Blood Bonded

12

All week, Rae tried to put the weekend out of her mind. The lacrosse team, Dr. Pina, Dominic. A strange weekend for sure, but it was only a small detour from the plan.

She was so focused on the plan, in fact, that when a little man followed her home after psychology, she didn't notice. She didn't see the off-white van tailing them both as she added appointments to her calendar. She completely missed the van doors popping open and two men running out, throwing the little man down an alley with a silver dagger in his stomach. She didn't notice the van park a few feet beside her. She didn't notice the doors swing open and four people in all-black jump out.

She did notice that the street was empty when they grabbed her, shoved a damp cloth over her mouth, and dragged her into the van.

As she fell unconscious, she couldn't help but also notice that this detour was not part of the plan.

&&&

Dominic dialed Iggy for the third time. Dane lay beside him, sensing the frustration and trying to appease the frantic energy.

Dane had tried all week, but nothing seemed to calm the storm inside Dominic. Weeks prior, he had snuck through a window at a rogue storehouse and stolen their produce on a whim. It wasn't uncommon for him to barge into a club unannounced, forcing the managers to find a willing drink quickly. Acquaintances thought he had never heard of an itinerary. Of course, he had learned what it was very early in life and decided he would never be bound to it.

This week looked similar, but his sporadic jaunts and jousts lacked his usual calm. Now, something simmered just under his skin, eager for something to satisfy it.

This gym had found some people willing to fight against Dominic, but after he laid the volunteer flat onto the mat, the takers vanished. Crockett—with the help of two others—finally managed to pin him down. Instead of taking the defeat and calling the workout, Dominic called for a rematch. And another. And another.

When Crockett finally called it, Dominic dialed Iggy. His skin still crawled, and his chest was tight. The only thing that provided an inch of relief was hearing Iggy's whereabouts. He checked his watch. Iggy should have been watching her apartment by now.

When Dominic finally checked Iggy's location, Dane jumped up and started toward the door. Dominic followed shortly behind.

"Keys, Crockett."

Crockett tossed the keys to Dominic. They hurried to the SUV and took off, headed toward Iggy's location—in an alley four blocks from Raelyn's apartment.

Dominic's hands shook as white puffs floated from his mouth. Crockett offered him his jacket, but he ignored it and continued down the road. After blowing his fourth red light, a cop began following. After the officer checked the license plate, he quickly turned off and continued his patrol.

Dominic barely noticed, instead staring straight ahead. They pulled up to the alleyway and Dominic jumped out, sliding the door open for Dane to follow. Dane got to Iggy first, immediately lying beside the bleeding vampire to warm him up.

Dominic yanked the silver blade from Iggy's stomach. He had lost a lot of blood, and the wound began closing very slowly. He shook Iggy, but the driver was out cold. He nodded to Crockett, who picked up the little man and walked him back to the SUV.

All of Dominic's frantic energy had stilled—replaced but a single-minded determination. He walked toward the sidewalk, taking deep breaths of the cold, Chicago air. Dane sniffed around before heading to the street and stopping. Dominic checked. The scent vanished, replaced by the rancid stench of vampires—vampires who were not Rossi.

Just then, Crockett called for Dominic.

He stalked over and saw that Iggy had regained consciousness, weak but healing now much quicker. Iggy waved his hand. "White van, at least three of them. I didn't see, but I'm pretty sure they snatched—"

As if on cue, Dominic's phone buzzed. He answered it before the second ring.

"My dearest Domin—"

"If you don't tell me where she is right now, I'm going to cut your head off and mount it on my wall."

"Ah, ah, ah. That's no way to talk to an old friend." Muci laughed. "Besides, I can't imagine murdering the head of a family over a silly human would end well for you...or for this absolute gem."

Dominic heard Raelyn shout in the background. "You have the wrong person! I swear, I don't even steal Netflix pass—"

Muci came back on the line. "She's quite cute, if not a little uptight." Muci paused, waiting for a reaction. "I'm hanging her from the ceiling. You get it? Uptight?"

"Boo!" Raelyn's shout filtered through the phone; Dominic's chest loosened a bit at the sound of her voice. She was okay, at least.

"Shut up!"

"Are you done?" Dominic's voice was deadly calm. "Because if you are, I'd like to continue my threats unhindered."

Muci sighed. "My genius is unappreciated. So is my kindness. I'm really here to help you. Here, answer my call."

Dominic saw that Muci was Facetiming him. He answered and his body tensed when he saw Raelyn was, indeed, hanging from the ceiling by her wrists. Her ankles were anchored to a piece of curved rebar coming out of the ground, which hovered a few inches below her toes.

He surveyed the scene, realizing Muci had her in one of his apartment developments. Muci smiled and brought the camera back to himself. "I promise, I am doing this for you. Jennifer," he tsked, "is not for you." Part of the building name crept into the background, intentionally, Dominic was sure.

Dominic frowned and jumped into the SUV. Crockett got Dane inside and slammed the door. "Great. Let her go and we can finish this conversation someone cozier than in a high-rise under construction."

Wind blew through the open concrete structure and Muci laughed. "Good! I was worried for a moment that I would have to tell you. Yes, please, hurry on your way." He laughed again. "I need both of you to do this."

"What do you want?" Dominic gunned it toward the construction site.

Muci smirked. "Ah, how your tune has changed." Muci's phone dropped, tumbling from his hands. "Ah, sorry about that. I was reaching for...this!" Muci held up a needle with clear liquid inside. "Do you know what this is?"

"I don't care who you are. If you lay a finger on Raelyn—"

"Ah, such a pretty name! She refused to tell me, herself." Dominic gritted his teeth. "I have a lethal dose of wolfsbane in this needle. Of course, it is harmless to vampires, but for your little gem, it will be quite lethal."

Dominic pulled down the road where he knew the building stood, swerving through traffic with one eye on the road and the other on his phone.

"Once I see you park, I am going to inject this into Raelyn—lovely name, my dear! Into Raelyn's neck. That should give you a minute or two to find her, bite her, and extract the poison. If not, you will find her, try to extract the poison, only to have her die in your arms hours later. Tragic." He wiped a fake tear. "Or, if you take too long, maybe I'll take her for myself. She smells," he wafted the air, "delicious."

Dominic threw the car into park and jumped out, racing toward the elevator.

"Ah, that's my cue."Muci set the phone down, pointing the camera at Raelyn, who began to thrash furiously, fear creeping into her soft eyes. He grabbed her hair, holding her head steady. Then, staring directly into the camera, he jabbed the needle into Raelyn's neck, making her scream—more in panic than pain. The wolfsbane began creeping closer and closer to her heart.