Reclamation (Book 3 The Ravening Series) (9 page)

Bret was unblinking as he stared at me. "I expect an explanation."

"You'll get one," I promised. I no longer cared if it was Cade's secret or not. If they were willing to do this than they would get the explanation that they deserved.

"What do we need to do?" Bret asked.

Bishop approached with the freshly cleaned and sterilized knife. "I have him heavily sedated but he's still swallowing the blood. He needs more if he's going to survive."

Bret eyed the knife warily before holding his arm out to Bishop. I focused on the wall above Cade's head as I wrapped my arms around myself. "I'm sorry." I was repulsed by the fact that I was allowing my friends to be hurt in order to heal and sustain Cade. There was no way around it, it had to be done, but I felt as if I were using them. "If there was another way..."

Jenna tenderly touched my arm. "It's ok."

"No one..." I broke off and swallowed back the tears that burned my eyes and throat. "No one else can know."

"No one will know," she promised.

"He's never hurt anyone." Jenna nodded and smiled listlessly as she pushed a stray hair off of her face.

"What about Ian?" Bishop inquired apparently having already put two and two together. "It was Cade that killed him, wasn't it?"

I braced myself as I turned toward the doctor. I couldn't look at Bret as he knelt before Cade. Jenna's hand clenched on my arm as her breathing escalated. "Ian was trying to kill me," I whispered.

I felt their eyes latch onto me. "What?" Aiden demanded.

I gulped as my hands began to fidget before me. "I found Ian in your workroom Bishop; he was drinking my blood samples."

Jenna shuddered as Bishop frowned sternly. "So Cade wasn't the one who destroyed the samples?"

"No, but I think he would have found a way to destroy them eventually." It seemed as if everything lately had been nothing but a lie, but I refused to lie to them now. "He didn't want you taking any more samples, but I didn't know the reason why at the time. When I discovered Ian in that room he attacked me. He knew that Cade had given me some of his blood; he must have tasted it in my blood somehow. Ian was set on taking me and keeping me in order to punish Cade."

"Why did he want to punish Cade?" Jenna inquired.

"Cruelty I suppose. Cade said that his kind doesn't have emotions, at least not like we do. They don't know love. They only know death and destruction and the pleasure that those two things bring to them. They only know how to take, and Ian was determined to take what Cade had."

Bishop nudged Bret away from Cade and bandaged his arm for him. Jenna released my arm and took Bret's place. "But Cade loves you, I've seen the way he is with you," Jenna said. "He couldn't fake the way he
looks
at you."

I couldn't look as Bishop made a slice across her porcelain skin. For some insane reason, jealousy filled me as she was able to do what I couldn't. That strange new hunger twisted through my belly but I was able to suppress it as I focused on my words. "He's not like the others," I choked out as a way to distract myself from what was happening with Jenna and Cade. "For some reason he fell in love with me when we were children, he said he's never heard of it happening before, but that if it had happened to someone else they would keep it hidden. The aliens thought that it was his adopted parents he was coming to care for, that's why the Marshall's were killed, and why he avoided me after."

"Jesus," Aiden muttered.

"Cade killed Ian to save me, but he wouldn't do that to anyone else."

"Unless they're a threat to you," Bret said.

There was no denying the truth. "Yes."

"And the reason your blood is different is because he gave you some of his blood," Bishop guessed correctly.

"Yes, there is no secret in my blood. I can't help awaken the frozen people."

"We haven't run into any of them in awhile, I don't think there are many left for us to save." It was something we had all suspected for awhile, but to hear Bishop confirm it was disheartening. "But there could still be answers in your blood Bethany. You say many don't survive, but
you
did. I was looking in a completely different direction before but now that I know, there could be answers."

"Bishop..."

He held up a finger and shook his head. "It's something we can discuss later, when he's awake again."

I didn't argue with him, there was no point and if he was right than maybe there was something that could still be done to help the others. I was relieved to see the subtle rise and fall of Cade's chest and the color returning to his pale face when Bishop gently pulled Jenna away from him. I took a step toward him; I was desperate to touch him, to brush the hair back from his face.

Aiden shook his head at me. "No."

Frustration tore through me; I had to fight the childish urge to kick him. "He killed some of those things, on his own?" Bret inquired.

"He killed
most
of them on his own," Aiden answered. "There were more than just the two you saw within the tunnel."

