Chapter Ten (Alexander)
Monday.
Back to school, or so I thought. I started to leave my room when I spotted Storm leaning on the railing of the stairs, wearing only a pair of his sexy leather pants, hugging his firm ass and strong hips. I raised an eyebrow, shrugging my bag onto my shoulder as I approached him.
"What's up with you?" I asked. Storm didn't look at me, just stared straight ahead out the window across the foyer that looked out to the street outside and the many houses after that.
"I went to visit Mark yesterday." He stated. I blinked, then nibbled my lower lip as Storm folded his hands against his mouth, just staring silently. I didn't say anything after a while and when I started to, Storm spoke.
"He was like a zombie." He murmured. I frowned.
"What'd you mean? I thought the medication was helping." I said in confusion, lowering my bag to the floor as I came to lean on the railing beside him, studying his stoic face before he grimaced, looking down at the hallway.
"I don't understand. Something's not right. We're missing something... I went to see him yesterday and he was completely... out of it. When we went to see him Saturday, he was reacting fine to everything we were saying and doing."
"If you call ripping his gown off and staring at his cock something normal."
"Not that, Alexander. I'm talking about... Well, yesterday when I went to see him, they had him drugged up so badly, he didn't even know who I was. I kept saying his name and he kept staring at me. His eyes were glazed over and he was... Just... mentally not even there. He was in his own world." Storm explained in frustration. I stared at him, stunned.
They drugged him? I knew Mark was in pain, but they had a limit to how much they could give a patient. That much I knew from watching my parents at work, so why would they make it so he can barely communicate?
"We need to go back to the hospital." I stated with finality. Storm pushed off the railing with a frown.
"You have school. Not to mention, they cancelled visiting hours for Mark because of his current state." He added. I rolled my eyes, heaving my bag up over my shoulder and taking him by the elbow as I led him to his room to get a shirt on.
"Quit following the rules for once. If you loved Mark so much, you'd be willing to break any rules to keep him safe." I responded sternly, standing in the doorway. Storm stared at me for the longest time, slowly looked away, then went to his dresser for a shirt. I sighed in relief as he tugged a black t-shirt on while grabbing his leather jacket. We turned to head down the stairs, only to have Amber standing there, wearing a beige pleather jacket over a brown turtlenck that matched her mini-skirt over long black stockings that disappeared into her heels.
"We headin' out?" She asked, tugging a black slip beanie on so it hung off the back of her head, her blonde curls keeping it on perfectly. Storm stared at her in disbelief and I'm sure my expression matched as she snorted.
"I may not be a man lover, but I'm a Mark lover and I want them to keep their paws off him. I agree that something's not right. Mom and dad have been quiet about everything that happened Friday night." She explained, turning to head down the stairs. Storm and I shared looks before following her down the stairs.
"But three of us going is suspicious." I protested.
"I already don't like this idea." Storm put in as we reached the door. Amber opened the door and turned to face us, putting a hand on her hip that she thrust out dramatically, giving us a cocky smirk.
"Boys, boys, please. The reason I love my female kind is because we're far more devious and intelligent than males. Now, follow me. We're taking my Jeep down to the hospital. I'm going to give you a run down of the plan and we're gonna follow it to a T. Is that clear?" She asked, putting her other hand on her hip and waiting impatiently for our response. I didn't hesitant much longer and nodded.
"Amber's right. She's been disobeying my parents since she came out of the closet. She's done this sort of thing before." I added, making Amber nod in agreement confidently. Storm stared at her for the longest time, looking reluctant before he sighed.
"Fine... But promise me we'll get Mark safe. I... don't want anything to happen to him." He said at last, making me look at him in surprise. His expression was so serious and concerned.
He really did love Mark.
It made my heart swell and ache at the same time. I was happy for Mark and Storm. Storm loved Mark enough to bend the rules, be them human or otherwise. Part of me wished I wasn't so cowardly and would break off my marriage to Storm, so I could be with Nicholas.
