“But…”
Maverick meets my gaze, an amused smirk tugging at his too-serious face. “I’m not her father, if that’s where your assumptions went. Do you think someone like me could produce an offspring with platinum blonde hair?” He turns back to Mikey. “She came ta me, mutterin’ something about getting stronger. She wanted ta protect her family, and she wanted to protect you.”
“Me?” I find Mikey again, holding her stare. She moves forward an inch, but the restraints keep her stationary. “Why me?”
Maverick snorts. “I remember thick like you,” he mutters, but doesn’t answer the question. Jutting his chin in Mikey’s direction, he continues. “She’s been docile. Won’t lunge ta attack us like Ari will. Anytime she says anythin’, it’s yer name.”
“Is she stuck like that?” I ask, moving toward her like I’m approaching a spooked horse. “Like Ari?”
The pause between my question and Maverick’s answer is too long. When I glance over my shoulder, Ein averts his gaze. Maverick continues staring at Mikey.
But the silence speaks volumes.
Mikey grows restless as I near, but she stays sitting on the ground. Her pupils are extremely dilated, the thin ring of iris around them seeming to glow in the dim lighting. There are a few blankets and pillows strewn about within her reach.
“Zeke,” she exhales. Her voice is raspy… but it’s her. My Mikey.
“So what’s the difference between these two?” I ask as I sit in front of her. She watches me with impatience. I can practically feel the waves of suppressed energy rolling off her.
“Age, stubbornness, level of control,” Ein lists. I hear him walking toward us. “Then there were those experiments. Her healing has increased exponentially, and I’m sure you’ve noticed the same uptick in yourself. Even Ghoul Stuns don’t have as much effect as before.”
“They won’t even work on ‘er now,” Maverick chimes in, turning to Ari. “Then again, they don’t on Ari, either. If they did, I would’ve had her back ages ago.”
The corners of my mouth tighten. “Rick hit me with a Bazooka when I first turned, and I blacked out. But recently I took a grenade to the face and was up and walking a few moments later.”
“Bleeders are tough creatures,” Ein mutters. Then he squints, tilting his head to the side. “Would it be insensitive asking to experiment on you?”
Mikey’s focus switches to the scientist and she bares her teeth. He lifts his hands, a sign of surrender. “Got it. No need to tell me twice.”
Ein reverses and saunters over to Ari, Maverick tailing behind him to give us space.
The contrast between the chained-up women is shocking. While Ari is tugging with all her might against restraints that won’t break, Mikey sits calmly before me with her clawed fingers laced in her lap. It’s like a feral creature versus a docile house pet.
“Hey,” I start, wringing my hands. “I hope you know I’m okay and I’ve healed completely. They patched me up good. I don’t think Maverick would have really killed you out there, but I couldn’t—”
Mikey shakes her head to interrupt me. Someone put her short hair in a ponytail. Strands still tumble around her face in tangled clumps. I can’t imagine how badly she wants to shower.
“Is it easy to control?”
Mikey doesn’t answer. Instead, she lifts her wrists to show me the shackles. The raw skin beneath tells me she’s struggled against them more than once. The last thing a free spirit like her would want is to be locked up.
I exhale, not knowing what else to say. But I do notice the way she looks me over, like she’s worried I’m still injured. I guess it makes sense since the last time she saw me, I was close to kicking the bucket. I wonder if the beating her conscience is taking right now is what’s helping her stay in control.
“I’m completely healed,” I reassure. “Ein, Maverick, and Aurora made sure I was okay until I got my regeneration back.”
Mikey’s expression softens, but only a little.
“And…” I breathe heavily, recalling what tumbled out my mouth in the heat of the moment. I told her I needed her. That I wanted her by my side. That I forgive her. “I meant what I said.”
Meeting her eyes, I see gray tears welling on her bottom lid. Her muscles twitch, like she’s desperate to close the distance between us. There’s a warmth that’s been coming from her since she locked on me, and her emotions are tangled but unexplainable. Or perhaps I’m simply refusing to decipher them.
I clear my throat and list our next steps. “Paws and Claws’ plans were delayed, but I’m not sure for how long. I just woke up. Thought you should be the first person I saw.”
A gray tear falls, her muscles strained. I study Mikey’s restraints. An overpowering urge to free her rises like a tide, but I don’t have a key, and I don’t know how to pick a lock. Besides, if Mikey can’t break out of them in Bleeder form, that’s got to mean they’re magically modified, right?
“I don’t know what the story behind Ari is, but it has something to do with what’s going on with you. Apparently, you’re more cognitive than her… and that’s throwing Maverick and Ein off. Ghoul Stuns won’t work to return you to normal, and they have never worked on her.” I pause, taking a breath. “Eventually, I have to help Etem find his birth mom, and I know you’re still looking for your dad. I’m hoping Aurora can assist.”
Ein and Maverick dodge Ari as she swipes at them.
“Hey,” I call to the guys. “Why don’t we release her?”
“Releasing Ari is a bad idea,” Ein calls back.
“No, not Ari,” I reply. “Mikey.”
They hesitate, the temperature in the room growing colder.
“She’s not going to hurt anyone,” I urge. “She’s responsive and under control.”
Maverick walks closer, his fists shoved deep in the pockets of his black pants as he scrutinizes me with those venomous ruby irises. A war rages beneath his pinched expression, no doubt recounting past experiences.
Suddenly I’m plagued by curiosity. “You said Bleeders originated from you.”
Maverick’s jaw twitches as he studies Mikey. “Aye.”
“Care to explain?”
Something starts beeping. Ein lifts his wrist, and that holographic screen appears once again, blinking red.
“Someone’s found us,” Ein announces as he nimbly sidesteps Ari’s claw. He makes his way toward the entrance, and Maverick moves to follow.
I reach out and grab the old vampire’s pantleg before he can get too far. “Unlock Mikey.”
Maverick’s face twitches, and there’s a sudden rigidity to his stature. The space around him tingles with danger, like pinpricks against my skin. “No. She could kill us all. Now get up and come with us.”
“Why?” I get to my feet, watching Mikey wearily as panic floods her irises. Everything inside me screams to stay with her. “You don’t need me to come with you, do you?”
“No, but I don’t trust you won’t try to help her escape. She isn’t like Ari, but who knows how long until she is?”
He isn’t wrong. I would have tried to get her out of those cuffs somehow.
I catch Mikey’s attention as she grimaces, struggling harder against her restraints. I’ll be back for you, Mikey. I promise.
Ein’s voice is annoyed but firm as he exits the dungeon. “Aurora, status.”
“Three creatures tripped the perimeter alarm.”
“Maverick can you—”
“I’m already on it, mate,” the vampire says as he steps out of the elevator and onto the first floor. He grabs my wrist and tugs me after him. “Be sure ya follow close, boy,” he says to me as the elevators shut and a dark shadow passes over his face. “Let’s hope this doesn’t become a blood bath.”