Bryn Morrow Page 6

“Thanks, Deb. I’m sorry… about everything.” Jason looked down at Tommy’s still form and then over at the monitors tracing his life signs.

  “It’s not your—”

  “Stop. Just stop. I don’t want to hear that until Tommy wakes up.” Jason turned to face the door, continuing to ignore the crutches.

  “Okay. Take care of yourself.”

  “Do you think Tommy would mind if I borrowed some of his tools and his welder from the shop?” Jason asked her, keeping his expression neutral. “It’s the weekend, and the shop is closed anyway. I need to build something.”

  “I’m sure he would loan them to you anytime,” said Debra. “Go ahead, and I’ll let him know when he wakes up. Don’t overdo it. You are still weak.”

  “Thanks.” He bent down, groaning in pain, and gave her a hug. “Don’t forget to eat.”

  He limped out of the room, heading toward the nurse’s station where Celeste was waiting for him. His hand cast was white and only went up as far as his forearm, so he could still bend his elbow. The cast on his leg was almost up to his knee and had a couple of rubber pads molded into the bottom so he wouldn’t slip and fall. He couldn’t walk fast in it, and he damn sure couldn’t run.

  “Ready?” asked Celeste. “You’re all signed out.”

  “Let’s hit it,” he said. He let her put an arm around his shoulder and help him to her car.

  Chapter 25

  Bryn nodded at the nurse and kept walking. He looked left and right as he passed open doors on the ground floor of the hospital and stopped when he saw Debra. She was holding Tommy’s hand and sleeping in her chair, head on her chest. An open paperback was on the table next to her, along with a pitcher of water and a half-full glass. The other bed in the room was rumpled but empty. There was a pair of crutches against the wall near it.

  He looked both ways down the hallway, saw no one, and entered the room. The clock on the wall read nine-thirty, and the sky through the window was turning darker by the minute. It hadn’t taken him long to drive down from Lake Saul. Lanston and Corwin didn’t have much in the way of traffic on a Saturday night. Just people headed to the local watering holes or looking for dinner—one of the benefits of being up in the north woods of Minnesota, not far from the Canadian border. He placed a small bouquet of flowers on the table near Debra’s book. They were dark velvet dahlias with white-tipped petals and gave off a pleasantly powerful aroma that masked the antiseptic smell of the room.

  Bryn reached past her, taking care not to wake her, and grabbed the pitcher of water. He raised it to his lips and drank the whole thing. Then he set the empty pitcher down. His skin glowed a faint amber, and the whites of his eyes turned blue. He trembled, and his skin rippled. He walked over to the far side of Tommy’s bed, near the softly beeping monitors, and placed the fingertips of both hands on Tommy’s forehead.

  “It’s my fault you got hurt, Tommy. He followed me here.” Bryn kept his voice low. Debra stirred but didn’t wake up.

  “I can channel energies,” he explained. “You might die, but if I do nothing, you’ll never wake up.” A glow spread down his fingers. He closed his eyes. He willed his life force to course down into Tommy. His skin grew hot, and he felt a pulse of energy crackle down his arms. Tommy’s body jerked as if he’d had been electrocuted. The air smelled like rain after a thunderstorm.

  Bryn stepped back, staggered, and fell to his knees. His skin was white and grainy, like sand. Cracks ran across his face.

  Debra woke up and rubbed her eyes. “What was that?”

  “I’m not sure,” said Bryn. His voice was a dry whisper, like the rattle of leaves over pavement. “I had to come see him. See if I could help.”

  She looked over Tommy’s bed at him. “Bryn? What happened to you? Where’s Celeste?”

  “I’ll be okay. I came alone.” His face shimmered and his skin smoothed. The cracks vanished. He struggled to his feet. He was pale, and his pupils were dilated, making his eyes look like black pools of oil. “I brought some flowers.”

  “Thank you. I’m sure Tommy appreciates it even if he can’t say so.” Debra took Tommy’s hand in hers. “He feels warmer.”

  “I hope he wakes up soon, Debra.” Bryn walked around the bed. He put his hands on her shoulders and squeezed. “I’m sorry you have to see him like this.”

