Black Bird (Nevermore Duet #1)

CHAPTER 29

LIFE AND DEATH

He wasn’t sure how much more he could take. His fingers flexed as he walked hurriedly down the hallways, glancing at sick children just trying to find some kind of entertainment in playrooms that were scattered throughout the hospital. It was the second time Brent had hit someone in the past week, and neither time was fulfilling. In fact, it only pissed him off more. That bastard had done so much worse to Sarah than he ever had. At least … that’s how he felt. He couldn’t help but let Northwood’s words replay in his mind, over and over.

“Athan didn’t choose to do what he did to her. But you did. Sarah understands that. She loves him.”

He did … he did choose. And he was a fool.

“She loves him.”

Did she ever truly love him the way that she loves that prick? Was it possible that Sarah only thought she loved the detective, only because of what might have happened to her after experiencing something like that? Then, there was what Kane had said himself … something Wren had even pointed out when she’d cornered him in the stairwell that day …

“It doesn’t take a detective to know she was done with you before she’d even met me.”

Asshole …

“She’s over you, Brent. We both know it. She’s just too good of a person to let you down.”

Looking back on it … part of him knew. Knew then, and likely knew before that argument in the hospital, but never wanted to believe it. There had always been some part of her that Brent could never satisfy. If he allowed himself to be honest, the same rang true when it regarded himself. Some kind of divide … some gaping abyss that neither of them could figure out how to cross. He had never tried to control her. He’d never do that. But he found himself wondering then, if maybe he’d pushed her too much. Or maybe he hadn’t pushed himself enough. Just when he thought there had been a chance to accept Sarah’s attraction to the guy and respond to how freeing it felt not to be bothered by it … the truth came out. And look what he’d done with it. Reacted like he had absolutely no control over himself. He wasn’t acting like the man this little girl looked up to—who she admired so much that she dreamt of becoming a fierce lawyer, if she was only given a chance to live .

Brent softly knocked on the open door to Annie’s room, both her mother and father turning to look at him from her bedside. The young girl’s back was turned toward him as she laid on her side. Her parents didn’t raise from their chairs, and both of them were wiping their faces and holding back tears. Brent’s heart sank. “I—is she? ”

“They said they’ve done all they could … we’re grateful for your help. There just isn’t anything left to try.” Her mother sniffled, dabbing at her nose. “We’re out of time.”

“No …” Brent whispered, edging into the doorway.

“What you gave us was generous, sir. Thank you. Truly … she would have been happy just meeting you. She’s just too tired. She can’t fight anymore.” Annie’s father choked, glancing back to his daughter, and placing a gentle hand on her back. He thought of his mother then … how weak she was when he’d left her this morning. How ready she was to be done with it all. He couldn’t imagine a nine-year-old feeling that way. Especially after having to grow up so quickly.

“May I?” Brent asked, gesturing to the other side of Annie’s bed.

“She’d have our asses if we said no.” Her mother smirked, battling away her tears.

He walked silently to her bedside, kneeling down and nearly flinching in how quickly she’d gone downhill. Her face hadn’t looked like this days ago. Her skin was gray, and her lips completely drained of color, chapped and cracking. The poor child already looked like a corpse. Her eyes were darkened and sunk in, and her cheek bones protruded more than they had the last time he’d been here. She was bruising everywhere. Brent reached for her hand that laid close to her against her blanket, carefully minding her IV.

“Annie …” he whispered, caressing her small knuckles. Her eyes peeled open, and she tried to focus them on his face beneath the rim of her red beanie.

“You look like crap,” she said weakly, trying to force a smile. Brent chuckled through his nose. “Could have at least brushed your hair for our last hot date.”

“Blame the cops. I went to work this morning. Preview of coming attractions.” He waved a hand down the front of his jacket. “Rough days are part of the job description.”

“I’m a little blue today,” she said sadly. “I don’t think I can handle dark humor.”

“Did I say something funny?” Brent asked, leaning forward.

“You know what you said. I’ll be lucky if I make it through the night. I can hardly keep my eyes open as it is.” Her face crumpled, and for the first time since he’d met this brave little girl … she seemed terrified. “There was so much I wanted to do.”

Her parents quietly cried behind her, and Brent couldn’t bear to look up at them as his eyes started filling with tears. “So go do it, Annie.”

“Don’t be dumb. You know I can’t.”

Brent let go of her hand and snapped his briefcase open, taking Sarah’s blood out of it, and setting it on the bed. “You can … if it’s what you want.”

“What is that?” Annie’s mother asked, raising from her chair. Her husband followed suit. Annie stared at the bag, her yellowing eyes growing wider. Brent stood and went to close the door .

