From the Shadows (Hunters #1)

Chapter 10

The procedure was painless, just as the doctor had said. They opened a vein in Shay’s leg, popped in a tube, which was held against Diego’s mouth by tape, and let the sap run free. For the first several minutes, it didn’t seem as though anything was happening as Shay’s blood pooled in Diego’s mouth, but then he gulped greedily, sucking hard on the tube. Dr. Oliver stood nearby, waiting for Diego’s hunger to subside, at least a little.

“Ms. Connelly has five people waiting already,” Dr. Oliver told Shay as he lay on the table. “Once we have Diego stabilized, we’ll bring them in one by one.”

“Can’t I give him more?” Shay asked, suddenly desperate to help Diego.

“I’m afraid not. Your body needs time to regenerate the blood cells, or you’ll be at risk for complications.”

Shay wasn’t sure he cared. He needed Diego to be okay. Had to see him with Jeremy. Had to be with… him. Fuck, where was that coming from? Yeah, Diego was sexy and all, but why was Shay lusting so hard? He’d never felt like this with anyone else.

“Dr. Oliver? If I ask a question, can it be strictly confidential?”

“Of course. ”

But it was becoming hard to think. The more of Shay’s blood that entered Diego’s body, the more muddled his mind was getting.

“I’m having… thoughts about Diego.”

“What kind of thoughts?”

“You know…. those kinds of thoughts.”

Dr. Oliver cocked his head, and then his eyes went wide. “Oh! Those thoughts. I’m not sure why. Unless… has Diego fed from you before?”

“What? No, of course—wait.” A fuzzy memory of Shay’s meeting with Diego not long after arriving at the mansion rose up. Surely it couldn’t have been that, though. It had only been that one time, and he hadn’t gotten much more than a drop or two of blood. “Before we got the blood bags, his fang nicked my neck. He only had a taste, if even that, because he pulled back right away.”

“Oh.” Dr. Oliver’s brow wrinkled as he frowned. “Well, this complicates matters, I’m afraid.” He came around and stood in front of Shay. He seemed fuzzy, like he wasn’t all there. Or maybe it was Shay that wasn’t. His head was swimming. “Okay, let me see if I can explain this. When a vampire feeds off a human, it creates a connection between them. In bygone days, a vampire would use this link to make the subject more pliable so they wouldn’t freak out to find someone with fangs buried in their necks. When they took the fill of blood, they’d break the link, and the human wouldn’t remember it. I’m not saying this is how it went, but if Diego ingested any of your blood, even just a drop, and didn’t complete the act, that connection might still be at work between the two of you. Has it always been like this, or do you feel it intensifying?”

Shay had always thought Diego was sexy. From the minute he opened the door and snarled at Shay, he’d been hot. Still, over the last few months, he’d become keenly aware of Diego’s presence. That big, solid body that seemed to seek Shay out more often than before.

“I….” He hedged. “I’m not sure. My mind is so foggy right now.”

“Foggy?” He opened Shay’s eyelid and flashed a light into it. “How long has this been going on? ”

Shay tried to recall when it started. “It’s been a while, I think. Not bad, just annoying. I’ve been taking aspirin and that seemed to help, but now my head is pounding.”

He put two fingers on the side of Shay’s face. “Shay? Look at me. What color are my glasses?”

He squinted hard, trying to focus, but everything was fuzzing in and out. “Black? Maybe blue?”

“They’re silver. What’s going—” Dr. Oliver’s eyes widened. “Oh. Shit!” He reached out and grabbed the tube that ran from Shay’s leg to Diego’s mouth and quickly removed the needle. “Shay, I need you to move to the farthest corner of the mansion. Or have someone take you out of the house entirely and drive far away.”

Lethargy swept through Shay as he struggled to sit up. It was as if his body was rebelling against him. “What? Why?”

“Because Diego is calling to you. He’s desperate and needs someone he trusts to help him. That’s why your mind is fuzzy.”

Diego was calling to him ? Then that would mean Diego needed Shay, right? He peered at the doctor. “I can’t leave him! I have to help him.”

“And you will, but only if you’re out of the house.”

“What will happen to Diego?” Dr. Oliver looked away, and somehow Shay knew the truth deep down. “You’re sending me somewhere so Diego can die.”

“It’s a mercy,” Dr. Oliver insisted. “He’s embedded in your mind, and right now he only wants you. I don’t even know if other donors will be able to help him now.”

What the hell did that mean? “What are you saying?”

“There are rare cases where a vampire blood-ties himself to someone he trusts. We don’t understand the how or why, but on some level, even if Diego didn’t want to admit it, that’s you.”

“Then how can I leave him?”

