"Please, Micah," Emily pleaded. Her blue eyes were misty with tears. "It'll be my fault if he dies."
His features softened when his gaze slid over to her. "Very well. For you, I'll do it."
I was pretty sure he blamed me for his brother being in Purgatory. There'd always been tension between us since we first met, but it got worse after Lucas was taken away. Now, we rarely had a civil conversation with each other.
Micah's fingertips started to glow with power as they moved over Hunter's body. He began with the head injury and spent long minutes repairing it. My senses could always identify what kind of magic was being used as long as I was close to it. I was in awe of how meticulously he worked. After a while, he moved on to Hunter's legs. He manually set the broken bone before using his powers to heal the remaining damage.
Emily and I barely breathed during the process. Sable watched the nephilim from Hunter's side, never taking her eyes off of him either. It seemed like hours passed before Micah sat back on his heels and announced he was done. More than half of his powers had been drained. When he'd said it would take a lot, he'd meant it.
"Why didn't you wake him up?" Emily asked.
Micah rubbed his tired face and looked at her. "The healing sleep is better for him. It won't last long, but it will speed up his recovery process."
Hunter's injuries might be gone and his color returned, but I suspected that much like the way vampire blood worked, it took a lot out of a person's body to heal that fast. The only difference being vampire blood didn't use magic; it just pushed the body's immune system to an accelerated rate.
"Can you take him back to my house?" I asked. No need to disturb Hunter by carrying him for miles back to my jeep.
"I will," he nodded, "but when you arrive you're going to explain to me exactly how you got into this mess."
"Fine," I said, standing up. "We'll see you there."
Micah scooped Hunter into his arms, including my blanket and jacket, and flashed away. Emily and I gave each other weary looks before setting off on the long trek back. No magic could transport us anywhere quickly.
***
As soon as we arrived at the house, we found Hunter on the couch bundled up in blankets. His eyes were wide open and he was drinking some hot tea Micah had given him. He gave Emily a weak smile as soon as he saw her. That was a good sign.
She hurried over to him. "Oh my God, you're up! How do you feel?"
I'd only seen him once before this incident and it wasn't in the best of light, but I had to admit he was a good-looking boy. He had short, black hair and dark eyes most girls would fall for. It didn't hurt that he had a toned body that showed promise of bulking up with age. His skin was a bit pale, but that was common in Alaska. I had no doubt he could get a girl easily. It must have driven him crazy that Emily wanted nothing to do with him.
"I'm okay. Not sure what exactly happened, though," he said, shaking his head.
Emily chewed her lip. "What do you remember?"
"I remember meeting you at the cabin, and then uh…" he shot a nervous glance at me and Micah, "then you rubbed wolfsbane in my face."
"Yeah." Emily stared down at her hands. "Sorry about that. I didn't mean for you to really get hurt."
Micah crossed his arms and glanced over at me. "It seems you've taught her to greet men in much the same manner you do. With violence."
"Hey, there were extenuating circumstances when I met you." I swear he was never going to get over me slamming his head with that iron poker.
Micah gave me a withering glare before turning his attention back to the boy.
"What do you remember after that?" he asked.
Hunter dragged his eyes away from Emily, his expression unreadable. "She ran and I chased after her until I got caught in a bear trap. Everything else is fuzzy until I woke up here."
Now would be a good time to let the kids work things out while I broke my own bad news to Micah.
"Emily, why don't you make something for Hunter to eat?" I suggested. "I'm going to talk to Micah for a minute."
Giving Hunter a weak smile, Emily got up and headed for the kitchen. I nodded at Micah and he followed me outside. When you're around supernaturals, you always have to be aware of their enhanced abilities—such as werewolves having excellent hearing. We were completely surrounded by woods, and a good fifty meters from the house, before I started talking.
"He doesn't remember it, but we got him out of the trap last night."
