Chapter 22 #2
Tyr gathered Beth closer, her body limp in his arms. Her breathing seemed steadier, though her skin remained deathly pale. The first exchange had bought them precious time, but they weren't safe yet.
Tobi emerged from the shadows, his twin's expression one of grim determination. "I am with you, brother. The prisoner is secured and unconscious."
Aleksei stepped closer, his commanding presence brooking no argument. "Liam and I will handle things here. The police will need a plausible explanation." His voice carried the calm certainty of someone who had spent centuries managing such situations.
Tyr looked down at Beth's pale face. They had to move. Now. She needed to be somewhere safe for the remaining exchanges. Time was running out. "I'll take her to the Residence."
Liam tossed his keys to Tobi, his face tight with pain from his own wound. "Take my Jeep. It's faster than trying to get her into the Prius."
Tobi caught the keys one-handed and sprinted toward the charcoal grey vehicle. The engine roared to life as Tyr carefully settled into the back seat with Beth cradled against his chest.
The Jeep's tires squealed as Tobi accelerated out of the parking lot. Tyr pressed his wrist against Beth's lips again, letting a few drops of blood pass between them to maintain the tenuous connection keeping her alive. Her spirit flickered weakly, but it was still there, still fighting.
Tobi took the turns at dangerous speeds, but Tyr trusted his brother's driving implicitly. Minutes later, they screeched to a halt outside the warehouse's private entrance. Tobi had the security door open before Tyr could even shift Beth in his arms.
Bypassing the elevator, they raced up the wide, curving stairs to the second floor, and into Tyr's apartment. Beth's pulse fluttered against Tyr's fingers, each beat a reminder of how precarious her situation remained.
Tyr gently laid Beth on his bed, crimson immediately spreading across the grey comforter. She looked impossibly small against the dark fabric. Her pulse beat weakly, but it was there. Four more exchanges. They had to make it through four more.
"I'll get towels and some clean clothes for her," Tobi said, already moving toward the door.
Tyr barely registered his twin's words as he took more of her blood, before biting into his wrist again. The wound from earlier had already healed, but fresh blood welled immediately from the new punctures. He pressed it to Beth's lips, his other hand supporting her head.
This time, she responded more strongly, her throat working as she swallowed. Her spirit flared a bit brighter with each drop of his immortal blood.
Beth's eyes fluttered open, focusing on his face with effort. Her lips curved into a weak smile as she whispered, "Tyr."
The sound of his name, barely audible even to his vampire hearing, nearly undid him. Tears he hadn't shed in centuries threatened to fall as he cradled her head more securely. Her trust in him, even now, made his chest ache with emotions he couldn't begin to process.
"I'm here, little cat," he murmured, his voice rough with suppressed emotion. "I'm here."
Tyr watched as confusion flickered across Beth's pale features. Her blue-grey eyes darted around his bedroom, trying to make sense of her surroundings.
"What happened?" Her voice came out barely above a whisper. "I remember waving to Liam, and then..." Her hand drifted to her blood-soaked scrub top, fingers probing gently at her stomach. "Pain. Just pain."
Tyr caught her hand before she could touch the wound directly. Her skin felt warmer now, though still cooler than normal. While her pulse beat stronger with each passing minute, she still remained dangerously weak.
"You were shot," he told her softly, his rage at the sniper carefully contained beneath a calm exterior. "The bullet went through your liver. You were dying." His voice roughened on the last word, the memory of her life slipping away still too fresh.
"Dying?" The word came out strangled.
"Yes." His voice was gentle but honest. "I had to give you some of my blood to keep you alive."
Beth's eyes widened slightly as she processed this information. Her fingers tightened around his, seeking reassurance or comfort - he wasn't sure which. But he squeezed back gently, letting her know he was there.
Her fingers tightened around his, her voice barely above a whisper. "B-blood?"
Tyr brushed a strand of pale hair from her face. "I need to give you my blood, if you want to live."
Tyr watched as she struggled to process everything. Her blue-grey eyes, still clouded with pain and confusion, fixed on his face.
"I would be... vampire?" Her voice trembled slightly.
"Yes." Tyr's hand cupped her face, his thumb brushing her cheek. "I'm asking you to trust me with forever, Beth."
A beat of silence as the word hung between them. "If you don't want this life with me, now is the time to tell me."
She was quiet for a long moment, her gaze searching his face. Then her eyes dropped to his chest and widened in sudden horror. "You've been shot too!"
