Refuge (Relentless Book 2)

WHAT?” I LOOKED from Nikolas to Tristan to Roland, and they all nodded at me in turn. Disbelief flooded me, followed by a spark of hope. “Human? He’s human . . . and alive?”

“He smells human to us,” Peter said from behind Roland.

I gripped Roland’s arm because he was closest. “You’ve seen him?”

“Ow. Demon strength, remember.” He rubbed his arm. “We’ve seen him a few times. And you should know that he – ”

“Where is he? I want to see him.” I pushed aside the blanket and sat up. Dizziness assailed me, and I would have toppled out of bed if Nikolas had not been there to catch me.

“Hold on. You’re too weak to go anywhere.” He held me with gentle firmness. I struggled against him, but it was no use.

“Let me go! I have to see Nate.” Twice, I’d thought I lost Nate; first when he’d arrived as a vampire and then when I killed him – or believed I had. And now to find out he was miraculously alive . . . “Let go of me, Nikolas, or I swear I’ll never speak to you again.” They were harsh words and I didn’t mean them, but I was too upset to take them back.

“You never did like to be told what to do.”

My head whipped in the direction of the door, but my view was blocked by Tristan. It didn’t matter because I’d know that voice anywhere. “Nate?” I said in a small voice.

Tristan moved aside, and I watched breathlessly as Nate approached the bed. He wore a smile that warmed his familiar green eyes, and all traces of malice were gone from his face. Nikolas stepped back to let Nate take his place beside the bed. Nate laid a hand over mine, and I saw tears sparkling in his eyes. “Hey, kiddo.”

I reached blindly for him. He wrapped me in strong arms, and we clung to each other like we were each afraid the other would disappear if we let go. “You’re really here,” I cried into his shirt. “I thought I lost you.”

“I thought I lost you, too.”

“How is this – ?” The words caught in my throat as I suddenly became aware of what I was seeing. “Nate, you’re walking!”

His laugh melted the last of the ice that had filled my chest the moment he’d stood up from his wheelchair. “Tristan says my spine was healed when the vampire demon possessed me. And then you killed the demon.”

I fell back against the pillow and rubbed my temple. “I don’t understand any of this.”

“What do you remember?” Tristan asked.

The healer spoke for the first time since I woke up. “Sara has been unconscious for two days, and this is obviously overtaxing her. Perhaps we should let her rest before – ”

“No. I’ve been asleep long enough.” I tried to sit up again, and Roland hit a lever to raise the head of the bed to a sitting position. Once I was comfortable with an extra pillow behind me, I tugged on Nate’s hand until he sat beside me. I didn’t think I would ever be able to let him out of my sight again.

When I looked away from him, I saw that Tristan, Roland, and Peter had pulled up chairs for themselves and Nikolas stood near the head of the bed. The healer left, and I noticed the lone figure standing quietly by the window.

“Desmund? I thought you hated coming downstairs.”

Pushing away from the wall, he sauntered over, one corner of his mouth lifted in a haughty smirk. “Well, they would not accommodate me by moving you upstairs, so I was forced to spend time in this depressing ward.” He picked up my hand and put it to his lips. “Welcome back, little one. And if you worry us like that again, I will lock you up myself for the next fifty years.”

“Get in line,” Nikolas muttered.

Great, all I needed was another male in my life who thought he knew what was best for me. I didn’t know whether to scowl at the pair of them or be amazed that they were in agreement on something. Unfortunately, with my penchant for attracting trouble, I’d probably see how serious their threats were sooner rather than later.

Desmund smiled kindly and released my hand. “I will go and let you catch up with your family and friends. Come see me when you are feeling better.” I started to say that he didn’t have to leave, but he was gone before I could get the words out.

I looked at Nate who was talking quietly to Tristan. He’s really here. Two days ago, I thought my heart would never be whole again, and yet here it was, bursting with happiness.

“Sara, do you feel up to telling us what happened?” Tristan asked. “What you did has never been done before, at least it’s never been recorded in our history. I don’t know where to begin to try to understand it.”

