CHAPTER 15
I braced myself to feel the pain of being shot. There was nothing. It took me a minute to realize the blood wasnt mine. It was coming from Alex. I reached up to cup his face. He glanced down at me and I saw his face pinched with pain.
"Put me down. I can walk. I dont want you to hurt yourself any further."
"No, Im all right. We can move faster with me carrying you." He managed to get out.
"Do you know which way to go?"
"Yeah, Leeds told Roberto and me where the car is. He hid the keys under the wheel. We should be there in a few minutes." His words were clipped.
"I hope Roberto and Leeds are okay. Do you think Roberto will meet us at the car?" I asked worriedly. "No, I know Roberto. He will take care of the Guardians first."
I didnt ask any more questions because I saw how hard it was getting for Alex to speak. After about ten minutes we reached a rough road. It was so dark I almost missed the black car sitting beside the road. Thank God. Alexs breathing was labored. He set me down and reached under the rear tire. He pulled out keys but dropped them.
"Alex let me help you into the car. Youre in no shape to drive." I stooped and picked up the keys and turned to grab Alex by the arm. I could tell he was hurting pretty bad by the way he leaned on me.
"Just help me into the car and get us out of here." He said as he collapsed against me.
I managed to unlock the door and open it and had to more or less push him inside. "Sorry." I said anxiously as I heard him groan.
I tucked his legs up into the car, shut the door and jumped in the drivers seat. My hands were shaking a little as I started the car and put it in gear. I stepped on the gas
115 and we took off. The road was rather bumpy and every rut we hit I heard Alex moan.
"Sorry." I kept repeating.
I had no idea which way to go so I just followed the road in the direction the car had been pointing. I finally came to a better road but didnt know which direction to take. Right or left? I knew I wanted to eventually go north. But I had no sense of direction. I decided to take a right. Heck I had a fifty-fifty chance I was going the right way. Fifteen minutes later I passed a sign that said the expressway was up ahead in fifty miles. Thank God I hadnt gone the wrong way. I looked in my rearview mirror at Alex in the backseat.
He wasnt moving. Please, please let him just be unconscious. I tried not driving too fast because I didnt want to get stopped by a cop with a man in the backseat bleeding from a gunshot wound. When I saw a sign that the expressway was ten miles ahead I pulled over to the shoulder of the road. Before we got on the interstate I wanted to check on Alex. I got out on the passenger side so that traffic would be less likely to see me. I opened the car door and saw that Alexs face was pale. Well, more pale than usual since he was a vampire and didnt go to the tanning beds and all. It was encouraging to see that the bleeding had slowed if it hadnt stopped all together. I wiped the hair from his eyes and was relieved to hear his groan.
"Dont worry Alex. Ill take care of you. Ill get us on the expressway and then get us to a hotel where I can see if I can get that bullet out." I promised.
As I started getting back into the car, a car pulled up behind us. Oh crap, I didnt want them coming up to the car and possibly spying Alex laying on the backseat so I quickly walked over to the drivers side. It was a nice older couple. Probably coming back from a trip to the casinos and indeed when the man rolled the window down I saw on
116 the seat between them a bag from The Scandinavian.
Hysterical laughter rose in me. I felt like telling them, "Hey I got the owner of the hotel you stayed at bleeding to death in the backseat of the car over there."
The man gave me a disapproving look, no doubt for the getup I was wearing, thanks again Leeds, "Do you need any help Miss?" he asked.
"Ummm no, thank you. I just had too much water and couldnt wait until the next rest stop." I said with real mortification.
The lady next to him said in a kindly voice. "That happens to me all the time. Ralph here is always saying that if he had a dollar for every time we had to stop for my bladder hed be rich."
I smiled a genuine smile at the lady. A sudden wave of homesickness hit me. This couple reminded me of my parents. I missed them so much. God I needed to get home and make sure they were okay. I thanked them for their concern and told them that I only had a few miles to go and that I would be fine. I got back in the car after another quick glance to make sure Alex was still breathing and headed back down the road. Fifteen minutes later we made our way onto the expressway. Looking at the signs along the way, it looked like we would be in Philadelphia in about a half hour. I tried to figure out where we should stop. I figured that a hotel right off the interstate in the city would probably be more anonymous.