“This could possibly save your life. It’s what you were going to be given at the benefit.” Annie rolled herself onto her back, holding the bag and staring at it.

“This looks like … blood,” she said, looking over at him.

“It is. From a donor that willingly gave it to me to deliver to you, myself. It’s the only one, and she wants you to have the chance to grow up. The only condition is that you don’t tell anybody about it.”

“You want us to give some stranger’s blood to our daughter?” the woman asked, starting to become flustered. “How would we administer something like that to her without someone helping us? And how do we know it won’t kill her?”

“She’s dying anyway, Vanessa …” the husband interjected, a pleading look on his face. “If we don’t take the risk, then we’re gonna lose her either way.” He looked back at little Annie who was watching them both. “She deserves to be able to choose for herself.”

“It’s her, isn’t it?” Annie asked, looking at Brent. “That lady from the benefit. She's the one who gave me this?”

“Yeah …” Brent slowly nodded and stared at the floor. “Yeah, she’s—she’s just as special as you are.”

“I wanna meet her. Can you bring her here?”

“I can try.”

Annie tried to sit straighter, her parents helping her, and adjusting a pillow behind her back. “I don’t have long. If I do this, I wanna hear it from her. I trust you, Brent. But I saw how upset she was that night. I’m young, but I’m not stupid. I’d like to have the chance to at least thank her for this, if it works. I need the chance to thank her if it doesn’t . Do you know what I mean?”

Brent raised his eyes back to hers. “Yeah, kid. I understand. Gimme a few minutes, okay? Can you hang on for me?”

“You’ll have to marry me.” Annie winked.

Brent softly smiled and reached for his phone in his pocket. Sarah would have hers back by now. He dialed her number, not sure what he’d say. If she’d heard about what he’d done in the observation room, she might not even consider answering, let alone coming over here. It rang twice, and then cut to her voicemail. She’d ignored him. Brent glanced at Annie, realizing both she and her parents were intently watching him. He called again. This time it rang once before her voicemail sounded again.

“Sarah … it’s Brent. I need you to call me. Right now. It’s a matter of life and death.” He hung up and found himself pacing in front of Annie’s bed.

“You love her, huh?” Annie breathed, stopping him in his tracks. He met her eyes.

“I thought I did. It’s … very complicated. But none of it was her fault. I’m not really husband material, kid. You don’t wanna marry somebody like me.”

“Maybe that’s your problem, Stratford.” Annie smiled weakly. “That’s not for you to decide. ”

Everything going through his mind prior to walking into this room, had just been leveled by a nine-year-old girl. What was his decision, he’d made a complete disaster of. All the things that he thought he could control … even if he didn’t mean to try and control them … had pushed Sarah so far away that she’d drifted into someone else’s arms. She had practically told him that at her apartment the night that she gave him back his ring. He couldn’t truly blame Detective Kane. This unraveling had been by his own hands.

“I’ll get her here.”

It was a nightmare. To have gone through a transition over the weekend, to coming home and getting her badge yanked from her … the state of this apartment had almost sent Rhaena over the edge with frustration. With every piece of her life that she picked up off the floor, she felt something stir within her. Something familiar, that hadn’t appreciated being bested. Like that beast was cunningly biding its time picking the lock to its cage. When the veil had been ripped down, and Kane’s truth exposed, she wondered when her own truth would come out. She half-wondered if Foster actually had even had anything at all, and if Athan’s confession had even been necessary. She’d kill that little bitch. She should anyway, if for no other reason than her unwelcome presence in her house, and the way she’d carelessly littered it with everything Rhaena owned.

It seemed like they’d been picking through the mess for hours, and Jenkins had just about gotten to the point of grinding on her nerves, though Rhaena found herself feeling rather bad about it. He was only trying to help, and she knew that. But the irritation from the whole ordeal was getting the better of her and answering every ‘where does this go?’ or ‘do you wanna keep this?’ was starting to get old really quickly. It wasn’t until they’d started on her bedroom that she felt the first rush of nervous flutter through her belly when she spotted the old set of boat chains laid outside her closet door. The claw marks from the inside would have given her away without the obvious reason for a chain that heavy. She’d forgotten all about it.

“What’s wrong, babe?” Jenkins asked, coming around her and brushing his hand against her side.

“She knows,” Rhaena said quietly, staring at the chains. “She knows what I am.” He turned her around to face him and braced her hips.

“Hey,” he started, lifting her chin. “It’s alright. What other proof would she have, anyway? You didn’t hurt anybody. And as far as we know, you won’t be turning anymore, right? Who cares what she thinks she knows. Who would believe her?”