  “It’s not your fault. Simon did this.” She stood and embraced him. He was trembling.

  “Simon is like me. I should have known. I should have stopped him.” He wrapped his arms around her so he wouldn’t fall down and waited for the shaking to subside. The lights in the room were incredibly bright and stabbed at him.

  “Protect Celeste. I’ll stay here with Tommy.” She released him and took his hand in hers. “I know you’re not like Simon.”

  Chapter 26

  The sun was down and twilight had settled over the landscape. Celeste was sitting on her front porch sipping iced tea, facing east. The smell of hyacinth filled the air. She saw him before he reached the steps but held still. He was fast. Faster than any man.

  “Celeste?” He was taller than Bryn and solid. His hair was sandy brown and his eyes were dark brown. He was dressed in blue jeans and a red T-shirt with a leather jacket over it. The jacket was studded with silver. His hands were scarred.

  “Simon?”

  “Yes. I’m happy to finally meet you. May I sit?” He looked at the circular glass table and the four wooden chairs around it.

  “Please do.” She gestured toward a chair across from her. Her heart began to race, and she could feel adrenaline creeping up her spine. She kept the panic off her face.

  “Thank you. I’ve come a long way to find you.” Simon pulled out the chair and sat down, leaning back against the padding. He placed his hands on the table, fingers folded together. He wasn’t wearing a watch, but he had a gold ring on his left hand with a black stone in the center.

  “That’s what I hear.” Celeste tried to calm down by taking a deep breath, and then letting it out slowly. This is the guy who almost killed Jason and Tommy. He’s dangerous.

  Simon smiled, revealing four silver-tipped teeth among the rest. They were pointed, with a pair on the top and bottom. His eyes locked onto Celeste with great intensity.

  “Would you like some iced tea?” she asked, taking a glass off the tray and getting ready to pour.

  “Certainly, love.” He smiled wider, like a shark approaching a school of fish. His eyes traveled down to her breasts under the black T-shirt and lingered.

  She poured with one hand, slipping her cell phone out of her pocket and onto her lap under the table with the other one. She pressed mute on the phone and hit the speed dial number for Bryn while sliding the glass of tea toward Simon. Then she slipped the phone back in her pocket without looking at it.

  “Why me?” she asked. The hair on the back of her neck was standing up, and she was wishing she hadn’t sold her Colt 44 last year. She slid her chair back a little in case she needed to get out of it in a hurry.

  “Because you’re special. And beautiful.” He sipped the tea while watching her lips. “You realize you appeared to me right after I died in the explosion at Chernobyl?”

  “I do. I seem to be drawn to catastrophes.” She poured sugar into her tea from a jar and stirred it.

  “I have a few questions for you, if you don’t mind.” He slid his chair closer and placed his left hand on her right. It was all Celeste could do not to flinch and jerk her hand away.

  “Sure. Ask away.”

  “How many vampires have you seen?”

  “Bryn says you’re not vampires.”

  “A meaningless distinction.” Simon waved a hand dismissively. “You’ve seen at least two of us.”

  “Why do you want to know?” She met his eyes and suppressed a shudder.

  “I’m lonely for my own kind.” He leaned close enough to smell her neck.

  “I’m dreaming when I see you. I don’t always remember everything. But I think I’ve only seen you
and Bryn.” Chills ran up her spine and she leaned away from him.

  “There have to be more of us,” said Simon. His lips brushed her neck, and he bared his silver teeth. He slipped one hand down to her thigh.

  She pulled away. “You hurt two of my friends.”

  “They attacked me. I merely defended myself. I could have killed them, but I didn’t. Let’s go inside, shall we?” He stood and pulled her to her feet, holding her in an iron grip.

  “I would rather stay out here,” she said, an edge of panic creeping into her voice.

  “Don’t worry, Celeste. I won’t hurt you. I love you.”

  Where is Bryn, thought Celeste? Did I dial the wrong number? Did he leave me?

  He opened the door to her house and led her in. He opened doors in the hallway until he found stairs leading down into the basement, then he pushed her through the doorway and followed her down, flicking the light switch on with a finger.

