Amanda Ashley (32 page)

“No doubt you'll be a very rich man by then,” Alex remarked sarcastically.

“I'm not doing this for the money!” Barrett shouted, his face livid. His gaze slid away from Alex's and he took several deep, calming breaths.

Alex closed his eyes. His blood had saved a child's life. He tried to take satisfaction in the thought, but it was hard to get past the bitterness that threatened to choke him as he imagined spending the rest of his life in a cage while Barrett sold his blood to the highest bidder.

“Well,” Barrett said, “I think that's all you can spare for a while. Hamblin will be in with your dinner shortly.”

Barrett left the room, and Alex stared after him,
the thought of food making him sick to his stomach.

A short time later, the door opened again and Mitch Hamblin entered the room. He was a goodlooking kid, with slicked-back dark brown hair, and eyes older than his years.

Hamblin placed a covered tray on the bedside table, then reached into his pocket and pulled out a slip of paper. “You gonna keep your word, Claybourne?”

A wry grin tugged at the corner of Alexander's mouth. It was the first time anyone here had called him by name. He was the creature, the alien, the monster. “You got a pen?”

Hamblin tossed a ballpoint pen onto the tray, then stood watching, eyes wide, as Alex filled out the check and signed it.

Alex picked up the check and waved it slowly back and forth. “How much do you want to let me go?”

The kid's pale green eyes lit up with interest. And greed. “You've got more?”

Alex nodded.

Hamblin rubbed his jaw, his expression thoughtful. “How much are you offerin'?”

“Another hundred thousand.”

Mitch whistled under his breath, his gaze fixed on the piece of paper waving before his eyes. Another hundred thousand dollars. He'd be a rich man, able to buy silk suits, go to Vegas, rub elbows with the high rollers . . .

“Hamblin?”

Mitch settled his back against the wall, his arms crossed over his chest. “I've been drivin' your Porsche. Nice car.”

“It's yours, too. If you'll let me go.”

“It's mine now.”

“Yeah, I guess it is. How much?” Alex asked, trying to keep the anxiety out of his voice. “How much to let me go?”

“I'll think about it,” Mitch said. He plucked the check from Alex's hand and slipped it into his pocket. “First I wanna see if this one clears.”

“How about bringing me a glass of water?”

“I'll ask the doc.”

Alex stared at the door after Hamblin had left the room, sickened by the thought of Barrett getting rich off his blood, and yet he couldn't help feeling a sense of satisfaction that his blood was saving lives. He couldn't help wondering if the same link that existed between himself and Kara now existed between himself and the little girl. It seemed unlikely. He had given Kara a considerable amount of blood, far more than was contained in the vials Barrett was selling.

Rising, he stretched his back and legs, then tugged against the chain. Damn! He had to get out of here. The sun beat down on his head and shoulders, draining him of strength, of energy.

He licked his lips, wishing the kid would bring him something to drink.

With a sigh, he sank down on the cot and closed his eyes.

He woke with a start as the door burst open and Barrett entered the room, his face flushed with anger.

“Damn fools,” Barrett muttered.

Alex lifted one brow. “Something wrong, doc?”

“The last batch of blood we took was contaminated. We'll have to draw more.”

Alex swore under his breath. “So soon?” he sat up, his back to the wall.

“You know what they say, time is money.”

Alex grunted, his stomach clenching as Barrett pulled a handful of vials from his coat pocket and spread them out on the table.

Muttering under his breath, Barrett pulled a tourniquet from his other pocket. “Make a fist.”

“No.”

“Do as I say, dammit, or I'll strap you to a table again.”

Alex glanced past Barrett. A new man, Kent Jarvis, stood in the hallway, idly paring his fingernails with a knife.

Knowing it was useless to resist, Alex watched as Barrett tied the strip of rubber around his arm, then located a vein. He was about to draw blood when Hamblin entered the room.

“They need ya in the lab, Doc. One of the machines is malfunctioning.”

Barrett swore under his breath. Turning on his heel, he left the room. Jarvis trailed after him. Hamblin followed. He paused in the doorway, gave Alex an enigmatic look, then closed and locked the door.

