To Die For

by Trista Ann Michaels

  “I love you,” he said again as his body faded even more.

  “Kaelen,” she cried as he disappeared from sight. “Wait!”

  He couldn’t leave her now. Not now. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she stared at the spot where he’d been.

  “Kaelen!”

  He’d lost the connection. She was too weak to hold her end. Kaelen swallowed back the tears he could feel burning his eyes. He couldn’t remember ever crying, but he would cry over losing her. He loved her. For the first time in his life, he was in love, and he was about to lose her forever. “Don’t leave me,” he whispered against her mouth.

  He pushed himself up and again bit into his wrist. Blood flowed into her mouth, and this time, he saw her struggling to swallow.

  “That’s it, baby,” he coaxed.

  She swallowed again, and he saw the beginning stages of the healing process. She’d been badly injured, and it would take a while for her to come out of the coma his blood would put her in, but at least she’d swallowed, which was a good sign in his mind. Unfortunately, she wasn’t out of the woods yet. Her rebirth wasn’t a given.

  His wrist healed, and he pulled it away from her mouth before turning to Jason, who stood close to his side, watching him with a questioning expression. “It may work; it may not,” Kaelen said with despair, answering the witch’s unasked question.

  Jason nodded.

  “Kaelen…” Stacy said softly as she reached her hand out to touch his arm.

  He moved it out of her reach and kept his gaze away. He knew if he looked at her sympathy, her understanding, he’d lose it. “I’m fine. She’ll make it back,” he said before turning to her, his face determined. “She’ll make it back even if I have to follow her down that rabbit hole and drag her ass back here myself.”

  “When will you know,” Stacy asked, “if it’s working?”

  “Soon,” he said tiredly. “Within the next few hours. The whole process will take about twenty-four. She’ll need to feed right away.”

  “Would an IV help, like we did with you?” Jason asked.

  Kaelen shook his head. “No.”

  “What about blood from a blood bank?” Vincent asked.

  Kaelen shook his head. “She’s too new. It needs to be live blood.”

  “Oh, God,” Stacy murmured. “Will she have to…?”

  “No,” Kaelen and Jason replied in unison.

  “She won’t need to kill anyone. There are people out there who make themselves available to feed the newly turned. As long as we’re with her, she can do it without killing them.”

  Stacy frowned. “There are people who do that?”

  “The pay is very lucrative,” Kaelen replied drily.

  “I’ll take this one to the council, then bring one here,” Vincent said from behind him, and Kaelen stood.

  “No,” he said as he jumped to his feet and turned to face him. “That son of a bitch is mine.”

  “Just be done with it,” the man snarled from his kneeling position on the grass. As long as the sword was in his chest, he would remain immobile.

  Kaelen started toward him in anger. “Oh, trust me, you—”

  “Kaelen!” Jason snapped as he stepped between him and the vampire. “Let the council make an example of him.”

  “Why the hell should I?” Kaelen demanded.

  “Let them make an example of both him and your brother.”

  Kaelen frowned. “My brother?” He looked at the vampire closely and realized who he was. “Edward?”

  Edward remained silent, his gaze locked on something in the distance. Kaelen could hardly breathe as realization dawned. His brother’s assistant? “Why?” Kaelen shouted.

  “The why is between you and your brother,” he answered and said no more.

  Kaelen wanted to fall to his knees. Why would his brother do this? Why did he hate him so much? “Where is he?” he snapped.

  Edward closed his eyes in resignation. “He said you would know. You were supposed to follow me back, but I didn’t plan on Vincent watching Amy.”

  Kaelen turned his gaze to Vincent. “You were watching Amy?”

  “I had a bad feeling,” Vincent said, and it was all Kaelen needed to hear.

  “Get Amy upstairs,” Kaelen said to Jason. “Keep her away from sunlight. Make her as comfortable as possible. The process is painful, even in the coma.”

  “What if she wakes up before you get back?” Stacy asked.

  Kaelen felt uncertain and torn. He needed to take care of his brother, but he hated to leave Amy. He stared at Vincent, at a loss for the first time in his life. Vincent must’ve understood his dilemma and quickly intervened.

