By Blood Sworn

by Jones, Janice

  “Turning in?” Michael asked as Drew headed for the door.

  “Yeah, all that boring science stuff did the trick,” he yawned again. “I’m done.”

  He closed the door and headed to his own room again. Inside, he turned off the light and crawled under his warm comforter. As he drifted off to sleep he thought he could hear the snow hit the roof high above his head. That’s stupid, he told himself as he pulled the cover over his head. He was in a deep sleep before the next snowflake fell.

  Alex always felt the most alive in the early hours before sunrise. She had learned the smallest creatures made the loudest sounds. Worms pushed through earth and snow in search of food. Winter birds stretched wings that had covered them through the night to prepare for flight when the sun rose again. She stood at the window, glad that the snow had stopped, and waited for those first rays to appear.

  Sebastian and Xavier had committed themselves to the fight, with her as their leader. David too. After San Francisco and New Orleans, they would return to Texas and begin to train for what came next—Tristan’s death.

  She closed her eyes and focused. The traffic outside was still light. It was a holiday. Inside the hotel, on this floor, everyone was asleep except for Fallon. She walked from one end of the hall to the other in a sort of a quick step. Like a dancer, she balanced on her toes then dropped to her feet when she stopped. Alex could hear her groan and stretch.

  On one side of Alex’s room was Sebastian’s. He slept off and on, like she did through the night. Xavier, on the other side, slept through the night like a baby. He got up once to use the bathroom. When she pulled back her thoughts, her phone vibrated on the table.

  A message from Becker. He wanted to meet when they returned to Texas. Any place she wanted, his message said. Just let him know when she was home. At the end, “The Cause needs you.”

  “What cause?” she hummed out loud to the empty room. “What are you into now Becker?”

  She stopped her solo conversation when a noise got her attention. It came from the bedroom. The window opened, then she heard heavy boots on thick carpet. Alex slipped her bare feet into the boots she’d abandoned hours ago. In a tank and track pants, she crouched behind the loveseat and peered around it at the bedroom door.

  Two muffled shots from a silencer reached her sensitive ears, then the whispered curse when the person realized that she wasn’t in the bed. The bedroom door eased open and she saw the muzzle of the gun first. With a blink of her eyes, the lamps went out before a figure came into view. In the muted darkness, that figure moved with caution toward the center of the room.

  Gun held at chest level and close to the body, the masked figure swept the room twice before the mask was removed. His face was flushed from the heat inside and being covered by a wool mask. Alex thought he looked familiar now, more so than when she barely paid attention to him last night when Fallon introduced him and the other.

  Alex crept back behind the small loveseat and to the other end to get behind him. When he turned to go back through the bedroom, she took him in a full nelson before he knew what was going on. He squeezed off more rounds into the ceiling then dropped the gun. They were about the same height, roughly. He bent at the waist to try shaking her loose, but she was stronger. Her feet were in the air long enough for him to spin them around and knock over everything on the desk and one of the lamps with a loud crash.

  Alex hoped someone heard the noise. Suddenly, he slipped from her hold and slammed an elbow in her chest. She slammed into the wall. As she dropped to the floor, Sebastian and Xavier forced the door open, followed closely by Fallon and the other guard.

  The young man took two giant leaps and was up and over the couch and through the French doors to the balcony before anyone caught up. Alex ran out on the balcony and followed him over the edge. A second building sat four feet below. He made the jump with very little effort. Alex almost missed the edge as she landed and rolled through the snow to a stop.

  Like a shot, she was on her feet and close behind her would-be assassin. Sebastian and Fallon made the jump. Xavier and the other guard took the old-fashioned way down to try cutting him off.

  A narrow set of stairs took Alex into a donut shop. She could hear the young man crash into everything in his path as she gave chase. At the front of the store, he jumped through the plate glass window. She followed as shards of glass pelted her bare arms.