“I didn’t know I could do that. I knew I could kill demons, but I never dreamed it was possible to make a vampire human again.

I toyed nervously with the edge of the blanket and met Nate’s gaze. “I was so upset and angry about what happened to you. I went down there to kill you, not to save you.”

He put a hand over mine to stop my fidgeting. “I know,” he said without a hint of anger or bitterness. “I remember everything, especially the horrible things I . . . the vampire said to you. I know you did what you had to do.”

“What exactly did you do?” Roland prodded.

“Like I said, I planned to kill the vampire. The first time I hit him with my power it was enough to knock him out. While I was connected to him I could see the vamhir demon attached to Nate’s heart.” I heard Nate inhale sharply, but I couldn’t look at him and see the horror on his face. “I was going to hit it again, but then I heard its thoughts. Actually, I think they were its memories.”

Tristan put up a hand to interrupt me. “You understood what it was saying?”

“Bits and pieces.”

He frowned. “Only our oldest scholars can understand demon tongue, and they spend centuries learning it.”

“But we can understand our Mori demons.”

“The Mori demon was chosen to create our race because it is compatible with humans. Our demons are born inside us, and we learn to communicate with them as we grow.”

I looked from him to Nikolas. “You mean my Mori talks in a whole other language and I didn’t even know it?” Nikolas nodded, and I fell silent while I tried to process this new knowledge. There was so much I had to learn about who and what I was.

Peter leaned forward. “What happened after you heard the demon?”

“Then I saw – ” I looked at Nate. I needed him to understand why I did what I did. “I saw your memories of me. Then I saw you being changed and the pain you went through. I couldn’t let you suffer anymore. I held your heart, and I felt it stop. I thought you died.”

“I think I did die, but then I felt something pulling at me. It was so bright and warm that I honestly thought I must be looking at an angel.” He wore an expression of someone who has seen something so wondrous they cannot put it into words. “Then heat spread through me and it got so hot I thought I was going to burn from the inside out. The next thing I knew, I woke up on the floor of the cell with Tristan standing over me, looking like he was going to finish the job.”

“I almost did,” Tristan admitted soberly. “But then I saw his eyes, and I knew something was different, especially after what I’d witnessed.”

“What did you see?” I asked him.

“We unlocked the door, but before Nikolas and I could get to you, you sent out enough energy to throw us across the room. You and Nate were inside some kind of energy sphere that glowed so brightly it was impossible to look at directly. We couldn’t get within five feet of it without it pushing us back. I’ve seen many things in my life, but nothing like that.”

“You didn’t actually see what I did to Nate?”

“No. You were like that for a minute, and then the sphere disappeared and you both fell to the floor. Whatever it was, it melted the irons on Nate’s arms and legs without leaving a mark on him.”

“A minute?” I leaned back against the pillows, stunned. “It felt like it was a lot longer than that.”

“Yes, it did,” Nikolas said in a tight voice, and I saw Nate give him an appraising look. Nate and I had so much to talk about, and I could only imagine what he would say when he heard about me and Nikolas. Nate liked Nikolas, but I had a feeling he wasn’t going to be too pleased about the whole bond thing.

Roland tugged on my hair playfully. “You learned some new tricks since the last time we saw you.”

“This makes what she did to you look like nothing,” Peter said with a grin, and Roland nodded vigorously.

“No kidding.”

I let out a small laugh, and Roland said, “It’s good to hear that again.”

“It feels good.” How could I not be happy? Nate was back and I was surrounded by people I cared about. The Master knew I was alive, but I was too happy to worry about that now. Nate was safe here, and the Master could not hurt him or use him against me again.

I tugged on Nate’s hand. “You’re staying here until they get the Master, right?” He had argued so strongly against coming to live here when Nikolas offered it to him back in New Hastings that I was afraid he would refuse now.

He smiled. “I guess I can write as well here as I can anywhere else. Of course, I’ll need to get my computer and things from home.”

