On the Edge of Humanity (28 page)

“Wait. We’re not done talking.” My father grabbed my wrist.

“We have nothing left to talk about. My brother is dead because of you. You’re not my father.” I glared daggers at him, hiccupping from all the crying.

“I didn’t show you that picture as a sign that Sam is dead. I’ve been trying to tell you that he’s not dead—but we don’t have much time. Sam is at a point now that the only way to bring him back is for you to save him.”

I swallowed air and collapsed onto the couch.

“Please listen,” my father said as he wiped my tears with a stinky cloth he pulled out of his pants.

“How do you know he’s not dead?”

“It’s not important how I know. What’s important is that we discuss how we’re going to bring Sam home.”

Here we go. It’s all about the mission. My father the vampire SEAL—mission first, then family.

“That’s simple. You’re here now. And Webb said that Sam needs to drink your blood.”

“Yes, that would be true if he wasn’t on his deathbed. I’m afraid too much of his blood has been lost. Besides, it’s not that simple.”

“Yes, it is. You’re his father. Webb said that we needed to drink your blood to change. So rescue Sam and use your blood.”

He rose from the couch, walked over to the picture, which rested against the wall, bent over and picked it up. “Look closely at this photo.” My dad placed it on my lap.

I turned my head. I didn’t want to see Sam like that. It shattered my heart into a million pieces.

“Jo. I’m not asking you. I’m telling you. Look at the photo. I know I haven’t been around to help you through life and I’m not going to give you excuses. Please believe me when I say I don’t want you or Sam to live the life of a vampire. But sometimes, life doesn’t give us choices. Sometimes we have to do things we don’t like to save our family.” His voice was deep and commanding.

“Webb said I had choices, that I could make my own choice.” My voice cracked.

“I know what Webb told you. In case you’re forgetting, he also told you that Sam would need
your
vampire
blood to survive. Don’t lie to me. I know you’re upset, but don’t put your brother in harm’s way just to get out of this. We don’t have time for your teenage antics.” My father’s tone shifted to a low growl.

I dropped my head. I wasn’t trying to lie to him. I was incensed because he had left us all those years ago and felt betrayed that he waited until now to show up when my brother was on his deathbed.

“Okay, so what if he did?”

His eyes suddenly changed from green to black with a rim of silver pooling the edges. He took in a deep breath, raked his hands through his shoulder-length hair and cleared his throat.

“Do you think that Webb wanted to be a vampire?”

I raised my head as the cushion dipped beside me.

“Webb didn’t have a choice,” he said, his tone soft. “He was put in a similar situation. The only reason he is who he is today was to save his twin sister Kate. Their father couldn’t save her.”

“What are you talking about?” I asked. “They’re twins?”

I knew they resembled each other— they had the same color eyes and hair—but I hadn’t been around them for too long to even notice. Besides, I had my own hell to deal with.

“Years ago, when the mafia became a popular organization here in the United States, Webb’s father was a mafia boss, head of one of the most powerful families in Boston. What the world—including other mafia families—didn’t know was that Mr. and Mrs. London were vampires. Webb and Kate were still human at the time, but they carried the vampire gene. As the mafia was known for, Mr. London had several illegal activities going on within his organization. When crime and smuggling got out of control, law enforcement stepped in to watch all the mafia families very closely.” My dad shifted his position on the couch, taking the picture from me.

My crying had stopped, but my body still trembled. I thought of Tripp and his calming abilities and wished he were in here holding me. I had an inkling that this story wasn’t going to end well—at least not for me.

My dad scanned the picture of Sam then cleared his throat. “Kate and Webb at that time were twenty years old. They both had decided humanity was more important that immortality. They struggled with their decision for years. But things went horribly wrong for them. Not long after they made their decision to stay human, their father hired a lieutenant to take charge of one his smuggling rings. The young man, only a few years older than the twins, fell in love with Kate. As their relationship grew, the young man started to notice odd things about the family. Even though Kate was human, her senses were heightened and she had to live with some of the vampire qualities that came with carrying the gene. The young man started to notice. He got suspicious of the family and started taking pictures and jotting down observations in a notebook. But Mr. London also grew suspicious of the young man and had him followed one day. Turned out the young man who was in love with Kate was also working undercover for law enforcement. Mr. London went to confront the man, but instead found his daughter lying in a pool of her own blood. She had been stabbed several times.”

I covered my mouth with my left hand.

