Page 129 of Galaxy Circus Act One

Whisperer

CHAPTER ONE

Lila

“Mine!” At those growled words, a number of things happen simultaneously. John gasps and collapses with a hand pressed tightly to his chest, and Xavier and Cas jump up, putting themselves between me and the feral Vilaxian, stopping him from grabbing me with his outstretched clawed hands. Saxon’s short black hair is standing up, and his magenta eyes are glowing with an inner light. His fangs are extended and dripping venom, and his body vibrates as a growl rips out of his mouth.

“John!” Eric shouts, panic lacing his tone as he moves to his brother’s side, drops to his knees, and scans John. “Link! Will, go see if Link’s okay. We need him.”

A sense of dread and growing panic infuses my body, freezing me into inaction. Do I go to my grandpa’s side or stay where I am so I don’t incite the already feral Vilaxian? My head bounces back and forth between the two options, and I can practically feel the smoke leaking out of my ears as I try to make a decision.

William’s pinched eyebrows and blown pupils hardly mask what he’s feeling. He looks torn as his head whips from thedoor to his brother who’s lying on the ground and the growling sanguinista.

“It’s okay, William, we’ve got this,” Xavier assures him as Cas changes into half form. William nods his thanks and edges past Saxon, who hasn’t stopped growling and trying to reach me, snapping at Cas and Xavier every time they block his path.

Before William can leave the room, Link’s there with a cut on his temple oozing silver blood, and I watch in fascination as the nanotechnology within his body speedily repairs the damage. The skin stitches itself back together, and then the remaining blood absorbs back into his skin. He makes his way quickly toward my fallen grandpa as if the gash wasn’t even there.

Even through all of this chaos, I can’t help but appreciate how fucking cool that was.

Caspian and Xavier are doing a good job of blocking Saxon, putting their bodies between him and me, but that won’t last forever, and I’m torn between wanting to be with my grandpa and trying to help the sexy blood drinker who looks to be out of his fucking mind, his growls sprinkled with shouts of “Mine!” and “Blood rose.” My gaze moves away from Saxon and back to John. His eyes are closed, but he doesn’t seem to be convulsing or foaming at the mouth or showing any other signs of what’s wrong, so I return my attention to Saxon. Maybe if I calm him down, that might make the situation easier.

“Hey there, ah, Saxon. Why don’t you just take a deep breath, and we can talk about this some more?” I hear the words that come out of my mouth and roll my eyes.Yeah, right, Lila, like the feral blood drinker is going to calm down after taking a deep breath.

“He seems to be showing signs of a panic attack. There doesn’t seem to be any other cause, but I’d like to take him to the hospital wing so I can check him over thoroughly,” Link says,running a diagnostic hand over my grandpa who is still out like a light.

Xavier waves a hand, and a hover stretcher appears next to him. Link nods his gratitude as William and Eric gently lift John onto it. Eric holds John’s hand, while William brushes his hair back from his face.

“What about Saxon?” Cas asks, his agitation crystal clear in his voice as he stabs a finger at the feral Vilaxian while they play keep away from Lila.

“I can’t re-sedate him. If I do, it may kill him. I know it’s not ideal, but we should allow them to bond. Lila said she was okay with it, and I think we should respect her choice,” Link reasons, looking at Cas and Xavier then me, and I nod my assent.

“Yeah, I did, but I was hoping for something a little calmer and rational. I don’t relish having my throat torn out.” I reach up instinctively to protect it, and a slight tremor runs through my body at the thought.

“Everything I have read says that a Vilaxian instinctively knows when to stop drinking when bonding with his blood rose. It’s a survival mechanism, otherwise they could kill the only person whose blood will nourish them thoroughly.” Thank fuck for Link’s knowledge, or else I’d be going into this blindly, not knowing if I’d survive or not.

“You better be right about this,” Xavier growls at him as Link programs the stretcher to follow him, and he strides out followed by the two remaining brothers. Fuck, I’m so torn. I’ve only just found my family, and I want to be where they are, making sure John’s okay, but I also have a duty to myself and my new mate. He is not going to be rational until we get this done.

“Good luck,” he calls over his shoulder. “And Lila? Make sure you drink plenty of fluids when you’re done so you don’t end up dehydrated.”

“Dehydrated?” The word squeaks out of my mouth. “I’m pretty sure that’s theleastof my worries.”

I move around the room now that we have more space and less people, and Saxon’s glowing magenta eyes follow my every move. “Now what?” I ask.

Xavier and Cas exchange a glance before they both shrug. “I could teleport you to your room, and we could let him find you,” Xavier suggests, and Saxon’s growl gets deeper and louder. “Or not.” I’m not sure if he was serious about that or not, but I kind of have the urge to smack him upside the head for it. There is no need to antagonize the already crazed Saxon.

“What about—” Before Cas can finish what he’s saying, a beeping sound interrupts us. It’s loud and insistent, and Xavier throws his hand into the air before pushing a button on one of the consoles. A face appears on the holoscreen—a face that is very similar to the one now scowling at it. Saxon tries to make a run for me while Xavier is distracted, and a small scream escapes my mouth, but Cas is there, his half shifted body growing before he snatches the enraged Vilaxian with his tentacles. They ripple and pulse as they try to contain Saxon who continues to struggle.

“What is it, Xane? I’m in the middle of something,” Xavier snaps tersely as he joins Caspian in restraining Saxon. They wrestle him into submission. He keeps growling, but he’s still for a moment, his eyes still fixed on me.

“I’ll make it quick, since you seem to be busy,” the voice replies, and my warlock snorts, unamused.

“You think?”

“Two humans just arrived on the doorstep of the Pleasure Inn. They managed to get through the gate, and the female has a hint of warlock manipulation in her.Yoursignature to be specific.”

Fuck. He could only mean Susie and Mark.

Xavier stiffens and looks at me, and I feel my stomach drop with dread. Well, even more dread, because, you know, an enraged Vilaxian who wants to drink my blood to seal us together for all eternity is only a few feet away. Okay, maybe not dread, maybe anticipation if I’m really being honest. I swear I must have hit my head at some stage, because I’m thinking with my vagina and not rationally at all.