Sanctuary: Book One of Bloodlines

by C. L. Stevens

“What will you do?” He asked. “You can hardly stand.”

  He took a step closer and she took several steps back in response. He stopped and tried his predatory smile again.

  “I know what you are now. Better than you, I am willing to bet. Come with me. Come with me and I will see that you get the help you need... and answers.”

  She shook her head but he went on as if he didn’t notice.

  “You have no idea how rare, how important you are. Neither of us wants you to die. Come with me.” He finished, offering his hand.

  She looked at the offered hand and considered for all of a second.

  “And what of Meilin?” She asked, her contempt for the vampire, or rather for what she knew he wanted to do to Meilin, clear in her tone.

  “What do you care?” He shot back but smoothed his tone when he saw her shrink back. “Think of yourself right now. You would not be here if not for her. I doubt you would go anywhere willingly with the likes of her. You owe her nothing.”

  “So, I am supposed to just let you kill her?” She asked incredulously.

  He made a motion with 1 hand as if he were brushing away crumbs from a table top. It was not hard to gather his meaning. He took a step towards her but stopped abruptly as the female cop reached out and grabbed him by the ankle. He looked down at her as you would an ant you found floating in your half-finished bowl of cornflakes.

  Desiree didn't see what happened next because she was getting into the car and sped off with the gas pressed as hard as she could. She didn't let off the gas until the lights of the rest stop were far out of sight in her rear-view mirror.

  CHAPTER 7

  She found herself clutching the gunshot wound to her stomach more than she did the steering wheel. The pain was excruciating, pulsing as if it had a life of its own. She also realized that she was losing a lot of blood but only from the front. That probably meant that the bullet was still inside. The lights of a city appeared ahead and she glanced back at Meilin. She seemed no worse but certainly looked no better. Calling her name yielded no results other than coughing up more blood. With her options minimal, she made the decision to go to a hospital.

  “Don't worry, I have an idea Meilin,” She said soothingly, but truth be told, the proclamation was more for her own benefit than the Vampire’s.

  In less than a half hour later she was stumbling into the emergency room, Meilin on tow.

  The sight of the two women covered in blood froze everyone inside in place for a moment but then they burst into practiced motion.

  “I need a doctor over here STAT!” The woman at the desk yelled seemingly to no one in particular. A male and female nurse came running to her before the words had time to fade.

  “Jesus! What happened?” The stout male nurse bellowed. He moved to take Meilin and Desiree gave up her burden without a fuss.

  “Her Ex started attacking her.” She lied. “And when I tried to help, he shot me.” She coughed violently and continued. “He is Black, about 6’2, handsome, with a really deep voice. He may come looking for us.”

  “Where is that doctor?” Yelled the same authoritative female voice.

  In moments they had them both on gurneys and she was being whisked down the hall. She couldn't seem to focus her thoughts. She didn't hear the endless questions they peppered her with nor did she notice the concerned looks they passed amongst themselves. lights on the ceiling seemed to demand all her attention as they rushed along, almost mesmerizing her as she watched everything go from bright to dark to bright again in a rhythmic hum. It all seemed to end abruptly and she found they were both in small rooms separated only by ugly green curtains. They connected her to an IV and she could see them doing the same to Meilin.

  “She lost a lot of blood,” Desiree yelled to the nurses attending Meilin. “There was a large pool of it in the car.”

  It was not a total lie, exactly. There had been a large pool of blood in the car, but it was in the front seat and had come from Desiree herself, not Meilin.

  Blood splattered the white sheets that covered her when she yelled and now covered her lips and chin.

  “Oops. I’m sorry,” She mumbled apologetically, as she attempted to wipe her mouth with the back of her hand and found that she couldn't move. They had strapped her to the gurney. When had they done that?

  Desiree winced as a male nurse cut away her blouse. She reflexively tried to cover her chest under his gaze though she still wore her bra. The straps held for a moment and then gave, the buckle clanging across the floor noisily. She used the one arm to cover herself as best she could. Several more hands tried to get at her bra but she fended them off.

