Chapter 29: Chapter 29

The atmosphere in Nick’s house changed drastically after that night he left me alone with Garrett and a cryptic warning about Marcel. Nick, himself, had an aura of danger about him; like he would explode at the slightest provocation. It was only during the few times that we would sit together on the sofa, wrapped in each other’s arms, that he would calm down a bit. The underlying tension would still be there, but not as much as when he was wearing the floors down with his pacing. He didn’t tell me much, but from what I gathered, some of his people got hurt terribly. Including Boris. I didn’t know that giant of a man very well, but he already earned a special place in my heart when he helped me get back to Nick from Cebu. And I wanted to be there for him in some small way possible. Nick had stubbornly refused to say anything about Boris’s condition, and though I didn’t like being left in the dark, I stopped nagging him about it. I didn’t want to add to his worries and frustration. He would let me when he was ready.

Five days later, for no apparent reason, Nick took me on a tour of his building. I found out that all of Nick’s men had their own units on the top five floors. The rest of the residential units were being leased or rented out. When he showed me the three floors of office space that would soon house his new IT company, I was amazed. Everything was state-of-the-art, from the servers down to the mouse pads, and I couldn’t wait to work there. What surprised me, though, was when he took me down to the machine room in the basement.

“Yep. I’d always dreamed of seeing what a machine room looked like,” I said, tongue in cheek when he opened the metal door with a ‘Machine Room’ sticker on it.

Nick chuckled and pulled me close. “And I’d always wondered what it would be like to make out with a beautiful woman inside these cramped, noisy things.”

“Oh, yeah? You mean you haven’t snogged a woman inside a machine room before?”

“No, but I’m going to,” he said before his lips crashed down on mine.

It was stifling hot inside the small room, but I hardly noticed as Nick sent my senses soaring with his kisses. I was sweating profusely by the time he pulled away and playfully nipped my lip. He, as usual, didn’t even have a bead of sweat on his forehead. It was so unfair.

“You, young lady, make me forget myself every time,” he said, pecking both of my cheeks. “But let’s continue this later, shall we? This room isn’t big enough for what I have in mind.”

I gulped hard when erotic images burst inside my brain. “Really? And just what do you have in mind?” I said, hoping he didn’t notice.

“Later, my love. I’ll show you later,” he said, whispering against my lips. Then he stepped back and took my hand, pulling me behind him. We stopped in front of a locker. Nick punched several numbers on the tiny keypad and pulled the door open. It wasn’t a locker, it was an elevator.

“There’s another one like this in my unit. We could’ve taken it to go straight to where we’re going, but I wanted you to see the rest of the building first. Since you’re living here now, I want you to familiarize yourself with its every nook and cranny,” Nick said, punching the down button. The tiny door closed with a quiet hiss and we began our descent.

“I didn’t know your building has so many secrets.”

“You haven’t fully explored our suite, have you?” Nick said, lifting a brow at me.

“Oh, is there a hidden BDSM den in there?” I said with a smirk.

Nick laughed. “No. I’m not really into it. But if you are, then I’m willing to indulge you,” Nick said with a suggestive wink.

“I am not! And don’t you get any funny ideas, you oaf,” I said, playfully punching his chest.

Nick pulled me back into his arms and kissed me soundly. “I’m willing to indulge you anything, my sweet,” he said, licking my earlobe.

It sent delicious shivers straight down to my core. Oh, gods, this man is killing me, I thought, as Nick’s lips and tongue slowly traveled down my throat.

When the elevator groaned to a stop, Nick lifted his head and looked into my eyes. “Do you still want to see Boris?”

My heart skipped a beat at his words. I didn’t know what condition Boris was in, and I feared it wouldn’t be very pleasant. But I couldn’t back out now, especially since I really wanted to see that big old teddy bear.

“Yes, I do,” I said, swallowing my fear and hesitation.

