Then, she turned and ran up the stairs, stumbling as she raced toward the top. Somehow, she made it to the entrance of the building without any of the vampires grabbing her and dragging her back. Perhaps they were afraid of the sun rising before they reached her…or perhaps, more likely, they were afraid of her.
Rose collapsed on the pavement outside, the rain pelting down on her, as she began to vomit blood. Dark red blood poured from her nose and mouth.
“Shit,” Erik gasped, suddenly in front of her. “You’re both dying on me.”
Rose wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, refusing to think about what was happening to her. She glanced up at him, squinting to make out his outline, as the rain pelted her eyes, stinging like razor blades. “Where is Kallias?”
“You’ll see,” Erik sighed. Then, without warning, he gathered her into his arms, one arm beneath her legs and the other beneath her back, and began to move. He moved so rapidly that her vision blurred, so she just closed her eyes.
Rose felt herself leave his arms suddenly, and as the air rushed up around her body, she realized that she was falling. She hit the floor hard, her body sprawling on the floor. She groaned as the pain shot straight into her bones.
Erik jumped, landing on his feet beside her. “Sorry. I was in a hurry.”
She blinked at the darkness. “So, you dropped me down a hole?”
“The sun was rising,” Erik said defensively. “It could have been worse.”
Rose pushed herself up onto her hands and knees. She fished the phone out of the pocket of her hoodie and glanced at the screen, noticing that, thankfully, a small amount of battery life remained. She turned on the flashlight and shined it around the room, trying to figure out where they were. She noticed a long hallway in front of them, a corridor of white walls and white, dusty flooring.
She glanced up at Erik. “Where are we?” she asked curiously.
“Another abandoned building. Same street,” Erik answered.
“Is that safe?” she asked as she peered down the hallway.
Erik grasped her arm and pulled her to her feet. “It’s hidden, but that’s irrelevant when it comes to vampires. Once the sun sets, we are as good as dead.”
“Oh. How encouraging,” Rose muttered sarcastically.
He shrugged. “At least it’s a comfortable place to spend the day.”
Rose scowled at the bare walls and floors, her eyes scanning the dark, dusty basement that lacked furniture, food, electricity, and water. “You and I have two totally different views on the meaning of the word comfortable,” she muttered.
“Vampires seem to love this place,” Erik explained. “We have to clean it out every few weeks. I think it used to be some kind of bomb shelter.”
The low-battery warning flashed on the phone. “Where is Kallias?”
Erik ran his hand through his hair, ruffling the damp blonde waves, anxiety flashing in his bright green eyes. “Yeah, about that… We need to talk.”
She crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes expectantly. “Then, talk.”
“He’s alive,” he said, “but…barely. Rose, he’ll be dead before nightfall.”
Her eyes hardened with determination. “Just tell me how to save him.”
Erik scratched nervously at his clean-shaven jaw. “We can heal from almost anything, with the exception of the obviously fatal injuries, like a missing head or heart. But…our ability to heal and regenerate relies on our blood.”
“And Kallias doesn’t have enough blood left,” she realized.
He watched her warily. “Yes. But…there is still a way to save him.”
Rose nodded. “Tell me. Whatever it is, I’ll do it.”
Erik reached out and pushed the hood of her hoodie aside. He pulled her hair to one side, exposing her neck. “Blood,” he murmured, staring intensely at her neck. He drummed his finger against the pulsing artery. “He needs to feed.”
She exhaled slowly. “Okay,” she said, nodding. “Take me to him.”
He pulled back, his eyes widening. “That’s it? You’re fine with it?”
Rose scowled. “Why does that surprise you? I told you I’d die for him.”
He shrugged. “Fair point,” he admitted. “Good luck convincing him.”
“What do you mean by that?” she asked. “You think he will refuse?”
“I know he will,” he said. “He already did. He doesn’t want to hurt you.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Are you kidding me?” Rose snarled. “He is dying! He will feed from me, and that’s all there is to it. I won’t take no for an answer.”
