Chapter 21 Hope
Gabriel laughed softly as I listened to him walk up to us. We stopped kissing as he put a hand on my shoulder; his was as chilly as any other vampire that had ever touched me. "You two really are quite lovey-dovey. "
Starla's words coming from his ancient mouth made me grin and start to laugh. I held onto Teren, not wanting to separate yet. His arms slung around me too, his hand coming down to rest on my stomach, also comforting our children. They squirmed and wriggled at his touch, one kicking me in a sore rib.
Gabriel smiled at hearing them. "Twins among our kind are exceedingly rare. " He smirked at me. "Rarer than you, my dear. " With a technical demeanor, he shrugged and said, "If they survive this, I'd be very interested in watching their development. "
Teren's hand firmed on my stomach. His jaw tightened too and I could see the protective instinct flare up inside him, it flared up in me too. I was very grateful to Gabriel, for giving us hope, for giving our family a chance, but I didn't exactly want him poking and prodding our kids like tiny little science experiments. Before I could say anything in rebuttal, Teren responded with, "We are extremely thankful, for everything you've done for us. We will never forget. . . your friendship. "
His tone was tight when he said that and I knew he was having the same thoughts I was - you'll never get so much as a drop of blood from our babies - but he couldn't be that blatantly rude to this ancient, well connected vampire. We needed him to be firmly on our side, especially if we ever needed more life-giving vials of his miraculous juice.
Gabriel didn't seem to take any offense to Teren's words or tone. With a smile, he indicated the door to leave the room. As we exited the soundproof lab under the house, the sounds of dozens of bustling people filled my ears. I didn't know how many I was hearing, or what species they all were - mixed or pure - but there was a harmonic quality to the cacophony and I found myself smiling. Being in that room had been too quiet. Considering how I used to wonder how Teren could stand all of his extra abilities, it was pretty interesting how I'd already adapted to mine.
Occasionally, the human hunter's cry would hit my sharp ears. I did my best to ignore it, but every wail and every plea for help, only made me feel even worse. As we walked back up the hallway, passing a few mixed vamps along with a couple that I thought were purebloods (being surrounded by so many vampires, I was beginning to notice a very faint difference in the smell between the two), I tried to remember that the person being served up as dinner, had brought this upon themselves.
That really didn't excuse what they were doing, but Teren and I were not strong enough to take on a house of vampires to save him. Teren was right with his non-verbal warning, this was just something I was going to have to let go. I just wished I could block out the pleading.
Teren squeezed my hand as we walked back into the main house. Looking up at his face, I could see the haunted expression in his pale eyes. He was hearing it too, and it bothered him as well. He glanced down at me, smiled briefly, and then looked over at Gabriel. "Emma's conversion. . . you said she was basically a carbon copy of me. Does that mean that she will she come out like me?" I knew he'd said that not only out of curiosity, but also to distract us with something pleasant to think about.
We walked through a set of glass doors into an arboretum. A few more vampires nodded at Gabriel, before leaving us to our privacy. A couple cast hard looks at Teren, and I thought maybe he'd pissed off people they knew. Marble paths laced through raised, barked gardens, holding just about every medium to small sized tree I'd ever seen. The air was warm in here, and I could feel my feet swelling even more. As he walked us to a stone bench, I noticed a few more sets of full vampires. They seemed to like the almost tropical air.
Gabriel plucked a deep red flower with a dark, black stamen and gave it to me. I took the flower as we all sat down, a little marveled by the botanical beauty around us, enclosed under a huge glass roof, showing us the pitch black night outside.
Sitting on the other side of Teren, Gabriel smiled. "She has your blood. She will share all of your attributes and weaknesses. " He grinned wryly. "Or lack thereof. "
I gasped, a little surprised. As I did, the smell of hundreds of flowers assaulted me, made me a little dizzy. I'd sort of not let myself hope that I'd come out of this like my husband. Really, I'd sort of figured I wouldn't be getting out of this. It was pretty shocking to learn that I probably would, and I'd be at the same level of normalcy as Teren. That just seemed too much to hope for. "I'll get to be in the sun?" I whispered, stunned.
