by Colt, Shyla
“Good, we’re going to let you go now. I know the tubes are uncomfortable, but we have to be careful not to remove them too soon. We’re calling your doctor now, but we’d like to check your stats before he gets here. My name is Andrea, and I’m your daytime nurse.” Nakeeta forced her eyes to open a sliver. The woman beside her had flame red hair, tucked behind her ear.
Her gaze blurred and wavered too much to focus on her features. However, the warmth and compassion that radiated from the nurse’s petite frame needed no explanation.
“You’re with me now?” Andrea asked.
Nakeeta nodded.
“Wonderful.”
Andrea explained every action before she did it, with firm, yet gentle hands.
“I can’t understand what I’m seeing. You’ve done weeks, maybe months of healing in a matter of days.” The awe in her voice tugged at memory in the far corners of her brain. She chased it, but the elusive butterfly escaped the net. “How do you feel about trying to sit up?”
Nakeeta managed what she hoped was an agreeable grunt. The whir of the bed and the slow propulsion forward made her heart jump in her chest like a frog. She opened her eyes again, more slowly. The watered-down ache was bearable. Her vision came back into focus, and Andrea smiled.
“Welcome back, sweetheart.”
She wanted to smile. The door swung open. An older man with salt-and-pepper hair cropped short, a round face, and square, black-rimmed glasses stepped inside of the room.
“You are quite an extraordinaire, Ms. Alva. I’m amazed by your progress.” He walked over toward the bed, his white coat flying out behind him to reveal a pair of powder blue scrubs.
“I’m Dr. Phillips. Your body and brain have been through a lot of trauma. I’m going to check your vitals. Nurse Andrea, her chart, please.” He took the clipboard into his hand and scanned the papers.
“I recommend we leave the tube in for a few more hours.” He smiled. “I know you really want to get it out, but it’s better to be safe than be sorry.” He pulled a penlight out of his pocket. “Now let me get a glimpse into those pretty, green eyes.”
Whimpering she fluttered her lids, staving off the moisture that pooled in her eyeballs.
“Good, they respond to light as they should. I’ll take your pulse.” He placed his fingers on the pulse point in her wrist with a cold hand and long, elegant fingers. “Perfect. I’m going to finish my vitals check, and then I think we may be able to move you out of ICU to critical condition. That way you can have visitors. Your family has been camped out in the waiting rooms since they arrived not too long after you were admitted.” He righted to a standing position and began to inspect the machines, making notations and nodding.
“Is the pain medication sufficient? Blink once for yes, and twice for no.” He glanced up, and she blinked once.
“My dear, considering what you’ve been through, you are a modern miracle. One I am pleased to be able to witness. You’re on the fast track to getting out of here within a month.”
I must’ve been road kill when they brought me here the way everyone’s acting like I’m Lazarus risen.
“Now I’m going to update your family on everything that’s happened. Andrea will be checking on you regularly, but if you should need something a call button is located on your left, right beside the buttons that lower and raise your bed.” He walked over to a tiny blue box with bright stripes of color. “I’m going to administer another dose of morphine. It’ll make you sleep. Right now, that’s the best thing for you. If all goes well, the tubes will be removed when you wake up. Then we can talk relocation.” He pressed a button, and she rested her head against the pillow. Maybe I’ll wake up, and this will all be a horrible nightmare. Even as she drifted off, she recognized the thought for the lie it was.
* * *
Humming pulled her from the void.
“Mama?” she croaked as she peeled open her eyes in response to the gentle voice and the light squeeze to her hand.
“My sweet child. That’s it. Let me see those pretty eyes, bug.”
The light was kinder to her retinas as she focused on the gently lined, oval-shaped face that was dear to her.
“Praise God,” her mother whispered. She stood and bent down, kissing her forehead. Her coarse curls tickled her face. Her nose twitched in response. Her mother smoothed her hair back from her face and sank back into her seat. Nakeeta smacked her lips.
“Let me get you some water.” Her mother hurried off as she acclimated herself with the waking world. How long have I been here? Her mother returned with a large, pink plastic cup with a straw. “Let’s get you sitting up.” Her mother hit the button and slowly pushed her up into an upright position.
“Better?”
“Yes,” she rasped.
“Here you are.” She held the cup out, and she wrapped her lips around a straw and sucked the cool water down her sore throat. The relief drew a hum from her throat. Pulling away, Keeta cleared her throat.
“I’m so sorry. Times run out,” her mother whispered.
“What are you talking about, Mom?” She furrowed her brow.
“We did our best to protect you, Keeta. Growing up we tried to keep you away from all things magical, but the power ran too deep. The spirits tried to tell me, but I was too stubborn to listen. You were my child, and I wanted the best for you. Your magic was a part of you that refused to be ignored or denied. So, we switched gears, tried to prepare you for what we knew would come, and hid you for as long as we could. I knew the moment I saw you and looked into your eyes you were the one our family had prophesied about.”
“Hid me from what?” Is this some sort of fever dream? Am I still in a comma?
“Everyone who would use you as a weapon.” Her mother’s whisper was full of sorrow and desperation.