"Shit," Bret snorted as his gaze turned back toward Cade. "What could he do to us?"

"He'd never hurt you!" Anger rapidly swelled through me as my hands fisted.

Bret didn't tear his eyes off of Cade. "If you say so but those things were fast as lightning, and it took at least five bullets to kill them. The fact that he did it on his own..." Bret shook his head as he broke off.

"Glad he's on our side," Jenna muttered. "But if the others are like him..."

"We're fighting a losing battle," Aiden said.

"We just have to stay ahead of them, and maybe we'll find a way to beat them or maybe they'll just move on after they've taken all that they came here for, but we
have
to stay alive if we're going to see either of those things happen," I told them.

"We can do that," Bishop said as he rose to his feet. "Now that I know about his blood in you I can tell you that your blood wasn't contaminated. His blood changed you on a cellular level."

"That explains some things," Aiden muttered.

"What do you mean?" I managed to squeak out, troubled that he suspected the secrets I harbored.

"You were never exactly a graceful or coordinated person Bethy, until these past couple of months. Six months ago you would have shot yourself multiple times in the foot by now, and probably someone else, instead you're a better shot than almost everyone else." I scowled at his assessment but I had to admit that it was probably true. "I'd assumed it was because you were finally growing into yourself but it was more than that."

Bret nodded his agreement as his eyes raked me from head to toe. "What is going to happen to you?" Jenna asked.

My gaze fell back on Cade. "I don't know," I answered honestly. "Cade said there were others that had survived the initial blood intake but that the aliens killed them soon after."

"From what I saw of your blood samples there were multiple changes taking place. His cells are invading your DNA and changing it. That's probably the reason why most people don't survive the initial intake of blood; it's too much of a shock to their system, and to their molecular structure. I would have to study samples of his blood, and yours, in order to know exactly what is going on, but unfortunately I don't have the equipment for that." Bishop's hand dropped from his forehead as he focused upon me. "Is there anything else?"

My throat was suddenly as dry as the Sahara. "Like what?"

"He drinks blood Bethany, but is there anything else he feeds on?"

I shifted uncomfortably. I didn't want to reveal all of Cade's secrets, but I had promised them no more lies and after everything that they were doing here, after the way that they were handling this, I couldn't lie to them. "He also feeds on souls."

The sharp inhalations of their breaths were loud in the tunnel as they exchanged nervous looks. "He won't hurt you," I gushed out. "He doesn't hurt any humans when he does it."

I thought of Cade within me, brushing against my soul and touching the deepest depths of it as he took a piece from me. I had
needed
him to do it. Even now, just thinking about it, caused something to stir and awaken within me. Although something inside of me craved it, I hadn't taken anything from him, he would have noticed if I had. Wouldn't he?

"Bethany?" I was pulled from my thoughts as I forced myself to focus on Bishop. "I've noticed changes in you too."

I nodded. "I can see better at night and hear better, but that could also be because of the situation we've been thrust into now. We have to hear and see better if we're going to survive."

"I suppose we've all noticed a change with certain senses, and our bodies," Bishop muttered. "It could be entirely possible that what you are experiencing is only because of our current environmental conditions, and not his blood."

That could be, but I knew that it wasn't. My vision was too good, my hearing far more acute, and my yearning for things that were far from human, was too intense.

"Does he have to have human blood to survive?" Bret asked.

I buried my strange new hunger in order to answer him. "Not regularly. He said he can get it from meat or animals too. He needs it now though, when he's so badly wounded."

"He'll be ok Bethany," Aiden said as he squeezed my arm.

My gaze fell back to Cade as his fingers twitched on the ground. His eyes began to move behind his lids. I hoped they were at least peaceful dreams as I prayed for him to awaken soon.

Cade,

Dust, kicked up from the hard ground, drifted up to clog my nose. The thousands of feet stomping across here had ruined all of the grass and turned the one time lawn into a field of dirt. Normally such things wouldn't bother me but after the events of this day it irritated me. Just when I was finally able to have my chance to be with Bethany, when I was finally able to touch and feel her like I had yearned to do for years, they had taken me off of that beach and deposited me in this hellhole.

I wound my way through the crowd of people huddled together in search of comfort and security. They wouldn't find either of those things here. Turning sideways I was able to mostly avoid having to touch them but my flesh brushed against theirs more times than I would have liked it to. It wasn't right, it definitely wasn't something Bethany would have approved of, but I felt the thirst stirring within my belly as the scent of their blood and fright drifted over me.