“Were you not there when Kane told the truth about himself? Cap barely blinked at the word vampire. I think his shock was more in the sense that he couldn’t believe how bad we betrayed his trust. How bad I betrayed his trust.” Rhaena’s throat bobbed, and she blinked back emotion. “I don’t have any way of knowing what’ll happen next full moon. Sarah’s blood might have stopped it this time, but who knows how long those effects last? My being what I am isn’t some kind of disease. It’s part of me. If she tells anybody—”

“She won’t,” Jenkins interrupted, pinching her chin. “I think if she was going to, then she’d have done it by now. Sarah took the heat for everybody.”

“We still don’t even know what happened there, either. We need to finish up and check in on everybody. I don’t have time to be selfish and whine. And we need to find Wren and give her that phone. See if she wants to come back yet.”

“You’re not being selfish, Rhaena. If that were the least bit true, Wren wouldn’t have been here in the first place, and you’d still have your badge.” His smile was tender, and the taste of his lips a lot sweeter than an hour ago. “And you still don’t understand why I fell for you …”

Rhaena brought her arms around his neck and leaned into him, drawing him into another heated kiss. “Because you’ve lost your mind,” she whispered into his mouth. She decided that their comrades would have to wait just a bit longer as she backed him to the edge of her bed and pushed him down, crawling on top of his body.

“Damn, woman …” Jenkins grinned. “We haven’t even finished in here.”

“Well,” Rhaena pulled off her shirt, “I don’t think we could make a bigger mess.”

“Ha … you wanna bet?” He raised forward, only enough to come out of his own shirt before reaching around her and unsnapping her bra. She took his face in her hands, claiming his mouth again while he took her straps down her shoulders.

“Challenge accepted.” Rhaena snickered, pressing herself harder against his lap and relishing in the spark that ignited in his eyes.

It seemed so effortless. Being here and pretending that all the bullshit they’d dealt with since they’d first met never happened. He’d talked more since they’d sat down to eat than Sarah could ever remember him doing before. He smiled more, and the tension he always carried around in his shoulders was almost non-existent as they laughed through mouthfuls of food and passed a bottle of whiskey between them, not bothering with a glass. He seemed more human right now than vampire … seemed … happy . The food was amazing. Athan ordered traditional ‘Bangers and Mash’, while Sarah opted for a hearty beef stew, slow cooked with bourbon, and paired with Colcannon. It practically melted in her mouth .

“Let’s order dessert.” He reached over, grabbing a small tabletop menu and looking through it while unfamiliar Irish folk music played over the speakers near the bar.

“Are you trying to make me puke?” Sarah scoffed, rubbing her belly. “I couldn’t eat another thing if I tried.” Her phone buzzed on the seat of the booth next to her and she glanced down to see Brent’s name pop up. She promptly slid the ignore button.

“Would you just taste something if I ordered it? It’s just been a really long time.” He seemed so eager that her heart ached a little. It was easy to forget sometimes, how old he was and everything he’d been through. She hadn’t seen him eat much more than takeout since he’d been able to consume human food again.

“Yeah, of course.” She warmed at his smile as he peered through all his options like a little kid in a candy shop. Athan was likely the sexiest man she’d ever met, but in this particular moment, it was hard to see him as anything but adorable. “Did you always wanna come here because it feels the most like home?” Sarah narrowed her eyes, pressing the mouth of the bottle to her lips, and taking a swallow. He glanced up at her.

“You could say that, yeah.”

“I’m confused. Aren’t you from Old London?” She slid a cigarette out of her pack, and he reached across the table to light it for her.

“I am. But the environment and the food are really similar. You haven’t truly lived, until you’ve had a proper English breakfast.” He smiled, taking a cigarette between his teeth and cupping his hands around the end before lighting it.

“Will you take me one day?” Sarah blew smoke, nearly choking on it when she saw the blue in his eyes light up when she asked.

“I’d really love that.”

“Do you think—” She paused as her eyes caught her phone light up with Brent’s number again, and she forcefully silenced it, sending him to voicemail. “Do you think it would be painful for you to go back there?”

“No, actually,” he answered, taking a sip from the bottle. “I do miss it. I’d be interested to see how much it’s changed since I left. I’m sure my old house is long since gone by now. It wasn’t really much to begin with when my mother and I lived there.” He flashed an apologetic look toward her. “Sorry, I shouldn’t—”

“Stop. You’re fine. We’re orphans, it is what it is. I kind of like that we have that in common.” Sarah took another hit from her cigarette, smiling. That smile slowly diminished and Athan was quick to notice it.