His lips twitched. “You scare the hell out of me sometimes. I like it.”
She rolled her eyes. “Just take me to him.”
Erik nodded and motioned for her to follow him with a tilt of his head.
As she followed him down the hallway, she staggered, nearly collapsing. She braced her hand against the wall to regain her balance. Her head spun, and every muscle in her body felt heavy with fatigue. To make matters worse, the phone’s battery chose that moment to die, plunging her into total darkness.
“You’re going to need his blood, too,” he realized. He moved to her side and grasped her arm, tugging her away from the wall. “Come on, babe. I got you.”
Erik led her the rest of the way through the long hallway, and she stumbled along beside him. She had no choice but to lean against him in order to avoid collapsing as her head continued to spin. She heard Erik push open a door and lead her into another cold, dark room. Erik positioned her against a cold wall, and then, she felt his hands leave her and heard his footsteps moving away.
“I told you not to bring her in here,” Kallias said. His voice sounded weak and strained, so raspy and quiet that it was barely audible in the silent room.
“Hey, I went back for her, even with the threat of the impending sunrise, because you insisted,” Erik muttered indignantly. His voice seemed to move back and forth across the room as he picked something up and then dropped it somewhere else in the floor. “I don’t want to hear any complaints out of you.”
“Yes, thank you for that,” Kallias grunted. “Now get her out of here.”
“No,” Erik said as he struck a match and tossed it into a dusty fireplace.
The spark of fire burned out as quickly as it started. Rose heard shuffling as he made a second attempt at starting a fire in the long-abandoned fireplace.
Kallias groaned in pain. “I mean it, Erik. I don’t want her in here.”
“Wow. Thanks,” Rose muttered, crossing her arms across her chest.
He was quiet for a moment, and even though she could not see him, she knew that he was staring at her. “Please, Rose, you need to stay away from me.”
This time, the spark caught and quickly grew into a large, blazing fire. Rose gasped as Kallias became visible in the flickering light of the fire. Blood stuck to his torn shirt, stained his jeans, and pooled around him. His skin, usually so tawny, looked papery white, and the pinkness of his lips faded, nearly matching the pale shade of his skin. Just by looking at him, she could see that he was dying. His body couldn’t reproduce the blood as quickly as he was losing it. Despite her dizziness, she crossed the room and sank to her knees in front of him.
“Kallias,” she whispered, reaching toward the wounds in his chest.
Kallias snatched her wrist and held it tightly, his brown eyes darkening as he stared at the blue veins in her wrist that contrasted sharply with her fair skin. His entire body seemed to tremble and convulse, from his fingers to his shoulders. “I can’t…resist…it,” he panted, his fingers digging into her skin.
Her brows knitted together with concern. “Then, don’t.”
He glared at her. “Have you lost your mind? Why would you say that?”
“Because you need it,” she said, scooting forward, closer to him.
Kallias suddenly stiffened and squeezed his eyes shut. He turned his head away from her. “Rose, please, don’t come any clos
er. I can’t control myself.”
She froze, conflicted. She could see the pain in his features, and she didn’t want to make it worse. But…he needed her blood, and she refused to back down.
Erik spun toward them. “She’s right, Kallias. You will die tonight if you don’t feed. She is offering you her blood. You should take her up on the offer.”
Kallias finally managed to let go of her wrist. He narrowed his eyes at Erik. “We discussed this. I won’t feed from her. I would rather die than hurt her.”
Erik rolled his eyes. “Apparently,” he muttered bitterly.
“But you will hurt me,” Rose said, scowling at him, “if you die.”
Kallias looked at her. “Rose, you shouldn’t care. I am just…”
“The person I love?” Rose finished for him.
He froze, his eyes widening. “What… What did you say?” he sputtered.
“What? Are you deaf? I said I love you,” she grumbled.