I could almost taste their warm blood in my mouth; almost feel the pleasure of their souls feeding mine. It was all so close and I could take it from them here without any worry of being caught, or of any other consequences. I wouldn't though, this was not my thing. I understood the cruelty that ran through us all, I lived with it every day, but this was far too easy and disgusting for my tastes.

A woman's hand fell to my forearm, halting me in my tracks. Her pretty features were obscured by the grime that streaked them as she pulled herself closer to me. "Do you know what they are going to do to us?" she asked in a tremulous voice.

I stared as I tried to ascertain if she was asking because she was frightened or if perhaps she wasn't really all that bright, but her question appeared to be serious. "They're most likely going to kill you," I told her.

Her hand fell away from my arm as she took a quick step away from me. I shook my head at her and continued on through the crowd. Did she really believe she had a chance anymore? Not all of these humans would be killed, but most of them wouldn't survive to see another week.

But then humans were different than us, they fought and struggled and continued on when it all seemed bleak and hopeless. Bethany had shown me this, and standing amongst these people I sensed the hope beneath their desolate despair. My kind never fought and struggled, we didn't have to. I supposed it was the benefit of being on top of the food chain.

I made it to the steps at the end of the massive encampment and rapidly climbed them. A guard stepped forward to block me but another one stepped forward just as quickly and pushed him back. "Sir," the second man said with a bow of his head.

So they knew who I was then. It wasn't unusual for one of my kind to recognize me; I would see it in their eyes and the subtle lowering of their heads when we would pass each other, but this open acknowledgment was new. I nodded back to him and continued forward when they stepped out of my way.

The massive wooden doors with gold etching on the glass panes in them opened before I could reach for the brass handle. The low sobs of the people drifted into the distance as I made my way into the massive and elaborate lobby of the hotel my kind had established as their residence. More people nodded and bowed to me as they stepped aside to get out of my way.

I barely acknowledged their presence until a woman moved forward to greet me. "I will show you to a room sir," she said to me.

I had no intention of staying here for one minute longer than it took for me to find a chance to break free. I wasn't going to take the chance of having one of them follow me out of here though. No, I couldn't rush out of here now, but the last thing I wanted was to stay amongst these creatures, especially when I could feel Bethany's suffering teasing at the edges of my mind. I had to ease that, I had to make it better for her; she was the only thing that mattered in this world. She was the
only
good thing about it.

"Fine," I stated flatly.

The woman turned on her heel and led me to the stairs beyond the elaborate reception desk. Though we climbed numerous flights of stairs to the top of the hotel neither of us were winded when we arrived at the top. "This is the best suite," she said as we walked down the dimly lit hall to the room at the end.

She turned the knob and stepped back to allow me to enter. The room was more of a suite as we entered the living room with two matching blue sofas and a projector screen that slid down from the ceiling. From here I could see the flames from the fires outside as their light played over the walls in a dance that almost made the shadows seem alive as they moved.

"I'm glad that you found us sir."

I glanced over my shoulder at the woman. She didn't attempt to hide the lust radiating from her as her gaze raked me from to head to toe. Revulsion curdled through me and I couldn't stop the curve of my lip as I sneered at her. There weren't many things my kind enjoyed outside of blood and death but though I had no firsthand experience of it, I knew the other thing they found pleasure in was sex. Something I hadn't even one ounce of desire to have with this woman. There was only one woman that had ever stirred me in such a way, only one woman I even remotely yearned to touch.

The woman took a step back as my gaze seemed to make her realize that I had no interest in her. "Me too," I lied smoothly.

Though the monster that had taken me had been killed, it had already led me to this encampment before it realized its mistake. A mistake I had made it pay for by destroying it before it managed to get me all the way to one of my kind.

I turned away from the woman and made my way over to one of the large windows. Stepping up to it, I surveyed the world beyond the glass. Fires had been lit in metal trashcans; people were huddled around them as they sought heat even in the humid summer night. I thought perhaps the fires offered them some sense of false security, a light in the dark, but I didn't know or care what it was they sought from them. Beyond the smaller trashcan fires a much larger blaze loomed on the horizon. I didn't need to smell the burning flesh to know what fueled that fire.