“What’s wrong, love?”

“I love it when you call me that. You sound so … old-timey .” Her smile came back quicker than she’d expected it to, and he mirrored it.

“Old-timey?” Athan grinned, smoke curling from his nose. “I guess that’s better than ancient.” A low chuckle puffed more smoke from his mouth. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

“Please do.”

“You gonna tell me what’s on your mind? Or is it something we can’t talk about in public? ”

Sarah wished she could have said that it was the inappropriate kind of conversation she was hesitant to talk about, but instead she met his eyes and honed in on the burning sapphires within them.

I have something I need to tell you.

His brows perked up, and he leaned forward to rest his elbows on the table.

Oh? This have anything to do with your conversation with Foster?

Sarah simply nodded … slowly.

I told you somebody took me when I was in Seattle. Foster admitted it was her team. They didn’t inject me with anything, Athan. I was born this way.

Athan shrugged, like he didn’t quite understand the issue.

That’s a good thing, isn’t it?

Sarah took a long drag off her cigarette, and he did the same.

Foster said that they drew blood from me to try and test it against my mother’s and close her case. When they realized it was different, they compared it to all my existing medical records. Apparently, my blood mutated over time. The reason that mine is different … is because my mom apparently had a fling with a vampire. I’m the result.

His brows relaxed and his face slackened. His hand had been half-raised to his mouth to draw from his cigarette but paused and slowly lowered to rest on the table.

You mean …

Sarah nodded, leaning back against the booth.

Yep. I’ve been part vampire all along. Foster and her team have been trying to protect me and keep everything quiet. The government was never after my blood to use it. They don’t want the word getting out that it can be used the way that Conrad wants to use it, either. She came here to make sure it doesn’t happen, and I just gave Brent the damn bag.

“Holy shit …” Athan muttered out loud. “She’s trying to prevent chaos.”

“Yeah …” Sarah flicked her ashes into an empty cup and took another drag. “I really hope that it doesn’t hurt anybody. I’m scared now of what it’s gonna do to Rhaena.”

It shouldn’t. Vampire blood doesn’t work like that.

Sarah was glad that he chose not to say that part out loud, at least.

So, if Brent gives it to his mother? Or the little girl Conrad was gonna test it on?

Athan shook his head, blinking slowly.

Our venom is lethal. Our blood isn’t. They’re two different things. You being half-human … I’ve only ever seen it heal. Revive. It’s remarkable.

“It makes so much sense now.” Sarah couldn’t hide her swelling emotion. “I’ve never been able to find a place that I belong. Not until you. Now I understand why.” She stubbed her cigarette out in the cup. Athan opened his mouth to say something else, but Sarah’s phone started ringing again. “For fuck’s sake!” She bit, picking it up off the seat.

“Who is it?”

“It’s fucking Brent. He’s called me three times.”

“Answer it. It might be something important.” He pointed the end of his cigarette at the phone.

“I don’t wanna talk to him. Hearing his voice is just gonna piss me off. I don’t wanna leave our bubble right now, Athan.”

“Just … make sure. And if he starts going on about shit, hang it up.”

She rolled her eyes, but agreed, sliding the call open. “What, Brent?”

“Hey … look, I know I’m the last person you wanna talk to right now.”

“That’s a fucking understatement. What do you want?”

“I don’t have much time. Can you come up to the children’s hospital? Like, right now?”

Sarah looked at Athan cautiously, and he leaned forward to hear. “What’s wrong?”

“Annie’s kinda pushed for time, Sarah. She doesn’t wanna take this … gift … without seeing you first. She wants to talk to you. Are you catching my drift?”

Athan nodded at her. Sarah loosed a heavy breath. “Is she dying?”

“Yeah, she is … and we’re also trying to figure out a way to administer this without anyone knowing about it.”

“I can do that. I’ve been working with blood for years. I know how to flush an IV.”

“Alright. So, you’ll come?”

Athan raised his keys, dangling them over the table. Sarah sighed. “Yes. Athan comes too. Keep your hands to your damn self.”

Brent was quiet for a moment, but finally replied, “You have my word.”

“Text me the room number. We’ll be there in ten.” Sarah didn’t say goodbye, instead ending the call and dropping her phone to the table, taking her face in her palms. “So much for our date.”

“Sarah …” Athan soothed, sliding out of the booth and joining her on the other side of the table. He pulled her across his lap until her legs dangled over his thigh. She hooked one arm around his neck, and he supported her back with his other arm, smoothing his hand down the side of her face. “I promise you it’ll be the first of many,” he said, touching his nose to hers. “There’s no length I won’t go to make you smile like you’ve smiled tonight. What I had planned for after can wait.”

