by Kailin Gow
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Blue Blood
PULSE 4
Book 4
kailin gow
Blue Blood (PULSE #4)
Published by THE EDGE
THE EDGE is an imprint of Sparklesoup LLC
Copyright © 2011 Kailin Gow
All Rights Reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage or retrieval system, without the permission in writing from the publisher except in case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Do NOT post on websites or share this book without permission from copyright holder, as it is a copyright violation. We take piracy seriously. Fines of copyright violation is the penalty of over $250,000.
All characters and storyline originated and is an invention from Kailin Gow. Any resemblance to people alive or dead is purely coincidence.
For information, please contact:
THE EDGE at Sparklesoup
P.O. Box 60834
Irvine, CA 92602
www.theEDGEbooks.com
First Edition.
Printed in the United States of America.
ISBN-10: 1597489441
ISBN-13: 978-1597489447
DEDICATION
This book series is dedicated to all the nameless volunteer blood donors, my doctor, and nurses at Las Colinas Medical Center in Texas who helped me pull throgh when I had suffered extreme blood loss, blacked out, and nearly hit my head on the floor. Your team gave me bags of blood for transfusion, which helped restore me to a level of safety.
My body craved the blood to keep alive, yet the thought of having to receive the blood from others because my own body couldn't generate it fast enough, made me empathize with vampires like Jaegar and Stuart.
When faced with death by blood loss, you realize how precious that blood in your veins and that beat in your heart are. Thank you blood donors around the world for providing this pulse for me and everyone who may at one point or another require your gift.
Sincerely,
Kailin
Prologue
The sun had gone here. It wasn’t like it was back home – the harsh yellow light of California, with its bracing blaze. Here, the sun was softer, if it existed at all, peeking out shyly from behind the fat, white clouds. The breeze was fresh and cool; Kalina could smell pine and fir, the sticky-needle smell of the East Coast. It was peaceful, she thought. Different. This was not Californian heat, Californian sun – the scorching sweaty heat she associated with the vineyards, with Jaegar, with the musky smell – as warm and sweet and dark as chocolate – of Vampire Wine. No, this place was cool, quiet, safe.
“And if you come with me,” the tour guide was saying, “you’ll be able to see Connecticut Hall, the oldest building on campus. Built between 1750 and 1753…”
1750 and 1753. Once, those numbers would have seemed so arbitrary, historical numbers picked out of a hat, meaningless labels from a time long ago. But now Kalina found herself wondering against herself – where was Stuart in 1753? How about Jaegar? Octavius? Were they here in America, to see it being built? Or were they in Europe, in foreign lands, in fetid deserts or shivering tundras…
Concentrate, Kalina, she whispered to herself, biting her lip. Touring Yale, leaving California behind, was supposed to help her forget. It was supposed to clear her head – the cool New England weather taking the place of the heat and sweat and madness of Rutherford, of the vineyard. But as the tour guide kept talking, pointing out each new building, each prestigious statue, all she could think was does Jaegar know this building? Did Stuart meet this man? Was Octavius here when this was built?
The other students on the tour were giggling and whispering with each other; a few dedicated ones were taking down notes, scribbling every detail of every date as if it were to be the subject of their first test. For them, Yale was the culmination of a life’s dream and a life’s work; twelve years of school, SAT scores, perfect grades, and hastily attained accolades. And now they had been accepted, and Kalina could see the fulfillment, the joy, on all of their faces, the feeling that entering Yale’s campus was, for them, like entering the next stage of their lives -- fresh with possibility, with opportunity, with adventure.
A year ago, Kalina thought, she had felt like that too. Her quest to get into a good college, to be the best, had been the most important thing in the world to her. She had spent hours in the library to inch up her grades by a tenth of a point; she had spent hours in the gym toning her figure for cheerleading with the hopes of obtaining an athletic scholarship. Had somebody told her that in a year’s time she’d be accepted into Yale, and unable to feel anything, she would have laughed in their face.
But here she was, staring enviously at the other students, angry at them – against herself – because they could be so happy, so excited. They were on the verge of the greatest adventure in their lives.
Kalina had already lived through hers. She’d discovered her Life’s Blood, that strange quality that had made her irresistible to vampires, and yet had drawn her in equal measure towards their world, their passions and desires. She’d fallen in love – with a dream, with a memory, with four vampires whose blood-bond with each other had called her to each of them in turn – and known fear, known death.
“Did you hear that?” Justin whispered. “You can take up Tibetan Pali here! Wouldn’t that be great! Mom always wanted you to be familiar with your culture…”
But she could only manage a nod before turning away.
She would never be free, she knew; she would never be truly safe. But the only thing she could do was try to move on.
“Where’s the dining hall?” one student asked with a tremulous grin.
The tour guide smiled back. “Right this way,” she said – “if you’ll just come with me.”
