"Gabrielle," Regulus wheezed, on his feet in an instant. "Run."
Before she could turn, he had her in his arms, Aed's tortured cries following them down the street and into the darkening city. Her ran for what seemed like miles and miles until he finally slowed to a fast walk in a back street somewhere she didn't recognize.
"He's not following," she said, casting her senses behind them.
Regulus dropped her to her feet roughly, a hand on the wall. He hung his head, seemingly out of breath, and she noticed he'd broken out into a cold sweat. Vampires like him didn't need to rest.
"Regulus?" she asked quietly.
Standing to his full height he grunted, wiping his face. "We need to go back to the house. I need to keep you safe."
His shirt was still wet with his blood and that could have been because it hadn't dried yet, or he was still bleeding. He noticed her eyes on his shoulder and with a frown, he took her arm and began to lead her.
"Regulus, your shoulder," she protested.
"It's fine."
His response was clipped and she knew he wasn't saying something. When his hand came up to his forehead, he stopped suddenly, letting go of her arm. Before she could reach out to him, his eyes unfocused and he fell to his knees, breathing hard. With a cry, she was beside him, her hands on his clammy face.
"Regulus," she murmured. "What's wrong?"
He seemed to look at her, some kind of recognition flashing through his dark eyes. "Katrin?"
"No." She shook her head, beginning to panic. "It's Gabby. Gabrielle."
He frowned. "That's what I meant."
Trying not to let her concern show, Gabby wrapped an arm around his waist and helped him to his feet. "We've got to get off the street. Let's go home."
"Home?" he asked in a childlike voice.
"Yes, home."
There was only one explanation for Regulus' odd behavior. Aed's bite had somehow poisoned him. She hoped to hell that the Roman's body would heal itself, because she had no idea how to do it. No matter her feelings, they needed him. Regulus was the only way they could kill Aed for good. He was their last hope.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Gabby tried to mask her worry as she helped Regulus back to the apartment. He seemed to have lost his strength all at once and hauling him up the stairs to the top floor was no picnic. He hadn't said a word since he'd called her Katrin and she knew his pride had been hurt more than anything. The Roman didn't seem concerned that his wound wasn't healing, but he probably should be.
Zac shot to his feet when they came in the door and Regulus stormed off into the bedroom without making eye contact.
"Gabby?"
"Not now," she said, shaking her head.
"Yes, now," he said. "Where have you been? I thought…"
"He was teaching me how to track Aed."
"You obviously found him. I can smell the blood, Gabby."
"He made me go confront him, but it didn't work…it…" She hesitated, glancing at the bedroom door. She wanted Regulus. She couldn't leave him. Not like that.
"It obviously didn't go well," Zac said thinly. "And I thought all we had was the element of surprise?"
"Please, Zac. Can we talk about this later?"
He narrowed his eyes and nodded. "Later."
Without looking back, she followed Regulus into the bedroom, closing the door softly behind her. He had his back to her, looking out the window at the dark city. She didn't have to ask if something was wrong, she could feel it crackling in the air.
Without acknowledging her presence, he took off his shirt and inspected the bite mark in the reflection. Even in the dark room, she could see that it was red and angry looking. Blood still seeped from it, but it wasn't that that made her look twice. It had been maybe an hour since Aed had bitten him, but it looked infected, the Roman's skin marred with black veins that seemed to be spreading the longer she looked.
"I was never going to be a match for him on my own," he said, his voice stretched thin.
"You didn't know that," she said, her voice barely a whisper.
"There was a reason there was six of us."
Gabby shook her head. "Fail safes."
"And in the event one of them woke... strength."
"You knew and you still went after him?"
"I believed I could stop him on my own. Obviously, I was wrong." He poked at the wound in his neck and hissed.
"Regulus," she said, tugging his hands away.
He shrugged her off, pulling his shirt back on.
"It's not healing."
"No," he said gruffly, not looking at her.
"How…"
He turned on her, eyes blazing. "The only way I'm going to be cured is by Aed's blood. Can you see that happening, because I can't."
"There has to be another way."
"I'm dying and that's that."
No, she couldn't believe it. But he was right, wasn't he? The hybrids hadn't seen the light of day since they were turned. Anyone who might've known about them were long dead and their secrets lost to the ages. Even if there was a cure, she wouldn't be able to find it in time.
"Did you know?" she asked. When he turned away again and didn't answer, she grabbed his arm and forced him to look at her. "Did you know this would happen if he bit you?"
His jaw tightened and he shook his head. "There was no way to know."
"But you suspected."
"Yes."
"I can't believe…" she started to say, but cast her eyes away. She was going to say, she couldn't believe he didn't tell her, but she knew why he didn't. He was just trying to protect her from the aftermath.
"It'll be fast or it'll be slow."
"No. I won't let it happen."
"I can already feel my mind slipping."
"No, you can't be..."
"I called you Katrin." He cupped her face in trembling hands. "I called you Katrin and you're my Gabrielle."
She stiffened. His Gabrielle.
"It's only going to get worse."
"Do you want…"
"No," he said, pre-empting what she was going to say. "I don't want her to touch me. I don't want her to see me like this."
