The Rise of Vlad (The Seeker Series Book 3) (17 page)

Chapter Three

Unimaginable pain. Hauke could hear his sister’s scream piercing the night, ripping his heart in half. Sunlight scorched his skin. The cool, healing power of the water.

He could breathe once again. Voices. More pain. The distinct feel of a blade opening his skin.

His defenseless state enraged him. To be trapped inside his own mind, unable to retaliate as someone violated his body.

A female. Compassion.

Images plagued him, making little sense.

He clung to the female’s voice. She touched him. He knew she attempted to soothe him, yet he couldn’t read her thoughts.

“Open,” he mentally implored.

Her mind became partially exposed to him as he beckoned her closer. His spirit clawed its way to the surface, craving hers. It was a hunger unlike anything he’d ever known.

Her breath entered his mouth, and he felt as if he’d died a thousand times. He saw her lovely face in its true form behind his closed lids. Soft, warm, and expressive. She cared about what happened to him.

He took in her sweet scent, amazed as his spirit encircled hers, wrapping itself around her life force in a slow, sensual slide.

The connection broke unexpectedly, and he panicked. The pain from it went beyond the physical to be felt in his very soul.

Something pricked Hauke’s arm, and warm, blessed liquid traveled up, straight into his heart. It beat for the first time in hours— days… He was unsure of how long he’d been gone. If not for the membrane in the roof of his mouth producing the enzymes he needed to heal and keep his organs from shutting down, Hauke knew he would already be dead. He had no clue how long he’d been in the coma-induced sleep.

The sensation kept coming, and he realized blood somehow pumped into him. The female had to be responsible, he thought, feeling his body soak up every last drop of the coveted source.

Somewhere inside his subconscious, he knew it to be human blood now coursing through his veins. Forbidden among his kind, yet there was nothing he could do but allow it to happen.

Moisture filled his eyes in stark relief, and his protective lenses slid into place. He lifted his lids enough to see shapes moving around the room.

The female’s voice sounded from somewhere near his feet, and he zeroed in on her. She wasn’t beautiful in the conventional sense, though she was still very attractive. Sensuality surrounded her. He wished she would come closer where he could see her eyes.

A beeping noise echoed around him, and someone shouted from nearby. “It’s alive, Abbie! Get back.”

“I’m okay, Henry. He’s strapped down and not fighting.”

Abbie
…

Hauke’s people had been familiar with the English language since the great flood over two thousand years ago. Some of the words had changed over time, but he had little trouble keeping up. Although, the couple in the room with him did have strange accents, he silently admitted.

Hauke didn’t recognize the voice to his left and cut his gaze in that direction. A tall man with gray hair, wearing a white garment stared back at him with wide eyes. Hauke growled deep in his throat, registering him as a threat.

Abbie’s voice broke through his defensive state. “Hello? Can you understand me?”

He brought his focus back on her, and his chest constricted with emotion. It was her. The young girl that nearly drowned in the gulf all those moons ago.

The foreign feeling did little to slow his curiosity. He openly stared, drinking in her expressive features.

Hauke wanted to communicate with her, but the older man would hear. He sent her a thought instead. ”
I comprehend.”

A small intake of air was the only sign that she might have heard him.

He tried again.
“Come.”

She slowly moved forward until she stood next to his head. The fact that she’d gone to the same side as the man wearing white wasn’t lost on Hauke.
She is protecting me
. The thought warmed him.

The female had no idea how much power he possessed. The only reason he hadn’t broken loose and snapped the old one’s neck stood before him now. He didn’t want her to fear him.

“
Abbie.”
He liked the sound of her name.

She appeared nervous but didn’t run. There was a determined set to her jaw that he found oddly sexy.

“Move back this instant,” the gray-haired one demanded from behind her. “If that thing gets loose, you could be killed. And we have no idea what type of diseases it carries.”

Abbie spun around. “Just stop it, Henry. He’s alive. Does he look like he’s trying to break free to you? Have you no heart? We have to do something before they get here. He will die at Area 51.”

“It’s not our problem, Abbigail. Their crew is already on the way. There’s nothing we can do.”

Hauke listened to the exchange, understanding enough to know that the one Abbie referred to as Henry planned on sending him somewhere to die.

He could feel his strength returning with the help of the blood now inching through his veins. The hunger for more grew by the second, and his fangs began to throb in time with his pulse.

“I’m disappointed in you, Daddy.”

Hauke didn’t miss the catch in her voice or the parent reference.
He’s her sire.
He filed that piece of information away for a later time. His first priority was to get out of there and find the group that had been with him before the explosion.

His heart ached with the knowledge that his sister might not have survived. If she’d died, he would destroy every last human involved in blowing the oil well that separated Naura from him.

“What do you expect me to do? Take it home with me and set up a college fund for it? Come on, Abbie. Be reasonable. You saw the X-rays. That thing may resemble us to a degree, but that’s as far as it goes. Now keep your distance while I check on the incubated samples. It’ll be gone soon, and we have no choice but to forget we ever saw it.” Henry stalked off, leaving a fuming Abbie to gape at his back.

The door suddenly opened, admitting a short, beefy man wearing dark blue clothing. Something shiny hung from his shirt. He stood there for a moment, leering at Abbie before coming fully into the room. “What are you doing here, Doctor Sutherland?”

It would appear that Abbie was a healer, Hauke noted, watching the man in blue slowly advance forward.

“My father called me to bring him a case of files he’d forgotten.”