“Mr. London knew the only way to save her was for her to drink his blood. Since she was unconscious, he forced his blood into her. They waited hours to see if she would change, but nothing happened. They tried another pint, but still nothing. Webb was so distraught, he needed to do something. He wanted to save his sister more than anything, even if it meant his life for hers. So he changed; he became a vampire. He didn’t know if it would work, but he had to try. Within twenty-four hours Webb was able to feed Kate his blood, and Kate woke up hours later as a vampire.”

I rubbed my eyes. “I don’t understand. How did Webb know to do that? And what was different about his blood instead of his father’s?”

“Webb didn’t know. He just did it. He was desperate to save his sister.”

Unlike me who is struggling to save her brother.

He let out a long sigh. “After that incident, the family went into hiding. They left the country and moved to Mrs. London’s family estate in Ireland. It was there that they did a lot of research, paid doctors to study their genetic make-up. The family started documenting the research in journals and books to help other vampire families in case this ever happened to them. What they found was once the vampire-human patient, those who carry the gene, loses over forty percent of their body’s blood, they’ve passed the point of no return—in essence, death. The only person who could save them or change them into a vampire, however you want to look at it, is a family member who had all the right genetics. Their DNA matched up perfectly.”

I thought about the book I had in my hand earlier on
Vampire Genetics
. I should’ve brought it with me.

“You believe that Sam and I have the right genetic make-up?” I asked.

“You’re fraternal twins, so, yes, there is a chance. I know it’s a risk. Our situation may not be the same. It will depend on how well your genetic make-up matches with Sam’s, but Dr. Vieira has been working around the clock to find out. He has your blood sample as well as Sam’s.”

I closed my eyes and shook my head. “How did he get a sample of Sam’s blood?”

“Not for discussion. We’ve wasted too much time already.”

“Wait, I still don’t get it. How come I can drink your blood and change, but Sam can’t?

“Dr. Vieira can explain it better than me, but Sam is going to need a specific enzyme and an enormous intake of iron, which helps to make the hemoglobin necessary for carrying the oxygen from the lungs to the body tissue. New vampires need a large amount of iron. More importantly, as Sam’s twin you should carry the specific enzyme needed to infuse his cells and bone marrow. He’s lost too much of both. Since I’m too old, my body doesn’t produce a high amount anymore. You’re healthy and require little to make the change. My blood will only help him through you. Look, Jo, there are a lot of medical things happening here. There are classes and books dedicated to this. Patrick is very well aware of all this, which is why he tried to poison you, so you can’t save your brother. Revenge
is what he’s striving for here.” He paused and raked his gaze over my face. “If he’s successful, it may help his bigger goal to build an army for the Plutariums.”

I blew out all the air in my lungs. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Maybe I was still in the coffin, dreaming or hallucinating.

“I’m not going to force you into a specific choice, but you need to decide immediately. You’ve had plenty of time…too much time. As the days progress, Sam loses more blood and marrow. His kidneys are shutting down and—”

“Wait, how do you know this? You know where he is?”

He nodded. “I’m going to leave you alone for a few minutes. I need to make sure Dr. Vieira has completed all the blood work and tests and everything matches.” He walked to the door and paused. “Jo, I’m sorry. I really didn’t want to meet you under these circumstances and I certainly didn’t want your choices to be pressured like this.” He pulled it open and walked out.

Mary, Mother of God. My mind flipped in several directions from all the medical jargon. Questions piled up one on top of the other. However, two took center stage. How did my father know where Sam was? How did he get that picture and his blood?

I picked up the picture of Sam from the cushion and studied his lifeless body, tears forming again as I prayed he wasn’t in a lot of pain. I rubbed my hand over it and thoughts surfaced of us playing in the schoolyard. We were young and he had been teaching me how to play baseball. He’d throw the ball to me and I’d swing, missing it. He’d throw it again, and again I would swing and miss. We did this for hours until I had finally hit it, the ball soaring into the outfield. He had been so excited and proud of me, which at this moment, I imagined he wouldn’t be. What kind of sister was I? He’d always protected me, he’d always been there for me and I knew without any doubt he would die for me. Why couldn’t I make the damn decision to save him?

I was rubbing my eyes when a knock sounded and Kate walked in.

“Are you okay?” she asked.

“No. I hate my life. I keep hoping that I’m in a dream-like coma and at any minute I’m going to snap out of it.” I dropped my head in my hands.

“Sweetie, I can’t say I know what you’re going through because I don’t. I am extremely glad that Webb did what he did for me, even if we both didn’t want this life. Nevertheless, if it weren’t for him, I wouldn’t be here right now. While eternity sounds depressing, I am thankful that I get to spend it with him.” She rubbed her hand up and down my back.

“I’m an awful sister,” I said as the tears flowed down my cheeks.

