Three Days of Night (16 page)

I gasped so hard that I started to cough. “W-what?”

“Oh,” Hud said, putting a hand over his mouth. “I said too much. Do you wish you didn’t know now?”

So that was it. These three days had not only decided the course of my personal relationships, that wasn’t the only destinies Hud had referred to. My choices had altered the fate of
mankind
. That was a bit staggering.

“I’ll be okay, just shut up.”

*****

As soon as we were back aboard Harsh Reality my communicator went off.

“What is it?” D asked.

Ash was giving him strange looks. He was obviously more “human” than he’d been before. How the hell was I going to explain this?

“It’s alerting me to missed calls. Shit. That’s what I meant to talk to you about before.”

We both paused at the mention of the word “before,” knowing exactly what I meant.

“Could you please change the coordinates on my communicator? Nix won’t stop calling me and I have nothing to say to him.”

I handed the device to D as he said, “That asshole. Can’t he get the point?”

Now Ash was really confused. He was raising his eyebrows so high they almost met his hair. I couldn’t help laughing. D never used bad language before and it was obvious by his speech that he felt very strongly about what he was saying. D never used to feel anything.

“We, um, figured out a few things about D while we were on Tarnak.”

Morgan walked past us, taking a moment to touch my shoulder as he went by. Ash noticed this as well.

“You figured out how to give him emotions in three days?”

I shrugged. “Yeah.”

“Well, that’s bloody great,” Bob said. “Now if somebody could just figure out how to make me grow hair we can have a party.”

We all burst out laughing.

“You’re all still on the news,” Bob added.

Morgan walked back in just in time to roll his eyes at the comment. “Are they still calling us superheroes?”

Bob crossed his arms and gave us all a serious look. “Think about it. If you’re not superheroes, then why do you dress up and have secret identities?”

“For Saturday night,” Morgan answered.

Everyone seemed surprised when D laughed so hard he cried.

Other than the obvious change in D, things weren’t nearly as strange as I’d expected. I managed to make it to my room without Ash stopping me for questioning. I hated to avoid him like this, but I wasn’t sure what to say, or how much to say. I had just undressed when someone pressed the call button beside my door.

“Yes.”

“It’s us,” Morgan whispered.

I opened the door to find him and D pressed against the wall in a way that let me know they were hiding from Ash too. Not that we were exactly forthcoming with information to Dark Dream or Bob. Things were just a little more complicated when it came to explaining our relationship to my ex-boyfriend.

I ushered them in with a barely stifled laugh. “I’ll have to tell Ash something tomorrow. He’s my best friend besides Bob and he deserves to know.”

“Maybe,” Morgan said, “but not tonight. Is it just me or is it freezing?”

“The temperature regulator in this part of the ship is broken,” Aries chimed in. “I suggest everyone learns to snuggle.”

Aries gave us another ominous laugh before Morgan said, “Who the fuck programmed your sense of humor?”

“I learned from you,” the computer replied.

Morgan turned off the communicator beside the door, effectively shutting the central computer out of our conversation.

I slipped on a robe and hugged my arms tight to my chest. “It is freezing. I hate to be a buzz-kill guys, but I need to sleep.”

They seemed surprised, but not disappointed. “That’s right,” D said. “We’re approaching Icknar. Their sun will be up within the hour.”

Morgan stripped quickly and jumped underneath the covers. I wasn’t sure my bed would hold the three of us, but I had no objection to giving it a try. I had just enough time to snuggle up to Morgan and for D to wrap his arms around me before I passed out.

There’s nothing quite like the sleep of the dead. I hadn’t dreamed in a long time, but now my mind was filled with visions of Hud’s blue skin. In this strange dream he was reaching for me, trying to give me something. It was the necklace he had shown me, the one he was once imprisoned inside.

“Take it,” he said. “Use it to call me.”

“I thought I could call you without it.”

“You can, but you can use this if you’re ever too weak to activate our connection.”

I had no idea what he meant, but I awoke to find the necklace in my hand. D and Morgan were already up, but had wrapped me in enough blankets to keep me warm until the temperature regulator was fixed.

