Once Upon A Midnight

by Stephanie Rowe

  “Ready?” Basilius lounged against the wall, barely three feet away.

  “You have got to stop doing that,” Rose snapped angrily.

  “Are you ready?” Basilius asked again, standing up straight and looking amused.

  “I said four hours. You’re early.” Rose stayed in Seth’s arms, refusing to move.

  “We need to go now.” Basilius shrugged. “It’s dusk there and he’ll be up and around and I’ve got other things to do.”

  “Damn.” Rose looked up at Seth who was clenching his teeth, his jaw looking as if it would break from the pressure. “I’ll be careful. Just get up there as soon as you can.”

  Seth gave a curt nod before kissing her deeply. “I love you, Flower.”

  “I know,” Rose hung onto him for a moment longer. “I love you too.”

  “See you soon.” Seth released her and she clearly heard him whisper, “I wish you did.”

  Whirling around she saw sadness in his eyes as Basilius snapped his fingers. “Hurry, Black Rose, I’ve got somewhere I need to be.”

  She scowled at the Demon as Seth retrieved her precious bike. “I’ve filled it up with gas and the battery’s been charged too.”

  “Thanks.” She stared at him but he’d closed down his face, looking impassively at her as she slung the leather holster with her katana around her back. Settling it in front so it hung more comfortably, she then tied her bag to the bike before giving Seth a small smile. “See you up there.”

  Seth only nodded as she took hold of the bike, Basilius coming to stand next to her. The Demon waved Seth away with his hand and she took a deep breath in as she waited to see what would happen. She told herself she wasn’t scared. No. Those butterflies in her stomach were due to her mission and nothing at all to do with the thought of being transported by this Demon.

  Rose kept her eyes trained on Seth, her savior and anchor. One minute he was clear and the next he was gone. Her stomach lurching as she felt as if every atom in her body was ripped apart at the same time as falling rapidly from the sky. Her eyes closed as she felt her feet hit solid ground a moment before her stomach. Her heart beat wildly in her chest as she sucked in a deep breath and looked around.

  “We’re here.” Basilius grinned down at her. “Feeling a little sick?”

  Rose straightened her back. “I’m fine.”

  “Yeah, sure you are.” Basilius raised an eyebrow as he continued to stare at her. “Okay, have it your way. So, the hotel is about five minutes away, go to the end of this alley and turn right. Stay on that road and you’ll see it. It’s the only building that’s lit up and there’ll be guards stationed at the front doors. Take it nice and slow when you arrive so they don’t look on you as a threat. It would be a pity if you were killed before you even got inside.”

  “I’ve fought Vamps before so I’m sure I’ll be okay.” Rose started up her bike and got on. “But I’ll play the role of the person looking for work and not spook them. You’ll be hearing from me but it’ll probably be through Seth. That’s my safest form of communication.”

  “Whatever,” Basilius said a second before disappearing.

  “Charming,” Rose spat out before taking several deep breaths to ease her queasy stomach. “Guess I better get going.” She looked around the dirty alley and shuddered with revulsion as she pulled on her helmet. “I fucking hope I get a shower in my room,” she muttered as her bike tore out of the alley.

  Chapter Seven

  Rose’s eyes wandered all around looking for any sign of a threat as she rode down the wide street. On her left was an immense park area with the buildings on her right. “Must be Central Park,” she mused as she saw the hotel coming up, all lit up as the Demon had said it would be.

  Her Wolf sight saw the two large guards stationed at the entrance doors with two more standing at the bottom of the stairs leading up to the doors. All of them had their heads turned towards her as she approached. Slowing down she lifted the face guard and pasted a smile on hoping they wouldn’t think her dangerous. Her attention focused on the guards she didn’t notice, or expect, the threat to herself until it was too late.

  A heavy body thudded into her causing her and the bike to fall heavily to the ground. Her head only being saved from splattering across the tarmac by her helmet. Letting out a curse she fought to release her leg from underneath the heavy bike as a foot connected with her shoulder, pain lancing through it as she shook her head trying to clear it. “What the fuck?” she shouted as her leg popped free, jumping up quickly as anger filled her. Her head throbbed and her sight was a little fuzzy as she saw what appeared to be a male Fairy.

