Knight Shift

by Paulette Miller

  Penny decided that it wasn’t fair for Charlie to take all of the blame for her own actions, so she interrupted Jax’s tirade by saying, “This wasn’t Charlie’s fault or idea. It was all mine. I gave her no choice but to agree, and she stayed at my side the whole time to watch over me.”

  Razor added with pride, “It was the strength of Charlie’s Thor that was able to separate the two in time.”

  Charlie replied, “I did what I needed to do, but I honestly didn’t think the Human had it in her. I expected her to see those fangs and run for the door.”

  Jax said, “You have no idea what this woman is capable of.” Now that Penny was finally responsive, he knelt at her feet and asked, “Are you really alright?”

  His look of weariness informed Penny how concerned he was about her. She put her hand on his and said, “I’m fine, really. Thanks to Razor I’ve stopped bleeding and he has taken away almost all of my pain.”

  Although one side of Jax was proud of what she had done, the other side was terrified of what could have happened. He said exasperated, “You’re okay this time, but you can’t put your life on the line just to make others accept you. One of these days someone is going to take advantage of your selflessness and the ending to the scene will be much different than today.”

  Penny replied, “I don’t think there’s anything I could do to make this group like me, and acceptance has nothing to do with why I did it.”

  While trying to keep his frustration in check, he said, “Then explain it to me. Help me understand why putting your life in the hands of people who would enjoy seeing you dead is a good thing.”

  She pointed around the room and said, “Look at the walls. He’s a fellow artist like me. I couldn’t sit back and watch him die.”

  “But he isn’t like you. He’s a newly turned Night Walker that would have killed you without thinking twice. If the situation was reversed, there isn’t a single creature in this building that would have come to your aid. Odds are they would have watched you die just for the sport of it.” He knew that a year ago he would have been happily standing in the front of that crowd. Now the thought of watching Penny die made his chest hurt.

  Penny replied, “I’m quite aware that he isn’t my kind, but he needed what only I could give him. If I faced the same situation again, I wouldn’t do anything differently. It’s who I am and I pray that I never lose that part of me. And if I die because of it, so be it. I’ll die living the life that I believe in.”

  Before Jax could continue his lecture about taking unnecessary risks, their discussion was interrupted when someone across the room called, “Penny.”

  Penny searched the room to find the one that spoke and found Van Gogh sitting at the opposite wall staring back at her. The moment the two made eye contact, to everyone’s surprise, Van Gogh got up and walked tall and confidently across the room.

  After he knelt at her side, he said, “I owe my life to you and I’m more than just fine. Look.” Besides the fact that his skin had color and his cheeks were even pink, he held up his arms and then opened his shirt. He said excitedly, “My scars are almost gone and, whatever was wrong inside of me, it’s healed too. I’m finally feeling alive.”

  Razor added, looking down at Penny with admiration, “I didn’t expect him to make it another twenty-four hours, but look at him. We tried every blood type from many different sources and nothing worked, until you. Your blood was the key.”

  From across the room, Charlie expressed her theory for what happened by saying, “Maybe it was the fact that it was fresh from the vein?”

  Razor had tasted Penny’s blood and knew there was a different answer but, seeing the expression on Jax’s face, he kept his theories to himself. Instead he nodded and said, “That must be it.” Although that was what he said out loud, he knew it was a lie and planned to have a long, private talk with Jax later.

  Jax gave him a small nod to thank him for his discretion and to acknowledge that he understood that the two of them would discuss the scene later.

  Penny looked down at a wound on her wrist, which looked several days old, and said to Razor, “You have quite a gift.”

  While nodding toward Van Gogh, he replied, “And so do you.”