Nick nodded and slowly stepped away from me, his eyes getting that faraway look again. Gone was the teasing, flirty man who showered me with kisses just a few minutes ago. He was now back to his normal, brooding self. His hands slid down my arms, but before he could completely let go, I grabbed one of them and held it tight. He didn’t protest, and we stepped out of the elevator hand in hand.

The room we walked into was so large it appeared to span the entire breadth and width of the building. It had white tiled walls, like those in hospitals, only more immaculate and sterile-looking. The lighting was behind frosted panels, making them less harsh. There were two more elevators to the left of the one we exited and several doors on both walls. Nick walked past them, leading me down the hallway and only turning right at the very end. There were no windows on this level. Since this area could be several stories below ground level, it would really be impossible to put windows anywhere. Had I been claustrophobic, I’d be having a major attack right now. Taking everything into consideration, this place was more similar to a mausoleum than a hospital.

Yet nothing could’ve prepared me for what I saw next. It was like I stumbled upon the set of a sci-fi/post-apocalyptic Hollywood movie.

At the end of the hall was a glass-enclosed room. I had expected to see a row of coffins where Boris was in one, asleep and recuperating from his injuries. Instead, the most modern, highly technically advanced medical facility I’d ever seen greeted me. There were coffins, yes, but they were inside glass capsules. Monitoring machines stood beside each, together with bags of blood hanging from IV poles.

“We call this the Infirmary. I had this set-up after the building was finished, but didn’t think I would have any use for it,” Nick said. “It was Boris who encouraged me to keep it always stocked and ready. How ironic that he turned out to be one of the first to use it.”

“I’m so sorry, Nick,” I said, squeezing his hand.

Nick smiled at me, the sadness seeping into his eyes. “Me, too. I shouldn’t have let them stay there too long. I knew this place was safer, but I didn’t want to bring the girls here.”

“Girls? What girls?” It was the first time I was hearing about this.

Nick’s eyes darted back to me, as if surprised by the slip. “Fuck! I’m sorry, Mira. I forgot you didn’t know about them.”

“Well, now I know. So, tell, what girls are you talking about, Nick?” I insisted. I had the feeling that the answer wouldn’t be to my liking, but I still wanted to hear it.

He sighed and turned to look at me, clasping my hands. “We recently rescued two girls from a group of Newborns. They're newly turned vampires. I thought it best to leave them at the safe house instead of bringing them here, in case they regained consciousness.”

“Regained consciousness? You mean they’re comatose?”

“Yes.”

“Why didn’t you just bring them to a hospital or something then?”

“There would’ve been too many questions. And I wanted to be there when they woke up. I was hoping they could help us identify their attackers.”

“Those poor girls. Where are they now?”

“Whoever kidnapped them the first time took them again. It’s why my men got injured. They tried to stop those people from taking the girls,” Nick said, his jaw clenching in anger.

I tried to digest what Nick just said. Newborns kidnapping girls. Were my attackers newborns as well? If Nick had not rescued me, could I have ended like those girls? An icy terror ran through my veins. I truly should be more thankful to Nick for rescuing me that night. Only now was I understanding the real danger I had been in. Might still be in if Nick couldn't put a stop to this.

“Can I look in on Boris?” I asked, looking for a reason to stop feeling sorry for myself.

Nick hesitated, but nodded just the same. He pushed the door open and led me inside. If the temperature in the hallway was chilly, here it was freezing. Nick, noticing me shiver, took off his leather jacket and placed it around my shoulders.

“Thanks. Which one is Boris?” I said, hoping my teeth won’t chatter.

“Here,” Nick said, leading me to the one farthest to the right. Boris’s coffin was plain dark wood, the simplest of the four.

As we walked towards Boris, I couldn’t help but glance at the others and wonder who they were. I almost cried when I saw the visible wounds on them. One had little skin left on his face. I feared what condition his body was in.

“His name’s Ivan. The bastards tortured him. They left him to bake under the sun, his skin almost completely melting away,” Nick said. His voice was low, emotionless. It was even more chilling than if he screamed in anger. “The next one is Tanner, he’s our resident medic,” Nick continued as we neared Boris’s spot. “They took off both of his hands. The third one is Link. He’s missing one arm. Boris still has both, but one was nearly severed from its socket, his body riddled with bullets coated in silver.”