  He slipped and stumbled down the snow-covered sidewalks of New York. Central Park West had probably never seen anything like this before. Alex ran at full speed; her boots seemed to have more traction than his. When she caught him by the hood of his jacket, she jerked him back with all her strength. His feet came straight up and his head slammed the pavement first. If not for the snow, it would have most likely cracked like an egg.

  Behind her, Sebastian and Fallon rushed in their direction. In the distance, Xavier and the other guard did too. Alex grabbed the young man by the front of his jacket and slammed him on someone’s Mercedes. The alarm blared.

  “You missed,” she hissed at him, her breath wispy in the morning air.

  He didn’t speak, but he head-butted her and that sent stars through her head. When her vision cleared, he was up and over the car like he had wings. She jumped to its roof and onto his back as he slipped again in the street. A yellow cab came to a screeching halt as they tumbled away from its tires.

  With a flurry of kicks, which she blocked, he sent Alex back a few feet and onto the hood of the cab as the driver cursed them both.

  “Crazy fucking kids,” he yelled and waved his fist out of the window. “What the hell!”

  She heard Sebastian apologize, and then Fallon, Xavier, and the other guard surrounded them. Alex slid off the hood as the young man unzipped his jacket and shook it off. He grinned at them as the sun broke through a cloud over head.

  “For The Cause,” he smiled at her.

  As the rays stabbed through the clouds, light splashed over them. The young man’s skin began to darken then turn to ash as the light grew stronger. He caught fire and screamed until he disappeared into ash that turned the snow underneath him black and inky.

  “Holy Christ,” they heard the driver howl. “Holy . . . did you see that?”

  Fallon stepped up to the stunned driver and flashed her badge. As she dealt with him, Sebastian and Xavier stood by Alex’s side.

  Chapter 34

  “What the fuck?” Sebastian whistled.

  “No synthetic,” Xavier answered. “Does it every time.” He shook his head then took Alex’s arm in his hand. “You’re hurt, again.”

  Alex stepped up to the pile of soggy ash when something shiny caught her eye. She pushed the soot away with the toe of her boot. A scorched vial lay in the center of the mess.

  “What do you think that was for?” Xavier hummed to her right.

  “Blood,” Sebastian offered.

  They both looked at Alex, and Sebastian fought the urge to run. This whole thing was about her. People were dead because she existed. Even though they were the only ones who knew what she was right now.

  The sound of the yellow cab as it turned around the next corner caught their attention. The car went on at a leisurely pace as if nothing had happened. Fallon was on the phone as she approached them.

  “Get back to the hotel, we’re leaving,” she said, then went back to her phone conversation.

  As they made their way inside the hotel, guests were up to start their morning routine. Most were here for the Thanksgiving Day parade. They’d just missed the fireworks.

  Inside her room, Xavier patched her arm. She popped two painkillers, then Fallon escorted them out into the elevator, through the lobby, and into a black SUV idled at the curb.

  “Nice, Andrade,” their driver said. “Michael’s not gonna be too happy to know one of your guys was crooked.”

  “He was cleared
months ago,” she growled at the man. “He can’t blame me for this.”

  “If you say so,” he smirked then chuckled.

  “Just drive, Spider,” she growled. “Silently.”

  Sebastian heard him chuckle again as the truck picked up speed on the expressway. He could smell Alex’s blood. That reminded him he hadn’t fed properly. And it reminded him he had her blood inside him too.

  “You okay?” he said to her and she just nodded. “What now?”

  “San Francisco,” she answered as she rubbed her arm. “Xavier,” she said over the back of the seat they shared. “Call David. Let him know we’re on the way and to have security beefed up around his mother and the services.” He nodded as he tapped on his smartphone screen.

  “What about the Warrens?” Sebastian asked.

  “They’re always protected,” she said.

  Sebastian nodded then turned back to the window. The sun was on full blast as the snow began to melt around the city. He could even see more blue than clouds now.

  “Andrade,” Sebastian said. “How’d you get that cab driver to back off so fast?”

  She turned her green eyes to him and grinned sweetly. Her dark hair was pulled into a messy ponytail and her skin was clean of any makeup.