Gabriel looked around Teren, who also looked a little stunned as his beautiful eyes swept over my body. "You have no issues with it now, I'm assuming, since you made the trip okay?"
I nodded my head, my eyes watering again. All of this new hope combined with pregnancy hormones wasn't mixing well. Gabriel smiled at my reaction. "Then yes, you should be able to endure sunlight, among other things. "
Feeling overwhelmed, I needed an answer to our children's outcome too. Putting a hand on my stomach, I quietly asked, "And them? Did changing me, do anything to them? "
Gabriel looked at my stomach, then me, then Teren. "They are your children?" he asked clinically. Teren clenched his jaw, but nodded. Gabriel smiled and looked back at me. "Then they were already mixed vampires. Teren's blood is the same as what's already in their veins, if slightly more potent, as he is third generation and they are fourth. Being exposed to more of his blood, should not have affected them. As far as we know, vampires cannot be turned twice. " He smiled and shrugged. "I foresee their limitations to be roughly equal to yours. "
I smiled, relieved, and felt a child kick me, almost as if they were relieved too. "And the shot won't hurt them?"
Gabriel shook his head. "No, my dear, they are not close enough to their conversion for it to have any true affect on them. " He smiled warmly and I found a small laugh escaping me.
Teren smiled at me and shook his head. With a soft laugh he twisted back to Gabriel. "You're over six hundred years old. You must have seen quite a few of our kind. Have you ever seen the trait dilute out? Have you ever met a child that was purely human?" Curiosity overtook Teren's face as he waited for the wise man's answer. Teren's family had lofty ideals of eventually seeing their line return to humanity.
Gabriel twisted his head, his eyes taking in the paradise around him. Somewhere in the room bursting with life, I heard a nocturnal bird calling to its kind. The sound was odd to hear in a house, but comforting, on a basic one-with-nature level. It spoke to the foreignness within me. I may not have the sharpness of Teren's "deceased" senses, but I already felt more connected to my world.
Pausing another moment to watch a teenage looking mixed, clearly with child, walk into the room, Gabriel turned back to Teren and spoke. "All of the mixed that I have seen. . . have had, at the bare minimum, fangs and a mild interest in blood. " He shrugged his shoulders. "But I've seen few beyond fifth or sixth generation. " He tilted his head, his green eyes clearly thinking through the tons of vampiric knowledge he must have in his head. "Having studied the blood for as long as I have, I believe dilution of that level, would take several generations. Perhaps dozens. " He smiled wryly. "But who knows, our kind have been around for as long as our cousins, it is entirely possible that some humans in this world are descendants of mixed vampires, and they just don't know it. "
I frowned as I thought of that possibility. "Descendents. . . that sure would explain some of the nearly impossible things some athletes can do. " I shrugged as Teren grinned and nodded. Sure, some people were enhanced through drugs, but there were stories of "miraculous" feats that came out every year, each seemingly more impressive than the next. Some of those people just had to be enhanced in a different way.
As Teren and I started talking about that possibility, a loud growl broke the relative silence. It sent goose bumps down my spine and my teeth automatically dropped down into a defensive position. Not knowing w
hat was going on, I left them down. Teren, fangless, twisted to stare at Gabriel. Gabriel wasn't looking at our reactions; his eyes were studying the double doors we'd entered, focusing on the sound that had ripped through the night.
As I held my breath, the dizzying scent of various species of flowers stopping, Gabriel flicked a quick glance at us. "Please, excuse me. " With that, he blurred out of the room.
My hand found Teren's and I clutched him, hard. The vampire going through his conversion, had just awoken - hungry.
I closed my eyes as the sounds of shuffling and shouting entered my brain. The growl intensified, and the shouting and pleading intensified as well. Teren dropped my hand and brought his to my ears, clenching them hard, trying to block the sounds that he only succeeded in muffling - the sound of that human man, screaming for mercy. I started to cry as Teren pulled my head to his chest, kissing me and holding me tight. To block out the muffled screams and growls that I could still hear, I started going over baby names in my head. I started at A, and made up two boy names and two girl names with every letter of the alphabet, all the while inhaling the calming scent of Teren under my nose.
