Visiting hours at the hospital were long past—not that rules like that normally stopped Michaela.
She slipped past the security guards and nurses unseen and unnoticed, a skill she had learned over the turbulent early years of her life. Her mother had pulled them from one place to another, hiding them from the vampire father who would want to put an end to their existence if he discovered she was still alive and that he had a daughter. Her mother had succeeded for a long time and taught Michaela well.
The door to Diana's room was open. Michaela peered in and wasn't surprised to see that the FBI agent was busy reading a file of some sort, with the television in the corner on, news anchors babbling about the nightly news.
“Jesus keeping you up late?” she said as she sauntered in.
Diana smiled and her green-gold eyes glimmered with warmth and welcome. “Michaela. You're looking well.”
“Almost back to normal. I'm sorry I haven't come to see you before now,” she said, and meant it. Guilt had been dogging her for the past two months about her failure to reach out to Diana and Ryder after they had risked their lives to help her.
“I understand. Healing takes time, especially when you lose a good friend. I'm not wrong to think Benjamin was a friend, right?” Diana said astutely, and gestured to the chair beside her hospital bed.
Michaela accepted the invitation, taking a spot on the hard plastic seat and scooting it closer. Flicking a hand in the direction of the file and then the television, she said, “Do you always work like this?”
Diana grinned. “Multitasking.” She closed the file and reached for the remote to turn off the TV.
“That is work, I'm assuming.” Michaela knew Jesus had dropped by earlier, and had probably brought it along.
“Jesus thought I needed a distraction, and to be honest, I'm going a little stir crazy just lying here. I'm not used to being idle.”
Michaela made a face. “I know how you feel. After I was hurt, J wouldn't let me do a thing for over a week. Even after that, he kept on hounding me about trying to do too much.”
“You were badly injured,” Diana said, and her gaze dipped to Michaela's side.
Not that Michaela needed a reminder. The silver-covered stake the maniac had driven through her midsection had caused all kinds of damage. Although she was better now, she was still not 100 percent after nearly two months. The toxic silver had messed with her vampire half. Not to mention that the stake had done serious injury to her human parts.
“I'm almost back to normal,” she said to alleviate the other woman's obvious concern.
“I'm glad. So what's up?”
Nothing if not direct, Michaela thought. But then again, in the few times she and Diana had met, her directness had been one of the things Michaela had liked most about the FBI agent. Which she supposed warranted directness of her own.
“J told me about the test results. I know you're probably worried sick about the baby. About what it means to have demon blood.” She plucked uneasily at the faded denim of her jeans, which were a little loose because of the weight she had lost due to her injuries.
Diana rubbed a protective hand over her belly. “I know it couldn't have been easy for you to be different growing up.”
“It wasn't. But I haven't really talked about it much,” Michaela reluctantly admitted.
Diana leaned over and patted her hand. “You don’t need to worry about what you say. You have friends now.”
“I’m not used to...friends.” The admission didn’t come easily.
“Me neither," Diana said wryly. "You get used to it. It comes with the territory.”
Michaela narrowed her eyes. “I guess you think friends should share.”
“When you’re ready. And I'm sure there are things the Slayer Council would prefer you keep to yourself.”
“Lots. I guess that's to be expected, to maintain order.” The very strict rules had kept Michaela alive—so far, anyway—but it wasn't always easy to obey without question. She was impulsive and headstrong. Some would say the same of Diana, which probably explained why they understood each other as well as they did.
“What made you decide to become a Slayer?” Diana asked.
Momentary surprise flickered through Michaela. Surprise and uncertainty. She wasn't sure revealing so much was a good thing. But what the hell. It felt good to have a friend who would listen without judging.
She took a deep breath. “A vampire raped my mom and left her for dead. He had no idea that he had sired me in the process. Apparently vampires can breed more easily than most people believe.” Her eyes stung with tears, and she battled them back. Tears were a sign of weakness.
But despite her efforts, they spilled over and trickled down her face. She refused to swipe at them. To acknowledge them was to give them power.
"Oh, man," Diana said sympathetically. "I'm sorry."
Michaela shook her head. “I was ten when he found us. By accident, since he had no idea either of us was alive. My mother managed to hide me just feet away from where he attacked her. I had to listen to him violate her as she died. Heard him feeding from her.”
The tears welled up again, hot and thick. They splashed down her face, only this time she scrubbed them away with shaky hands.
Diana reached over and grabbed some tissues, handed them to her while she continued with her story.
“I wanted to help her, but I knew I couldn’t. I was too little.”
Diana's eyes were shiny when she said, “I was just eighteen when my dad died. A drive-by shooting. He sacrificed himself to protect me. I felt so responsible for his death. So guilty that I had lived and he had died.” She unconsciously massaged a spot on her ribs. "I still have scars from that day. Inside and out." She sighed. “I think we're a lot alike, you and me. Because of our pasts, it's hard for us to be open. To be in love.”
Michaela flinched at those words and raised her hands to stop her. “Hold up! Who said anything about love?”
Diana arched a brow. “So J is just your fuck-buddy? 'Cause I know him too well to think he would settle for that.”
“It's more than that and you know it." Michaela pressed her lips together. "But I didn't come here to talk about J.”
Diana nodded grimly. “I guess you know the baby has vampire cells in its blood. The same cells that will kill me unless Ryder turns me. Luckily, they haven't affected the baby’s health. Yet.”
Michaela shook her head. “If he turns you, he may save you and the baby, but you know what the punishment is for ending a human life by turning someone into a vampire.”
“You think Ryder should be punished for saving our child? For saving me?”
“There are rules—”
“Bullshit. Rules are no good if they're unjust. You know that in here.” Diana tapped a spot above her heart.
Michaela slashed up with her hand. “I won't discuss this now. I came to give you answers, not to have you put questions and doubts in my head.”
Diana held up her palms. “Okay. Fair enough. So tell me. What's it like to be a demon?”