Hunter by Night (11 page)

But Lee didn’t walk away. He eliminated the gap between them. One hand came to her back when he pressed close. “You know, you’re right.”

Her eyes popped wide. Did he really just agree with her?

“There’s one thing that has eased the pain,” he whispered.

Stirring arousal swept through her at the promise in his words. The gentle grind of his hip at her side. That otherworldly, husky, suggestive growl. She had a guess as to what he would say even before she asked, “And what’s that one thing?”

He stared for awhile, straightening to his full height. With his shoulders back and his chest broad, he looked like the Lee she’d always known. She could almost pretend nothing was wrong. Just the two of them standing in the hospital, waiting for Thad and Isabel to have a baby. Except for that burn in her chest. Even more prominent were the butterflies in her belly and the moisture in her itsy-bitsy thong that she couldn’t blame on the rain.

“I hate to ask, but do you feel you can spare more of your blood?”

She licked her lips and rocked back on her heels. Hell, she’d give it all to him if he asked.

Way
to
stick
to
your
guns, Lexi. Weren’t you just telling yourself you wanted to get the hell out of here because you couldn’t help him? Wouldn’t help him?

But that didn’t mean she didn’t want to help him. She’d wanted to from the second she’d laid eyes on him. That whole I-am-an-island thing had practically been like her own personal Bat-Signal.

Still, she burned from his many months of insults about her biological inferiority. Pride refused to let that shit go unanswered. She leaned close to avoid being heard by all the sensitive ears in the room. “We’re out of the literal and metaphorical woods. You can get blood from anyone. I thought drinking human blood was, like, worse than licking bat guano off a wizard’s shoe.”

The softness of his laugh shimmied straight down her spine.
Dear
merciful
Lord.
“I don’t claim to understand.” His lips feathered against her ear. “In the cave, the pain abated when I drank from you.” He pushed closer, his breath soft and hot. “Nothing has eased it in a long time. No one. Whatever this… problem… is, drinking from you eased the pain. It’s the one thing I know for certain.”

Oh, hell.
Only her blood? Talk about making a gal melt in the weirdest way possible. She wanted to be all snarky and make him beg or apologize or something, but fuckballs, that was the most beautiful thing ever. Besides, she wanted to ease his hurt more than she wanted to get even.

Alexia glanced around and pulled him into an empty room next to the nurse’s station. To be safe, she locked the door and pulled the curtain thingy. Two comfy chairs sat by the hospital bed. She tugged one close and offered her wrist. It seemed the fastest way, and this was urgent.

The strike of his fangs hardly surprised her this time. Much like a tattoo or a piercing, you got used to the pinch. Isabel had drunk from her a few times when they’d first become friends, but that had been different. That hadn’t been a two-hundred-and-whatever-pound vampire male in a desperate amount of pain.

Oh, holy… Wow.

The relief was amazing. Fireworks and dynamite. The pressure flowed out of her along with the blood. What rushed in to take its place, though, was a disturbing sense of rightness. In giving herself to him in a way she had never wanted to give to anyone. Somehow her other arm wound around his neck, and either he didn’t notice or he didn’t actually mind.
It’s just the blood, like he said before.

But then his fingers crept into her hair. Her body slid down into the large, comfy chair. Lee pressed closer, on his knees now in front of her, her arm held aloft by his efforts as he lapped at her wrist. His tongue trailed down her arm to catch a wayward drip. On his knees with his long legs, Lee’s pelvis pressed against hers through their pants, his erection hard and thick and throwing off heat.

Alexia couldn’t stop herself from wrapping her legs around his waist and bringing him closer. Her hand grasped his free arm, which had moved from the chair to her leg. Their fingers laced together.

Lee’s groan vibrated against her wrist.

A knock sounded at the door.

“Mr. Goram, are you in there? This is Dr. Farrington. I was told you were having pain and were in need of an evaluation.”

