Chapter 13

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

PIPER

A tlas tried to rise up off the table. He bared his teeth at me and narrowed his eyes. "I don't do timelines. He asked me for my word. I gave it."

All I could do was glare at him. I knew what he was capable of. I knew he'd killed hundreds, probably a few thousand, but I didn't care. I refused to back down from him. When I didn't flinch back or even blink, he fell back onto the table sucking in panting breaths. He gritted his teeth and held the gauze tightly to his wounds.

Blood soaked through the gauze and seeped through his fingers. I crossed my arms, not making a move to help him. "He told you to hold still."

"How am I to hold still when you're standing there spouting idiocy in my general vicinity?" He nodded to the stack of gauze lying beside him. "You could take a moment from your single-minded mission to perish and hand me a bit more of that, unless you prefer to stand in the wake of the remains of my insides."

I rolled my eyes. "You're not dying."

"It bloody well hurts though," he snapped and hissed at me. "You could take a bit of responsibility for this current situation."

"Serves you right." I shrugged. "You're not a very good friend."

His body quaked in pain and sweat beaded his forehead. "Pardon?"

I walked over to the table and grabbed a wad of gauze and stood next to him waiting silently for him to move his hands. When he just glared, I stared back at him waiting . . . The more time he spent being trapped in here, the more time it gave me to think of a way to get to Grayson before he did. Atlas let his head fall back and dropped his hands. I pulled the sopping used-up gauze off his wounds and threw them on the tray beside us. They landed there with a wet, sticky slap. I pressed new pads over the holes and held them in place.

"Not so sodding hard." He winced. "Do they not teach new vampires how to control their strength in that night dweller cavern you reside in?"

"I'm pretty sure my strength is the only thing holding your insides in place. But I can let go and we can see what happens next. Would be interesting to find out how badly this could go for an immortal vampire who won't shut the fuck up for a second."

"Yet you're the one regaling me with tales of how love will save all. Feels like a fortnight since you've closed your mouth."

"By the way, you're fucking welcome." The blood seemed to be slowing but not enough. If he were human, he'd be unconscious and half dead by now. I wondered if he'd ever get to that point or if the pure audacity he seemed to be oozing would keep him going.

His jaw dropped. "And what exactly am I to thank you for? Nearly getting me killed?"

Infuriating vampire . "Why are you so quick to just kill him? At least give him a chance. Give me a chance."

He rolled his eyes. "You are that bloody na?ve. I am not."

I was sick of this. Grayson needed people behind him that would support him and get his ass home as soon as possible, not someone who was just going to try and hunt him down like he was some kind of deer in the wild. I stepped back from him. The gauze pads stayed in place, but the blood started to flow freely again without the pressure I'd been applying. Atlas snapped his hands over the wounds.

"Yes, let me rush to give my eternal thanks to you for getting me impaled by two rusty pieces of metal," Atlas growled. He looked down at himself, distracted long enough for me to find something in this room to use against him.

I pretended to pace the room while I looked for something to keep him at bay for just a little while until I could get some help. The second the doctor got him fixed up, he would return to the hunt and nothing would stop him this time. He'd be expecting my interference now, so there was no surprising him. I found a pair of stray vampire cuffs sitting on the counter. I grabbed them quickly and held them behind my back. I knew that there was a remote for them somewhere around here. Grayson had used it to free me only days ago.

"Let me also extend my gratitude for turning my only friend into a monster, the likes of which one does not return from," he continued. "You've yet to realize this, though I have. In my centuries of experience, I know this to be true. It is the daft who do not learn from the wise." He let his head fall back and his eyes closed.

Did he just call me stupid and himself wise? I wasn't even going to dignify that with an answer.

"Mhmm." There, only a few feet away, was the remote, lying on the counter among the containers of supplies. Usually everything was so organized, but after a night like tonight, I was surprised we even had clean bandages left. I grabbed the remote and walked closer to him.

He turned and narrowed his eyes at me. "What the devil are you doing?"

I lifted my hand and called on that inner well of power I knew lingered in the pit of my stomach just waiting to be used. Red mist flowed from my body and Atlas' body tensed like he was about to spring at me. My power surrounded him in a fine red mist that I felt settle over his body. I could feel his every move. It was like the magic was mapping him out for me and making it so easy to choose how best to use him. This power in the wrong hands would be detrimental to anyone.

I held my hand out. "Stop," I commanded.

He froze. His muscles strained against my hold but still he couldn't move. Anger flooded his eyes, and his face turned a dark shade of red. I could almost feel the hate rolling off him. I never wanted to take anyone's free will away, but in this case . . . Atlas had it coming.

"Lie back." I wasn't sure if I was using it the right way. There was no one here to teach me, but my power was almost like controlling an extension of my own body, like my mind and this mist were slowly becoming one in the same.

Atlas flopped back on the table. His eyes were wide with rage. His face had nearly turned purple. "I know it's hard for you to shut up and listen to me, being that I'm sooooo much younger than you and you're, well, old as dirt. But I know I'm right about this."

I proceeded to place the cuffs around his wrists. When I held the remote in my hand, it looked more like the key-fob for a car, with the lock and unlock features. I pressed the lock button and they tightened around his wrist and clicked into place as the magnet activated and smacked into the table with a slam. I slid the remote into the side of my boot. If I had it, it'd take that much longer for them to release Atlas.

I turned toward the door and called out. "Doctor! We need some help in here!"

Within seconds the doctor was back in the room. His eyes darted between the two of us. "What's going on in here?"

Atlas flailed against the restraints as my power over him faded. "She's out of her senses!"

"I am not!" I was really going to have to work on how long my little magic trick would work. It'd be a lot more helpful through this whole thing if he would just shut the hell up.

