Chapter 9
Chapter Nine
QUINN
I cannot believe what I’ve just heard.
‘Could you say that again?’ I ask, as something dark and heavy tugs at my stomach. I was already on edge, if I’m honest, what with the midnight stone-throwing and the trespassing on hallowed ground, but the words I think just left Florence’s mouth have utterly thrown me for a loop.
She clears her throat and looks me in the eye.
‘We found some abnormalities in the blood we took from you. There’s evidence of a change in your red blood cells which we thought at first could be some form of anaemia, but upon further testing, it was found that your red blood cells have taken on a very unique shape.
’ She pauses, searching my eyes for a moment before saying, ‘It’s one we’ve seen before, but only ever in cases of vampirism. ’
Yep, that’s what I thought she said the first time.
This is a dream, right? One of those ones that’s good at the beginning but slowly turns into a nightmare. That’s the only reasonable explanation here.
Right?
‘You’re saying I’m a vampire?’ I manage to say, my voice so choked I barely even recognise it. But Florence shakes her head.
‘That’s the thing – normally it’s a small part of a whole pattern of changes in your blood, but in your samples the change is isolated.’
She’s lost me. I’m not particularly knowledgeable when it comes to biology, to say the least. I’m more of a practical skills kind of guy. But surely vampire blood is vampire blood?
‘I don’t get it,’ I say, latching onto her gaze like it’s a lifeline. I can hear the tremor in my voice and I hate it. ‘Explain it to me like I’m five years old.’
She nods, slipping a cold hand into mine. I’d be overthinking that far more if I weren’t currently absolutely freaking out. I’m too far gone to even think about flirting.
‘Part of your blood thinks it’s undead,’ she says. ‘Every other part of you is still human. You’re in limbo, essentially.’
The breath I pull in is ragged, catching at my chest as it expands. ‘So, am I human or am I a vampire?’
She shrugs. ‘Both? Neither?’ There’s apology in her tone like she herself has caused this, though of course that can’t be true. Her hand in mine is the most physical contact we’ve ever had. ‘We’re not sure yet. Cam is working with some of our contacts on getting you answers as soon as possible.’
‘Contacts?’
She nods. ‘A network of vampires high up in the health service. They’re doing everything they can to figure out how to help you.’
The quiet urgency in her voice speeds my pulse. My heart jumps and flutters in my chest like it’s reminding me I’m still human.
Mostly.
Hopefully.
‘Do I need help?’ I ask. ‘Can’t I just, you know, be?’
Florence takes a deep breath and blows it out all at once.
‘Our concern is that the current shape of your cells is hampering oxygenation of your healthy human tissues.’ She sees the confusion on my face and winces.
‘Sorry, I’ll simplify that for you. The parts of you that are still human rely on oxygen to function properly, and the new shape of your red blood cells makes them less effective at carrying it.
That’s why you’ve been getting symptoms.’
I work it through in my head and, very slowly, the pieces start to come together. All of a sudden it becomes obvious. I’ve been getting a rash in sunlight, for fuck’s sake. I’ve seen that happen to Bram with my own eyes, and I never even considered the possibility.
But of course I didn’t. Why would I? Bram told me that turning someone was a very deliberate act – something you would definitely remember. And I definitely don’t.
‘How could this happen?’ I ask her. ‘I was never bitten.’
Well, not that I know of.
She nods slowly, contemplatively. ‘We don’t quite understand that ourselves.
A simple bite is not enough to transition anyway, there has to be direct blood-to-blood transmission.
’ Her eyes search mine, pupils blown wide in the darkness.
‘Quinn, somebody did this to you.’ She breathes out a humourless laugh. ‘Or they tried, anyway.’
Her words send a shockwave through me, my brain immediately kicking into self-defence. As of right now, I know exactly six vampires: Bram and his wife Lucy, his uncle W?adek, his old friend Elias, and Florence and Cameron. I would trust the first four with my life.
So when the panic and denial hits – and it hits hard – I take it out on Florence. I’m not proud of it, but that’s what happens.
What can I say? The human brain is a feeble thing at times, and every rational bone in my body is silenced by the roar of something much more primitive. I’m suddenly plunged into the darkness, held down by a wave of fear so consuming that I can’t find my way to the surface.
And given that split-second choice – fight or flight – my body chooses fight.
‘So did you…’ I start, scrambling to my feet so I at least have the illusion of the upper hand. ‘Did you bring me here to finish the job?’
