Blood Twist (The Erris Coven Series)

by Bonnie Wheeler

  Turning around, Braden glared at his brother.

  Riley leaned against the wall grinning. “Trouble in paradise?”

  “How do I know that you or one of those leaches won’t rip her apart as soon as I turn my back?”

  “I’m wounded Brother. How could you think so little of me?” Holding his hands to his chest, Riley pretended to stagger. “Trust me; Liz is in no danger of me. As far as the others, Garrick told them you’re both off limits. If they disobey him, they’ll face a fate worse than death.”

  “Like?”

  “Like being chained to a lawn chair at sunrise like the last bastard who crossed him. Garrick waited until Woody ignited and then pulled him back inside and locked him in a cell while he regenerated, refusing to let him feed, so the healing took longer and hurt like hell. The next morning, Garrick made him do it again and again. Woody lasted like that for a week until he was finally allowed to die.”

  “What crime warranted that?”

  “He grabbed Maze’s ass – or so she said.”

  Braden studied the vampire. Riley was in awe of his leader, but feared him more. The nest required a balance of those two elements. Braden witnessed it all night. There was no sense of family, no taking care of each other. From his perch on the table, Garrick made commands and the draugar at his feet followed his orders.

  Survival of the fittest. Even here.

  For some reason, it was not the life he had imagined his brother was living. Braden knew from the legends they lacked feelings, but somehow imagined something more than what they were.

  Glancing out the window, Braden was surprised how close the building was to active city life. How long would they nest here? What would happen to Vancouver if their presence was made known?

  The Old Ones in Eire told stories about the draugar annihilating entire villages centuries before. Back then, humans believed in demons and did all they could to fight back, but generations had passed and their existence was chalked up to myths created to explain famine and disease. It was a mistake. Their insistence on being ignorant allowed the creatures to live among them, sleeping and feeding next to their houses and schools. People went missing every day – their horror worse than anyone could imagine.

  The bedsprings in Liz’s room rustled. Her sleepy sigh drifted through the walls. Glancing at the time, Braden was surprised it was three o’clock in the afternoon. She slept like a rock for almost nine hours. Given the stressful situation, he was surprised she could sleep at all, but her steady even breaths settled in early. While she dozed, the entire building remained as quiet as a tomb.

  The damphyrs’ elders taught that the vampires couldn’t stand the purification of sunlight. If so, Braden hoped it meant he could usher Liz out of the building and back to the airport before any of them awoke. He would return and do what was needed to obtain Ruby’s medicine, but after that all bets were off. While Garrick sauntered about with Riley on his heels giving a tour of the downstairs, Braden noticed where the kerosene was kept. If he survived until the following morning, he could light the place up while they slept - revenging his father in the process.

  He said the heaters were the closest thing to the sun they had…

  Stepping out into the broad hallway, Braden looked around. Nothing had changed since Riley left him there. Besides the hanging ceiling tiles and a few scattered boxes, there were a couple of wheelchairs parked by an old nurse’s desk and a few IV poles next to the utility closet, but that was about it. No signs of life…or the undead.

  He was still confused as to why his brother was waiting to kill him. For years, he pictured his death quick and brutal, but Riley’s motives continued to evade him. Instead, he carried on like Braden was there on a friendly visit.

  That’s all it is, an act. He’s waiting for me to trust him,

  Braden knocked lightly on Liz’s door. Even now, he could smell her fragrance. The floor they were on wreaked of black mold and urine, but her scent masked it all for him. Closing his eyes, he reveled in its sweetness and the way it made his body respond. From behind the door, her soft footsteps padded across the floor. She was light on her feet, but he bet she could run like a deer. He still recalled the ease in which she manhandled the jerk at the airport. The sock in the ribs she delivered must have hurt like hell.

  “Braden,” Liz whispered, “that you?”

  “Yeah,” he replied. A scraping sound echoed down the hallway right before her door opened. If any of the draugar were light sleepers, they were fully awake now. Raising an eyebrow, he looked curiously into the room.