“I don’t wanna wait another minute to be with you.” She brushed the hair away from his brow.

“I’m not going anywhere, love. I promised you my life, remember? We’ve still got so much to do. Once all this shit is over, we’ll have nothing but time.”

“You never got your dessert.” Sarah frowned .

“Oh, I’ll get that later.” The drop in his voice had heat pooling between her legs.

“Fuckin’ right, you will.” She slid her tongue between his teeth, and he gently bit it before meeting it with his own. She could have started stripping him down in this pub when that kiss deepened, and his hands moved over her body.

“Get up, Sarah … before you I rip you apart.” Athan growled, gripping her thigh hard enough to hurt. She smiled against his mouth.

“Now, now … don’t make promises you can’t keep.” She moved against him, pressing her hip into his crotch.

Athan hissed through his teeth, turning his face and raising his hand. “Check please … Christ. ”

Traffic was becoming a bit more congested in the later part of the afternoon, and Athan kept getting distracted by Sarah’s unwavering stare from the passenger seat. It wasn’t so much unnerving as it was hungry, and the fact that she’d just told him she couldn’t eat another bite implied that her stare was a hunger of an entirely different sort.

“You can’t keep looking at me like that.” He bit down on his bottom lip and flicked the turn signal on.

“Does it still count as part of our date until we get there?” Sarah asked, unbuckling her seatbelt. He teetered his focus from the road to whatever she was doing.

“I know what you’re doing.” This might have been the only exception to not being on two wheels. Sarah leaned over the console and went for his belt. “Sarah … you told him ten minutes. You keep this shit up and we’ll never make it to the hospital.”

“I’m sure you can get us there in ten minutes. Just drive.” His breathing quickened when she pulled him out, the mere touch of her hand enough to have him toe the line of his sanity. The top half of her body was in his lap, and her long hair brushed the skin of his cock as she lowered her head toward it. The car jerked slightly when she slowly took him into her mouth. Sarah’s chuckle hummed over his skin, and she raised her head. “Hands on the wheel. This isn’t a bike.”

His back pressed into the leather seat when she continued, and the tang of his own blood overpowered the aftertaste of bourbon. He hadn’t realized how hard he’d bitten his lip. “You’re gonna be my fucking ruin, Sarah St. James. I— fuck … ” The car jerked again as her head bobbed and he nearly hit someone’s bumper at the stop light. She didn’t laugh that time, instead sucking harder. A deep groan rumbled low in his throat, and he kept one eye on the light while he watched her. Those tattooed hands wound around the base, gripping and working with perfect execution. She took him to the back of her throat and gagged. Athan swore under his breath. He couldn’t help himself after that. “Take it,” he growled through his teeth, grabbing a fistful of her hair. “Take all of it. ”

Sarah’s eyes raised up to meet his, and she smiled deviously. “Make me.” Oh, she knew exactly what she was doing. She playfully ran her tongue around his head and barely touched her lips around him. Athan gripped her hair tighter and shoved her head down over him, pressing the gas when the traffic started moving and causing her head to forcefully sink further down. He felt himself hit the back of her throat and he gripped the steering wheel with his other hand, moving his hips and fucking her mouth. She reveled in it, reaching back to come out of her ripped jeans. God, she was an incredible thing. How could anyone not have absolutely devoured her blessed insanity?

In all the years he’d lived, he never imagined he could feel like this about someone. It didn’t escape him that everything about finding each other had been such a fucked up chain of events … after everything he’d done, she still was so determined to give him everything he’d never had. She had just told him the most impossible truth about herself. It couldn’t have been a coincidence that she was already part what he was, and he wasn’t sure what that would mean for their future. There had to be more humans like her. As many times over the centuries that vampires had slept with humans, he knew … there had to be more. But this one—this one was his , and even if it had taken him over two hundred years, he’d found the one his soul belonged to. Or maybe she’d found him.

Sarah slid over, straddling his lap, and leaning herself on his shoulder so that he could still see the road. A horn honked behind him, and he dismissed it, trying not to plow them into a light pole as she sank down his cock and took him by the chin. Athan hissed, his eyes darkening, making it ten times more difficult to watch the road. She forced him to do so anyway, handling his face and smiling while she rocked her hips. Five minutes. They’d be there in five minutes … if he didn’t completely lose his mind before then. “You’re not leaving this fucking car until I’ve made you bawl.” Athan gripped the wheel, and hung his arm around her back, meeting her pace as she rode him senseless. Those hazel eyes were wet with tears from her gagging, and she chuckled breathlessly. “You know that’s not what I mean, you damaged little fucker.”