  “I thought I ordered her strapped down!” She heard the woman with the authoritative voice say harshly. “She is going to hurt herself or someone else with all that thrashing.”

  Is Meilin conscious? She tried to sit up and see what was going on with the Vampire but hands pressed her back down… roughly.

  “Will one of you strap the girl down!” The woman bellowed. She sounded well beyond merely annoyed.

  “Broke,” Said the nurse that had cut away her blouse. He held it up in confusion.

  “Well just don't just stand there staring at it, get another one!”

  “But, but how did she…”

  “Move Brian!”

  A tall man with dark hair rushed in suddenly and Desiree recognized him for the doctor simply by the way the others immediately deferred to him.

  “What do we have?” The doctor asked almost casually.

  “GSW to the abdomen area,” Replied a nurse.

  She continued but Desiree lost her words in the clatter of the others carrying on with their tasks. Her attention abruptly came back to the doctor as he moved closer and examined her stomach, pressing here and there hard enough to make her groan in agony.

  “How are you still conscious?” He asked wide-eyed. Desiree responded by barring bloody teeth that she tried to pass for a smile.

  “Do you know your blood type?” He asked her.

  “B positive,” She managed after swallowing twice. She didn't even notice the metallic taste of the blood any longer. “We are both B positive.”

  The lights were so harsh and glaring that it was hard for her to make out anything they were doing to her. However, she did see the hospital staff setting up blood or plasma to Meilin’s IV and smiled. Let me just close my eyes for a moment. Darned lights.

  “I want her prepped for surgery,” She heard the doctor say from someplace far off and wondered who was hurt as blessed unconsciousness rolled her under.

  Meilin’s eyes opened abruptly and she sat up straight with a jerk. She was in a darkened room and appeared to be alone, though she could hear voices not far off. She moved to get up and found that she had an IV attached to her arm and stared at it dumbfounded. She followed the line to a depleted bag with traces of blood. She ripped it out and jumped out of bed, or at least she tried to. Her body didn't seem to want to cooperate. Suddenly her vision began to swim and it was all she could do to remain sitting up. Sounds faded in and out in her head as if a child were playing with the volume dial on a car radio. One minute she was nearly deaf, and the next, the sound of her own breathing seemed as loud as someone yelling in her ear. It was as if she had become a new vampire all over again. She focused her mind, using every ounce of discipline she had but it was still several minutes before her senses began to normalize. When she was reasonably sure she was OK, she tried again.

  Her bare feet hit the cold floor with twin slaps. She was wearing a hospital gown so cheap that it appeared to be made out of paper, and nothing else, not even knickers. She glanced around the dark room, her dark eyes gathering every scrap of available light, allowing her to see everything as if it were blanketed in noonday sunshine. She quickly located her clothing in a plastic bag but only removed her underwear. Her shoes were nowhere to be found. The dress was ripped, dirty and caked with blood, most of it not her own. Her Suvy’s blood.

 
She stood by the door to her room and focused her senses, sending them probing outward. At first, there was nothing, and then she felt the presence of several humans outside, one seated directly by her door. She lost it and tried again and again but the skill she had mastered ages ago was now as slippery as a greased piglet. She shook her head violently in a vain attempt to clear her head. She tried again and again but in the end, just risked a peek through the small window in the door and saw a police officer sitting in a chair reading a book. Two women in hospital attire stood and sat at a desk further down the hall. It was obvious the cop was there for her. How much do they know?

  She located her chart and quickly perused the nearly unintelligible markings. Jane Doe, bla bla, lacerations, bla bla bla. They bloody don't know anything.

  She noticed that she was scheduled for an MRI and wondered idly what such a device would have shown them. She spent another few moments steadying herself and made her move.

  Neither the Cop nor the women even looked up as she darted past them like a mouse enveloped in shadow.