We had finally made it to Icknar, which was the only place we could get parts to fix our shuttle craft, Icarus. I was relieved to find that it was already night by the time we made port. It was winter on Icknar, so I put on a heavy coat over my black bodysuit. As an afterthought, I quickly stuffed Hud’s necklace into my pocket before leaving the ship.

While we loaded supplies that night I was still distracted by what Hud said about D. We had changed the course of human history. What if I hadn’t been able to overcome my doubts? What if I hadn’t acted on my desires? I almost regretted not taking Hud up on his offer to make me forget. If I had, I’d probably always wonder. I’ve always figured it was better to know than to waste time wondering. I decided then that I’d most likely go mad if I knew everything the djinn did.

I was so distracted by my thoughts that I didn’t notice someone coming up behind me. By the time I smelled them, I was being clubbed over the head.

Chapter Fifteen

Even though it wasn’t necessary for me to breathe, I noticed the change in the air when I tried. The lack of oxygen, the bone-chilling cold, I was on Velka. No doubt about it. The question was, what the hell was I doing here? If you used a warp drive, the planet wasn’t that far from Icknar where we’d been stopped. I lifted my head to look around and the back of my neck hurt. Fortunately whatever injuries I had would be healed soon. The fact that it wasn’t already healed let me know that me and my captor had most likely teleported to get here so fast. It also let me know someone knocked the shit out of me.

The instant I tried to move, my wrists hurt. Silver. I was shackled with it.

“Nix! Where the fuck are you?”

He entered the room with a smile, flashing me his fangs. His skin was just as white as D’s. But when I looked at D I saw perfection. When I looked at Nix I saw evil. He placed a small translator in my ear and crouched down in front of me. He looked every bit like the warrior he was. His knee-length red loin cloth and boots contrasted well with his pale skin. But there was menace behind those sculpted muscles, enough to cancel out any sex appeal he might have had.

“You stopped taking my calls.” His voice was deep and just as creepy as you might expect. As he spoke he removed the gloves he was wearing. He must have had them on to touch the silver.

“That’s a lie, Nix. I’ve never taken your calls. Not on purpose anyway.” His laughter gave me chills, even worse than the cold. “I was never in any danger from anyone besides you.”

“Perhaps. But I’ll only hurt you if you make me.”

“Did I make you do this? Why am I here?”

“To lure the one I want into my trap.”

Well, that was a shock. “I thought
I
was the one you wanted.”

He smiled again as he wound a lock of my hair around his finger. “I
do
want you. But my plans are for much greater things. You see, that call I placed, the last one you answered, it opened up a whole new world of possibilities.”

Holy shit. He was after Hud! His laugh was so wicked, I wondered if he was reading my mind. Could Velkans do that?

“Your expression says so much. For a vampire, you’re not very good at hiding your emotions. I had my suspicions about what the new Tarnakian leader was. I also knew that once he saw you, he could not resist.”

“That’s ridiculous. You had no way of knowing we would even meet.”

He shrugged. “After I got Kik’s men to steal your friend, it was pretty much a given.”

So, he was friends with the auctioneer that tricked D.

“Motherfucker.”

“I knew you were about to land on Tarnak. What
you
didn’t know was that I have contacts there. Kik couldn’t resist the prospect of a rare specimen like your Dr. Death. And you couldn’t help but rescue him. The rest was easy. You got close to him. I’ll bet you even know his name. And now he’ll come for you, just as soon as he realizes you’re in danger.”

Nix leaned forward until our faces touched, forehead to forehead. Even though the gesture was simple, his threat was clear.

“Just as soon as
you
send out the signal,” he finished.

I focused all of my energy on blocking Hud from my mind, to keep him from feeling my fear. If he knew what was happening, Nix was right, he’d be here. Hopefully, D and Morgan hadn’t already summoned him, because I was certain they were on the way.

“I won’t do it.”

Nix reached into a pouch at his belt and pulled out the necklace Hud had given me. I’d forgotten it was in my pocket when I left the ship.

“Even if he shows, you’ll never be able to control him.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure,” he said, running his fingers over the jewel. “Now, what will it take for you to tell me his name?”

