Chapter 14

An hour and a half later, they were pulling into Asheville, North Carolina. It was a semi-large town, and it was also home to the nearest blood bank from the Coven's headquarters. When they stopped at the first red light going into the town, Gina shook Bastian gently.

"Wake up, Bastian," she whispered. She couldn't help planting a kiss on the top of his head.

He threw one arm across her lap. "No. Nocturnal."

She laughed. "We're almost there. You have to wake up."

He did so, but with a scowl on his face. "These long hours are killing me, you know."

"Says the guy who's been dead for six centuries."

"Let's be a smart ass, why don't we?" He sneered playfully, making her laugh again.

Marcus pulled into a grocery store parking lot. Gina stared at the Food Mart in confusion for a moment before she finally said, "They don't sell blood here, Marcus."

"I know that," he said impatiently. "You two need to get up front."

"Why?"

Bastian answered for him. "It will look less suspicious for me to pull up into the parking lot. That way they won't know we have an army in the back of the van, and they won't see me, a Council member, climbing into the back of the van with a group of humans waiting for me. It would raise a few questions."

"So if we're the ones they see in the front they won't get suspicious."

He nodded. "And I didn't even have to read his mind to know that." He smiled proudly. And then he glowered. "But I really hate you for making me sit in the sunlight."

Marcus shrugged, climbing into the back of the van and making room for Justin to follow. "We all have to make sacrifices."

"I don't see you making any," Bastian retorted as he climbed up front and into the driver's seat.

"I'm with you, aren't I?" Marcus shot back.

Bastian just smirked in response.

Gina sat down in the passenger's seat and squinted into the sunlight. Bastian moved the sun visor down, and then he began looking around in the floor.

"What?" She asked, looking as well but having no idea what she was looking for.

"If you know what's good for you, Marcus, you'll have some sunglasses up here."

"Oh yeah. Gina, check the glove box."

She pulled the little handle and the glove box fell open. There was a pair of simple, plastic sunglasses with very black eyepieces.

"Thank you," Bastian said when she handed them to him.

He drove smoothly, taking directions from Marcus in the back. A few minutes later, he was pulling into a parking space in front of a small, brick building.

"Money?" Gina asked, turning in her seat to look at Marcus expectantly.

"What money?" He asked innocently.

She glared. "You can't fool me, Marcus. Hand it over."

He handed her a plain white envelope. "Two hundred dollars. Handle with care."

Bastian swiveled his head around and stared incredulously at Marcus. "You want me to spend all of that?"

Marcus shrugged. "Get as much as you can. It needs to last."

Bastian raised his eyebrows and whistled. "O…kay." He looked at Gina. "Ready?"

She nodded, stomach twisting. She'd never been in a blood bank before. Who knew what awaited in there?

The solid glass door swung open with a soft ding. She noticed that it was very cold inside. Chills bumped up along her arms. She followed Bastian to the counter on the right wall, where a human woman stood smiling at them.

The room was very plain. The floor was simple, off-white tile. Florescent lights lit up the room. Aisles of what looked to Gina like filing cabinets covered the floor. There were five rows of them along the middle of the floor, and along the wall there were more drawers there, though they were set into the wall. There were three other people in the room, browsing the cabinets. A quick glance confirmed that two of the three were vampires. The third was probably a servant sent out by his master.

"Hi," Bastian said, leaning casually against the counter. "I need a box. Or a few boxes. Do you happen to have any?"

The lady nodded, smiling kindly. Her blonde hair was graying in places, and she was one of the older ladies who aged well. Her wrinkles were an attribute to her beauty, rather than a hindrance.

She strode away, into a room on her right. She emerged with a stack of white boxes, each about as wide as Gina's arm from middle finger to elbow and half as tall.

"How many will you require?" She asked.

Bastian glanced at Gina. "I'm not really sure. We'll start with one." He pulled off the top box and turned to Gina. "Stay up here. This won't take long."

She nodded, relieved that she wouldn't have to get any closer to the other vampires in the room. They were, thankfully, ignoring her presence, but they put her on edge nonetheless. She may be well acquainted with Bastian, but that didn't mean she felt comfortable around any other bloodsuckers.