From here, I could hear their sobs as they held onto one another and sought comfort upon the rough, dirty ground. I didn't know where they were going to the bathroom but judging by the smell out there they didn't have appropriate facilities. I had come to this hotel in
Hyannis once before, for a meeting about when The Freezing would occur. The area around it had been a beautiful, thriving park with trees and lush grass as far as the eye could see. All of that was gone now, like my kind was so successful at doing, they had taken something beautiful and destroyed it. It's all we ever did.

My thoughts turned to Bethany as I surveyed the wreckage before me. If it hadn't been for her, this is what I would be. This is the nothing that I would
still
be. This is where I was supposed to belong, with the murderers that had created me and yet I felt no affinity for the woman behind me and the monsters outside that window. Bethany deserved far better than what they had to offer this planet and as soon as I was sure it would be safe for me to leave again, I was going to do everything I could to make sure she got it.

I'd never known sorrow before, or misery, but there was something in my chest now that was making it difficult to breathe as I thought of having to spend an unspecified amount of time away from her. It had been difficult enough to stay away from her before, it had taken everything I had not to return to her after that night in the garden, but at least I'd been able to see her still. I'd known that she was alright, that she was there, and I'd been able to take solace in the glow of life she radiated far more than any other person I'd ever met before. A glow that had entranced me and had made me feel alive ever since the first time I'd met her.

Yes, there was definitely something wrong with my chest as I rubbed it absently.

"Is there anything else you would like?" the woman asked.

I'd forgotten she was even there. "No," I responded in a clipped voice. "Get out."

She wasn't offended by my tone but simply stepped out of the room and closed the door. I turned my attention back to the ruined world beyond the glass. My world, a world I was supposed to help rule now, a world that I was supposed to help destroy now.

She will be fine
, I told myself. She was tough and she would survive her broken heart until I could see her again.

I felt wetness on my cheek and lifted my hand to wipe it away. I stared at the clear liquid trembling on my finger in confusion. I'd never seen it before. It was the first and only tear I'd ever shed. I hadn't even known we were capable of such a thing, but there it was, the evidence that I was capable of such a human thing. It didn't make any difference though, I wasn't human.

***

The haunting memories of that time and place drifted away as I gradually began to become aware of my body once more. Every part of me was tender when I moved and I could feel where the needle had repeatedly pierced my flesh but I knew that I would be fine. There was a haze clouding my mind and I recognized it as the enduring effects of whatever drug Bishop had given me.

It must have been the drug that had triggered the memory of that time and place. A time that I hadn't thought of since I'd finally escaped that hideous encampment. There was nothing about it that I had ever wanted to recall, not the endless crying of broken humans, the repugnant smell of burning flesh, or the blood that I had consumed while trying to pretend that I was still one of
them
. I hadn't killed anyone; there had been no need to as the blood supply seemed endless, and the cups of it overflowing. Though some of my kind had taken pleasure in torturing and slaughtering the humans, most of them were content to listen and watch their misery unfold without getting their hands dirty.

I could taste blood on my tongue now, fresh blood,
human
blood, but it wasn't Bethany's. Her blood was better than the finest wine or sweetest chocolate. Her blood infused me with even more strength and made me feel as if I could conquer the world. No, this blood wasn't hers but it had helped, as I already knew the thread that had been required to knit my skin back together was no longer necessary.

I could sense Bethany nearby though and the scent of her was enough to drive my thirst to nearly epic levels. The other blood should have been enough to dampen my appetite, but just the thought of her was enough to make me spiral nearly out of control.

I had stayed away from her and in that hideous place to keep her safe, and if I hadn't felt her intense agony through the bond that we shared when she'd been injured, I might have waited even longer before returning to her. I had been tempted to let her live her life so that I didn't damage her, but after feeling her pain I hadn't been able to stay away. I'd told myself I would be able to control myself around her, but I'd
never
be able to control myself if I felt our bond irrevocably severed by her death and I hadn't been there to save her.

Now however, as my eyes cracked open and landed upon her I knew that I couldn't control myself. The golden aura or halo that encircled her, and none of the others, instantly drew my attention. It seemed to pulse with vitality as it called to me, begging me to taste her, to take from her what I had denied myself for years and had only just recently got a brief taste of.

That brief taste hadn't been enough, I wanted more. I wanted it all and I wasn't sure I could be denied anymore as my veins lit with fire and hunger blazed to life within me.