Blood Judgment (Judgment Series) (7 page)

Julian couldn’t find it within himself to be disgusted with them. How could he wish ill on them when the government made it so tempting to give in and submit to the identification process?

Vampires who voluntarily received the brands were cared for at a clinic where they were sedated and then given a supply of painkillers and ointments to make it as easy on them as possible.

That in itself wouldn’t be enough, but the government bastards were smart. They couldn’t very well round up the vampires they’d already shoved into the Open Zones and torture them the way they did the ones caught in the restricted areas. Not unless they wanted to take a chance on the vampires getting to the point where they felt they had nothing else to lose. That was a prescription for revolt and the government bastards didn’t want that.

Instead, they offered what amounted to a bribe to vampires who were often desperate and willing to do anything to feed their children.

The promise of a small check and a food card to use for a year after receiving the brands was often enough when hungry children were part of the equation.

Julian trudged on. Dim streetlights, with broken and missing bulbs, barely illuminated the area. Dismal houses with cracked windows, swaybacked roofs, and weed-choked lawns screamed abject poverty and hopelessness.

He couldn’t believe anyone would voluntarily bring his family there. Not even the two-year monthly stipend the government used as an incentive to relocate would have been enough for him.

He shoved his hair back and tried to get his bearings. Was he near White Center? Wherever he’d been dumped, it was awful. How far was he from downtown Seattle?

A fat drop of rain hit his face. Then another and another.

Wonderful
. Was there no end to this night in hell?

The rain picked up, pelting him with stinging fury. Within minutes, he was soaked and shivering. But the rain’s chill didn’t match the ice inside him.

Not one thing made the neighborhood livable. The homes appeared unfit for animals, yet most had occupants.

Children played on falling-apart covered porches. A few romped in the streets, despite the rain. Vampires weren’t permitted to own cars, so there wasn’t any traffic to pose a danger to the little ones.

His chest burned with indignant rage. No one should be forced to live under such conditions or subjected to degradation and cruelty for being born to a different race.

His rage morphed and combined with guilt. Worse than the painful burns, worse than hunger, worse than loneliness, was admitting he’d been an arrogant, selfish, spoiled bastard who hadn’t given a damn about the plight of anyone beyond himself.

He deserved everything that had happened to him. He’d always thought himself a good person. But he hadn’t been one at all. Far from it.

Maybe he could find a way to set some of it right, make up for the way he’d been. Determination stiffened his spine. With his head held high in the cold, driving rain, he walked toward the Restricted Zone.

Chapter Five

JULIAN SLIPPED around the side of a hard rock club and concealed himself in a recessed doorway. A rush of excitement and anticipation combined with anxious, desperate lust fired his blood.

He leaned against the door. Music pounded as a band performed with more gusto than talent. Something he would never do on a stage again. Fresh pain ripped through him with staggering force.

Closing his eyes, he fought to center himself. He had bigger problems than losing his career. Survival, uncertain from moment to moment, was all that mattered now.

Chills crawled along his skin and he shivered, though, soon enough, fever would bake him until nausea churned his stomach.

He clenched his fists, but quickly relaxed his hands. The brands still hurt almost as bad as the night they had been burned into his flesh. When had that been? Three days ago? Four? He wasn’t sure.

He focused on the front parking lot, waiting for suitable quarry—someone so high on drugs or alcohol they wouldn’t remember him.

He would prefer going after one of the government goons patrolling the streets, but appeasing his desire for payback might backfire. He was too sick to even think straight much less take on the drug-toting Nazi-wannabes.

Movement caught his attention. A female.

Long, honey-colored hair swished in rhythm with her hips as she tottered across the gravel parking lot on stiletto heels. She was going to do harm to herself in those ridiculous shoes if she wasn’t careful.

The female passed Julian without so much as a glance in his direction. Not that he cared. He watched her mince unsteadily along until she reached the sidewalk and crossed the street.

A moment later, she cut into an alley and the fine hair on his arms rose off his skin. Alleys were now things to avoid if possible.

Validating his apprehension, a large male separated from the shadows and snaked behind the little blond.

