24. Chapter 24
24
A smund closed the door without a word to the men outside.
He walked back to the living room and handed a letter to Kade.
Ginna stood and took the letter before Kade opened it. She skimmed it and threw it on the ground. “Well, shit.”
“I don’t understand. Why are they summoning me?”
“Someone told them about you,” Connor answered.
“Don’t they already know about me, though?”
“Aye, but this means someone reported ye, I dinnae ken what for and we willnae find out until yer appearance.”
Panic gripped Kelly, wrapping around her like a vice. Its fingers gripped her throat and squeezed, cutting off her airway. For a moment she couldn’t breathe. Then she tried to steady herself.
“Will someone please explain exactly what this means and what will happen so I’m not playing twenty questions?”
Fabian did the honors. “You will be expected to appear on the date and time they requested, not a second later, at the Council headquarters in London. They will not release any information on the allegations against you until you are there because they feel your reaction tells more truth than your words. You will meet with the High Council only. There are three representatives from each race. They will allow one person to accompany you. The room is soundproof, so Kade will not be able to hear what is said or give you tips. You will be alone with whomever you choose.”
He paused, checking to see if she had any questions.
“Please keep going.”
“They will tell you the allegations and give you ten minutes to explain your actions. They may call other witnesses of their choosing. From there, they will decide on a course of action. Their decision is immediate and absolute.”
The archaic nature of the system made Kelly cringe. “May I bring my own witnesses?”
Fabian shook his head.
“So the Arcane people have no voice then? You all just live in fear and follow the rules so the Council never calls on you? Will they kill me for this?”
Anger crawled up her spine as Kelly became outraged on behalf of all Arcane.
“How do they expect a normal person to get to London so quickly? Two weeks to pay for a plane ticket?”
Kade placed his hand on hers. “Calm down, lass. It’s not as bad as it seems. The Council would pay for yer flight if needed. While they are harsh, they are not unrealistic.”
She wasn’t in the mood to argue semantics. “You didn’t answer the question about a death sentence.”
“We dinnae ken. It depends on the accusation. Ye havenae done anything punishable by death. Someone still could have accused ye of something, though.”
Kelly took a breath, preparing to ask more questions, when Asta held up a hand.
“Might it be best to continue where we left off? There is nothing we can do about the Council right now, but we can continue searching for answers. Maybe we’ll even find things that can help you in two weeks. Why don’t we all take a short break and pick things back up in fifteen?”
“I do believe the young lady has a fine idea,” Ginna said as she stood. “I’ll see you all back here shortly.”
Kelly stood and walked toward the bar on the far end of the living room. “I need a fucking drink.”
—
The rest of the afternoon was spent discussing everything on the whiteboard and trying to make sense of it all.
No one could figure out why Camille seemed to have arranged for Mary to raise Kelly. Either the mission had failed or it had been abandoned at some point. It didn’t make sense for them to go to all that trouble only for Mary to be a bitch and alienate Kelly. Knowing Camille was involved now, they decided to table the topic of Mary for the time being.
With the matter of others tabled, Kade and Kelly became the topic of interest. Ginna got the wild idea to treat them like a science experiment and started making all sorts of recommendations. First, it was drinking each others’ blood from a glass, then on to drinking from each other’s wrists, then she went into how they would restrain Kade. She decided silver barbed wire would be a great idea.
“Are ye out of yer fucking mind, woman?”
She held up her finger at Kade. “Don’t call me woman , vampire. Look, there’s obviously something between the two of you. Drinking your blood activated Kelly’s telepathy, and I’m willing to bet there is more where that came from. Her reaction to your blood was unusual at best, just as your reaction to hers was downright animalistic after just a taste. We need to know what happens when the two of you exchange more blood.”
It was Kelly’s turn to protest. “Is all that really necessary? And do we all have to talk about it as a group? It feels like this should be a private thing between Kade and me.”
“Rookie, nothing in the Arcane world is private—get over it. The vampires will hear it when you two finally do the hanky-panky, and blood exchanges used to be a normal thing before they started bagging the stuff. If you think blood exchanges should be private, you’ve got another thing coming. As for the silver barbed wire, yes, it’s necessary. He admitted he wanted to rip you to shreds.”
“You keep telling me to get over things, but twenty-six years of life don’t just disappear on command. And no, we’re not doing anything to restrain Kade. You all want to treat us like a fifth-grade science fair, fine, but no one gets tied up like a prisoner.”