She smiled self-consciously at the woman, who set the boxes on the counter and stood behind it idly. She watched Bastian pull open one of the filing cabinets, surprised when white fog spewed out of it, like the kind from the inside of a freezer. And instead of files, an elevated bar emerged from the cabinet—and hanging along this bar were plastic bags of blood. He yanked a few of these off the bar, deposited them in his box, and closed the cabinet.

Gina turned away after watching him do this for the third time, biting her nails nervously. She turned back toward the cabinet, looking up at the posters hanging on the wall. There was one about blood types there, in order from rarest to most common. She read and reread the poster, determined to have it memorized by the time they left the store. And it brought up another question that she had to remember to ask Bastian later.

Bastian dropped off the box, which was full with bags of blood, at her side. He picked up an empty box, turned to her, and said, "Tape that closed, please?"

She nodded.

"Thanks. Be back in a minute."

Gina glanced at the lady. "Do you have…?"

The lady smiled politely and nodded. She reached under the counter and pulled out a roll of tape. Gina grinned gratefully and began taping the box closed.

"Stocking up?" The woman asked, watching Gina work.

Gina glanced at her and nodded. "We try to keep a big stock at home. Makes it easier on him." She figured it would be best to play the role of servant for now, especially when she was surrounded by vampire and servant alike.

The woman nodded. "I completely understand."

Gina nodded absently. Bastian returned twice more, and she taped the boxes closed each time. He grabbed the fourth box, which he promised was the last, and left again.

The front door dinged, but Gina didn't bother turning to see who entered. It was either vampire or servant, and she really didn't want to look at them either way. So she continued to read that silly poster.

But when she felt an ice cold hand grab her arm and turn her around, she had no choice. The vampire staring down at her was smirking cruelly. Gina felt her heart begin to pound.

"Don't you smell delightful," he said with a smirk. His eyes were crimson. His skin was flawless and white as marble. His stunning beauty took her breath away—as all vampires' features did. It was just another attribute to lure in prey.

Gina opened her mouth, but no sound came out. She couldn't see Bastian, because this bloodsucker was standing in the way. She only hoped he would notice soon.

"I've never seen you here before," he noted softly. "Someone like you shouldn't be left alone."

"I'm not alone," she said coldly, coming to her senses.

"Oh? And where might the lucky man be?"

Gina could hear her heart pounding in her ears. She saw his eyes dart to her neck, which she knew was pulsing with the adrenaline now rushing in her veins. He wet his lips in anticipation.

"Right here."

Gina thought she was going to have heart failure. Her knees shook weakly when she tore her gaze away from the vampire's crimson gaze to see Bastian's glorious face. He dropped the box on the counter without tearing his gaze from the other immortal's. His hand suddenly snapped out, grabbing the hand that was still holding Gina's arm and twisting. The vampire bent backwards with a fierce growl, gaining the attention of everyone else in the room.

Some part of Gina still noticed that the woman behind the counter taped up his box hurriedly for him. She was probably trying to avoid trouble by helping them gather their things for a hasty departure.

"Bastian," the vampire greeted through his teeth. Bastian hadn't let go of his arm.

"Traven," Bastian said coolly.

"How's the Council?"

"Fine." Bastian let him go, and Traven straightened himself deliberately, glaring half-heartedly.

"You don't seem so well. Been out of sorts lately?" Traven mocked.

What happened next went completely over Gina's human head. Bastian opened his mouth to speak, but he stopped suddenly. His eyes flashed with rage and—was it fear?—at the same moment that Traven's eyes swelled with disbelief and glee. He turned to face Gina, staring at her in a new light.

Bastian grabbed Traven by the collar of his shirt suddenly, snarling wordlessly. Traven laughed. Bastian shoved him away.

He laid the envelope on the counter, grabbed two of the boxes, and jerked his head at Gina. She grabbed the other two and practically ran out the door. Traven was still laughing as the door shut behind them.

"Get in the van," Bastian said tightly.

She opened the door and crawled in. Marcus grabbed the boxes from her and placed them in the back, sensing from her expression that something was wrong. Bastian handed her the other two and then ran around to the driver's side.