Nicholas, who hadn't talked to me since Friday night. I had a strong feeling he was angry with me and it just made me feel absolutely miserable.
Ugh, no. What am I doing? This is no time to be worrying about my sex life.
This is the time to worry about Mark.
Something was wrong and we were about to find out.
We piled into Amber's Jeep as she kicked it into reverse, sending us flying back as she did a spin and headed down the road. Storm gripped onto the door handle desperately, his other hand grabbing onto my hand hard enough to almost snap the bone, making me hiss past clenched teeth.
"Can you at least drive like a human?" I demanded in disgust, letting go of Storm's hand as he shook his out. Oh, yea, sure. His hand hurt. Amber smirked as she pressed on the gas.
"Whatever. Anyway, you two are going in. I'm going to hang back near the lobby, but act like I didn't come in with you. I haven't visited that ward yet, so none of the nurses there should know me. I'll hide somewhere near the ATM machine while you guys go in and do your thing. If anything goes wrong, I'll be right there for you. Keep your cell phone with you, just in case I need to call something in or vice versa. Think you two can handle that?" She asked as she turned a corner, heading for the hospital.
"Sounds simple enough." I admitted. Storm frowned, sitting back in his seat, but still gripping the handle tightly just in case Amber tried any more donuts on the road.
"I suppose... But, what could go wrong that would require your help? Not that you aren't useless," He added quickly when Amber raised an eyebrow, "I've never seen witchcraft don't so nicely. But, what I mean is, what situation are we getting into?"
"We'll know in a few minutes," Amber responded as she screeched into the hospital parking lot, making me grimace as my stomach churned and Storm grabbed my hand again, "Vampire and vampette, we have arrived." Storm and I peered out the window at the hospital.
It was huge and made of nicely chisled bricks and large windows looking into the main lobby and waiting rooms as well as other windows that went to the examination rooms. The emergency ward that Mark was stationed at currently was on the third floor in the left wing, which meant it was usually about five minutes until you reached it-- by elevator.
"What was that vampette comment about?" I demanded as we climbed out of the car and I cast Amber a sour look as she adjusted her beanie before flashing me an innocent grin.
"No offense, Ally cat, but any guy could top you... Except maybe Mark. He seems too innocent." She added with a shrug, making Storm frown. I scowled, feeling my cheeks warm up despite the cold autumn air. The sky was cloudy, hiding the sun away as if to hide the only witness to what was going to happen today.
The wind held a winter nip to it, warning us that Samhain was only days away. We had to work fast and clear things up before then, or the rest of the winter would surely bring bad luck. Not to mention, my parents would kill me if I skipped one of the most important Sabbats.
We headed in, Storm and I leading as Amber hung back, her hands in the pockets of her jacket. We moved quickly, but quietly and tried to act as natural as possible as we got into the elevator with three other nurses, a doctor, and a patient with her lawyer. The elevator rose, playing a freeform jazz song before stopping on the third floor. Storm and I got out first, walking past the glass that blocked off the waiting room before approaching the front desk.
"Hello," I greeted politely, making the nurse behind the desk smile, "We came to visit Mark Capulet." The nurse paused, biting her lip for a moment as she rose to her feet, peering into the ward before looking back.
"I'm not supposed to allow visitors for the rest of the week. He's become extremely ill and we're afraid his lungs could collapse any time now." She explained carefully. I looked at Storm, who leaned on the counter. I was flabbergasted as Storm actually gave the nurse a heartbroken puppy dog face.
"Ma'am, please. If this is our last chance... I need to see him. Please." Storm murmured, clasping his hands together tightly on the counter. The nurse stared at him and I watched as her heart seemed to slowly break. Her eyes filmed over with tears and she just nodded quickly, putting a hand to her chest as she went to the doors, letting us in.
"I can't give you too much time, but... Any time is better than none." She whispered to us, closing the doors behind us. Storm and I immediately stepped inside, heading for Mark's bed.
"Jeez, when did you learn to make that kind of face?" I asked, perplexed and cocking a brow at him. Storm shrugged as he peered around the curtain.
