Virgins and Vampires: Blood Falls (The Blood Falls Book 3)

“I think there’s more to our bond than protection,” Kris said. He kept rubbing his hands and wrists as we sat near the fire. It had begun to snow again and everything outside the windows was white.

“What do you mean?”

He shook his head a little. “A Shield serves an ordinary psychic. You are not ordinary, Rhiannon.”

That was mostly true. A Shield protects a powerful psychic whose body might be vulnerable. They protect the physical form and track the psychic form. But he was right that I was different and that changed things. “What are your thoughts?”

“Every time…every time you go to the Plane, I feel more of it. And afterward…it’s like it’s changing me. Making me stronger, more powerful.” He flexed his hand. “I think it’s making me into your Shield.”

“I wish I could say that’s impossible.”

He smiled a little. “Nothing will ever be normal. I just wish I knew what was happening instead of guessing. I don’t like guessing.”

I moved closer because I needed to feel him. He looped his arm over my shoulder and pulled me close. I snuggled in. “It makes some sense though. If everything that separates our Plane from theirs is blending, it has to be affecting our Plane, our reality.”

“And that changes us.”

I nodded against his soft flannel shirt. “It’s scary.”

He hugged me even tighter. “Together we can do anything. No matter what happens, I will always be there to protect you.”

“You wanted to see me?” Rever suddenly appeared in front of us.

I startled, but Kris didn’t. He didn’t even move. “How are you?”

“Well as can be expected under the circumstances. And you?”

Kris grunted. “Unfortunately we have new problems. We need to find banshee bodies.”

“I’ve contained their consciousnesses on the Plane for now, but I have no way of knowing how long that will hold.”

Rever’s dark eyes went flat. “We’re tracking down every connection to Rhine, no matter how old or distant. Given their strength and power, they can’t be far.”

“Agreed. There’s something else though.”

He took a seat. “I have a feeling I’m not going to like this.”

“The cave.”

“The fucking cave again. You’ve already seen it all in my head. What more can you want?”

“To go over it one more time. Marhysa said there’s something there you experienced that’s important for me to know.”

“So remember it yourself.” He stood up. “You don’t need me.”

Kris also got to his feet, going nose to nose with my cousin. “Sit your ass down.”

Rever growled but didn’t move one way or another. “Or else?”

“I will sit you down.”

“You can’t take me, Wren.”

“Want to bet on that?”

The protective vibes zinging off Kris were hot as hell, and while I enjoyed the way it made me feel, I needed Rever in a good mood. “Both of you sit down. I know this isn’t pleasant, but it’s important, so get over yourself.”

Rever blinked at me in shock. Then he sat. “Fine.”

“Thank you. I’ll make this as quick as possible.” In my mind I sank into Rever’s memories, becoming him. “You were at the cave entrance when the salishan grabbed you and pulled you back. But instead of the holding cell, you went into the disturbance.”

“Yeah.” He looked bored. “And then six months later I came back out.”

“We still have no explanation for the time difference. A few minutes for us but a few months for you.”

“For them.” Kris murmured. “The bond.” He nodded at me.

He could see some of the memories, feel the feelings I felt. Three was better than two, even if it made Rever even more uncomfortable. “Right, it was a few months for them. But where were you?”

Rever frowned. “I wasn’t in the cave anymore. I know that. It was hot. I sweat so much. I was always wet. And starving for blood. There was no blood. I felt like I was dying. When they talked I heard echoes but no words.”

I heard those same echoes, saw the shadows of the creatures moving through what seemed like a gauzy curtain.

“It’s the other Plane,” Kris said. “They’re on the other Plane, but not in the same space as you.”

I felt that space where Rever lived. Felt the heat, the limitations, and the distance from either Plane. It felt strangely familiar.

“It’s a bubble.”

Both sets of eyes locked on me. Rever nodded slowly. “Yeah. It felt like being locked in a closet. At least that’s how I’ve been thinking of it. But a bubble works. Or like being underwater.”

I gathered the energy between my hands and put a bubble around Rever. His eyes went wide as he looked around, then his whole body began to shake. I dropped the bubble. “Like that?”

He ran his fingers through his hair, pulling at the ends. “Yeah. A lot like that. Different, but not much.”

“They created a pocket between our realities. A place where you could exist without being in either place.” And if they could do it, I could do it.

Probably.

At least Marhysa thought so.

“Does that mean time works differently in their reality, or just when you’re in a bubble?” Kris asked.

“I haven’t experienced anything odd with time yet, so I tend to think it’s on their end.” If time moved differently then we had a whole other set of worries to consider. The things they could learn and change in what we considered moments…

Rever shot to his feet. “Well this has been a blast. I’m going to go fuck some of this stress off then I’ll report to Shoshanna on these changes.” He slid away before we had a chance to say anything.

“Thanks for your help.”

Kris shrugged. “I didn’t mean to do any of that. It just happened.”

“Things are changing.” Faster than I could keep up with.

“You know what’s not changing?” He took my hand.

“What’s that?”

He leaned closer and whispered, “My need for you.” He threaded his fingers through mine. “But there are good things that are changing. My love for you grows each minute of each day.”

“Kris,” I whispered back. If he kept going I might just jump him in the Wren living room.

“Our new home is changing. Those are good changes.”

“It’s just a lot, you know? Sometimes I wish the world would sit still for a moment and let me catch up.”

“Oh? You need the world to be still? I seem to recall having an uncanny ability to take your mind off of absolutely everything except my cock.”

“Kris…” I melted even more. Soon I would be a puddle in front of the fireplace and Rhiannon would no longer exist.

“Come on. We’ve had a damn rollercoaster of a week. We’ve fucked to recover, to destress, and to calm down, but we haven’t fucked for the fun of it. I think it’s high time we change that.”

He made an excellent point. I was finding it hard to sift through all the new information and figure out which way to point my focus. Everything was so stressful and out of my hands.

I could use a little fun for the sake of having fun. “Lead the way.”