Julian sprang from the doorway and headed for the street at a fast clip. Dodging traffic, he sprinted after them. He followed them into the dark passageway and skidded to a halt.

The male had the little female pinned tight against a wall. Her back pressed into the brick as he loomed over her, his hands against the wall on either side of her, forming a cage.

Julian breathed in the bitter scent of her fear. “Get the fuck away from her,” he bellowed.

The leather-clad vampire spun. Taller and heavier with a hard, merciless face framed by black hair, he reeked menace.

Julian wasn’t intimidated. He could fight one-on-one even if his guts did feel as though they were packed with broken glass. He dropped into a crouch.

The rogue sprang and Julian leapt to meet the attack. They collided with a bone-jarring impact before dropping hard and rolling on the asphalt.

Nails tore into Julian, ripping searing furrows from his left pec down to the waistband of his jeans. The pain was intense, shocking. Warm wetness soaked his shredded shirt. The scent of blood rose, inflaming him.

Hissing, he slashed at his opponent’s throat with a well-aimed swipe. The brute deflected the blow, flipped Julian, and struggled to pin him down.

SARANNA JERKED her phone from her purse and frantically dialed her brother. He answered on the first ring. “Saranna, where are you?”

“Lancaster Alley. Oh, God, hurry.”

“What’s wrong?” Panic filled his voice.

“Just get here. Someone’s going to be killed.” She cut off the call to get him moving. Already on his way to meet her, he couldn’t be more than a couple blocks away.

She clapped a hand over her mouth.

The males struggled on the pavement, growling and slashing at each other. It was already obvious the younger, smaller one, outclassed by age and weight, was going to lose.

As if on cue, the older male attacked with his teeth, ripping his opponent’s throat. Blood spurted and a choked cry came out of the young male, but he didn’t falter.

Oh, God
. He’d saved her and he was going to pay with his life. Right in front of her. With her heartbeat roaring in her ears, she fought the urge to flee. She didn’t want to see him killed.

But to her amazement, he delivered a blow that dislodged his attacker. In a move almost too fast to comprehend, the older vampire lay beneath the young one.

A volley of shouts stopped the combatants cold.

The rogue shoved the youngster off and sprang to his feet. He tore down the alley as if the demons of hell were behind him.

Two men in olive uniforms strode toward them, pistols drawn. The young male moaned before launching off the pavement. He grabbed her arm and, dragging her along beside him, propelled her through the alley at a dead run.

She struggled to keep up without falling. Curses trailed behind them. Something whizzed past them and he tightened his hold painfully on her arm.

“Come on!” He yanked her around the corner and hauled her across the street among blaring horns and screaming tires. An SUV skidded to a stop, barely missing them.

He didn’t slow until they were on the opposite side, once again in the shadows of an alley. He released her and staggered over to lean against the wall. He pressed a hand to his throat. Blood leaked between his fingers and dripped onto his sleeve.

Shaking, she tried to slow her breathing.

“Oh, Jesus,” she gasped. The scent of blood and illness clung to him, but the thing revolting her was a raw, unhealed brand on his hand. His skin was an alarming shade of red around the wound and fluid wept from the swollen flesh. The interior of the brand was distended where puss had collected.

Both of his wrists were ringed with partially scabbed over wounds, the hallmark of the shackles used by the government. He’d fought hard and paid the price.

Though sweat beaded his skin, he shivered as if he were freezing. Infection had taken a deep, perhaps fatal, hold on him. Her heart squeezed. He was young, about her age, and dangerously ill, a recipe for disaster.

“You need a doctor,” she said.

His unusually-colored eyes, a startling blue-green flecked with deep gold around the pupil, reflected his uncertainty. She stared into their beautiful depths.

Something about him was familiar. Had she seen him somewhere before?

He shoved long hair back from his face and looked at her as if she were daft. “I can’t go to a doctor.”

“Of course you can. Let me help you. Please.”

Confusion shadowed his face. “No doctor would help me.”

Her stomach clenched. “Were you turned? You were, weren’t you?” Sure he had been. Someone had turned and abandoned him.