“And don’t forget Daisy and – ” I broke off when it hit me that I still had no idea if our pets were even alive. “Nate, where are Daisy and Oscar? You didn’t . . . ?”

He wore a horrified expression. “No! They ran away as soon as I went home after I was attacked.”

“They’re fine,” Peter said. “Dad and Uncle Brendan went to check out your place and they saw Oscar outside. He wouldn’t come near them so Aunt Judith put out some food for him.”

“And Mom took Daisy to our place,” Roland added.

“Thanks,” I told them hoarsely.

Tristan stood. “Why don’t we let Sara and Nate have some time alone together? I’m sure they have a lot to talk about.”

“Wait. What about Ben? Is he okay?” I asked, remembering the warrior I’d knocked out.

“Ben is fine, although he is a bit put out about being taken down so easily. He understands you were very distraught and not thinking straight.” Tristan smiled, but there was disapproval in his words. I had a feeling that once I was better, I was going to get a lecture about using my power on another Mohiri.

I nodded, chastened. “I’ll apologize to him as soon as I see him.”

“I think Ben would rather you not bring it up again,” Nikolas said with a wry smile. “Maybe I should be the one to apologize to him for helping you hone that particular skill in the first place.”

Tristan’s gaze flicked between me and Nikolas. “Perhaps I should learn exactly what goes on in your training sessions. But right now, Sara needs to rest and talk to Nate. We’ll discuss her training in a few days.”

“Can I go back to my room? We’d be a lot more comfortable there.”

“You should stay here, close to the healers, for a few more hours,” Nikolas said before Tristan could respond. I recognized his determined tone, and for once I didn’t want to argue with him.

“Okay, but only for a few hours,” I conceded. “Then I need to get out of this ward. I’ve spent way too much time here the last month.”

“I’ve given Nate the apartment next to mine,” Tristan told me. “It has two large bedrooms, so you can move in with him if you want to.”

While I wanted to be close to Nate, the thought of sharing the same floor with him, Tristan, and Nikolas was too much for me. Under their constant watch, I’d never have any freedom. Besides, I liked having my own space and being near Jordan and the others. And what would I do with the imps if I moved?

I looked at Nate. “If you don’t mind, I’d like to stay with the other trainees. We’ll see each other all the time anyway.”

He nodded and gave me a knowing smile. If anyone knew how much I liked my privacy, it was Nate.

Roland and Peter were reluctant to leave until Nate told them they could have me after dinner. I grumbled that they made me sound like a toy, and they all laughed. The boys left talking about what was on the menu for lunch, and they were stoked when Tristan told them they could request steak if they wanted. Was it really only a few months ago my werewolf friends couldn’t imagine associating with the Mohiri? And now they were visiting a Mohiri stronghold and eating meals with them every day.

Nikolas was the last to leave, and I suddenly felt shy being alone in the same room with him and Nate, like bringing home a boy for the first time. Only Nikolas was no boy and I didn’t know where to begin to describe our relationship to Nate.

“I’ll be close if you need anything.” He leaned over me, and my stomach did a little flip. But he only touched his lips to my forehead. “Later, you and I are going to talk about what will happen if you ever pull something like that again.” Straightening, he nodded to Nate and left.

Nate raised an eyebrow at me, and I let out a heavy sigh. We had a lot to catch up on.

“You might as well sit down. This could take a while.”

* * *

“So, you only found out a few months ago that your two best friends were werewolves?” Jordan looked at Roland and Peter who were sprawled out on my bed next to me. “And you two had no idea what Sara was?”

I laughed because I knew how odd it must sound to not know your two best friends were werewolves. “Werewolves are very good at hiding their secrets, and even I thought I was human until I met Nikolas.”

“Don’t they smell like dog or something when they get wet?”

“Jordan,” I scolded, and her mouth twitched. The three of them had been making little digs like that at each other all day, and I was getting tired of playing referee.

“And then you found out you are half undine, which is why you can do all the freaky shit you do, and how you were able to make your uncle human again?” I nodded, and she swore. “Half demon, half Fae. That is messed up. No wonder you didn’t tell anyone.”