  Liz pointed to the bureau. “You said to block the door. I didn’t have a chair.”

  “That works, too. Come on,” he said, motioning for her to take his hand. “We need to get you out of here.”

  Taking his hand, Liz followed him down the hall. Even with daylight in full force, the area wasn’t well lit. Most doors were closed and only a large window at the end of one hall faced directly outside.

  Once in the stairwell, Braden slowed down. Although his eyesight was accustomed to seeing in the dark, he knew Liz couldn’t. He didn’t want her to lose her footing or come across a sleeping draugr.

  “Did you get the cure? What was it?” she asked.

  “Not yet, but I’m hoping Riley will give it to me tonight.”

  Liz halted. “Then where are we going?”

  “If we hurry, I can get you on a plane back to the states and be here before the sun sets.”

  “No,” she said. Pulling her hand free from his, she started back up the steps.

  “You can’t stay. It isn’t safe.” Braden dragged his hands through his hair. Why did she insist on being stubborn? She wasn’t going to make this easy.

  Turning to face him, her hurt expression caught him off guard. “I understand that you’ve been planning on dumping me back at the airport from the beginning, but I’m not a piece of luggage you can airship home. I came on this trip to save Lexie’s mother. There is no way I’m leaving until we find a way to do that.”

  Stepping closer, Braden reached for her. Trailing a line with his fingers down her jaw, she held completely still. Just her nearness gave him the strangest of feelings, even the back of his knees tingled. The thought of Garrick or the others touching her was overwhelming.

  “Why? Why can’t you trust me enough to do this without you?” Looking down at her, he knew there was some other reason, something she wasn’t saying. “I know you’re worried about Lexie’s mom. I am too. Whatever the cure is, if it exists, I’ll find it.”

  Liz shook her head, “It’s not that easy. You weren’t there last year when Ruby’s husband died. His loss devastated that family and even I played a part in how it all happened. I begged Lexie to come over that night. I was upset. Aunt Bev forced me to talk to the Captain on the phone. She wanted me to get him to increase his monthly support. He was such a douche, that I ended up in tears.” Liz buried her face in her hands, as she spoke, her voice was strained from held back tears. “I called Lexie and insisted she spend the night. On her way over, she got in an accident and Ed died. It’s no different than if I were driving the car myself. I made them come out. If it wasn’t for me, I would have seen Lexie at school the next day and Ed would still be alive. Ruby would never have married Dragos and she wouldn’t be sick now.”

  “I’m sorry,” he said. “But you can’t blame yourself. If you want to help them, you need to get to safety, so they don’t lose you too.”

  “Isn’t that for me to decide? I’m so tired of everyone making decisions for me. I don’t want you to send me away.”

  “I can’t,” he said softly.

  “Can’t what?”

  Afraid she would take off up the stairs again, Braden struggled to explain. He knew she needed to understand, but how could he let her know what he had been carrying inside of him when he had never shared it with another living soul.

  Taking a seat on the landing, he patted the space beside him. Reluctantly, Liz sat down.
Even in the dark, her body language showed her disappointment in him. Gone was the comfortable companionship the two had shared the day before. He wanted to get her out of there, but he needed her to know how he felt, that he never intended for his actions to hurt her. Braden was thankful she made the trip with him. Just being able to close his eyes and imagine how amazing it would have been if the two were fated was enough to give him strength to make the necessary arrangements.

  “I can’t let them hurt you,” he said, his voice barely audible. “They’ve taken so much from me already. If they were to take you, I couldn’t stand it.”

  Liz sat in silence, waiting for him to continue.

  “What I said about my father, it was true. He left, with Riley, to buy property and never returned. When the elders said they both must have died, I believed them. It was a few years later that Riley came to me at school. One look at him and I knew he was different, not damphyr. Still looking no older than eighteen, he said I had to turn myself over or he would come back to Erris and find me. Although I didn’t get it right away, as I grew older, I put the pieces together. Riley must have gone through the final phase of the change. The thirst for blood is so intense, it can drive you insane. My father wouldn’t have been able to restrain him by himself. Riley gave into the darkness and fed on a human and killed our dad.”