As I reached "L" and Lauren and Libby for girls' names, Teren pulled his hands away, cupping my cheeks with them. His eyes were closed and his face looked solemn. He'd heard everything, crystal-clear. The night was relatively silent again, and my tears flowed even harder. Knowing that the man had brought this disaster on himself, knowing that the man would have killed each of us, without a second thought, and knowing that he would have stopped at nothing to take the life of my children, really did nothing to stop the horror I felt at listening to him die.
I harshly swallowed. "I'm ready to go home, Teren. "
As conversations and rustling noises filled the home again, I noticed that the birds started making noises again too. An owl hooted at me from somewhere and I felt myself relaxing. Even nature was moving on. Teren stroked my cheeks, murmuring that everything would be fine and we'd leave once Halina was safely here. I could feel that she had markedly closed the distance between us. She must have been hauling ass to get as far as she had so fast. I could only imagine that when she got here, she was gonna be pissed that we'd gone off with a group of strange, potentially dangerous partial vampires without her.
As I pulled away from Teren, pulling his hands from my cheeks and kissing the palms, Gabriel swished back into the room. He stood in front of our stone bench, his face apologetic and yet, somehow pleased too.
"I do apologize, if that was. . . unpleasant for you. " The beauty of his face intensified as he broke out into a wide smile. "But, Zane is doing wonderfully and should be fully recovered within a few hours. " He put his hands in the back pockets of his jeans, looking genuinely happy that the in-danger member of his family had survived, no matter the cost. A shudder went through me.
Teren stood, holding his hand out to help me up. "Is there somewhere where Emma can rest, before we head back home?" he asked politely, as he pulled me to my feet.
Gabriel glanced at my stomach and then back to Teren. "You mean, until your vampire gets here?"
Teren looked away for a second before looking back. "Yes. She's wearing herself out getting here so fast. She won't have enough energy to return with us. I won't leave here until I know. . . " He bit his lip for a moment, looking unsure if he should second-guess our "savior's" hospitality.
Gabriel grinned crookedly. "None of you have anything to fear from me. Your vampire will be treated as an honored guest, and allowed to stay in the basement levels, for as long as they like. " He raised an eyebrow at Teren and I. "You may stay as long as you like as well. It is approaching the middle of the night. The two of you must be tired. "
I blinked, not realizing how much time had passed. It had seemed to fly by once we'd gotten here, but we'd traveled a bit after the sun had set, and walking through this place took forever, and I suppose we had been in the lab for awhile. It hadn't seemed that long at the time. As Gabriel pointed out how late it was, I suddenly felt it in my body. I slumped against Teren, a yawn escaping me. Teren looked at me questioningly, but I shook my head. I didn't want to spend the night here. I wanted to be home with my comforts, my safeties, and my husband.
Teren looked back at Gabriel. "No, thank you for the generous offer, but once my great-grandmother arrives and is brought up to speed, we'd like to head home. "
Gabriel nodded, extending his hand to the glass doors exiting the room. "Of course. We have several spare rooms at your disposal. "
With a hand protectively on my back, we followed Gabriel as he led us to a rather bland looking staircase. It led up into one of the house's strange levels. Strange because we went up two flights of stairs, through a tunnel, down a set of stairs, and then back up a set. I was even more tired when we finally got to the room. Cursing the must-have-been-stoned architect that had designed this place, I had no complaints in me when Teren finally scooped me into his arms, carrying me down the seemingly endless hallway to where our guest room was.
I was semi-asleep before we even got there. I heard Teren and Gabriel exchange some sort of parting, and then heard the door open and felt the chill of the little used room hit me. Since I was snuggling against Teren's cool chest, the chill felt normal to me and I didn't even shiver. Teren clutched me close to him as I swam in and out of alertness. I felt him lie me on something soft, a bed, and then heard and felt his body lie behind me. His arms curled around me as he buried his head in my hair.
He exhaled softly, the sweetness of his scent making me smile, even in my sleep-haze. "We made it, Emma," he whispered. Not able to respond past a grunt, I loosely squeezed his hand. Relief and exhaustion overtook me, and the last thing I heard before I succumbed, was him telling me that he loved me.