“I wanted to tell you. I really did.” I found out yesterday that my secret was no longer a secret thanks to my miraculous feat with Nate. People who thought I was a little odd before openly stared at me now, and more than one conversation stopped when I walked into a room. Apparently, Tristan had called everyone together in the dining hall last night to dispel any rumors and have given them an abbreviated version of the truth. I was glad I didn’t have to hide what I was anymore, but I could do without the instant celebrity status.

Jordan waved a hand. “No, I get it. I’d probably want to keep something like that to myself, too.”

“I guess now we know why the vampires want you so bad,” Roland said. “If you can make them human again, they must be shaking in their boots.”

“No kidding.” Peter sat up. “My dad says there is nothing that scares a vampire more than mortality.”

Those who hunt you will ultimately give you the power to become the thing they fear the most.

The Hale witch’s prediction had not been about my ability to kill vampires, but my ability to make them mortal. But the vampires didn’t give me that power; I was born this way. Wasn’t I?

I remembered what Aine had said to me the day we met by the lake. We were unsure of how your body would react to the vampire blood it absorbed. Aine thought the cold sensation in my chest was a side effect of the vampire blood in my system, but what if that wasn’t the only side effect? What if Eli’s blood had changed me somehow and made it possible not only for me to understand vamhir demons but to restore a vampire’s humanity? But the Master could not possibly have known this would happen to me.

“If the Master ever finds out Nate is human again, he’ll know what I can do and he’ll go after everyone I care about. I don’t want anything to happen to you guys.”

Roland plumped up the pillow under his head. “Don’t worry about us. Vamps would be nuts to mess with a pack as big as ours.”

“How big is your pack?” Jordan asked.

“There are forty-five of us in New Hastings, but we have family spread out across Maine,” Peter answered. “About a hundred and ninety of us in all.”

“Biggest pack in the US,” Roland added proudly.

Jordan leaned her arms on the counter in my kitchenette where she had been raiding my small refrigerator. “So, do you guys have to worry about fleas and ticks?”

“Jordan!”

“What? It’s a valid question. They do have fur half the time.”

I shook my head at her, and she shrugged. “How often will I get a chance to ask a werewolf questions?”

Roland ignored her question. “We haven’t seen much of Nate today. How is he doing with all of this?”

“He seems okay, but I think it’s going to take him a while to take it all in.” Yesterday, Nate and I had talked for hours. He told me about the female vampire, Ava Bryant, who had approached him, posing as a reporter from New York. It wasn’t hard for the beautiful vampire to compel him to go with her. He’d never met her Master, but her love for the other vampire had passed to Nate when she made him. I’d told him over and over how sorry I was for what he went through until he ordered me to stop apologizing. He said it would be different here, but the whole bachelor pad thing wasn’t working for him anyway and now he would be near me.

He had been more interested in my life here, more particularly, what was going on between me and Nikolas. Unsurprisingly, he was not happy to learn about the whole bond thing and he said I was way too young to commit to someone. I had to reassure him that I wasn’t jumping into anything. I told him Nikolas understood my feelings and we were taking it slow. That seemed to mollify Nate a little, although he did say he and Nikolas were going to have a man-to-man talk. No amount of pleading on my part would dissuade him.

Nikolas stopped by last night and today to see how I was doing, but for the most part, he was giving me space to be with Nate and my friends. We hadn’t been alone together since our moment by the river before Roland and Peter arrived, and I often found myself wondering where he was and what he was doing. When I talked to him today he said he would see me tonight, and I got butterflies whenever I thought about being alone with him again.

“Nate will be fine,” Roland assured me. “He can write anywhere, so it’s not like he’s giving up that.”

I brightened. “That’s true.” I got off the bed and logged into my laptop, hoping to see an email from David. One of the first things I’d done when I got back to my room last night was ask him to find what he could about a female vampire named Ava Bryant. Tristan had his people searching for her, too, and I’d already made him swear to bring her in alive if he found her. I had a very personal score to settle with the vampire who had tried to take Nate from me.

