Jean waited for days and nights for her to contact her again but she hadn't and it frustrated her. She hadn't told anyone of her dream, even her mothers. It sounded insane every time she would think about it.
And the thought that her other half was in the hands of humans doing God knows what didn't settle the pain that had been nagging on her chest since she dreamed of it.
She ran a frustrated hand over her face as she read in the books about the ability her soulmate had. If she could find out what clan had the ability to connect to someone's dreams, maybe it would be easier to track who she was.
"What are you thinking?" A voice suddenly called her attention. She raised her head from the enormous book she was reading. A warm set of hazel eyes stared fondly at her. It had been years, but Andrea still looked almost the same, except she had smiled more now compared to when they first met. She remembered seeing her with sadness in her eyes. But now, they were happy and full of love. And she knew she and Taylor had to do something with that.
"Hi, Andy," she answered sadly at the thought of her soulmate suffering somewhere.
The woman stared at her, emerald eyes bored into her gray ones before giving her a small smile. "You and your other mother had that same brooding face when you're thinking hard. Tell me."
She sighed. "A vampire came to me in my dreams, a couple of nights ago. And... she... Humans have her."
"There's more to that, isn't it?"
"She... She's mine, Ma," she ran a hand on her face again. "She's mine and humans have her and I'm here doing nothing!"
She slammed her fists on the table, leaving a noticeable dent. Two warm hands held hers, prying them open. She looked up and watched as her mother looked at her with concern in her eyes.
"You're not doing nothing, my little one. You and Taylor are doing your best to look for those taken by humans, like Chloe's sister. Maybe when you found her, you'd find her there, too."
"Or, her sister could be your soulmate," Frank said from the library doors.
"Frank!" She jumped to her feet and threw herself towards the old vampire, almost tackling him. "When did you arrive from London?"
"Last night. I know I had to return as soon as I could when I heard there were vampires missing."
"What... made you say that Chloe's sister may have been my soulmate?"
"The Nightblooms, few as they were, had the ability to connect with their mates in their dreams without meeting them."
"So... she is my mate?"
"I would believe so. The Nightbloom clan had... dwindled for the past hundred years. I noticed that Chloe was relatively young for an ancient clan like them. I also think that the two of them were close, that's why the girl had a certain... fondness for you."
She turned her head towards her mother, a desperate look on her face.
"Ma, I need to find her, please."
"Come on. Let's find Taylor so we can look into this angle."
The three of them left the library with Jean hopeful things would turn around.
***
Jenna could feel the silver whip bite on her skin as he pulled it off. She felt it dug on her skin and burned her. Every slash imprinted for eternity on her skin. It was one of the most painful things she had suffered, and she had suffered at the hands of another, but she kept her mouth shut. Even in that kind of agony, Jenna refused to scream in front of him.
She couldn't make another connection to her soulmate. She was too weak to do anything. She had not been fed for days now, and she knew she was already fading. She could only hope for the best that her soulmate would find her.
The man grabbed her face, his fingernails digging hard into her skin. She could taste the blood in her mouth as her teeth bit into the insides of her cheek. There was a sinister smile on his lips.
"You're pretty strong. But I've had my fun," he snarled as he shoved her face back, "I have to meet my future wife, but when I come back, you filthy bloodsucker is dead."
The man, the leader of these Vindicators, raised his knees, hitting her hard on the stomach. She doubled over as she hung on the silver chain, her wrist throbbing from the metal and from the lack of blood.
He lashed his whip once more, the metal clinging on her collarbone down to the side of her hip and she heard it rip when he pulled it back.
The man threw the whip on the ground, and Jenna fell with it as the silver chain dropped from the ceiling.
When she knew she was alone, she let herself cry. She didn't bother to sit up. She was tired, she felt weak.
And it pained her to think that she would leave her other half without even getting a chance to meet her. Her only hope was her soulmate and her sister were safe.
She didn't know how long she lay there but she put all her remaining strength into her mind and tried to connect to her.
I am so sorry, my love.
Then she let the darkness consume her.
***
Jean was looking over the books and inventories in the bar when she felt a stabbing pain in her chest, making her vision double, followed by a chilling voice in her head.