We were almost to the city when I realized that I would have to cross a bridge with a toll. I didnt have any money. Freaking A. What was I going to do? I reached over to the glove compartment opened it and started pulling papers out. Yes! I found a plain white envelope with money in. Okay. I wouldnt kill Leeds just yet over my attire since he came through for us once again. After getting through the toll without incident, I started looking for a hotel. Most of the ones I spotted looked pretty seedy. Well there was no
117 hope for it. I couldnt be choosey about accommodations when Alex needed my help.
I turned off an exit and pulled the car into the parking lot of a hotel simply named Highway Hotel. I got out of the car and went into the dingy office. The man behind the desk took a look at me and said, "We dont rent by the hour. Youll have to pay for a whole day."
Thanks to Leeds I was once again humiliated. I had just been mistaken for a cheap prostitute. I vowed to myself Leeds would one day pay for this. Somehow, someway I would find my way back to that swamp and make him pay for this. I paid for the room with cash and the clerk gave me a key and directions to the room, which was thankfully around the back.
I asked him if I could please not be disturbed, especially during the daylight because I would most likely be sleeping all day. He snickered and put out his hand. I looked at it blankly for a minute before realizing he was asking for money so I gave him a twenty. With my face flaming I walked out and got back in the car and drove around back. I got a spot close to the door that had the room number on the key on it. This was going to be fun trying to drag a six-foot something man into a room. Well, it had to be done. I would just have to do it somehow. I went and opened the door to the room first then went back to the car and opened the rear door.
"It could be worse; Leeds could have gotten us a two door." I muttered to myself. I bent down and checked the wound on Alex. It actually looked pretty good. It looked like it was healing nicely with pink skin stretching over it.
"Crap!" I said out loud. How was I going to get the bullet out if it was healing? There was no way I was going to slice him open. No way.
Hoping he could be roused I said, "Alex, Alex can you hear me?" He moaned a little and thankfully said,
118 "Olivia? Where are we?" Halleluiah! He was awake!
"Alex were at a hotel. I got us a room."
"Ahhh babe, Im not at my best right now, but Im sure that with a little persuasion from your sexy mouth Ill be able to get the job done." He said in an unsteady voice.
"Alex! Im going to leave you out here to watch the sunrise if you dont get serious and help me get you in the room."
With an expletive, he grabbed hold of the back of the front seat and hauled himself upright. As with my patients I knew that a swift motion would be in Alexs best interest so as he pulled himself up, I grabbed his arms and pulled him out of the car. He let out an even louder curse Im pretty sure was directed at me. But he was up at least. I draped his arm around my shoulder and let him put most of his weight on me. Thankfully, it wasnt too far from the door. I got him in the room and since it was a small room we were only a few steps from the bed. He weakly sat himself on the bed as I went to find a light switch.
"Ill be right back. Im going to check what Leeds put in the car and lock it up. Will you be all right?"
He grimaced, "Yeah, be careful. Damn. I should be taking care of you."
"Stop being Mr. Macho Vampire and let the lowly woman take care of you."
Alex stared at me intently. "Olivia you have never been or ever will be a "lowly" woman. I wish I could show you the passionate and fierce woman I see."
That comment made me laugh. "Fierce? You do not know me at all Alex. I am anything but fierce. I cant even squish a bug without feeling guilty."
He continued to stare at me with those sea green eyes. "You have the blood of the earth flowing through your veins Olivia." His eyes mesmerized me. I didnt want to look away but forced myself too. "Well, you and Roberto keep telling me all of this stuff but I still feel like
119 the same girl who doesnt want to squish a bug."