I dreamt of our children while we waited. I dreamt of holding them, playing with them, watching them sleep. I dreamt of watching Teren play with them, watching him make playful fanged faces for them. Listened to their imagined laughter as they tried to copy him, watched their little fingers touch his beautiful face.
I couldn't believe that after all of this, I might actually get to have that. I just had to survive the shot.
I woke up with a start, uneasy. Teren's cool arms were still around my body and he stirred when I stirred. "It's okay, Emma," he slurred sleepily.
Confused, I blinked at a stream of sunlight hitting my eyes. For a moment, I had no idea where I was. I twisted uncomfortably, my children telling me that I'd better find a bathroom soon. Scooting over to the edge of the bed, I looked around the completely foreign room. Alarmed, I turned back to Teren, still dozing on the bed. "We're still here?" I said, kind of at the top of my voice.
He cringed and peeked his eyes up at me. "Em, not so loud. "
Not enjoying his casualness, I repeated, "We're still here, Teren. Why? I thought we were going home. "
He sat up, rubbing his eyes. "Well. . . "
I frowned, standing and rubbing a sore spot in back. "Well what? You could have woken me up. "
He sighed as he stood and walked over to me. "I'm. . . under orders, to stay until nightfall. " He said that glumly, and stared at the floor.
That's when I felt it. I stared at the floor too, at the exact point in the house where I could feel Halina sleeping, several feet below us. I peeked up at him. "Halina. . . forbade you to leave?"
He sighed again, rolling his eyes. "Yeah. She was. . . not pleased that we'd headed out without her. " He frowned. "She sort of ripped into me, right in front of Gabriel and Starla. " He rolled his eyes again, looking sheepish.
I couldn't help but smile a little at the thought of that conversation. Starla had probably laughed her ass off. I frowned, thinking of what Gabriel had said about the length of time mixed-turnings took to convert. "He said it happens in the first couple months, Teren. It's been a couple months. Maybe we shouldn't wait to go home. . . " I couldn't meet him in the eye as I said that.
His fingers came to my chin, twisting me to look at him. "We could dose you here, Emma. "
I shook my head immediately. "I won't eat a person, hunter or not, and who knows if they have another 'bird' to kill. I won't be their pawn. "
My eyes were wide when I said that. Teren looked at me a moment before sighing and nodding. I was glad he understood. If the dose wasn't going to work for me, it would start the conversion in me. I had no idea whether or not Gabriel had any other prisoners in this massive complex. Maybe someone was passed out, or asleep, or possibly near death. I couldn't take the chance that he'd offer me up a blood-pumping human, right when I was at my weakest. I wasn't sure if I had Teren's restraint, and I didn't want to find out if I did or not. And I didn't want that guilt on my conscience if I didn't, not when the Adams had plenty of blood sources readily available. Teren understood not wanting that guilt.
"We'll leave as soon as we get you some food. " His finger gently stroked the soft spot under my eye. At his words, my stomach grumbled loudly and my fangs nearly dropped at the thought. I noticed the sunken look of Teren's face and realized he hadn't eaten anything since the tiny blood packet in Starla's car. As a fairly new vamp, he still needed to eat pretty often.
"You're starving, Teren. " I frowned.
He grinned, having heard my stomach. "I'm not the only one. " He kissed my nose. "And I'm not starving, just mildly uncomfortable. "
I nodded and slumped against him. He picked me up, prepared to walk me through the maze of hallways, when I whispered into his wrinkled dress shirt, "I need a restroom. "
He laughed, the lightness of it gone for so long that I found myself laughing in response. "Right, forgot about that. "
I grinned, looking up at him. "Well, you haven't had to worry about that for awhile, Mr. I-no-longer-have-a-functioning-digestive-system. " He smiled brilliantly at that, and I reveled in the joy in his face. I hadn't seen that in a long time either.
As he walked me out of the room, in search of facilities, my hand went to his cheek. "Do you think this will work, Teren. Do you think I'll live, and they'll make it through this?"
He looked down on me, after finding the room in question. "I think you're a miracle, Emma. And if anyone could survive this, it would be you. " He grinned splendidly again and we kissed for a moment, until my bladder said enough is enough, and I speedily used that restroom.
