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"Aye." Robby nodded. "Angus left me his T-shirt coated with yer blood."
"Your ticket back to mortality." Giacomo sipped from his wineglass. "Although I cannot imagine why anyone would want to be mortal again."
"Then you have a lousy imagination, Jack." Darcy strode into the room, holding a glass filled with blood. "Here you go." She handed it to Emma.
How could blood taste so good? Emma could drink easily now that her teeth were normal. It was like drinking raw power.
Another man entered the room. He was shorter than Angus, of medium height with dark brown hair and almond-shaped, amber eyes. "How are you, my dear?" He had a slight accent.
"Okay." How come her bedroom was Grand Central Station? Everybody wanted to come and gawk at the brand-new vampire. "I'm not performing any tricks today."
The man chuckled. "I'm glad you're all right. We were worried about you."
Obviously Angus wasn't too worried. He'd gone off to New York and left her alone to adjust to her new undeadness.
"I am Zoltan Czakvar." The man bowed slightly. "You are welcome here as long as you like."
"Thank you." Emma's gaze wandered over Zoltan, Robby, and Giacomo. "You're nice guys. It makes it easier to be... like this when I know how nice some of you are."
Darcy perched on the foot of the bed. "You don't have to stay like this, Emma. You can be mortal again."
But Angus was a vampire. If she stayed a vampire, she could be like him. She could zip around at incredible speed, levitate, and teleport. She'd be stronger than ever. She'd been a good slayer as a mortal, but as a vampire, she'd be a super slayer.
But if she stayed undead, it could be centuries before she saw her parents, or her brother, or Aunt Effie. That was bad.
But then again, that was centuries that she could love Angus. And he could love her. Her reservations about their relationship would be gone, now that they were the same.
"I need to talk to Angus," she repeated. Why couldn't these people understand? Why didn't Angus understand? Why did her leave her? She noticed the worried looks everyone was exchanging. Something was going on.
A sudden thought occurred to her. "Oh no! Was he injured?" She scrambled to her feet. Black dots circled her head.
Darcy reached out to her. "You should stay in bed tonight. It takes time for your body to adjust."
"No! I want the truth. Was Angus injured? Is that why he rushed off to see Roman?"
Robby shifted his weight. "He's fine. I'll send him that e-mail now." He rushed from the room.
"I'll show you the computer." Zoltan hurried after him.
Giacomo shook his head. "He should have stayed. I told him that, but... "
"But what?" Emma asked. "Why did he leave?"
Giacomo looked at her sadly. "He feels guilty."
"He left you a note." Darcy pulled a piece of paper from her pants pocket and set it on the bed.
A note? Emma frowned at it. After all they'd been through, he'd left a note? She gave Giacomo a confused look. "Why would Angus feel guilty?" It suddenly dawned on her. "Oh, he feels bad about Katya attacking me? But we were all under attack. I understand he had to protect himself."
Giacomo sighed. "He feels bad about making you weak."
"It's not his fault Katya killed me."
Giacomo winced. "You actually killed Katya."
Emma stared at him. She must have been alive to kill Katya. Then how did she end up a vampire?
"I should go now." Giacomo hurried out the door.
"He had no choice, Emma." Austin left the room, too.
He? There was something terrible the men didn't want to say. She turned to Darcy. "Katya didn't do this to me?"
"No." Darcy's eyes were full of sympathy. "You would have died if he hadn't done it. He really had no choice."
He? God, no. Emma's knees collapsed, and she sat on the bed. Her eyes welled with tears. That was why he'd run away, plagued with guilt.
"I'm so sorry." Darcy touched Emma on the shoulder. "He insisted on doing it himself. He felt... responsible. And he knew you could be changed back."
A tear rolled down Emma's face. She caught it on her finger and saw the pinkish tint. Bloody tears, just like a vampire.
Darcy patted her on the back. "He gave you a second chance at life."
Emma swallowed hard. She'd become the kind of creature that had murdered her parents. To be transformed into a vampire, she'd had to die first. Her stomach cramped. "Angus killed me."
Her stomach heaved, and Emma lost her first meal as a vampire.
"En garde." Giacomo saluted Emma with his foil, then pointed it at her.
She attacked with a flourish of thrusts and lunges. Giacomo defended himself easily enough, but Emma knew she was making progress. Three days ago, during her first fencing lesson, he could have defeated her blindfolded. Now he was fully engaged.
"Remember, the Malcontents do not fight fairly." With a flick of his wrist, Giacomo sent her foil flying through the air. It landed with a clatter across the exercise room.
"How will you handle this?" He charged at her, his sword pointed straight at her heart.
She pushed off the ground as hard as she could, thinking levitate. She soared up so fast, she clonked her head on the ceiling. "Ouch." She hovered, rubbing the crown of her head.
Giacomo grinned up at her. "You're a natural."
Austin stood by the door, chuckling. "I think she's underestimating her strength."
She glared at him. "I pinned you yesterday in forty-five seconds."
He shrugged. "Yeah, but you could whip me when you were a mortal, too."
Giacomo laughed. "La signorina is a fierce one."
"And don't you forget it." Emma whipped the dagger from her belt, teleported behind Giacomo, and poked him in the rear.
"Ouch!" He jumped forward, spinning to face her.
She smiled sweetly. "How am I doing, teacher?"
He narrowed his eyes. "Do I detect some latent anger, bellissima?"
Emma sighed as she stuffed her dagger back under her belt. Maybe she was angry. She was certainly frustrated. She'd been at Zoltan's house for one week, and Angus hadn't returned any of her e-mails or phone messages. She'd read his note so many times, she had it memorized.
Dearest Emma,
I do not expect forgiveness for the terrible thing I've done to you. I only hope you can be changed back as soon as possible, so you can reclaim your life. You deserve a happy life, filled with light and peace.
Peace? Did he really think she wanted peace when bad vampires like Casimir roamed the earth? She was a warrior like him. And now she was a vampire like him. Sure it had sickened her at first to think of him draining her dry and transforming her, but after a few nights of serious contemplation, she'd decided she was glad he was the one to induct her into this new life. She was undead because someone she loved had performed an act of mercy. That was so much better than dying the victim of an enemy's act of violence. And it was fitting that Angus had been the one. He'd been the one all along.
He'd taught her the difference between wreaking revenge and seeking justice. She no longer wanted to kill every vampire in her path to relieve the pain of her parents' murder. She wanted to put that pain behind her and move on. She wanted to use her new power to protect the innocent, so others wouldn't suffer as her parents had.
Angus had taught her that love was so powerful, it survived death. She still loved him with all her heart. And she understood now that death couldn't disfigure or corrupt a person's soul. She was surrounded by loving, honorable Vamps.
So why was Angus ignoring her? Was he averse to a commitment that might last for centuries?
Darcy joined her husband at the doorway. "We just received an e-mail - "
"From Angus?" Emma interrupted.
Darcy gave her a sympathetic look. "From Roman. He reports that baby Constantine is healthy, happy, and normal."
"That's good," Austin murmured.
Darcy offered Emma a sheet of paper. "Some of his message was for you, so I printed it out."
Emma took the note and wandered across the large exercise room to read it.
Dear Miss Wallace,
I couldn't help but notice the e-mails and phone messages directed here for Angus. I thought you should know that he left here two nights ago for England. He's expecting you to come to New York to be changed back, and I don't believe he wants to be here for the event. This is not because he doesn't care. He cares very much. He's suffering greatly for what he did to you. Perhaps, in time, he'll be able to forgive himself. I think he'll begin healing once he knows you have safely returned to your mortal life. I am at your disposal, as soon as you are ready.