She nodded. Damn him and his stubborn pride.
"Only if I try to hurt anyone. If I try to hurt you. Only then."
She could feel it through the skin of his hands, the poison that was running in his veins, spreading further and further through his system. But, Aed had bitten Zac and his wound had healed…why wasn't Regulus'? The answer was obvious really. He'd been created to counter the Tuatha hybrids and nature had still found a way as it had with his other purpose, the Celestines. Even the immortal had a way to end it all. What use was the word when he could be taken away from her with one little bite?
For once she didn't want to believe Regulus wasn't as indestructible as she'd come to think he was.
After leaving Regulus to his stubborn melancholy, Gabby went back out in the living room. Zac was slouched in the oversized couch, Aya at his side. There was no sign of Nye, Tristan or the Three and she guessed they might've escaped to the pub when she returned with Regulus.
"Gabby?" Zac asked, sitting up straight.
She sunk into a chair across from them and rubbed her tired eyes.
"What's wrong?" he asked, when she didn't acknowledge him.
"Aed bit him," she sighed. "He went for me and…he bit him."
"It's not healing," Aya said blandly, earning herself a glare from Zac.
"No," Gabby snapped, narrowing her eyes at the hybrid.
"What do we need to do?" Zac asked. "Is there a way to heal him?" He got it even if Aya didn't and that was a role reversal if she ever saw one.
"He says the only way to heal it would be with Aed's blood."
"Well, we're screwed. Try getting within five feet of the guy," Aya said, splitting the wound further.
Biting her tongue, Gabby glanced away. Fighting between themselves wouldn't solve anything. Regulus was dying and
there was nothing she could do. Going after Aed was a suicide mission. Anyone who decided to try would be dead the moment the Tuatha laid eyes on them. She knew she needed to ask, regardless of Aya's reaction.
Glancing at the Celestine she asked, "If it comes to it, would you?" She didn't need to elaborate any further than that.
"No," Aya snarled. Her entire body seemed to glow with the force of her voice.
"Aya," Gabby sighed, trying to keep her emotions in check. "I'm asking you as a witch. As a sister. As a friend. If it comes to it, will you end his suffering?"
"No."
"Please…"
"You're forgetting it was Regulus who snatched me from my forest. His actions sealed my fate and that of my family. I will not help you."
"He was ordered to do it," she cried, her control beginning to crack. "Katrin ordered him and he was compelled to do it."
"He may have been ordered, but he wanted it do it regardless."
"It was two thousand years ago," she exclaimed, rising to her feet. "Two thousand years, Aya. Learn a little forgiveness. Aren't you supposed to be the embodiment of nurturing and care? How about you care a little for once in your fucked up life?"
"Gabby..." Zac began, but she didn't want to hear it.
"I'll never forget this, Aya. Never. Don't even think to ask me for anything ever again, because you already know my answer."
Aya rose to her feet, her pale hands clenched into tight fists. "You have no idea what you're dealing with, Gabby."
Gabby felt her power tingle in her stomach, aching for release and before she could lose it and turn on the hybrid, she stalked from the room, tears threatening.
"Let her go," she heard Zac say, but she didn't stop to listen to more.
Easing open the door to Regulus' room, she frowned at how sick he looked. He'd collapsed back onto the bed fully clothed, too tired to even pull the covers back. Sitting beside him, she tugged his boots off and set them on the floor. Placing a hand on his forehead, he stirred, his eyes fixing on hers.
"I heard you arguing," he wheezed. "Your devotion warms my cold dead heart, Gabrielle."
"Oh, shut up."
"It appears it's going to be slow. Which is probably what I deserve. Just let me die in peace."
"Never," she said. "You annoyed the crap out of me since the day I met you. I'm not about to let you stop now." Kicking her own boots off she curled up next to him, winding and arm around his waist.
"You don't have to stay, dear one. I don't want to hurt you."
"You won't." She stroked his cheek, trying to hold back tears. "Where do you want to be?"
He frowned, like he didn't understand her question, but then he said, "Home."
"Think of it and I'll take you there."
She let her power meld with his thoughts and the air around them began to shimmer. If this was the last thing she could do for him, then it wouldn't be enough. Nothing would ever be enough.
Closing her eyes, she felt a few stray tears slip between her lashes and down her cheek. When she opened them again it was to blue sky as far as the eye could see and golden fields broken up with a square patch of green…an olive grove. And just beyond, a white washed house with a terracotta roof.
She sat on the rise of a hill, Regulus at her side, a slight breeze fluttering her hair. There was the slight tang of salt, which meant the ocean mustn't be far from the villa and it's fields. He wound his arm across her back and squinted in the sunshine.
"It's so real," he said with a sigh.
"Where are we?"
"This was where I was born. Italy, as it was when it was part of the Roman Empire."
"It's beautiful."
"See that field just below the rise?" He pointed to the left. "That's where my father taught me to ride."
"What was he like?"
