Stained Hearts Read online

  6

  Gideon

  A case? The asshole wanted to give us a case while we were on the run from the council, and after this little display? My mind reeled at the thought, but judging from the dark eyes that were slowly replacing the silver ones, he was dead serious.

  "It must be important if you were willing to come to us while we were being hunted by the council," Keir stated, still keeping his voice low and smooth.

  I had never been more thankful for my brother's dreamy voice. It had always been powerful, which was why he was often a man of few words, but to see it calm down whatever the hell that was, well, let's just say it gave me a new appreciation for the dream walker.

  "It is. Especially because I want to keep the council's eyes off it. Humans are being murdered because of a drug that's gaining a large following. It's called Kronos. It makes the user feel like time has extended, like someone hit a pause button on everyone except them. It's becoming too popular, too fast."

  I was trying to listen to what he said, to absorb it, but it was hard. He was still holding Marcella, and it pissed me off. How could he talk about things like that while holding her like she was a sack of potatoes?

  "Humans die all the time. Why do we suddenly give a fuck?" Cade asked.

  I turned to look at my brother, and found that Raven and Barclay were picking up the table, food, and chairs, so we could all sit down once more. Darius completely ignored their efforts as he walked toward the living area, with Marcella still unconscious in his arms. The stick was firmly up his ass once more, and I had to fight my emotions to keep myself stable.

  Shit.

  Even I needed blood after everything that had happened today. If we didn't take care of this problem soon, it wouldn't matter whether we had a case or not, because we would be tearing each other apart.

  Once Darius had deposited Marcella onto the couch, like a sleeping princess, he turned to face us all once again. He took a few deep breaths as though he was still having trouble letting go of Marcella and keeping his Vamp side in check. Before he trusted himself to speak again, I watched him regain control and push the Vamp back down.

  Darius's fingers went to his French cuffs, fixing the cufflinks, before they straightened his waistcoat and tie, then they adjusted his suit jacket, before he finally smoothed his hair back into place. It was like watching a cat clean themselves, something so mundane but graceful, as the veneer slipped back into place.

  When he looked up at us again his eyes didn't hold a trace of silver, or emotion for that matter. He had locked it all away once more. We meandered over because we each knew it was expected of us, and I, for one, didn't want to test Darius's patience when his Vamp was so close to the surface.

  "It's important because the drug is derived from purebloods, among other things," he said, leveling his gaze at each of us in turn, as though he needed to drive that point home.

  "What?" Raven hissed.

  "Did I stutter?" he asked, turning his cold stare on Rav.

  "Maker, that's just not right," Barclay said, as he plopped down onto the couch next to Marcella.

  Darius growled low under his breath, but it was enough to raise the hairs on the back of my neck. For a second, I could swear he didn't even realize he was making the noise. His upper lip lifted in a snarl that was more animalistic than anything I'd seen from him before, minus the talons, because what the fuck were those? He looked like a dog who was about to teach another one who’s boss.

  Barclay got the point though, and even I could see that his wolf wanted to come out and play, as he got up and forced himself to move away from his mate. A freshly mated shifter and a freshly mated Vamp, what could go wrong? It was almost enough to make me chuckle to myself.

  "So this drug..." I began, trying to redirect everyone's attention from the fight that was going to take place if I didn't do something. It was only when Darius looked at me, his eyes swirling silver and brown in a way that almost made me feel seasick, when I continued, "Do we know anything about where it's coming from? Who's making it?"

  "I suspect Jasper Laraby is at least involved, if not running it."

  "Laraby, as in Councilwoman Laraby’s son?" I asked, praying to the Maker that he said no.

  "One and the same."

  "Fuck," Cade whispered.

  "My sentiments exactly," Darius replied, as he slumped into the armchair next to Marcella. He looked tired. Exhausted actually.

  "Before we go on about this any further, I propose we get some blood, agreed?" I looked around at the others.

