“Kearnyn?”

The vampire was slow to respond but eventually his head lifted and his unfocused gave settled on him.

“I've got to get you out of here.”

Kearnyn nodded then his head drooped back down. The ten steps it took to reach him felt like ten miles. When he finally neared him, he touched his shoulder.

“Rosa,” Kearnyn whispered.

“What?”

“Take me to Rosa.”

Telal didn't question it. He literally didn’t' even have the energy to. He just ported Kearnyn inside Rosa's shop and didn't even stay for longer than a second before he ported back to the cabin. Once there, his knees gave out and his cheek crashed against the dirty floor.

He felt blissful lying on that rotten floor. He didn't even remember falling asleep.

CHAPTER 32

Rosa's ears twitched as she heard a sound from the other room. Grabbing her pepper spray from her bedroom, she slowly made her way through the workroom. She'd closed shop to get some work done on the weapons so no one should be here. She felt with some certainty that she could handle a robber if that's what it came down to. Not only did she have her pepper spray, but enough spells in her mind to make him change his mind and back away.

She peered around the beaded doorway and into the living room. A man lay on the floor unmoving. In a second, it hit her. The pepper can fell from her numb fingers. She ran to him sliding on her knees.

“Kearnyn? Kearnyn baby? What's wrong? What happened?” Tears filled her eyes as she gently rolled him onto his back.

He groaned but his eyes didn't flutter. She blanched at his stomach, her mind going into freak-out mode at the sight of all that blood.

“Oh my god, what happened to you?”

She proceeded to lift up his shirt to get a better look at the wound but gasped at the sight of the ghastly cut. He'd been cut clear from hip to hip. The wound was so deep the skin had separated creating a gap where she could see inside of him. He looked awfully pale like he hadn't fed in days. Panic faded. She needed to help him. She could do this, she coached herself.

In methodical movements, she stripped off his shirt and pants. For modesty's sake, she left his briefs on. She grabbed a basket full of supplies from the workroom then came back to him.

She started creating a poultice first with a mixture of healing herbs then some oils. Using her pestle, she mushed the ingredients together until they formed together in a nice clump. She hesitated over the wound then closed her eyes and gently pushed the oily herbs into the wound. The wound was so big she had to make even more until finally she had it covered.

With a wet cloth, she cleaned the blood from his waist. The area around the wound beat bright red with inflammation. She nibbled on her lip as the wound was still spread open. She'd never taken a needle to someone before.

Maybe I should take him to the hospital?

She cringed at the thought. Not only would they ask questions she surely didn't have answers to, but whoever attacked him might be coming for him. Cursing, she went around to the front and back door making sure they were locked, all the windows sealed tight. Then she opened her spell book to the page on warding off energies. In the next hour, she cast a spell around the building that would ward off any visitors with negative doings. It would need to be reapplied every day to last but at least they'd have some protection for now. Until he woke up.

She hated seeing him lying on the floor like this but she knew he was way too big for her to attempt to pull him into the bedroom. And even if she managed to get him there, he had to be at least two and fifty pounds of muscle; no way could she lift him onto the bed.

With that in mind, she grabbed a sheet and pillow from her bed. After tucking the pillow under his head and covering him with the sheet she felt only slightly better.

Her chest felt way too tight. As the hours passed and she sat over his breathing form, watching the rise and fall of his chest, she came to a rocky realization. It didn't hit her like a bolt of electricity but settled inside her in a warm melting feeling.

She cupped his cheek, leaned down, and pressed a kiss to his lips. “Do not die, Kearnyn. I care too much.”

Care might not have been a strong enough word for what she felt but she couldn't bring herself to say the other. In a surprisingly short amount of time, he'd brought out feelings she hadn't felt in a long time. She'd forgotten what it was like to care for a man. To be with him simply because you enjoyed his company.

Rosa lay out beside him, careful not to get too close and rested her head on his shoulder.

“I'll be here when you wake up, okay?”

He didn't answer; didn't even blink. But that was okay. As she closed her eyes, her senses flared to life. Natural instincts, which couldn't be hindered or ignored. It came as a thought as if someone spoke the words in her mind, but they were not words so much as a thought.

Something awful was coming.

A shiver raked over her and she scooted as close as she could. Then she waited.

CHAPTER 33

Lily came to with a startled cry on her throat. It registered that what she'd seen had been a dream. No, not a dream, but a vision. But she couldn't recall it. As soon as she came into consciousness the vision faded from her like an ocean's wave swept it away. She squeezed her eyes shut. Fuck, she had to remember it! It was important.

She punched the mattress beneath her and the bitter scent of dust reached her nose making her sneeze. AT once, the muscles in her stomach tensed at the sneeze and then everything came to her in a rush, her dream forgotten as the all the aches in her body awakened.

“God,” she groaned.

She inspected the damage. Her stomach had a vicious bruise the size of a grapefruit and was multicolored with yellows, reds, and blues. She rolled her shoulder back and winced at the sharp pain. Well, that arm was useless for now. Everything else seemed in working order so she got off the bed and stopped dead.

“Telal!”

His body was on the floor, his face flat on it, his arms and legs sprawled. He looked like a murder victim lying there just waiting to have chalk drawn around his body.

“Telal?” She pushed the hair out of his face. When his lashes fluttered a sob left her and she realized just how scared she'd been.

It took some effort but eventually she got him rolled over onto his back so she could assess his injuries. He looked battered and pale but no obvious bleeding anywhere. She made quick work of opening his shirt and found she was wrong about the blood. He had two wounds on his chest. One near the center that looked as though it'd barely missed his heart and the other in the meat of his shoulder. What startled her most about the wounds was the greenish tint surrounding the outlying skin from the wound.

Lily sat back and tried to figure out what to do. She had no clue where she was but the place smelled heavily of mildew and dust. Moving quickly, she found a bathroom and rummaged through it for any kind of medical supplies. She cursed, finding nothing. She went to the kitchen, slamming open every cabinet and drawer until she was almost shaking by time she finished. Nothing, not even so much as a band aid.

She heard a deep groan and ran into the bedroom. Telal's eyes were slowly opening, his lips pulling to a tight grimace.

“Telal! Are you okay?” Her voice shook and she realized that wasn't the only thing. Her hands trembled and even her stomach felt like it was vibrating. Fear and panic threatened to overwhelm her and she wished like hell she had her herbs with her to make her special juice. Just to calm her nerves.

“Lily?” His voice was a mere croak.