"Practice... Oh Goddess."
"What?" I came around Storm's side, then froze. Mark was lying in his bed, his hospital gown rumpled and his hair just slightly damp from a shower maybe about an hour or two before. His eyes were glazed over and he was breathing heavily, wheezing unlike before past the ventilator. He looked like he was completely unable to communicate. Even his notepad and pencil were gone.
"What happened?" I asked aloud in disbelief, coming forward to stand by the bed. Mark didn't even seem to notice me, gazing off into space, his head lolling to the side for a moment before he choked past the tube.
"His morphine is through the roof." Storm noted as he stood by the machines, studying the stats with a concerned frown.
"That's dangerous, though," I protested, leaning on the bed railing and reaching out to touch Mark's hot forehead, "It may have dulled the pain, but his energy's being sapped by it. He doesn't have enough energy to bring oxygen into his lungs."
"They're not saving him," Storm muttered darkly, hitting a button on the machine, "They're killing him. We can't leave him here." I blinked and snapped my head to look at him in disbelief.
"Killing him? But-- Wait, what do you mean we can't leave him here? We can't take him! He'll die if we take him off the ventilator for too long!" I exclaimed, looking down as Mark lazily lifted his hand to run down my arm. He seemed to try to say something past the tube in his throat, but failed miserably and choked. Blood oozed from one corner of his mouth, running down his chin before I wiped it off with my sweatshirt sleeve, looking back at Storm, who studied Mark seriously.
"Even a nurse knows that upping an emphysema patient's morphine will cause them to eventually crash. We need to get him out of here. Your family owns this hospital, right? They must have a ventilator somewhere at home." He told me, looking up. I scowled.
"Yea, four totally healthy creatures of the night have ventilators in their house, you know, just in case one of us gets lung cancer and cures it within a day." I answered sarcastically. Storm rolled his eyes, then held his hand out.
"Give me your cell phone. We need to call Amber." He ordered. I didn't hand him my cell phone, instead just taking it out and dialing her number myself.
"Hellooo?" Amber asked sweetly.
"Amber. We need you to steal a ventilator and take it out to your Jeep."
"Yea? Well, I want to marry Angelina Jolie, but you don't see that happening."
"She's not agreeing." I said to Storm, handing him the cell phone. I ignored Storm's scolding Amber as I looked down at Mark, who seemed to notice me for the first time, tilting his head a little. I tried to smile, but failed miserably as I touched his shoulder.
"It's me, Mark. Alex. Storm and I are going to get you some help, all right?" I asked. Mark stared at me for the longest time before his eyes widening a little and he grabbed my wrist, but in a very weak grip. I frowned, confused as I tilted my head.
"What's wrong?" I asked, ignoring Storm as he chided Amber for being a child. Mark seemed to try and tighten his grip on me, but failed as he choked and coughed on his ventilator tube. I nibbled my lower lip, glancing at Storm as he stood at the foot of the bed. I looked back at Mark, his eyes pleading.
I can't believe I'm going to do this.
I reached out and unscrewed the machine from the tube in Mark's throat, making the heart monitor jump. Storm whirled around and dropped the cell phone on the bed, his eyes widening.
"Alexander! What are you doing?!" He demanded, reaching out to grab my hands, but I slapped his away, reaching for the tube that Mark was choking on.
"He has something to say! Let him say it!" I snapped. Storm seemed to be having a mental battle of whether to stop me or not, but he didn't have anymore time as I removed the tube from Mark's throat. He choked and gasped, grabbing at the blankets. The heart monitor leapt further and the sound of Mark's heart pounding violently in my ears drove me insane.
Now that I was full of my daily dosage of blood and at full strength, I could just hear the holes in his lungs scrunch as his lungs clenched in an attempt to suck in oxygen.
"Mark?" I managed uneasily now. Storm snatched up the cell phone, ordering Amber to hurry up before hanging up the phone and shoving it into his jacket pocket. He came back to stand by the bedside, putting an arm under Mark's head and sitting him up on the bed. He pushed Mark so he was leaning forward, sucking in deep breathes of air.