This doctor is a punk.
Lee had long passed the age where he could expect seniority from his medical professionals, but this kid was highly questionable. Was he even above the legal drinking age? He had a Mohawk, for the love of all things holy.
Aren’t you late for practice with your band?
It didn’t help Lee’s mood that they’d put him in a pediatric exam room, brightly painted with rainbows and fluffy bunnies.

“Dude, your blood is the most fascinating thing I’ve seen in my career.”

Lee crossed his arms and sat up straight on the exam table. Centuries of tactical expertise and he couldn’t move a damn centimeter without making the paper on the fucking table crinkle under his ass. “And how long has that been exactly? Dude.”

The vampire in the white coat smirked and sat himself on a rolling stool while he looked over an electronic tablet in his hand. “Tell me, Mr. Goram, when did you last consume blood?”

Never one to mince words, Lee now had reason not to answer. “This evening.”

The doctor tapped his tablet with a stylus. “Vampire blood?”

“Human blood.” Lee’s skin crawled.

“Uh-huh. And how frequently do you consume human blood?”

“I don’t.”

The doctor looked up then, eyebrows raised in either interest or confusion.

“Tonight only.” Paper crackled under Lee’s hands as he dug his fingers into the exam table. Did he really need his shirt off for this conversation?

“All right.” More tapping. “So prior to today, vampire blood?”

“Yes.”

“When last?”

Lee’s gaze went to the ceiling. “Last week.” He’d called Blood Service after a training accident. The days between then and now seemed like ages.

“And how frequently, on average?”

Lee flicked a fang with his tongue. “Weekly, I suppose. Maybe every other week.” Sometimes more, but Lee refused to say.

The doctor’s head lifted. “Weekly for how long?” The doc’s somber expression and his now-hard stare stated that Lee’s reasons likely wouldn’t be understood. They had left “dude” territory.

“Awhile.”

Dr. Farrington scooted into Lee’s personal-boundary zone. With his shiny, polished loafers and pressed khakis, the young doctor had probably never had a scratch more serious than a hangnail. “The average adult vampire needs blood in roughly one- to six-month intervals, barring illness, injury, or extreme stress.”

“Pay attention to your own caveat, doctor. Every night I’m fighting, or I’m in hands-on training so my guys can go out there and keep our kind safe, or I’m
guarding
the
king
. I have everything you just listed by the truckload. My job is to stay at one hundred percent.”

The doctor cocked his hooligan head to one side. “Have you ever changed the oil in a car, Mr. Goram?”

Lee glanced around the room, from the posters explaining the importance of proper fang care to a diagram showing an eyeball and a bunch of veins and nerves. Where was this shit going? “Sure.” Lee’s back teeth ground together. “Why don’t you spare me the automotive analogy and just cut to the lecture I can see you’re dying to spank me with.”

The doctor leaned forward, hands planted on thighs, lips curled into an almost sneer. “For how long have you been feeding at a near-weekly frequency?”

Lee met Dr. Farrington’s stare. “Years,” he ground out. More than a quarter century, to be exact. Since he’d split from Agnessa. Some weeks, more than once a week. No need to clarify. He’d dug the hole plenty deep.

It had started as a quest to purge Agnessa from his system. Then a string of injuries had required more frequent feeding. Next thing Lee knew, he’d developed a habit. He found he functioned better with a topped-off tank. His power charged faster, and he accomplished more. He could not only use his power as a shield but as a reflector, turning an enemy’s power back upon itself. Rebounding it, as he had earlier in the night when he and Alexia had been attacked in the woods. He hardly needed to sleep. He could damn near move mountains.

For a long while, the frequency of his feedings had worked magnificently, and Lee had been in the optimum shape of his life. Over the course of the last year or so, he had noticed diminishing returns. First, only pain once in awhile if he stayed at rest for too long. Then, pain more consistently. Like he’d told Lexi, he hadn’t known exactly what was wrong. He had, however, suspected the cause. He’d known there was no going back.

