Chapter 7

Opening her eyes, she quickly closed them again. The pain in her head intensified, making her groan out loud. What the hell? Taking a few deep breaths, she explored her aches. It felt like her heart had moved up into her skull, pounding with a steady throb. She didn’t feel nauseous now that she closed her eyes again. It hurt to swallow, and it was that realization that brought back the whole incident. Someone had tried to choke her, literally choke her, and then smacked her brain off a tree.

“Remi?”

She opened her eyes to see Caitlyn sitting on the bed beside her. She had red-rimmed eyes and looked worried. “Hey,” Remi said, her voice was so hoarse she wasn’t sure if the words were understandable.

“Oh my god, you’re awake. I’ve been losing my mind sitting here.” She leaned so close Remi could make out the size of her pupils. “Don’t ever do that to me again,” Cait whispered, her voice cracking with emotion.

“I’ll try,” she tried to swallow and winced. “Drink?”

Caitlyn moved out of her line of sight, and Remi didn’t dare try to move her head.

“Next time you wanna be a ninja, let me know. I’ll back you up.” Emery’s face appeared in front of hers.

“What time is it?” She really needed that drink.

“Sunrise in a half hour.” He brushed the hair off her forehead, his eyes moving over her face. “I was ready to camp out in your closet if you didn’t come around.”

“I was hoping there was room for two in there.” Attis leaned over Emery’s shoulder.

“You guys should be in the basement,” she whispered, forcing each word out through the pain.

Attis knelt beside Emery. “I didn’t find him, Remi. Any idea what he, I’m assuming it was a he by the size of those fingerprints on your neck, was?”

Closing her eyes, she took a few slow breaths and tried to remember all the little details. “Wore gloves. Was trying something with eyes or mind…” She coughed, moaning when it burned her throat.

“That doesn’t narrow it down much.” He gave her an uneasy look. “I’ll see what I can find out.” He stood up and put his hand on Emery’s shoulder. “Come on, kid, you’re going to drop like a stone in a few more minutes, and I’d prefer not to carry you down as the sun rises. Bad enough that Pascal is going to come racing in as the horizon lights up.”

Emery leaned down a few inches from her face. “I’ll be back up as soon as I can move.”

“Okay.”

He knelt there for a few more moments, his eyes burning into hers like he was imprinting her image into his memory. “Go, Emery,” she croaked. Reluctantly he stood up and turned away. As soon as he moved, Caitlyn was standing there holding a cup. Remi didn’t care what the contents were, only that it was wet.

“Let’s get you more upright.” Darien appeared behind Caitlyn. He knelt on the bed and leaned over her. “Just roll slowly onto your back, and I’ll take it from there.”

Wincing the whole time, and it felt like a very long time, she rolled onto her back. Just that slight movement brought tears to her eyes.

“Pascal was afraid to give you his blood when you were out, not knowing what it would do.”

Pain was shooting up through her shoulder into the side of her head. “Okay,” she blew out a slow breath and waited for the pains to settle.

“I’ll go get him if you want to try now,” he whispered, watching her eyes.

“Later.”

Nodding, he leaned closer and wrapped his arms around her, lifting her gently into his chest. “Grab the pillows, Cait.”

With the arm that didn’t hate her, she gripped the front of his shirt as he lifted and slid her body up onto the pillows. When he released her, she realized that what had felt like she was sitting meant she reclined on the pillows, only raised a few inches. Just enough that she’d be able to take a drink with help.

Cradling her head in one of his big hands, he held the cup to her lips. “Take it slow. Swallowing is going to hurt.”

It took a lot of energy to manage to take two small sips of the drink. Feeling like she’d just run a mile, she relaxed into his hold so he would lower her back to the soft pillows. “How long was I out?” Now her voice just sounded hoarse instead of squeaking.

“A few hours.” He sat down and looked down at her, Cait standing right behind him.

“You should go get some sleep,” she tried to smile and then realized the side of her face was swollen. Lifting her hand, she touched it. She probably looked like someone beat the hell out of her. Oh wait, they had.

Cait leaned down and kissed the side that didn’t hurt. “I’m going. I called Nadine so she could cover my shift if I’m not up in time.”

“Okay. I’ll be fine,” Remi assured her. “Get some rest.”

Darien sat there looking at her after Cait left. After a few minutes, he sighed. “Kyran is here. He wants details.” Clearing his throat, he glanced across the room. “He hasn’t called it in because Randell would show up.”

Swallowing, she winced. “Buy him breakfast for that.”

Darien gave her a half smile. “I’ll be sure to do that.” He turned and nodded to someone.

