17
Riley
Rolling over,she groaned as the bruises on her hands throbbed. After pounding on the door for what felt like half an hour, she’d collapsed in a fit of dizziness and had barely been able to crawl over to the cot and drag herself up onto the thin mattress. She hadn’t intended to sleep, but she hadn’t been able to fight her heavy lids.
The door banged open, and Tommy marched into the room, his eyes wild. “You’re a fucking tease. You know that?”
Before she could respond, he wrapped his beefy fingers around her upper arm tightly enough she gasped from the pain. Riley was too tired and weakened to fight him as he dragged her back out into the main room and shoved her into the chair, then bound her wrists so she couldn’t get up. “Your blood isn’t doing shit anymore. Not what we took earlier.”
He tied a rubber tube around her upper arm, and Riley tried to buck and thrash in the chair, but Tommy shouted for Ewan and then hands pressed down on her shoulders as Tommy bound her ankles. “Don’t fight him, lass. He’ll only knock ya’ out and take yer blood anyway,” Ewan whispered in her ear.
“You’re hurting me,” Riley spat and glared at Tommy as he pushed the needle into her vein and taped it in place. In the pit of her stomach, a hard knot of anger and frustration started building, growing, warming her from the inside out, even as she felt herself weakening by the second, and the room started to spin.
The Hunter stepped back, and Riley gasped, getting her first good look at him since he burst into the silver-lined cell. He was a mess. Crimson stained his gray t-shirt, and bruises marred his face and arms. “I used your blood to lure one of the Kelly Gang out to the shipyards. And it failed. I barely got out of there with my life. The fucker downed the whole bag andnothing! If anything, he gotstronger.”
“And this ismyfault?” Riley stopped fighting and sank against the back of the chair. She was so tired. “I don’t know why my blood hurt that vampire. It didn’t right away. Not for maybe…twelve hours. You’re…going to kill me if you keep…taking more.”
Ewan squeezed her shoulder. “Tommy, she’s right. She needs food. And her meds.”
The snap of a pocket knife made Riley flinch, and then a sharp pain slashed across her cheek. The scent of her own blood stung her nose, and when Tommy stood up, the edge of the blade was coated with it.
He marched over to the lab bench, set up a fresh slide, and peered into the scope. “Fucking hell. It works if it’s fresh.” Muttering to himself, he kept staring into the scope. “We’re going to have to take her with us on every hunt. Finish up that pint, then throw her back into the cell.”
Riley couldn’t hold her head up any longer, and she closed her eyes against the tears spilling down her cheeks.
“Lass,” Ewan whispered, skirting the chair and kneeling in front of her, “we have to get ya’ out of here. If I loosen the restraints, can ya’ run?”
She didn’t think she had the strength to speak, let alone run. Only the smallest shake of her head answered him.“Do…something,”she mouthed. “Tube.”
Ewan eased the needle from her vein, but left it half-taped in place. His fingers were warm against her cheek as he tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. “Look like yer unconscious.”
That wouldn’t be hard. Riley let her entire body slump to the side, half hanging off the arm of the chair. “Tommy!” Ewan called. “Somethin’s wrong. I told ya’. Yer taking too much. She won’t wake up.” He slapped her cheek a couple of times, and Riley tried for a faint whimper.
Tommy growled from across the room, “Then pull the needle and dump her back in the holding cell.”
With quick, efficient movements, Ewan unstrapped her wrists and ankles, then scooped her into his arms.
Forcing her eyes to slits, Riley tried to orient herself. Three steps down the hall, Ewan took a sharp turn to the right into what looked like a normal bedroom. With a window.
“Ewan,” she whispered, “what are you doing?”
He raised the sash and guided her legs over the sill. A narrow ledge and a ladder swam in and out of focus, and she tried to fumble for the rails, but her limbs wouldn’t obey.
“Ya’ have to climb, Riley. I canna hold ya’ and make it down. But I can distract Tommy long enough for ya’ to get away.”
This was her only shot at escaping. And if she did…maybe she could find her way back to Declan. Riley stared down at the ground three stories below. Could she do this? Make it without falling to her death?
Then again…would it matter? She’d die here if she didn’t try.
The door slammed open. “What the fuck, Ewan?” Tommy’s angry voice spurred her on. She threw herself forward, hooking her arms around the top rung of the ladder as Ewan barreled towards Tommy. Her bare feet slipped on the cold metal, and adrenaline flooded her weakened system.
Terror sliced through her like a sword. But the emotion didn’t belong to her. “Riley!” Declan’s roar echoed in her ears. He streaked past Tommy and Ewan, grabbing her arms as she was about to fall.
“Get the vamp!” Tommy said. A shot rang out, and Declan groaned, blood soaking his left shoulder.
Too much. There was too much. Riley met Declan’s gaze. His eyes were almost black, and his face pale. “Agra, run,” he whispered as he slumped over the sill.
“No!” A second shot made his body jerk, and his eyes turned red, his fangs resting on his lower lip. “Declan! Come with me!”
