City of the Fallen (21 page)

Her words stopped, but he knew what she wanted to say: that was why she had felt so energized after drinking his. And suddenly he knew what she was going to say next. Because it made sense. And because she had no idea what she was asking, so she wasn’t afraid to put the words out there.

“Maybe we need to add some vampire blood to the mix. Maybe that’s what the fake blood is missing,” she said.

That was exactly what he thought she was going to say. And the look of horror on every vampire in the room was just as profound as he’d expected it to be too.

~*~

The second she’d let the words out, the air in the room thickened. She was sure the vampires had caught at least part of the implicit exchange between her and the king when she took his blood. But now that she’d said the words out loud, it felt like a shroud of death had fallen over everything and everybody.

All she knew was that it made sense. If vampire blood could heal, maybe it could mend the sick cells rushing through the rabids’ bodies. Cyrus would understand this much better than her, but in theory, all it would take was a few drops of vampire blood to maybe make a difference. Except that the doom in the air around her made it seem like she was asking them to kill or torture somebody.

“What is it?” she finally asked.

“Vampire blood is poisonous to other vampires,” Marcus explained.

She shook her head, looking around the room to find some support. “What about to rabids? Has anybody tried it?”

“We don’t share our blood,” Cyrus said.

Her eyes flew to Marcus, whose arms were crossed over his chest. He looked magnificent with his sleeves rolled up, the muscles in his arms flexed and cut to perfection. There was a spark of mischief in his eyes, almost as if he was daring her to get out of the situation on her own.

“Not even for somebody of your same species?” she asked, and while it was a question meant for everybody, her eyes stayed frozen on the king.

“There’s been a lot of blood lost through our history,” he finally said. “Mostly at the hands of humans, but also from vampire traitors.”

A huge knot settled in her stomach. “I… didn’t know…”

“Sharing blood has become off limits,” Miles added from the back of the room. “A ritual reserved for few and with great meaning.”

She wavered, swallowing hard. Marcus’ eyes were sparkling with a force that was nearly audible. What he had shared with her, what had happened in his bedroom that night, it had been more than just pleasure and passion for him. He had opened up to her, given her a glimpse into the immortal world.

He shed blood for me.

The tightness in her stomach extended upwards, squeezing her chest with the intensity of an iron fist.

“We need to try,” she whispered. “We already have a rabid here so there’s nothing to lose.”

Marcus stood quiet for a second, glaring at her. Then he turned around slowly, as if he was trying to make an impression. When his eyes reached Cyrus, the scientist winced slightly. They were all afraid of him, she realized. Or wary, at least, careful not to move or say the wrong thing. “Can you make this work?” Marcus asked him.

Cyrus’ face twisted with a mix of disgust and understanding. “What she’s saying makes sense, sir. The void might cause the cells to become sick, so they can no longer heal themselves. That would explain the mental deterioration as well.”

“It’s like dementia,” she added. “Neurons slowly lose their capacity to function. They deteriorate, causing multiple system atrophy…” She stopped and took a deep breath, trying to find simpler words. “Your brain degrades until it stops working rationally.”

Marcus’ eyes returned to her. “How much of our blood?”

“I don’t know,” she said, eyeing the tiny drops on the stage of the microscope. “Maybe just a few drops, maybe more. We can start with the smallest amount possible and go up from there.”

She knew she was asking a lot, but at this point, the experiment was as much for the benefit of the vampires as it was for the human race. If they didn’t find a cure—and soon—the void would keep expanding, taking over daylight until there was no safe time and place for any of them.

Marcus nodded, a determination in the gesture that left no doubt of his decision. “OK, let’s give it a try.”

And despite the overwhelming feeling of disapproval that rocked the room, nobody said a word. She guessed that contradicting the king wasn’t really an option.

She adjusted her weight on the chair, feeling the tension in her back getting deeper. Exhaustion was slipping down into her bones, slowing her body down. It had been a long day, and now that the adrenaline was starting to wear off, her body was begging her to lie down.

“Why don’t you take a break, Belle?” Marcus said from behind her. “Cyrus can get this started and you can join him back in the morning.”

She shook her head. “No, I want to be here.”

Cyrus took a step forward, a hint of a smile forming on his face. “I promise not to do anything groundbreaking without you here.
 
Let us do the background work while you sleep.”

She wanted to say no, but her body was fighting her. She had been sleeping less and less lately, trying to keep up with the immortals around her. It was frustrating to have to take breaks while everybody else was still working and feeling as strong and awake as ever.