“Use me? Mom, you’re not making any sense.” Exasperated, she huffed. Her body ached, and her head felt barely attached to her shoulders. A combination of the powerful medication and exhaustion that came from healing warped her perception. A hazy recollection of a dream tugged at her. What was I supposed to remember? Her brain protested the strain with a dull throbbing at her temples that stopped her from thinking too hard.
Her mother held her hand. “You’re different.”
“Yes, like our entire family is,” Keeta replied, unsure of what her mother wished to convey. She’d never been the type to beat around the bush before. Why hesitate now?
“Yes, but you have power. A scary amount of it. Things have always been drawn to you. Even with us cloaking you to dampen your light, it shone so brightly.” She closed her eyes and shook her head. “We tried to do right by you, Keeta. Now I’m not sure we were right.”
“Mom, you’re scaring me.” Her voice warbled.
“Destiny will only be denied so long, baby. Yours is at hand.”
Her stomach knotted. The storm that had been threatening overhead was finally breaking.
“Our family is made up of more than powerful magic workers. We descend from a long lineage of gifted magical beings. It goes back further than you can imagine, and some of the spells created and cast changed the shape of the world as we know it.” She glanced around nervously. “I’m not sure how much time we have. You’re a part of a bigger plan, Keeta. The laws keeping humans safe are crumbling into themselves. You can help change that. I won’t tell you it’ll be easy, or comfortable, but it’s necessary. If I could take this burden from you, I would.” She shook her head. “But it wasn’t meant for me.”
“I don’t understand. What am I supposed to do? Why?” Keeta shook her head. She’d never seen her mother this distraught. Dark circles ringed her puffy red eyes. Regret and apprehension stiffened her muscles and turned her dark brown eyes nearly black.
“I want to tell you more.” Her mother bowed her head. Her mouth clamped shut as if it’d been glued together. “Mmm. Mmmm.” She struggled to speak. Her face turned purple.
“Mom?” She gripped the blankets hard
and leaned forward. “Breathe!”
Her mother gasped, greedily sucking in air as her slender form trembled. Tears rolled down her face in a steady stream of salty water. “I can’t. God help me, I can’t.” Her anguished cries sliced at Keeta’s heart.
“You can’t what?” she whimpered, feeling her mother’s pain as her own.
Exasperated, her mother threw her hands into the air and shook her head so hard she thought she might strain a muscle. “T-the d-deal,” she stuttered, stumbling over her words
“What deal?” Her stomach plummeted, and her heartbeat spiked. The monitors beeped nosily in response.
“The one she made to save your life,” a masculine voice answered from the doorway.
Her spine stiffened. The room felt too small. She shrank back against her pillow. His aura was dark and powerful. Nearly six-foot with pale blond hair, crystalline blue eyes, and cheekbones that could draw blood, he oozed strength and dominance.
Predator. He slammed against the wall, pinned into place. She gasped. Did I do that?
“Nakeeta!” her mother hissed.
She’d never been able to manifest her powers this way. She trembled. Images of the powerful medicine man and his words filled her brain. A headache burst through her head.
“Stop this,” her mother demanded.
I don’t know how. She wouldn’t share that weakness in front of this—
His eyes flashed red.
Vampire.
His thin, pink lips curved, revealing fangs. “Now she realizes. Because you are vulnerable and your brain is muddled, I will allow your impertinence to slide this once.”
“What have you done, Mama?” She struggled to undo the process and release him from her hold.
“Saved your life. Now do as the man asks.”
“He’s no man.”
“All the more reason to listen to your mother,” he purred.
She sensed the tightly leashed beast he held back. A lock clicked open inside of her, and she retracted her power.
“You’ve got a lot to learn,” he drawled.
Does he know?
“And I suppose you’ll be the one who’ll teach me?” Sitting up straight in bed, she held her head high, ignoring the protests of stiff muscle. There’d never been any love lost between witches and vampires. She peered down her nose at the bloodthirsty, emotionally bereft savage who studied her from beneath lazily lowered lids. Common sense told her to back off. Their brutality was a thing of legend. The anger burning brightly blotted out her ability to rationalize.
“Nakeeta. He’s the reason you’re alive.”
Images of her ancestor gorging himself on hearts flittered in her head. When you ingest the life force of another being still warm and fresh, you take them into yourself.
“No,” she cried.
“Do you understand what that means? We are connected, and you are something more than you once were.”
She fisted the sheets at her side. “What have you done to me?”
“We don’t know,” the vampire said honestly. For a moment, she thought she saw compassion in his artic blue gaze. “Vampirism has never been as cut and dry as the movies make it. Not everyone can be turned, and the effects vary. You won’t be like me. I didn’t drain you and give you enough blood to cause a transition, but there will be changes. Given your genetic make-up, and the way you responded with that powerful display, it’s already begun.”
“Why would you agree to this?” Keeta said, directing her question at the mysterious vampire. Her mother’s reasoning was valid. His motives were unknown and sketchy at best.
“We are not enemies—” he began.
“Centuries of history say otherwise.” She refused to give an inch.
“We want the same thing,” he said.