  “I’m sorry,” Liz whispered. Reaching out, she clutched his hand in hers. “I didn’t realize.”

  “None of them know. Not Torin, the elders, or my Mom. I was ten years-old when he first came. I didn’t feel as though I had a choice. I wanted to protect them and you – I never expected Riley to find me. I don’t even know how he did.”

  “That isn’t your fault. I made you take me.”

  “No, you didn’t,” he answered softly. Squeezing her hand gently, he enjoyed the shiver she gave him in response. “I would be lying if I said I didn’t want you with me. From the moment we met, I’ve wanted to be near you. I just assumed you would be safe back in the states before I faced them.”

  “I thought I pushed myself on you too hard,” she said, laying her head against his shoulder. Her arm snaked out and hugged his back. Beneath the cotton cloth of his shirt, he could feel her soft hand tracing the lines of his shoulder blades.

  “You can push yourself on me anytime you want,” he chuckled. His voice was husky again.

  Braden wished he could bury his face in her hair and pull her closer. Her nearness, her touch – she did something to him he had never felt with anyone else.

  Turning her face up at him, he could see the slight stain of a blush redden her cheeks. With eyes wide, her heart was racing in response to his attempt at flirting. The truth was, he very much wanted her to desire him.

  Leaning closer, he considered kissing her. Liz’s lips were perfectly shaped and a pleasing shade of pink. He wanted to taste her and see if she was as sweet as he imagined. If the warmth he received from her touch would carry through to her kiss.

  Suddenly, a flapping sound swooshed overhead. Liz’s head yanked back quickly. Crying out in alarm, her hands nested into her hair. “Ouch! Something just scratched my scalp.”

  Jumping to his feet, Braden scanned his surroundings, looking for the culprit. Perched on the fire extinguisher by the door, was an owl. “How the hell did that thing get in here?”

  “What is it? I can’t see anything,” she said, standing.

  “A greyish brown owl. I’ve seen them back home, but never like this, the sucker’s huge.”

  “Aren’t they nocturnal?”

  “Usually. I don’t know how it got in here.”

  Chastising himself for not paying close enough attention to what was around them, Braden tried clearing his head. He was lucky it wasn’t a draugr. Thinking about Liz in any way other than on a flight to Maine was bound to get her hurt. It was just so tempting, being alone with a beautiful girl so close in the dark. It made him want more in a way that felt right but unfamiliar.

  The only problem was Liz didn’t feel the same way about him and even if she did, it wasn’t going to get them out of Vancouver alive.

  15

  LIZ

  An early evening rain had fallen. In the encroaching darkness, Liz and Braden headed back upstairs to change their clothes and tidy up before the others awoke.

  Having ventured out in the weather for a quick walk in search of food and bottled water, Liz was saturated. Braden, too. Everything they owned was back at the motel, but Braden didn’t think they had enough time to catch a cab there and back before sunset. Liz didn’t push it. She knew if they got in a cab, he would end up changing his mind again about her staying with him. Instead, they had settled with what the neighborhood minimart had on hand.

  There were a few tourist shirts for sale along with post cards and “I heart Canada” shot glasses, but not a lot of variety. Liz chuckled when Braden settled for a muscle shirt that read, “These guns don’t belong in any holster.” It was that or the “Free Hugs and Kisses” top. For the sake of getting dry, her preppy damphyr settled with a shirt that made him look like a cast member for “Jersey Shore.”

  Riley left them at dawn. With the promise to return as soon as the sun set, Riley’s only warning was to stay out of the basement. Other than that they were left to their devices. No locking the doors, no barricading the stairwell shut. The whole thing was confusing.

  While Braden cleaned up in the next room, Liz tried making herself look as pleasant and non-threatening as possible. Dragging a comb through her long hair, she missed her flat iron. Liz preferred wrestling her hair into submission, leaving the natural look for Lexie, but she was out of options. The lose waves had a mind of their own. Giving up, she tossed the comb into her purse and sat down with a bag of Pepperidge Farm Milano cookies.