A new mail notification popped up just as someone knocked on the door. I went to answer the door and was surprised when Michael entered my room, wide-eyed and out of breath.

“Sara, I’m glad I found you,” he panted, ignoring everyone else. “Sahir sent me to get you.”

“Is it Minuet again?”

“No, it’s the hellhounds. They got out again and took off into the woods.”

“What?” I shoved my feet into a pair of boots. “How the hell did they get out?” I’d taken Roland and Peter to meet them a few hours ago, and I was careful to lock their cage as I always did. And no one besides Sahir and I ever went near them or had keys to their cage.

“I don’t know, but they’re on the loose,” Michael said fearfully. “They wouldn’t hurt anyone, would they?”

“No, of course not,” I replied sharply as I grabbed my coat. Would they? The hellhounds behaved when they were with me, but they weren’t exactly house pets.

I hurried to the door and turned to look at the others. “You guys stay here. I’ll take care of it and be back as soon as I can.”

Roland and Peter were already off the bed. “Screw that,” Roland said, pulling on his boots. “You’re not going to run around in the woods alone.”

Jordan stood and darted out the door. “Where are you going?” I called after her.

“To get my coat.”

Michael left the room, and I followed him. “You guys really don’t have to come,” I told Roland and Peter. “Nothing will hurt me with Hugo and Woolf around.”

“Not like we have anything better to do,” Peter replied as he entered Roland’s room and grabbed their coats.

Jordan came out of her room and shut her door. “Come on, people. Let’s go round up Sara’s little doggies before they eat someone.”

The five of us raced down the stairs, nearly running over two people on the way. Outside, it was a cold, clear night, and the full moon cast a soft bluish glow over the day-old snow on the ground. Our combined breath fogged the air around us as we started across the grounds toward the woods.

I turned to Michael. “Which way did they go?”

He pointed to a spot, and I saw it was the same place we usually entered the woods when I took them for walks. They were most likely following my scent. Still, it was strange they should go that way when my scent was probably a lot stronger between the menagerie and the main building.

I stopped at the edge of the woods and strained to see through the darkness. The thick branches blocked most of the moonlight, and I could barely make out the ghostly gleam of snow on the ground. “Hugo! Woolf!” I called, but there was no answering bark. They could be halfway to the lake by now. I hoped they didn’t hurt one of the sentries patrolling the woods.

Groaning, I turned toward the menagerie. “We’re going to need a flashlight.”

“Here, take mine.” Michael pulled a short black flashlight from his pocket and handed it to me. I flicked it on and the powerful beam slid over the ground, cutting through the inky blackness beneath the trees.

“Let’s go,” I told them. “And don’t blame me if you freeze your butts off.”

I entered the woods and headed in the direction of the lake with the four of them behind me. Less than fifty yards in, I spotted large footprints in the snow, and I knew they belonged to the hellhounds. The only problem was I couldn’t tell if the impressions were fresh or from our walk this afternoon. I looked for my boot prints but couldn’t see any. That wasn’t surprising because Hugo and Woolf ran around so much they probably obliterated my prints. Stopping, I whistled, and called for them again.

“Damn, it’s cold out here,” I muttered, blowing on my hands and wishing I’d remembered gloves.

Roland snorted. “Nice of your friend, Sahir, to stay warm and cozy inside while you trek through the woods.”

“Sahir wouldn’t – ” I broke off as it hit me what had been niggling at me since we came outside. I turned to Michael. “Where is Sahir anyway?”

Michael shrugged. “I think he – ”

He grunted in pain when I grabbed his arm in a death grip. I gasped and cold air stung my lungs, but that was nothing compared to the lump of ice forming in my chest.

“Vampire!” I spun to the others and cried, “Run!”

“Please, don’t leave on our account,” said a husky feminine voice as a blond vampire appeared out of nowhere to stand in front of us. “We only just got here.”

Her words barely registered before I felt a slight disturbance in the air and four more vampires stepped out from the trees to surround us.