  She knew Fairies, had trained with them, and never had she known one to attack for no good reason. The one before her snarled and pounced, a fist connecting with the arm she’d swung up to protect herself with. In that instant she was certain of one thing—this was no Fairy.

  It looked like a Fairy, dressed like a Fairy, but it most definitely was not a Fairy.

  The power behind its blows causing her to stagger and yelp in pain as she felt something snap within her arm. She reached over and quickly pulled her katana free from its sheath, swinging it before her to hold off the thing that had the strength of ten Fairies. The thing had intense power and appeared to be a Fairy but it did not have that species’ speed and agility. Using that to her advantage, her katana hissed through the air and caught it on the upper left side. A glancing blow only but enough to draw blood and have the thing step back. She took the chance to take a steadying breath as pain lanced through her arm and head.

  She could feel blood dripping down her forehead and she had a fleeting thought of hoping the injury didn’t scar. She hated scars. As the warm fluid ran down the side of her face she fought to focus on the threat before her. Unable to use any magic, she had to make sure it didn’t land any further blows. If it did she’d go down and that wasn’t something she was going to let happen, because if she fell she knew it could end her. Rose had no intention of ending her life on a dirty road in Manhattan. Not going to happen.

  Shouts of alarm from behind her had her heart beating almost out of her chest as she guessed there were now Vampires rushing toward her. Surely they’d seen she’d been attacked without provocation? She fucking hoped so or she was in deep shit.

  As the noise behind her grew louder the thing in front dashed off towards the park, disappearing inside the dense greenery that it met as it jumped over the metal fence. Rose let her arm fall, her blade resting on the ground as her injured arm lay useless at her side. Taking great gulps of air she fought to stand upright and waited to see if the Vampires thought her friend or foe.

  Strong hands grabbed her shoulders, spinning her around, a soft groan escaped her as her injured arm sent pain jolting through her. Her head spun and she guessed she had knocked her head harder than she’d thought. Her eyes looked up and saw a tall Vampire standing before her, dark, brooding and with the most incredible eyes she’d ever seen. “Are you hurt?” he asked as he stared down at her.

  Rose nodded, grimacing as she looked to her useless arm hanging at her side. The Vampire spat out orders to those gathered in a defensive position around them. “Get after him and don’t come back until he’s found. Draven, get her belongings inside and get the bike somewhere safe.” The Vampire looked around, raising his voice, “Valentine! Make sure they find that fucker and get him in front of me as soon as you can.”

  Rose felt sick again and she wasn’t sure whether it was down to the Demon’s method of transportation or the damage done to her arm. She guessed the latter when she tried to take a step and felt as if she was going to throw up. “Shit,” she managed to get out just before she bent over and vomited on the ground.

  Her face flushed with embarrassment as she dropped her katana to the ground and wiped her mouth with the back of her other hand. “Jeez, I’m sorry,” she gasped as she noticed she’d managed to hit the Vampire’s shiny dress shoes with her puke.

  “Don�
�t worry about it,” he said as he helped her to stand upright before bending to pick up her blade. His eyes staring at her intently for a moment before a finger reached up to wipe some of the blood from her face. He looked at his finger then back at her, a strange look on his face. “Let’s get you inside and we’ll get someone to have a look at that arm and your head.”

  “Thanks,” she managed as he led her back towards the stairs and up into the hotel. A vanguard of Vampires all around as they walked.

  As he helped her up the stairs she saw a woman waiting, wringing her hands and looking worried. The Vampire shouted, “Susan, can you help?”

  The woman rushed out and started to look Rose over as they entered the hotel. “Oh my, that arm is pretty badly broken and your head is bleeding. I’ll need to get that helmet off so I can have a good look.”

  The man nodded, handing her off to Susan. “Take her and fix her up, Susan, then bring her to the office.”

  “Certainly, Sir.” She took hold of Rose’s uninjured elbow. “Come with me and I’ll sort you out.”