Micah put his hands in his jeans pockets and gave me a stern look. "I'm assuming something went wrong from there, or else you wouldn't have been calling me today to save him."
I ran a hand through my long hair. It was a mess after all the hiking in the woods and I hadn't had time to fix it. The ache in my arm spiked when my fingers caught in a tangle. Micah didn't miss my wince of pain.
His eyes narrowed on me. "You're injured."
"You might say that." I pulled up the sleeve on my arm and showed him the bite wound. It hadn't healed much since the last time I checked. The bleeding had stopped fairly fast, but it was still red and swollen.
Micah peered closely at the injury, twisting my arm one way and then the other. His jaw hardened when he let go. "He bit you when you freed him?"
"We were stunning him with fairy dust, but he started building a tolerance to it while we were getting him out of the trap. He was hurt badly. I'm sure he didn't know what he was doing."
"I didn't say it was his fault." Micah glowered at me. It looked a little too much like the way his brother looked at me whenever I made him mad. "What concerns me is that, knowing the risks, you took it upon yourself to rescue a werewolf."
I put my hands on my hips. "Derrick and his betas were out on a run last night when I tried calling them. Nik and Kariann have been out of town. There was no one left I trusted to call."
He lifted his brows. "You were willing to call me today but not then. Why?"
"You know why." I looked away. It hurt to even be near him and hear his voice—one more thing just like his brother.
Micah muttered under his breath in a language I couldn't understand. "I promised Lucas I would protect you. You're not making that easy."
"Has it ever occurred to you that I don't want your protection?" I asked.
His golden eyes lit up. "But you'll ask me to help save Emily's boyfriend?"
"He's not her boyfriend," I grumbled. "I think he just wants to be and isn't going about it the right way."
"Nevertheless, you know you should have called me last night. I have no way to heal that bite wound, which is why you shouldn't have risked yourself in the first place."
"Well, our real problem is whether or not it will turn me," I said, barely managing to keep my voice down. "That's one of the reasons I did call you today instead of someone else."
He looked up at the sky. "Well, at least you were smart about that."
"Go to Hell." He could make me almost as angry as Lucas, except I wasn't attracted to him.
"I've already been to the next closest thing," he said, glaring at me.
I winced. Like his brother, he'd had to spend some time in Purgatory before.
"Look," I put up a conciliatory hand, "I'm sorry. It's just been a rough day and I'm in a bad mood."
"Fair enough. I suggest you go to the party at Nikolas' home tonight. If you're going to change, you'll know it by midnight. It's best that you be near the pack in case that happens."
I was starting to feel the cold seep into my skin. "Will you be there?"
He cocked his head. "Is that what you want?"
"Yeah, I do." I took a deep breath before speaking further. "No matter what happens, Micah…I appreciate your help." It was hard to admit, but he deserved that much.
He squeezed my arm. "You will get through this."
***
I didn't leave for Nik's place until after nine o'clock. It was a short drive on the snow machine, and I was in no rush. The ache in my arm hadn't let up, and my b
ody had started to turn feverish in the last few hours. I'd called Micah and told him. He didn't know if it was a good thing or a bad thing.
Emily said her senses weren't picking up anything different about me—I couldn't sense myself—but that might not mean anything. At least we'd managed to concoct a story for Hunter to tell his father. It was something along the lines of going on a run by himself, which wasn't too far from the truth, and that he passed out at a cabin he found along the way.
Not exactly creative, but he'd perked up enough after we got some food in him that I felt fairly confident he could handle any questions his family had for him. We'd told him the basics about what really happened, except him biting me. He'd been willing to cover up Emily's part in everything. It was probably another mark against my parenting skills that I encouraged teenagers to lie for each other.
Nik's large blue house loomed up ahead as I slowed the snow machine down. I parked off to the side and started to make my way around to the front. Every step through the snow seemed like a struggle. In the few minutes it'd taken me to get here, my body had weakened considerably. I didn't like being this vulnerable in a houseful of sups—many of whom hated sensors because of our abilities—but Micah was right that if I did turn I'd need help from the werewolves to deal with it.