He’d decided more good could be accomplished in getting his shit organized, making sure his kind was protected, and going out with a bang. Sitting here getting lectured by a doctor for something he’d already done that he couldn’t fix? Pointless. Once mixed, blood couldn’t be separated.

Given the life he lived, he risked his death every night anyway.

Dr. Farrington snaked his tongue thoughtfully around one fang, eyeballing Lee.

Lee avoided direct eye contact and instead stared mindlessly at a fake vampire skeleton in the corner, letting his vision blur.
This
was
why
I
didn’t want to see a doctor.

“You’re about a decade overdue for an oil change, Mr. Goram. Your blood is like sludge.”

Lee’s heart thumped slow and hard in response. Well, that was certainly interesting. He supposed he shouldn’t be surprised.

“If you were human,” the doctor continued slowly, “you’d have gone fangs up by now.” The wheels on the little stool squeaked as the doctor repositioned to maneuver his way into Lee’s line of sight. Fucker. “Frankly, I’m surprised you’re still alive anyway. I figure you’re damn lucky. You’re pretty strong, and ultimately, it might be the human blood that saved your ass.”

The human bloo— “You’re certain?” That thing he’d said to Lexi about her blood easing his pain was heat-of-the-moment stuff. He hadn’t been sure.

“Reduced the viscosity of what was already in your system. Not much, but enough to provide a Band-Aid. You’ve been straining that ticker of yours something awful.”

“I see.” Confirmation of the thing he’d suspected and feared made his vision swim. He didn’t see jack shit. Still, it seemed the appropriate thing to say.

The young doctor picked up his tablet again, tapping as he spoke. “Now, what I’d like to do to get this problem under control quickly is put you on a blood thinner. Then we can—”

“No.” Lee’s insides froze. Absolutely unacceptable. The thought of popping pills made Lee’s chest ache all over again. “I can’t be on blood thinners. I go out in the field and get hit, I’m screwed.”

The doctor nodded slowly. “It would mean a lifestyle change. No high-risk activity, no fighting.”

Hell cocksucking no.

Not in a million years. He’d already accepted that he was probably on the verge of death. He’d rather go out fighting. No way would he take any medicine that turned him into some fragile old man. “Thanks, Doc. Honestly.” He grabbed his shirt and threw it on over his head. “I’ll take my chances.”

***

Alexia scanned the hospital cafeteria where the offerings ranged from “yuck” to “oh
hell
no.” Burgers. Jell-O. Fries. Coffee that, from the smell of burnt desperation, had been sitting on the burner for days.

All of it horrifyingly displayed under the glare of unappetizing fluorescence. It was no better than anything she’d managed to find the last time she was in a high-school cafeteria. “I’d expected better,” she mumbled with a dubious-looking yogurt parfait in her hand. How old were those strawberries? She didn’t much care for penicillin on her fruit.

She found nothing appetizing under the warming lamps. The busy checkerboard tile on the floor didn’t make anything look tastier. Jeez. Superior species. Wouldn’t that “superior species” include better cooking skills? Then again, maybe when you had the strength to live for more than a thousand years, you didn’t so much give a shit about a little extra cholesterol.

A basket of fresh fruit caught her eye. She grabbed a banana and some coffee, and decided a healthy dose of refrigerated milk in the coffee was probably a safer protein source than the yogurt. She longed for a massive peanut butter and jelly sandwich, but as desperately as she needed to get her strength up, she couldn’t bring herself to go for what they called “burgers” around here.

She usually avoided red meat and commercial dairy products. She shook a little, though, from giving Lee her blood and needed something to re-energize. She’d gotten spoiled lately living on land that snuggled up against a bunch of farms and being able to sneak out early in the morning once in awhile to get fresh eggs and raw milk and honey.

She’d miss those little things when she left. Stuff like knowing the milk in her morning coffee came from a cow named Sally at the farm down the road from the estate.