The van skidded tires as Bastian drove away, knuckles white around the steering wheel. No one spoke. Gina hugged her knees to her chest in her seat, trying to calm her breathing. She could still hear her heart pulsing in her ears. It was hard to calm down when every glance at Bastian set her more on edge.

She'd never seen him so shaken. He was breathing heavily, eyes flashing. The van groaned beneath his foot, but he didn't seem to notice how fast he was going. She could see the muscles in his jaw tensing and relaxing.

When they reached the city limits he suddenly slammed his fist down on the steering wheel and screamed, "Fuck!"

Gina nearly hit the roof. "Bastian—what happened back there?"

He hit the steering wheel again and snarled.

"Bastian…"

"Marcus," he said tautly.

"Yes?" He answered quietly.

"Do you have a cell phone?"

"Yes."

"Call Demetri. Tell him I have to speak to the Elders as soon as we get back. I can't believe I let this happen…" He ran his fingers through his hair.

Marcus dialed the number. "Hello, Demetri? I don't know. Bastian says he needs to talk to the Elders as soon as we get back. I think something went wrong. Okay, thank you. See you soon. Bye." He snapped the phone shut.

"Bastian, please—." Gina broke off.

He looked at her, and the wild look in his eyes faded. He reached out and brushed his fingers through her golden hair. He let his hand fall to her neck, his cool skin soothing the heat beneath her hair.

He laughed humorlessly. "You need to calm down."

"What?"

He pressed the back of his fingers against the racing pulse in her neck. "That is maddeningly tempting."

She swallowed. "I can't help it. Tell me what happened."

"Traven," he growled. "Can read minds. Not like I can. He doesn't just sense the nature of thoughts like me. He can actually read things in your mind—things that have happened in the past, whatever you're thinking about at that moment." He waved his hand dismissively. "And he saw—everything."

"What do you mean?" Her stomach plummeted, and she heard someone swear in the back.

"The Coven..me and you…the Elders. And he isn't going to keep it secret. That much I could sense from him."

"What…?"

"He's going to tell Alexander. He's going to expose us all to the one Council member who is planning on destroying everything."

Gina couldn't speak. She covered her mouth with her hand, angry and shocked tears filling her hazel eyes as denial creeped in.

"He can't!" She choked out. "All those people…"

"I know. We have to do something."

"I can kill him. I can kill Alexander before he has a chance to act."

"I'm not sure you're ready for that yet."

"I am! It's the only hope we've got now. Alexander has to die before he can tell anyone else about the Coven. Bastian!"

"I know!" He shouted. He ran his fingers through his raven black hair. "I just…I'll take care of it. I'll think of something. But right now we have to tell the Elders. They have to know. If nothing else, you can evacuate. You'll have enough time for that."

Gina covered her face in her hands, praying they'd have enough time to protect everyone before Alexander could kill anyone else she cared about.

They didn't stop to switch drivers. They didn't want to waste any time. Bastian drove through the bright sunlight, not complaining once. He didn't speak again after that. None of them did. They could only wait impatiently for the speeding van to make it back to headquarters. It was all they had to hope for. The future suddenly looked very dark.

When the van finally squealed to a stop in the underground garage, Gina was bursting with fear. She and all the others, Bastian included, bolted from the abused vehicle. Bastian's skin was flushed from sitting in the sunlight for so long, and at any other time Gina would have found that curious and amusing. Now, she just sprinted alongside him, the others hot on their heels as they darted through the hallways, gaining stares as they went.

The Elders' door stood open, and they all ran in.

"What happened?" Belinda asked seriously.

"A vampire," Bastian said, because he was the only one not winded from the long run. "He threatened Gina while we were in the blood bank. When I came to her aid, he recognized me as one of the Council members, and he also noticed that I hadn't been eating much lately. He must have read my mind to see why that was, but he saw much more than that. He knows about the Coven—he knows everything!" He paced back and forth angrily, like a caged tiger. "He's going to tell Alexander. Alexander is the only one of the Council who would destroy everything. Any of the others I wouldn't be so concerned with, but Traven obviously knows Alexander has been planning an uprising. And he wants to take out the rebels—he's the one who's been suspecting a rebel group exists, anyway. They know where to find us. They know I'm in on it. They know Gina is a part of it. And they will come and kill you all."

