A Warrior Wedding (4 page)

Jill watched a strange emotion cross Blaze’s face, before he turned to stare at Steve. Jill knew that stare. She watched his eyes swirl as they took a dark golden hue. Sitting back in her chair, a half-grin on her face, she watched both Blaze and Steve.

“They have help for people like that,” Steve replied, being his helpful self. “What do they call people who set fires? Dammit, it’s right on the tip of my tongue.”

Jill couldn’t help but smile as Steve shifted uncomfortably in his seat, a bead of sweat sliding down his forehead.

“Pyromaniac,” Blaze replied, his voice even as his eyes swirled crazily.

Steve snapped his fingers. “That’s it, pyromaniac. Damn man, you need to get help for that. Sloan will be
pissssed
if you...” Steve reached across the table to grab Jill’s napkin. “Shit, it’s hot in here. Are you hot? I’m burning up.”

Jill watched Steve swipe the sweat off his face with the napkin; she tried not to laugh.

“I hope to hell I’m not catching what you have.” Sweat just poured off him. “But that’s impossible since I’m full blood and don’t get sick.”

Glancing at Sid, she saw that he was watching Blaze and Steve closely, a very interested expression on his face as well as a half-grin.

Fanning himself with the napkin, Steve’s face was red. Jill turned to tell Blaze to stop, like he would even listen to her, and saw Blaze’s golden eyes shift to a red glaze. Okay, that was creepy as hell.

“Ah...” Jill started to give Steve a warning, but it was too late. The napkin in Steve’s hand burst into flames.

Steve screamed, throwing the napkin before pushing back so hard from the table he and the chair fell to the floor. As fast as Steve hit the ground, he popped back up, pointing at the smoking ashes that was the napkin, then pointed to Blaze. “Holy shit!” Steve looked at his fingers, wiggling them in front of his face then back to Blaze. “Hence the name.”

Blaze nodded, his eyes back to normal in a flash. “Easier to show, than tell.”

“Maybe for you,” Steve grumbled, wiping the sweat from his face, then fanning his shirt. “Can you make someone burst into flames like you did that napkin?”

“Yes.” Blaze glanced at Sid, then back to Steve. “But it smells, so I usually don’t.”

“Ah...it smells,” Steve mocked, throwing up his hands. “Well, good thing for me.”

“Pretty impressive.” Sid took a drink of his coffee, his stare still intense. “Now I know where I’ve heard that name.”

Tension thickened in the room practically smothering Jill. “You know him?” she asked Sid, but wished she hadn’t when Blaze stood quickly.

“Not personally,” Sid replied, his relaxed posture didn’t reach his eyes. He and Blaze had one hell of a staring contest going on.

“Meaning?” Steve ventured to ask.

“Meaning he needs to keep his mouth shut.” Blaze’s body stiffened, his hands balling into fists.

“Okaaay.” Steve took two steps back to stay out of the way of the shitstorm brewing.

A humorless smile spread on Sid’s face. Taking a long, final drink of his coffee, he gently set the cup down and stood. “You man enough to see that happen?”

Standing with a huff, Jill slammed her hands on the table. She opened her mouth to start saying cock again, but the kitchen door opened, stopping her. Pam stumbled in. Her face unusually pale, she held onto the door long enough to steady herself.

“Hey guys.” Her voice sounded hoarse and weak.

“Pam, you okay?” Jill frowned, watching her closely, the burning in her stomach rising to meet her heart that just dropped.

Pam nodded and took two steps before her knees buckled.

“Sid!” Jill yelled out the warning, but Sid was already there catching Pam.

“Get Duncan and Slade, now!” Sid ordered loudly. Steve ran out the door to do just that. “Pam! Come on, girl, you can’t do this shit to me again.”

Jill ran around them, grabbed a clean cloth, wet it with cold water, and brought it to Sid.

“Shit!” Sid laid Pam down, putting his large hand behind her head to cushion it from the hard floor. “Where in the fuck is Duncan?”

Jill grabbed her phone calling Slade, but it went straight to voice mail. She just hoped he was on the phone with Steve, but just in case, she texted him.

“I’m okay.” Pam coughed. When she tried to sit up, Sid stopped her.

“Oh, hell no.” Sid carefully pushed her back down. “You’re staying right there until Duncan and Slade get here. How in the hell could you do this to me again, Pam?”

“I promise not to sneeze,” she teased weakly.