Tyr glanced down at his blood-soaked shirt, having completely forgotten about the bullets that had struck him in the parking lot. "It's fine," he said, shrugging. "Just a through-and-through. I'll be healed completely by tonight."
Tobi returned, his arms laden with towels and fresh clothes. He took one look at his twin and shook his head. "Get that shirt off, brother. You're a mess."
Tyr reluctantly released Beth's hand and peeled off his ruined shirt, revealing the already-healing bullet wounds in his chest and arm. Tobi quickly wiped away the blood with efficient movements, then tossed him a clean black t-shirt.
Tyr shrugged into the fresh shirt, his attention never straying far from Beth as she lay, still and quiet, on the massive bed. She wasn't out of danger yet. Wouldn’t be, unless she accepted the Turning.
Tyr watched as his twin moved to Beth's other side, taking her small hand in his. The uncharacteristic gentleness from his usually boisterous brother made Tyr's throat work silently.
"You'll be welcome among us, little sister," Tobi said softly, his usual mischievous demeanor replaced by sincere warmth. "You will be family."
Beth's fingers curled weakly around Tobi's hand as tears gathered in her blue-grey eyes.
Tyr felt his own throat tighten at his twin's immediate inclusion of Beth into their supernatural family.
Trust Tobi to cut straight through any awkwardness or uncertainty with his characteristic directness.
His brother might play the fool, but he had an uncanny ability to say exactly what someone needed to hear.
Beth's voice wavered. "I would have to drink blood?" The words came out somewhere between a statement and a question, her blue-grey eyes searching Tyr's face.
Tyr nodded solemnly. "When you're a vampire, you won't mind it at all. The thirst becomes natural, like breathing."
Beth was quiet for a moment, and he could almost see her mind working through what this meant. What she would become. What she might lose. There were so many implications, so many considerations. But without his blood, she would die.
Sudden alarm flashed across Beth's pale features, her hand tightening around his. "Wait - will I lose my leopard?"
Tyr met Tobi's equally uncertain gaze across the bed. Neither of them had an answer. In all their centuries, they'd never encountered a shifter being Turned. The situation was completely unprecedented.
A tear slid down Beth's cheek, leaving a glistening trail through the smudges of blood and dirt from the parking lot. "I've always had my leopard with me," she whispered, her voice breaking. "I-I don't want to lose her."
Tyr rubbed at the dampness on her cheek with one thumb. "Beth... if you're not Turned, you'll die, and she will die with you." His voice carried the weight of harsh truth. He continued, more gently, "I would give you assurances, if I could, but the plain fact is, we just don't know."
He lifted her delicate hand to his lips, pressing a gentle kiss against her cool skin. Her pulse fluttered beneath his touch like a trapped butterfly, each beat precious and fragile. His chest ached with emotions he'd thought long buried during his centuries of existence.
"Choose life, Beth," he whispered against her fingers. "Stay with me. Be my Chosen." The words emerged rough with intensity, carrying the weight of their kind's most sacred bond, as well as his own desperate need to keep her in his world.
Her blue-grey eyes widened at the term, recognition flickering across her pale features. Even half-conscious and gravely wounded, she understood the significance of what he offered. Not just immortality, but a permanent bond - the deepest connection possible between supernatural beings.
"Your... Chosen?" Her voice came out barely above a whisper, but he heard the wonder in it.
"Yes." Tyr brushed another kiss across her knuckles. "I knew from the moment I saw you. I just... I wanted to court you properly first. Give you time." His voice roughened with self-recrimination. "I didn't expect this."
Beth's fingers tightened weakly around his. "You want me?" The vulnerability in her voice made his ancient heart clench. After everything she'd endured, she still struggled to believe anyone could truly want her.
"More than I've wanted anything in centuries," Tyr admitted, letting her see the truth in his eyes. "Choose life, little cat. Choose to stay with me."
Beth's eyelashes fluttered, her already pale skin taking on an alarming grey tinge. She was dangerously weak, barely hanging on to life. Time was running out.
But then - the tiniest of movements. A slight nod, so faint he might have missed it without his vampire senses. Her fingers tightened weakly around his, and relief swept through him with such intensity his hands shook.
She had chosen. Chosen life. Chosen him.
Her blood called to him, even as she grew weaker with each passing second. The metallic scent filled his nose, triggering every predatory instinct he possessed. But this time, he embraced those instincts, channeling them into the ancient magic of the Turning.
Tobi's presence across the bed anchored him, his twin's steady support a reminder that Beth wouldn't face this transformation alone. She would have both of them to guide her through what was to come.