  Rose gave a small smile as her mind went into overdrive. Damn! She’d projected she was Wolf so this woman would expect her to morph and heal herself and that just wasn’t going to happen. “Thank you,” Rose got out as she tried to concentrate on what story to tell, both to this woman and to Allarde.

  Susan chattered as she led Rose through the large entranceway and through a door to the left of an old reception desk. “In here.”

  The room was set up as a little office but Susan led her through and opened another door. This room was full of first aid items, even a reclining doctor’s chair sat in the middle of the floor. Susan took her towards it and motioned for her to sit before gently removing her helmet.

  “I’m Susan, but most just call me Sue. I run the hotel for Mr. Allarde and I do first aid when needed.”

  Rose tried to smile but grimaced as pain shot through her shoulder and arm, as well as her head pounding as if it was in a vice. “I’m Marie.”

  “Hello, Marie.” Sue started to clean the cut on her head and continued chatting. “You’re a Wolf?”

  “Hmm, only half.” Rose jerked as the cold liquid stung on the open wound in her hairline. “I can’t transform, unfortunately.”

  “Oh.” Sue frowned. “That is unfortunate. You’d heal in no time if you could go Wolf.”

  “I’m a quick healer, just not as quick as a full Wolf.” Rose knew her father’s DNA did help her heal quicker than a human but she knew she’d still be in pain for a couple of weeks at least.

  “Yeah, our genes do help, even if they’re diluted a bit.”

  “You’re a Wolf?” Rose asked, although she knew the answer she didn’t want the woman knowing she was capable of knowing that.

  “Yes.” Sue finished dabbing her head, leaning in to stare hard at it. “I think we can get away with just a couple of stitches and your hair will hide any scar.”

  “Thanks.” Rose relaxed back into the chair. “So how did you end up here?”

  “Me?” Sue retrieved a medical needle and thread. “My Pack had to move when the war started and we ended up all over the place. There’s a few here now, working for Mr. Allarde, so I’m not on my own but it’s not like living in the wild like we used to.”

  “I see.” Rose moved her head to the side to give the woman better access but even that slight movement caused her stomach to lurch.

  “You feeling sick?” Sue asked, worry in her eyes.

  “Yeah,” Rose admitted as she tried her damndest not to puke again.

  “I think you’ve got a concussion. You’ll need to rest and not overdo things.” Sue peered into her eyes. “If you feel any worse then have someone come get me.”

  “Okay.” Rose started to nod and stopped herself just in time. Moving her head in any way at all was a sure way to vomit again.

  “Will you be okay with me doing a couple of quick stitches? Or do you want me to numb it?”

  Rose gave her a small smile. “I’ll be fine.”

  “Okay, I’ll be as fast as I can and then we’ll get that arm sorted.”

  As Sue went to work Rose grit her teeth for the pain she knew would hit as the needle pierced her skin. Fortunately the woman’s word was good and she’d finished in only a couple of moments. Rose let out a long breath as Sue binned the needle. “Thank you,” Rose said as Sue came over, a large pair of scissors in her hands.

  “Wait.” Rose held up her good arm, hand forward. “What are you going to do with those?”

  Sue stopped and pointed to her injured arm. “I’m going to cut off your jacket and top so I can check your arm.”

  “No.” Rose forgot about her head as she shook it, bile rising up her throat as soon as she’d moved. “Sick,” she managed to get out and was very grateful when Sue turned quickly and picked up a bowl and held it in front of her.

  She was sick again, her head pounding and her shoulder and arm hurting like a bitch. Sue held out a glass of water and Rose took it, sipping slowly as Sue got rid of the offending bowl. “Sorry,” Rose said as she felt a little better.

  “I’m worried about your head.” Sue frowned as she looked deep into her eyes again. “That was some knock you got and you definitely have a concussion.”

  “I’ll be fine,” Rose said as she struggled to sit forward. “Help me get this off.” She tried to slip her uninjured arm from her prized jacket.

  “I’ll cut it off, Marie, it’ll hurt less if I do that.”

  Rose carried on shrugging the jacket down her good arm. “It’s my only jacket,” she said as way of explanation.

