Day 4 Part 15
The problem with silver, Sands thought angrily, was that it reminded him
too much of what it felt like to be human. When he was still human, he
healed at the agonizingly slow rate of a human. He felt the painful
effects of an injury for hours, days, weeks, even months. Silver brought
it all back, for it was the one injury that a vampire could not quickly
recover from, despite his age. In fact, it seemed that the older vampires
suffered even more than the younger ones from its effects.
Lilith had told him once that the vampire's hatred of silver had lead to the inaccurate myths of them hating mirrors, since before glass the best mirrors had been of polished silver.
Now, as he stood beside MacGreggor, listening to his retelling of the events leading up to his capture, Sands resented the weakening pain that lanced through him. The adrenaline of the hunt had worn off, leaving no barriers between him and its constant reminder of his vulnerability. It set his teeth on edge and made him want to lash out at something or someone, but all the enemies had been killed or, as in the case of Viscalli, slipped away.
Something Quinn said snapped Sands' attention back to the conversation. "Did you say and old Chinese man?" he asked.
"Yes. Old by human standards anyway," Quinn responded, tilting his head to one side as he studied Sands.
"Is he still alive?" Sands asked hopefully. He would love to kill that bastard for torturing him, even if he was just a fucking thrall doing Viscalli's bidding.
"No. He's dead, like all the other trash they left behind," Quinn said evenly. "But not by our hands. He just seemed to have keeled over when he saw Debbie."
"Not one of your fiercest members," Andre laughed.
Quinn shrugged. "It was enough to cause the old guy's heart to stop."
"Pity," Sands said softly.
"Why?" Victoria asked, her hands still holding his.
"Because I would have enjoyed ripping his head off," Sands explained, his voice calm and cold, his gaze not meeting hers. "That fuckwad stuck the silver in me."
"Oh, I see," she said thoughtfully. "You need to get cleaned up."
"Yes, and some decent clothes," Andre added. "We have our vehicles down on the road. Care to walk, or should we drive one up here to you?"
Before Sands could give a scathingly witty reply, Lilith came to him. Not visually, but he could sense her presence. Shutting his open mouth, Sands turned his head, scanning for her. She came slowly, like a queen descending from her dais, dressed in the same black as the Guardians, her long blond hair done up. She was still as stunning as ever and, Sands realized, some of that was due to the aura of power she eminated.
"My dear Sands," she said her eyes going from his, to Victoria's, then back to lock with his. "You do seem to draw adventures to yourself."
He raised a brow. "This one was not one I would have choosen."
"It seems Viscalli took an interest in you," Lilith told him. "We have surmised, and Victoria has helped to confirm, that you were to be part one of the bait."
"I figured as much," Sands told her, feeling his wounds all too strongly.
"But, you are injured," Lilith said, even though he'd kept his facial features rigidly fixed so as not to give away his pain. She always seemed to know how he was feeling. It was uncanny and he had given up wondering just how she did it and chalked it up to her woman's intuition.
"It will heal," he assured her. That was interesting. She and Victoria were staring at one another, as if sharing some womanly secret.
"Come on, then," Andre gestured with his left arm. "Let us get you to the transportation, and to the plane, where you can clean up and change into something a little more fashionable. I brought shampoo, too. You could use it."
"Always the critique," Sands mumbled, though his lips curled up in a smile.
"Yes, let me help," Victoria said, turning to face him fully. "I'm sure you'll need your back scrubbed. The plane has a shower."
Interesting images flittered through his imagination. "Lead on, stalwart friend," he said to Andre.
As he passed by Lilith, she stopped him with a light touch. He looked into her crystal blue eyes. "Sands, there's something...different about you," she said slowly.
"Yes, there is." He smiled, waiting for her to dismiss him. She studied him for another long moment, then inclined her head.
The ride to the airport seemed to take a very long time. Sands leaned against Victoria, inhaling her sweet scent, his eyes only half-open as he thought about everything that had happened. It seemed too easy. Why hadn't Viscalli anticipated what they would do. But he had. He had thought they would mount a rescue, that he would be able to capture Lilith and use her to lure Abberline. What he hadn't counted upon was Abberline's ability to slip past all his sentries, electronic and vampire, and to rescue Sands himself.
"I saw him die, but I almost can't believe it," Victoria said almost wistfully.