Too agitated to sit still, Alex stood up and paced back and forth beside the bed, though the chain prevented him from taking more than a few steps in any direction.

He tugged against the chain that shackled him to the bed; then, taking a deep, calming breath, he sat down and tried to focus his energy on the lock. But the sun was still his enemy, draining his strength, his power to concentrate. Sweat dripped down his
back, beaded across his brow, as he tried to focus his thoughts on the lock.

Come on,
he thought desperately.
Come on!

Kara checked the address her grandmother had given her, then pulled up to the curb and turned off the ignition. Stepping from the car, she hurried up the flower-lined path to the front door.

Minutes later, she was being hugged by Nana and Gail while Mrs. Zimmermann and her daughter stood by, smiling. Later, Mrs. Zimmermann introduced Kara to her daughter. Nancy Ralston was an attractive, middle-aged woman with curly brown hair and gray eyes. Kara learned that Nancy was married to an accountant and that she had three children, all of whom were away at summer camp.

Nancy produced a pot of coffee and some donuts, and Kara spent the next half hour answering what questions she could and avoiding the others.

Gail looked at her strangely a few times, and Kara knew that her sister suspected she was hiding more than she was telling.

Late that night, after everyone else had gone to bed, Gail and Kara sat in the kitchen, drinking hot chocolate.

“How long will we have to stay here?” Gail asked.

“I'm not sure.” Kara shook her head. Maybe they'd never be able to go home again.

“Where's Alexander Claybourne?”

“I don't know.”

“Did you ever find out what was wrong with your blood?”

“Not exactly, but I'm fine now.”

“Is Barrett still looking for you?”

“I don't know.”

“You don't know much of anything, do you?” Gail remarked candidly.

Kara let out a sigh. “At this point, I'm afraid I don't. Listen, Gail, I'm leaving in the morning.”

“I'm going with you.”

“No.”

“Why not? You're going to look for Mr. Claybourne, aren't you?”

“Yes.”

“Maybe I can help.”

“It's too dangerous.”

“Kara, why won't you tell me what's going on?”

“Because you're better off not knowing.”

“It's because he's a vampire, isn't it?”

Kara hesitated. “Don't be silly.”

“Am I? There's something different about him. I know there is.”

“What do you mean?”

“I don't know how to explain it, I just know. I knew it that first night when I went to his house.”

“You never said anything.”

“I didn't think you'd believe me. I didn't want you to say I was being silly.”

“I never said you were silly.”

“Not in words, maybe, but I know you think it's dumb for me to believe in vampires and aliens and stuff like that. And maybe it is. But I believe it anyway.”

“Gail, if I tell you something, will you promise never to tell anyone else?”

“I promise.”

“You can't tell Cherise or Stephanie. Not even Nana.”

“I promise.”

“Alex isn't a vampire.”

Gail made a face.

“He's an alien.”

Gail blinked at Kara several times. “An alien? You mean, like from outer space?”

Kara nodded.

“I was right!” Gail exclaimed. “I knew it!”

“Gail, listen, Alex is in danger, and I've got to find him.”

“I'll help you.”

“No.”

“Please?” Gail leaned across the table, her expression earnest. “If it wasn't for me, you might be dead now. You owe me a favor.”

“Blackmail?” Kara exclaimed. “You're trying to blackmail me? Your own sister?”

“Yes. Is it working?”

“Oh, Gail, what am I going to do with you?”

“Take me with you.”

“I'll think about it.”

“Promise?”

“I promise.” Kara picked up the cups, carried them to the sink, and rinsed them out. “It's late. Let's go to bed.”

“Okay.”

Later, lying in the twin bed next to Gail's, Kara stared into the darkness, wondering where Alex was, if he was well. She closed her eyes, concentrating on Alex, trying to send her thoughts to him, to read his in return, but to no avail. She refused to think of what the silence might mean, telling herself that distance alone accounted for the fact that she couldn't reach him; she refused to consider any other possibility.

Kara rose with the dawn, wanting to get an early start, even though she wasn't sure where to look first.