"He was a hard man. He loved my mother and I, but he was a Centaur. Most of his life was spent fighting. He was absent most of my childhood, such were the Legion's campaigns back then. It would be years at a time before he came home and most of that time my mother spent worrying that he wouldn't at all. Every time he came back, he was a little less…himself. Ultimately, it was his wish that I follow him into the Legion and so it was."
"Did you want to? Join the Legion, I mean."
He shrugged. "If there was another option, it never occurred to me. I wanted to be like my father. He seemed a hero to a young boy. I never understood it all at that age, not until I was living it. I soon grew up and the truth of life was revealed to me in the most horrific way. Conquering, war. Death. Killing comes natural for a vampire. One could argue it comes easily for a human, but," he tapped his temple, "it doesn't come easy in here."
"Did you have any joy in your life?" she asked, leaning her head against his shoulder.
"Joy?" he asked in surprise. "I suppose I've been happy at times."
"That's not what I meant."
He let out a long sigh. "No."
Gabby didn't know what to say to that, so she just linked her fingers with his.
"I hoped that after this was done, then things might've been different," he said. "That I had a reason to go on for myself, and not for others. No more orders to follow but my own."
"What would you have done?"
"It's no use dwelling on things that will never happen." He looked down at her, his eyes full of sadness.
"Regulus..."
"I'm over two thousand years old. No one should live that long."
She clutched his arm, not wanting to let go. It was strange how she found herself here, falling for the one man who made life a living hell for so many of her friends. A witch and a vampire. "But...I've only just found you."
"It's a shame that I can't spend more time with you, Gabrielle. It's a shame that I have to leave you with this burden. If I could change it I would."
They sat together for what felt like an age, looking over the valley. Whatever memories the Roman was reliving, he didn't share. He didn't have to, this was his time she'd given to him. His time to say goodbye to whatever he wanted.
"I promised I'd protect you and your family," he said, breaking the silence. "When I'm gone, look inside my bag. You'll find what you need."
"What do you mean?"
"Everything that is mine is yours, dear one. My houses, my money. If I can't be there, then at least this will help you and your family in the future."
"I can't."
"You can, Gabrielle."
"I'm not ready to let you go yet," she said, curling her fingers around his arms.
"Neither am I, but the world stops for no one. Not even the supernatural."
"Are you afraid?"
"How could I be afraid with you by my side?" He cupped her face in a warm hand, brushing away her tears with a thumb. "I never thought anyone would miss me when I inevitably died."
"I will."
"I know." He pressed his lips to hers, his kiss slow and full of all the things he couldn't say. Drawing back, he leaned his forehead against hers, and let out a long shaky breath.
"Thank you," he whispered. "For taking it away."
"You're welcome," Gabby replied, running her hand along his jaw.
With a sigh, he tore away and laid back in the grass, eyes on the sky. "I'm so tired..."
She curled up against him, her head on his chest as his eyes began to droop. "It's okay. I'm here. I won't go anywhere."
"I could have fallen in love with a woman like you, Gabrielle. I think I already was."
"And I, you."
He let out a contented sigh and stilled beside her. As the vision began to dissolve, she knew he was gone.
Her tears began to flow freely as she found herself lying on his bed again, curled into his side. It was too soon. It couldn't end this way. It just couldn't. Regulus was gone and with him any hope for the future. Aed would wreak havoc on the world and that would be that.
They'd lost before it'd even begun and she'd just lost the man she'd fallen in love with. If there
had been any hope at all…it was just gone.
There was nothing.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Gabby didn't know how long she'd been lying there, curled up next to Regulus' lifeless body. Not until Zac pulled her away and into his arms.
"Don't," she cried, pushing against his chest.
"Gabby, you can't stay here forever. Please, come away."
"No, I don't want to leave him."
"He's gone. Please."
He was, wasn't he? She crumbled into Zac as he held her tightly and didn't try to protest as he took her from the room. A moment later, he set her down on the sofa. Looking up, she saw Aya staring at her with a confused expression. Like she couldn't understand how she felt. The hybrid had lost her entire family, surely she could understand? Even just a little? Her heart had just been ripped out of her chest, not in the literal sense, but it was gone nonetheless.
Zac sat beside Gabby and went to put an arm around her, but Aya was still staring like she was some kind of puzzle and it made her want to snap her in two. "He was a good man," she cried, standing up. "He was a good man who was driven to do evil things."
"You loved him." Aya said it like it was the craziest thing she'd ever heard. Maybe it was.
"Yes. I fucking loved him. So what?"
"Gabby." Zac stood and went to take her arm, but she stepped away.
"You've lied, killed and tortured just as much as he did," she said through gritted teeth. "You do not get to judge me for this, Aya. You don't have the right."
Zac stepped into her, circling his arms around her small frame and she didn't have it in her to fight anymore. She couldn't justify Regulus' actions, she couldn't understand. She didn't have the time to even try. Her tears came hard and fast, staining the front of Zac's shirt.
"We have to bury him," she said, desperately. "We have to…"
"Of course," he murmured into her hair.
"Where…"
"He has a house in Hampstead," Zac said. "We can take him there. There's a large garden out the back and if you ward it, no one will find him there. No one you don't want to."