On the Edge of Humanity (33 page)

“What?” I asked.

“She’ll stay with me,” Dr. Vieira said.

I snapped my head in his direction. What was he going to do, tie me down?

“Yeah, what he said.” I flicked my finger at Dr. Vieira.

“I warned you about your attitude,” my father said as he pulled his sword from his belt.

Was he trying to scare me with his stupid sword?

As I rolled my eyes, my gaze locked with Webb’s who was still staring at me through the rearview mirror. I didn’t cower as his blue eyes pierced through me.

I broke eye contact when the first blade of my father’s sword ejected.

Whoa! Didn’t look so stupid anymore. Why did he do that? The shiny blade had a blue hue surrounding the outer edges.

“Just testing it,” he said as he ran a finger lightly over the blade. “Don’t worry. I’m not testing the second blade.”

I eyed Dr. Vieira’s waist. He didn’t have a sword strapped to his belt. I sensed Webb had his, as he never left the compound without it. In fact, all the Sentinels wore their swords unless they were sleeping. I made a mental note to ask Kate about the swords since she seemed to be more open with me than the others.

Webb pulled into an alleyway and came to a stop behind a large building. I bent over and glanced up at the back entrance of Highland Memorial Hospital. Then I remembered seeing the hospital on the command center TV screen.

“Is this where they’re keeping Sam?” I asked.

“There’s an empty wing in the basement,” Webb said.

A car door slammed then someone knocked on the window.

“We have all sides covered,” Tripp informed.

“Aren’t people going to see you walking in with your weapons?” I asked, frowning as my father wiped down his sword.

“No. The Sentinels standing at the main entrance are in civilian clothes. We’re going in through the boiler room anyway,” Tripp said.

“Dr. Vieira, you know what to do,” my father said, then slid out.

Webb pulled out a pair of black gloves and slid them over his hands. Olivia appeared in front of the van. All four of them were armed and ready to take on anyone who got in their way.

As they walked around the corner of the hospital, a shiver skated up my spine. The tang of blood wafted in through the crack in the window and it smelled like a pile of decomposing trash. A plenitude of sounds rang around me from car doors slamming shut, horns blowing, dogs barking and sirens wailing.

“Did you hear that?”

Dr. Vieira nodded as he raised a finger to his lips.

“I want you to close your eyes,” he whispered.

Huh? Was I sitting in a psychotherapist chair? I glared at him.

“Just do it.”

I let out of huff then closed my eyes.

“Now, try and clear out all the background noise you hear and focus on your immediate surroundings. As a vampire you should have impeccable hearing, as good as or better than the canine species. The sooner you master this, the better it will be for you.”

How the hell was I supposed to do that? I took in a deep breath.

By the time I master this Sam will be dead.

I did as he instructed, clearing my head and trying to erase all the sounds. The sirens were gone, the faint sound of cars was still there, but the barking dog was ruining my concentration. I shook my head, breathing slowly in and out.

Dr. Vieira placed his hand on mine. “Center on any noise in the van,” he whispered.

The only thing in the van I could hear was his heart beating. I counted the beats as blood pumped in and out of his heart. As I counted, the other noises dissipated.

“Okay, now what?” I asked.

“Do the same with smell. Open up your olfactory senses and concentrate. Try to filter out the weaker scents and bring forth the stronger ones. The strong ones are what will be closer to you.”

I inhaled through my nose, smelling trash, some type of rotten egg odor and a pine odor, which was stronger than the rest. The blood I had smelled earlier wasn’t in the mix. Was this what dogs did in trying to ferret out their prey?

“Well?” he asked.

“I smell a combination of things, but the strongest is a pine scent, which I think is coming from you. I did smell blood when we drove up but it was tangy and had a bad odor.”

“Do you think it was human blood?” he asked.

“You mean, you can tell? How?”

“It’s mostly instinct, but vampire blood is not as fragrant as human blood. As you get older, it will be second nature for you to smell the difference.”

How the hell was I supposed to tell what was human and not human? I was only a day old in vampire age.

Dr. Vieira removed his hand from mine when a cell phone rang. I didn’t have a cell phone. I looked over at Dr. Vieira and he had his fingers to his lips again.

Then all of sudden a metal on metal clank whistled in the distance. The last time I heard that noise was when Webb engaged his Sentinel sword. My eyes popped opened.

“They’re behind us,” I whispered.

Dr. Vieira pulled up his pant leg and grabbed hold of a dagger.