"Believe it," Sands told her. "He's gone and you are truly free now." His hand lay over hers and he entwined his fingers with hers.
"Free," she repeated.
"We are free of Viscalli for a while, too, I imagine," Sands added. "He does tend to stay on the continent, so you shouldn't have to..." His mind suddenly went back to what she had said to him earlier when they were narrowing in on the final shooter in the woods. "Did you tell me you can read minds, my sweet Louisiana blossom?" He pulled away and looked into her eyes. It appeared he wasn't the only one who had secrets.
As Sands spoke, Victoria only half heartedly listened, at the mention of Viscalli her mind wandered. He would come after them again, and soon. Victoria thought she had picked up the fragments of that intention in him before he had blocked her. She shut her eyes, feeling exhausted from it all. It was difficult to block people from her mind. Lilith had been prying, clawing at her from the last hour and Viscalli; well with his age and skill she was amazed that she could block him at all.
Sands pulled back and looked deeply into her eyes, this brought her out of her own thoughts but only long enough to catch the last few words. "...sweet Louisiana blossom?"
Victoria straighten and smiled, "Hmm, what did you say?" Victoria shot a quick glance to Andre who appeared to straighten up in anticipation.
Sands hesitantly asked the question once again. "Did you say you could read minds?" Victoria bit her bottom lip. Sands gaze dropped and watched closely as Victoria's teeth nervously bit into her lower lip. She could sense the wheels in his mind spinning and she wasn't sure the path it was taking. Nervously she answered. "Yes."
His lips pursed in thought. "How well can you read minds?"
Her eyebrows knotted. "Well enough." Her hands shot out and grasped his own. "But I haven't tried to read you, and I won't either."
"Why?" His voice was flat, his dark eyes boring into hers.
Victoria swallowed, she could feel his eyes cutting into her. "I wasn't invited."
He continued to stare into her eyes for several long moments, then he inclined his head. "I suspect if you had, you would have run away by now," he said. She wasn't sure if he was joking or not. There was something self-mocking in his words and he turned his eyes away, sighing. "It's been a long day," he said lightly.
"Sands?" she asked softly leaning in a little closer to him. "Are you worried about my abilities?"
"No, not your abilities, my privacy." His eyes closed, effectively blocking her out. She stared at his long lashes in thought. Was he closing her off, or was he simply tired?
Victoria turned to Andre her eyes filling with tears. The other vampire fixed her with a curious look. She wondered if he, too, suspected her of prying. What could she say or do to show them she had not invaded their minds? Her mind raced, she should have never let any of them know what she could do.
Victoria turned once more to Sands, she began to slide her hands away from his. "I would never invade your privacy. Your life is your life, it's none of my business." She felt her heart breaking and hated herself for it. "Yes," he said simply. One eye opened and cast her a sideways glance. "You are too transparent, love. I don't need to read minds to know you are telling me the truth. That, or you're the worlds greatest actress." He put his hand back over hers.
Victoria felt like she'd stopped breathing. She looked at him intently with her large green eyes, but didn't feel any better. She let her body drop against the seat and her head rested against the window. Had she ruined everything?
"What?" he prompted. "You don't like being transparent?" His hand gently squeezed hers.
Victoria's eyes shifted to Sands and she sighed with a slight shrug of her shoulders. "It's dangerous." She lifted her head from the glass. "Rest," she gently nudged his hand. "Don't worry about me and my wounded pride. I need you in tip top condition."
A smile spread across his full lips. "For our shower?" he asked suggestively.
"And other things." She tried to sound less injured.
"Oh," he breathed, leaning toward her ear. "That sounds interesting."
"It will be," she tussled his hair and leaned into his lips. "Now rest, the airport is quite far away!" Although her words were dismissive that was not what she was feeling. The proximity of his lips to her ear was sending chills throughout her body.
"Promise?" he asked, his warm velvet voice matching the glittering interest she saw in his eyes.
"You're injured, remember?" she chided.
He raised one shoulder. "I can forget if you help me."
"Will it help?" she asked at the excitement within her grew.
"Most definitely." He let his head rest back against the seat. "So would a massage. With hot oil. I think I'm turning myself on here." But now his voice was fading, and his eyes once again closing, but this time, she sensed, in fatigue.