I went back out to the care and opened the trunk and saw that there was a suitcase and backpack inside. I grabbed them and went to the front seat to check the glove compartment again and almost had a heart attack when I saw there was a gun in there. I stood there debating if I should leave it there or take it in with me. I didnt want to even touch the thing, so I left it where it was. I grabbed the envelope filled with cash and went back to the room.
Alex looked as if he had passed out again, so I set everything down and went over to him. He was so still and pale that my heart started beating fast in panic. When I touched his forehead, his eyes fluttered open. His eyes were glazed with pain.
"What can I do?" I asked.
He closed his eyes again but said in a quiet voice, "I need blood."
"I...I." I stammered.
I closed my eyes, knowing that I was on the edge of a precipice. If I took this step there was no going back. And I wasnt going to kid myself; somewhere deep inside me I had a glimmer of hope I could go back. That Id get home to my parents and my life would go back to normal. Tomorrow I would wake up and go to work and eat in the cafeteria. Go home and make dinner and watch old movies on TMC and life would be normal. Well, except for the part that I had a hunky vampire boyfriend. I had actually let myself believe that he was normal. He would come by my apartment around seven, take me to dinner and a movie, come back to my place and make love all night.
I remembered Roberto tonight, with his fangs out, his face a distorted mask of fury. Reality bites, and this was reality. A freaking hurt vampire lying on a bed of a sleazy motel.
"Alex, what will happen if you dont have blood?" I had to know.
120 He opened his eyes to stare at me. "I wont wake up from my sleep. Ive lost too much blood. My body wont have enough blood to sustain me through the day."
Well. That was that then. I was going to let a vampire bite me. I couldnt let him die. I cant even kill a bug for Gods sake.
In a shaky voice I asked, "Will it hurt?"
Alex struggled to sit up. "Olivia, you dont have to do this. I want to live more than you can know. But we can try something else. Where are we?"
"Philadelphia. I thought we would blend better in the city."
"That was good thinking, but it doesnt lend too well for hunting animals."
"It wouldnt have worked anyway, youre in no shape to hunt and theres no way that I can hunt anything."
"You will have to lure someone here." He looked at me. "At least youre dressed for it."
"You mean pick up a guy and bring him back here!?" I shook my head. There was no way I could do that.
Alex lay back down on the bed. "Olivia. Its all right. I understand. This isnt easy for you. Youve been thrown into a world you dont understand yet. Im amazed at your courage and your tenacity under these circumstances."
I couldnt help but let a tear fall as I stood there feeling so ashamed. I wasnt courageous. I was a coward. I was afraid to let him bite me and take my blood in order for him to live.
He saw the tear and held out his hand. "Come here."
I went over and sat down next to him on the bed. He pulled me down next to him and wrapped his arms around me as I cried. He kept whispering as he kissed my hair, "Shhh baby. Its all right. Shhh dont cry. When morning comes you need to leave here. Get to Buffalo. Roberto will meet you there."
121 A feeling deep inside me began to build. It felt like an red ball of fire sitting in the pit of my belly. I didnt recognize it at first but realized as it spread to every part of my body. It was anger. Not normally an angry type of person, it was no wonder I didnt recognize it. Ohhhh I thought, anger was good. Anger gave me strength. I stopped crying and rolled over on to my side. I took Alexs head between my hands. "Alex, I want you to drink from me." He started to protest and I cut him off and looked him in the eyes. "I need you to drink from me."
He must have seen the resolve in my face because he rolled on top of me, which I had to admit felt really good and turned my head to the side exposing my neck.
I tried to think of Roberto, but found the image of his face blurry.
Alex looked into my eyes and said, "Olivia, I will take what you offer and offer you all that I have. Now and always"
"Will this be sexual?"
"Only if you desire it to be. It wont hurt. It will give you a languid feeling." He swept his tongue along my carotid artery and I started to shiver with pleasure filled pulsations. Electricity raced through my body. He pulled his head back a little and I could tell his fangs were out when he spoke. "Thank you Olivia. You are a great gift and I will never forget this," and struck like a cobra.