But right now—and despite how much she wanted to be there—a bed sounded like heaven.

“OK,” she conceded.

Cyrus was already back to work before she had time to turn around and leave.

The second she stepped into her bedroom, she realized she’d left her notes behind in the lab. She wanted to take a quick bath before getting into bed, and the only way to do that and not end up in Marcus’ arms was to do it in her own bedroom. With him around, the temptation to touch was just too great.

She knew he probably had other things on his mind anyway. The exchange back in the lab had left a lot of questions unanswered, but one thing was clear: she had touched on a taboo subject and she suspected he wanted to discuss it—if not with all vampires, at least with those closer to him.

Not that her mind wasn’t a raging chaos too. She desperately wanted to ask him why but all the way back through the tunnels and into her room, she had resisted the urge. Maybe because part of her was afraid of what the answer would be. Right now, the question was back, pulsing in her temples, firing up the blood throbbing in her ears.
Why?
Why share with her something so special? Why break a code he’d been carrying around for centuries?

She had a massive headache and all she wanted was to get into the bathtub with her notes and forget about how Marcus made her feel. As much as possible, anyway, and just for a few hours. Except that she had left the paperwork back at the lab. She sighed and looked towards the door that separated her bedroom from Marcus. Either she had to ask him to guide her through the tunnels and back into the lab, or she could walk outside and try to open the false door they had used the first time they went underground.

She decided she needed the fresh air and solitude anyway, so she stepped outside and into the courtyard.

The night was quiet. Over the past few years, wildlife had grown considerably and the night hunters like coyotes and wolves now roamed the land in numbers greater than ever before. But that night, even they were quiet. A soft breeze carried the promise of rain in it; she took a deep breath, hoping to catch a hint of wetness in the air, before she closed the door behind her.

The second she turned the corner towards the dead-end corridor and the false door, she caught a glimpse out of the corner of her eye. A quick shadow flashing past. Her heart sped up and for a terrifying moment, she thought it might be a rabid. But the rabids were shrill and careless in their movements, too desperate to maintain the grace of old vampires gliding through the air.

You’re imagining things
, she told herself. But even then, she didn’t believe it. She swallowed hard and took another step. And then she heard the soft snapping sound to her right.

She wasn’t stubborn or stupid enough to ignore that. It was probably just one of Marcus’ guards, keeping tabs on her, but it seemed… wrong somehow. As if the sounds didn’t belong there.

She was about to turn around when steps resonated behind her. Steps too light to be human but too obvious for a vampire trying to hide his presence. Steps with a purpose.

“Well, well.”

The familiar voice was so unexpected, for a second she thought she had to have imagined it. Then she heard the slightest of steps forward and her whole body froze into place. Cold spikes of fear burrowed into her spine and slid down into her chest, squeezing until she found herself fighting for breath.

“So you made it here after all,” he said, and the delight in his voice was palpable.

It took what felt like long minutes for her body to move. The chill traveling down her spine took hold of her legs, freezing her feet to the ground. The air around her suddenly seemed thick with darkness and a humming of danger rippled strongly all the way down to her bones. She took a deep breath before she turned around to find vampire eyes locked on her.

Eyes she knew well from back in the factory.

He was smiling, his face dark among the shadows. Her eyes darted to the sides, looking for a way out, even though it was obvious he was blocking the only entrance to the courtyard. Her door, all the way down the side of the building, seemed miles away.

“Nowhere to go,” he taunted her, and the ripple of fear extended deeper.

Her feet slid backwards, even though she knew she was just pushing herself into a corner. He was still, just as he had been back at the factory. She understood then it was all part of the game: stare your prey down until it cowers in fear and you can
slay
it with a single pounce. It was all part of the fun.

His smile widened, his eyes almost playful as he watched her panic grow larger.

“Want to play before I kill you?” he whispered as he moved forward, and the idea of another vampire touching her made her stomach turn.

Time froze. She felt herself suspended at the edge of the abyss, fear waiting for the perfect moment to push her down. She could scream—but the vampire in front of her would be on her before help could materialize. The rumble of thunder crashed overhead and the breeze picked up and whirled around her. The sounds of a dead night.

A chill spread through her, causing her heart to boom and pound—a noise that no doubt he found enticing.
 

“I think your king wouldn’t be very happy if you did that,” she managed to whisper through the knot in her throat.

It was a desperate attempt to keep him engaged and maybe gain some time.

The vampire’s laugh resonated in the empty courtyard. “Is that so?”