  A few sullen nods here and there, along with a long exhale from Darius, weren't exactly the enthusiastic responses I was looking for.

  "Rav, can you and Cade go to the local hospital and get some?"

  "On it," he said, as he slipped his sleek, black phone from his pocket and tapped away. "There's one less than an hour away."

  The two of them disappeared toward the car, and the rest of us just sat in stunned, worn-out, silence. My mind was reeling from everything we had found out in the last couple hours. Not only was my Sixth my Enforcer's mate, but apparently at least one council member's kid was dealing a drug that was killing humans.

  My gaze was trained on Marcella. The fact that she was still unconscious was worrying me. Most would have woken up by now.

  "How long do you think she'll be out?" Keir asked, as though he was picking up on my very thoughts.

  "No idea. Do you think she's ever been exposed to anything like that before?" Darius inquired, his tone alarmingly casual.

  "Unlikely. She's been at Westbrook since she was a kid," Barclay grumbled, still clearly unhappy with having to keep his distance from his mate.

  "What?" Darius's tone turned sharp.

  "Apparently, her mother was a thrall and she was placed at Westbrook as a servant before her abilities manifested," Barclay replied. He'd gone from being unhappy with the physical distance that separated the two of them, to realizing that there was more than just physical distance that was important. He knew Marcella, arguably even better than I did, but he was intimate with her in a way Darius couldn't comprehend, at least not yet.

  "A thrall?" the Enforcer whispered, as he looked down at the petite woman resting on the couch, her blood-red hair spilling over the edge like a waterfall.

  Barclay had told all of us when he found out, but I hadn't really expected him to share the information with Darius. Honestly, I'd expected him to make it as hard as possible for our Enforcer to get close to his mate. Part of me was relieved that it wasn't going the way I thought it would.

  Barclay nodded once and that was that. The cat was out of the bag. Well, that cat. I was pretty sure there were other cats still hiding in there, and Marcella would only tell us when she was ready.

  It felt like we sat in silence for minutes with nothing happening, and then all of a sudden Cade and Raven were back. I knew we'd either been sitting there a lot longer, or Cade had fucked around and used his ability, which was unlikely, since the man got some awful headaches from it.

  I could practically smell the blood already and was salivating because of it. As the most Vampiric in the Brotherhood, I needed blood more than they did. In fact, if push came to shove, they could live without it, they would just lose their abilities and have a constant craving that they couldn't satisfy. They would, for all intents and purposes, be human. I, on the other hand, needed it to survive, not as much as Marcella or Darius, but I needed some.

  To me, blood was mana from the Maker. Not only did it supercharge my abilities, if they weren't depleted, but it made me more stable, more perceptive, and even made me stronger. Cade and Raven tossed bags at each of us before putting the rest in the fridge.

  What a sight we made, as we all sat around slurping on our bags of blood. The only one who wasn't was Marcella, but Raven had placed a bag on the table that was between where she lay on the couch, and where I sat on the other side of the room, while Darius still hovered annoyingly close to her.

 
; His hand reached out and grabbed the bag on the table, pulling it toward him while he downed his bag faster than any of us were even able to. One thing that could be said for Vamp physiology, was that it certainly helped them consume as much as they could as quickly as possible.

  When he moved to help Marcella drink from the bag, I had to speak up. "Darius, I know you want to protect her and keep her to yourself for a while, but she doesn't know you. If she wakes up with her head in your lap while she's drinking blood, she's going to flip out."

  His head snapped toward my voice, and slowly but surely he backed off, leaving her alone. "I need to go and make a phone call," he said before storming out.

  Barclay and Cade were there a moment later, each touching Marcella all over, as though they needed to make sure her other mate hadn't injured her. Ha! Like that was even possible. Barc slid her head onto his lap as he shimmied underneath her, supporting her enough so she wouldn't choke on the blood Cade was about to feed her.

