Absolution of Fate (Fate Series Book 3) (17 page)

Seeing Kaleb like that, for the first time she truly understood the pain her mother must have felt watching Ethan become infected and then living through the weeks after with the man she loved existing only as a tormented shell of who he once was. It wasn’t a fate she would wish on her worst enemy, even though he was right beside her and, in fact, responsible for Kaleb’s current state.

“Magnificent, isn’t it?” Lucias asked, pulling Chloe from her own thoughts and forcing her to take notice of the hundreds of humans who, based on the erratic combination of so many heartbeats it was like one continuous tone, were unconscious but alive.

Lucias handed her a box containing at least two dozen bags of blood. “You’ll need these. It will take a lot of blood to turn all of these humans and there are plenty more where they came from. Not to worry; we’re saving some just to feed you for the task.”

Chloe’s heart ached as she surveyed the room. Where had they all come from? Did they have families, friends who were missing them? Could they ever go back to their lives if she did what was asked? Would Lucias just kill them all anyway if she didn’t?

She knew the answer to her last question. Either she turned them or Lucias would kill them and Kaleb and probably all of Asana’s family.
 

She considered requesting that he simply draw her blood and do the job himself, but thought better of it. If he believed she needed to feed her blood to the humans, it would let her keep track of how many he turned and even give her some control over the pace. With Lucias standing over her, Chloe kneeled beside the closest human, a man she guessed to be around twenty. He was handsome, tall, with sandy-blonde hair that reminded her of her uncle. She closed her eyes and called upon the hunger that was always humming just below the surface to get her fangs to drop from her gums. She used them to open the vein at her wrist and pressed the wound to the young man’s mouth while she used her other hand to part his lips. Like a baby seeking his mother’s teat in the middle of the night, he latched on and suckled instinctually. His sucking became so voracious that Chloe had to yank her wrist free. The moment she did, an infected scooped the man up and carried him off. She wondered to where and thought to push into Lucias’s mind to find out, but a little voice told her that she didn’t really want to know. She already knew. For every human she turned, Lucias had another who would die to feed them through their transition.
 

The city of Boston had to be in an uproar with so many going missing in one day.

Chloe looked to Kaleb again, and though his mind was practically blank and he never looked back, she found some small measure of comfort in his presence as she moved from person to person feeding them her blood and watching them be carried off, only stopping to feed when she started to feel weak from the blood loss.

Several hours later, Chloe had made it through about half of the room, when Lucias’s words caught her attention. “Molly, I’m leaving you to oversee the process for the next few hours. I have other matters to attend to.”

“Of course,” Molly said with a bright smile, reaching up and laying a rather vigorous kiss on him.
 

You know, I thought I actually loved him
. Molly said when he left.
Now just looking at him makes me feel sick, but I know I can’t let on. Being with me keeps him from you and keeps him happy.
 

Chloe looked back at Molly, her eyes full of gratitude. Who would have thought the woman who’d been responsible for her parents’ capture, who everyone had thought was so evil, was capable of such self-sacrifice and compassion? Chloe didn’t fully understand it all, even with being clairvoyant she hadn’t seen that coming, but she was thankful for Molly nonetheless.

CHAPTER 13 -
Family, Friends, and Antiserum

Cami, so happy to see her brother healthy again, rushed into Ethan’s arms, jumping on him like she hadn’t done since they were children.
 

“It’s good to see you, too, sis,” he said, hugging her tight as everyone poured into the room he shared with Alexa. Though they hadn’t slept a whole day, even going to bed only a few hours before dawn they’d managed to sleep through a sunrise and a sunset before waking, both feeling better than they had in weeks.
 

“You fucking scared me,” she whispered as he released her and set her down on her feet.

“Sorry,” he replied, giving her a sheepish grin as he extended his hand to Jared. “So here’s that man who finally tamed my wild sister’s heart!” he exclaimed playfully, shaking Jared’s hand, then pulling him close for a manly embrace. “It’s good to see you again, Jared.”

Jared stepped back, flashing his signature lopsided grin as his eyes cut to Cami with her cheeks glowing red. “I’m working on it,” he replied, giving Cami a wink.
 