As Teren set me down in the entryway we'd used to come into the home yesterday, tall and dark Jordan approached us. With a cool professionalism, he led us into the dining room. Apparently, we'd woken up in time for breakfast. My stomach growled again as the smell of pancakes hit me. Starla and a few other alive-mixed were already in the room, helping themselves to the buffet style table of food.
Teren looked around, but there weren't any steaming carafes. I didn't smell any blood mixed with the pancakes and syrup either. He frowned as Starla turned to us. Having heard my stomach, she loudly grumbled, "Great. Preggers is gonna eat all the chow. " She smirked at me after she said that, and I scowled at her.
Jordan had disappeared upon leading us to the room, zooming back to wherever he'd come from, so Teren only continued to frown, smelling and searching the area for his food. Jacen suddenly approached as I was getting my plate of carbs. Smacking Teren on the back, he pointed to a door leading outside. "Our grubs that way. " He raised his eyebrows at him. "We prefer our food fresh here. "
Jacen turned to leave as Starla muttered, "Neanderthal. " Jacen shot her a glare as he headed outside.
Teren sighed and then looked back at me. "Guess I'm hunting after all. " Grabbing a Styrofoam cup off a table, he muttered, "I'll bring you back some. " I frowned at him sympathetically and then smiled at his thoughtfulness. Teren didn't really enjoy hunting, and I had a feeling that I wasn't really going to be a hunter either.
I sat down by Starla to eat my meal, since she was the only person I knew in the room. She chatted my ear off about the amazing shopping trip she could take me on. She eyed my tacky painting sweats and baggy t-shirt with open disdain. I took in her fitted DKNY dress and contained a sigh. I sort of missed my body. I'd have filled out her tight dress nicely, a few months ago. But as my twins kicked me, I let it go. I had something vastly more important than an hourglass figure. I was happy to give it up, to bring Teren's children into the world. For awhile at least.
Teren was coming back into the room just as I was filling up my second plate. I felt him approaching and my hands started shaking. He hadn't been too far away from me, so the pull of him returning wasn't that bad, but I still closed my eyes and took a couple deep breaths. Starla laughed at me as she left the room to go outside.
Teren walked over to me with forced slowness. A smile crept on my face at his control. What he really wanted to do was throw himself on me. I knew that, because that's what I really wanted to do. Our nature demanded it. But we fought it and calmly met in the middle of the room, him bending over to give me an appropriately small kiss. "Missed you," he whispered, his voice a little husky.
"Missed you too," I whispered back, forcing myself to sit down, instead of leaning back in for another kiss.
He sat beside me and the bond eventually evened out. Grabbing my free hand while I started in on my second helping, he placed a cup of deep red blood in front of me and I stared at it. With concerned eyes, I looked back at him. He understood.
"It's a puma. Found it up the hillside. " I grabbed the cup and immediately started chugging it. Puma wasn't cow, but it was better than human. Conscience-wise anyway. I noted the slight difference in taste as Teren continued. "They've fenced in a large portion of the hill, trapping the wild animals inside. Many here only eat animal, but not all. . . "
His voice drifted off and I peeked over at him with my eyes, my fangs slightly digging through the Styrofoam cup. He looked over my face and sighed. "They've got a house with people. . . willing to. . . " He shook his head. "They give them drugs or money or. . . sex. . . and the humans let them bite them. " He shrugged as my mouth dropped. "They don't kill them, but they have the purebloods wipe them when they are done with them. "
"How do they find people willing to do that?"
Teren shrugged, looking out over the room that was all listening to us. A voice from behind us answered me. "We place ads, in the personals. " I twisted to look at Gabriel standing behind us. "We don't mention exactly what we are looking for, but you'd be surprised how many are more than happy to do it. " He smiled widely as my mouth opened even farther. "For the right price. "
"Oh," was all I could squeak out to that. I took in the leader of this group of mixed and pure vampires behind me, authoritative, yet welcoming at the same time. A bright shaft of sunlight was lighting him from the side, lightening his sandy brown hair to near blonde and making his green eyes exceptionally emerald. He had power, money, charm, and the looks to go along with it. This man was the sort of person who could change the world, if he chose. But his life mission had been to save Teren's kind. Well, my kind in a way now too. I was thankful that he was on our side.