Swinging her legs over the edge of the bed, she closed her eyes as a wave of dizziness assaulted her. Stomach churning, she ran into the bathroom, dropped to her knees in front of the toilet, and retched.

“Kara? Are you all right?”

“Fine,” she mumbled. Tearing off several sheets of toilet paper, she wiped her mouth, then stood up. Surprisingly, she felt much better.

“Are you sick?” Gail stood in the doorway, looking worried.

“I don't think so.” She wiped the perspiration from her forehead, remembering, as she did so,
that she'd felt sick to her stomach yesterday morning, too.

“Kara?”

“I think I'm pregnant.”

Gail's eyes widened. “Pregnant!”

Kara nodded, wondering why it hadn't occurred to her before. She was pregnant.

“Who's the father?”

“Alex.”

Gail's mouth fell open, her expression one of utter astonishment. “But he's . . . Does he know?”

“No.” And he probably wouldn't be too happy with the news when she told him. Unbidden came the memory of Alexander's voice, warning her that a pregnancy could be dangerous, even fatal, for her and the child.

“Are you scared?”

Kara nodded. “Gail, what am I going to do?”

Gail shrugged. “I don't know.” And suddenly, it was as if Gail were the older sister, and Kara the younger. “I guess you'll either have the baby, or not.”

Kara met her sister's gaze. “An abortion?” She shook her head. “I couldn't.” Not Alex's baby. She remembered telling him that she would love any child God might grant her. She had been so sure of those words when she had said them, but now . . .

She couldn't kill it, couldn't murder her own unborn child. Even if it was half-alien, even if it was a monster, she couldn't commit murder. And it was murder. No matter what the pro-choice people said to the contrary, once conceived, the fetus was a human being with a God-given right to life. She believed, with all her heart, that if it was wrong to kill
a child once it was born, it was also wrong to kill it in the womb. She had seen pictures of babies who had been aborted—tiny human beings who had been vacuumed out of their mother's wombs, arms and legs torn off. Who knew what horrible pains those unborn children had suffered? How could anyone ever say such a thing was right?

“Gail, I have to find Alex.” Just saying his name gave her strength.

“But how? Where will we look?”

“We'll start in Moulton Bay.”

An hour later, Gail had a bag packed and they were ready to go. Kara and Gail thanked Nancy and her husband for their hospitality, then bid Nana a tearful good-bye.

“You'll be careful?” Lena said. “Promise me you'll be careful.”

“I will,” Kara said. She hugged her grandmother close, relieved that she seemed fully recovered from her earlier illness. “Try not to worry, Nana. I'll call as soon as I can.”

Lena Crawford nodded. She hugged Kara once more, kissed Gail on the cheek, then stood in the driveway, blinking back her tears, while Kara drove down the street.

Gail glanced out the back window and waved. “She'll be okay, won't she?”

Kara nodded. “Of course. Nancy will take good care of her.”

“Where are we going to go first?”

“Alex's house.”

“You think he's there?”

“No, but I've got to look. If he hasn't been there,
I'll know. And if he has been, well, I'll know that, too.”

Gail frowned. “How will you know?”

“I just will.”

“If you say so.” Gail turned on the radio. Locating KROQ, she sat back, her foot tapping in time to Meat Loaf's latest hit.

They spent the night in a motel. In the morning, they drove to a small restaurant for breakfast. Gail ordered pancakes, Kara settled for dry toast and coffee. After breakfast, they stopped at one of the mall shops so Kara could buy a change of clothes, underwear, and a nightgown. From there they went into a drug store where she bought a comb, a hairbrush, a toothbrush, and a lipstick, and a small overnight bag to carry everything in. As she paid the bill, it occurred to her that she'd been doing a lot of buying on the run since she met Alexander Claybourne.

They were on the road again by eleven-thirty.

“Where will we look if Alex isn't home?” Gail asked.

“In Silverdale.”

“Silverdale? Why? What's there?”

“Barrett has a lab there.”

“I never even heard of Silverdale. Do you know how to get there?”