Alexia smiled to herself as she approached the checkout. Despite her exhaustion, pride about having been able to help Lee filled her with a deep inner glow. At least, she hoped she’d helped him. Aside from the ache in her wrist, no more phantom pain had nagged at her since they’d parted ways in that room. Seemed like a good sign.

“That’ll be four fift… y. Oh.”

The thoughtful smile died on Alexia’s face, and she could only imagine what the severe vampire female ringing her up took in right then. She’d tried to clean up in the bathroom, but her clothes were dirty from being out in the woods with Lee. Plus,
ohrightyeah
, her damn teeth. She never remembered to hide that she didn’t have fangs around other vampires. On the royal estate, pretty much everyone knew, and usually if she left the estate, it was to spend time around other humans.

“Four fifty?” Alexia repeated. She reached to pull out the twenty she’d borrowed from Tyra. The look from this stuck-up bitch showed obvious disgust, and Alexia itched to salute with her middle finger right before she smacked the righteous judgment—and the hairnet—off her face.

She was tired of being treated like slime because of her species.
Born
this
way,
right, bitches? Well, hey, she could go out in daylight and they’d fry. She could survive without drinking blood. Then again, her life would pass in a blip of time compared to theirs.

Trade-offs.

Alexia thrust the money toward the now stiff and stern-looking female, suspecting how this was about to end. She straightened her spine, raised her chin, and pasted on her friendliest smile.

“Sorry, it looks like my register’s broken.”

“Uh-huh.” Alexia glanced down at the blue numbers on the thing. “The numbers are still lit.”

The female smiled to reveal her fangs. “I’m not a technical expert, honey. But I do give good directions. Shall I point you in the direction of the nearest human bus station?”

Oh, wow.
Wow
. Alexia worked hard to keep still. She’d had plenty of vampires treat her plenty of ways these past months. Some had been frosty and some had been a little rude, but this one was actively suggesting that she promptly leave town. How completely disrespectful.

You’re planning on leaving town anyway
.

But still. The nerve.

Alexia forgot her polite smile. “Listen, I’ve got money. If your register’s broken, then I’m up for sainthood, so you can forget that crap. I am happy to get the hell out of here after you let me buy my food.”

The woman didn’t budge.

“No? Fine. Here.” She slapped the twenty down and walked away with her food.

“Security!”

Alexia stopped, huffed a breath, and rolled her eyes. “Are you freaking kidding me? I just overpaid—”

Meaty hands gripped her shoulders and pulled her arms behind her back. Coffee splashed all over the floor. Her banana flew to who knew where. Seriously? This was honestly how humans were treated in this hospital? Totally ridiculous. And Lee would probably get pissed at her for acting stupid. She really did need to get away.

She wriggled from the guard’s grip and spun around. “I didn’t steal.” She aimed her finger at the cashier lady. “Don’t you
dare
say I tried to steal.” Tears sprung to her eyes. How did she manage to get into this shit? She’d done some things she wasn’t proud of back in the day, but she would never steal. Not after what her mother—

“Alexia.”

The voice calling from behind her sounded familiar.

“Alexia.”

She turned. Flay, one of Thad’s fighters, charged forward. She didn’t know him well but they’d spoken to each other at the mansion. Oh, thank the great flying teakettle. Except… he looked angry. Why wasn’t she surprised? “Look, I didn’t steal anything. I swear.” Her hand went into the air. God, was she twelve?

Flay ripped the guard’s hands away from her shoulders and jerked his chin. “Money’s on the counter. This human is under the protection of the king. Back it up before I report you.” He slung an arm around her shoulder. “Come on. Anton and I ran into some trouble so we had to double back. I’m waiting for him to check in. The rain’s let up, and there’s a convenience store up the street. Let’s go find you some food elsewhere.”

Alexia stared sadly at the floor. At her squashed banana and spilled coffee. She willed her frantically flailing pulse to settle down and smiled her gratitude at Flay as she put a trembling arm around his waist for support. She wasn’t hungry anymore, but she wouldn’t stay another minute in this place.