Had she encountered him somewhere and not recognized him as a cross-breed? Unlikely. It didn’t matter. What mattered was the infection raging through his body.

“You need a doctor.” She pulled out her phone. “Hang tight.”

“WHAT HAVE you got into now?” a large vampire demanded as he stalked toward them. A smaller, much younger male tagged along behind him.

Terrific
. Julian didn’t want to deal with anyone else. He wanted to crawl back to his room and take care of his wounds.

The female moved to stand beside him. Her scent, like lilacs and spring rain, invaded his senses. He drew it deep into his lungs.

“He saved me.”

“What?” Alarm spread over the big male’s face.

She waved her hand as if swatting a pesky fly. “I’ll explain later. He needs a doctor.”

She was slim, delicate looking. Long hair spilled over her shoulders and down her back. If he ran his fingers through the curling strands, it would probably feel like silk. What would it be like to bury his face in that mass of gold?

Shit
. He didn’t need to be fantasizing about her. He had enough problems without that complication. Still, she was… Hell, she was breath-stealing, artist-inspiring beautiful. Something deep and primal stirred inside him.

She blushed at his blatant perusal, but didn’t lower her gaze.

Though his body sang with pain, her reaction awoke unbridled lust in him.

The larger male tensed, his lip lifted in a snarl.

Her lover? Unexpected aggression coursed through Julian. His hands curled into fists and he tightened.

“I’m Saranna. This is my brother, Slade, and my cousin, Vali.”

The hostility drained away, leaving him spent. “I’m Julian.”

“Julian. That’s a beautiful name.” She smiled and it lit her face like a sunrise. “Do you have anyone to feed you?”+

“No.” The mere mention of feeding sent his shrunken stomach into painful spasms.

“When was the last time you fed?”

“When I was turned. About a week ago.” His gaze met hers and his hunger and pain receded. He wanted to drown in her green and golden-brown eyes.

Slade cleared this throat and straightened, drawing himself up in height.

“Do you have a place to stay?” Saranna asked.

“I have a room at some rat’s-ass motel, but I’m not going to be there much longer. Lack of funds.” He shrugged as if he didn’t care where he holed up.

Saranna pursed her lips. “First, you need a doctor. After Jason sees you, we can pick up your things and go to my place. You can stay with us for a while.”

Us? As in all of them?

“Saranna…” A warning lit Slade’s eyes. “You can’t take him home. He’s a stranger, an adult male, not a stray puppy you want to save.”

“For God’s sake, he’s been turned and abandoned. Don’t you have any compassion in you?”

Her brother’s mouth tightened.

“He’s sick. He needs medical treatment and he needs to feed.” She lifted her chin.

Slade looked at the festering brands on Julian’s hand. “We can feed him. That isn’t the problem. The problem is you don’t know him. He might be dangerous. We should take him to Cadell.”

She gave her brother a withering glare. “So, if he was dangerous, it would be okay to send him to a human? One of the few humans who helps us? If it weren’t for people like Pastor Cadell and those in the Red Rose, we’d have no allies at all. Don’t you see that?”

“I didn’t mean it like that. Saranna—”

“Pastor Cadell can’t teach him how to survive. The one who turned him was supposed to do that.”

Slade waved his hand in agitation. A two-inch, blackened fleur-de-lis marked the back of his left hand.

Had Slade done that to himself? Did people brand themselves for fashion? Julian shuddered.

“Saranna, if he hurts you—”

Offense needled Julian. “I wouldn’t harm her.”

“He saved me. Someone without honor wouldn’t put himself in danger for a stranger.” She put her hands on her hips. “I’m not leaving him on his own.”

“Can we back up a minute?” Julian asked, “What is the Red Rose?”

“An underground group of humans who try to help us,” she said.

Slade snorted. “You can’t trust any human.”

“Bull. Crap,” Saranna shot back. “There are good people out there besides Pastor Cadell.”

Slade rolled his eyes.

“Come on,” Saranna said to Julian. “We’ll take you to Jason and get you fixed up.”

Slade said something under his breath that sounded like a curse.