“Rose,” he said, frowning at her. “You can’t love me. I am a…”
“A vampire,” Rose finished. “And I’m a human. Yes, I am aware. I know that this is impossible. I know that we would never make it. And I don’t care. Because what I know doesn’t change how I feel. So…I love you. Get over it.”
“There were more romantic ways to say that,” Erik complained.
“Shut up, Erik,” she muttered.
Erik laughed at her. He crouched down beside her, in front of Kallias. “Look, Kallias, we have been friends for twelve hundred years, and neither one of us is easy to like. But somehow we have managed to stick together century after century, looking out for each other. You’re all I’ve got. So, if you think that I am just going to stand by and watch you die, you’re an idiot.” He shook his head and sighed, “Hell, I’d even give you my blood if there were no way around it.”
Kallias grimaced. “Yeah, that’s not happening.”
“My feelings exactly,” Erik agreed. “That would be awkward and weird for both of us. But the point is: if it were the only way to save you, I wouldn’t hesitate. Luckily for us, there is another option.” He looked pointedly at Rose.
Rose grinned at Kallias. “I think he just declared his love for you, too.”
Erik rolled his eyes and shoved her playfully, except his playful shove felt more like a real shove, and it knocked her flat on her face. “Oh, shit. Sorry, Rose.”
“I’ve starved myself for twenty-five hundred years, and you think I should break that starvation with her?” Kallias snarled. “I could kill her, Erik.”
“We both know you won’t,” Erik said. “I know that hunger is supposedly the strongest thing that vampires feel, but I think you and I both know that there is something stronger than that. Besides…she’ll die without your blood, anyway.”
Kallias glanced worriedly at Rose. “You used too much power?”
Rose winced guiltily. “Oops?” she said, offering an apologetic smile.
Erik stood, running his hand through his messy hair. “I think I will go and find a place to sleep in the next room so that you two can have some privacy.”
But on his way out of the room, he stopped in the doorway. “Oh, and one more thing,” he snapped, spinning back toward them. “For Odin’s sakes, would you two stop fighting what you feel for each other? Who cares if your relationship is practical or if it can last her entire lifetime? There’s a good chance that we will all die tomorrow, and none of that will matter. What does matter is what you feel right now. I know that I act without thinking ninety-nine percent of the time and that I make some shitty choices. But if you ask me, it’s better than what you two are doing. At least I act. So, for once, stop thinking, and just fucking act.” He turned and left without another word, slamming the door behind him.
Kallias and Rose stared at the empty doorway, stunned by Erik’s sudden semi-inspirational rant. Rose frowned at Kallias. “Was that his idea of a pep talk?”
Kallias shrugged. “He did get pretty emotional about it.”
The door jerked open again, and Erik ducked his head through. “And Kallias, I swear, if you don’t feed from her, I will force-feed you my blood.”
Kallias stared at him, his nose wrinkling in disgust. “But…”
The door slammed shut again before he could finish his argument.
“Well, then,” Rose said with an encouraging smile, “I guess it’s settled.”
He scowled at her. “Rose, please, don’t ask me to hurt you.”
“You’re not hurting me,” she argued. “You’re letting me help you in the only way that I can. I remember that you once asked me to let you do the same.”
“I need too much blood,” he explained. “I will take too much from you.”
Rose shrugged. “Well, it’s a good thing you can heal me, then.”
“That would bind you to me,” Kallias reminded her.
She scowled at his wounds and began to gently unbutton his shirt.
He winced as her fingers brushed against him. “What are you doing?”
“Sorry,” Rose muttered, biting her lip as she concentrated on keeping her fingers away from his wounds. She gently pulled his shirt down his shoulders. “Your shirt brushes against your wounds when you move. It must be painful.”
He leaned forward to allow her to finish removing his shirt, shivering as her fingers brushed his skin. Rose set the shirt aside and then looked back at him, gasping as she saw how terrible his wounds really were. “What did he do to you?”
Kallias leaned back against the wall. “What he always does: torture.”