Kyran came into her view. “Hell of a thing to get yourself attacked on my first night here.”

Coughing, she closed her eyes for a second before trying to speak. “That was rude of me, sorry.”

Crossing his arms over his chest, he leaned against the wall. “Any other details besides what you told Attis?”

“No, not really.” She huffed out a breath. “I couldn’t see his face.”

“Did they say anything to you?”

“No.” taking a deep breath, she released it carefully, testing to see if it hurt. “They weren’t happy when I told them their supernatural gobbly-guck didn’t work on me.” Darien gave her a hard look. “I was hoping they’d run after that.” She took another breath. “Not beat me against the tree.”

Kyran’s eyes moved over her face. “Do you know of anyone that has it in for you?” He studied her face some more. “How many times did they hit you?”

Closing her eyes, she inhaled through her nose. It hurt to breathe through her mouth. Opening them, she looked back up at him. “Once.”

Darien’s jaw clenched a few times. “No one has a problem with Remi.”

Kyran nodded a few times. “Definitely a para to do that with one strike.”

That? How bad did she look? Her eyes sought Darien’s, asking him the question.

He turned to Kyran. “Hand me my phone.”

Kyran moved out of her line of sight again, but there was no way she was moving her head to see where he was going. Before she could think about it, he was back with the phone. Darien turned and looked at her as he held it against his ear.

“You still able to come up here for a few?” He nodded. “Barely,” more nodding. “It’s worth a try.” Hanging up, he dropped the phone and looked back down at her. “Pascal will be here in a sec; he wants to try a little blood and see if it helps.”

She couldn’t possibly feel worse, she decided. “Okay.”

“Try a little?” Kyran asked.

Darien didn’t take his eyes off her as he answered. “His blood. It usually heals normals, but we’re not quite sure what else Remi has in there, so we don’t know how it will work.”

Kyran glanced at her and then back to him. “That’s a bit risky, isn’t it?”

Darien turned, and she wasn’t sure what his look conveyed, but Kyran nodded abruptly. “I’ll go so I don’t have to put that on my report.” He glanced at his watch. “I’ll be back by mid-morning.”

“See you then.” Darien’s voice was harsh.

Remi searched his face. “Be nice.”

He snorted. “That was my nice.” Rubbing a hand over his face, he glared, even though his expression was softer than he wanted to convey. “You just took ten years off my life, sweetheart. I’m allowed to be pissy.”

“Is this a bad time?” Pascal came into view. His eyes moved over her face briefly. “Your quite colorful, Rem.”

“Bad?” She asked, moving her eyes enough to look from him back to Darien a few times.

“Bad enough.” He moved around to the end of the bed and sat down on the other side of her. “Let’s give this a try, I can withstand the dawn, but it was a hell of a night, and I need some solitude.”

She’d never tasted blood before and wasn’t sure if starting with an ageless vampire was something she really wanted to do. “Worst case scenario?”

Pascal paused with his wrist in front of his mouth. “You become a winged thing and start flapping around the room.”

She gave him a steady stare.

He sighed. “In my estimation, nothing will happen.” He shrugged, “which will be hell on my ego if that’s the case.”

Remi wasn’t sure if it was because she was fuzzy-headed or if he was that tired, but she could have sworn he had a slight brogue now. “Just enough to kick-start your healing, okay?”

He gave her a fanged grin, his eyes flashing for a second before he inclined his head slightly. She winced when he bit into his wrist, but he didn’t even hesitate, just ripped into his flesh and held the opened wound toward her lips.

Darien moved closer and lifted her head again.

“Just a bit, lass.”

She swallowed, making a yuck face with his wrist still against her mouth. The taste wasn’t as bad as she’d thought it would be. It was the idea that she was drinking blood. Blech.

“Take another before it closes,” Pascal coaxed softly.

She did as he said and then swallowed and released his wrist. Licking her lips, she looked up at him. “Lass?’

He looked at his wrist for a moment and then lifted his long lashes to look at her. Slowly he raised his finger to his lips. “Shh.” He grinned at her.

Someday she was going to ask, and she knew he realized it too, but for now, she just blew out a breath and assessed how she felt. Overall, she didn’t feel any different. Everything still hurt.

“Get some rest, and hopefully, you’ll be on the mend by the time you wake up.” He stood up and nodded briefly at Darien before leaving.

“I knew he was Scottish,” she whispered to Darien.

He grinned. “I don’t care if he’s the pope right now, just as long as that helps you.” He touched her chin lightly and turned her head so he could look at the swollen side. “You should try to rest some more.”

“Can I have more to drink first?” She wanted the taste of blood gone.