“Mamá!” Ethan exclaimed as Josephine walked over and grabbed his face.
 

“Mi corazón,” she said, kissing both of his cheeks before he wrapped his arms around her waist and spun her around.

“It’s good to have you back, son,” Elijah said, coming up behind Josephine. “You gave us a pretty good scare.”

The two men looked at each other, then smiled and hugged hard enough to make it difficult to breathe.

Alexa’s parents weren’t far behind, hugging them both and chastising Alexa for being so reckless in her quest to save Ethan.

“You know, I
am
the High Commander. Did you ever consider that I might be useful in helping you get to Ethan?” William said, raising his eyebrows at his daughter.

“I was afraid to involve you; if you said no, I’d have to defy you,” she said with a smirk, teasing the man who’d been in her life for such a short time, yet felt familiar like a father should be.

“Given what you’ve learned, and what it means for our people, I think it’s safe to say that your defiance, and that of your consorts, whomever they may be,” he said cutting his eyes to Cami and Jared with a smirk, “will be forgiven.”

“What about Dante?” Alexa asked. She felt Ethan’s jealousy flare through their connection, but smiled when she looked at him and saw how hard he was working to conceal it.

“Yes, even The Elite involved will not be punished,” William responded.

They all spent the next couple of hours talking over everything that had happened, sharing their joys and their concerns. Chloe was fresh on their minds, but Alexa shared everything she knew from Chloe’s visions with Jared and her father, both able to see the images in her mind, while the others listened intently to her descriptions.
 

“She’s so strong; stronger than I ever envisioned,” Josephine said to the group. “I have to believe she knew what she was doing when she left.”

“That’s exactly how I feel,” Alexa added, grabbing Josephine’s hand. Chloe was young, far too young to be facing the challenges forced upon her, but if anyone could bear it, it was her.
 

While the others were engrossed in conversation, Jared approached Elijah. “Sir, if I may, I’d like to speak with you, privately.”

Cami, always aware of Jared, watched the two men intently. “Of course, Jared. My quarters will afford some privacy,” Elijah replied, opening the door. Josephine grinned, a knowing look on her face as she pulled Cami away to distract her.

When they were alone, Jared turned to Elijah, obviously nervous. “Sir, I love your daughter,” he blurted out.

“Yes, that much is obvious, but I’m guessing that’s not all you have to say,” Elijah replied with a laugh as he reached for Jared’s shoulder, trying to calm his nerves.

“Yes, you see, I, well, I want to ask Cami to be my mate, to marry me,” he finally stuttered out.

Elijah crossed one arm over his chest and stroked his chin with the other as if he was deep in thought, obviously teasing, but the joke was lost on Jared in all his anxiety.

“Well, son, my daughter is a strong woman; she’s over two-hundred years old and definitely knows her own mind by now. Of course, I certainly can’t answer for her, but I appreciate you recognizing that her family, her mother, brother, and I are from another time, one where it was the custom to ask a father’s permission before proposing marriage. Though I think you might have missed the memo about some of the other conditions regarding courting a woman and marriage,” Elijah joked again.

Jared, who was usually pretty cocky and confident, felt the color rush from his face when he understood Elijah’s meaning.
 

Elijah burst into a fit of laughter. “Lighten up, Jared! I’m not so old fashioned,” he said, struggling to be serious again. Regaining his composure, he continued. “Jared, you’ve managed to do something no man has accomplished in centuries. My daughter has let you into her heart. That is no small feat. If she thinks you’re good enough, I won’t argue it and, as it stands, with what I’ve known of you in this short time, I couldn’t wish for a better mate for my little girl. But I have to warn you, she’s never been overly receptive to traditional ideas of family and marriage. What will you do if she says no?” Elijah asked.

“Sir, when I first fell for Cami she fought it and I told her that I would wait for her for as long as it took. If she refuses my proposal, I’ll ask her every day for the rest of our lives. She’s the one. It doesn’t matter how long it takes her to realize it; I already know.”