  Nibbling on the baked good, Liz wondered about Braden. She hadn’t seen him eat anything at all. Unless he went hunting the night before their flight, she was pretty sure he was fasting. At the service station, she picked up extra bananas and apples and put them in the bag with his t-shirt. But, she didn’t think he could sustain on snack foods.

  He’ll need blood eventually…

  All she knew was that damphyrs fed on animals. If she had thought of it earlier, she could have helped him catch the miserable owl that tried ripping her hair out. On second thought, he might be better off abstaining. If that creature was a pet of those things downstairs, it could be diseased.

  Like those rats Strix was eating.

  The thought of Braden needing blood was hard enough to wrap her brain around. Lumping him in the same category as Strix or the others was downright traumatic.

  He isn’t like them. He’s different.

  Any doubts she may have subconsciously been clinging to before were washed away this afternoon. For a moment, on the stairs, she felt connected to him in a way she didn’t think was possible.

  Braden opened up to her, showing a side of his personality that was more than just the serious half-vamp he appeared on the surface. In doing so, she finally could see what all of the other’s saw in him. His cousins adored him and Lexie did nothing but sing his praises – but it wasn’t just because he had integrity or was the eldest of the group.

  A guy like Braden, so settled in silence, carried his burdens alone – not out of arrogance or distrust in the others, but because he loved them. He was willing to do anything for his family. Living with such a heavy burden must have been terribly lonely. The pain of knowing his brother wasn’t just happy with Lachlan’s death, but demanded his own as well, must have haunted every memory he ever had of their early childhood together. Yet, Braden did his best with it, refusing to pass the buck or trying to run.

  Liz respected that. If she had a family to fight for, she would give anything to save them. Even the Captain and Aunt Bev – neither had been overly content to make a place for her in their busy lives, but her minor status forced upon them a responsibility they couldn’t shake. At least her Aunt’s monthly check from Liz’s fath
er was enough to make her pretend she cared.

  Braden though – he shouldn’t be stuck in this mess. As much as she thought he should have told Donovan and the others, Liz wasn’t sure she would have handled it any different if it had been her. Kids are always covering up things to save their parents. She did it, so it wasn’t a surprise to her when Braden explained his fears that the vampires would have come to Erris to destroy his family.

  It’s only when you’re older that you realize you made a mistake.

  Then there was the almost kiss. Leaning in to him, she could feel the energy particles charging between them. Even amid the stinky smells of that place and the grotesque creatures locked up tight for the day – the only thing she could feel at that moment was her need to kiss him.

  Need isn’t even a strong enough word…

  What was she doing? It was almost laughable that she was crushing on him. Braden was tall, buff and blond. He could even fill in for one of the uber macho sailors that worked her father’s vessels. Totally not the wiry, lanky guys she always saw herself ending up with. But, there was something about him she couldn’t deny. Her body definitely responded to him even when her head didn’t want to believe it was true.

  Admitting denial is the first step…now you just need the balls to fess up to him…

  The way he constantly placed his body between her and the vampires, insisting they find her food when she refused to go to the airport, touching her face so gently right before that damn owl ruined the moment – Liz wasn’t blind. As much as she tried insisting Braden wasn’t her type, he repeatedly made her heart want to do a happy dance every time they breathed the same air.

  It was useless, she couldn’t stay mad at him for wanting to send her home. That was just Braden’s way. He was a hero, the guy was just to decent to see it.

  Swallowing the rest of her cookie, Liz wandered back over to mirror. What did she look like to him? Her small chin and nose always looked out of place in contrast to her wide set hazel eyes. Aunt Bev was always trying to use her to demonstrate her Avon products; even insisting that Liz could model for JC Penney or Target if she would just stop wearing so much black. Neither overly curvy nor tall compared to women like Endellion or Fianna, Liz lacked the poise that made them so elegant. Even Maze, the snake like creature downstairs, was overtly stunning. Liz looked like the plain girl next door in comparison – the kind that lived in concert t-shirts and skinny jeans.