“Yeah, well, that doesn’t mean shit since there’s no baby to shoot out now, is there?” Sid’s eyes widened. “Or is there?”

“I’m not pregnant.” Pam snorted, closing her eyes. “I’ve been sick the past week and haven’t been able to keep anything down. I was coming in here to see if there were crackers or something.”

Sid and Jill shared a look. “Have you been able to feed?” Jill asked from her kneeling position next to Pam.

“I feed, but it comes back up.” Pam opened her eyes. “Why?”

Jill didn’t answer as a feeling of despair so strong filled her, knocking her back on her ass.

“Don’t you be passing out!” Sid ordered Jill, as if he had any control over her passing out or not. Blaze actually walked to stand beside her, ready to catch her just in case.

“I’m fine.” Her eyes met Pam’s, and in that moment, something passed between them.

“You’re doing the same thing?” Pam asked, her voice trembling in fear, fear she was unable to hide.

Nodding, Jill didn’t say anything because she knew she wouldn’t be able to hide her own fear.

CHAPTER 5

Jill moved out of the way with Blaze’s help when Duncan ran into the kitchen with Steve hot on his heels.

“What’s wrong, babe?” Duncan slid to his knees beside her. “What happened?”

“I’m okay now.” Pam tried to smile up at him, but failed miserably. “I just got a little lightheaded.”

“Where’s Daniel?” Duncan looked around, but held tightly to her hand.

“He’s with Katrina. I came down here for something to eat.” Pam tried to sit up, but Duncan wouldn’t let her.

“Where in the hell is Slade?” Duncan growled, his eyes finding Jill.

“I’m right here.” Slade walked in, his eyes finding Jill right away. “What happened?”

Again Jill and Pam glanced at each other. “She’s sick,” Jill answered. “Like me.”

Jill could never remember seeing Slade look so bleak when she answered him, his eyes darting away from her. Okay, that was very telling. This was not good. He knew something and that something was not good news.

“When did this start?” Slade took off his leather jacket as he replaced Sid and knelt next to Pam.

“I haven’t been feeling very well for a few weeks. Real run down.” Pam glanced at Duncan. “I didn’t say anything because I didn’t think it was anything.”

“You should have told me.” Duncan’s voice was gentle, edged with worry.

“You guys have been so busy with the funerals and I just didn’t feel it was important. Daniel has his days and nights messed up again so I thought I was just worn down, but then...” She looked over at Jill.

“But then what?” Duncan demanded.

“She can’t keep blood down,” Jill answered for her. Everyone looked at her, except for Duncan who continued to stare at Pam until he finally looked over at Slade.

“What does this mean?” Duncan’s face indicated he was at a loss and wasn’t happy about it.

“I don’t know, yet.” Slade frowned without looking Duncan in the eye. His focus stayed on Pam.

Jill knew Slade had an idea of the problem. His inability to keep eye contact with her was a dead giveaway. Slade always made eye contact...always.

“But I do need to take some of her blood.” Slade stood. “Can you get her to my office?”

Duncan’s answer was to pick Pam up carefully. “I can walk now.” Pam wrapped her arms around Duncan’s neck.

“No, you can’t.” Duncan ignored her protests, his love evident in the way he held her.

Jill watched Duncan carry Pam out the door, her eyes going to Slade, not knowing if she should stay or go. “Do you need help?” she asked, at a loss.

“No.” Slade glanced at everyone before his eyes came back to hers. “I thought I told you to rest.”

“I wanted to see if some crackers would help my stomach,” she answered. “And Sid fixed me some rice.”

“Which she didn’t eat,” Sid told him and didn’t look like he regretted doing it one bit.

“But I did eat some crackers and kept them down.” Jill crossed her arms around her stomach, trying to calm the churning, hoping to keep her statement of keeping it down true.

“Try to eat a little more if you can and I’ll be back as soon as I finish with Pam.” Slade walked over, placed a kiss on the top of her head, and then turned and walked out of the kitchen.

Jill watched the door shut behind him before looking at Sid and Steve, who had busied themselves with something other than watching her and Slade’s little moment. Blaze, on the other hand, had sat back down and was staring at her. Before she could say anything at all to Blaze, because in all honesty his quiet staring was really starting to unnerve her, Sid stepped into her line of vision.

“Slade is not going to let anything happen to you.” Sid stared down at her. “So get that worried look off your face and eat some rice. I just warmed it up for you.”

