They arrived at the house and Marcus carried Amy in with Alba in wolf form at his heels. “Don’t you dare change, I can take care of her. My doctoring skills may not be as good as yours, but Amy will survive them.”
Alba whined.
Amy’s voice held a renewed strength when she said, “Alba changed when the men came in through the door. She attacked one of them and then changed back. She needs to be examined first. He hit her in the side of the head with his rifle and she’s bleeding.”
Marcus turned away from the stairs and went towards the couch. He gently sat Amy down and turned to Alba.
“Let me see Alba, it will be easier to care for Amy if she knows you are well.”
Alba let him examine her head. The wound was below her ear and blood was in her fur. She didn’t say a word as he touched and prodded the wound.
“I think you’ll survive, but probably with a headache. Philip is coming with warm water and to clean you up. I don’t believe you need stitches and this will help.”
Before Alba could move, Marcus struck. His teeth sank into the opposite side of her injured head and went into the vein at her throat. Alba stopped fighting and in about sixty-seconds Marcus released her.
Alba growled and moved away from him.
“You know it will help you and the babies. Stop fighting it and let Philip assist you.”
Philip entered the room with the promised bowl of warm water. He stretched his hand towards Alba’s face with a cloth, but she growled and snapped at him. Philip hastily removed his clothes. He was in wolf form in seconds. He slowly approached Alba and began licking her face and then her head where the wound was located. Alba allowed it.
Marcus turned back to Amy and gently took her into his arms. “I will never understand them. I gave up a long time ago.
Marcus placed his face against her chest for a moment and breathed in. He then carried her up the stairs.
The shock was wearing off and Amy was beginning to hurt even more. She moaned as Marcus laid her on the bed.
“I can help with the pain if you’ll let me.”
“Why are you asking? You didn’t ask Alba.” Amy’s voice was tightly controlled.
“Alba is my wolf. It is expected. The only times she is out of feeding rotation for me is when she’s pregnant. Feeding me is what keeps them alive. Alba knows this but she’s as stubborn as you. You are not mine, but I want you to be. I’m giving you a choice because more at stake in a second feeding. It will help the pain and help you heal faster, but it will bind you to me and right now I get the feeling it’s the last thing you want.” His emotions were evident with every word he spoke, the amber returning to his eyes.
Amy took a deep breath. She loved him. The attack on the men in the car was brutal, but she now had trouble even picturing what she’d seen and knew that this was for the best. She had no doubt the men would have killed Alba and from what one man said, it was obvious he killed her sons. He needed to die. It was the complete lack of humanity during the slaughter that bothered Amy. She had enough self-awareness to know that if she had the ability when Alba was struck she would have killed them without blinking an eye. Amy started to cry.
Marcus gathered her in his arms and sank onto the bed with her in his lap. He rocked her as her tears continued to fall but he remained silent.
After several minutes, Amy said with a catch in her voice, “I’m okay Marcus and I don’t blame you. I apologize for my reaction. This is all new to me and I’m adjusting to so much that would have been incomprehensible just days ago. I’m sorry.” She kissed the side of his face.
“We need to get you taken care of. Philip is bringing more warm water and I need to see your cuts and look at your arm. The tape needs to come off and that won’t be fun.”
“Make the pain better. I don’t care about the consequences. I would have accepted them when you got home anyway.”
Again, he was so fast Amy just felt the pin pricks as his teeth went into her neck. A feeling of drowsiness washed over her senses. He raised his head, and licked a small amount of blood from his lip.
“You taste more wonderful than you smell and that seems impossible.”
Amy laughed softly and drifted away as if in a dream. The pain in her arm and from her cuts was a separate thing. She knew she had injuries and that it hurt but didn’t quite feel it.
Philip entered the room with Alba behind him. He sat the items he carried on a table and left quietly.
“You shared blood. This is good. It will help and your union is meant to be.” Were Alba’s first words and they reached Amy’s brain as if far away.
Before she could question Alba about her meaning, Marcus broke in, “I should have figured it out sooner. You and Amy have exchanged thoughts since she came here. Did you know before she came that she could communicate with the wolves?”
“Yes I did. She can do so much and I planned to tell you about it after she had some practice.”
Amy was reading both their thoughts at once, though her mind was dreamy.
Marcus turned to her and began gently removing the duct tape. He took a knife and sliced it between her wrists. She could feel a small amount of discomfort but it didn’t seem to matter. Now that the tape was gone, the swelling in her left arm was clearly visible.
Philip returned to the room with ice and the materials needed for stitches.
Amy’s thoughts were too fuzzy to tell exactly what was going on around her. Would she feel this way every time Marcus fed?
“No you won’t. For some reason, when I feed, something in my saliva helps if you are in pain or need healing. If everything was okay and we were making love, it would just enhance the pleasure. I don’t understand the reason why, it’s just how it works.”