“Here take this,” he said as he handed it to me.

“Uh-uh. I’m not using that.” I pushed it away and it fell onto the floorboard. “Can’t I just use my fangs and bite?”

Then he reached into a bag at his feet and pulled out a Sentinel sword.

He smirked. “You’ve got so much to learn. There are two vamps behind us, strong ones. Your fangs aren’t going to do anything to them.”

“Neither is this dagger if vampires can’t die,” I added.

“That’s not your ordinary dagger and this isn’t your ordinary sword. Both of these weapons are double-edged and made from a base metal of cobalt. Aside from chopping a vampire’s head off or burning a vampire to death, the only other thing that can kill a vampire is a cobalt infused knife or sword.”

“Okay, now I am really confused. You mean I could die today from one of these weapons? And you want me to carry one?”

Just great!

We needed to get the fuck out of here. If I died before we rescued Sam… I didn’t want to think about it. I had already died as a human, returned as a vampire and I was now living in hell.

“Pick up the dagger,” Dr. Vieira commanded.

“I can’t do this,” I said, my voice shaking. I bent over and warily retrieved the weapon. The leather handle was soft against my palm. I stared at it, trying to figure out how to use it.

“Here’s what we’re going to do. I’m going to step out on this side. I will distract them. Then I want you to run into the hospital and hide. We can’t have anything happen to you. Do you understand?”

I nodded.

“One more thing.” Dr. Vieira looked at me and grabbed hold of my hand. “You’re a vampire now. Use your physical strength and your senses to protect yourself. Your father will find you.”

“What about you?” I asked.

“I’ve been a vampire too long. I know how to take care of myself.” He grabbed the handle of the door. “As soon as I step out, I want you to run. Don’t hesitate or you’ll get killed.”

Vampire body or human body, it didn’t matter, I was scared shitless. I had thought that being a vampire, my predatory instincts would take over, that I wouldn’t be afraid. Nope, not me. I was a purple-haired, ugly, scared vampire. My heart raced, my eyes had already shifted and my hands were shaking. I traded my human life for a vampire life—what was I thinking?

Dr. Vieira slid open the door and disappeared toward the back of the van. Then he banged on the outside of it, which was my cue to bolt. I yanked open my door and sprinted around the corner into the boiler room. Now what?

The place was still the same as I had remembered. The boiler hummed loudly or at least louder now that I was a vampire. Steam filtered out from the grates in the floor, blanketing my skin, causing my cheeks to warm. I dodged the pipes jutting out from above and ran to the back of the boiler where an exit sign popped into view.

I bent over, placed the dagger in my boot and prayed it wouldn’t stab me. Then I pushed the bar on the door and stepped into a stairwell. I looked up, hesitating for a moment. Maybe the patient floors would be a better place to hide. Maybe it would be the last place the Plutariums would look for me, especially among a crowd of humans.

I stood in the stairwell, trying to decide. Should I go up and hide among humans or go down and find the empty wing where Sam was being held? Dr. Vieira told me to hide, but where? I needed to stay close to the van, so when my father brought Sam out I would be there for him. I decided it was best to find my father and his team.

As I climbed down the stairs, a fruity fragrant smell wafted up, tickling my nose. The farther down I climbed the stronger the smell became. I pulled the handle of a door and stepped into an empty hallway. The fragrance of human blood overtook me, causing my breath to hitch and my fangs to descend.
Christ.
Dr. Vieira was right. Human blood was definitely distinct.

I looked in both directions. Which way to go? The human smell was stronger to my right and it tugged at me, pulling me in that direction. Slowly, I walked toward the fragrant odor, attempting to resist the seduction of the human scent. But my legs were my enemy. It was like my body was a magnet being drawn to its host, my gums pulsing, aching to sink my fangs into mortal flesh.

As I approached the end of the hallway to turn left, a shadowy figure climbed up the wall. My pulse quickened and my mouth watered, the saliva coating my lips ready for a taste.

I rounded the corner and the shadow disappeared. I jogged up to the first door and stood to the side of it. I peeked in through the window where humans stood behind lab benches with vials of blood in their hands. I tore my gaze away and adjusted my vision to read the sign on the door—
Blood Lab
.

I’d hit the lottery. I was in vampire heaven. Without another thought, I walked in.

A lady with short black hair looked up from her desk. “May I help you?”

The smell of blood was stronger inside, so much so that I thought I was going to leap across several desks to claim my prize.

“Are you okay, young lady? Are you lost?” She rose from her chair and walked up to me.