  “This is much better. I can get to know you without interruption now.” He touched her ass, and she stumbled down the last two steps.

  “Bryn is going to rip your heart out if you hurt me.” She tried to keep her voice even and calm, but panic was rising in her throat.

  “If you don’t fight me, you won’t get hurt. I just need to know some things.” He followed her to the bottom of the stairs and grabbed her arms. “I’m far stronger than any human. You can’t get away. If you scream, I’ll snap your neck.”

  “I’ll answer your questions; you don’t have to hurt me.” She confronted him with a defiant stare.

  He grabbed an orange extension cord, wrapped it around her wrists, and threw it over a beam in the ceiling, pulling her up by the arms until she was standing on her toes.

  “Oh, God. Bryn is going to kill you.” She struggled against the cord but couldn’t free herself.

  “I’m the only god here.” He laughed and ripped her T-shirt down the middle, revealing her breasts, which were barely contained by a white silk bra.

  “I said I would answer your questions.”

  “I don’t want your answers, Celeste. I want you.” Simon grabbed the center of her bra and pulled. It ripped, and he flung it across the room. “You are as lovely as virgin blood.”

  “Don’t fucking touch me!” She yanked hard but the beam held.

  “Just a little bite, dear.” He leaned down and sucked on her nipples, then bit down. She screamed.

  “Oh, your blood is exquisite. It’s ambrosia.” He looked up at her and licked the blood off his lips. His teeth were stained red; blood ran down her breasts. “I need more.” He lowered his mouth and sucked on her wounds while pushing against her.

  “Get off me, you animal!” she screamed.

  He yanked her pants down. “Soon….”

  Chapter 27

  Bryn was driving back from Corwin on County Road 12 when his phone rang. He was still weak and his skin was as dry as parchment. It was Celeste. He answered but there was no response. All he heard were muffled voices before she hung up.

  She wouldn’t call unless she was in trouble, he thought. He pushed down on the gas pedal and held the wheel with both hands. The yellow dashes on the road blurred and the speedometer read ninety. His heart lurched in his chest, although he knew such a feeling was impossible.

  Ten minutes later, he skidded to a stop in front of Celeste’s house on the corner of Argent and Lake. There were lights on in the dining room. A pitcher of iced tea was on the glass table on the porch, along with two glasses, half-full.

  He knocked on the front door, but there was no answer. “Celeste! Are you in there? It’s Bryn!”

  He waited, but there was no response. He tried the door and found it unlocked, so he let himself in. He walked through the kitchen warily and then into the living room. There was no sign of her. Everything looked normal.

  “Celeste!”

  “Oh, God, Bryn!” Her distant voice called out.

  “Where are you?” He crouched and scanned the hallway, his hands clenched into fists.

  “Downstairs.”

  He opened doors in the hallway until he reached the second one on the left and saw a wooden flight of stairs leading down. There was a light at the bottom. “Where’s Simon?”

  “I don’t know,” she sobbed. “Help me.”

  He ran down the stairs two at a time until he reached the bottom. Celeste hung from a wooden beam that ran the length of the basement, her arms tied over her head. Her pants had been pulled down and her black shirt was ripped open. She was braless, her breasts covered with bite marks and blood.

  He roared, “I’m going to fucking kill that son of a bitch!”

  “Let me down.” She shuddered and tears ran down her face.

  He grabbed the extension cord and ripped it in half, then lowered her carefully to the carpet. “I’m so sorry, Celeste. I should have been here sooner. I was in Corwin, checking on Tommy. How long has Simon been gone?”

  “Not long. He might still be in the house.” She cried and wrapped her arms around Bryn’s neck when he leaned down.

  “Did he rape you?”

  “He bit me and drank my blood.” She choked. “He didn’t have time to finish. I think he heard you drive up.”

  “Stay here. Lock yourself in. I’m going to find him and make sure he never hurts you again.” His eyes were fire.

  “Search the house before you leave. Make sure he’s not still here.” She wiped her face with the backs of her hands, then sat down, hugged her knees to her chest and cried softly, rocking back and forth.

  “I will.”