Kariann, a six-hundred-year old vampire with long blond hair and a stocky frame, greeted me at the door. I managed a weak smile and pushed past her without a word. She was one of the few who did like me, but she was far too observant. At least with my recent behavior, she'd blame my lack of enthusiasm on not wanting to be here.
I forced myself to straighten my back as I walked toward the kitchen. If I could get a drink or two down me then I could blame my staggering on alcohol. There was a young vampire in there mixing them up. I had him make me one, downed it, and then asked for another before heading off to the main living room.
Before I even got there I could feel my knees weakening. I set my drink on a nearby table and leaned against the wall, bowing my head to take in some deep breaths. It felt like fire raged inside my body. The searing pain intensified and by the time it passed I could hardly stand. A few people walked by, but they didn't pay any attention to me. As far as most sups were concerned, I was a non-entity.
I didn't know how long I stayed there. When my senses picked up Micah's arrival at the entrance, I worked my way toward him, gritting my teeth through every painful step. The wall helped support my weight or I might have fallen. My vision was blurring. Everyone started looking like shapeless blobs to my feverish eyes. At least my ability to sense their location still worked.
Somehow, I made it to him and grabbed at his shirt. "Micah, I don't feel so good."
When my legs started to collapse out from under me, he scooped me into his arms.
"What's wrong with her?" Nik asked.
He'd been a good twenty feet away a moment ago, but the master vampire must have moved when he saw me going down. I wanted to look at him, but my vision had turned to a complete haze.
"It's so hot," I mumbled.
"Her body is burning up. I need a quiet place to examine her," Micah said. I assumed he was talking to Nik.
"Follow me."
Moments later my body was lowered into a soft bed. Two pairs of hands removed my jacket and shoes. I didn't protest. It was too damn hot in here.
"You can go now," Micah said from above me.
"She's sick. I can help her," Nik argued.
"If I need your help, I'll let you know, but right now there is nothing you can do. Vampire blood can't fix everything."
"It can fix almost anything with a fever," Nik pointed out.
"There are things you don't know about. I need you to trust me that you can't fix this." Micah's impatience was pushing at my senses.
There was a long silence. A shot of pain went through my body and I cried out. It was getting worse.
Nik rushed closer. "What don't I know about that is justification for letting her suffer needlessly like this?"
"It is not needless," Micah gritted out. "Now get out before I force you out."
He wasn't kidding. Micah could toss the master vampire out on his head with little effort.
"Very well. If that's the way you want it, but I'll be waiting outside. You'd better call me if you need me." Nik backed away, slamming the door behind him.
Unfortunately, my hearing worked just fine and the loud bang sent pain shooting through my head. Micah heard my moan and turned his attention back to me. The first thing he did was work to get my sweater and jeans off, but he left the t-shirt and underwear I still wore alone. At least he was allowing me some modesty.
"Tell me how you're feeling," he ordered after settling a pillow under my head.
"Hot and achy," I breathed out. "I can't see a damn thing."
"My guess is your body is fighting the lycan virus. If you can beat it, you'll become immune, but if not…you'll be a sensor no more." He squeezed my hand.
I tried to squeeze his back. "There was a time when I would have wanted that."
"Not anymore?" There was amusement in his voice.
I had to wait for another tremor of pain to pass. It was getting harder to breathe, but I managed to draw in a gulp of air. "It'll take a sensor to hunt down my father and the others like him. I need my abilities."
"Nothing keeps a person going like revenge," Micah said dryly.
"I learned from the best," I choked out.
"Lucas." It wasn't a question.
"Hmm, he's so good at it."
We didn't talk after that. I shuddered through the waves of pain as they hit and sweated out what seemed like bucket loads of water. Micah held my hand through it all—even when I squeezed his fingers too hard.
