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cross between a baby taking its first steps and a
drunk. When he gained the lifeline of the bedpost,
Zacke grasped it with both hands and lowered his
body to sit on the edge of the bed.
Miranda skirted her way around him, keeping a
good foot away from him. She picked up the syringe
she must have placed on the bedside table.
 You have two seconds to inject yourself, or I ll
do it for you.
Zacke heard the tears beneath her abrupt
words.  I ll do it. He held out his hand, and she
slapped the cylinder onto his palm. The tremble of
her hand as she pulled back matched the tremors in
his own as he uncapped the syringe and discharged
269
Faith V. Smith
the air pockets. A moment later, the needle bit his
skin, and he shot the blood into his jugular. The
injection lacked its usual euphoria instead he felt
shame. Never before had he allowed Miranda to
witness the appalling act.
He turned away to hide the heat stinging his
face.
 It s okay, Zacke. I m okay. I would much rather
you yell at me than be ashamed. Miranda moved to
stand between his legs.  You re not a monster. Your
choice of how you take the blood you need to survive
is admirable.
Miranda s words touched his heart, and when
she embraced him, her body helped to repel the cold.
Much too soon she drew back and took the syringe
from his grip. She recapped it and placed it in the
biohazard container she had brought from the
hospital. Then she again cradled his head against
her chest. She made him feel loved. It had been so
long since he felt that way. He only wished he knew
if there would be many more moments like this.
Zacke shuddered as a chill speared the skin of
his back. For the first time in centuries, he wondered
if his immortality might be ending.
****
Gabriella rubbed her hands together in glee.
Lord Kensington had an Achilles heel, one besides
Miranda. Zachary s usual mind block against her
had slipped, not only that, it seemed he could no
longer sense her probably due to whatever illness
he suffered. It didn t matter to her how he d gotten
sick, but his weakened state meant her next move
would be even more interesting. And if all went well
with her human minions, the next full moon would
see her exact her revenge on Zachary and his mortal
wife.
270
Kensington s Soul
Chapter Twenty-Three
Miranda closed the medical book and tossed it
on the foot-high stack resting on the desk in her
home office. She rubbed her gritty, fatigued eyes; she
didn t need a mirror to know red had overtaken the
white sclera.
Zacke had returned to work over a week ago. He
wanted to go to work the night he became ill, but
she d threatened to stake him to the bed. Lucky for
her, Zacke hadn t been sure if she meant tying all
four limbs to the four-poster or a stake through the
heart.
Miranda would laugh if her insides didn t still
quake with terror. She had studied, taken vials of
blood from Zacke s already weak body, and still she
was no closer to finding a way to help him.
Turning off the desk lamp, Miranda stretched
her arms above her head. Muscles screamed in
protest to the movements she forced upon them to
work the kinks. Her neck popped as she rotated it
and then her back did the same when she bent at
the waist.
When she straightened up, a wave of dizziness
caught her unaware. Heaven s bells, all she needed
was to catch the stomach flu going around. She
inhaled and exhaled and soon her head cleared
thank the Lord. She needed to check the blood
samples she took earlier in the week against the
ones she had taken tonight. She prayed the white
blood count hadn t increased.
She had taken a week off despite the protests of
the hospital administrator. To salve her conscience
271
Faith V. Smith
and to keep the hospital happy, she had finalized all
the arrangements for the charity auction. Tonight
was the night, and she would be happy to have it
finished. The money the bachelors would bring in
would go a long way toward aiding the Children s
Cancer Ward, but she wanted to concentrate all her
efforts on Zacke.
Almost every waking moment she spent
analyzing samples, watching Zacke as he slept, and
giving him transfusions with the blood Mac had
swiped from the blood bank. She hadn t told him
about Zacke but Mac had not questioned her
requests, either.
She knew stealing was wrong, but she didn t
care. Zacke grew consistently weaker, and she feared
one day he wouldn t wake up.
Tonight, when he d awaken, his features had
been the color of milk. Miranda wasn t the only one
worried. Hawk and Miles cornered her several times
over the last week, their eyes full of fright and
desperation. She had no more to tell them than she
had Gideon in his numerous secret calls.
Although unspoken, she believed all four of the
people who loved Zacke felt it to be best to keep their
fears and anxiety from him. He had been like a man
possessed in the last several days, leaving as soon as
he fed to hunt Gabriella. Each morning he returned
without triumph, his mood went from surly to rock
bottom depression and then to rage.
A few nights before Zacke withdrew from the
auction. Nothing she tried could convinced him to
change his mind.
 I m leaving for work Miranda. Her husband s
words broke into her thoughts.
 All right, Zacke, but I wish you would change [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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