  “Jason, get Amy to bed. When we swing by the council on our way to get Merrick, we’ll have them send someone over to help until we return.”

  Jason nodded and immediately transported him, Amy, and Stacy upstairs. Kaelen gave Vincent a reluctant nod of thanks. “Thank you,” he said.

  “Don’t lose it on me yet, Kaelen,” Vincent replied drily. “We don’t know if anyone else is helping your brother and what the hell we might be walking into.”

  Kaelen nodded and turned his angry glare toward Edward. It was obvious they would get nothing else from that end. “Whatever it is, Vincent, you let me handle Merrick. He’s my brother, and I want some fucking answers.”

  “No argument here,” Vincent replied.

  Kaelen glanced toward the second-floor window of his room. That was probably where they’d taken her since it was already set up for him. He hoped she would be fine until he returned. It was still possible she wouldn’t make it. Her injuries may have been too severe and his intervention too late.

  He briefly closed his eyes and sent a message into her mind. He just hoped she was strong enough to hear it.

  “Stay with me, Amy. Stay with me.”

  “Kaelen.”

  At the sound of Vincent’s voice, he opened his eyes. Vincent held his hand outstretched, palm up. In order for Vincent to transport him, they had to be touching. Kaelen reached out and took his hand. Within seconds, the three of them were transported to the council chambers.

  * * * *

  Kaelen shoved the double doors open to his brother’s office at the vineyard, letting them bang against the walls as they flew wide. His brother remained behind his desk, sitting in his leather chair, waiting patiently as though he’d been expecting him, and truthfully, he probably had.

  His own brother had been behind the plot to take over the council the entire time. How could he have missed something that was so close to him? Vincent remained in the hall, out of sight, doing as Kaelen had requested and staying out of things for now. Kaelen knew, though, that as soon as things got rough or it looked as though Merrick would get the upper hand, then he would intervene.

  It was good to know that despite their differences, he could count on Vincent, which at the moment was more than he could say for his brother. What had happened to him? To them? How long had this been going on?

  Kaelen stepped farther into the room, glaring at his brother as he went. He kept his senses sharp, watching through his peripheral vision for anyone or anything that might be a threat. Merrick’s lips twitched into an amused grin, and Kaelen stopped. His hands fisted at his sides as anger for everything his brother had done raced through him.

  “Why, Merrick?” Kaelen growled.

  Merrick snorted. “You know why.”

  “I do not. Explain it to me, damn it!”

  Merrick stood, his face wrinkling in rage. Once on his feet, he slammed his fist onto the desk and shouted, “I was tired of living in your fucking shadow!”

  Kaelen blinked in surprise. “My what?”

  “Your shadow,” Merrick snarled. “As the firstborn twin, you had it all. I couldn’t even live my own fucking life for having to live yours!”

  Kaelen stood frozen. He was stunned. Had Merrick really been that angry all this time and he never knew it?

  “Why didn’t you say
something?” Kaelen asked.

  “What good would it have done?” Merrick replied. “You needed to do your job. You wanted to be a council member as well as the good vigilante. You couldn’t let other people handle the bad guys. You had to do it yourself, which left me always pretending to be you so the council wouldn’t lose your vote. I got tired of always voting the way you wanted, of always voting for things I didn’t want or believe in.”

  “Then why didn’t you vote the way you wanted?” Kaelen snarled. “You had my seat. On the days you were there, you could’ve done whatever you wanted to do.”

  “Members knew where you stood. Do you have any idea the amount of attention it would’ve drawn to suddenly flip? I had to keep the status quo, didn’t I?” Merrick snarled. “If they had known what we were up to, we would’ve both been kicked off. I needed to be able to sit in on those sessions. I needed to know what the council was thinking and planning. Despite how much I loathed you, I also fucking needed you. But not anymore.”

  Kaelen stared at his brother in shock. “I had no idea,” he murmured.

  “Of course you didn’t,” Merrick snarled. “You were too busy doing your own thing, just like always.”