  “I told him you guys were magicians,” she laughed. “You were working on an illusion for a television special.”

  “He bought that?” Xavier yelled from the back row of seats.

  “That and a grand,” Fallon smirked then laughed too.

  Gale Enterprise’s lab sent the results as soon as they were in the air again. Turns out the bullets he put into the pillow weren’t bullets but high tech tracers laced in tranquilizers. So not only would she not know she was being tracked, but the plan had been to knock her out and take a blood sample too.

  “Who would choose not to be on the synthetic?” Fallon said as she sat down across from Alex. “That’s kinda crazy, right?”

  “Not necessarily,” she replied. She closed the laptop and slid it back in her pack. “Tristan was always old-fashioned. He opposed the creation of the synthetic from its inception. He was always against the clans ‘joining’ the human race.”

  “We’re much stronger at night, but still,” Fallon shrugged. “I’d rather see the sunrise, even if it does knock off a few hundred years, you know?”

  “Not everyone sees it that way,” Alex stated. “To you, what’s a few hundred years? To Tristan or even Conner, two thousand years isn’t really a long time considering.”

  Fallon nodded. “The synthetic speeds up our aging process only slightly.”

  “Yes, and it’s still way slower than ours. Without it, you could have centuries and a near invincible body. The synthetic is like chinks in the armor.”

  “I guess someone could always back off the synthetic,” she sighed.

  “Sure, but when the effects wear off, you’re stuck in whatever climate you were in at the time. Who’d want to be in Jamaica and not be able to enjoy the beach?” she grinned.

  “Yeah,” Fallon smiled. “Plus, I look awesome in a bikini.”

  “I’m sure,” Alex replied. She stretched and yawned and Fallon did too. “I’m gonna catch a nap. Wake me when we’re close.”

  “No problem,” she yawned again. “You may have to wake me though.”

  Fallon kicked her feet up on the rolling bag next to her seat and was asleep in a few seconds. Xavier had been asleep since they took off, and Sebastian had stretched out only a few minutes after he did.

  She’d be glad when they landed. The idea of David alone in San Francisco didn’t sit well with her right now. Something felt off and she wanted the feeling to go away. Once she successfully shook the uneasiness, she sank down on the sofa, fluffed the pillow behind her head and closed her eyes.

  Sleep came quickly. The exhaustion wrapped around her like a warm blanket and she gave into the feeling of flight as her brain dropped into REM sleep.

  The thick, black plastic began to move on the table. At first, one weak punch got his attention. It stopped for a full five minutes while Becker watched from a stool in the corner of the exam room. Then, a low moan followed by a harder punch from inside the bag. Payne was crouched against the exit door. Marcus had fallen asleep on the other exam table.

  “You gonna just let him punch his way out?” Marcus yawned without opening his eyes.

  Becker sighed then hopped off the stool. He unzipped the bag and folded the top part away from Creed’s face. Pale and almost blue, Creed’s cold body warmed as the sedative wore off and his body began to thaw from the refrigerated ride back to the States.

  “Thanks,” Creed moaned as he propped himself up on his elbows. “How long was I out?”

  “Twelve hours,” Becker replied. He handed him a bag of blood from underneath the table. “Give or take.”

  “Give or take,” Creed repeated. “Where are we?”

  “New York,” Marcus yawned again, still stretched out on the table.

  Creed opened the top of the bag and began to feed in hungry gulps. Becker was impressed with how he didn’t spill a drop. When the bag was empty, he asked for another. Becker obliged.

  As he opened the second bag, Creed swung his legs over the side of the table. The body bag crunched as he did. Bag number two was empty in no time. When Creed sighed and stretched, he grinned at Becker. His color changed before Becker’s eyes. He went from pale blue to just regular pale in seconds. Must be whatever was added to the blood.

  “Better?” Becker grinned back.

  “Much,” Creed nodded. “Is everything ready?”

  “Yep,” Marcus harped as he jumped from the other table with a grunt. “Car’s waiting downstairs.”

