Devon turned his full attention back to Cassie as Luther and Chris lifted the prone boy from the snow, hurrying with him toward the house. Devon would have to take care of the child later, but for now his attention was focused upon Cassie. She was still staring unseeingly at him, but she had wrapped her arms around her stomach and was curling into the fetal position.
“Listen to me Cassie, you can beat this. You are strong enough to beat this. You can do this Cassie. I know you can,” he urged.
His fingers tightened on her chin. He fought against her pain; it threatened to consume him as he took complete control of her mind. He whispered soothing words to her, trying to find the flicker of her spirit that he knew had to be buried beneath all of the pain, fear, confusion, fury, and hatred. It took longer than he would have liked, but eventually he found it.
Seizing hold of it, he wrapped his presence around hers, attempting to shelter her from the changes trying to take her over. He comforted her, nurturing her as he blocked the emotions beating down on her. He felt her coming back, his strength helping her to fight against the centuries of blood and heritage that had pushed her to this point. To this brink of insanity and anguish.
“You can do this,” he whispered aloud.
Slowly, subtly, the pain began to subside, her muscles began to ease. She blinked, her eyes flickering between the volatile red and the beautiful violet blue he loved so dearly. Blinking again, her eyes locked onto his, recognition bloomed within them. Tears sprang forth, spilling swiftly down her reddened cheeks.
“Devon,” she whispered.
He caught her as she collapsed into the snow, unconsciousness dragging her under.
CHAPTER 10
Devon kept Cassie on his lap, the blanket wrapped tightly around her. Though she had showered, she was still chilled, her skin abnormally pale. It was not the lingering effects of the snow that held her in its grasp, but the lingering remnants of pain. He shifted her slightly, pulling her more firmly against him as he cradled her gently. She rested her head in the hollow of his neck; a small shiver worked its way through her.
Kissing the top of her head softly, he rubbed her arms gently, trying to return some heat to her body. She wiggled slightly against him, trying to get even closer. He wondered how long that would last once she heard what he and Luther had to say. He glanced up at Luther, uncertain where to start, or if they should start at all. They had all been traumatized tonight. Chris and Melissa jerked involuntarily every once in awhile, the effects of Isla’s electrical current still affecting their bodies. Dani just looked plain terrified as she glanced rapidly between him and Cassie.
Luther was still distraught over the boy, who thankfully had not sustained enough blood loss to warrant a hospital, but whose parents had been frantic with worry when they had been called. Isla’s body had been swiftly disposed of, hidden in the woods in a clearing where the sun would hit it first thing, turning it to cinder. Devon was surprised to find himself at full strength, if still not slightly beyond what he was used to feeling. Especially after having to exert his will over Cassie and the boy, but Cassie’s blood in his veins had kept him stronger than he would have been at any other point in time.
An uneasy feeling settled over Devon as he watched Dani. She was too antsy, especially for someone that didn’t know the full details of what had occurred outside. She glanced quickly away from him, her eyes darting over the room as she began to pace swiftly back and forth.
Chris slipped into the loveseat, his right hand jerked on the armrest. He scowled down at the offending extremity, slapping hold of it with his other hand. “How long are the effects going to last?” he muttered miserably.
“Probably till tomorrow,” Luther answered absently.
Chris’s scowl deepened as he looked disgustedly at Luther. “Wonderful.”
Melissa fisted her hands, jerking slightly her eyes narrowed angrily as she tried to keep herself still. She was fighting a losing battle. “Are you going to tell us what happened out there?” she demanded through clenched teeth.
Luther glanced at him; Devon gave him a brief nod. Luther knew more about what was going on than he did. Sighing softly, Luther paced over to the fireplace mantel and rested his arm on top of it. “A few weeks ago Devon came to me with some doubts and worries.” Cassie glanced sharply up at him, her delicate forehead furrowed questioningly. “I agreed that there were some things that we needed to look into.”
“What kind of doubts?” Cassie asked softly.
Devon sighed softly, hating to do this to her, but knowing that it had to be done. “I had some questions about you.”
Her eyes widened in surprise, her small hands fisted in her lap. “I don’t understand,” she whispered.
“Devon had some questions about the Hunter line, specifically questions about Hunters with your abilities,” Luther qualified.
“I don’t have any abilities.”
“But you do. I have told you this many times, your highly enhanced speed, hearing, sight, and strength are all abilities.”
“Ok fine,” Cassie relented. “But why would there be any questions about that?”
“Because,” Devon said softly. “Your abilities are so very close to mine, and to other vampire’s.”
Cassie jolted slightly, but her face was still marred with confusion. Chris and Melissa looked just as baffled; Dani still radiated a strange terror. “All of us have enhanced speed, hearing, and sight, so what the hell are you saying?” Chris demanded, not at all in the mood to be patient.
“The day that Cassie’s grandmother died, Cassie was so angry at me, so infuriated that when she turned on me, her eyes flashed red.” Cassie stiffened against him. “That was when I went to Luther with,” Devon explained.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” she whispered.
“You weren’t exactly talking to me at the time.” She turned away, her head bowing slightly as her fingers picked at the blanket.
“We decided to do some research,” Luther said softly. “We began to look for information about the Hunter’s that had been like Cassie. There was very little information to find though as there hasn’t been any in the past three hundred years. I decided to go to some of my Guardian friends for help. One of them had a book that was of great interest to me, and that helped to answer some questions, but also raised more.”
Luther broke off, frowning thoughtfully as he thought over his next words. “Please stop speaking in riddles and just tell us what the hell is going on,” Cassie demanded.