Every hint of joking faded from Elijah’s face and he yanked Jared into his arms. “She’s lucky to have you and I would be proud to call you my son, Jared,” he said, squeezing him hard before releasing him and speeding to the table where sat an excellent bottle of scotch. He poured two fingers in a tulip-shaped glass then inclined the bottle to Jared in a silent question. Jared nodded and Elijah splashed the brown liquid into the second glass before picking them both up and passing one to Jared.
 

“A toast; to strong women! My family is full of them and I wish the same joy for your family,” he said to Jared with a wink as they clinked their glasses together. “To strong women,” Jared repeated, and downed his drink in one gulp.

“Now comes the hard part,” Elijah said, clamping Jared’s soldier. “You have to ask her.”

✧

“I’ve continued to watch for her since the day she was born, but with the blocking charm or without, Chloe’s future has always eluded me,” Josephine replied to Ethan and Alexa’s questioning, “but there was one vision; it wasn’t specifically focused on Chloe, even so, I saw her there, I’m sure of it. And Lucias was there as well. It won’t be of much help and I’ve already shared it with the Commander, but I saw two armies gathered, Lucias’s and The Elite, not far from the compound.”

“Gracias, Mamá. Thank you,” Elijah said, giving her a quick hug. “Just let us know if you see anything more.”

“Of course, mi corazón,” Josephine replied as Elijah and Jared reentered the room.
 

“What have you two been up to?” Cami asked, sidling up to Jared.

“Just a little male bonding,” Elijah responded with wink.

Before Cami could press either of them further, the buzzer at the door sounded. Being closest, Jared hit the button to respond. “Yes?”

“It’s Commander Claesson. I need to speak with Alexa.”

Alexa looked at Ethan, andthen flashed to the door. “Yes, Commander?” she queried when it opened.

“We need you back in the lab.”

“Already? Can’t it wait? We want to spend some time with our families.” Ethan questioned, his tone bordering on annoyance. Alexa had spent hours there the day before while he had to watch pint after pint of her blood being siphoned from her arm.

“I’m afraid it can’t. Reports are coming in from the city and it’s not good,” he said, giving William a pointed look. “Lucias is making a move; I can’t say for certain what he’s up to, but we need to be prepared for the worst. That means we need as much antiserum as you can stand to make.”

“Ethan, we have to do what we can to help, for Chloe,” Alexa whispered to him. He couldn’t argue, so he simply sighed and nodded to the Commander.
 

Within a few seconds, the couple found themselves back in the room where they were first reunited. Alexa glanced quickly at the cell where Dante remained with Layla. He was sitting with his back to her, partially dressed in what was left of his tattered clothes, and he was covered in fresh blood. Alexa looked to the Commander. “What’s going on; why are they still in there?” she asked.

“Layla is still infected,” the Commander replied, “we have to maintain an abundant source of the virus; for now, she’s it.”

“You can’t do that to them!” she yelled, looking to Dante who was pacing at the front of the cell, obviously pissed.

“Calm down, Alexa. Right now we don’t have a choice. The virus cycles through your system too quickly and we don’t have the time to figure out how to replicate the process, nor are we even certain we can replicate it,” Dr. Jones interjected.

“I’m guessing Dante didn’t take that news very well,” Alexa said, looking at her friend with compassion and concern, only to see him staring at Ethan with murderous intent; realizing he might be angry about more than Layla’s continued infection. “Is it safe for him to be in there with her?” she asked, earning a hard glare from Ethan. Clearly, the feeling between the two men was mutual.

“Easy, tiger. He’s a friend, remember? I just don’t want him to get hurt,” she added, stroking Ethan’s well-muscled chest, which seemed to calm him down just a little. He’d managed to hide his jealously in front of their families, but with Dante in the same room, basically provoking him, there wasn’t a chance in hell that he could hold it back.

“Safe or not, he wouldn’t come out even if we could find a way to get him out without risking Layla escaping, but something good has come of that” Claesson replied. “As you can see, Layla has fed from Dante since he was cured, yet he shows no signs of infection; proof that the effects of the antiserum are permanent. That’s excellent news for us. Once we cure one of Lucias’s men, he can’t reinfect them and we’ll be able to vaccinate our civilian population, rendering what has been Lucias’s greatest weapon all but completely useless.”