Page 32 of Newly Undead in Dark River

I frowned at him but looked down at how my hands were shaking. My legs did feel weak, but I’d put it down to jello-legs because of, you know, the ridiculous amount of sex I’d had last night.

I looked down at Judge, who was staring up at me with big blue eyes that were wild and a little bloodshot.

“Are you okay?” I asked, even if it was a little redundant. He was very much, not okay, but I wanted to hear him speak, just to reassure myself.

“Fine, Rainy Day.” His voice was rough and thready. I didn’t like it one little bit.

“Okay, tough guy. Let’s get you back to bed, and I’ll get you a bucket, some saltines and a bag of blood. Just call me Nurse Raine.”

He grimaced like he was in pain, and I moved away from his path to the toilet. But he didn’t move. “Don’t talk about role-playing when I’m weak as a kitten, Darlin’. That’s just not fair.”

I laughed and stepped away as Walker picked up Judge like he was a damsel. It was a testament to how ill Judge was that he didn’t even protest.

“You carryin’ me across the threshold, Sheriff? In some cultures, that’d make us hitched,” he poked half-heartedly.

A ghost of a smile curved one side of Walker’s mouth. “You aren’t my type.”

“What is your type?” He smirked. “Let me guess. Curvy redheads with a body that attracts the beast and a soothing innocence that attracts the man.” The smile slipped from Walker’s face as he dropped Judge none-too-gently on the bed beside Brody.

Brody didn’t even stir. He must be really exhausted. If his heartbeat wasn’t creating an enticing background noise to the drama, I’d think he was dead. Still, I reached out and stroked his hair from his forehead, reassured by the almost searing heat that emanated from his skin.

“I should get him a steak or an iron supplement or something. I took too much.” The guilt in my statement hung heavily in the room.

“I don’t think he’ll be complaining, Darlin’. Hell, I haven’t puked this much since I was a human, and if I had the chance, I’d redo last night all over again.”

I leaned forward and kissed his forehead, completely aware of Walker’s eyes, and more self-conscious of this small gesture of affection than I was of my nudity. If that wasn’t my life, in a nutshell, nothing was.

Judge’s eyes drooped as he desperately tried to hang onto consciousness, but his battered body refused to cooperate. When his ragged breaths became a muffled snore, Walker cleared his throat and tilted his head toward the kitchen. I stood, wrapping my robe tighter around my waist.

Walker moved around my kitchen like he belonged there, and maybe he did. Turning on my fancy coffee machine, he set a cup under it and turned to face me.

“Do you know what would have happened if Judge hadn’t been here last night?” His voice was a low, angry growl, but I knew it wasn’t directed at me. I was the victim here, the wronged party. Apparently, he mistook my silence as an indication I was a dumbass, he spelled it out for me. “You would have torn Brody to pieces. There would have been nothing left of him but gore on the carpet. You’d probably be dead too because you are a baby vamp and he is a shifter who has been training for decades to defend himself and his pack against our kind. You’d have the element of surprise though because he has feelings for you, so he would have let his guard down. I would have come here this morning, and instead of you getting...” he swallowed hard.

“Dicked to the nth degree?” I supplied a little unhelpfully.

He narrowed his eyes at me. “Instead of that, I would have been cleaning up your crime scene and mourning the short life of Raine Baxter.”

I stared at him because there was way too much in that short statement for me to unpack. I didn’t dispute what he said though. I remembered that feeling, like I wasn’t in control of my own body, even as my brain struggled to deny the impulses of my nature.

Finally, I nodded and sagged into the chair. “It was just my blood that was contaminated, wasn’t it?” Walker grimaced but inclined his head. “What was his endgame? My maker I mean. Why contaminate my blood supply?”

Walker let out a shuddering breath. “You would have been sentenced to death. There are few rules that are sacrosanct in Dark River, but the one golden rule is not taking a life. It wouldn’t have mattered to the Council, or to Brody’s pack, that someone had forced you into your feral state. There is no leeway, no second chances. You would have been executed by a member of the Council.”

I clenched my teeth so hard that my jaw hurt and willed myself not to burst into tears.

“So they are trying to have me put down like a puppy they don’t want anymore? Baby Vamps are for eternity, not just for Christmas,” I joked, even though I wanted to cry. Apparently, I wasn’t doing a very good job of hiding my emotional distress, because Walker whipped out a hand and dragged me toward his chest. I wrapped myself in his warmth, soaking in his scent and the feel of his chest against my cheek.

“It means someone is getting close, and he’s panicking. We will catch this guy, Raine. He will get what he deserves, and you’ll get your justice. I’m missing something important, I know it, but it’s remaining stubbornly out of reach. But I won’t give up. Not until you’re safe.” He sounded so sure, so steadfast, that I almost believed him.

Well, I refused to be run out of town. Mika might have turned tail and ran away, but I was making the best out of this shitty situation, and I refused to lose another family to that psycho. I pulled away from the strength of Walker’s arms and straightened my shoulders.

“I better get ready for work.”

Walker looked like he wanted to argue. In the end, he sighed and shook his head. “You’re right. As much as I want to make you stay here and keep you safe, you don’t deserve to be locked away in here like a prisoner. Just promise me you won’t go anywhere alone. Ask Brody if he can get Miranda to come over and ward the apartment.”

“Miranda?” I asked, and tried not to let the little touch of jealousy I felt bleed through into my tone.

Walker looked uncomfortable as he picked up his Mount-Me police hat. “She’s the billion-year-old Witch that wards the Pack lands against unwanted Vamp visitors. She makes me feel...vulnerable. But she is good at what she does. Locks don’t keep this guy out, but a protective ward by Miranda will prevent even an ancient from entering.”

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