He cringed slightly and moved away from the sun. To me, that meant he wasn't in Teren's generation. Maybe Alanna's? His arm swept out to indicate the seat beside Teren and Teren nodded. Gabriel sat down fluidly, watching me sip my cup of blood that Teren had brought back for me.
"What flavor," he asked politely.
Teren answered before I could. "Puma, found one on the hill. " Gabriel raised an eyebrow at Teren and smiled.
"Those are popular, our supply has dwindled a bit. Finding one now is quite impressive. " His grin widened more. "I'd love to hunt with you some time?"
Teren smiled softly, not wanting to be rude by telling the man how much he didn't like it. "Another time, maybe. We're going to head home after Emma is full. "
I smiled at that, around my cup-o-blood. I may never actually get full again, while these two fuel burners were inside of me, but I'd be good in a couple minutes.
Gabriel looked over at me, a slight frown on his face. "If you must leave, you may. " Bringing his eyes back to Teren, the barest hint of a devilish smile lit the corners. "Your great-grandmother will be very displeased that you disobeyed her order. "
Teren looked down, a sheepish smile on his face. "Yeah, well, I am an adult. She'll just have to deal. " He looked up at Gabriel, a slight smirk still on his lips as he watched Teren. "Besides, my wife is my priority now, and we don't have the time to wait around for sunset. "
Teren's voice lost its impishness as determination filled it. If anyone could wish an outcome into existence by sheer will power, it would be Teren, right at this moment. Gabriel eyed him speculatively before shifting his gaze to mine. "You won't consider taking the dosage here?"
Not having words for this imposing man, I only shook my head, no. He smiled and nodded, not looking surprised. "I'll have Starla get ready to drive you home. "
Teren nodded and Gabriel made to stand up. He paused halfway in standing to smile down at Teren. "Your great-grandmother is. . . an extraordinary woman. "
Teren's eyes widened fractionally as Gabriel stood completely. "I have immensely enjoyed her visit. " I clamped my mouth shut to not laugh. By the slightly dazed, amazed look on Gabriel's face, I was pretty sure he knew Halina in the most intimate way a man could know a woman. Teren's mouth lowered a bit, and I'm sure he was aware of that too. Gabriel put a cool hand on his shoulder, smiling down on him as a father figure would. "Your family is welcome here, anytime. "
With a slight twist of his lip, he turned and left us at the table, staring after him in wonder.
Less than an hour later, we were flying down the interstate, Starla grumpily clutching the wheel and chomping on a fresh piece of gum. It was apple flavored this time, but no less sickenly sweet. Teren sat beside me in the backseat, letting me lie down on his lap. Well, as much as I could in the small backseat. Adjusting the seat belt around my stomach, I listened to the sounds of the liquid vials in the trunk sloshing in time to the thumping music pouring from the speakers. I hoped that stuff worked better than the dose Teren had been forced to take. Although, I suppose that had worked exactly as intended. I was just hoping for the opposite effect.
As Teren stroked my hair, he watched Starla, singing along to the current hit playing on the radio. "Why do you take the shot?" he asked her. She paused mid-chorus and looked at him in the rearview mirror. Her eyes narrowed as he continued. "You don't want to be eternally young?" His eyes flicked over her manicured nails, over styled hair, and designer dress. I scrunched my brow at that. He did have a point. She did seem the type that had been trying Botox by fourteen.