  Some of it dripped into her mouth, and I watched as her canine teeth seemed to swell. A few more drops descended between her lips, and I waited for her to swallow. Even in her sleep she should still want to feed, enough so that if blood was put in front of her, she'd start drinking and wake herself up, like her body went on autopilot.

  The problem was, that wasn't happening.

  Her fangs were showing interest, but that was about as far as it was going.

  "Does she need more, do you think?" Cade asked, looking at Barclay with worried eyes.

  "No idea, but I don't think it would hurt to try."

  Cade dribbled a small stream of blood into her mouth, and we all waited with baited breath for her to wake up, but nothing happened. She didn't even twitch, and she definitely didn't seem to be swallowing the blood. Some of it was getting down her throat, I was sure of that, but I could also see the little pool that had formed inside her mouth.

  Whatever was going on, she wasn't getting much blood, and that was a problem. A half second later, Barc turned her head to the side. The blood poured from her mouth for way too long as it splattered onto the, thankfully, tiled floor.

  "What do we do?" Barc muttered, as he pushed her hair out of her face, her skin looking like alabaster next to the rich golden-brown of his own.

  Barclay and Cade were staring at each other with panic in their eyes, as Marcella remained unresponsive. She was sleeping beauty at this point, and I was starting to think only true love's kiss would wake her, which was a problem since the woman essentially had six mates and we couldn't all kiss her at the same time.

  7

  Darius

  The need was more acute than anything I’d ever experienced.

  It was a dull throb in my body that I wasn’t sure how to handle. I was ancient, I knew how to cope with the fractious sensation of hunger, but this went deeper than that. It was like my very veins had been drained of blood, like I was on the brink of death without the threat of crossing over.

  It was peculiar, and I hated everything I couldn’t make sense of. Perhaps that was arrogant of me, but I was in a powerful position, one that provided me with most answers to questions few would even think to ask.

  “Darius?”

  “Fucker’s decided to go deaf.”

  Cade’s statement had my jaw clenching, and I focused on the men in the lounge rather than the gentle throb of Marcella’s heartbeat in the room overhead. I could, when I closed my eyes, hear her breathing, and the combination was enough to give me some small semblance of peace.

  “I’m not deaf. I’m listening.”

  “To what?” Barclay asked, his wide eyes as open as ever. He was a typical shifter in that sense. Loyal to a fault, always hopeful with an unending faith in the Maker.

  Had I ever been that naïve?

  If I had, I couldn’t remember when, or when that side of my nature had died. But staring at him, I mourned the loss. Not for my sake, but for Marcella.

  My mate.

  Maker help me, I was mated.

  “Marcella.”

  Gideon cleared his throat. “She’s safe up there. We’ve been running from the council because we thought they were the ones who’d put her in danger, but you’re here, and you haven’t brought danger with you. Have you?”

  It was a question that needed answering, but I simply tilted my head to the side. “What made you kill Westbrook’s Headmaster?”

  “He was a corrupt piece of shit,” was all Gideon said, but I turned to look at Keiran. The coma the old fucker had fallen into spelled dream walker, but it was just like the druid to take the blame for his brothers.

  “Why?”

  “Because he was, alongside Master Lee, on the LeFauvre payroll,” Raven stated bluntly. “They were pushing us onto Lily Addams, even though she was beyond wrong for us.”

  “As well as the fact he was fucking the students.”

  Gideon snorted. “Seemed like most of the Masters were doing that.”

  My lips firmed at that. “The Academies always were beyond corrupt.”

  “Why don’t you do something about it then?” Cade snapped.

  I shrugged. “Because I’ve taken advantage of it myself a time or two. How do you think you five came together? Sometimes, to evade politics, you have to break the rules. Which is why I’m here. I’m not sanctioned by the council, but—”

  “You mean Marcella’s still in fucking danger?” Raven snarled, interrupting me verbally, as well as bolting off the sofa to get in my face.