I don’t even know why I say it. I don’t really believe it. But I’ve come up fighting, and she’s the only one within range.
When my words land, she jolts backwards as if I’ve physically pushed her, her brows knitting in shock. ‘What? No!’ She stands, but I’m already taking a step away. ‘We actually don’t know if that would help. It might do more harm than good.’
The hurt is clear in her voice, and somewhere in the depths of my consciousness, the sound of it cuts deep, but I’m too far gone now.
And when, like the indecisive bastard that I am, my nervous system throws in a last-minute change to flight, I run.
I run like the devil himself is chasing me, and after what’s just happened, it wouldn’t surprise me if he was.
* * *
It’s a little after three when I get back to the flat, my lungs burning and my throat so dry I feel like I’m coughing dust. I flat out sprinted until I was down the 199 steps and crossing the harbour bridge, but I didn’t drop below a jog until I slipped down the alley at the side of Bitten and let myself back into the flat.
I check and double check both doors and every window is locked and then, as the burst of adrenaline finally fades, I starfish facedown onto my bed, still fully clothed, and almost immediately pass out.
That’s how Bram finds me in the morning.
I feel it as a light slap on the back on my calves first, a nagging that half rouses me from a thick, dreamless sleep. Then it’s my name, once, then twice, before I hear him swear loudly and begin the cycle again.
‘What?’ I finally manage to rasp out. God, I sound like I’ve been asleep for a hundred years. I roll over onto my side and crack an eye open so I can glare at him.
‘Oh, thank fuck,’ Bram says, swiping his hair back from his face. ‘Emmy thought you were dead.’
Urgh, I feel as if I might be. I haven’t slept that deeply in years. ‘Emmy is … where? What time is it?’
I really need to get a lock for that internal door. I once tried to revoke Bram’s invitation, but it turned out that, as he owns the bar and its attached flat, he doesn’t need one.
Vampire loopholes.
‘It’s a little after two,’ I hear Bram say as he strides out of my bedroom, reappearing a few moments later with a glass of water which he shoves towards me.
‘Emmy showed up for her shift twenty minutes ago, and you were nowhere to be found. She came in here, saw you facedown on the bed and then panicked and called me.’
I groan, downing half the glass in a single long gulp. ‘I’m fine.’
He snorts a laugh. ‘You don’t look fine. You look half-dead.’
The night comes back to me in a flashback that feels like a slap around the face.
The abbey. My potential demise.
Florence.
Fuck, Florence. In the cold light of day, I’m beginning to suspect I may have overreacted a little. No, that’s not right, my reaction was probably justified – I did receive life-changing news in a haunted abbey – but my behaviour wasn’t the greatest. I was a bit of a dick to Florence.
Ok, fine. I was a massive dick.
I snatch the pillow off the bed and press my fists into it.
‘Maybe I am,’ I say, a shake in my voice I don’t even try to hide. ‘Half-dead, I mean.’
That makes Bram’s expression change. He’ll give me shit for days, but he’s right there when I need him. ‘You good?’ he asks in a low voice. ‘Need the night off?’
I shake my head. ‘I’m ok.’
I could talk to him, I know I could. He doesn’t often speak about it, but I know Bram has a complicated relationship with his own vampirism.
Of anyone, I’m willing to bet he’d understand.
But I’ve given Bram so many reasons to worry about me over the years.
I’ve been that constant thorn in his side, and I hated it.
And I know right then that I’m not going to give him any more reasons. I’m going to sort this out myself.
But first, I’m going to go to work.
‘Just give me ten to shower and change and I’ll be right out,’ I say.
‘Take your time,’ he shouts back, over his shoulder. ‘We only have Creepy Perm Guy in at the moment and Emmy has him handled. I’ll go sit with them until you’re sorted.’
That almost makes me smile. Creepy Perm Guy is one of our regulars, named for his perennial wet-look perm and chronic misunderstanding of social boundaries. He’s weird but mostly harmless, and he has a soft spot for Emmy. She looks a lot like his youngest daughter, apparently.
I down the rest of my glass and will myself into motion, stumbling into the flat’s tiny bathroom and peeling off my clothes. I’d almost forgotten about last night, but when I see faint streaks of sandstone dust on my jeans, it all comes crashing back. All of a sudden, I realise what I have to do.
If I want to sort this out without burdening Bram, I’m going to need to swallow my pride and apologise to Florence. And then I need to hope like hell that she’s still willing to help me after I sprinted away from her like she was on fire.
But first I need to sort myself out and get to work.