by J. L. Myers
Kendrick let out a scream and ran at Ty. I leapt between the two, strength renewed by Kendrick’s blood as I shoved a hand at either guy’s chest. The connection was so strong they flew backwards, hitting opposing walls before falling into a puff of ash.
“Whoops.” I almost felt bad, except I knew the force hadn’t really hurt either of them. Still, I retained a crisp edge to my voice. “Enough with the pissing match.”
Kendrick and Ty got up, glaring past me at each other. They moved closer but it was clear the threat of physical violence was over.
“Tick magnet,” Kendrick sneered.
“Third wheel,” Ty rebutted.
“Seriously?” I demanded. “Name calling? I think I liked it better when you were silently loathing each other. At least I didn’t have to deal with this.” Ty’s jaw parted as if he were about to speak, and I could already feel an apology brewing through the bond from Kendrick. “No. I don’t want to hear it. And we’ve got better things to do than kill each other.”
I bent to grab the thing I’d seen at Ty’s feet, a book. The front cover was missing and many of the pages had been burned away. The back cover was leather that was split in various places from age, and the binding was cracked and separating. It looked and felt incredibly old. Of the remaining thick and discolored pages a handful were left marginally singed. Patches of handwriting had survived, but were messy, making it difficult to read in the darkness.
“This should help,” Kendrick muttered. A light beam flared over my shoulder, coming from his boarding cased iPhone.
We all studied the page. Scrawling calligraphy written with the inked tip of a quill stood out in the sudden light. Most of it seemed to be notes of experimental procedures, exposing subjects to UV light, silver, and other various substances. It went into detail on the rate at which each subject deteriorated in physical appearance. In the case of silver powder applied to the skin, it detailed how long subjects lived before either regenerating or dying from blood poisoning.
I panned around the room, imagining vampires trapped by chains and screaming out as their flesh was eaten away. I swallowed bloody acid, remembering the desperate cries I’d dreamed as Caius forced another prisoner down into his secret death chamber.
Kendrick flicked ahead, nearing the book’s center. My eyes widened.
Test subject 1/Day 7 – Any physical signs of vampirism are still undetectable. The infection of solution 1 seems to have a continued nullifying effect. Any need for blood, human or otherwise, is still controlled. Preparing the blood through exposure to UV rays prior to infection seems to have achieved optimal results, with the subject still displaying no signs of discomfort when exposed to direct sunlight.
Test subject 3/Day 7 – Infection minutes after birth seems to have influenced the solution’s effectiveness. Although signs of bloodthirst and fangs seem dormant, the infant screams when exposed to direct sunlight, though is not physically burned.
There was a space between subjects one and three that was too burned to make out, but something about what I could see captured my attention. “Caius wrote this,” I said, certain beyond a doubt.
After that followed a stack of charred pages, too singed by fire to be legible. I flicked ahead finding more of the same, until I hit the back cover. A glossary was printed on the inside in the same inked handwriting. The writing confirmed my fears that Dorian and I were subjects one and three. Marcus was subject two. Capital letters were jotted next to each of our names. IBB was next to Marcus’s and mine. I wondered if that somehow explained the connection I felt toward him, but kept my mouth shut. With Ty standing over my shoulder, bringing Marcus up after what he’d learned would just be stupid. Next to Dorian’s name was IAB. Following that were two sentences.
Solution 1 – Combination of ingredient X and silver nitrate, exposed to ultraviolet light then mixed with Pure Blood.
Solution 2 – Combination of Pure Blood boiled with silver nitrate then mixed with ingredient X2.
“This is rubbish.” I sighed. “It’s the same as the vial substance report. It still doesn’t tell us what the third ingredient is.”
“What vial substance?” Ty asked, snatching the book from me. “And how can Marcus be a test subject?”
Fan-freaking-tastic. Not only had I not mentioned the report to Ty, but I’d also kept my suspicion of Marcus being an experiment subject from him too. “Uh, yeah. Marcus gave me the empty vial that Caius used to drug me before we fled the Armaya. There was a card for an analyst to test the residue. Plus I found a photo,” I kind of lied, knowing Marcus had given me the photo with the manila folder. “An experimental memento of Caius with Marcus and me as infants.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Ty dropped the book, looking wounded.
