Storm (Blood Haze: Book Two) A Paranormal Romance (9 page)

up on me.

“Dear God, why is this happening?” I moaned.

“What’s going on?” Max asked.

“Drama,” I groaned. “Kai’s pissed, and he ran

out. My brother went to find him. Jamie hates

me. Just another day in the life of Alice Wright.”

We arrived at the airport a few minutes later,

and within an hour, we were on a flight headed to

Chicago. I hadn’t realized where we were when I

was with Kai at the motel, but when I reached the

airport there to fly back to Georgia, I’d made a

note of it. I was pretty sure I could get Max and

me to the motel.

On the flight, Max decided to fill me in on

what had transpired in the clearing.

In a nearly inaudible whisper, Max said, “I’ve

never seen anything like it, Alice. One second I

felt Alexi pressing the dagger against my neck,

and the next second I was standing beside you on

the other side of the clearing. You touched his

forehead and… he just froze.”

“I don’t understand,” I whispered. “Did I do

all that?”

“I don’t know how else to explain it,” Max

admitted. “I didn’t see anything except you

touching Alexi’s forehead. I don’t even know

how you got to us so quickly. You must have

been at least twenty or thirty feet away. I just

blinked and you were there.”

“Then how did we get all the way across the

clearing?” I asked.

“I couldn’t tell you,” he shrugged. “I felt you

take my hand, and suddenly we were just there. It

was like we teleported or something.”

“I’m so confused,” I moaned.

“There’s something else,” he added. “Just

before it happened, you started shaking all over

and your eyes turned red.”

“My eyes?” I questioned.

“Not just your irises,” he explained. “It looked

like your eyes were bleeding. It was like a curtain

of blood was flowing over your eyes, and right

after that, I ended up on the other side of the

clearing.”

I shook my head. It sounded impossible.

“I’m a vampire, Max,” I whispered. “We don’t

have super powers.”

“Some do,” he corrected me.

“Okay,” I agreed. “Some do have abilities. I’ve

heard of a rare few who do. But nothing like

this!”

“That’s true,” Max agreed. “I told you I’ve

never seen anything like it, or even heard of it.”

“There must be more to this,” I said. “It

couldn’t have been me. I’m not special.”

“You’re more special than you know,” Max

whispered, holding my chin and staring deep into

my eyes.

When he looked at me that way, it made me

weak. Kai was my world. He was so gentle and

so beautiful. I loved him as much as I could ever

imagine loving anyone. Yet, somehow when Max

looked at me with those dark eyes – those coffee

colored eyes, nearly black and brooding – all of

my resolve melted away.

I felt his lips, warm and moist, close over

mine. My eyes were closed, but I didn’t

remember closing them. He took my face in his

hands, and my hands closed over his wrists. His

kiss was gentler than it had ever been.

“Wait…” I whispered.

He pulled away and looked at me. “What is

it?”

“Kai,” I said softly.

Max’s face hardened. I saw the muscles in his

jaw tense and relax several times.

“Kai,” Max repeated with scorn.

Max’s hands dropped to his lap, and he leaned

back against his seat. He closed his eyes, and I

saw his hands clench and unclench.

“Max…” I whispered, touching his arm.

He jerked away. “Don’t,” he said, shaking his

head, his eyes still closed.

I sighed, and leaned back in my own seat. How

could I screw my life up so badly? I had not one,

but two incredible guys in love with me, and

somehow I managed to alienate both of them.

How could this happen?

Beyond that, what had happened in that

clearing? I remembered everything turning red

and hazy, and I remembered the shocking clarity I

could perceive through that haze.

Then I suddenly remembered another moment

when I’d seen that same haze. It was only a brief

flash, but it was real. The night I met Kai and his

mother had hit him and burned his hand on the

stove... I’d seen it. It was gone in a flash – so

quickly I’d barely realized it had happened – but I

remembered it now.

That night I’d felt much the same as I had felt

in the clearing. I had watched in horror as Kai’s

mother hurt him, and I felt so much rage that I

wanted to hurt
her
. In the clearing, it was Max

being hurt, and I wanted to hurt his attacker. It

was
me.

“Max,” I gasped. “It
was
me!”

“What was you?” Max asked, confused.

“In the clearing!” I shouted. “It
was
me!”

I noticed several passengers turning to stare at

me, and I lowered my voice. “I remember it,

Max. It was me. When it happened, I saw a red

haze in front of my eyes. It was like blood. That

must have been what you saw in my eyes.”

“Wow,” Max breathed.

“I saw it once before,” I said. “The haze. It

happened a few months ago, but it only lasted a

second.”

“This

has

happened
before
?” he asked

incredulously.

“The haze, yes,” I admitted. “But not the…

other stuff.”

“What do you remember from the clearing?”

he wanted to know.

“I remember seeing the haze,” I said. “I

remember it seemed like time slowed down so

much it almost stopped, and I ran over to Alexi

and touched him on the forehead. I don’t even

know why I did it, I just felt this overwhelming

compulsion to do it. I saw him relax his grip on

the dagger, and it started to fall so slowly it was

almost imperceptible. Then I grabbed your hand

and ran as fast as I could. When we were on the

other side of the clearing, I felt an overwhelming

weakness. I heard this weird low-pitched

whooshing sound, and everything sped up again.

I turned and saw Alexi fall to the ground, and

then everything went black.”

Max nodded. “That’s sort of what I remember,

except it all happened in a flash. I saw you touch

him, then we were on the other side of the

clearing and you fainted. I picked you up and ran

back to the parking lot with you.”

“Is Alexi… dead?” I asked.

“I don’t know,” Max admitted. “I didn’t wait

around to find out.”