Darien helped her take a few more sips and then move back to her side. Pascal’s blood hadn’t made her feel any worse, which she was thankful for, but it also didn’t feel like she was any better. Her shoulder and neck were still throbbing; her head wasn’t feeling great either.

“Get some rest. I’ll be right here.” Darien stood up.

“Who is going to run the café if we’re both here?”

He chuckled. “The staff will just have to step up for one day.”

“I hurt, Dare. My shoulder is on fire, and my head is pounding. I doubt I’ll sleep at all.” She exhaled slowly, closed her eyes, and shifted as much as she could without moving her shoulder.

When she felt the bed move behind her, she opened them. The heat from Darien’s large body was comforting, and she relaxed against him as he moved close.

“Do you mind talking to me for a few minutes until I fall asleep?”

He brushed the hair back from her neck then she felt her pillow move as he lowered his head. “What would you like me to talk about?” His hand moved up and down her side in a lazy caress that she found soothing.

“How old are you, Dare? I don’t think you’ve aged since I got here.”

She could feel his breath against her neck as he while silent for a few minutes.

“Weres age a lot slower than humans.” He moved his hand in a slow circle at her lower back. “We grow at a normal rate until our late teens and then slow down…”

“Weres are born? I thought they only turned because they were bitten.” She closed her eyes. Between the motion of his hand and his warmth, she felt more and more relaxed.

“Both, actually. A simple nip won’t turn anyone, not like the movies portray. A turning from a bite is no accident. Only an elder can turn someone.”

She loved how soft his voice was. The rumbling in his chest was against her shoulder blades. “Were you born this way then?”

“Yes.” He moved his hand to her lower arm and began more gentle caresses.

“So, I guess you’re a pureblood.” She smiled, picturing the pride on his face.

“I am.”

Typical Darien, she thought, have to drag every word out of him. “So, how old are you?”

“You’re what, twenty-five now?” His fingertips moved up her arm to her shoulder, somehow soothing the ache away. “I’m roughly three times your age, Álainn.”

She opened her eyes, or eye mostly. “Wow. You’re one sexy geriatric, Dare.”

He chuckled, his hot breath running across her neck. “I can assure you that none of me is geriatric. For my kind, I’m in my prime.”

She attempted a grin, but it hurt too much. “If you say so.”

“I say so.” His tone was deeper but still playful.

“You should take more time off, go out more.” It was too much work to keep one eye open, so she closed it again. She could feel his heartbeat against her back.

“I like working.”

“Don’t you get lonely? I’ve never seen any of your kind around here.”

He was silent for a long time, his hand continuing its mesmerizing patterns up and back down again. “I walked away from my own,” he said, almost whispering. “For the most part, my own kind believes it’s okay to mindlessly kill, especially during the full moons.” She felt his lips brush against the back of her neck. “I don’t.”

“You’re such a good man, Dare.” Letting out a long breath, she felt the throbbing in her head ease a little. Her throat still hurt, and talking probably wasn’t the smartest thing, but Darien rarely answered questions. “You’re lucky you know what you are, that you know how long you’ll live. I don’t even know that.” She licked her dry lips. “I mean, am I human and will live to somewhere between forty and ninety, or am I more?” His lips brushed against the side of her neck. “So, do you have one of those destined mates out there? I think all paras do.”

“I do.”

His hand brushed the back of her neck, the movement easing any tension. “You’re lucky there too. I guess all paras are. Humans, not so much. I wish we did, have a mate. It would stop all the mistakes, heartbreak, and depression.” She exhaled as his fingers stroked again. “What happens if your mate isn’t a werewolf? I mean, that happens, right? What if yours is a specie that doesn’t live as long as you?” She hissed out a breath when his teeth brushed against the tender skin at the back of her neck. Strangely enough, that felt good to her. “I guess that’s the flaw with the whole destined mate thing.”

“If I,” his breath brushed over her neck, “any of my race find a mate from another specie, when they mate, their lifelines link together.”

She felt the muscles in her shoulder relax. “That’s awesome, Dare.”

His lips brushed against her neck again. “Which part? What I’m doing or the mate link?”

Sighing, she relaxed back against him more. “Both. Between the blood and your warmth, I think my headache is easing.”

His mouth brushed over the back of her neck again. “Just try to get some sleep. I’ll stay right here.”

“Thank you, Darien” —she leaned back into him— “for finding me outside.”

“I was heading out there to sit with you.” He lightly wrapped his arm around her waist and held her.

“You’re always there for me.” A heavy feeling set into her eyelids and muscles.

“Always, sweetheart.”