“Ty, I’m sorry.” I reached out to take his hand. He took a step back, avoiding my touch. I instantly felt cold. “It wasn’t intentional. There’s just been so much going on.”
Ignoring the rising tension, Kendrick cut in. “You didn’t tell her about Vanessa, so get over it. Now back to this.” He picked up the book from between two planks of charred wood. “The ingredients were the same, Pure Blood and silver nitrate with one unidentifiable substance. Though,” he said sounding more hopeful, “the way they were combined is new.”
“Yeah,” I said, trying to focus on this rather than Ty. Right now he was staring into space, totally closed off. “But we have no idea who was infected with what, or when, or even what the extent of the infection is. This gives us nothing to go on.”
“Almost nothing…” Kendrick opened the back cover and pointed to the bottom right hand corner. There in small inked handwriting different to the experimental notes was property of E.B. 1604.
“The book belonged to someone before your uncle,” Ty said, the hurt from his expression dissolving.
I gulped, knowing that what I was about to say matched Kendrick’s own suspicions. “Caius was continuing someone else’s experiments.”
CHAPTER SIX
An exhaust rumbled as Ty’s WRX rolled up the driveway. My heart rate spiked. It was the following day after back-to-back flights home. Now Ty was here for my mom’s mandatory dinner. Chomping into a fifth piece of chocolate from my bedside table, I tugged on a fresh tank top and jeans and shot downstairs, flinging open the front door.
Ty froze then smiled, finger retracting from the doorbell. “I didn’t even hear you.” Even in my casual clothes his eyes drank me in.
I smiled back and couldn’t help checking him out too. Ty looked the perfect gentleman, in black cotton pants and a pinstriped black shirt with the top two buttons undone. The setting sun and purple-glazed horizon in the background added to the view, making his tan skin bronze. My pulse thrummed and I glanced at his lips, so badly wanting to kiss him. Now wasn’t the time. Instead, I wrapped my arms around his muscular neck and breathed him in. My mouth watered. “You smell amazing.”
Though it had been just over an hour since Ty dropped us home from the airport, he said, “It’s good to see you, too.”
“Oh good, you’re here.” Mom’s sudden presence and sharp voice sent a spasm through my bones.
Trying to keep the irritation from my face, I released Ty and took his hand before turning back to my mom.
Ty bowed, casting a fisted hand over his chest. “Good evening, Ms. Lamont. Thank you for the invitation tonight.”
Mom stood so still she almost resembled an angelic statue, her long dress stunning but face frozen with guarded curiousness. Her icy stare traveled up and down Ty. This was the first time she’d seen him since finding out the truth. Now it was like the veil of his true identity had been lifted and she was trying to figure him out, picking up on the subtle differences that had been there all along. “Well, it’s arctic out here. Please, come inside.” She spun and glided back through the house, leaving us to follow after.
Inside the dining room Dorian and Kendrick were already seated. Dorian seemed his regular, carefree self, while the tension co
ming off Kendrick poisoned the air.
Dorian smiled. “Hey Malau.”
Kendrick made eye contact, not bothering to cloak his true feelings. “Ty.”
At least he didn’t call him flea bag.
Mom stood at the head of the hardwood table that matched the hutch and tall wine rack along the back wall. “Take your seats. Dorian, will you assist me with dinner?”
Mom disappeared from the room with Dorian bounding after her. Moments later Dorian reappeared with four full plates, expertly balancing two on each arm. The smell of colorful food hit me, making my stomach grumble as steam rose from the delicate china. I knew what Mom had prepared, her favorite dish; orange-stuffed turkey served with orange-glazed garden vegetables. Instant relief washed over me. For some reason, even though it would be crazy, I had kinda expected her to serve blood soup, or a leg straight off a deer. Though I’m sure Ty wouldn’t have minded the second option.
Mom glided through the doorway then and my relief vanished. She carried her own full plate and a decanter brimming with chilled blood. So that was her plan. Turn Ty off me by blatantly displaying our differences.