Her jaw tightened and her narrowed eyes turned into a nasty glare. "Don't presume to know me. "
Teren blinked, surprised at the harshness in her voice. "I'm sorry. I meant no offense by that. " He shrugged. "I'm just curious. "
Her face relaxed and she started chomping on her gum. Her eyes drifting to mine, she let out a quick sigh. "The conversion took my mother and my sister. " Her eyes flicked back to Teren's, moister now than before. "There is something in our bloodline, that won't complete the changeover. We're faulty, hardwired wrong. I'm the last of my family, and that would have been my fate too, if Father hadn't found me. " She shook her head and her voice dropped to a whisper. "I have to take it. . . it's the only chance I've got. "
I stared at her, surprised at her admission. I glanced at Teren, he looked equally shocked. Starla eyed us in the mirror before focusing back on the road. "Anyway, that's why I figured Father could help you. I know that I'd be dead in a few years if he hadn't helped me. Dead-dead, I mean. " She smiled as she glanced at us again. "But now, I help Father. " Her eyes flicked over to Teren, before shifting back to the freeway. "He studies me, studies my blood. He's changed the formula a few times since meeting me, learning what works, from the junk in my blood. "
She smiled, pride obvious in her features. "I'm helping him perfect it. The mixed seem to take to it better now, or so Father says. He's tried it out on five in the last several months, and three of those didn't auto-convert. " She glanced at us again, while I mentally tried to figure out what percentage rate of success that equaled. She smiled wryly as she watched me try to puzzle that out. "The weird thing in my blood just may be what saves your children. Chew on that. " Then she blasted the radio, driving all conversation from the car. Teren and I glanced at each other and he gave me a soft, reassuring smile.
Teren called his family on the way there. Not to let them know we were headed home, they knew that, but to let them know what we'd discovered. Or rather, what had discovered us. I could hear Alanna's relieved sobs through the phone. After that, he handed me his cell and I called my sister.
She berated me for not calling her earlier and I heard her whisper that we were okay to someone in the room with her. When I recognized the male voice answering her, I blinked. "Hot Ben's still with you?"
I cringed when I realized my pet name for him had slipped out of my mouth. Oops, pregnancy brain. Probably shouldn't have said that right in front of my husband. As I sat up in the seat, Teren frowned down at me, an eyebrow raised. Starla laughed while I lamely shrugged. Appropriate or not, it was true. He was hot.
Through the phone, my sister started giggling. "Hot? I suppose he is. . . " She paused for a moment and I knew she was checking him out. I heard him say, "What?" and then my sister responded to my question. "Yeah, he wouldn't leave my house until he heard that everything was cool from Teren. " She paused again. "So, is everything. . . cool?"
With a laugh and a shake of my head at Ben's dedication to his task, I filled my sister in on exactly what had gone down in L. A.
After several pit stops, traffic jams, exasperated sighs from Starla, and backrubs from Teren, we finally arrived back at the ranch. I'd never been so happy to see the river-rock encased beauty. The red roof tiles gleamed at me in greeting as we zipped up the bumpy drive. It was late afternoon, a few hours before dark, and only Alanna and Jack waited for us in the parking lot. Alanna had tears in her eyes as she waited for the car to stop.
Whispering how worried she was, she swept her son into a firm embrace. He returned it just as eagerly, lifting her up a little in his happiness. Then he released her and reached back into the car to help my bulky body exit. He got me to standing and then Alanna's cool body was around mine, hugging me as fiercely as she dared. She couldn't even speak through her tears and I found my exhausted hormones matching her reaction. We cried in each other's arms for a good five minutes.
Starla groaned and laid her head back on the seat, obviously anxious to head back home; she didn't even shut the car off. While Jack and Teren retrieved the suitcases of vials from the trunk, Alanna and I finally separated. Wiping my eyes, I leaned back into the car and thanked Starla profusely for coming all this way to get us.
"Whatever," she muttered. She took off the moment Teren closed the back door. He yelled a goodbye at her car as she flew away from us, dirt and gravel highlighting her retreat. Teren shook his head. "Not a country girl. "
I laughed and slung my arm around his waist. He smiled down on me as I watched Starla leave. I heard her car squeal onto the highway and wondered if I'd ever see that prissy vampire again.
Looking up at Teren, I sighed contently. "Ready," he asked. My sigh caught in my throat. I knew what he was really asking. My heart started beating faster and I clenched a hand over my stomach. No, I wasn't ready. How could you ever really be ready to possibly die? I exhaled slowly, letting the air escaping my body, calm me. Without speaking, I nodded. I was as ready as I was ever going to be.
Alanna put a cool hand on my shoulder and she and Teren walked me into the kitchen. I inhaled deep as we walked into the home. The smell of freesia from the hallway upstairs hit me, the scent wonderfully smelling of home and comfort and family. Feeling more at ease, I followed Teren into the dining room. He and Jack set the suitcases up on the table, Teren popping o
ne open. He grabbed a small pink vial as Alanna cocked her head at him.