“I do not condone any of the actions discussed,” Fabian said, sounding bored with the entire thing.
“You never condone anything, ya pansy.”
Fabian raised his eyebrows at Ginna.
“Yeah, yeah, job and duties and all that shit.”
“You are talking about putting Kelly’s life in danger for the sake of curiosity.”
“For gods’ sake, do ye really think I’m going to kill her?”
Kelly’s mouth opened before she could stop herself. “Like Ginna said, you thought you would tear me to pieces a few nights ago.”
Kade let out a growl so deep it reverberated through Kelly’s bones, shaking her to the core.
Asta stood in front of everyone with her hands out, urging them to calm down.
“Before this turns into a fight, let’s all settle down. Why don’t we all look at the benefits of solving this mystery instead of arguing over how to do it. Sure, we’re all curious, but has anyone stopped to think that whatever power is gained from their bond could help Kelly in defending herself to the Council?”
Met with silence, Asta continued, “No doubt, the telepathy Kelly has now will wear off if she doesn’t take more of Kade’s blood soon. What if Kade also gains the ability to hear Kelly’s thoughts? The two of them would be able to communicate during the hearing without anyone knowing. There is likely more to whatever this is, too. I think it will go beyond telepathy. Who knows what could be gained by exploring the possibilities?”
More silence followed as everyone considered Asta’s points.
Connor finally spoke, “Asta has some excellent thoughts. I think the benefits outweigh the dangers.”
Fabian shook his head again.
“Fabian, I get that your job is to protect her, but what if your protection holds her back from something greater? What are your senses telling you? If you are simply acting as Kelly’s Guardian, but you don’t have any sense of dread that comes along with your premonition, then maybe you should let this one go. This decision should be up to the two of them,” Asta said, making Kelly want to hug her.
“I am not the one who brought it all up to begin with,” Fabian added, a touch defensive.
Kelly leaned forward and rested her head in her hands, feeling done with the entire situation. Hell, she felt done with life in general.
Kade threw a burst of power, making her jerk upright again.
Kade stood in the center of the room, his fists clenched. The muscles of his jaw worked as he ground his teeth, and the veins of his forehead were clearly visible. If ever Kelly had seen a man who’d lost his patience, it was Kade in that moment.
“All of ye, get the fuck out. Get the fuck out of the room, and if ye cannae mind yer own business, get the fuck out of the house.”
He didn’t move.
Kelly moved to stand, and he held his hand up to her. “Not ye, lass, ye stay with me.”
Everyone else stood quietly and left the living room. Fabian didn’t even stop to warn Kade not to hurt her, which spoke volumes about Kade’s mood.
When the others left, Kade finally sat, facing her. “Ye ken that when I offered to help ye, I had no idea what the future would bring, but I sure as fuck didnae see any of this coming.”
His words tore at her heart. “You mean you wouldn’t have helped me if you’d known?”
He ran his hand through his hair. “Ah, lass, I’d help ye a thousand times again and again. I’d just do it differently.”
“Aren’t you too old for regrets and hindsight?”
“Life never stops teaching lessons, no matter how old ye are.”
“Where does that leave us then, Kade? What are we doing? We hardly know each other, and it’s been what, two weeks? I’ve been plunged into this world, and none of you even know what to think of me. Then there’s this whole thing between us that no one understands. What are we supposed to do?”
“We take chances, lass. Those regrets and hindsight have taught me that. Ginna and Asta are right. There is more to be discovered between us. If we dinnae take chances, we will never ken what could have been.”
He didn’t sound nervous at all.
“What if we don’t like what we find?”
“Then we let that go and find a new path.”
Kelly looked at him—really looked at him. His gray eyes held the promise to protect her, and he bled confidence. His hair was a mess after he’d run his hand through it numerous times over the day. He wore a plain gray t-shirt that probably cost at least a hundred dollars, but it was worth every penny for the way it brought out the color in his eyes. The shirt was just tight enough that the muscles in his shoulders, arms, and chest were accented, but not so fitted that he looked like a preppy asshole. Somehow, the sweatpants he had on just added to the relaxed yet confident look. How a man could make sweatpants look sexy, she had no idea, but he did.
The man in front of her held a promise of something great. He was safety, strength, truth, power, love, perseverance, and so much more, all in one package. The night they met flashed in her mind, and Kelly remembered the first time she felt that Kade would keep her safe. She’d never doubted it since.