Belinda rose weakly, face pale. She turned to the other Elders. "What should be done about this?"

"We must begin evacuations. Anyone who is not a fighter should be taken somewhere else," one of the men said. "We can't afford to lose everyone."

"But you can afford to lose your best fighters?" Bastian argued, still pacing.

The man turned cold eyes on the vampire.

"Do you have any better ideas?" He demanded.

"Yes. One." He glanced at Gina and then said, "I'll kill him."

There was a pause as Gina's mind processed that, and then she shoved him angrily. "You can't!" She shouted, beating his chest. "He's mine! Bastian, you promised—!"

He grabbed her forearms, pulling her against him. With his mouth pressed into her hair, he said softly, "I know I told you I would let you kill him. But I'm afraid for you, Gina—I'm afraid you're not ready. Let me take care of this. I can get rid of him, and then all your people will be safe."

Gina shook her head against his dark shirt.

Adressing the Elders, Bastian said, "Can I…?" He trailed off. Belinda nodded, and Bastian pulled Gina away, out into the hallway for some privacy.

"Gina," he said, taking her face between his hands. "You don't know what you're up against. I can take care of him. It'll be quick—clean."

"I have to kill him. It has to be me," she hissed through her teeth.

"You're not ready to fight him."

Her hand shot out like lightning, connecting solidly with his nose with a sickening crack. He staggered back into the wall, throwing one hand against the stone to steady him as the other flew to his nose. He gingerly wiped away the blood from his face. She could tell his nose had already healed.

He spun around to glare at her, his palm bloody.

"Tell me I'm not ready now," she said softly, eyes hard.

"Gina—." He broke off, sensing it was hopeless to argue.

"Give me a chance," she said. "You can come along. We can take some other hunters. If I fail, you'll know it. You'll sense it, right? If I'm in real danger?"

He nodded slowly.

"Give me a chance to go in and kill him myself. If I can't do it, you can be the back-up cavalry, and sweep in and do the job for me. Just let me try. I didn't train with you for nothing, did I?"

He wrapped his arms around her, careful not to touch her with his bloodied hand. "I suppose not," he said softly, defeatedly.

She buried her face in his chest. "Thank you," she whispered, knowing he would hear.

His arms tightened around her. "Just don't get yourself hurt."

"I won't. And you'll be there. It'll be okay."

"Come on," he said, pulling her back into the Elders' room. If anyone noticed the blood on his hand, they discreetly turned the other cheek.

Belinda rose from her chair. "What has been decided?"

"We need your best fighters. Gina's going to go in and fight Alexander. If she for some reason fails, the rest of us can go in and take care of it then. She needs her chance."

"I don't like this," Marcus spoke up. "This is too risky—for Gina and the rest of us. Bastian was right before—we can't judge Alexander's fighting technique based on what we saw of Bastian here. We're going in blind."

"We don't have any other choice," Bastian said, voice defeated. "It's either we go and fight or he comes here and massacres everyone."

"But—."

Bastian rounded on Marcus angrily. "You don't know him!" He shouted. "Not like I do. He's ruthless. Or maybe you don't remember how many men you lost to him within a ten minute time frame? He will kill you all, if we can't kill him tonight."

Marcus nodded curtly. Turning to the Elders, he said, "Please. Evacuate our people, for safety precautions. I'm terrified of what may happen if we don't survive to make it back in time to warn you."

Belinda nodded. "We will. When you depart for Alexander, we will take the remaining vehicles and go to one of the safe houses."

Marcus nodded. "Thank you."

"When can we go?" Bastian asked.

"Now," Marcus said. "We'll gather what weapons we can and go as soon as possible. You four—." He pointed to Justin, Matthew, Thomas, and Michael. "I want you with us."

They each nodded resolutely.

So willing to die, Gina thought sadly. And so am I.

Something cold slid through her fingers, and she glanced down to see Bastian holding tightly to her hand, as though he might fall off the face of the Earth without her there to hold him to it. She tightened her fingers to comfort him. He looked distraught—worried.

I'll be okay, she thought fiercely, staring up at his beautiful face and willing him to believe her.

He leaned down and kissed her forehead, not caring who was watching. She leaned against him, content to absorb his soothing caresses. She wasn't sure how much longer they would be together.