With a small smile, Jill nodded and headed toward her seat at the table. The warm steaming bowl of rice looked disgusting at the moment. Steve sat down across from her and openly stared. His face pinched in concern.

“You’re going to be okay, Jill,” Steve said, as if by him just saying those words it was a done deal. “We’re vampires. Nothing can bring us down, right?”

Jill nodded, her tongue feeling like it was glued to the roof of her mouth. “Right,” she replied, but her heart told her she was far from right.

******

S
lade opened the drawer to his medical cabinet and noticed his hands shaking. He stopped and stared at them as Duncan and Pam talked softly behind him. Closing his eyes, he balled his hands into fists, trying to get a grip on his emotions. Out of every horror he had faced in his thousands of years, nothing had terrified him more than the news he had received today.

“Hey,” Duncan called out. “You going to take her blood or what?”

Slade’s eyes opened. A tick pulsated in his jaw from clamping his mouth shut tightly against the bellow of rage he felt. Slowly, he un-fisted his hands, grabbed what he needed and moved his jaw back and forth. No need to alarm Pam until he had more answers.

Going through the motions of taking Pam’s blood, Slade felt Duncan probing his thoughts, but he shut them off with a warning to wait until they were alone. Duncan backed off and focused on Pam.

Once the three vials of blood were taken and safely in the envelopes, he turned to them both. “I’ll take these to the hospital and let you know the results as soon as I know anything.”

Pam nodded, but her eyes searched his. “It’s not good, is it?”

Slade didn’t know what to say, he really didn’t because she was right. It wasn’t good...for any of them. “You need to rest, Pam. Have Katrina help with Daniel when Duncan’s not around. You need to preserve your energy and try to eat, but only a little bland food. Don’t feed until I tell you.”

Watching them leave the office, Duncan threw Slade an ‘I’ll be back’ look over Pam’s head. Once alone, Slade glanced down at the envelopes containing Pam’s blood. Bleak rage consumed him. Undeterred, he grabbed the envelopes, headed out of his office and back to the kitchen. But seeing Jill gone, and Sid telling him she went up to their room to rest, Slade hurried to Sloan’s office.

Finding Sloan alone, he knew by the angry expression on Sloan’s face the news he was about to hear was not good.

“They cannot refuse this request.” Slade’s control slipped a little. He placed the envelopes on Sloan’s desk in fear of breaking the vials inside. Without Sloan telling him, Slade knew they had been refused.

“They can and they have.” Sloan watched Slade closely, waiting for the blow up. “I’ve called everyone in here, but you need to keep calm, Slade. We need you focused because you may be their only hope.”

Eyes blackening in rage, Slade’s chest heaved as a sneer curved his lips. His eyes looked around for something to smash, but Sloan’s words reached part of his brain that was still reasonable. He did have to get a grip. Jill’s life depended on it, not to mention every manmade half-breed out there. “I don’t want Jill here. I want to tell her alone.”

Sloan nodded, picking up his phone. After he finished, he looked up at Slade. “Adam hasn’t shown any symptoms, has he?”

Slade shook his head. “Not that I know of.”

“I told Adam the meeting was cancelled, as well as Steve, because Steve has a big mouth.” Sloan leaned back in his chair, staring at Slade. “We’ll figure this out. She’ll be fine.”

But at what cost? The silent question hovered between the Warriors while they waited for everyone.

******

J
ill lay on the bed with her eyes closed, but her mind racing. Sitting up, she grabbed the bridal magazine laying next to her. Nicole, Tessa and Pam were driving her crazy with all the wedding hoopla. She’d be happy to grab a minister, head in the woods behind her old house, and marry Slade beneath the trees she was so fond of. But ever since Slade set a date, which was in three weeks, the women had been driving her nuts. So in order to get them off her back, she had given them the go ahead to set up everything. They were calling themselves the Warrior Wedding Planners and even talked about going into business. Thumbing through the magazine, Jill grinned at the thought.

Her stomach grumbled and her throat tightened with thirst, thirst for Slade’s blood. Swallowing hard, she continued to look through the magazine trying to ignore the uncomfortable feeling until her door flew open.

“Hey.” Steve and Adam walked into her and Slade’s room.

“Hey,” she replied, tossing the magazine. “And you better watch bursting into the room like that. You’ve already caught Slade naked once and he wasn’t too happy about it.”

“Seeing Slade and his, well you know, wasn’t very pleasant.” Steve frowned. “It made me downright depressed.”