Page 7 of Collected By the Crow

“This is a mess. Why did you bring her here?”

You need company.

“I do not need company. I have dozens of useless crows for that!”

Master, you are not yet mated.

She will balance you.

“Bah!”

He shut out the barrage of disapproving remarks and thrust away from the railing. He could easily find another scientist. He shouldn’t want her to come back. He never wanted to be as terrified as he’d been under her scrutiny.

The last time he’d felt fear was under Dracula VI’s employ. The tyrant king had a thirst for perverse knowledge that would’ve drowned them all. As his lead scientist, Qadaire had done unspeakable acts that went beyond any code of ethics. Nothing compared to the fear Qadaire had felt the day he decided to end the reign of terror. He’d blacked out for most of it, but he remembered the fear. He was terrified as he drove the stake through the mad king’s back. Terrified when the mad king started to chant. Terrified when the king’s words went abruptly silent, body limp. Terrified when powerful magic ripped apart his every blood cell. It was the most horrifying moment of his everlasting life. Nothing compared.

Until now.

“How weak I’ve become.”

There was also a blinding heat, the raging heat of a star’s collapsing core. Like he was experiencing a celestial incident.

Qadaire shoved the thoughts away and stowed them inside his black heart, where he could pretend they didn’t exist. Regardless of how she’d responded to the wretched sight of him, she would leave when the work was done. He couldn’t force her to stay, regardless of how badly he wanted to lock her inside the castle.

“I’m not a madman.”

He needed to prepare the lab. Once she returned, they would set right to work. The sooner they finished, the sooner she was on her way. It was better for them both. Would he be able to rein in his impulses? The scent of her blood swirled through his mind. No, he didn’t trust himself.

The lab was quickly prepped for their experiment. Using his formula, the illness could be eradicated through a series of medical treatments. Since it was an urgent matter, he’d reached out to Dr. Billing immediately upon discovery. That being said, his theories on the mutated strands were not complete. He foresaw little difficulty on that front, however. Especially with the brilliant Dr. Billing by his side.

He heard the soft pad of his house guest’s feet far behind. Zero was following him. He placed the utensils in his hands on the table and retreated. The poor thing was borderline pathetic. No doubt the journey into the woods exhausted him, bringing his imminent downfall closer. Qadaire lifted him in his lower arms, using his upper hands to comfort him.

“Your human will be back soon.”

It brought him a weird sense of triumph knowing that the peculiar woman who dared to say no would be returning to his very castle. He only hoped he could keep his many hands off her.

Chapter Five

Cassandra

Cass jogged most of the way home. When she arrived at her doorstep, she barged in and collapsed onto her knees, huffing and puffing. Once she could breathe again, she started tossing things into a duffel bag. She practically danced through the rooms, excitement, hope, and a thrill of fear drumming through her. It was the first time the numbness in her soul had relented in months. All of her suppressed emotions came back in a rush that gave her whiplash. She grabbed her keys off the table. She saw her book on the couch as she passed and twirled back around to snatch it.

Why am I smiling? Unable to fully shut down the little inquisitive voice that lived in her mind, she rolled her eyes. It was a good thing she lived alone because she was totally unhinged right now, nothing like the put-together lead scientist that she was.

They hadn’t broken ground on this project in a long time. The last breakthrough they’d had was at the very beginning, when an epidemiologist determined the pathogen and risk factors. Then everything stalled, silence in the news room but for the rising number of pets lost. There was no way to know if Qadaire was telling the truth, but his bizarre appearance reminded her that there were wonders out there. Things that defied logic, physics, and science itself. It gave her renewed hope that a solution was possible, and within reach.

That being said, she was anxious without Zero by her side. He was her tether, no matter how numb she was. She could turn off the feeling while at work because she had to, but now? She questioned her decision to leave him with the mysterious stranger, but she had to drown that thought out. He’d been too tired to make the return trip, and she couldn’t have carried him the whole way. That man had wings, though, so couldn’t he have flown them both? She got the distinct impression that he didn’t leave that place. She really couldn’t blame him.

Her heart cracked to think someone would be subjected to science so warped and cruel. She inferred by the way the crows acted toward him, how they seemed to know him, that he was friendly with them. Was he their leader?

With a bag packed, she tried again to reach Ali. Her best friend was the head of the department next to Cassandra’s. Ali had technically been her first love, but that was ages ago. Back when they were naive preteen lesbians who thought things were clear-cut. Some insight would’ve been nice, instead of living into her near-thirties before knowing what she knew about herself now. Puberty may’ve sucked less, but then again, it was notoriously a shit show.

No answer. She sent a text, then tried calling again.

“Hey, dude, I really need into the lab. I think I’m onto something. Please call me back!”

Cass really didn’t want to wait until morning. Zero was in an unknown place with a stranger. She slung the duffel bag over her shoulder and fumbled around for her keys. Maybe the janitor was still there, right? Doubtful. She had to try.

A couple of crows preened each other on the hood of her car.

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