Her throat felt tight with sympathy. “If I’d known sooner, maybe I…”
“Hey,” he interrupted, wiping his thumb under her eyes. “Don’t cry.”
She wiped her hands over her face, surprised to find wetness under her eyes. “It’s bad enough that you went through this, and I couldn’t do anything to prevent it. At least let me help now. You need my blood to survive the day.”
Kallias sighed, his emotions warring on his face. “But the blood bond…”
“I don’t care about the blood bond!” Rose snapped.
“You should,” he insisted. “It will connect us for the rest of your life.”
She shrugged. “That doesn’t sound like such a bad thing to me.”
“How can you say that?” he snapped. “It is intense and intimate and sexual. You would feel what I feel, and I would feel what you feel. You would never be able to move on after me because you would still be connected to me.”
Rose rolled her eyes. “With or without the blood bond, I will never be able to just move on. What part of ‘I’m in love with you’ do you not understand?”
“Rose,” he sighed, his brows furrowing with frustration.
“I am already connected to you, maybe not as literally as a blood bond, but still,” she argued. “What I feel for you is not going to just go away.”
“I’m not good for you,” Kallias insisted.
“Let me decide that,” she demanded, leaning forward onto her knees to close the distance between them. “You don’t see what I see. You just see your flaws. You look at your reflection, and you see your brokenness. But I see more than that. I see the good that you refuse to see. And isn’t that what love is, really? Knowing and accepting someone’s flaws and brokenness, choosing to love the good in them, and then, helping them love the good in them, too. You are far from perfect, as am I, but you are more than the monster you think you are.”
Despite how weak and drained he felt, he reached and placed his hand on her face because, at that moment, he felt like he needed to touch her. Her cheek felt warm against his clammy skin, even despite the cold rain water that still clung to her skin. Her eyes fluttered closed, and she leaned into his touch. He could hear her heart racing. “I just want what’s best for you,” he tried to explain.
She opened her eyes. “Then, don’t ask me to watch you die.”
He dropped his hand, suddenly seeing the connection b
etween this and what had happened to him. She would watch him die, just like he watched Phoebe die. The only difference was his death could be prevented. “I…” he trailed off.
“It would hurt me just like it hurt you. I can’t watch you die,” she said.
Kallias stared at her, his mind and heart warring over the decision. He knew that he shouldn’t do this. It would change their lives forever. But at the same time, he couldn’t ask her to endure the thing that had broken him. He could feel himself dying, and if he didn’t feed, he would die right here, in front of her. His eyes darted down to her neck, and his mouth watered in anticipation.
“I like the idea of being connected to you,” she admitted. “I understand that you don’t love me, so you probably don’t want to be connected to me. But…”
He placed his finger against her lips. “No. No, you don’t understand.”
“What?” she sputtered. She shivered as his finger began to trace her lips.
He laughed, “For someone so brilliant, you can be an idiot sometimes.”
“Well, aren’t you sweet?” Rose muttered, shivering as his fingers traveled downward. “I declare my love for you, and you… Hey, what are you doing?”
He finished unzipping her hoodie. “Taking off your jacket.”
“Okay…” she said, drawing out the word, as he tossed her hoodie aside.
His hands returned to her, tugging up the hem of her blue T-shirt.
Rose stilled his hands, her eyes wide. “Okay, now, what are you doing?”
His lips twitched. “Taking off your shirt,” he said, his eyes darkening.
“Uh…yeah…but why?” she asked. “If this is your way of bargaining…”
“It’s nothing like that,” he said. He gestured toward his chest, drawing her attention to all of the gashes and wounds. “I don’t want to ruin your clothes.”
Her eyes widened. “Kallias, what are you saying?”
Kallias wrapped his hand around her wrist and pulled her into his lap, his lips curving slowly into a smile. “I’m saying that you’re wrong. I do want to be connected to you.” His brown eyes burned with intensity. “And I do love you.”
The Stone of the Eklektos Page 70