Chapter 15
Chapter Fifteen
Lucas woke and glanced around. Same motel room, and from the slow breathing of the warm body next to him, Ginger was asleep at his side.
They’d had a horrible fight after they’d shared their family stories. He needed blood, and Ginger, dagger in hand, was ready to bleed for him. He refused on general principle though he was quite aware she was his only viable blood source. But he’d taken enough from her already.
After fifteen minutes of back-and-forth arguing, she grabbed her purse and stormed out. He heard a car door slam before it screeched out of the parking lot.
If she meant to make a point, it worked. He didn’t like being left defenseless in the room with no idea when she’d return. Worse, she was alone with no backup.
She returned thirty minutes later, still pissed off. Her silent glare was enough for him to wait for her to speak first.
He wasn’t sure if he should have been irritated or fascinated by her rationalization as she lectured him.
“I feel fine. I’m not lightheaded. My brain is functioning at top speed, and I’ve bought everything I need to keep it that way. I have plenty of water, orange juice, cookies, and the makings for a simple spinach and tuna salad. I can give you more blood. And you know you need it. Where else are you going to get it from? You can’t even stand.”
She towered over him with a fist resting on her hip. Her dagger was still gripped in her other hand, and she tapped it against the side of her leg in a steady rhythm.
He was too tired to continue their argument. His healing was primary, regardless of his growing irritation. “Bring me your am.”
She gave him a suspicious look. They didn’t argue often, and when they did, she rarely gave in easily, but she also knew when to back off. He expected part of the issue was her revelation about her debt, but if he brought it up, it would only make things worse, so he gave her a weak smile.
“There’s no reason to keep cutting yourself. Let me feed directly from your wrist. It won’t hurt as much.”
“Oh.” She sheathed her dagger and extended her arm to his mouth.
His pierce was quick, and though she flinched for an instant, she leaned into him after the first two pulls. Her blood was heavenly nectar, and if he allowed the beast to rise as it struggled for survival, it could drain her too far. The beast liked her taste as much as he did, which was why he’d relented to take her blood. He had to build his strength and remain in control.
He took more than he should have, reasoning that it was best to get a large dose to complete the healing. In a few hours, maybe less, they could be back on the road. With a decent organic meal and one or two more small blood donations, he’d be back to fighting strength.
After giving him her blood, Ginger had curled up next to him, her arm slung over his stomach, and slept.
Now, several hours later, relief flooded him as he bent one leg and then the other. His first thought was to wake Ginger, but she needed the rest. He was surprised she hadn’t collapsed from exhaustion before now. Preferring the warmth of her next to him, he remained where he was and turned his attention to their next steps.
He didn’t agree with getting rid of the rental. Not yet. It would take days for Sergi to find where Lucas had rented the last one, and he had all their aliases. If Sergi hadn’t found them, no one else had a chance. Not through the rental agencies. And since they weren’t visiting libraries or other Houses, they were as close to invisible as they could get.
The next issue was Sergi. He hadn’t been updated for three days by Lucas’s calculation. He would call the rental companies because he believed in following a strict process, but he wouldn’t rely on that alone. Lucas had told him they were in Maryland in his last report. From there, Sergi would guess their route and send someone south. He might assume they’d go to Hazel Green in search of Fiona.
Without hearing from Lucas, Sergi might also suspect he’d been injured and would go to New Orleans. Sergi might have sent one of the teams from Savannah out to search for him.
Lucas had to stick with the mission. He would call Sergi once they were on the road, but first, they had to get moving. Ginger wasn’t wrong about that. He grinned. They were close. His nose for books picked up the scent the minute Beall revealed his knowledge of the De f?rste dage .
Ginger’s light moan pulled him out of his planning. She was close to waking. He played with the edges of her thick mane of hair. She snuggled deeper into the covers in a vain attempt to hold onto sleep. He brushed his knuckles along her cheek, and she brushed her hand against his as if swatting away a fly.
One eye popped open, and it took a moment for her to focus on him. Her arm snaked out and grabbed his, which moved to grasp her hand. Her eye widened, a grin followed, and she popped into a sitting position with her hair haloed around her head. She’d forgotten to remove her mascara from the night before, and when she rubbed her eyes, it gave her a sultry, rumpled-in-bed look. The sheet had fallen to her waist, revealing her bare breasts.
He might have involuntarily licked his lips because her head tilted to one side, and her grin turned mischievous.
“It appears someone’s strength is returning.”
“I don’t know what it means for my ability to stand on two legs, but I can move them. I’d like to check the bandages and see if the wounds have healed.”