“Because if you don’t, you’ll both die. Blood-tying is for a healthy vampire only because they won’t need as much. But someone like Diego who is weakened? Tying to someone means they won’t get proper nutrition from any other source. Even the bagged stuff will be less effective. In short, the vampire could die simply because they can’t get enough blood from the one they’re tied to without killing them. That’s what Diego would need to do, Shay. He’d have to drain you dry, but even that won’t sate the hunger anymore.”

The words echoed in Diego’s mind. He didn’t want Shay to die. He’d actually come to care for him. His sweet and gentle way had helped Diego get over much of the guilt he’d been holding on to since that night in the hospital. Then there was seeing how Shay was with Jeremy, which showed Diego that despite how shitty his attitude had been, Shay continued taking care of his kid.

And, of course, Diego himself.

No way would he let Shay die. That wasn’t going to happen. He forced himself to rise up from the darkness, the same as he’d been doing for the last three hundred years, ignoring the gnawing hunger that demanded to be sated.

He’d done it for three centuries for people he didn’t know, but now? He would do what he had to in order to protect Shay. He’d promised that he’d keep him safe from the world, and Diego would never break a promise.

“Shay, you have to?—”

“No, he doesn’t,” Diego groaned, sitting up.

The pain was worse than anything he’d ever felt. It was as if iron shards exploded through his skin, then were ripped out.

“I’ll be fine,” Diego said, trying—and failing—to stand.

“Diego, lay back down,” Dr. Oliver ordered. “You need?—”

“I said I’m fine,” he snarled, pushing to his feet to prove his point. He had to center himself to keep from falling on his face, though.

“Diego, I?—”

He turned to Shay, who stood there, his shiny eyes wide, looking as though his heart was breaking.

“I’m okay, Shay. Promise.”

And then he found himself with arms full of a sobbing young man. “I thought you were going to die. I—I don’t want to lose you. ”

In his far-too-long life, no one had ever expressed that sentiment. Most people—usually the ones they caught—were more than willing to see Diego shuffle off his immortal coil, especially if they had a hand—or talons or blades or whatever—in it.

“I’m fine,” he repeated, stroking Shay’s hair to comfort him, but loving the feeling of the silky strands as they slid through his fingers. Had he blood-tied himself to Shay? What did that even mean?

“You’re not,” Dr. Oliver insisted. “Look at your arm.”

Diego knew what he was talking about. Yes, he’d been starving himself for centuries because he refused to take a life, even if it was that of a murderer. Still, to assuage the doctor’s insistence, Diego took in a few deep, bracing breaths to center himself, then lifted his arm. It was mostly the same color as his skin, with only a slight discoloration. Definitely not something to get worked up about. Right?

“H-How?” the doctor sputtered. “I know what I saw. What we all saw. That’s not possible.”

“And yet you see the evidence with your own eyes,” Diego said wearily. Hiding the vein took a lot of effort, and he’d need to sleep a couple of days to get that energy back, but he’d shown once again he was the master of his body.

Mostly.

Dr. Oliver was right about one thing. Diego’s tank was empty now. Shay’s blood, as amazing as it was, barely touched the insatiable hunger. In fact, Diego was starting to think nothing would ever be able to quell it.

“I don’t know what you’re trying to pull, but what you just did isn’t possible,” Dr. Oliver barked. “You might know a trick to hide it, but that’s all it is.”

And he was right. Diego had learned over the centuries that not feeding wasn’t conducive to keeping healthy. He did his best to be a couch potato, as Jeremy called it, to allow him to conserve as much energy as possible, and he only used it when situations forced him to. Fortunately, of all the abilities Diego possessed, misting took the least amount of energy. However, in his rage over seeing those people who’d been slaughtered, he’d done dozens of mists in a row, plus the displays of physical strength as he ended the lives of the vampires, mostly by tearing their heads from their bodies. That had sucked it all away, leaving him hovering near death.

The small amount of blood he’d received from Shay had been enough to allow him to function, but nowhere near at any level where he’d be useful. Right now it was all he could do to stand, and judging by Shay’s expression, he knew it.

“I’m going to my room to rest,” Diego said quietly. “Shay? Can you take me?”

“Of course.”

“This isn’t over, Diego!” Dr. Oliver snarled. “I’ll be talking with Empatia.”

He turned to the doctor, needing him to leave before Diego fell flat on his face. “And telling her what, exactly? The vein you thought you saw wasn’t there? I’m fine, Doctor. Your services are no longer required. Have a good day.”

Dr. Oliver sneered, then stormed away, and a moment later, the front door slammed.

Before they could chime in, Diego leveled a gaze at Ranna and Borne. “I’m going to leave the report to you two. I’ll be out of touch for a bit.”

“Diego, you need?—”

“I appreciate your concern, Ranna. Really. But I’m fine.” He gave a sharp nod. “Shay, if you please.”

Shay lifted Diego’s arm and laid it over his shoulder, then headed for the stairs.

“I’m not going to be able to make it to my room,” he whispered, knowing Shay deserved honesty.