“How long?” She grinned, forcing his face back to the road when he tried to look at her.

“Five minutes.”

“I’m sure you’ll come up with something.” She gave him no warning as she bit his neck, sending him into a frenzy that blindly wove him through traffic, and left him hardly able to remember the rest of the way to the hospital. The gas pedal was a victim to his fevered heel. His cock twitched, and he smelled blood—his blood.

“Sarah,” his voice strained, fucking her harder while he turned right. That five minutes was knocked down to three as he pulled beneath the parking deck and scrambled to find a spot. Sarah sucked on his neck to the point of delicious pain and her moans sent chills down his spine. He wasn’t sure what it would do to her, and his mind was at war with the erotic sensation of being fed on by his mate. He threw the car in park, rolling the seat backward and leaning her back against the steering wheel before taking in the dark smear of blood on her mouth. “Christ,” he groaned, unable to stop himself from finding it incredibly sexy. She couldn’t have taken much, he knew, but the darkness in those eyes showed enough. It did something . “You could turn …”

“What difference does it make now?” she asked, never ceasing to work those perfect thighs against his. “Don’t fucking stop.” She gripped the breast of his t-shirt in both hands, and they tore into each other like animals, the horn accidentally going off several times before he felt her tighten and the long moan of his name rang in his ears. He pulled her against him, driving into her ruthlessly as he followed right behind her and panted against her mouth, giving her every drop of himself. They used that last two minutes to will themselves calm and he pressed his head against hers.

“You … are so perfectly insane, Sarah St. James.” Athan huffed, kissing her mouth. She smiled against his lips, breathing heavily.

“I became insane … with long intervals of horrible sanity …”

Poe … she’s quoting Poe.

How was he deserving of this creature? What did he do that was so great that God saw fit to turn his face back to him? A deliverer of death, that dwelled within the deepest darkness? Athan swept his thumb across the corner of her mouth, the small stain of his blood disappearing with his touch. “I love you … God , I fucking love you to death.”

“It was an amazing first date, Athan Kane.” She smiled, kissing him deeply. “And I love you too.” She carefully slid off his lap, reclaiming her seat and pulling on her jeans. She’d successfully dumbfounded him. For once, he didn’t know what to do with himself. Sarah eyed him as she slipped the visor down and situated her long hair in the mirror. “Put that away … what’s wrong with you?” She grinned, turning her attention from his lap back to the mirror.

“It is by no means an irrational fancy that, in a future existence, we shall look upon what we think our present existence, as a dream.”

She stilled, staring at him knowingly. She knew more than that poem that had hung above her bed. “Those who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night …”

Athan swallowed, meeting those wild eyes that burned with that fire he loved so much about her. “I dreamed about you for a really long time, I think.”

Her smile was subtle, but deep … warming every part of his undead soul. “So did I.” She zipped up her jacket and opened her car door. “Let’s go save somebody’s life.”

Annie’s eyes faded in and out with sleep while Brent impatiently waited with her parents, pacing and checking his phone for the time … for a phone call. Frantically checking the little girl’s monitor for the weak sq uiggle of a heartbeat when she seemed too still. Twice now, her nurse had come in to check on her, and twice Brent had jerked his head towards the door in the hopes that he’d see Sarah walking through it. He silently prayed that she hadn’t changed her mind, and that he wouldn’t have to watch this child die tonight—especially when her hand was on the lifeline that could change everything.

“Should we call her?” Vanessa asked, dabbing her eye when Annie’s breathing rattled in sleep. Brent paused his pacing, feigning confidence as he smiled at her.

“She’ll be here.” He nodded assuredly.

“She didn’t sound like your biggest fan.” The husband’s words weren’t meant to sound pointed and shameful, but Brent felt it all the same. There was so much doubt in his voice. So much hopelessness.

“She’s not … but she wouldn’t break her word. Especially with something this delicate. I dunno what she was doing when I called.”

“I hope you’re right,” Vanessa croaked, taking Annie’s cold hand into hers.

The little girl’s breathing started to slow, and the three of them stilled, silent as death, watching her chest rise in sputtered movements, and then fall shallow as she twitched beneath her blanket. His heart ached. If Sarah didn’t get here soon, he had a good mind to try to do this himself. It was clear she wouldn’t make it through the night. She might not make it through the next few hours. As if in reply to his scrambled thoughts, a soft knock sounded on the door. It quietly opened, and Sarah peeked inside.