The doctor took a step toward me, and I held my hand up, letting my blood magic seep around my fingers. "I wouldn't." He stopped mid-step. "You know what I'm capable of?" I twirled my fingers, and it danced above my hand like a flame.

He gave me a nod. "I have a fair sense."

"Then you know I won't hesitate if you get in my way." I liked the doctor, he was a good vampire and he'd helped me more than I could say, but he wouldn't get in my way, nor would anyone else.

"I do believe that. Yes." His voice was calm as he spoke to me.

"The lot of you are daft." Atlas struggled against the restraints but to no avail. They were made to hold me , and I was beginning to realize I was a hell of a lot stronger than they all knew. He glared at the doctor. "Let me out now."

"Not happening." I turned to the doctor. "I bet you could use some quiet while you work on him. Couldn't you?"

He hesitated. "I . . . suppose."

I smirked. "Good, then you can tell me where the drugs are that are strong enough to knock a vampire out."

"WHAT?" Atlas raised his voice. He jerked in his restraints. The table groaned yet still held. Blood covered his torso and dripped from the table onto the floor.

"Better hurry up, doc. He's bleeding an awful lot." I probably could've used my powers on the good doctor, but I didn't know if there would be side effects and wasn't sure if I could run out of them or if they would always be there. There was just so much I didn't understand but had to find out.

One thing at a time, Piper. One thing at a time.

The doctor gave a heavy sigh. "Second drawer on the left. There should be some syringes and medicine in there."

"I'll kill you. I'll bloody kill you both for this." Spit flew from Atlas' mouth as he thrashed and threatened us both.

"Actually, you won't." I hurried to the drawer and yanked it open. I grabbed a syringe and peeled it out of its sterile plastic container, then grabbed a bottle of medicine and held it up to the doctor. "This one?"

"Oh, I promise you I will. So long as the Earth moves around the sun, you will know my vengeance."

"Dramatic but okay." I waved the bottle at the doctor and raised my eyebrows at him.

The doctor nodded. "That's the one."

I pierced the rubber stopper with the needle and started to draw the liquid. "Atlas, think of it this way, when I save your bestie, you'll forgive me. Not right away of course, because you are a prideful son of a bitch, but when you get more centuries with him, eventually you'll come around."

"You do not know me!" He hissed. "Forgiveness is a virtue I do not have."

"That's enough." The doctor's eyes widened. "He'll be out for hours with that."

"Excellent." I pulled the plunger back a bit farther for good measure. I withdrew the needle from the rubber stopper and walked over to Atlas.

I leaned over him and his fangs extended as he snapped his teeth at me. I sighed and positioned the needle at the vein in his neck. "And you won't hurt the doctor because you know I forced him into this. If he hadn't told me, I would've used my power on him, and we'd be back in this exact position. Deep down, you know, and I know I'm the bigger threat."

His eyes widened as I jabbed the needle into his neck and pushed the plunger down. The effect was almost instant. Atlas' body went limp on the table, his eyes rolled back, and his head lulled to the side. I motioned to him. "Go ahead, doc."

The doctor rushed forward and placed more bandages over the wounds. He narrowed his eyes at me and gave a heavy sigh. "It'll be much easier now."

I winked. "I know."

"You truly do not fear him?" More techs hurried into the room and suddenly Atlas was covered in a sheet and being wiped down with some kind of liquid. I liked the way they took care to be sterile even though vampires were immortal. There was a level of respect for their care that the doctors and techs took that made me appreciate them more.

I shook my head. "Nah, like I said, I'm the bigger threat."

"Somehow I'm beginning to see that." He leaned over Atlas, examining the wounds.

"Oh, doc, they all will." And somehow I knew I wasn't wrong. My power made me stronger and faster, but my stubbornness would push me that much further and harder. "How long do I have until he wakes?"

"At least eight hours. At the most a day or two." He held his hand out and one of the techs placed a scalpel in it. "Are you going to stay and observe?"

"Not on your life." I turned toward the door. "I'm going to find someone who'll actually be helpful."

"Best of luck with that," he called after me.

I hurried from the lab and ran through the castle. When I first arrived here, I felt so out of place, but now I was beginning to get used to the dark, gothic interior and where the soldiers would be stationed. I knew the directions through the castle and navigated them easily. There was only one person who I knew would be on my side, so I hurried toward her.

Moira was walking out of the throne room as I was hurrying in. I tried to stop but nearly collided with her. She held her hands out and caught me by my arms. "Piper? Dearest, aren't you supposed to be with Atlas?"

I sucked in a deep breath and blew it out. "There was a small problem with that."

Her brow furrowed, and her fingers tightened on my forearms. "Is he dead?"

"Is who . . . oh god no." I shook my head. "Grayson is very much alive still, but I fear Atlas is not going to be the help we're looking for."

She pressed her lips into a hard line and dropped her hold on me. "Is that so?"

"Moira, I know you've lived years without your soulmate, but Grayson and I are just getting started. I need more time with him. I need to help him."

"I know the feeling." A haunted look passed over her face. "There is nothing worse than living without one's soulmate . . . To be alive and be so very far away."

"Will you help me?"

"Of course. I'll do anything within my power." She turned in the direction I'd come from. "But I'll be dealing with Atlas directly."

"No." I reached out and grabbed on to her, stopping her from leaving me. "I put him out of commission for now. But if I'm going to help Grayson, I need to know anything you can tell me. I know this will be painful for you, but will you tell me?"

Moira glanced around, looking to see if anyone was listening. "I'll tell you as much as I can."

I nodded. "Thank you."

She caught my eye. "All is not what it seems, Piper."