  He backed away from her, hands clenched, and searched every corner of the basement while she watched. “He’s not down here.”

  She nodded, stood, and pulled her pants back up. Her tears mixed with the blood on her breasts. “I’m okay.” She pulled her ripped shirt closed.

  Bryn nodded, gave her a tender hug—trying not to press against her injuries—and kissed her. He let her go and climbed the stairs. “Don’t come up until I say it’s clear.”

  She swallowed her fear and nodded.

  Chapter 28

  “Deb? Where am I?” Tommy blinked his eyes against the brightness and then shut them.

  “Tommy!” She lurched forward in her chair, knocking the empty water pitcher off the desk. It bounced across the floor, demonstrating why they used plastic instead of glass. “You woke up!”

  “Yeah, wow, that’s loud. My head hurts.” He raised a hand, and she took it in hers.

  “Sorry,” she whispered. “You’ve been in a coma for two days. I thought I’d lost you.”

  “Oh, babe. You know I wouldn’t leave you.” He blinked some more, letting his eyes adjust to the overhead fluorescents. He tried to remember where he was and what had happened. The room was spinning slowly, and he felt like his brain was wrapped in cotton and pain.

  She leaned over and kissed him. “Do you remember anything?”

  “Not much. Jason was giving that Russian dude, Simon, a piece of his mind, and then—”

  “He hurt Jason and you ran into him with your truck,” she finished. “Crazy fool.”

  “So I killed Simon?” His eyes showed confusion. The memories kept darting away from him like minnows in a pond.

  “Actually, he killed your truck. Jason said he walked away without a scratch.” She smiled and pushed her face against Tommy’s, sliding her hand under his neck and giving him a hug.

  “How’s Jason?”

  “He’s okay. Broken hand and leg. Celeste took him home yesterday. Hold on. I need to call Celeste.” She pulled out her cellphone and dialed.

  Tommy looked around the room with a dazed expression. He raised his hands and looked at them, then over at the softly beeping monitor screen.

  “Celeste? What’s wrong? Slow down. Oh, fuck.” Debra’s eyes got big. “I just wanted to let you know Tommy woke up.”

  “What’s wrong?” Tommy tried to sit up and groaned.

  Debra flipped her phone shut.
“Simon attacked Celeste. Bryn came to help her, and now he’s out looking for Simon.”

  “Shit.”

  “Yeah.”

  “Is Celeste okay?”

  “She’s shook up. She won’t say what happened. She told me to stay here and take care of you.” She brushed his hair out of his face, then soaked a washcloth in cool water at the sink and placed it on his forehead.

  “Thanks, babe. I’m so glad you’re here. My head really hurts.”

  “Hell, yeah. You bashed it on the inside of your windshield when you hit Simon.”

  “Fucking vampire.” Tommy started laughing, and then raised his hands to his temples in pain. “How long until we can do it?”

  “Same old Tommy.” She laughed, grinned, lifted her shirt and flashed her titties at him.

  Tommy smiled. His eyes were glassy from the meds.

  “They didn’t say. You rest. I’ll call the nurse and get you something to eat.”

  Chapter 29

  Simon was waiting for him on top of Trium Rock. He grinned down at Bryn. “It’s about time.”

  “I’ll kill you for what you did to Celeste!” Bryn leapt to the top of the black monolith and hit Simon in the chest with both fists. Simon flew through the air, knocking the top off a pine tree and then crashed to the ground.

  “Just a little harmless fun. I had to taste her.” Simon got up from the ground and dusted himself off.

  Bryn dropped off the rock and landed next to it, absorbing the impact with his knees. The rest under the lake had restored his energy. He felt strong. “You’re mad. What do you want with me? Why are you searching for other latents?”

  “No one wants to be alone,” said Simon. “I simply want to be with my own kind, not hiding among the weak. And I want that formula, so I can walk in the sun.”

  “I will not unleash you among the day walkers.” Bryn reached out with both hands and dragged Simon across the ground by sheer force of will. Simon back pedaled, but Bryn was too strong. When he was close enough, Bryn wrapped his hands around Simon’s throat and squeezed. “This is it for you.”