“Let me pee and brush my teeth, then I’ll grab the first aid kit.”
“At least your priorities are in order.”
“Trust me. You’ll be happy you waited.” After brushing her teeth, but before the first aid, she put the small four-cup coffee maker to work. She poured two cups and brought them over with the kit.
She took her first sip, then started pulling off bandages. The first cuts had completely disappeared, leaving fresh, unmarred skin. So far, so good. She appeared to be removing bandages in order of severity. A small gap in the skin was all that remained of the last injury. It would heal on his own, but one more donation, which he planned on getting once they were on the move, would close it up. They would be vulnerable for another day.
“These look amazing compared to what you looked like that first day.” She shivered. “Let’s not repeat that. From now on, we move as a pair. Those had been Devon’s orders, and the one time we didn’t follow them, you got hurt.”
“But I took care of the two vampires.” He squared his shoulders and felt powerful in the small motion. He was proud for taking two heads—the fact it almost killed him was secondary.
“You almost got dead. Don’t make me tattle to Devon.”
“You wouldn’t.”
She considered it. “You’re right. I wouldn’t have to. I’d just have to mention it to Cressa. You know, just an off-handed comment.”
“That’s hurtful.”
She kissed his cheek, but when he turned to catch her lips, she placed two fingers over them. “It’s for your own good. Are you up for breakfast?”
His stomach immediately rumbled at the thought. “White omelet with spinach and a better cup of coffee.”
“Ouch. I can only work with the supplies I’m given, but I wouldn’t expect anything less from an espresso snob.” She slung her purse over her shoulder and locked the door behind her.
He waited a couple of minutes in case she forgot something, then threw back the covers. He sat up, and while his stomach muscles screamed retaliation, he made it without any sign of blacking out. He bent one leg and then the other. They still seemed eager to cooperate.
He turned to the side of the bed, his legs following as if second nature. Which it was, and he couldn’t stop grinning. He was moving.
Now, came the hard part. He leaned against the nightstand and pushed himself up. His legs wobbled, and he reached for the bed to keep upright. He stood tall and took several breaths, giving his legs time to remember their job.
His initial steps reminded him of his sister when she was a toddler. During her first week of attempting to walk, she made the most curious faces, as if she wasn’t convinced whether standing was worth all the fuss. He hadn’t thought of Rosalynn for some time, and though talking about her with Ginger had been painful, it released dozens of wonderful memories.
He used the edge of the bed to make his way toward the bathroom. By the time he made it there, most of the wobbling was already receding. His second test before Ginger returned was to refill his coffee cup and walk to the table without spilling a drop.
He released a heavy breath when he placed the cup on the table and sat. He pulled over the map Ginger had marked up and calculated where they’d been, where they were now, and the next step in their search.
When Ginger returned, she was so surprised to see Lucas sitting at the table, she almost took a tumble with the two cups of coffee she held close to her chest and the paper bag hanging from her arm. She set the coffees and bag on the far side of the table.
“You didn’t wait for me.” She sounded hurt.
“I had to see if I could do it on my own.”
“And?”
“I was a bit shaky at first, and I admit the walk to the bathroom and bringing the coffee over was a bit taxing. But I’m past the danger zone.”
She took two food containers out of the bag and passed one toward him. “I asked them to add some fruit.”
He opened the container, and his stomach growled in appreciation. It looked good. He took the first bite and nodded. “Not bad for a diner, I suppose.”
“I thought they might squabble about an egg white omelet, but they didn’t bat an eye.” She dug into her scrambled eggs and munched on bacon.
The coffee was better than what the motel provided, and he felt better once he pushed the empty container away. Neither had spoken while they ate, but Ginger picked at her food as she watched him. She was measuring his stamina, still the observant caregiver.
“I checked us out of the room.”
He nodded. “That’s good. I’d like to get back on the road. Do you have a cell?”
“Yeah, but I haven’t used it for anything other than the internet.”
“It’s time to call Sergi, but I’ll do that while we’re on the road.”
“Where are we headed?”
“Fayetteville.”
“Not Hazel Green?”
“We’ve been given both cities as her last known location. They’re fifteen miles apart by interstate. Fayetteville’s a larger city, so we’ll have more options for motels. We can start our surveillance in Hazel Green, and if we don’t catch any leads we’ll try Fayetteville.”
“Which will be more difficult with it being larger.”
“It does seem more daunting now that we’re getting closer.”
“You need a donor.”
“I’m feeling better than I expected. The food helped. But you’re right. And I happen to know a place where I can get a full feed.”
She grinned. “You’re not getting addicted to my blood, are you?”
“No. Just you.”