  Penny’s eyes grew wide when her mind caught the hidden meaning behind Razor’s words. In the panic of the moment, she had forgotten that her blood offered more to Night Walkers than providing them a good snack. She looked over to Van Gogh and, although he was thrilled over his recovery, he seemed too young to truly understand the significance of her role. As she stared at Razor, however, she knew he was more than aware. Knowing how protective Jax was about her and their secret, she was suddenly full of fear for Razor’s life. She knew that she had to do something. She refused to save one life just to watch another die because of her actions. As she looked at Jax, she wished he was psychic like Ben so he could hear her thoughts of pleading to not do what she knew he would to contain the damage.

  Before Penny could come up with a plan, they were all startled when Van Gogh jumped back to his feet with newfound enthusiasm and announced, “We have a room to finish.” After picking up a paintbrush he looked to Penny. Seeing her still pale skin, he said, “You stay where you are and be my teacher.”

  Penny watched as Jax and Razor made eye contact. After giving each other a nod, they both rose. Penny refused to let them leave without her but, when she tried to stand, she swayed and was forced back down.

  Jax said, “Stay here and rest.”

  While urgently exchanging glances between Jax and Razor, she whispered to Jax,

  “But I need to talk to you privately for a moment.”

  Jax knew Penny well enough now to know what she was thinking. He put his hand

  on hers and said, “Don’t worry. We will both be back shortly.” He emphasized the word ‘both’ to inform her that he had no intention of killing Razor.

  After staring into Jax’s dark eyes and seeing no lies, Penny was forced to put her faith in him to remain in control. Jax then walked to the door with Razor at his side. The moment the door was opened, the hallway full of people fought to look inside the room. Several shouted, “He’s alive!” when their eyes locked on Van Gogh and were shocked by his miraculous recovery.

  Although Charlie attempted to explain the facts of what happened to the crowd, no one was listening. She found it irritating that Penny’s contribution went completely unrecognized. She finally gave up and said, “Penny, I’m going to get you something to eat. Van Gogh will keep an eye on you and I’ll be right back.”

  Penny was pleased to hear Charlie finally call her by her real name. Maybe her act caused at least one person to rethink their opinion of her.

  *~*~*~*

  Once Razor led Jax to his room and closed the door behind him, he turned to his fellow Changeling and said, “Van Gogh should be dead and there’s no way Penny’s blood should have prevented it. I’ve opened many a Human vein and no one’s blood even remotely compares.” Pressing his palm on his own chest he added, “My pulse is actually racing.” When Jax didn’t react to the announcement of the miracle he had witnessed, Razor asked, “I know that you are exceptional at hiding your feelings, but why aren’t you surprised by what just happened?” Seeing Jax’s continued hesitation, Razor encouraged, “You can talk to me. I owe you my life so you can trust me when I say that anything said in this room will not go beyond these walls.”

  After a few minutes of silence, Jax finally admitted, “You’re right. Her blood is one of a kind and truly extraordinary.”

  Seeing the almost dreamy expression in Jax’s eyes, Razor asked, “You’ve tasted her, haven’t you?”

  Jax nodded. “We’ve been traveling together for several weeks and, to help keep my

  darker side under control, she has allowed me to take a small amount of her blood on a regular basis. But with each day, I’ve felt myself changing.”

  Razor found his mouth watering at the thought of being able to taste Penny’s
blood every day. He said, while looking at Jax’s Human form, “Actually the fact that you’ve changed is obvious to anyone that knows you, but how can a Human’s blood be capable of doing this?”

  Jax shook his head and said, “We don’t have a clue. Sam is trying to contact a Changeling doctor that he trusts implicitly. We’re hoping that he can help us figure out what’s going on in Penny’s body.”

  Razor paced excitedly and asked, “Don’t you realize the significance of her gift? Her blood could save countless lives. I brought Van Gogh to the castle not so that we could heal him, but so that he wouldn’t die alone. It’s been hard for me to watch. His condition reminded me so much of my wife. If I had known of Penny’s gift, I could have used her to save my sweet Elena. Instead all I could do was watch her die in my arms. After her death, I went insane with grief. Although I don’t feel guilty about the lives that were lost because I took out my rage on the Human race that had hurt her, I’m sorry for how many of our kind died in the Human’s retribution. If it wasn’t for you, I might still be on my killing spree.”