"Good night my sweet prince, she whispered, as she lightly kissed his cheek. Victoria turned to look back out the window to see how far they were from the airport, when she became caught in Andre's rakish gaze. She felt the flush rise in her cheeks as she began to realize that he had witnessed a very private moment.
"I shall always be the bridesmaid," he whispered to her with a grin pulling at his lips.
Victoria reached for his hand across the seat. He had the good grace to let what he had witness pass and not judge her for her foolishness. "Oh Andre, I think I love you."
His smile turned into a wistful grin. "Some day you and I shall have a nice long talk," he urged. "Alone. Away from the maddening crowd."
"Over cappuccinos?" she teased and returned his present grin.
He nodded, then turned back around, leaving her to her own thoughts.
As she started out the window of the SUV, things began to blur and she realized how tired she actually was, and hungry. She had not used the mind gift so much at once before today and found that it was increasingly difficult to concentrate. She felt herself slipping away, as her eyelids grew heavy.
She stood upon a field of battle. Before her, everything was grey, covered in fog and smoke. She knew there were dead bodies lying on the earth, but she could see only the grey. Danger also lurked somewhere in the bone- chilling fog. She hadn't felt that coldness since she had been human. What had happened? Who had they fought? Who had won?
She wanted to search the battlefield, perhaps find someone she knew there, but fear held her back, fear and a sense of dread.
"Here we are." Quinn's voice from the front seat woke Victoria. She blinked open her eyes and looked around. Sands groggily sat beside her, yawning and not bothering to cover his mouth.
Victoria blinked and felt as if she were still partially in her fearful dream. Her head ached as if someone were knocking her about. She stretched gracefully as Andre opened the door for her. She stepped out and looked around the small airfield, they were already on the tarmac and the engines were running. Her eyes scanned the area for danger and watched as the other vehicles stopped and unloaded their passengers.
Victoria turned towards Sands. "Ready for that shower, or would you rather wait until we are alone?" she questioned him playful but her eyes focused on something behind him.
Sands turned to look and saw Lilith gracefully coming forward. He turned and looked at Victoria and she knew he saw an intense stare pass between herself and Lilith.
Victoria turned her attention back to Sands, smiled, and linked her arm through his. "Come, sugarbutt," she said in a southern drawl, "Let me take care of you."
"Now you're talkin'," he replied.
Arm and arm they boarded the waiting jet.
Lilith had told him once that the vampire's hatred of silver had lead to the inaccurate myths of them hating mirrors, since before glass the best mirrors had been of polished silver.
Now, as he stood beside MacGreggor, listening to his retelling of the events leading up to his capture, Sands resented the weakening pain that lanced through him. The adrenaline of the hunt had worn off, leaving no barriers between him and its constant reminder of his vulnerability. It set his teeth on edge and made him want to lash out at something or someone, but all the enemies had been killed or, as in the case of Viscalli, slipped away.
Something Quinn said snapped Sands' attention back to the conversation. "Did you say and old Chinese man?" he asked.
"Yes. Old by human standards anyway," Quinn responded, tilting his head to one side as he studied Sands.
"Is he still alive?" Sands asked hopefully. He would love to kill that bastard for torturing him, even if he was just a fucking thrall doing Viscalli's bidding.
"No. He's dead, like all the other trash they left behind," Quinn said evenly. "But not by our hands. He just seemed to have keeled over when he saw Debbie."
"Not one of your fiercest members," Andre laughed.
Quinn shrugged. "It was enough to cause the old guy's heart to stop."
"Pity," Sands said softly.
"Why?" Victoria asked, her hands still holding his.
"Because I would have enjoyed ripping his head off," Sands explained, his voice calm and cold, his gaze not meeting hers. "That fuckwad stuck the silver in me."
"Oh, I see," she said thoughtfully. "You need to get cleaned up."
"Yes, and some decent clothes," Andre added. "We have our vehicles down on the road. Care to walk, or should we drive one up here to you?"
Before Sands could give a scathingly witty reply, Lilith came to him. Not visually, but he could sense her presence. Shutting his open mouth, Sands turned his head, scanning for her. She came slowly, like a queen descending from her dais, dressed in the same black as the Guardians, her long blond hair done up. She was still as stunning as ever and, Sands realized, some of that was due to the aura of power she eminated.