  I narrowed my eyes at him. “Of course she’s safe now.”

  “Because she’s your mate?” Barclay stated, disappointment in his tone, almost as though he knew what my next words would be.

  “Yes. I intended to bargain for your status to entice you to work on this case. Her safety was going to be my leverage. But, naturally, that is no longer the way of it.”

  “Then it’s a good fucking thing you’re tied to her,” Cade growled.

  Gideon dipped his chin as he crossed his feet at the ankle. “Why tell us that? You had to know it would get our backs up.”

  “Because I intend to be honest with you.”

  Cade snorted. “There’s a first for everything.”

  “Perhaps. Tied as we are now through Marcella, a certain level of transparency will be required in our dealings.”

  “Another first,” Keiran mumbled, making me sigh.

  We were getting nowhere with this conversation. Fast. It was time for a change of subject. “In the sixties, the Malectos,” one of the ancient lines, “managed to create a drug that offered a peculiar fix. It was for our kind. For the ancients, in truth. We feel the passage of time differently than most.”

  “How does it pass for you?” Barclay inquired, and I took a seat, then leaned back as I tried to explain. “It’s both incredibly fast and incredibly slow. Days can pass like minutes, but weeks can pass like years. It’s hard to describe. Kronos was intended to make it pass like humans experienced it.”

  “Why would you want that?” Keiran asked, his nose wrinkling.

  “Because we can lose great chunks of time,” I explained. “It’s wearing after a while. The drug was supposed to regulate it for us.”

  “Why bother?” Cade demanded.

  “Because, as you know, the older we become, the more unstable we can be too.” I rubbed my chin. “Kronos was council approved. We’d had three pursangs turn,” my jaw flexed, “volatile, the year we sanctioned the drug’s creation.”

  “They went on a rampage?” Gideon clarified.

  I nodded. “Bad ones. There were news reports covering the stories across the globe. We had to do something.”

  “So you thought giving them meds would make shit better?”

  I shrugged at Cade’s snarky question. “We had to do something. For a while, Kronos worked.”

  “Then it stopped.”

  “Sadly, our systems adapted to it. It was, I’ll admit, a joy while it lasted. But after a year on Kronos, we developed a tol
erance to it that not even triple dosing could cure.” I cleared my throat at the statement, because I’d tried a triple dose myself. “It was disappointing to say the least.” I leaned over and pressed my elbows to my knees. “The Malectos had spent a fortune developing Kronos, and they weren’t happy about it failing. Some bright spark thought about introducing it to the humans. It worked too well.”

  “Okay, so that’s the backstory, but what’s happening now? What’s the case?”

  Cade’s belligerence never failed to irritate me. The man was too cocky for his own good, and as his Enforcer, I’d always kept him on a tight leash, but as a brother mate to Marcella, I was at a loss as to how to handle him. I had a steep learning curve to address over the coming months.

  Running a hand through my hair, I explained, “A daily dose in humans slows time significantly. They experience a day like it was a week. But a double dose speeds it up.”

  “Why the hell would they want that?”

  “Because it has physiological changes too.”

  “Like what? Spill it, Darius. Maker, this is like pulling teeth,” Raven grumbled.

  “It speeds them up. The number of bank robberies has increased tenfold this year alone.”

  “The fuck? It has? Why?” Gideon demanded. “What’s the change?”

  “The Malectos went from producing small batches to larger batches, and their customer base has expanded thanks to the joys of social media.” I sucked down a sharp breath. “We exist on a tenuous balance with the humans. You know that. Only the highest in their governments are aware of us, and it has to stay that way. But a Vampire drug, being taken by humans to commit crimes against fellow humans?” I shook my head. “That’s one way for us to come to the media’s attentions.”

  “Why? Won’t they just think they’re junkies looking to fund their fix?”

  “No human science is capable of causing such physiological effects. With very little investigation, they would learn there was something unusual going on.”