Page 41 of Resurrection
The trip back to the Dominion to retrieve Seiran’s minivan, was done in silence. Gabe was grateful that Seiran did not close the bond, even as worn and faded as it was. The tie felt a bit like it was wrapped in cotton and covered in fog. But it kept him clearheaded, and had rewarded him with a slow trickle of memories.
A bonfire. A very young witch. Sam had been right; Gabe had seduced a barely legal young man. The glimpses were stuttered, and limited to snapshots rather than full replays of events, emotions, or even memories of conversations. The tears came back several times. Gabe had been good at making the witch cry. A thought that made the knot in his stomach tighten.
But his scattered memories made him realize, for all the shit Seiran Rou experienced, the witch was insanely good at surviving. No matter what anyone threw at him. Hopefully they could mend their bond and Gabe would have more details. The snippets he got weren’t enough to clarify the thousands of questions he had. Their time together short, but seemingly complicated.
With the close of the day—the full darkness overhead passing by as they drove—and even though he felt calmer, the hunger grew. He shuddered at the thought of drinking from more bags. But he’d do it. He hated to think he’d be a danger to the children he had yet to meet. How old were they anyway? The one on the phone hadn’t sounded very young, at least that he could tell. And since he’d been in the ground almost a decade and a half, they had to be under that, right?
The gates to the house finally appeared. Large looming things that really kept people out because they were so high a drone would be needed to see over them without triggering the security cameras or wards Gabe knew were all over the property.
“Drones?” Gabe asked suddenly, remembering the vague image.
“Yeah?”
“I remember drones were a thing becoming popular.”
“In the military back then, yeah. They used them during the Vampire Wars to scan for lower heat signatures at night. Now just about anyone can have a drone. They don’t all do fancy stuff like that, but Ki has one. He mostly takes pictures of birds with it,” Seiran said. He sounded tired, but was attentive at the wheel, steering them up the big circular drive and parking near the front door.
Jamie was there on the steps waiting, and so was another man that pinged something in Gabe’s memory. “Mike,” he said as the name popped up like it belonged. Dark hair, wide shoulders, and a tan skin tone that had him looking a bit Middle Eastern.
“You remember him?” Seiran asked, putting the car in park, but leaving the keys in.
“Um, no, but yes?” He had no idea how to explain.
“Sounds complicated,” was all Seiran said as he got out. Gabe followed his lead.
“Hey, Boss!” Mike said. “Wow, haven’t seen you looking this rugged since Ireland about a hundred-fifty-years ago. Not a bad look though.” Mike held out his hand, which Gabe took in a handshake. There was a flood of images then. A wave so strong it nearly sent Gabe to his knees. Lots of Mike and a dozen different names he’d called himself over the years. As well as a sense of kinship that locked into place.
“Sorry,” Gabe said, trying not to succumb to the desire to lay on the ground and let the memories fall where they may. It didn’t hurt, not really. More that it was too much. Information overload. A thousand ants in his brain all trying to find their way back home at once while traveling in different directions.
Mike didn’t let him go, instead tightening his grip which half helped Gabe stay upright. “Just breathe through it,” Mike said clapping him on the back with his free hand. “That first big rush is a real bitch.” He pulled a handkerchief out of his back pocket and handed it over. “Nose is bleeding. That’s normal too.”
“Mike is going to take him to feed,” Jamie announced to Seiran.
Gabe felt a wall build against him almost instantly, like Seiran was gearing up to be hurt. Fuck.
“Is that a good idea?” Seiran asked. “He’s sort of hanging on by a thread.”
“I’ve got him in hand,” Mike said. “As one of his betas, I’m strong enough, if necessary. I think he’s just struggling with not having fresh blood, and too many memories out of place. It happens after a long bit in the ground.”
“What was the longest you were ever down?” Jamie asked him. He didn’t seem to have the same dislike for Mike that he had for Gabe, but then Gabe suspected Mike hadn’t done something terrible to Seiran.
“A decade,” Mike said. “After that excursion in what is now Egypt. Those fuckers really liked messing with death magic for a while. Pulled some crazy shit in the name of their gods, or whatever. Thankfully, the embalming crap was saved for the rich and powerful, so they just ignored the rest of us mostly dead looking things. Can’t imagine what coming back from an embalming would do to a vampire.”
“Ancient Egypt?” Jamie asked. “Like theMummy?”
“Don’t get me started on mummies. Not at all like the movie. Much more terrifying when books of the dead are involved. Luckily, we destroyed the last of those.”
“Are you pulling my leg?” Jamie asked.
Mike laughed. “You’ll never know.”
The nose bleed began to slow, though now Gabe felt a little light-headed. “Is it safe for me to leave when we haven’t renewed our bond?” He asked Mike.
“Yes. The bond will never be completely severed. It’s just a bit withered right now. Probably best that you not feed on your Focus right away anyway. Too much at once. We don’t want your brain to explode.”
“Feels like it already has.” He had a throbbing headache all of a sudden.
“That’s the need to eat. Let’s get you fed.”