The cold, hard concrete smelled like bleach mingled with the aluminum scent of his own blood, but Paul was relieved to wake up face down on the cement, as opposed to strapped to an operating table or fastened to the wall. He imagined his legs hadn’t been able to hold him when they’d brought him back to his cell, so they’d dumped him here. The pain throughout his body was still unbearable, but his left hand and his abdomen hurt more than anything else.
He was a Healer, though not a very powerful one. His father had dabbled in optometry before he Transformed himself. Afterward, he’d done a little bit of work on the side when he wasn’t actively chasing down Vampires, which Paul had observed and taken an interest in. He supposed that explained his minor abilities when it came to putting people back together. But he was nothing like some of the more powerful Healers he’d heard of on the team. Which was unfortunate at the moment because at this pace, he’d be completely put back together some time next October.
Actually, that wasn’t entirely true. Because the wounds had been inflicted by a Vampire, he would naturally heal himself simply because he was a Guardian, even if he wasn’t also a Healer. It would take a long time, but the fact that he could add a bit of his own extra energy to it might speed it up slightly. He didn’t think this was the end, however. Getting comfortable now would only set him up for disappointment when the insane doctor with the toolbox of mayhem came back.
Paul closed his eyes and focused on trying to ease the pain in his body one area at a time. Taking deep breaths, he concentrated on his stomach. The doctor had used a drill to remove who knows what from his intestinal tract and other organs. Why he hadn’t simply used a scalpel, the Guardian wasn’t sure, but he was fairly certain it had to do more with the unbalanced state of the madman with the crazy hair than any necessity. As he thought about patching that part of his body back together, Paul suddenly had a feeling he wasn’t alone.
It was a strange sensation, not as if he were being watched by his captors, but rather that someone was inside of his head. As if she were next to him, he heard a voice whisper, “It’s okay, cousin. We’re coming for you. We will find you. Just hang on.”
A sigh of relief breezed through his open mouth. Like the whisper of a mother into her child’s ear, the sound of her was a comfort unlike anything he’d experience since he was a little boy. He had no idea where the thought had come from, but he was inclined to believe her. What other choice did he have? Wrapped in the warm blanket of hope, Paul began to knit himself back together again until the door creaked open.
Without opening his eyes, he knew who was there and what he wanted. In a voice bordering on the far side of insanity, he snarled, “Ready for round two?”
Paul began to cry.
* * *
“I think it’s a great idea.”
Cadence stared at the man she loved in awe, unable to believe her ears. “You do?”
“Yes. It’s brilliant. I’ll get right on it.”
She cocked her head to the side and studied him. “Did you already think of it? Have you already started moving them, and you’re just trying to make me feel smart?”
Aaron gave her a sly smile. “How was your conversation with Jamie?”
Fighting the urge to smack him, she narrowed her eyes for a second. At least she could be satisfied knowing she’d also thought of it, even if it had been about the same time he did. “It was good. He told me about Ellie.”
His smile morphed into something else, something fond but sad. “I’m glad you finally got to hear about her.”
“You knew her well, didn’t you?”
“I did. She was pretty amazing. It’s really too bad….”
Cadence didn’t see the point in asking him to finish the sentence when it was obvious what he was going to say. Nor did she feel it was necessary to ask him if he thought Ashley resembled the deceased woman. She wanted him thinking about Ashley as little as possible. She cleared her throat and changed the subject. “With Cass asleep, it’s been a while since we’ve gotten an update on the Vampire movements. Do you think they’ve moved much?”
“At the rate they’ve been going, most of the target cities will be within attack range in a day, maybe two. But I don’t think Holland is ready yet.”
“Why do you say that?” She adjusted in the airplane seat so that she was angled a little further away from him. She liked to look in his eyes as he spoke; she liked to look into his eyes any chance she got.
“I’m not sure. Holland’s invasion of the nightclub in Paris the night you destroyed her was about as rash as she’s ever been. She’s usually a lot more calculated than that. Of course, if she’s listening to Carter, that could cause her to act more quickly. He’s never been a patient man.”
Cadence remembered the look in Aaron’s eyes she’d detected during their meeting when he’d mentioned Carter. There had been something about the way he’d brought up the subject of Carter’s last scheme, which had to have been the Eidolon Festival, since that’s where he died, that had made a question mark light up in her head. “Is there something more about Carter you need to tell me?” Her voice was quiet, and part of her hoped he wouldn’t tell her anything at all. There’d been plenty of instances where he’d told her a half truth or not enough information in the past that had left her shaken and angry, and she wasn’t sure she could handle anything else right now. For example, he’d allowed her to believe for months that she’d had a choice in Transforming, only for her to realize at a later time that once the process begins, it’s almost impossible to stop. Even if she’d chosen to go back to college and become a teacher, she still likely would’ve become a Hunter, if an inactive one. He hadn’t given her that impression at all, and later he said it was because he wanted her to choose this life. That was just one example, though, and now she waited with bated breath for him to tell her what it was about Carter that had his eyes shifting whenever he spoke of the first Vampire Cadence had killed.