“Why are you lying to everyone?”

He sighed. “Because I’m the leader. I can’t be seen as weak.”

It amazed Diego how deftly Shay was able to traverse the way while accepting the bulk of his weight. Once again, he’d misjudged Shay because he was shorter and far slenderer. Diego figured that equated to him being physically weaker, but he doubted anyone would be able to tell that by the way he manhandled Diego.

When they got to Diego’s room, Shay pushed Diego onto the bed. When Diego got comfortable, he glanced up at Shay, who stood there, storm clouds in his expression.

“You’re unbelievable,” he groused. “Secrets and lies seem to be your stock in trade.”

He wasn’t wrong. “In order to survive for all this time, blending in is key.”

Shay crossed his arms, his expression thunderous. “How did you do it?”

That was a secret Diego had never shared with anyone. “After I was… changed, I hid away. As the months went by, I grew hungrier and hungrier. I tried animal blood, but that barely took the edge off, and excessive deaths raised far too many questions that I stopped. I noticed that if I slept, I gained energy in minute amounts. So, let’s say I slept for a week, I’d have enough strength to get me through a couple of days. I decided to try for a month, and what I gained lasted me nearly a week. Next I tried for a year, and that empowered me for a few months.”

“That’s how you were able to keep from attacking people. You basically hibernated.”

He was a smart man. “Yeah. Finally, I slept for almost two centuries, and that allowed me to function for several years, which brings us to the here and now. The problem is, each time I use energy to do something beyond simple stuff, I need to rest. After what happened, I’ll probably have to go for a month or so if I’m going to be of any use to the team.”

“Which, of course, will lead to questions.”

A very smart man.

“The doctor said I blood-tied with you. I swear, I don’t know what that means.”

Shay sat on the edge of the bed. “According to him, it means you trust me on some level.”

“I… do,” Diego admitted. “You’re the first person who has shown me a level of kindness that I don’t deserve. I know you’re doing it because of Jeremy, but?—”

Shay scowled. “Wait. What? My God, the doctor was right. You are an idiot. I like you, Diego. In fact, there is no one here I don’t like. I would go to the wall for any of you.”

So it wasn’t him that Shay found special. That was okay. Mostly.

“Especially you,” Shay admitted softly, swallowing hard.

“Me?” Diego squeaked.

Shay’s shoulders slumped. “Maybe it has something to do with the blood-tying, I don’t know. It’s just… I think about you a lot. More than I should, maybe. I lay in bed at night, wondering what you’re doing. Are you sleeping? Reading?” He coughed softly. “Jacking off?”

Diego snorted. “It’s been so long since I’ve had sex, I’m probably squirting dust by now.”

When Shay snickered, Diego’s face warmed. He liked Shay, a lot. He was sweet and kind, but had no problem taking anyone to task when they didn’t do what was expected of them. When Ranna pushed her plate away at dinner one night, Shay sneered at her. She explained that as a vegetarian, she couldn’t eat the meatloaf he’d made. He gave her a kind smile and said, “What the hell, Ran? You think I don’t know what you eat? Jeez, I’m vegan, and I baked that particular meatloaf for both of us. It’s made from Impossible Meat, a vegan substitute.”

“But it looks so real,” she whined. “Are you sure it’s safe?”

He grabbed a fork, sliced off a chunk, and popped it in his mouth. A moment later, his eyes went wide and he started retching and choking. Ranna looked horrified, until Shay stuck his tongue out at her, then swallowed.

As he dabbed off his lips, he leveled a gaze at Ran. “My cooking might not win awards, but please trust that I do know how to do it. I have all your preferences committed to memory. And if there’s ever a time you’re uncertain, don’t just dismiss it. Ask me. I promise you, I will always be truthful.”

And he’d kept that word in everything he did. He was always honest, sometimes brutally. Even with Jerm, he never held back, although he tempered his words with the kid.

“Do…. Do you really like me?”

It made no sense. True, by vampire standards he was still pretty young, but he stood atop the food chain. Few things were stronger than a well-fed vampire, but Diego hadn’t been fed properly in years. And here he was, pleading with a man—a human —to say there were redeeming qualities in Diego that appealed to him.

“Oh, Diego,” muttered Shay.

He stepped forward and lifted a hand to Diego’s cheek. It was surprising how warm it was. How soft. How gentle. Diego leaned into it, desperate for a touch he hadn’t felt in what seemed like forever.

Diego would give anything for this moment to be sealed in amber. To be able to look upon it in a hundred years when Shay was nothing but dust, and Diego was alone. Again. He shouldn’t do this. Best to not get involved. Knowing he would eventually lose Jerm tore his heart out, but the fact that he’d lose both of them?

Not for the first time, Diego wished he could die, just like everyone else. Then Shay kissed his palm, and Diego stared at him.

Yes, he wanted to die.

Just… not now.