She gently touched my chin. “Jo, look at me.”

I lifted my head and tilted it towards her.

“I know it can’t be an easy decision for you, but I’ll leave you with one last thought. Put yourself in Sam’s shoes. What if the roles were reversed? Would he do whatever it took to save you? Would you want him to? You know Sam better than anyone. Don’t let this vampire life scare you. Make your decision based on what’s best for you and Sam. If death is best for him, then so be it. If living with your brother and doing something to change this world for the better is best, then maybe immortality is the path you take.” She rose and walked to the door. “We’re here for you. All of us.” She flicked her hand in the direction of the lab. “You’re not alone.”

The door clicked shut.

After she had left, I sifted through everything my father had explained and some of the things that Kate had told me. While her words of wisdom were comforting, I wasn’t at ease with the decision I had to make.

I sat alone thinking, rationalizing and trying to put myself in Sam’s position. The weight of the world rested heavily on me. I was only a teenager and the vampires were asking me to make a god-like decision. It wasn’t fair. I should be in school, doing homework, going to school dances and hanging out with friends. Instead, I was sitting in a secret compound, in an alternate world, making life-changing decisions for Sam and me.

Without another thought, I stood up, wiped my eyes, took in a deep breath and walked to the door.

God help me for what I was about to do.

Chapter 17

W
hen I emerged from the
office and stepped into the lab, four sets of eyes stared at me. My father had a horrified look on his face. Could he read my mind? Webb appeared nervous, fidgeting with a syringe, one of Dr. Vieira’s many lab instruments. Kate and Dr. Vieira appeared calm.

Kate ran over to me and, as usual, put her arm around mine. “What have you decided, dear?”

I waited until we approached Webb, my father and Dr. Vieira, all of whom were standing near the lab bench on the far side of the room. After skirting a couple of desks and a table, Kate and I stopped in front of the three men. I closed my eyes and said a silent prayer.
Here goes nothing.

“I’ve made my decision,” I said with a whisper, dropping my gaze to the floor.

Suddenly, my hands were shaking, so I balled them, my nails digging into my palm.
You can tell them. They’ll understand.

Before I could get the words to roll off my tongue, my father grabbed me. I looked up and confusion flickered in his eyes.

“Please, Jo. Tell me your answer is yes,” he whispered.

I had thought he could read my mind, but I was wrong. He couldn’t.

A tear slid down my cheek and I closed my eyes, shedding more tears. My father’s grip became stronger and my body began shaking.
Get a grip. They’ll understand.

“Honey,” my father whispered. “It’s okay.”

“I…I…”

My father grabbed my chin and eased it up.

“Look at me,” he pleaded.

I opened my eyes and met his gaze. His forest green eyes were shifting as I stared at him, tears streaming down his face. He reminded me so much of Sam that a pain pierced my heart.

Then, as if the devil grabbed hold of my mind and twisted it, I said, “If I regret this then I vow to kill all of you.” My mouth hung open as I finished the sentence.

Kate leaned in. “Is that a yes?”

Did I just say that? I bent over, dropping to my knees.

My father pulled me to my feet and wrapped his arms around me. “We’ll get through this. I know life hasn’t been good for you, but given the chance, I’ll make it up to you,” he whispered, remorse soaking through his words.

I stood cocooned in his arms, his warmth wrapped around me, the tension seeping from every pore. Maybe part of me wanted his love and acceptance. I wasn’t sure how he could make up for the last fourteen years but I was willing to give him a chance…that was if we could save Sam.

He let go and stepped back. “Thank you, Jo. I promise I’ll do everything in my power to bring Sam back.”

I blew out a breath and wiped my eyes with the back of my hand—now what? Webb stood next to Kate. His eyes were wide, eyebrows raised as if he were shocked by my answer. Hell, I was shocked with my answer.

“Jo, please follow me,” Dr. Vieira said as he slipped on his lab coat. “We have much work to do.”

When Dr. Vieira spoke, my dad, Webb and Kate disappeared. I imagined to do some task Dr. Vieira gave them.

“Can I see Ben one last time?” I pleaded.

“You have two minutes,” he said.

I made my way to Ben’s room. His unconscious body was still attached to a machine, helping him with every breath. I walked up to the bed and grabbed his hand.

“Ben, if you can hear me, I want to tell you how sorry I am for getting you into this mess. I hope that the next time I see you, you’ll be talking and irritating me like you have been these past few days. Whatever happens I want you to know that I’m grateful for everything you did to help me. You were the best bodyguard friend a girl could have.” I kissed his hand then walked out, a tear trickling down the side of my face.