  “So what? You were jealous?” Kaelen said as he spread his arms wide. “What’s the whole point of this, Merrick? Getting even? If you’re angry with me, then your battle is with me. Not Amy. Why did you have to kill her? What did she have to do with any of this?”

  “I took from you what you’ve taken from me all these years. My life! She meant something to you. She had proof of our existence, and you let her live. That alone told me what she meant to you. I knew her death would bring you running, would make you angry enough to attack your own brother.”

  “So your plan was to kill me in self-defense?” Kaelen yelled.

  Merrick shrugged. “You blamed me for your love’s death. Once I prove it wasn’t me, then I take over your seat, and the real fun begins.”

  Kaelen stiffened. “What real fun?”

  “The plan to take over the council has been foiled twice. The vamp in charge before had vision, but he lacked a good plan to pull it off. I, however, do not. I have the perfect plan, the perfect seat on the council.”

  “Not as long as I’m alive,” Kaelen snarled.

  “Yes,” Merrick drawled as Kaelen took a step toward him. “That is a bit of a problem, isn’t it?”

  An arrow whizzed past Kaelen, and he ducked, not knowing which direction it was coming from. The wind from the silver arrow ruffled his hair as it sped past his head to land in the wall to his left. Kaelen looked to his brother, who grinned wickedly.

  “Damn you, you son of a bitch,” Kaelen growled. “Are you too scared to face me yourself? You have to get someone to attack me from a hidden position like a coward?”

  Merrick snorted. “I’m not stupid. That was a warning shot.”

  Merrick’s gaze moved to where the arrow had come from and widened as a man was tossed to the floor from an upper-level balcony. He landed with a thud on the hardwood floor. Blood seeped from his chest, where a silver blade had been lodged in his heart. Kaelen looked up and saw Vincent standing at the railing.

  “Perhaps you should’ve hidden him better,” Vincent called from above. “Any archer worth his weight should still have perfect aim, despite any distractions. You obviously didn’t get your money’s worth.”

  Kaelen smiled slightly. So that was why he’d missed. How had Vincent known he was up there?

  Merrick stood straight, suddenly not quite as confident as he had been. Kaelen would bet his last gold coin that arrow was supposed to have hit him and not missed. That close, it shouldn’t have. Since it was made of silver, he would’ve been paralyzed, unable to fight against anything his brother might have had in mind. If Vincent hadn’t have been there, Merrick would’ve gotten the upper hand.

  Kaelen turned back toward his brother. Merrick’s gaze turned angry. Kaelen had never seen his brother like this. Not once in their life had he seen his brother be anything but docile. How long had he been holding all this in?

  “Merrick,” Kaelen began, hoping deep inside that something of their relationship could be saved, that maybe he could get through to Merrick before it was too late.

  “You son of a bitch,” Merrick snarled, then lunged for him.

  Kaelen threw up his hands in self-defense, knocking his brother square in the chest. The hit threw Merrick back more than five feet, where he hit the desk with a startled groan. Kaelen knew the hit probably broke his brother’s sternum, which would take him a few minutes to recover from.

  “We can fix this, Merrick,” Kaelen said.

  Merrick sat up as best he could, one hand over his chest as he struggled to breathe. “Fuck you,” he snarled.

  “Fine,” Kaelen snarled. “Have it your way.”

  He turned to leave. Behind him, he heard Merrick’s growl and spun around just in time to ward off another attack. Kaelen again lifted his palm, slamming it hard into his brother’s chest, this time knocking him to the ground. Merrick remained on his back, staring at the ceiling. Kaelen shook his head in disappointment.

  “You weren’t prepared to do any of this yourself, were you?” Kaelen asked. “If you were going against me, Brother, you should’ve known better.”

  Jullian appeared at Merrick’s head as though he’d been watching from somewhere close by. If there was ever a vampire worse than himself, it would be Jullian. The Romanian had several decades over Kaelen, although unlike Kaelen, Jullian had little love for the council. His relationship with the council was probably like his own relationship with Vincent—barely tolerated—but when the chips were down, his help could always be counted upon.

  Merrick stared up at Jullian with unease.