  “I can get you a new jacket,” Sue said as she tried to help. “We’ve got stores in the basement and I’m sure I’ve seen jackets similar to this down there.”

  “Just in case there isn’t.” Rose finally managed to pull her arm free. “I’d like to keep this one, thanks.”

  With a few more wiggles and Sue’s help the jacket was finally off. Sweat beaded her forehead as pain seemed to lance through her entire being and she only just managed to stay conscious. “Fuck,” Rose swore as she sat back in the seat once more.

  “Hell.” Sue gently examined the arm. “This is a mess, Marie, I’m not sure I’m good enough to set this.”

  Rose could feel the breaks within her arm, there were many, and she couldn’t even use a healing spell to help it. “You’re all I’ve got, Sue.”

  Sue bit her bottom lip, indecision on her face. “I’d rather we got someone more experienced to deal with this.”

  “Like who?” Rose asked, wondering if there was anyone else available or if she’d just have to trust Sue to do a good enough job.

  “There’s a human doctor a few hours away..”

  Rose stopped her. “I can’t wait for a doc. Just do your best.”

  Sue nodded and went towards the door. “I’ll be back in a moment. I need some help to hold you down ‘cause this is gonna hurt bad.”

  Rose let out a long breath as Sue disappeared. “Shit,” she mumbled as the pain seemed to intensify and again she fought to not lose consciousness.

  Sue reappeared with a large blond Vampire. “This is Valentine, he’s going to help.”

  “Hi,” Rose said as the man eyed her from top to bottom.

  His blue eyes bright as he spoke softly, “I hear your arm is damaged quite badly. I’ll hold you down as Sue tries to set it.”

  “Okay.” Rose watched as Sue started to pull out a ton of medical stuff and took small shallow breaths to try and stem off the pain.

  “Marie,” Sue said as she came over with a syringe in her hand. “This is for the pain.”

  Rose only nodded as Sue inserted the needle into her skin and emptied the liquid into her good arm. “Try and relax.” Sue patted her thigh as Val took up position to hold her.

  “What the fuck was that thing?” Rose murmured as the drug started to take effect.

  “A fucking Fairy,” Valentine replied as Sue went to work on her arm.
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  His words made it through to her brain and she was just about to correct his misconception when Sue started to work on her arm. Pain like nothing she’d felt before encompassed her and she let out a moan as Valentine’s hands held her firmly in place. As Sue moved her fingers over her skin, realigning broken bones, Rose felt herself falling into darkness. For once she welcomed it as the pain intensified and she shuddered for a brief moment before she fainted.

  “Is she going to be okay?”

  Rose heard Valentine ask as her eyes opened slowly. Her arm in a sling with a new cast set on it. “I’ll be fine,” she mumbled as Sue rushed over.

  “How’re you feeling?”

  “I’ll survive,” Rose said as she sat up straighter in the chair.

  “I wish you would’ve waited for the doctor,” Sue said worriedly. “I’ve done the best I can but there were multiple breaks.”

  “Yeah.” Rose gave a lopsided smile. “I know. I felt them.”

  Sue held out her hand which held a small bottle of pills. “The pain should ease now it’s in the cast but here’s some meds to take if it starts to hurt again.”

  “Thanks.” Rose took the bottle and slipped it in her jeans pocket.

  Valentine stood with his arms crossed. “If you’re up to it the boss would like to speak to you.”

  “Sure,” Rose said, sliding off the chair and gaining her feet which were a little unsteady.

  “She’s got a concussion too, Val, so she needs to take things easy,” Sue told the Vampire, her tone firm as she started to tidy up.

  “I’ll let him know,” Valentine said as he walked away.

  Rose followed behind, admiring the view of the large Vampire. Wide shoulders tapered to a slim waist and his jeans hung tight to his ass. A very fine ass, Rose thought as she walked behind him all the way back to the reception desk and off to the right and a bank of elevators.

  “These work?” she asked, never having ridden in one before.

  “Of course.” Valentine hit the call button and turned to stare at her. “So just who the hell are you?”