“Mom, come on,” I said. Evening meals in our home were served with blood, but we never drank it around anyone other than vampire. “You’re just doing this to—”
“To show Ty exactly whom he’s involved with,” she interrupted. She set her plate at the head of the table and filled her wine glass.
Ty cleared his throat, his hand squeezing my knee under the table. “It’s fine, Ms. Lamont. I don’t have a problem with any of you drinking blood. It’s part of being a vampire.”
Mom’s gaze narrowed for the briefest moment at Ty. Then she raised the crystal glass to take in the blood’s aroma. “How understanding of you.” She lowered the glass to her mouth to take a sip, and then licked her red-tinted lips clean. “Ah, AB. My favorite.” She looked pointedly to Ty. “Pre-packaged, of course. Although nothing beats fresh from the source. What type are you?”
Ty didn’t even flinch. “Well, if you must know, I’m—”
“Don’t answer that.” I glared at my mom. Her question had momentarily shocked me into silence. Now I couldn’t believe how out of line she was. “Mom, seriously? Cheap tricks?”
“Yeah, Mom,” Dorian spoke up. “Even I know you’re fighting a losing battle.”
She waved us off. “I am simply trying to get to know the boy you refuse to abstain from, Amelia.” Her tone was condescending and dismissive. “If he is going to be part of your life, and subsequently ours, then he needs to know how we live.”
“Can’t argue logic.” Kendrick nodded at my mom.
Ty’s heated hand slid from my thigh to take my hand. I peered up to see him looking past me at my mom. “Ms. Lamont, I want you to know that I am devoted to your daughter in every way. I accept all the things that mark her as a vampire. When it comes to Amelia, there has never been any question in my mind about who she is or how I feel about her.”
Butterfly wings batted through my heart at Ty’s heartfelt words, while Kendrick’s mood became stormy. He already knew how I felt about Ty, but hearing how deep Ty’s feelings ran for me was hurting him. After Mom’s actions, even though he’d known it was unlikely, he’d hoped Ty’s feelings for me would turn. The opposite occurring only showed him how much Ty truly cared.
Mom pursed her lips. “So I see.” She motioned to the decanter. “Would you do the honors then, Ty?”
Ty stood and grasped the decanter without pause and proceeded to fill our glasses. To show Mom how true Ty’s words were, I picked up my glass and sipped.
Dorian pulled a bottle of red from the wine rack behind him and held it out to Ty. “Red wine?”
Ty shook his head. “No, thank you. The blood is fine.”
Scarlet spurted from my mouth, spraying across my plate and food. Around the table Kendrick’s eyes narrowed at Ty, Dorian stood frozen with the bottle of red in his hand, and Mom stared with wide eyes.
“Ty, you don’t…” I began.
Ty filled his own glass and sat back down. “Amelia may not have yet mentioned it,” he said, glancing at my mom. “But I’m a hybrid. Mostly lycan, but there’s still a bit of vamp in me. I don’t require blood like a full vampire. That’s been bred out. Still, I do enjoy the taste of a good chilled AB.”
Mom sat frozen for a few long moments while Ty’s words webbed into my mind. His confession had shocked me too, and worry at Mom’s reaction had my hands shaking. Of course I’d known he was a hybrid, part lycan and part vampire. The one time we’d spoken about it was when I’d recalled the horrific tale of the vampire heir who fell for a werewolf. Ty’s grandmother was that werewolf. That union had caused the wolves to rebel, abandoning their roles as guardians and slaves when the heir had been burned alive with the pregnant werewolf to be executed next. The battle saw Ty’s grandmother escaping intact.
I thought back to my dreamscape with Ty. He’d said he didn’t need blood to survive. He’d never said he still drank, or even enjoyed the taste of human blood.
“Have you tasted my daughter’s blood?” Mom asked suddenly.
Before I got the chance to answer, Kendrick’s strained but sure voice rang out. “No! Of course he hasn’t.” The thought alone made him feel like barfing.