"My dear Sands," she said her eyes going from his, to Victoria's, then back to lock with his. "You do seem to draw adventures to yourself."
He raised a brow. "This one was not one I would have choosen."
"It seems Viscalli took an interest in you," Lilith told him. "We have surmised, and Victoria has helped to confirm, that you were to be part one of the bait."
"I figured as much," Sands told her, feeling his wounds all too strongly.
"But, you are injured," Lilith said, even though he'd kept his facial features rigidly fixed so as not to give away his pain. She always seemed to know how he was feeling. It was uncanny and he had given up wondering just how she did it and chalked it up to her woman's intuition.
"It will heal," he assured her. That was interesting. She and Victoria were staring at one another, as if sharing some womanly secret.
"Come on, then," Andre gestured with his left arm. "Let us get you to the transportation, and to the plane, where you can clean up and change into something a little more fashionable. I brought shampoo, too. You could use it."
"Always the critique," Sands mumbled, though his lips curled up in a smile.
"Yes, let me help," Victoria said, turning to face him fully. "I'm sure you'll need your back scrubbed. The plane has a shower."
Interesting images flittered through his imagination. "Lead on, stalwart friend," he said to Andre.
As he passed by Lilith, she stopped him with a light touch. He looked into her crystal blue eyes. "Sands, there's something...different about you," she said slowly.
"Yes, there is." He smiled, waiting for her to dismiss him. She studied him for another long moment, then inclined her head.
The ride to the airport seemed to take a very long time. Sands leaned against Victoria, inhaling her sweet scent, his eyes only half-open as he thought about everything that had happened. It seemed too easy. Why hadn't Viscalli anticipated what they would do. But he had. He had thought they would mount a rescue, that he would be able to capture Lilith and use her to lure Abberline. What he hadn't counted upon was Abberline's ability to slip past all his sentries, electronic and vampire, and to rescue Sands himself.
"I saw him die, but I almost can't believe it," Victoria said almost wistfully.
"Believe it," Sands told her. "He's gone and you are truly free now." His hand lay over hers and he entwined his fingers with hers.
"Free," she repeated.
"We are free of Viscalli for a while, too, I imagine," Sands added. "He does tend to stay on the continent, so you shouldn't have to..." His mind suddenly went back to what she had said to him earlier when they were narrowing in on the final shooter in the woods. "Did you tell me you can read minds, my sweet Louisiana blossom?" He pulled away and looked into her eyes. It appeared he wasn't the only one who had secrets.
As Sands spoke, Victoria only half heartedly listened, at the mention of Viscalli her mind wandered. He would come after them again, and soon. Victoria thought she had picked up the fragments of that intention in him before he had blocked her. She shut her eyes, feeling exhausted from it all. It was difficult to block people from her mind. Lilith had been prying, clawing at her from the last hour and Viscalli; well with his age and skill she was amazed that she could block him at all.
Sands pulled back and looked deeply into her eyes, this brought her out of her own thoughts but only long enough to catch the last few words. "...sweet Louisiana blossom?"
Victoria straighten and smiled, "Hmm, what did you say?" Victoria shot a quick glance to Andre who appeared to straighten up in anticipation.
Sands hesitantly asked the question once again. "Did you say you could read minds?" Victoria bit her bottom lip. Sands gaze dropped and watched closely as Victoria's teeth nervously bit into her lower lip. She could sense the wheels in his mind spinning and she wasn't sure the path it was taking. Nervously she answered. "Yes."
His lips pursed in thought. "How well can you read minds?"
Her eyebrows knotted. "Well enough." Her hands shot out and grasped his own. "But I haven't tried to read you, and I won't either."
"Why?" His voice was flat, his dark eyes boring into hers.
Victoria swallowed, she could feel his eyes cutting into her. "I wasn't invited."
He continued to stare into her eyes for several long moments, then he inclined his head. "I suspect if you had, you would have run away by now," he said. She wasn't sure if he was joking or not. There was something self-mocking in his words and he turned his eyes away, sighing. "It's been a long day," he said lightly.
"Sands?" she asked softly leaning in a little closer to him. "Are you worried about my abilities?"
"No, not your abilities, my privacy." His eyes closed, effectively blocking her out. She stared at his long lashes in thought. Was he closing her off, or was he simply tired?