“Silver? You said vampires are allergic to silver,” I said, horrified at the implication.

“Yes, which is why they pumped him with so many.”

Upon reaching Boris, the tears finally fell. His face was like that of a marble statue, hard and white. He was so pale it was as if he did not have any blood left. He looked like he was truly dead. They had left the coffin open down to his waist, and I cried even harder when I saw the many holes and deep gashes on his torso. His right shoulder had a huge tear that reached down to the very bones.

“Are they sleeping on their own or did you have to drug them?" I said, a part of me wishing someone had filled them to the brim with morphine.

“A vampire can heal himself, but only if in hibernation. If the injuries are too much for the body to take, the brain shuts down. Only the heart will continue pumping blood throughout the body to help it repair the damage. The brain will regain consciousness once the body recovers,” Nick explained.

“How long will that take?”

Nick shrugged, his eyes pinned on Boris. “It depends. No one really knows."

“Why is there so much dirt inside their coffins?"

“To help them heal faster. And it’s not dirt, it is soil from their native lands,” a female voice said from behind, making me jump. I glanced back to see who it was and got rewarded with the smiling face of the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen.

“Irina! I didn’t know you were here. Mira, this is Irina. She is our well-renowned healer. Irina, this is, well, you already know Mira,” Nick said.

“She already knows me?” I said, wondering how I could’ve forgotten her.

“I was the one who changed your clothes the night he saved you from those awful creatures,” Irina said, smiling benevolently. “Excuse me, Mira. May I borrow Nick for a minute?”

“Uhm, sure. O-of course. No problem,” I said, feeling foolish for stumbling over my words.

Irina nodded her thanks and gently pulled Nick aside.

“Why did you bring her here? Are you trying to scare the girl to death?” Irina said, her harsh whisper reaching my ears unintentionally.

“Mira’s stronger than you think, Irinka. And she had formed some sort of bond with Boris. She wouldn’t leave me in peace unless I let her see him,” Nick replied.

“Ah, so the great Nikolai has finally met his match, eh? Are you telling me you’re, what’s that term again, pussy-whipped?”

I had to turn away to hide my smile at Irina’s words and Nick’s grunt of protest. Just then, I heard a familiar voice calling out to Nick.

“Sir, we have a problem,” Garrett said, running up to Nick.

“What is it? What happened?” Nick said, pulling Garrett and Irina further away. He obviously didn’t want me to hear their discussion.

However, the words still drifted back to me.

“A couple of men tried to grab the girls as they were leaving the building. If not for Jules’ and Raven’s quick reaction, they would have succeeded.”

Jules and Raven. Those were the guys Nick left at Jan’s building to watch over them. “What happened to Jan and Mel? Are they okay?” I said, dashing over to the trio before I could stop myself.

Garrett’s eyes darted to Nick before turning to me. “They’re okay. But Jules thinks they shouldn’t go back to their place for a while. Not until―”

“Where are they? I want to see them, Nick,” I said, not bothering to apologize for cutting Garrett off. My heart was beating like crazy. Was this my fault again? Did Kris come back to take revenge? But Garrett said there were two men. Were they human or vampire? What was their connection to Kris?

“Where are they, Garrett?” Nick said, turning to Garrett.

“Jules brought them to his place. He said it was best that he kept a closer eye on them.”

“Okay, that’s good. Garrett, stay here with Irina. Do whatever she tells you,” Nick said.

“Sure thing, sir,” Garrett said.

“Come on, sweetheart. Let’s go see your friends,” Nick said, kissing the top of my head after pulling me into his arms. “Don’t worry, everything’s going to be fine.”

I know, I tried to say. But the words got stuck in my throat. I didn't know what to do except see my best friends, hoping weren't blaming me too much for this. Those two girls meant the world to me and I would die if I lost them or their friendship.