Keeta’s brow furrowed. “What’s that?” she asked skeptically.
“Peace between our races.”
“You need to listen to him, Keeta. What he has to say could make or break life as we know it.”
It’s up to you to fix this now. The words echoed in her head, confirming the truth. The bed began to rattle. Metal clanked as things feel to the floor.
“Keeta, you need to calm down.” Her mother’s panicked plea barely registered. A red haze of anger built up inside.
“Oh my god! Her eyes.”
Iron bands clamped around her forearms.
“Look at me.”
She fell headfirst into a crimson-colored gaze.
* * *
CREWE
“Rest.” He overloaded her senses, shutting her body down as he slipped through her mental shields with ease. Her body went limp.
“What have you done?”
“She is resting. We have to act now. This may get worse before she learns control.” He ignored the bitter scent of apprehension and fear flooding her pores.
“Louis, Pierce. It’s time to initiate stage two.” He spoke to the men he had posted on the floor knowing they could hear him. Time for cleanup.
“What’s happening?” Her mother moved closer.
He laid Keeta’s body back against the bed. “They will alter memories and strike Keeta from the records. We don’t want to be tracked or leave any reason for them to seek her out. This type of healing is unprecedented. The doctor would have already contacted others if we had not intervened.”
“Her shop. Her life here—”
“Is over until further notice,” he stated, cutting her off.
“She’s poured all she had into that shop! If you destroy everything she’s built what will that do to her? You saw how unbalanced she became.”
He growled. Humans and their petty attachments to temporary things.
“There are far more important things at stake, witch.”
“You may know how vampires think, but I know my daughter. Humans need a reason to keep fighting. When change sweeps in like a stormy sea, we need an anchor to hold us.”
He paused to consider her words. “What do you need?”
“Money to pay the bills. I will call on family to keep the store going, but it will take time for them to travel here.”
“Done.” What was money to someone such as he? Money accumulated over time and he had more than a human could spend in a thousand lifetimes.
He caught the scent of Pierce outside before the door opened. White-blond fringe fell across his eyes. The style might be popular nowadays, but he ached to go at it with a pair of cutting scissors.
“Is it done?”
Pierce nodded. “I’ve taken care of the computer data, and Louis is using his special persuasion to erase the doctor’s thoughts. Is it safe to move her so soon?”
“Believe me when I say she’s ready. We’ve allowed her to heal for a week. Any longer and the questions will begin to pile up and leak outside of the hospital walls, becoming a larger containment issue.”
“All right.” Pierce held up his hands. “I was just playing devil’s advocate. It’s my job.”
“Don’t act like it doesn’t get your rocks off.” Crewe rolled his eyes. “Horse’s ass. Send Andrea to me the moment she logs in for her next shift.”
Chuckling, Pierce retreated from the room.
“It’s so easy to manipulate us humans.” The bitterness was heavy in her mother’s voice.
“You know witches aren’t so easily managed,” Crewe replied as he watched Keeta’s vitals. They weren’t out of the woods. The power he felt from her was great. He’d seen others burn out from less.
“And where will you take her now?”
“Telling you defeats the purpose of secrecy.”
“I am her mother—”
He lifted a perfectly manicured hand to cut her off. “You made the oath and sealed it with your blood. Don’t get all holier than thou with me now.”
“What other choice did I have?”
“The same you have now. None.”
She dropped her head. He smelled the salty water of tears. The door opened, and the pe
tite nurse with periwinkle-blue-colored eyes entered.
“Hello, Andrea, lovely to see you today.” A mental push sent his power up to his eyes. “You never met Nakeeta Alva. You’ve spent the past few weeks tending the patients here and dealing with normal shifts. Nothing extraordinary has occurred. As a matter of fact, you’ve been bored.”
“I’ve been bored. Same shift different day.”
“That’s my girl. Now you’ll go do your rounds and avoid this room for the next hour.”
“I must go attend to my other patients now.”
“Enjoy your evening. I was never here.”
“You were never here,” she agreed before walking away.
He remained in the chair monitoring Keeta’s vitals as his team wiped minds and camera feed. He visited her nightly after visiting hours; sat by her bed and slipped in her mind to see her dreams. She was vibrant color in motion. A beautiful soul with untapped powers she did not realize existed.
I won’t let this break you, Keeta. That I can promise. Come hell or high water I will defend you with my last breath and keep that amazing mind of yours intact. There’d be no more casualties on his watch. Using the bond they shared, he sent her into a deeper sleep.
“How will I know she’s okay?” her mother asked quietly.
“We will send word.” He rose. “Now, my lovely, we have to get you up and out of here.” Perusing the machines, he quickly configured the best way to disconnect her. Unlike their portrayal on television, his people weren’t blood-crazed maniacs completely guided by instinct. They were intelligent, capable, and everywhere. Moving around the room faster than the human eye could track, he disabled the machines, unhooking her. He lifted her into his arms, savoring the warmth that seeped into his bones.
It was one of the things he’d missed most about being alive—the ability to generate heat. She nuzzled her nose into his neck, and he flinched, unused to the contact. He exited the room.