged as he dropped down on the bench seat. "The usual. The FBI wanted to know where the hell you were."
She raised an eyebrow. "Why?"
"Because I think they suspect we have every intention of going after this madman and administering our own form of justice."
"Their justice wouldn't stop a man like Farmer."
"No. But they don't see it that way."
"No."
Jake leaned back and scrubbed a hand across his bristly chin. It made a sound similar to sandpaper.
"How's Michael?"
Her gaze went to the bedroom door. He hadn't stirred, hadn't even twitched, for the last two hours—not even when she'd stripped him down and bathed him. God, she'd never seen so many bruises on one body before…
"He's in a bad way. I doubt he'll be awake by dawn."
"So it's just you and me?"
You, me and the ghosts,she thought, and tried to ignore the chill that ran down her spine. "Did you bring the weapons?"