  Her first stop was a restroom where she gave a start at her own reflection. The filthy heathens could have at least washed my face. She cleaned herself up the best she could, washing the dried blood from her face, hair, and hands with the harsh and powerful liquid soap available. The water disappearing down the drain was a pink froth for a long time before clearing. Deft, practiced motions had her long and now clean hair in a tight bun.

  Feeling much better and looking like a different person, she glided down corridor after corridor, easily avoiding any humans until she noticed a small room filled with linens. She grabbed a dress nearly identical to that of the two women outside her door were wearing, only blue instead of white. She tried to step into the skirts and found herself sprawling to the ground. She didn’t even attempt to regain her feet as the room seemed to spin so violently that she felt she was going to vomit. After a moment her senses began to normalize again. She dressed and grabbed an extra, smaller uniform and left the room at a steady, ground-covering walk.

  She passed several people over the next couple of minutes but none glanced at her bare feet or even gave her any notice at all save the occasional half nod. The sweet smell of her Suvy was easy to track and soon only a single door separated their reunion. She glanced inside but the room was empty. She looked about in confusion until she noticed the bag with her Suvy’s belongings. The dress the girl had been wearing was cut into a useless rag and soaked with her blood. There was so much blood, that the smell was overpowering. Suddenly her pupils dilated and her fangs began to grow of their own accord. Her vision turned red and she wanted nothing more than to feed. She slapped herself so hard that she nearly lost her feet. Succumbing to the thirst like a child? What is wrong with me?

  As the predator in her subsided, she moved to Desiree's belongings. The only other items in the bag other than the bloody rags were shoes and keys. They were her own keys she noticed absently. Where in bloody hell is the girl?

  She finally noticed that there was another room beyond and then another still but at last she sensed her quarry inside that third room. The Ablanq was not alone.

  “When did you say this girl was shot?” She heard a man ask from the other side of the door.

  “A shame someone would mar a nice body like that.” Stated another man. “I can think of a lot better things to do with that gorgeous body than putting a bullet in it, you can be sure of that.” The man giggled, sounding remarkably juvenile.

  “I think the girl would rather have the bullet than what you want to shoot in her,” A woman said sarcastically. She laughed loudly and other men joined her.

  “Shut up and take a look at this.” The first man bellowed above the din.

  It took a moment for them to quiet and still it was broken by the occasional chuckle.

  “What are we supposed to be seeing here?” One of the men asked. “It’s a gunshot wound. We already know…”

  “Shut up and look,” The first man said, cutting them off. “Look!”

  There was a long pause before anyone spoke again.

  “What the fuck? Did you see that?”

  “Are you seeing what I'm seeing?” Came the first voice again. “Look! There it is again!”

  There came the sound of metal hitting the floor with a clang.

  “That's not possible,” Came the woman's shaky voice. “That's just not...”

  “Who is this girl?” The first man asked.

  Meilin had heard enough. She swept in like death on swift wings, scooping up a scalpel and brought it in line with the closest man’s throat. She changed her mind at the last second and instead struck him across the back of the neck with the bladed edge of her hand. Before he was halfway to the ground, she had struck the other three humans that surrounded Desiree’s prone form in like fashion. She tucked the scalpel away and had gathered her Suvy in her arms before the last body collapsed around her.

  Desiree woke up naked as the day she was born, laying on crumpled and bloody hospital sheets. She glanced around and noticed clothing in a bundle that was also stained with blood and reached for them. Her hand froze and she nearly jumped out of her skin when a figure materialized out of the darkness like a phantasm. She sighed in relief when she recognized Meilin but it still took her a moment to get her breathing under control. The Vampire looked like a million bucks. There was no sign that she had ever been injured.

  “Glad to see you looking so much better,” Desiree said in greeting. “Now if it's OK with you, I could use your help in doing the same. My stomach feels like I swallowed six angry tomcats whole with their tails all tied together.”