“Let’s try it, then. I know you won’t hurt me.”
“Ye have more confidence in my willpower than I do.”
She shrugged, done talking. “No matter what everyone says, I’m not comfortable doing this down here. Come to my room, or we can go to yours. I don’t want an audience.”
“Why don’t we go to mine? Fabian won’t be across the hall waiting to stop me from killing ye.”
Kelly nodded, and Kade stood, grabbing her hand. He led the way to his room.
When they entered, curiosity got the best of her, and Kelly gazed around. Everything was a shade of gray, from the walls to the linens, the curtains, and the decor. The floor was dark wood, the furniture just slightly lighter. Everything in the room was dark and simple, yet beautiful. The shades were drawn so no light entered the room, just the way Kelly liked it. She much preferred the feel of night to the brightness of the day.
He closed the door behind them and sat her down on the bed.
She laughed nervously. “You know, I’ve imagined you biting me, and it was much more romantic than this.”
“If we make it through this, I’ll do my best to make all yer dreams come true.”
“No pressure.”
He walked to a table at the side of the room and poured a couple of fingers of Scotch into two glasses. He brought them back to the bed and handed one to her.
“I dinnae remember the last time I met a woman who liked Scotch.”
That brought a smile to her face. “I’ve never been one for the sweet drinks. I like the more complex flavors that come with high-quality spirits. What’s the point of it all if you’re just getting a buzz? It’s the artistry in the process that makes it unique.”
He gave her a crooked smile and raised his glass. “Slainte.”
She followed suit. “Slainte.”
Kade downed his Scotch entirely, and Kelly took a couple sips.
“You should enjoy it more instead of gulping it down.”
“Circumstances, lass.”
Indeed, she thought.
“I’m going to bite yer neck. It’s much less sensitive than yer wrist when it comes to pain. It’s more dangerous if I lose control, though.” His face was plastered with hesitation.
“You’re not going to hurt me, Kade. I know you won’t.”
He ignored that. “It’ll only hurt for a few seconds, then the venom will numb yer neck and ye willnae feel any pain.”
She nodded, unsure what to say.
“I think it would be best if ye take my blood first, so ye have extra strength to counter my feeding.”
Kelly nodded again. She’d read all about vampires, how they fed, what it meant, how much blood they would take, etcetera, etcetera. She’d just never expected to go over the details with Kade.
“Are ye all right, lass?”
His eyes held concern when she met them. “I’m fine. Just feels like I’m watching a scene in a movie unfold. I don’t feel connected to…this. Whatever this is.”
“This is a first for both of us. I promise, I willnae hurt ye.”
“I’ve told you, I know that.”
He gave his crooked smile again and took the glass from her hand, setting it on the bedside table.
Placing his hand behind her neck, Kade eased her back to lie on the bed. He crawled next to her and lay at her side.
“I’m going to let ye take what ye need this time. I won’t pull away from ye.”
He brought his wrist to his mouth, using his fangs to pierce the skin there. Then Kade brought his wrist to Kelly’s mouth, and she held it there with both her hands, suddenly overtaken with a thirst for his blood.
The spice in his blood warmed her throat as she swallowed. She sucked hard at his vein, pulling from it with an animalistic hunger. Some part of her questioned what was happening, but a larger part told her this was right—to embrace what she would soon become and let go of her past.
Kelly found herself sated after taking what she needed, the same way she would with any other hunger or thirst. She didn’t know how much time had passed or how much blood she’d taken from Kade, but the need within her died down and became satisfaction.
She let go of his wrist and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. Her breath came fast and shallow as her body processed the power in Kade’s blood. Her fingers tingled, but she tried to push the sensation away.
He gave her a minute to collect herself, waiting for her to calm.
“Open yer mind, lass.”
Covering her face with her hands, she tried not to think of the chaos that came when she first heard his thoughts. “I’m not ready for that.”
“Ye need to open yer mind so ye ken what is happening.”
“I don’t need to hear your thoughts to know, and I don’t want to hear them. We can discover all of that afterward.”
His eyes met hers, questioning. He seemed to find the answer he was looking for and nodded.
He moved to brace himself over her, being careful not to crush her with his weight. His face leveled with hers and he kissed her lips gently, almost as if he were saying goodbye.
Kelly was about to comment on that when Kade raised his head, his eyes glowing amber and his fangs fully extended. Then, he struck.