Blue shut her eyes, unwilling to argue the glaring truth that Graham likely didn’t have a cure. Why would a Relic be walking around with both a poison and the antidote? He’d targeted those people with the intent to kill. At least it wasn’t a virus, but those poor children.
An unexpected calm swept over her. This wasn’t nearly as painful as the lion attack. Yet going out by poison was the cruelest fate. There was no glory in it—no honor. This wasn’t a warrior’s death.
Overcome with rage, Blue roared and swung her arms. The clip on her finger went flying and struck Christian in the chest before falling to the floor. She forced herself to sit up, unwilling to die on her back.
Shepherd ignored her reaction and checked her pulse again.
Viktor circled the table. “What can I do?”
Blue clutched her chest, the pressure building. It felt like she had swallowed a large bite of something, and it was stuck halfway down. “He promised I had hours,” she said bitterly, realizing she was declining rapidly.
Viktor leaned into view. “Can you shift? Try again.”
Blue tried but didn’t want to waste her energy repeating the effort. “It’s not worth it. You know shifting won’t help with poison. Where did Matteo go?”
Christian folded his arms. “The pussycat’s outside. He doesn’t belong in our house without an escort, and he sure as shite isn’t invited in here.”
Viktor regarded her for a moment. “Do you want him? I can make exceptions.”
Blue shook her head before falling back. Viktor caught her, and she rested gently against the table. “I don’t want to die in this room. It smells like a hospital or something. Don’t let me die in this room.”
Viktor collected her in his arms. “We’ll be in the gathering room. See if Gem has found anything in her books.”
Shepherd briskly marched out like a soldier taking orders. Viktor followed behind but parted ways with Shepherd in the foyer. The lanterns guided the way, and when they reached the dining room, all the candles on the chandelier had been snuffed out.
“Bring a blanket,” Viktor said, but not to her.
When they reached the gathering room, he placed her on the sofa and went to the fireplace. She watched him kneel before the massive hearth. It wasn’t cold enough for a fire, but it wasn’t unusual to find one burning in this room. Candles were insufficient to light up the large space, and they spent a lot of time in here talking, reading, and drinking. She thought about some of those memories and cherished them, realizing she’d taken so much for granted. Viktor had given her a second chance with Keystone in more than one way. This had become her home.
She took a deep breath, and it felt as if her lungs might stop all on their own.
Christian strolled in, wearing all black in true Vampire form. He placed a knitted throw over her feet and dipped into the shadows. As the wood in the fireplace snapped and hissed, she stared up at the ceiling, trying to recall her sons’ faces. Remembering moments helped, but she had forgotten the sound of their voices.
“How is she?” Wyatt asked.
Blue glanced up at Wyatt, who was standing behind Viktor’s leather chair.
“She is strong,” Viktor answered. “There is hope. She made it through a gruesome attack that no one else would have survived. Blue is a warrior.”
Blue blinked up at the impossibly tall ceiling. “I want to see my family.”
Wyatt swaggered into view, that floppy hat barely hanging on, his Pac-Man shirt tucked halfway into his jeans. “Maybe we should call them.”
“They’re dead,” she replied.
He put his hands on his hips. “It doesn’t work that way when we die. The afterlife isn’t a family reunion.”
“You said you didn’t know where they go.”
“That’s true. But would you really want to sit in limbo with estranged family members you barely tolerated? No thanks. I have a feeling they go somewhere else, but that’s not for the living to know.”
Tears stung her eyes at the idea she would never reunite with her sons, not even for a moment. Could the fates be so cruel?
“Shut your gob,” Christian barked. “Can’t you see you’re upsetting the lass?”
Shepherd jogged into the room, out of breath. “Gem can’t find anything. She’s still looking through a pile of books she separated from the rest.”
Viktor turned. “And you called Raven?”