Thank God.

“Am I too late?” Sarah whispered, sliding through the door, Detective Kane behind her as she gripped his hand. All the tension Brent thought had eased when he saw them together this morning came back. He tried not to let it show as Kane softly closed the door behind him and met eyes with him.

“No,” Vanessa breathed, standing and reaching out her hand in greeting. “Thank you so much for coming. I’m Vanessa. This is my husband, Greg.” Sarah gently shook both their hands and glanced at Brent before turning her attention to the withered young girl in the bed.

“My name is Sarah. This is Detective Athan Kane. I hope you don’t mind. He was my ride.”

Her ride … yeah, I bet.

Brent tried to remind himself not to think about anything but Annie as Kane let go of Sarah’s hand to introduce himself.

“I recognize you from the news,” Greg nodded. “Nice to meet you, sir.”

“Likewise.” Kane tightened his mouth in a polite smile.

“If you guys are done, I’m kinda on a tight schedule,” Annie weakly said, seemingly struggling to open her eyes. Kane shifted into the corner behind the door, and Sarah smiled sweetly as she rounded Annie’s bedside. The little girl lifted her chin and peeled her eyes open. “You’re a lot prettier when you’re not pissed. ”

Sarah chuckled through her nose. “I’m really sorry I ruined your night, kid.” Her face slackened into a deep remorse, and Annie eyed her carefully. “I hope you’ll let me make it right.”

“Are you sure you can?” Annie asked, scooting the blood bag from beneath her sheet. Sarah looked down at it, and then back to the child.

“I don’t think I’m gonna do you any favors by lying to you. I dunno what will happen.” Sarah’s eyes softened, and Annie swallowed once—twice—those tired eyes full of hope and fear. “I will tell you that I’m confident you’ll feel better. I can’t promise anything else.”

Annie’s eyes raked over Sarah, and then she slowly slid her focus to Kane in the corner. He stood quietly, crossing his arms in front of his chest and softly smiling at her, though Annie gave him no such smile. She took in every inch of him and pressed her mouth in a thin line. “You’re not supposed to be here,” she rasped, her brows scrunched in confusion.

“I apologize, Princess. Do you want me to leave? I don’t wanna impose—”

“No, I don’t mean here … in this room.” Annie shifted in the bed, trying to get a better look at him. Everyone either sat or stood in anticipation. Kane’s eyes fixed on the little girl. “You’re stuck here … where I am.”

Sarah stared at Kane, but he never took his eyes off Annie. “Where you are?” Vanessa asked, glancing between them both.

“In the ‘in between’ … there’s darkness all around you. I can see it. It’s waiting to drag you away. Just like me.”

“You’re right,” Kane smirked, nodding at her. “And it’ll continue to wait. Until I give it permission.” He gently lowered his arms and stuck his hands in his pockets. “Sometimes … even if we get stuck against our will, and Death thinks she has the last laugh …” Kane met Sarah’s stare, his entire body sagging under it. “Fate has other plans, and hands us a torch.”

Brent bristled, watching Annie as she peered into Sarah. “It’s scared of you. Why is it scared of you?”

Sarah audibly swallowed. “I’m not sure, baby girl. I guess I’m a freak of nature.” She shrugged and offered her a slight grin. Annie turned her eyes to Brent.

“I get it. Why you felt that way about her. But she’s supposed to be with him, Stratford.” She smiled softly at Sarah, who glanced at Kane. “They’re different.”

Vanessa and Greg stood in silence, taking in every word. Brent turned his face to Kane. She wasn’t wrong. He had noticed something different about them both earlier this morning before his world had flipped on itself. He couldn’t place it, but somehow Annie was walking such a fine line between life and death that she knew … and maybe he was meant to be here to be able to ever accept it. The detective finally looked at him, and Brent noticed a spot of blood on the collar of his white shirt. He followed it up to a smear of dried blood on his neck in a very irritated spot that was half-covered by tattoos. The look that Sarah gave him when he glanced at her was unapologetic and firm. Something in his stomach churned .

“I’ll do it,” Annie muttered, interrupting his thoughts. “I’m not ready to die. I just needed to know that it’s what you really wanted. I wanted to hear it from you.”

“It is what I want.” Sarah took the bag and stared at it. “And … I wish I could give it to more people as deserving of it as you, Annie … but you have to keep this a secret. No matter what happens after.”

“I promise.”

“Are you ready?”

“Will it hurt?” Annie asked, taking in the deepest breath she could manage.

“I don’t think so. I can’t say for sure, though. Okay?”