  Meilin smiled but it looked forced. She crouched down to where Desiree lay in the grass and gave her a long look.

  “You remained with me,” Meilin said in a near whisper. “I took you against your will and you risked yourself to help me. Why? After the altercation, you could have left me there to die and washed your hands of all of this. Why take me with you? Why save me?”

  “Why did you come to rescue me when you knew it was a trap?” Desiree asked or accused, she wasn't sure which.

  Meilin’s mouth tightened as she looked at her long and hard and Desiree could almost see the vampire's thoughts swirling. She seemed to have come to some sort of decision because she nodded to herself and mumbled something under her breath that she couldn't make out.

  “Um, I think a female cat in heat just joined those tomcats, Meilin,” Desiree said gritting her teeth in pain. “I could really use a kiss right about now.” She added with a wink but spoiled it when she involuntarily had to squeeze both eyes shut when a lance of pain pulsed through her.

  “We have to remove the bullet first,” Meilin said in sympathetic tones. “I was hoping I could do it before you woke but you kept thrashing about so that I feared it would do more harm than good to try. And your gift was not cooperating either.”

  Desiree looked down at her stomach in surprise. The bullet hole looked nearly healed over, though the skin around it was red and inflamed. She touched the area around the hole and jerked her hand away with a curse, her vision actually going dim for a moment.

  “Fuck me that hurt!” She declared when she could speak.

  “It hurt that badly just from touching it?” Meilin asked in alarm as she took a quick step forward as if to help somehow.

  Desiree nodded. “Yes!” She replied emphatically.

  “Well then don't touch it,” Meilin finished with another forced smile.

  Desiree rolled her eyes. “How are we going to get it out of me?”

  In answer, Meilin produced a shiny silver scalpel that gleamed ominously in the glow of the streetlights.

  Desiree’s eyes bulged. “Are you freaken serious?”

  Meilin motioned her to lie down flat and she complied reluctantly but sat back up almost instantly.

  “Are… are you sure that you know what you’re doing Meilin?” Her words nearly dripping worry.

 
“I am going to have to make an incision and dig the bullet out,” Meilin said in reply. She smiled reassuringly. “I have done this before.” A hundred years ago or close enough as makes no difference but no need for you to know that.

  She placed the instrument about an inch above the wound and paused.

  “I'm so sorry, but this is going to hurt my Suvy.”

  The blade sank in like she was slicing moist chocolate cake instead of the toned abs of a young woman. Desiree gritted her teeth in agony, a groan escaping her lips against her will. She tossed her head back and the groans became more pronounced as the scalpel inched its way down, carving a red line through her middle. Meilin’s hand never wavered and when it was done Desiree gasped in relief. Her vision had gone a bit blurry and she was surprised to realize there were tears in her eyes.

  “Oh my god, now that was pain,” She announced, wiping sweat from her brow, a brow that suddenly began to furrow in fear and confusion.

  “Something… something is wrong Meilin. I feel, I mean the skin around the wound feels…”

  She cut off with a sharp intake of breath as Meilin parted the incision with one bare hand and snaked her long, elegant fingers into the wound. Desiree’s involuntary intake of breath was the precursor to a scream so full and piercing that it sent birds scrambling from nearby trees in a frenzied panic and even made Meilin pause for a moment. She screamed and screamed. She screamed until all the air in her lungs were exhausted. She sucked in another ragged breath, her throat feeling as raw as if it had been raked over a cheese grater. She lost track of where she was or what was going on, she only knew pain. And then she was lifted into Meilin’s embrace and the pain fled, chased away like the last remnants of the night at the coming of dawn as the Vampire gifted her with the kiss of death. Her body still shook from the trauma of the surgery for several minutes even after all signs of any injury could be seen or felt. All the while Meilin held her in her arms while stroking her hair and back soothingly and whispering in her light, melodic voice.

  “It is OK. You are OK my Suvy. It is over now. It is all over. Shh… It is over.”