I am so sorry, my love.
Her eyes widened as the connection was abruptly cut. She tried to reach out to her, but she couldn't.
Jean would have been hyperventilating if she was still breathing. She closed her eyes as she calmed herself when she smelled an intoxicating scent. A scent that only she would recognize without knowing who it belonged to.
It was her.
She turned around smiling, only to find Evan smiling fondly at her. She couldn't help but knit her brows together. She would know if it were his blood, but they had been together for too long she knew that scent was not his.
And that was when she caught the almost unnoticeable blood splatter on his shirt under his coat.
"Hey, you."
She did her best to smile. "Hey, Evan."
"How's the day in the bar?"
"So far so good," she smiled but she couldn't stop herself. "I'm sorry, but what's that on your shirt?"
Evan looked down on his shirt and there was a menacing smirk on his face when his gaze met Jean's. It was something she had never seen before on the man's face.
"It's blood."
She furrowed her brow. "Why do you have blood on your shirt? Are you hurt? Are you okay?"
"I'm okay, but this blood's owner is not. Do you want to know what blood is it?"
"What?"
"It's vampire blood."
Fear and anger coursed through her veins. "Evan..."
"Remember when we were kids? We'd argue about them, thinking they weren't real. You are very pro-vampire, I must say, it was like you knew someone who was a vampire. But... they are real, as real as you and me. And I have taken down a lot. They're very resilient, but I figured silver was not the only thing they're weak against."
She had to stop herself from attacking her boyfriend right there and then. "Will you stop playing games with me? It's not even funny, Evan."
There was a murderous glint in his eyes, another something she never thought she'd see in his eyes.
"This is not a game, I'm not even trying to be funny. You know, I plan to finish the owner of this blood. One of the strongest I encountered, she lasted weeks. But I can guarantee that silver could do the trick."
Jean's eyes widened in horror.
He is going to kill her.
"What's the name?"
"What?"
"The vampire you said you will kill. Do you know its name?"
"Jenna Nightbloom."
She was suddenly filled with dread, anger, and panic when she heard the name. Jean had inherited Taylor's ability to summon fire, and she tried her best to control the temper that comes with the blood.
"Prove it, then."
"Gladly. Come with me tonight at our base, then."
"How can I be sure that this is just not a ploy about taking me somewhere to take advantage of me?"
"I would have done that a long time ago if I wanted to."
"Fine, I'll come with you. But, if you try to pull something off, I'll have Taylor, Kyle, and Phil come and get you."
He laughed. "I have no problem dealing with Kyle and Phil," he commented, then his smile disappeared, his face darkening, "But with your adoptive mother? That's a completely different story."
Jean looked over at Philip. "You're in charge for now."
"And where are you going?"
"I'm heading out with Evan."
They stared at each other for a split second, a warning look, before Philip smiled at her and gave her a small nod.
"Alright. I'll make sure not to burn the place down."
She grinned at her and followed Evan out of the establishment. As they drove, her boyfriend began to elaborate on how his group would use wisteria's essence and scent to immobilize vampires and fear crept in her veins at the thought. She couldn't help but think about how they discovered their weakness to the flower.
She feigned interest in the topic when her mind was somewhere else.
Taylor, she called through her mind. Not a minute later she felt her mother connect to her mind.
You're agitated. What's happening?
Could you track me? Please.
Elaborate, little one. She could feel her thoughts filled with worry and concern.
Evan has my mate, but I don't know where. I'm with him. He's... one of them.
Her mind was filled with so much anger she almost flinched as the Countess went into a brief rage. Then it subsided.
We'll find you.
Jean was tensed for the whole thirty-minute drive toward their base, as Evan called it. The way he smiled brought a shiver down her spine. It was sinister, full of malice, and... it was obvious how enjoyed torturing vampires. It reminded her of the smile the man had abducted her when she was four.
"So," the man turned to her as soon as the car stopped in front of a gated compound, "Are you ready to face the first vampire you'll ever see?"
She swallowed down the bile coming from her throat as she smiled sweetly at him. "I'm ready."
I'm ready to save my mate.