Ty spoke up. “No, I have not, Ms. Lamont. And I understand your concern. I want to assure you that I would never bite Amelia. Being a hybrid, my bite isn’t fatal unless I’ve transformed, or have my canines extended.” He opened his mouth, lifting his upper lip. Small and sharp vampire teeth grew from his flat human ones. Then his irises rippled gold and a separate, larger set of canines slid free, not from existing teeth, but straight from his gums. Both sets retracted and Ty released his lifted lip. “As you can see, I control both sets. Still, I would never take the chance of hurting Amelia.”
With the infinite silence that followed, our immaculate dinners were going cold. Finally Mom drew back her shoulders and took a deep breath. “I—this is a lot to digest. I do appreciate your honesty, Ty. Though I am sure you can understand that I am still concerned.” She clasped her hands together on the table. “So I want to be as clear as possible. Hybrid or not, The Council will not accept your relationship. But apart from my position, that is a world I’d prefer my children not become involved with. So as long as that remains the case, and there is no suspicion on their part, I won’t send Amelia away.”
“Wow,” I couldn’t help saying. “Mom, thank you.”
“I am not done.” Her steely gaze turned on Ty. “Amelia knows my restrictions and she can relay. But this one I want you to hear from me. Under no circumstance are you to transform with my daughter present. No exceptions. And you are never to taste her blood, canines absent or not. If I find out even one of my conditions has been ignored, you will never see her again.”
Ty stood and fisted a hand over his chest. “I swear on my blood that I will never endanger your daughter. If there was ever a choice, I would risk my life to keep her safe.”
~
Later that evening I ventured down to the beach with Dorian and Kendrick. With my mom accepting our relationship for now, Ty thought it was time to bridge the gap between his pack and us. Even with his confidence, I was full of nerves. The wolves hated us, and his pack was born and raised to kill our kind.
I gulped as we trekked along the sandy path to the beach. Dorian jogged ahead, not concerned in the slightest. Kendrick remained close, feeling as uneasy as I was. Past the railed path, the glow of a roaring bonfire added light to the night, its crackling and spitting almost extinguished the shore-kissing waves. Dorian had already met the group, waving hellos before squatting beside Vanessa on a thick broken log.
Ty stood as we made our way across the cold sand. He wore casual pants and a Skillet shirt matching the tunes coming from the small boom box beside him. One hand was bent behind his back, and the grin on his face was infectious.
What was he up to?
Kendrick, who had
been eying the group with a look that could crack a mirror, glanced at me. “Fire and wolves? This should be fun.”
“It’ll be fine,” I reassured. “They won’t try anything with Ty here.”
“We’ll see.”
I waved as we met the group.
“Hi, Amelia, Kendrick.” Vanessa smiled, the picture of perfection in knee-high boots over black jeans and a designer jacket. She sat separating Dorian from Troy and Marika, confident but on guard.
Marika sat hard up against the tall, dark, and built-to-fight Troy, with her hand in his lap. She looked me over, disgust plain in her golden sneer.
Troy’s loathing look shifted from my brother to us. “Great. Now there’s three.”
Vanessa clapped. “Wow, you can count. What an achievement.”
With Troy’s glare redirected, Kendrick reluctantly took a seat on another log across the fire.
Ty took my hand and pulled me down too, the fire’s flames heating my face. He then drew his arm from behind his back, presenting a single long-stemmed white rose. “For my beautiful girl.”
“Poser,” Kendrick mock-coughed.
Marika huffed, flinging her black hair over her shoulder while Troy lifted his chin in defiance. “You let that leech talk to you like that?”
Ty’s irises flared, the look on his face a direct command for Troy to butt out.
To avoid the possible alpha/beta showdown, I grasped the rose, breathing in its perfumed petals. The only flowers I’d ever been given had been from Caius. The memories made me feel nauseous, while Ty’s gesture warmed my heart. I’d never received any kind of flower from a guy before, let alone one as hot as Ty. “You shouldn’t have.”
Ty wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me close, taking my bottom lip between his. “You taste like mint chocolate.”
Feeling everyone’s eyes on me, my face grew even hotter. At the same instant Kendrick’s stomach churned. Ty may as well have kissed him for what he experienced through our bond. I tried to pull up the walls in my mind even though the damage was already done. But being like this with Ty killed my concentration to the point of nonexistence.