Enemy Within (Vampire Born Trilogy, #2) (21 page)

I tilt her chin up, making sure her eyes only see mine. “Leave the blame where the blame deserves to lie.” I tuck a strand of her dark hair behind her ear.

She shivers.

“If you still thought you were a monster, you wouldn’t ask Kaitlynn to turn.”

Her eyes widen. “We have to get back to Kaitlynn.”

All thoughts of herself forgotten.

It’s okay, though, because Brooke will always come first in my mind. I’ll find out who’s behind the attacks.

If it’s anybody but Zladislov, I’ll simply destroy them.

However, Zladislov creates a barrier between the world as Brooke is getting to know it and the way things used to be. If he is behind the attacks and really will allow Brooke to run away, I can’t remove him as that barrier.

But why the games?

Why not take her out when he met her at school and she was alone?

The motives for him wanting her gone make the most sense. It’s the ones he claims for sticking around and risking so much that distort everything else.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Brooke

When Mirko and I arrive back at the hospital, Jaren’s pacing outside of Kaitlynn’s room, his phone held to his ear.

He notices us and hangs up.
“Hey, have you heard from David? I can’t get hold of him.”

My heart breaks all over again. I don’t know how I’m supposed to tell him he can’t get reach David because David is dead. “Jaren …” I frown, still unsure what to tell him. I’ve wrestled with the words I need to say to him and Kaitlynn all the way to the hospital.

“Brooke? What’s going on?” He scrutinizes me. “Where’s David?”

“You should have a seat,” Mirko says.

“No,” Jaren growls. “Brooke, what happened to David?”

I would rather wait to tell him and Kaitlynn at the same time to save me from having to repeat the story, but he doesn’t appear to be in the waiting mood. “He was killed,” I say softly. All the pain I had under control bubbles up inside me at the shock and horror on Jaren’s face.

He closes his eyes and inhales deep. “How?” he asks, tears welling up along his lids.

I’ve never seen Jaren cry. I’ve seen him angry, and I’ve seen him hurt, but I’ve never seen tears in his baby blues. I didn’t really expect anything less, though.

This is David we’re talking about.

I focus on the anger because it’s easier to deal with than the pain. “A Pijawika killed him. The Pijawika is now dead.”

He works his jaw and wipes a tear as it falls down his cheek. He turns and strides down the hall.

“Will you go in and check on her?” I ask Mirko and motion toward Kaitlynn’s room.

“Sure. Don’t let him run off.”

“Jaren!” I chase after him.

He doesn’t turn around. He walks farther away and turns down the adjoining hall.

He’s hurting, but I can’t allow him to leave the hospital. If David was a target, my fears that Jaren is too are confirmed. “Please, Jaren. Talk to me.”

He reaches the end of the hallway, facing a window overlooking the parking lot and the fog rolling over the Virginia hills.

His shoulders heave as he silently cries.

I’ve chosen Mirko, but I still love and care for Jaren. My choice didn’t automatically turn off everything I’ve ever felt for Jaren.

My heart breaks into a million pieces. Jaren’s pain would be similar to mine if I were to lose Kaitlynn. He and David have been friends since the second grade.

But no matter how hard this is on us, I can’t help but think how much harder it was for Mirko to have to kill his girlfriend. To have to live with that, and still live with it. I don’t think it’s something a person can ever get over. And by the way Mirko’s voice roughened as he told me, like his mouth was parched, I don’t think he’s ever healed from the damage.

I can’t stand the silence, or my thoughts, and want so badly to ease Jaren’s suffering. “Jaren …?”

He wipes his face and turns to me. His cheeks shine with tears, eyes red, and his face is contorted in agony. “David …,” he starts, but it’s as if all the emotion he tries to tamp down rises again when he opens his mouth.

He works his throat and tightens his lips in a thin line.

I have no words.

Nothing I can say will make him feel an ounce better. Nothing can take away the loss of David. So I stand in front of him, being here for him in the only capacity I can—close to him, but probably not as close as he wants or needs.

Jaren drags his hands over his face, stress and pain evident in the gesture. “You know, when we were on the plane home, I knew things would be different. But I thought we would get back, go to school … I could get back into things with the lacrosse team, my boss would put me back on the schedule, and we could almost go back to normal.” He chuckles sarcastically. “Well, as normal as someone like me could get. I don’t have a family. Hell, I don’t even have a real home to come back to. But I had my team. I had David. And I had you. I’ve never had much, but that would’ve been enough for me.” He works his throat again.

“Jaren …”

“I have nothing, Brooke. My best friend was murdered today. Do you think I can ever go back to my team now?” He blinks rapidly, trying to clear the tears. “I can’t put the rest of the guys in danger. Does Mirko have the manpower to put someone on each of them? Even if he did, I doubt he’d sacrifice those people from watching over you to go watch strangers.”

I want to tell him if Mirko had the people, he’d do it, but Mirko thinks differently when it comes to me. He won’t sacrifice my safety to provide for anyone else’s protection. But that doesn’t make him bad. He’s still honorable and wants to protect others. But defending Mirko isn’t what Jaren needs from me.