  “Good. I need a shower and a real meal before we get started,” he smiled as he stood slowly. Becker moved back and watched Creed take two shaky steps. Then he straightened his posture and gave them a big smile. “Have you contacted Roland yet?”

  Becker nodded. “He was pretty disappointed to hear you’d been killed in the rescue of Jason’s girlfriend. I think he was looking forward to watching you die in the Circle.”

  “And Alex?”

  “On the way to the airport,” Payne answered as he stood up. “Your guy failed, by the way.”

  “He died for a good cause,” Creed replied. “It was a long shot anyway.”

  As the others waited, Creed slipped his feet into a pair of boots Becker had bought for him. He pulled a navy hoodie over his head and left the hood up.

  When they exited the room, parts of the hallway were dark and others dimly lit. They stopped at a door marked “Research,” which Creed knocked on three times. When a voice bid them to enter, Creed pushed it open.

  “Mason,” a woman said with a sweet smile and glasses perched at the end of her nose. “You look like you’re feeling better.”

  “I am, thanks to you,” Creed crooned as he stepped inside and took a seat. Becker and the others stayed in the hallway. “How will I ever repay you? Brunch, perhaps?”

  “I can’t,” she pouted and removed the glasses. Her dark hair hung loosely around her shoulders. In a white lab coat, she got lost in the fabric. It was much too big for her slender frame. “Raincheck?”

  Creed shrugged and dropped a booted foot on the edge of her desk. Becker’s body took up the entire space of the doorway. “Only for you, Kat.”

  Becker saw the woman bat her long lashes at Creed and shake her head as if scolding him. He would never have called her that. She was far too sophisticated and worldly to be called Kat. Katherine Grayson, Doctor Grayson, was the head of this little research facility and his savior. He had a giant crush on her, as everyone did, from the moment he laid eyes on her.

  “Becker, you’re so quiet,” she purred at him. “Are you feeling alright?”

  “Yes, ma’am,” he repl
ied as he stood up straight. “Long flight. Ready to get to the hotel and grab some shuteye. Got a lot on my mind.”

  “Yes. I can imagine. By now, Tristan has probably already told her about the reproductive experiments, so she’s going to have a lot of questions,” she said as she pushed her round glasses back up her nose with her index finger.

  “She’s smart,” Becker said. “Once we’ve had a chance to talk to her, she’ll join us. I’m sure of it.”

  “For your sake, I hope so,” Creed chuckled.

  “What’s that supposed to mean, bloodsucker?” Becker sniffed.

  “If she finds out I’m alive, she’ll figure out you’re not the Becker she knew back in the day,” Creed answered. “She does not take betrayal lightly.”

  “You let me worry about that, and you stay out of sight,” Becker winked at Creed. “We covered our tracks. Everything is going according to plan.”

  “Yes, you did, Becker,” Katherine said as she stood and slipped out of the lab coat. “Excellent job, by the way.”

  “Thank you, ma’am,” Becker answered.

  “Please,” she waved at him. “Stop calling me that. You’re off the clock as of right now.”

  The others gave a hushed cheer behind him. She giggled and smiled at Creed again.

  “Well, don’t let us keep you from anything. We can talk in a couple of days,” she stated. “Happy Thanksgiving, gentlemen.”

  She remained behind the desk which indicated to Becker she wanted to speak with Creed in private. He nodded and backed out. After he pushed the door closed, he and the team walked a few more feet down the hall and took the stairs down to the garage.

  “What do you think they’re talking about?” Payne said as they climbed into a Ford F150 crew cab; Becker was behind the wheel. Marcus climbed in back and stretched out with a long groan.

  “Who says they’re talking?” Marcus chuckled.

  Becker ignored the obvious stomach-churning innuendo. He couldn’t imagine a woman like her with a dude like Mason Creed. He was way too slimy and low-class, right? Granted, he was probably someone’s idea of handsome. And he did have a body women swooned over, but he cheated; he was a vampire. Who could compete with almost eternal youth?