“How did he find you?” I asked.

“He called me and said he had you at your

house. I sent you an email, but after a few

minutes you didn’t respond, so I just dropped

everything and hopped on a plane back to

Georgia.”

“Oh, Max! Why didn’t you contact Jamie?

That must have been after I sold my computer

and bought a plane ticket. I sent you an email

with the word ‘lake’. I thought you would meet

me there.”

“When I got to your house, he got my

computer. He said he had you in a secret

location, and he’d kill you if I didn’t tell him

what ‘lake’ meant. Not that he needed me to tell

him.”

“What do you mean? Why wouldn’t he need

you to tell him?”

“Because he can read minds.”

“He can… read minds… Oh, my God!”

“What?”

“I was thinking about Kai and the motel in

Chicago while I was in the clearing!”

“If he saw Kai in your thoughts or mine, he

can view him.”

“What?” I gasped. “I thought hunters had to

meet a vampire before they could view them?”

“Alexi is an Elder,” Max explained. “He has

multiple abilities. He can read minds, he can

view, and there are other abilities, but I can’t

remember them right now. That’s why I was

shocked you defeated him so easily.”

“Where’s your dad?” I asked. “You haven’t

mentioned him.”

“He’s dead.”

“Oh, Max,” I whispered, putting my hand on

his arm. “I’m so sorry. What happened?”

Max’s jaw clenched, and I saw his eyes turn

cloudy as tears threatened to spill.

“If you don’t want to talk about it, I

understand,” I said gently.

He took a deep breath. “No, it’s fine. I’m fine.

After a group of hunters confronted my dad, and

me I admitted I was in love with you. I told him I

loved you more than my own life, and that I’d die

to protect you. I guess he could see how much

you mean to me, so he stepped in front of me and

told me to run – to go find you. I hesitated, but

he attacked them, and I jumped in my car and got

away as fast as I could.”

“But you didn’t see him die?” I asked.

“No, but…”

“Max,” I said, looking deep into his eyes. “If

there’s even the slightest chance he’s still alive,

we’ll find him. I promise.”

He took my hand and placed it against his

cheek. His eyes closed, and he brushed his face

back and forth against my palm. The he kissed my

palm gently.

“Do you really think…”

I put my fingers against his lips. “I feel it.”

“I hope you’re right,” he whispered.

“I don’t know how, but I know he’s alive,” I

told him.

Somehow, I could feel his father. I couldn’t

explain it, and the feeling was very faint. But I

could feel a connection to him through Max.

When he placed my hand on his face, I could

suddenly feel this pull, and I knew without a

doubt he was well, and we would find him.

*****

Chapter Seven – Grace

We landed in Chicago, and hailed a taxi. We

went straight to the motel, and Jamie greeted us

outside. Streaks of tears stained her face, and her

eyes sagged with worry.

“Any word?” I asked.

“No, none,” she answered. “Will won’t

answer his phone, and I don’t know what’s going

on.”

“Alice!” called my mother, running over to

give me a hug.

“I have our bags in the taxi,” I said. “All of

them – the ones from the van. I picked them up

from the house.”

“You were in Georgia?” Jamie balked.

“Yeah,” I admitted. “No time to explain. Get

the bags in. I have to go to the bathroom.”

I went straight into the bathroom and closed

the door. I had felt a connection to Max’s father

when I touched him, though it was faint. I was

hoping desperately I could make a connection

with Will or Kai. I tried touching myself, but it

didn’t work. I felt nothing at all. Then I

remembered that my mother had said Jamie and

my brother might be falling in love.

“Jamie, I need you,” I called.

I sat down on the bed and pulled her down

beside me.

“Think about Will,” I told her.

“What? Why?” she asked.

“Please,” I begged. “Just do it.”

She closed her eyes, and within seconds, I

could feel a strange pulling sensation. It was

much stronger than my connection to Max’s

father. Perhaps it was because I knew Will

personally, or because he was my brother, or

even because he was nearby. I wasn’t sure.

“I feel him,” I whispered.

“You… feel him?” Jamie asked skeptically.

“It’s hard to explain,” I told her. “Come with

me. We’re going to find him.”

We got into the taxi just as Max was taking

the last of the bags out. “I’m coming with you,”

he said.

“Get in,” I told him.

“Be careful,” called my mother. “Bring your

brother back safely!”

“I will, Mother,” I promised her.

The taxi driver must have thought I was

insane, because I kept sending him in circles and

telling him to make quick turns out of the blue. It

was hard to tell exactly where to go, because all I

could feel was a pulling sensation that reached

out from my torso and led me faintly into a

specific direction. I had to hold Jamie’s hand to

keep the connection. She squeezed my hand

tightly, and I could almost feel her love for my

brother flowing through her skin.

“Wait! Turn right! Right there” I shouted at

the driver, pointing down a dark street.

“Are you sure?” he asked. “There’s nothing

down there but an old warehouse that’s been

closed for years.”

“Yes, I’m sure,” I said.

“Can I just stop here?” the driver pleaded. “I

think that’s private property.”

“How much?” I asked.

“Thirty-two dollars,” he said.

I tossed him a fifty-dollar bill – the last of my

money.

“Keep the change,” I said quickly.

Max, Jamie, and I got out of the taxi, and it

pulled away immediately. The driver was

obviously freaked out by our strange behavior

and just wanted to get away as quickly as

possible.

“This way,” I said, still clinging to Jamie’s

hand.

The alley was barely illuminated by the gray-

blue light of the moon. It passed behind the

clouds every few seconds and made it difficult

for Jamie to see. I clutched her hand and helped

her stumble along.

At the end of the alley, which was situated