  “Interesting choice,” Kaelen murmured as he stared at the vampire.

  Jullian shrugged a wide shoulder and brushed his long black hair off his face. “I was the one who took care of the first threat. Might as well take care of this one too,” he replied drily.

  First threat meaning Sebastian, the witch who’d initially tried to take control. Jullian had been the vampire that had turned him, the vampire who had inadvertently helped the witch to draw out his plan. Which was probably why Jullian had been pissed enough to help the council go after him. Not once, but twice.

  “Kaelen,” Merrick said softly.

  There was a plea there Kaelen chose to ignore. He’d given his brother a chance, and Merrick had chosen to turn it down by trying to kill him.

  “You made your own bed, Brother. Now lie in it,” Kaelen snarled. “This threat against the council cannot be allowed to continue, even if it is you.” Before turning to leave, he said to Jullian, “I don’t want to know what you do.”

  Jullian nodded, and Kaelen turned to leave. As he shut the office doors behind him, his brother screamed for him. “Kaelen!”

  Vincent stared at him in concern. He should be concerned. Kaelen had to fight hard to keep from going back in—to keep from stopping Jullian. It was his brother, the other half of him.

  “Get me the hell out of here before I change my mind,” Kaelen said.

  With a nod, Vincent held up his hand. Kaelen grasped it and closed his eyes as his brother’s screams followed him miles away.

  Chapter Eleven

  Kaelen paced Amy’s room, waiting and watching for any sign that she would wake up. Stacy had fallen asleep with her head on the mattress. After several minutes of coaxing, he and Vincent had convinced her to get some sleep in her own bed. They would let her know as soon as she woke up.

  Amy’s wounds had finally healed, but she still remained in the coma. He’d tried twice to contact her in her dreams. Unfortunately, he hadn’t been able to get through. Between losing his brother and now possibly losing her, he wanted to bury himself in a hole and remain there. Now that he’d found love, found the woman he wanted to live the rest of his rotten life with, he hated the thought of facing a future without her.

 
“I can’t lose them both,” he mumbled as he paced.

  “You’re going to wear a hole in the carpet. Then we’ll have to listen to Jason bitch for weeks while he tries to find a replacement.”

  Kaelen glanced over at Vincent as he leaned against the doorjamb. With a wave of his hand, Kaelen dismissed Vincent’s attempt at dry humor. “I’ll find him a damn replacement; just let me fucking pace in peace.”

  “Still nothing?”

  “Would I be pacing if there was something?” Kaelen snapped.

  “Hey, don’t get snappy!”

  Kaelen sighed and stopped pacing to glare at the ceiling. “I’m sorry.”

  “Excuse me?” Vincent asked as he bent forward slightly.

  Kaelen glared at Vincent with a look that would send most men running, but Vincent merely straightened back up and snorted, dismissing him just as easily. “She’s showing signs of progress,” Vincent tried to reason.

  “But she hasn’t woken up yet, and it’s well past the twenty-four hours.”

  “Yes, but she was basically dead, Kaelen. It may take more time. Don’t give up on her yet.”

  “I’m trying not to,” Kaelen replied sadly. He shifted a glance at Vincent from the corner of his eye. God, it galled him to have to do this. He looked to the window and drew in a deep breath before continuing. “Seems I owe you a lot, warlock.”

  Vincent’s lips twitched slightly. “Hell yeah, you do.”

  Kaelen’s eyes narrowed at Vincent. “Don’t rub it in. This is bad enough.”

  This time Vincent chuckled. “God forbid, Kaelen the vampire should have to say thank you. Think you’ll survive it?”

  “When the thank-you is to you, I doubt it.”

  Vincent’s chuckle shifted to a soft smile. “I was against you and Amy in the beginning.”

  “No kidding?” Kaelen said with sarcasm. “Never gave me that impression.”

  Vincent’s smile widened. “As much as I hate to admit it now, I think she may be good for you.”

  Kaelen harrumphed and crossed his arms over his chest. He agreed with Vincent for once. She was good for him. “Tell me something. How did you know that archer was up there? You weren’t even in the room.”