Swinging her legs quickly over the side of the examining bed, she wavered a bit as nausea washed over her. Lily shakily slid off the bed, swallowing down the bile that crept up her throat. Looking around the room, she didn’t really see anything she could use as a weapon… of course. That’s okay, she told herself. I am a weapon. She slowly walked over to the door and rested her back against the wall next to it.
Surely they would come check on her soon and when they did, she’d strike. Lily wasn’t sure how long she stood there leaning against the cool wall till she heard one of them coming. Closing her eyes briefly to prepare herself, Lily pulled her monsters close to the surface. Her skin tingled with the nearness of shifting and her fangs extended. Strike hard, strike fast, she told herself and as soon as the door was open Lily attacked.
She grabbed his arm and twisted it behind his back. Using his weight she swung him around to slam against the wall. He made an oomph sound and she lashed out a kick at the side of his knee, but he moved at the last moment and she missed. She turned to run out of the tiny room while he got his wits back but just as she took a step strong arms wrapped around her. “Lily stop, it’s okay. You’re safe,” said a deep rumbling voice.
She struggled for a few seconds more before she voice and his scent registered in her foggy brain. “James?” she said, stopping and turning to look at the man who held her. It was James. She looked at him confused for a moment. “What happened? Where am I?” She asked him. He released her from his tight grip and rubbed his forehead with a wince.
“You mean besides you giving me a possible concussion?” He asked, but there was no anger in his words as he shot her a smug smirk. “As to what happened, I was hoping you could tell me. When Sandy told us what happened in the parking lot, I went after you but by the time I reached you, you were laying in the highway in a puddle of blood. Now, where you are is the medical ward of the pack,” he explained.
Lily slumped on the medical bed in relief. “Oh thank God, I thought Silvano had taken me for some kind of lab rat thing,” she said then went to shake her head but winced.
“Take it easy alright,” James told her with a look of concern. “The doc says you’d be hit hard, really hard,” he explained and she glanced at him, noticing his worry. “If it wasn’t for being a hybrid you might not have survived it,” he admitted. Guess Silvano was pissed, she thought, touching the left side of her forehead and feeling a large goose egg bump there.
“After your girlfriend had told me to stay away from you, I went to check on the scents where you were attacked,” She explained, slowly pushing off the bed.
“She’s not my girlfriend,” James said, sounding testy.
“Well she came at me claiming you were hers so, it sounds like it’s serious to me,” she said sending him a teasing wink, ignoring the sparks of jealousy souring her stomach. She didn’t need or want jealousy. It must be an effect of the bond.
“She did what?” He said actually looking pretty pissed off about it and Lily hated how that made her feel better. She swore silently. She so didn’t need this distraction right now.
“Yep, but you need to tell your future wife that I meant every little word I said. I’ve been trying to be nice but if I have to be the bad guy I will,” she said, overly teasing him at first then growing serious. She started towards the door, but he grabbed her arm, not in a violent way but just keeping her from leaving.
“Stop it, Lily. I don’t like her, not even a little,” he demanded and she rolled her eyes at him, ignoring the light headed sensation it caused her. She started to tell him it was a joke when he pulled her in front of him and kissed her. Her knees buckled from the surprise or that’s what she told herself because the kiss definitely wasn’t so good that it actually made her forget everything, everyone, and every problem going on and just think about how good it felt to have his lips on hers.
“You scared the hell out of me Lily,” James said when the kiss ended and he hugged her tightly against him. “I just saw you there, laying in a pool of blood and it was like… I don’t ever want to feel like that again.” Lily swallowed and tried to regain her bearings. Feeling more than a little uncomfortable with the raw emotion of James’ voice and her own raging and chaotic emotions she decided to focus on Silvano.
“I think it was a trap because Silvano was waiting for me… and it worked James, he’s lost all influence over me. He can’t complete the blood bond,” She said, hating how breathless her voice sounded and he pulled away from her.
“And is that why he tried to kill you?” He asked and she placed a hand on his chest to create more space between them. She needed to think and not to feel so… warm and fuzzy.
“I don’t think he was trying to kill me, James. I think that was his “I’m so pissed at you” reaction and maybe punishment for creating a bond with you,” she explained. “But he is far from giving up.”
“We’ll deal with that when we get to it. For tonight, he’s done his damage,” he told her and she nodded in agreement.
“How’s Chris?” She asked as they finally left the little room and down a hallway. Noticing the look on James’ face, she added, “I’m pretty sure he and the others were fed large amounts of vamp blood and it affected their scents. I’m not sure they were given blood for that reason or something else entirely like psychical strength or strength of the persuasion.”
“Thanks,” James said quietly, giving her an appreciative smile. “Chris is doing a lot better now. He’s in the clear but still unconscious.” Lily let out a breath and felt the tensions in her shoulders relaxed.
“Thanks,” she said repeating his words as they walked into the waiting room.
“There she is,” Tony said, and hit his dad’s arm lightly. “I told you she’d be fine,” he added. Andrew and Sandy got up and swallowed Lily in hugs.
“He’s right, I’m perfect,” she told them, not liking being the center of attention. “Where’s Qin Xuan?”
“I’m here,” Qin Xuan said and Lily turned to look at her. Qin Xuan looked exhausted like she hadn’t slept in ages. “Oh that looks nasty,” she added and reached to touch Lily’s forehead. Lily batted her hand away.
“I’m fine, you’re the one who looks like hell,” Lily shot back and slung her arm over Qin Xuan’s shoulders.