“Can it be bottled?” Amy asked drowsily not caring if the others heard her.
“No.” Marcus said with a laugh.
She needed several stitches in her head and Marcus shaved a small section of her scalp. He said nothing to her as he worked. Amy’s arm was a different story. It needed to be set. Sharing blood helped with the pain somewhat, but when her arm was jerked back into place Amy couldn’t prevent a cry of pain. Alba paced back and forth. Marcus wrapped her arm with an elastic bandage, then placed ice over it. He finished caring for her injuries by butterflying some cuts on her arms and a few small ones on her face. “You’re not leaving my side tonight. Alba can sleep in the hall if she wants.”
“Make her a bed using a blanket so she’s comfortable on the floor.”
“I’ll just sleep in your bed. You’ll be safe with Marcus and I need to rest.” Alba said as she headed back to Amy’s room.
“This is your room now. I’ll have your things moved in tomorrow.” There was no room for argument in Marcus’ words.
“You’re awfully sure of yourself, aren’t you?”
“You belong to me. I have no plans to let you go, even if it’s just to sleep down the hall. You gave me more than blood, you promised to be mine.”
“I may be feeling inebriated, but I don’t remember making that promise. Why do you want me to be yours?”
“Because I love you.”
It was said simply. Amy kissed him.
Alba and Philip left the room before the kiss ended.
“I guess I’ll be yours then.” She had a smile on her face as she closed her eyes.
A few hours later, Amy woke from a nightmare and discovered Marcus’ arms around her. Amy’s pain had returned and she let out a moan. He again sank his teeth into her neck and the pain receded. Before sleep overcame her, she realized that she was naked.
“You are a wicked man.” Her thoughts drifted sluggishly into his mind.
“You will realize how wicked when you are better and I can properly show you.”
The sun was bright when Amy woke the second time. Marcus stirred beside her and stopped her from rising. His fangs sank into her throat again. She didn’t want to go back to sleep.
“It won’t make you drowsy if you don’t need to sleep. It will always give your body what it needs most. Just accept it.”
His voice was low and she realized he was tired. When he released her, she felt better. She carefully got up from the bed and went into the bathroom. The room was beautiful and the bathtub was unbelievable. She turned on the water and set the jets to low as she got in.
The swelling in her arm was almost gone and she fisted her hand. It hurt, but not as much as she would have previously expected. Too bad vampires couldn’t bottle the cure; they could make a fortune. A soft knock sounded at the door and a female came in carrying some of Amy’s clothes.
“Thank you.”
The woman was beautiful, but you couldn’t say the same about the look on her face. She threw an angry glare Amy’s way. Amy connected with her mind. She didn’t mean to, it just happened.
“He’ll forget about you, bitch, and I’ll be back in his bed.” The woman had no idea Amy could hear her thoughts.
With that, she left the bathroom. Amy realized reading minds could be a huge problem, especially when she wanted to scratch the eyes out of anyone that had ever been in bed with Marcus. She didn’t care if she was being unreasonable, Marcus was hers.
Amy dressed carefully but her injured arm caused her some trouble in fastening her jeans. She left her shirt to hang down on the outside of her pants to hide the button left undone. She made her way out of the bedroom and headed down the hall and down the stairs. She went straight to the dining room for food.
Ivan and Philip were both sitting at the table talking and Alba was in her favorite spot by the fire.
“How are you feeling?” Ivan asked.
“Better, but so hungry I could eat a horse. Are there any horse “beastkind” I need to worry about offending when I say that?”
Both men laughed.
Amy’s face turned serious. “Did anyone die last night?”
“No, they used high powered darts to sedate the wolves. Yvette was the only one shot with a bullet and it was in her shoulder. When Marcus awakens he will feed from her and she’ll be fine”
“I’m sorry; I should have let him care for her last night.”
“From what I heard, Marcus would not have left your side if I were dying and needed him. Don’t feel bad, your need was greater than Yvette’s.”
No rancor could be heard in Ivan’s voice so she didn’t argue.
“Who is the female wolf that brought my clothes to me?”
Alba growled in Amy’s direction. Amy said into Alba’s mind, “You will need to teach me to growl like that because that’s exactly how I feel.”
Amy was handed a large plate of food and Philip left the room.
Ivan spoke, “Mary is the wolf’s name. Did she cause you any problems?”
“I felt a sense of hostility, is there a reason she would have a problem with me?”
Alba’s words appeared in Amy’s mind, “Let him off the hook. He won’t betray Marcus and I know that you’re aware why the girl was hostile to you. If you’re going to hate every wolf that’s slept with Marcus there won’t be much room for love. Sorry to be this direct but Marcus has never practiced celibacy.”
Amy glared at Ivan as Alba’s words flowed through her head. She decided to be mean and get a little back from them both. In her mind Amy connected with Ivan, “You’re hair is mussed and Alba thinks you need a shower. You stink.”