“I thought you weren’t allowed back inside the building. And who is that behind you on the bed?”

Abbie crossed her arms over her chest. “I was laid off, Donald. Not fired. This man is sick. I wouldn’t advise you come any closer.”

The guy’s beady gaze wandered slowly over her body. “It doesn’t surprise me that you were dismissed.”

“I’d be willing to bet not much does surprise you,” Abbie retorted.

Hauke didn’t need to open his mind to feel the venom in her words. They fairly dripped with it.

“I think I’ll just double check with your father about you being up here. Where is he?” Donald turned toward the door Henry had disappeared through only minutes before.

“You can’t go in there, Donald. He’s spinning samples at the moment. You’ll run the risk of contamination.”

Donald stared back at her with traces of suspicion and lust swimming in his eyes. Lust won out in the end.

“Fine. I’ll be in the restroom if you need me…for anything.” Donald winked at her and sauntered across the room, disappearing behind a row of bottle-filled shelves.

Hauke bit down hard enough that one of his incisors pierced his bottom lip. He would kill the man for his filthy thoughts of Abbie. Hauke didn’t need to touch him to read his intentions.

“Abbie.” Her name came out in a whisper only to be swallowed up by the insistent noises of the room. He tried again. “Abbie.”

She spun around to face him with surprise registering on her face. “You can speak.”

He attempted to lift his arm, but the restraints held him back. It would be easy to break free, apprehend her, and escape back to his home. But the thought of frightening her in any way was unacceptable to him.

“Ubi ego sum?”

“I’m sorry. I don’t understand?”

Though Latin was commonplace among his people, Hauke spoke many languages. English had been the most difficult to learn due to the backhanded slang most humans used. The need to practice it over the years had been rare since he’d only come in contact with a small handful of them.

He cross-referenced words in his mind. “Where am I?”

“You’re in a lab. Someone found you on the beach. We thought you were dead.” She cleared her throat. “Wh-what… Who are you?”

“I am Hauke. Son of Klause. What means Area 51?”

She averted her eyes. “Are you in pain?”

That would be an understatement
. He ached from head to feet. Even his hair seemed to hurt. “No pain.”

“You must be thirsty.” She darted away before he could answer.

He would have laughed if it wouldn’t hurt to do so. Any other time, he’d enjoy teasing her. And there would plenty of times, of that he was certain.

Hauke tested his bonds.
Simple
. They thought to hold him with their straps.

Abbie returned to his side, holding a clear plastic cup. He gave her a questioning look.

“It’s just water.”

“Something floats inside.” He’d never seen its contents before.

She glanced down at the cup, and her lips twitched. “That’s ice. It keeps the water cold.”

Her voice took on a husky tone as she leaned over him and slid her arm beneath his head. “Here, try it.”

Heat and energy radiated from her in the way Hauke imagined the sun would feel on his skin in that moment.

He breathed deep, taking in her essence. Her spirit was strong, and he felt his own rise to the surface, seeking, craving.
Mate
.

A possessive growl rumbled from his chest, and she stilled.

“Do not fear me, Abbie.”

“Did I hurt you?”

He only shook his head.

The sincerity in her voice made him want her more. Emotion poured from her in waves. Her concern over his pain touched him in ways he didn’t understand.

She lifted his head off the pillow and brought the cup to his mouth. “Small sips.”

The cool liquid touched his tongue, and he bit back a groan. Hauke drank slowly to appease her. If she had any idea he was capable of breathing underwater, she’d probably be horrified. No, he rather enjoyed her caring for him.

Her soft breast pressing against his cheek nearly drove him to insanity. He wanted to turn his face to the side and nuzzle her.

She removed the drink from his lips and eased her arm out from under his neck. Hauke missed her touch instantly. He watched her set the cup on a side table and busy herself with the tube attached to his arm.

“Thank you, Abbie.”

She blushed but didn’t say anything.

“Your sire.” He nodded toward the other room. “He is concerned for your safety.”

“My Sire?” She gifted him with a small smile. “Where do you come from?”

He ignored her question. “What means Area 51?”

Hauke felt her emotions shift. She was like an open book with her expressive features and guileless eyes.

She hesitated. “It’s a place where they… um… I have never actually been there.” She appeared flustered. “Shit. I’m going to get you out of here. “

The sound of footsteps could be heard coming from somewhere in the back. Abbie quickly put space between her and the bed. The anxiety radiating from her was suffocating.

“It’s just Henry.”

The whispered words did little to slow the growl rising in Hauke’s throat. He didn’t trust Abbie’s father.

Hauke studied the older man as he progressed into the room. He was hiding something, and Hauke wondered how much of it had to do with the prize he had strapped to the bed.

“One of the samples was compromised. I’m going to need another.” Henry went to a stainless steel side table and opened the drawer. He withdrew several items, laying them on top.

“What are you doing with that?” The spike in Abbie’s adrenaline wasn’t lost on Hauke.

“I’m going to sedate– ”

“Like hell you are.” She practically spat the words.

Henry barely spared her a glance as he lifted a vial from his coat pocket and set it beside the other items on the table. He tore open something that appeared to have a miniature blade protruding from one end, and plucked up the small glass bottle in his other hand. After holding them both up to the light, he pierced the vial with the sharp point.

“I won’t let you drug him, Henry. Not gonna happen.”

Her father raised an eyebrow. “I refuse to go near his mouth unless he is incapacitated. I’m not running the risk of being bitten, and neither are you.”