The dark, neo-Gothic buildings jutted above them – spires and gargoyles casting shadows on the gravel path. Kalina could have smiled. This is where you’d expect to find vampires, she thought to herself, not in the bright, terracotta-roofed houses of Rutherford, California, with its sun, its shine, its sea.
The sun had begun to set, and the tour guide hastily ushered them through an archway.
“The a capella group does a lot of singing here,” she started. “It’s a Yale tradition. Sometimes…”
But her monologue was interrupted by a scream – a piercing sound that tore through the evening air like a lightning bolt. Kalina felt her heart stop. She knew that scream, that sound. She’d heard it before – too many times – in Rutherford, a scream of fear, confusion, and utter terror: what is that thing?
They had all started rushing to the source of the sound – the tour guide, the students, instinctively running towards one of the more secluded quads. There, lying upon the grass, was a young woman, her Yale sweatshirt stained with blood, two gaping holes in her neck…
Stuart. Kalina felt it before her conscious mind had processed the information.
No sooner had the thought struck her than she heard that same, familiar voice in her head – once so soft, so sweet and lilting, now filled with mocking hate.
Kalina. The voice laughed. I’ve come to claim you, my love.
She whipped her head around, looking frantically – past the girl, who was being attended to by a growing crowd of students, past the others on the tour, who were shifting uncomfortably in their sneakers, searching for something in the sky, in the air, in the shadows…
Nobod
ythe g there.
It had been a month since Kalina had last seen him, and in that month the days had dragged on and the nights had seemed endless. She had gone into hiding for a while, but in the end she returned to Rutherford to face him, to face Mal – hoping that the same magic she had exerted on Jaegar, saving him from the curse of the Life’s Blood, would work on his brother too. She hoped that she would be able to save him. But he was gone – along with Mal – and there was nothing she could do but wait, wait for him to come back, to decide he was ready to claim her for his own…and fight him every step of the way.
Kalina had always known he would come back. But she didn’t think it would be here at Yale. She hoped that this would be her chance at starting over, at trying to have a normal life – buying time before Stuart returned.
See you soon, Kalina. His voice was right there with her, whispering into her ear, burning into her brain; she shuddered at the thought.
You’re not safe here, my love. You’re not safe anywhere.
And then she sensed that he had vanished; her muscles relaxed. He was gone, fled the area – for now. But he’d come back, she knew it. He’d find her when she least expected it, pin her down, sink his teeth into her, let go at last of all his propriety, his self-restraint, and do what he wanted.
Kalina felt uneasy, even sick…that Stuart could so easily invade her thoughts with his threats. He could work his way into her mind drawing upon the connection they’d shared before he was turned. He could invade her brain, her thoughts.
She wanted to curl up, to scrub her skin clean in the shower, hide under the covers of her room at the New Haven Inn, lock the door, sprinkle the sheets with holy water.
But that would be running, it would be hiding.
She reached into her bag, fingering the stake that she’d kept there, just in case, feeling its sharp edge prick against her fingers.
So, she’d need it after all.
Chapter 1
Justin came running up to Kalina, his face shiny with sweat. “What’s going on?” His voice was hoarse and raw.
“Stuart’s back.” The words seemed to come from a place far away, far from Kalina – her feelings, her thoughts. “He’s come for me.”
“What?” Justin shuddered. “After all this…”
“I’ll handle it,” Kalina said quickly. “Don’t worry. I’ve stopped one turned vampire; I can stop another.”
“But Kal…”
Before Justin could finish, a loud ping interrupted their conversation. It was coming from Justin’s pager.
“The hospital wants you,” said Kalina. “You don’t want to let them down on your first week.” Justin had arranged for a transfer for a few weeks at medical school in New Haven while Kalina was going through her Yale visit and apartment-hunting. If everything worked out, he would transfer permanently to New Haven when Kalina started school in the fall. His version of the story was that New Haven had a better hematology program, but Kalina was sure that professional development had very little to do with it.
“I can’t leave you!” Justin sighed. “What kind of brother would I be if I did that?”
“A fired brother,” said Kalina. She knew Justin just wanted to protect her, but his presence here was cloying, even suffocating. She needed time and space to think, to process what was happening to her. And if there were any dangers lurking, it was much more likely that she’d need to save Justin rather than the other way around. He had warily accepted the presence of vampires, but even now her brother was shaky with a stake. “Listen, Justin, I want you to take it, okay? I want you to go. I’ll meet you after; I promise. Just text me when you’re done. I’ll go back to the New Haven Inn and take it from there. I promise – no vampires. I’ll be back before the sun goes completely if I leave now.”