*****

Lucky for me, Nix favored bribery over torture, at least as far as
I
was concerned. An hour later I’d been promised everything you could imagine, but now he was getting pissed.

“I told you, I won’t call him and my crew should be here soon. There’s nothing you can offer me that will change my mind.”

Nix growled and his dark eyes flashed red. “I’m finished with being polite, redhead. And those mental shields of yours will only last so long.”

Morgan was here, I could feel it. I tried not to let my expression show how relieved I was. Nix was about to leave the room, presumably to find torture equipment, when I heard an explosion outside. A traditional explosion was hard to accomplish on Velka, given its lack of oxygen.

Nix rounded on the door a second before it burst open. D floated into the room, his body glowing from the inside out. He was completely naked. Somehow I understood then why I’d found him that way so many years ago. Clothing restricted the flow of his energy.

“Your men are dead,” D said, his voice echoing against the stone walls. “Give us Vivian and we’ll leave you alive.”

“We’ll do this my way,” Nix said as he reached for the sword on his back, “and I won’t turn loose the armed guard.”

Morgan stepped into the room, his body was wrapped in electricity, his eyes aglow with its power. Something told me that the armed guard would be no match for an elemental wizard and whatever kind of weapon D was.

“Name your terms,” Ash said as he entered behind Morgan. I was glad to see they’d located the breathe masks. They’d been lost during our last inventory.

The expression on Nix’s face was nasty as he pointed his sword at Ashton. “You fight me for her.” He turned then to Morgan. “And you.”

His sword was no match for modern weapons, but this fight appeared to be based on principal. He might look outmatched, but Nix was one hell of a fighter. I was afraid I knew what he was trying to do, just from being familiar with Nix and his methods. He wanted to injure one of them badly enough to make me call Hud. He was planning to do something terrible enough to make me wish it away.

Ashton removed two small batons from his belt, extending them with a flick of his wrists. And just like that it was on. Metal clashed and sparks flew, even before Morgan swung his lightning rod. If he could touch Nix’s bare skin, Morgan could electrocute him. Unfortunately, Nix was evading his every attempt to make any such contact.

One second D was standing near the door, the next he was beside me. I blinked in astonishment.

“You can
teleport
?”

“Apparently so.” He offered me a smile so dazzling it would put even Morgan’s to shame. “It would appear that our new relationship has awakened some powers within me.”

The fight raged on while D went to work on the silver chains. I was free in a matter of minutes, but I was weakened by the direct contact of silver to my skin. The chains had left burn marks around my wrists. They’d be healed soon, but in the meantime, they hurt like hell.

D wrapped his arm around me for support and the moment we turned around it happened. Dark Dream came out of nowhere and threw two swords at Morgan’s feet. Morgan grabbed one and stabbed Nix through the heart. Nix pressed a button on the hilt of his sword, splitting it in two. A second later, Ash severed Nix’s head. As the Velkan leader’s body collapsed to the floor, I realized that with his last move he’d stabbed Ash in the side and Morgan in the chest.

I screamed; my own weakness was forgotten as I ran to them. Ash fell forward into my arms.

“Oh, my God.”

D reached for Morgan. “Help him,” he said, pointing to Ash. “I’m fine.”

Ashton was losing a lot of blood, he moaned as I lowered him to the floor. While I did this I glanced up at Morgan again.

“
Fine?!
You’ve got a sword through your chest!”

With one hand Morgan pulled the blade out and tossed it on the ground. I was too shocked to have much of a reaction. I just stared at him for a few seconds.

“I’ll explain later. Ash is dying.”

Ashton’s head was resting in my lap. I removed his cowl carefully, trying not to bump his oxygen mask. Without it, he’d likely pass out.

“The blade is through your lung,” I said, my vision beginning to blur with tears. “Ash, I can’t remove it without killing you.”

Despite what I’d said about learning to deal with Ash’s mortal life span, I wasn’t ready to see him go. He put his hand over mine, where it rested against his chest. He wasn’t trying to speak, something in his eyes told me he understood.