The little girl offered her IV to Sarah, and reached for her parents as they started quietly weeping beside her. “Do it.”

Sarah glanced up at Athan and nodded toward the door. He locked it, and she got to work. She was quick and efficient, changing the bag of fluids out for her pint of blood, and waiting for Annie’s ‘okay’ before flushing the IV. There was the eeriest quiet in the room while the blood traveled down the tube and disappeared into Annie’s small hand. Brent waited for some reaction, but Annie sat still. A few minutes passed, and nobody said a word. Sarah made her way to stand with Kane in his corner while Vanessa and Greg took up either side of her bed. Brent stood at the foot, both hands braced on the barred edge.

As silent seconds ticked by, Brent could see color starting to return to Annie’s skin. Her lips no longer seemed as thin and cracked as they had moments ago. The yellow in the whites of her eyes was gone, and her breathing had improved. Brent looked up to the monitor next. Her vitals were almost normal. It was astounding how quickly everything was changing.

“How do you feel, Annie?” he asked, gaining her attention. The blood bag was nearly half gone. Sarah leaned against Kane, who draped an arm around her and fidgeted with a stud on her leather jacket. They both watched her silently. Annie didn’t answer him, instead looking over at Sarah.

“I can’t see them anymore,” she started, her voice breaking. Sarah gripped Kane’s shirt in her fingers, and he seemed to hold her a little tighter. “I can’t see the shadows. You saved my life.” Her small frame trembled with its urge to cry, and her parents didn’t hesitate. “Thank you so much. You’re like an angel …”

“I’m no angel, kid.” Sarah snorted tearfully. “But I’m glad. I’m glad you’ll be with us a little longer.”

“You are …” Annie said as a tear slipped down her cheek. “And that bastard deserved what you gave him.”

Brent didn’t have any words. They all waited patiently until Annie’s bag was empty and the machine beeped in warning. Sarah disposed of it, changing it out with the bag of fluids from before. Harmless, he knew, and there wasn’t a trace left or a drop spilled to give away what had been done. By the time the nurse had come in to see if Annie felt up to eating dinner, the little girl looked better than she had when they were at the benefit. They called in her doctor, amazed by the “miracle,” and started ushering everyone out. Everyone, but her parents. Sarah hugged Annie goodbye, and whatever was whispered between them, Brent couldn’t hear. She had even reached to Kane, who awkwardly embraced her … another inaudible exchange. Finally, she held her hand out for him, and Brent knelt by the side of her bed.

“He’s not the bad guy,” she whispered, half-smiling. “And now … you gotta marry me.” Brent leaned down kissing the top of her hand, already twice as warm as it had felt when he got here.

“Not if you don’t eat your peas.” Brent winked, earning a nudge and an eye-roll from his small friend. “I’ll check in on you tomorrow, okay? Call me if anything happens and I need to come back.”

“Brent.” She tugged on his hand when he stood and began to turn. “Stop being so hard on yourself. Life’s too short.”

He swallowed, really letting the words sink in. For her young years, she had already been through twice as much as he had. She was right, and wise beyond her age. He didn’t know if she could ever truly understand how meeting her had changed his whole life. Brent nodded and offered her a tight smile before following Sarah and Kane out the door. He kept a short distance behind, eyeing the careful intertwining of their fingers as they walked. When they stopped to wait for one of the three elevators, the three of them faced one another.

“You’re one of them, aren’t you?” Brent asked quietly, looking at Sarah’s strangely different eyes. He tried to will his tone into something that wasn’t insulting, and Sarah seemed like she understood it.

“It’s hard to say what I am, Brent. But for whatever suspicion you have … I’ll say, yes. I am. And apparently, I always have been in some way or another.”

He was about to ask what she meant by that, but Kane’s phone started ringing. He answered it, turning away.

“Did you get the answers you were looking for about your mother?” Brent found himself settling for ignorance. Sarah opened her mouth, but Kane laid a hand on her shoulder with an expression that looked grave.

“Sarah … it’s Wren.”

Her eyes went wide, and Brent’s face tingled. She reached for the phone, and he handed it to her. Sarah glanced at the name on the phone before pressing it to her ear. “Rhaena? What’s wrong?” Tears started to slowly fill her eyes and she looked at Brent, her face growing two shades paler. “We’ll be right there.”

He couldn’t explain the mixture of emotions, or the sickening feeling in his stomach as he stepped forward. His skin prickled, and something in his chest felt heavy. “Tell me!” He found himself nearly shouting, waiting for Sarah or Kane to give him something … anything .

“Rhaena thinks Wren was taken.”