  Jax said, “But you’ve found your place here and regained control.”

  “And it looked like Penny has helped you find yours. By the way, how in the world did you find this wonderful creature?”

  Jax replied, “Actually she found me. She lives near Sam’s place and, through the bumbling of the twins, she found out what we are. As you can already tell, she has no fear of us. In fact, she wants to learn everything about our kind.”

  Razor asked, “But how did the two of you end up here in Reno?”

  After Jax shared a brief summary of the circumstances that led the two of them on a trip across country, Razor said, “Normally I wouldn’t care about a worthless Human, but this one’s gift is truly amazing. Knowing your intolerance to her kind, being forced to stay at her side for so long must be excruciating for you. Is she the reason that you lost control in Nashville?” Before he had a chance to respond, Razor said excitedly, “I’ve gained excellent control around Humans and would be willing to take her the rest of the way to Oregon. You could stay here a while and recover.”

  Jax was stunned by not just Razor’s request but also by the twinkle in his eyes at the prospect of him spending time alone with Penny. He could have sworn he could see his mouth water. With the hair on the back of his neck standing on end, he replied, “Penny stays with me.” A low protective growl started to fill the room.

  Razor took a step back, feeling the coldness of Jax’s projected anger. To diffuse the situation, he quickly added, “If you’re afraid that I would hurt her, you have nothing to worry about. I wouldn’t leave her side for a minute and would protect her with my life.”

  Trying to contain his reaction, Jax clenched his fists and said, “That’s not the issue.”

  “Then what aren’t you telling me?”

  Jax decided he needed to confide in someone and he knew that Razor could be trusted to keep what he was about to say a secret. He took in a deep breath and said, “When I found you, I never really understood how someone could care about anyone so much that their loss almost drove them insane. And now…”

  When Jax didn’t finish his thought, Razor raised his eyebrows in surprise and finished it for him. “You understand now, don’t you?” When Jax remained silent, Razor added, “Penny isn’t just someone you were forced to travel with, is she?”

  Jax replied, “No, she isn’t.”

  “I’m sorry; I didn’t realize. How did this happen? As long as I’ve known you, there has been no love between you and Humans.”

  Jax shared a condensed version of how Penny had become a part of his life. When he was done, he said, “I’ve hid nothing from her and she now knows me better than anyone on this planet. The craziest part is that no matter how many truly awful things that she discovers about me, she refuses to leave my side. In fact, she actually tries to protect me from everything. She’s Human and yet, I can’t imagine a single day without her at my side. Like you with Elena, if something were to happen to her, I’m not sure I would be strong enough to handle it.”

  Razor asked, “Does she know how you feel?”

  Jax replied, “She knows that I care a great deal about her, but I don’t know how to tell her the extent of those feelings when I’m not sure myself.”

  “Just talk to her. She has the right to know that the choices she makes and the risks she takes affect more than just her now.”

  Jax asked in frustration. “But what’s the point? She and I come from different worlds and, once I get her back home, we’ll return to our normal, separate lives.”

  Razor asked in return, “Is that what you want?”

  Jax shook his head. “I don’t think we have a choice. When we were in Nashville and I was trying to blend into her world, I lost it. Many Humans were hurt because I was jealous and was protecting my self-claimed territory. And look what happened to her today while she ventured into our world.”

  Seeing the internal struggle Jax was having over his feelings for a Human, Razor said, “Don’t make a rash decision. Take your last few days together to think it through, but this needs to be a decision you make together. No matter what you decide, you need to remember how important it is that no one finds out about her unique gift, especially those of my kind. If word gets out, the tables will turn and, whether you’re a couple or not, anyone that gets in their way would be slaughtered. And if they get to Penny, they wouldn’t just kill her. They’d use her until there was nothing left.” Seeing a sudden expression of fear on Jax’s face, Razor asked hesitantly, “Does someone else already know about Penny’s gift?”