Victoria turned to Andre her eyes filling with tears. The other vampire fixed her with a curious look. She wondered if he, too, suspected her of prying. What could she say or do to show them she had not invaded their minds? Her mind raced, she should have never let any of them know what she could do.
Victoria turned once more to Sands, she began to slide her hands away from his. "I would never invade your privacy. Your life is your life, it's none of my business." She felt her heart breaking and hated herself for it. "Yes," he said simply. One eye opened and cast her a sideways glance. "You are too transparent, love. I don't need to read minds to know you are telling me the truth. That, or you're the worlds greatest actress." He put his hand back over hers.
Victoria felt like she'd stopped breathing. She looked at him intently with her large green eyes, but didn't feel any better. She let her body drop against the seat and her head rested against the window. Had she ruined everything?
"What?" he prompted. "You don't like being transparent?" His hand gently squeezed hers.
Victoria's eyes shifted to Sands and she sighed with a slight shrug of her shoulders. "It's dangerous." She lifted her head from the glass. "Rest," she gently nudged his hand. "Don't worry about me and my wounded pride. I need you in tip top condition."
A smile spread across his full lips. "For our shower?" he asked suggestively.
"And other things." She tried to sound less injured.
"Oh," he breathed, leaning toward her ear. "That sounds interesting."
"It will be," she tussled his hair and leaned into his lips. "Now rest, the airport is quite far away!" Although her words were dismissive that was not what she was feeling. The proximity of his lips to her ear was sending chills throughout her body.
"Promise?" he asked, his warm velvet voice matching the glittering interest she saw in his eyes.
"You're injured, remember?" she chided.
He raised one shoulder. "I can forget if you help me."
"Will it help?" she asked at the excitement within her grew.
"Most definitely." He let his head rest back against the seat. "So would a massage. With hot oil. I think I'm turning myself on here." But now his voice was fading, and his eyes once again closing, but this time, she sensed, in fatigue.
"Good night my sweet prince, she whispered, as she lightly kissed his cheek. Victoria turned to look back out the window to see how far they were from the airport, when she became caught in Andre's rakish gaze. She felt the flush rise in her cheeks as she began to realize that he had witnessed a very private moment.
"I shall always be the bridesmaid," he whispered to her with a grin pulling at his lips.
Victoria reached for his hand across the seat. He had the good grace to let what he had witness pass and not judge her for her foolishness. "Oh Andre, I think I love you."
His smile turned into a wistful grin. "Some day you and I shall have a nice long talk," he urged. "Alone. Away from the maddening crowd."
"Over cappuccinos?" she teased and returned his present grin.
He nodded, then turned back around, leaving her to her own thoughts.
As she started out the window of the SUV, things began to blur and she realized how tired she actually was, and hungry. She had not used the mind gift so much at once before today and found that it was increasingly difficult to concentrate. She felt herself slipping away, as her eyelids grew heavy.
She stood upon a field of battle. Before her, everything was grey, covered in fog and smoke. She knew there were dead bodies lying on the earth, but she could see only the grey. Danger also lurked somewhere in the bone- chilling fog. She hadn't felt that coldness since she had been human. What had happened? Who had they fought? Who had won?
She wanted to search the battlefield, perhaps find someone she knew there, but fear held her back, fear and a sense of dread.
"Here we are." Quinn's voice from the front seat woke Victoria. She blinked open her eyes and looked around. Sands groggily sat beside her, yawning and not bothering to cover his mouth.
Victoria blinked and felt as if she were still partially in her fearful dream. Her head ached as if someone were knocking her about. She stretched gracefully as Andre opened the door for her. She stepped out and looked around the small airfield, they were already on the tarmac and the engines were running. Her eyes scanned the area for danger and watched as the other vehicles stopped and unloaded their passengers.
Victoria turned towards Sands. "Ready for that shower, or would you rather wait until we are alone?" she questioned him playful but her eyes focused on something behind him.
Sands turned to look and saw Lilith gracefully coming forward. He turned and looked at Victoria and she knew he saw an intense stare pass between herself and Lilith.
Victoria turned her attention back to Sands, smiled, and linked her arm through his. "Come, sugarbutt," she said in a southern drawl, "Let me take care of you."
"Now you're talkin'," he replied.
Arm and arm they boarded the waiting jet.