Justin scrunched up his face, trying to decide what to do next. “Fine,” he said at last, letting out a deep sigh. “But if anything happens to you…”
“It won’t be your fault,” said Kalina.t>
When Justin had finally gone, kissing and hugging her and reminding her at least ten times to text him when she had arrived safely at the hotel, Kalina breathed a sigh of relief. It was easier without him, to rest calmly, alone with her thoughts. Alone, she could think back to the events of the past few months – the transformation of Jaegar, what had happened to Aaron, Stuart’s turning – without having to hide her pain and grief, without having to stay strong for Justin’s sake.
Kalina felt tears sting at the corners of her eyes. It was Stuart who had taught her how to defend herself against vampires, using whatever advantage her Life’s Blood had given her. Now she would have to use everything, every defense, every offense against Stuart himself, her tutor, her love. Probably just the New England wind, she told herself. She walked through the campus – already slowly returning to normal, the injured girl already wheeled away in an ambulance, the excuses seeping through campus like spilled wine (it was alcohol poisoning; she had a bad trip on acid and attacked herself; her boyfriend had a bad trip on acid and attacked her). Boys and girls her own age were playing Frisbee on the quad, warm inside their college hoodies. Through the windows of the library she could see other students, students just like her, hunched over their books, making notes on neatly lined paper, chewing the ends of their pens and pencils just like she did, getting ink on their lips.
This wasn’t for her, Kalina thought; she had been stupid to pretend otherwise. Even if she managed to somehow live through matriculation, Kalina’s life would never be like theirs. She’d never get to sit through a history class on the Renaissance, not without thinking of Octavius and their night together in Paris, and of their adventures on the moonlit streets of Rome. She’d never listen to a debate on whether the supernatural existed – a raucous argument in a science class, perhaps– without feeling that somehow she knew the answer, she knew the strangeness of what was out there.
She would never be like them again.
By the time Kalina reached the New Haven Inn, the sky had gone completely dark. She fingered her crucifix as she picked up her keys from the front desk, eliciting a curious look from the concierge, and entered the room. She felt the same familiar chill that came now anytime she entered a new place – the same fear – but a quick check of all the closets and corners assured her safety for now. She double-locked the door, closed the shutters, and curled up in the middle of the bed, willing herself to fall asleep, to give her mind over to the exhaustion that had been tapping at the back of her consciousness all day.
I will find you – Stuart’s voice still echoed in her head, and she couldn’t tell whether or not it was only a memory – I will take you, Kalina.
Stuart’s voice, so soft now, but so cruel and cold and calculating, carried her into a dreamless slumber.
When the telephone rang, Kalina’s eyes flew open, her exhaustion extinguished by adrenaline.
“Everything okay?” she muttered as she picked up the phone. Any call now, she knew, could be the news that she most dreaded hearing.
It was Justin. “I’m fine,” he said. “Are you?”
“Fine – for now.”
“Listen,” said Justin. “Can you get to the hospital? Like – tonight?”
“What’s going on?” Kalina sat straight up.
“Something’s happened…” Justin’s voice was hollow. “Get a cab; I’ll pay for it. Have the hotel order you a taxi – can you do that?”
Kalina eyed her stake. “Sure.”
“I’ll see you here soon.”
And without even saying goodbye, Justin had hung up; the phone silent and dead. Kalina sighed as she threw it in her purse. She didn’t even want to think about what emergency could be on the horizon now – another murder, another abduction, another thing to blame on her. Every death was on her now, Kalina thought – the longer she waited before facing Stuart; the more people would die in the meanwhile.
The half-hour it took to get to the hospital seemed like forever. Every step w
as fraught with terror – leaving her room, entering the taxi (was the driver safe? Did he look suspicious?), the long drive down secluded alleyways, Stuart’s voice whispering in her ear the whole while.
I’ll get you soon Kalina. When you least expect it. And you won’t be able to stop me.
When Kalina entered the hospital lobby and caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror, she stopped short. Fear had turned her skin so pale she looked unearthly; her eyes were red-rimmed and bloodshot; her lips were drained of color. Was this what Stuart had done to her?
A wave of righteous anger rose up within her. Stuart was getting to her – she was letting him get to her. She couldn’t let him continue.
Before she could finish her thoughts, Justin came running into the lobby, still wearing his hospital scrubs. “So glad you’re here!” Justin enveloped her in a hug. “I’ve been waiting – worried…”
“We hit some traffic,” said Kalina.
“Listen,” Justin sighed. “You might want to sit down for this.”
“Another vampire victim?” Kalina sat, settling into a splendidly uncomfortable hospital chair. “I can take it.”
“Not a vampire victim,” said Justin. “Just – a normal junkie we picked up off the streets. At least – that’s what I thought at first.”
“What do you mean?”
“I overheard the others talking – Dr. Smoots, he’s the head hematologist—was saying it was like nothing he’d ever seen before. There was something strange about this girl, about her blood. It didn’t…fit.”
Kalina felt a familiar chill – she only knew of one other case that has caused such confusion with doctors. Hers. Her own blood – the Life’s Blood coursing through her – began to prickle and heat.