“I’m powerless. In everything. I couldn’t do anything to keep David safe. I can’t make you want to be with me. I can’t bring David back, and I’m not strong enough to walk away from it all and start over somewhere else.” He turns back to the window.

The fact that he said it means he’s thought about leaving. “We’ll figure it out …”

“There’s nothing to figure out. It is what it is.” He drops his head and shakes it.

This joint misery is unbearable. I step up and wrap my arms around him, hugging him from behind.

His shoulders shake while he weeps.

Teardrops land on my clasped hands.

We’re too young to deal with so much pain and sorrow. And he was too young when his mom abandoned him and then his dad cut him off emotionally. He’s too young to lose his high school experience, and definitely too young to lose his best friend.

I can’t hold back anymore. The pain breaks through in tears streaming down my face.

Jaren turns and hugs me back.

It’s innocent—a friend needing a friend. Because I’m all he has in this moment. Things are awkward with our past, but none of that matters right now. I can be here for him, someone to hang onto when the rest of everything that ever mattered to him slips between his fingers, no matter how tight he squeezes them together.

I know, because I feel the same way.

Jaren’s always brought out my softer side. And not being with him doesn’t seem to close that off. Not even an hour ago, I was in a rage, hungry to kill a man. But standing this close to Jaren opens my heart. Tears I’ve fought back with anger are set free.

We stand in the hall, wrapped in each other’s arms, and cry. Cry for David, for the loss of each other, and everything else we’ve ever dreamed that has been shattered since that horrible night in his apartment.

I ache to tell him I still care for him—that I love him—but those words would be pointless. They won’t ease his pain or change the fact that I want to be with Mirko.

“Slatki,” Mirko says.

Jaren raises his head and wipes his eyes. I turn around.

Mirko doesn’t look at me with any accusation, and I smile at him, grateful he’s mature enough to understand I’m only being here for a friend.

“Kaitlynn’s awake and she’s not doing well.”

I release Jaren and rush toward Kaitlynn’s room, peering behind me to make sure he follows.

He swipes at his face again and then joins us.

Ace is outside Kaitlynn’s room when we reach it. He must’ve already dropped the body off with Garwin. It’s still weird for me to think of Garwin as a man who deals with darkness and secrets from a hidden world.

Mirko nods at Ace in greeting and opens Kaitlynn’s door for me.

Steve holds Rhonda in his arms as they speak with the doctor.

Kaitlynn whimpers, clutching her stomach.

“We’ve done everything we can,” the doctor whispers.

Rhonda breaks down.

Steve pulls her closer to his chest. “Well, can’t we up her dose of pain meds? She’s hurting.”

The glum doctor nods. “We’ll do everything we can to make her comfortable,” he says and leaves.

I run to Kaitlynn’s side. “Kaitlynn …” The ache in my heart bleeds into my voice.

“It hurts,” Kaitlynn cries. A deep “eeeeeeee” bubbles from her throat. Her eyes roll back into her head and she stiffens.

Her whole body trembles.

“Kaitlynn!” I hold her by her arms to stop the shaking. I’d just seen a man go through trembles very similar to hers. Then he died.

“My baby.” Rhonda cries harder and Steve runs from the room, probably to get the doctor.

Mirko rushes up from behind me and turns Kaitlynn on her side as her body seizes.

Tears blur my vision. “Help her,” I beg him.

He looks at me, as if torn between telling me Kaitlynn will be fine, and the truth.

And because he can’t tell me that, he says nothing.

That scares the crap out of me.

Where is her freaking nurse?

Kaitlynn’s body finally relaxes against the bed, and Mirko rolls her onto her back.

When I pull away, she opens her eyes, fully aware and making eye contact with me. “Save me,” she says and passes out.

“Ace, get her out of here,” Mirko says, pointing at Rhonda. “And find Steve.”

Ace faces Rhonda, and I can tell when the Sanjam kicks in. “We’re going to save your daughter, but we need you to stay out of the way in order to do it.”

“Please,” Rhonda begs. “Please save my little girl.”

“We will,” Ace says and leads her out of the room. He’ll keep Rhonda and Steve away so we can turn Kaitlynn. So we can save her.

Mirko turns and holds me by my shoulders as I shake. “I need you to get Zladislov down here. I’m leery of him now, but we’re going to need Pijawikan blood soon. Within an hour. I’m going to go find the doctor to get a blood transfusion started on her.”

I scowl. I haven’t even thought of that. Maybe it could’ve saved her. “Why didn’t they give her a transfusion earlier?”

“It wouldn’t have saved her,” Mirko says. “I’m only doing it because it gives her blood more oxygen and a better chance for the change to take place successfully.” He slides his hands down my arms, then turns and hustles out of the room.

I don’t have time to worry about what the doctors should’ve done for Kaitlynn. I only have time to try to save her.

I whip out my phone and dial my father. It goes straight to voicemail. “It’s Brooke. I need you down at the hospital. Call me as soon as you can.” I hang up and stare at the glowing screen.

I can’t accept the possibility that he could be behind David’s death.

I call back and again it goes to voicemail.