When the pain intensified, I couldn't help crying out. He took me in his arms and held me close. I clutched at him and tried to be as quiet as I could, but it hurt. God, it really hurt. Every muscle, every tendon. My organs even felt like they were melting.
My chest began to squeeze so tight I couldn't draw a breath. It was as if my lungs had turned into stone.
"Fight it, Melena. Visualize yourself breathing and make it happen," Micah demanded.
My throat closed off. I tried to do what he said, but not even my fingers wanted to move anymore. Blackness crowded in as the lack of oxygen took its toll. There was no fighting it—I'd used up all my strength. I slumped in his arms and gave in to the dark void.
***
To say I was surprised to wake up sometime later would have been an understatement. When I gasped my first breath, Micah lifted his bowed head from where he sat next to me. I didn't think I'd ever sensed so much concern in him before.
"How long was I out?" I asked once I'd gotten a few breaths in me.
"Half an hour." His face looked worn and tired. "You didn't move—or breathe—the entire time. If your heart hadn't been beating, I might have thought you dead."
"Have to keep you on your toes," I rasped out. "I need water."
Micah stood up and moved toward the door. I could see well enough now to figure out they'd put me in Nik's bedroom. It was soundproof so that no species of sups could hear what went on inside. The things that usually went on in here were a lot kinkier than a sick woman fighting off a werewolf virus. I was just thankful to know no one could have overheard Micah and I talking.
Nik was waiting just outside when the door opened. As soon as Micah requested the water he rushed off and returned with it a minute later.
"How is she?" he asked, handing the glass over.
"Recovering," Micah answered.
They both started moving toward me. "I don't suppose you're going to tell me what was wrong with her?"
"No, I'm not," Micah said, giving me the glass.
I gratefully took it and gulped the entire contents down. The nephilim went into the bathroom to refill it. While he was gone, Nik sat down next to me. He had that dark and sexy look people expected of vampires, but I'd never been interested.<
br />
"You look like hell," he said.
I tried to smooth my matted hair. Normally, it was a shiny auburn color, but who knew what it looked like now. "Thanks. I feel like it too."
"Are you ever going to tell me what's going on with you?" he asked.
"Someday, but not now." It was the only truth I could give him.
"I'll hold you to that." He patted my leg. "Let me know if you need anything."
"I will," I said, giving him a weak smile.
Nik left as soon as he saw Micah coming back. The vampire was doing his best to hide it, but it was clear he wasn't happy that we wouldn't tell him anything. I took the glass Micah gave me and drank from it a little slower this time.
"Happy New Year, Melena."
I sat up straighter, looking around for a clock. "What time is it?"
"Just after midnight. You have impeccable timing."
"That's one way of looking at it."
He took the glass from me. "Let's get you back to your place. Emily called your cell phone while you were…unconscious. I suspect she sensed something."
With Micah's help, I got dressed and wobbled to my feet. I hadn't taken three steps before my knees buckled. He scooped me up despite my protests.
"This will save time," Micah said. Then he raced us back to my house so fast that it all went by in a blur.
Emily opened the door as soon as we arrived. "Mel, what happened?"
"She fought off the werewolf virus, but it took its toll on her body."
Micah took me over to the couch and set me down. Emily settled next to me.
"Will you be okay?" she asked.
"Yeah," I reclined my head against the couch. "I'll be fine."
She picked at her finger nails. "Hunter called a few minutes ago. He wants to take me to dinner as part of a new truce between us."
"Are you going to go?"
"Are you kidding?" A resolute expression came across her face when she looked up at me. "He might not know it, but he almost killed you."
I sighed. "Only because you put him in a bad position." Then a thought occurred to me. "What did the archangel tell you to do when you asked him for advice? I'm pretty sure it didn't involve seduction and wolfsbane."
The Stroke of Midnight: A Supernatural New Year's Anthology Page 31