  Jax replied, “ Logan.”

  Razor cursed and said, “He’s one Night Walker that I’m not proud to say that he’s of my kind.”

  Jax “He stopped by Sam’s while Penny was there. I was too stubborn to admit that I cared for her and didn’t watch her close enough. He attacked her. I threw him out and warned him that his life would be the price if he stepped one foot on my mountain again. I’ve asked his friend Chloe to watch over him and keep me informed of his actions. She doesn’t know the specifics of Penny’s gift, unless Logan told her, and I don’t know exactly what he knows. He wasn’t injured when he took Penny’s blood, so maybe he isn’t aware of its full effect.”

  Razor shook his head and said, “No way. I’ve tasted her and the effect is immediate and unmistakable. He may not know the extent of her gift, but I guarantee that he knows it’s very special. But his arrogance and greed may be our saving grace.”

  Jax asked, “Why?”

  Razor explained his thoughts. “Because he won’t want anyone to know about Penny for fear someone else would take his prize.” When an image of what he would do to Penny filled his mind, he added, “Logan needs to be found and, if it’s determined that he’s a threat, he needs to be removed from the picture. And it needs to be done quickly and quietly in a way that won’t raise suspicion.”

  Jax asked in shock, “You’re asking me to hunt down one of your own? I’ve already had to remove several of your kind that threatened exposing our world. Not everyone supported my actions and it caused me to have many Night Walker enemies.”

  “You did what needed to be done; they were completely out of control. I know there are many Changelings, especially in my kind, that want an open war with Humans, but it would be a horrible mistake. We’re outnumbered and outgunned. It would be innocent Changelings littering the ground when it’s over. Logan is from my world, so I’ll hunt him down.”

  Jax asked, “You? This isn’t your problem to solve.”

  Razor replied with resolve, “I’m making it my problem. I want to do this as a gift to Penny and in memory of Elena. If you won’t change your mind about me escorting her home, then your job is to get Penny back to Oregon and keep her safe until the Logan situation can be resolved.”

  After talking out options on how to proceed, Jax looked at his watch and said, “We better get back to the room. Penny knows th
at she inadvertently exposed her secret and is most likely panicking that I’ve killed you. I need to show her that I kept my promise and that you’re still alive.”

  Knowing that the conversation Jax was speaking of between him and Penny didn’t happen verbally, Razor said, “You really do know each other well, but why would she care if I lived or died? None of us have been very nice to her since she arrived. In fact, when she offered to give her vein to Van Gogh, I cleared the room only because I didn’t want others to watch one of mine die. At the time I didn’t give a damn what was about to happen to the Human.” His mind suddenly filled with guilt and regret.

  Jax replied, “She doesn’t see the world like we do. To her there isn’t a line between Human and Changeling. While we see everything in black and white, she lives in a world where all colors swirl together and there’s no convincing her otherwise. God knows I’ve tried. What she did tonight proves my point.”

  Razor pointed to the door and said, “Then let’s head back before she does something else stupid.”

  Jax rolled his eyes and said, “If that was my goal, I could never leave her side, even for a minute.”

  *~*~*~*

  When Jax entered the bedroom, Penny’s eyes grew wide in horror when she didn’t see Razor at his side. Her fears quickly became unfounded when she saw Razor’s form step through the threshold. Her first instinct was to kick Jax in the shins for scaring her like that.

  While the rest of those in the room continued to talk animatedly to their newly healed housemate, Razor and Jax approached Penny. She put the food Charlie gave her to the side and, while Jax knelt at her feet, Razor lifted her wrist to check her wound. While he caressed the remains of the bite mark, he watched a silent conversation between Penny and Jax. With only the expressions on their faces, Jax communicated to Penny that Razor was unharmed and would keep their secret. Razor knew she got the message when he felt the tension in her body relax and she gave both he and Jax a grateful smile.