She kept asking me questions, but all I could do was restrain myself from attacking her.

“Miss? Should I call upstairs and find you a doctor?”

How could I answer her without showing my fangs?

I covered my mouth and mumbled through my fingers, “No, I don’t need a doctor. I’m lost. I was looking for my dad. He works in the boiler room.”

“Oh. Well, go out here and turn right. Then follow the hallway to the exit on the left. That should take you up one floor,” she explained.

I walked slowly to the door, then turned and mumbled, “Thank you.”

Once out in the hall, I sprinted around the corner then stopped. What was I doing? Was I really a crazed vampire, preying on humans?
Get a grip.

I waited a second to regain my composure, then walked back to the entrance. Since my first choice ended in my almost draining a mortal, my only other choice was to investigate the other end of the hallway.

I jogged. The human scent grew weaker and my fangs retreated, although I was having a tough time getting the smell out of my mind.

The dim light above me sprayed down, casting a glow, lighting a path that dead-ended at a set of double doors. The room beyond the doors was dark, but my keen vampire vision adjusted and I could see that an empty room lay ahead. I didn’t know if I should go in or not. My choices were limited. Either walk through the double doors or go back. While the humans were definitely more appealing and appetizing, I was afraid of myself more than anything else.

I slowly pushed in the door, slipping through a small opening. I hugged the wall to my right as if I were a rat crawling along a perimeter to find food. As I made my way deeper inside, a light illuminated from an area on the far side.

My father’s voice cut through, pricking my eardrums. He spoke words in a different language. I stopped, trying to decipher it, when a whistling noise of metal startled me. Then someone grunted, glass shattered and a door slammed. I moved closer to the lighted room and the noise when someone grabbed my arm.

I turned and Fernando stood next to me, his mouth stained red. Of all the damn vampires to run into, it had to be him—the smug and cocky vamp from Ben’s house.

“Nice to see you again, Jo, though I’m saddened you’re not human anymore,” he said as he sniffed the air. “You don’t smell as mouth-watering as you did a few days ago.”

“What’re you? A dog? Get a grip,” I countered.

“But I was so looking forward to getting to know you better as a human. In fact, I was hoping when this was all over, we could go out on a date.” He stared at me intently, his gaze menacing.

He was asking me out on a date in the middle of a battle between the Sentinels and the Plutariums? I couldn’t believe it.

“I’m sorry to disappoint and I can’t say the feeling is mutual. You’re such a smug asshole, I’d be surprised if you get dates at all.”

His lips curled at the edges displaying a perfect white smile that lit up his tan complexion. “I see you’re still a feisty one. I so love that about my women.”

“And what woman had the pleasure of your fangs?” I asked, pointing to his mouth.

“That’s none of your business,” he said, squeezing my arm tighter.

I cocked my head to one side. An air of danger poured off him.

I thought about what Dr. Vieira had said.
You’re a vampire now, use your physical strength
. I was still trying to understand what those physical strengths were. When I had pulled out a drawer in my father’s bathroom it had flown across the room and I had grabbed Webb by his throat, gasping for breath. But that was all I had.

“You’re not afraid of me?” I asked.

Fernando laughed. “Afraid of you? You’re a newborn. How can you do any damage to an old sot like me?” He laughed again. “I see it this way. You’re coming with me. I need redemption to prove to my master that I can succeed, and two human teenagers can’t get keep me down.”

Now I wanted to laugh. “You mean you got in trouble because of me? I bet you were laughed at for a human getting away from a strong vampire like you.”

He smiled again. No matter what I said, it didn’t faze him.

“I’m growing very fond of you, Josephine Mason,” he said.

I cringed at the sound of my name and how he said it. “Don’t call me that. My name is Jo and only Jo.”

He frowned and loosened his grip on my arm. That was my cue to run, but instead, I bent over, and pulled the dagger out of my boot before Fernando could react. I positioned the dagger in my hand the only way I knew how. I had witnessed Jonah holding one, so I mimicked the way he held it. I wrapped my palm around the leather handle with my knuckles facing up, my palm down with my forearm parallel to the floor in front of me.

In a swift move, I jabbed it toward Fernando, but he bent backwards, laughing.

I had no idea what I was doing holding a dagger, let alone thrusting it at someone. With my luck I would hurt myself. A sudden fear rushed through me. My physical being was that of a vampire, but my mind was very human, and still sending me signals of anxiety. Weren’t vampires supposed to be fearless?