“If you die now, you’ll be a hero,” I said, my tears falling onto his face, “just like you wanted. You did it. You killed Nix. Velkans can live without his tyranny, but I can’t live without you. Please, Ash. Please let me save you.”

He squeezed my hand, but that wasn’t an answer.

“I promise not to wish you back if you die, if that’s what you want. But please don’t ask me to watch you die when I could save you. I can heal you without making you a vampire.”

He looked confused. “Wish me back?”

Oh shit. I hadn’t explained about Hud or anything else. With everything that had happened, I’d forgotten the way we’d all avoided Ash the night before. Guilt weighted heavily on my conscience. I had kept things from my closest friend and now I might never get a chance to share with him again.

“I’ll explain later. Will you let me help you?”

He hesitated and it felt like someone kicked me in the chest. It was Mark all over again. Even though Ash was conscious, I was just as powerless. I would not do anything to Ashton without his consent. My heart was breaking and there was nothing I could to about it.

“Yes.” His voice was barely audible. “Save me.”

“All right.”

My hands shook as I rested Ashton’s head back against the floor and moved so that I could lean over him more. According to my research, people had once used vampire blood to heal injuries. In small doses it would work, just so long as there wasn’t an exchange of blood.

“You’ll need to drink my blood.”

I felt better when Ashton didn’t flinch at this prospect. I lifted the breathe mask over his lips and checked his mouth to be sure he wasn’t bleeding before I continued. Then, I extended my fangs and bit my bottom lip.

“Drink,” I whispered against his lips.

At first Ashton was so weak that I was afraid I’d lose him anyway. But then he kissed me. He pulled my lip into his mouth, sucking gently and turning me on despite the circumstances.

“I need to pull this out,” I said, putting my hand on the hilt of the sword.

He nodded and I pulled the sword out quickly, tossing it aside and drowning Ash’s scream with my mouth. He pulled on my lip again, sucking to the point of pain. He drank my blood like the lifeline it was. Gradually, his skin became warmer and his wound began to close beneath my hand. I pulled back with a gasp, stopping him before he took too much. I licked my lips and felt the small bite already beginning to heal.

“Wow,” Bob said. “That’s probably the longest kiss I’ve ever seen.”

I don’t think I’d ever been more excited to hear his voice. I was so relieved to have my friends close and be free from Nix.

“Bob? Who the fuck is watching the ship?” Ash asked.

“Well, looks like he’s okay,” Bob said. “We’d better get the hell out of here. Nix’s niece Sereva is outside. Even though she’ll be glad to see her uncle gone, D just killed an awful lot of Velkans. There’s a crowd gathering that might turn nasty.”

D shrugged. “Now that I have emotions, I’ve got to learn to get a handle on them.”

I helped Ash to stand, put my arm around Morgan and together we limped outside to find Hud waiting. His long blue hair whipped about in the wind as he removed the hood of his dark cloak. It was the first time I’d seen Hud wearing more than his usual skirt. He had on tight-fitting black pants and a matching shirt. His attire contrasted well with his blue skin and when he reached for me, I almost fell against him. He wrapped me in his cloak and I held him tight, doing all I could to absorb his warmth.

“What the hell is going on?” Ash said.

I could sympathize. It isn’t every day you see a seven-foot blue man, built like a god.

“You might want this back,” Morgan said as he gave the necklace to Hud. He must have taken it off of Nix while I healed Ash.

“I’ve spoken with Sereva,” Hud said, turning to face Ashton. “You’re her new hero. But we should be going.”

“How the fuck did you know what to tell her? You weren’t here,” Ash said.

Hud smiled and my heart fluttered. “I’ll explain aboard your ship.”

“What about
your
ship?”

“He doesn’t need one,” Morgan said.

Once we were back aboard Harsh Reality, I left Ash with Hud so that he could explain things as he saw fit. What I was most interested in was a moment alone with Morgan. I followed him to the sick bay and when he took off his armor I felt weak.

“What the hell, Morgan? Let me help you.”

I pressed my hands against his chest, examining the wound. His armor would stop a lot of things, but not a sharp blade.

“You’ve reopened the scar above your heart. Care to explain to me why you’re not dead?”