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Bastien carefully set asidea rounded dish. I knew absolutely zero about science beyond the words mitochondria and nucleus. His large body leaned over the desk. He’d tossed the box toward the large tarp covering the vampire they had tied up. I forced my attention away from the pooling blood pooling. I meant what I said, not knowing was best.

I had a soft heart—I acknowledged I wouldn’t be able to handle whatever mess was under there. It wasn’t like I could stop it; the vampire had been a part of the plan to burn Crimson Nights down, I wanted him to spill.

I knew how losing everything felt. And answers were needed. Imogen was behind all of this, but it had to be proven.

“Genetic mutations and recent scientific discoveries have come a long way. So much has changed in the decades I have been trapped.” He lifted the needle, drawing back the plunger. “So much has changed, yet so much has remained the same.” A small smile played along his lips. “Humans never know when to quit.”

“You can say that again,” I muttered.

“Humans never know?—”

“I didn’t mean that literally.” I laughed. Bastien cocked his head studying me. A small smile crested his lips. His red eyes scanned my face.

“I am not sure what you mean.” He frowned. I pressed my lips together.

“You have a lot to learn.”

Bastien grunted. “Yes, I will learn quickly. Asher ordered that device for me.” A computer rested toward the other end of the metal table. “Hold out your arm.”

He slid the needle into the bend of my elbow. He tugged the tube connected to it. Oh, so slowly, blood traveled up the tube and slowly began to fill the bag.

“This will take a while, but I need to take additional blood to check if there are antibodies matched in the ones I found in mine. Then I will combine it with human and then vampire blood to see the reaction.” He seemed so in his head about all of this. Intelligence brightened his eyes. He liked doing this stuff.

“Is that all I am to you, Bastien, an experiment?” He excitement was oddly cute.

“Not at all.” He straightened so quickly; it jostled the blood in the bag.

“I don’t know, it sounds like it.” A muscle jumped in his jaw, but his expression remained non-aggressive. Messing with him was fun. A flustered Bastien.

“You are not an experiment?—”

My smile stretched the corner of my lips.

“You are laughing at my expense,” he said, nodding.

He cupped the back of my neck and tugged my chin up to look at him. He studied me with blood red eyes. They no longer made me want to run the other direction. He hadn’t known what he’d done. “Naughty, Little One,” he said gruffly against my lips.

I smiled. He grunted and caught my mouth. He glided his tongue against my fang and groaned.

“If I do not finish now, I will not be able to.” He sighed and straightened. He fiddled with the bag and my dark-red blood swished side to side.

“I heard you beat Asher on how many Progeny you have. Is it really that many?”

“I like experimenting.” So that was a yes.

He raised the needle from my skin. A single drop of blood formed. Bastien lowered his head and swiped his tongue across it. He hummed.

“And what makes me taste good to vampires?”

“That you’re a predator. Your food source is us. It was an attempt of hunters to take us out, but I believe it’s morphed and yours behaves like an antibiotic, attacking the virus.” He wagged the bag of blood at me. “There will be answers soon.”

“Can I stay and watch you work?”

“You are always welcome where I am.” Bastien cupped my jaw and kissed my forehead. Butterflies flooded my stomach. Such a sweet talker.

“Can you hand me your computer?” He slid it toward me, then returned to drawing a vial from the blood bag. He removed the tube and sealed the cap onto the edge of the clear bag. He left the vial on the little stand and took the bag to the mini fridge where he’d stored more bags of blood.