"What is it?" she asked.
Teren shook his head. "Hopefully, it's what will save our children. " He grabbed a syringe in the case and prepared exactly 4cc. When it was ready, he faced me and exhaled in one short burst. "Ready?" he asked again.
My heartbeat tripled. I shook my head no, but said, "Yes. " We had no more time to wait. It was surprising I hadn't died already. A few more days was all the time this body had, Gabriel had pretty much confirmed that. I was fated to die. . . one way or another.
He nodded, squatting down in front of me. "I love you, Emma," he whispered.
Alanna behind me started crying softly as Jack held her. Imogen blurred down into the room, fighting against the strain of sunlight still present. Instantly, windows were covered to accommodate her, and shaking in pain, she waited next to her daughter. I didn't reprimand her for coming down. She wanted to be here, and she was willing to take the pain to support me. Tears filled my eyes as I nodded at the loving family behind me. Twisting back to Teren, I said, "I love you too. "
He grabbed my arm, twisting it so he could see my inner elbow. His hand was shaking as he brought the tip of the needle to my bare skin. Just as he was about to stick me, I whispered, "Don't forget to take them. " He paused, looking up at me. "If I don't make it, if my heart stops, you cut them out of me. " I shook my head, my tears falling. "They are thirty weeks now, they've got a real shot. " My hand cupped his cheek. "You get your ass to a doctor and get someone here to save them. Promise me. "
A tear dropped to his cheek as he stared at me. "Promise me," I repeated.
He swallowed harshly and his voice came out thick with emotion. "I promise, Emma. "
I swallowed and bent down to kiss him. He stuck me while our mouths moved together. I gasped at the brief pain, at the smell of the pinprick of fresh blood, and the warmth rushing up my arm. He pulled the needle out, his lips insistent as he continued to pour his love into it. His hands came up to cup my cheeks and I could hear sniffles and contained sobs from the group watching this.
As my hands ran through his hair, I felt the warmth spread through my entire body. I felt myself relaxing as his tongue found mine. I felt my heart slowing as our frantic kiss settled into something languid and lustful. As my heart slowed to calmness, my breath started to pick up.
Teren broke apart from me, his pale eyes concerned. "Are you okay? What do you feel?"
Aching with the loss of his retreat, I leaned forward to find his lips again. "Fine, I feel fine. " We met again, a slight groan escaping me.
He pulled away again, his breath faster too. "What do you mean you feel fine?" His eyes searched mine, a passion there, buried under the layers of concern.
I smiled, feeling that warmth from the injection circulating through every cell. It gave me a light, airy feeling, and I felt everything about me slow down. Everything but my breath. That picked up as I glanced over Teren's face. "I think it worked," I said huskily, finding his mouth again.
He pulled back, cupping my face. I held my breath as I watched him. I heard the room silence as every vampire held their breath. Only Jack's low, deep breathing remained. Teren's eyes moved down to my chest, to my heart. He stared, like he could stare straight through me. I listened with him, as I let out a soft exhale. My breathing back to a normal, slow pace, I cherished the steady thump I heard, mixing pleasantly with the two fast, fluttery beats underneath it. The entire room listened to those beats for a solid ten minutes.
Time finally seemed to convince Teren that I wasn't going to keel over. His eyes finally flicked back up to mine. "You're alive. Oh my god, you're alive. " His lips were back on me then, no longer holding back.
I heard Alanna, Imogen and Jack all start to exclaim and make joyous noises of celebration. Then I felt Imogen slip from the room, offering her congratulations and support from her darker, bedroom environment. Alanna and Jack tried to offer their supportive comments, but Teren and I were letting our relief spill out physically, and couldn't pry ourselves away for long enough to acknowledge them.
Finally, Alanna leaned over our making out bodies and said, "Would you mind taking that upstairs, dears? Your father eats here. "
I could clearly hear the humor in her voice and I chuckled in Teren's mouth. His humor wasn't quite there and he only grunted, lifting me up and blurring us to our room here at the ranch. The room where our children were going to be born. . . when they were ready to be.