"S-Sn... N..." Mark tried, then stopped to cough, putting a hand over his mouth. Storm and I both stiffened, grimacing as one when a couple droplets of blood fell into Mark's palm.
"N-Nurse... Th-The nurse..." Mark croaked, then stopped to cough again, breathing hard. Storm looked around quickly before his eyes landed on the lunch tray of the next patient over. He snatched up the bottle of purified water and quickly popped it open. He tilted Mark's head back, pouring some water down his throat. Mark choked at first, then swallowed it before taking the bottle and taking big gulps.
"Mark?" I asked. Mark set the bottle in his lap, his fingertips trembling as he sucked in a deep breath.
"Kelsey! Boots! Her-Her boots!" He managed. Storm frowned, confused for a moment before looking at me. I looked back and went to mention the nurse from the other day when we heard someone yell at us. We looked up to see the nurse known as Kelsey coming into the ward.
My eyes instantly went to the pair of steel toed boots she wore. She stopped halfway toward me, frowning before looking down at her boots, then back up. She stared at me and in that second... Everything clashed.
I started to Kelsey, but she rushed toward me faster, snatching a scalpel off a tray at the foot of another patient's bed. Storm moved quickly and caught her wrist, snapping it so the scalpel went flying.
"Get off me!" Kelsey snarled and flashed a pair of sleek white fangs in Storm's face, making his eyes widen. Storm glanced at me quickly as he struggled to keep Kelsey back as she snapped her fangs at him viciously.
"Get Mark out of here now! Take him to the Jeep!" He ordered loudly, shoving Kelsey back so hard her feet left the ground for a split second before she landed on her back, only to slip herself back up onto her feet, her red ponytail flipping behind her.
"Get your hands off the brat now before I rip them off with my teeth!" She sneered, hissing at us. Storm kept his body between Kelsey and Mark and I. I didn't waste another second as I quickly, but carefully removed the cords and junk from Mark's body while listening to Storm.
"Who are you and what do you want with Mark?" Storm demanded firmly, his voice oozing enough authority that it had Kelsey hesitating for a moment before she growled low in her throat, clenching her fists.
"It's really none of your concern, Gothica. Don't you have a pureblood to bed?" She hissed, making Storm narrow his eyes threateningly as Kelsey started to take a step toward Mark, only to have Storm get in front of her. She snarled and lunged at him, but Storm caught her around the waist and slammed her into the floor where there was a loud crack from her back.
Kelsey gasped, staring straight up as her body convulsed for a moment. Soon followed by several cracks as Kelsey slowly heaved herself up.
"Mm! Damn, you're strong," She muttered, her blue eyes sharpening, "But not as strong as daddy, isn't that right?"
"What clan are you from?" Storm ordered, quickly glancing behind him at me as I managed to get Mark unhooked. He was wheezing now, struggling to breath as I put my arms underneath of him, lifting him off the bed. I stumbled a little, but managed to keep a good grip. Mark's arms and legs dangled as if he were too weak to pick them up, his eyes searching for my face.
"What's... going on?" He mumbled, tilting his head to look up at me. I nibbled my lower lip and looked up as Kelsey stood straight and proud, a hand on her hip.
"I hail from a new clan. Zephyra. And we're here to take back what belongs to our predecessors." She responded coldly and her eyes locked on Mark. I looked up, staring at her in disbelief. Storm clenched his fists, eyeing Kelsey suspicously.
"What're you talking about?" He demanded. Kelsey rolled her eyes, flipping her ponytail over her shoulder before she reached out, pulling the ribbon from her hair. As she did so, her red hair slowly turned black as night, her blue eyes flashing like blades of ice as she clicked the tip of her steel toed boot against the floor.
"Don't be stupid, and don't fuck with me," She smirked, placing a hand on her hip again, "My name is Kelvisia. Also known as Kelsey. Give me the boy or you'll all die as the first battle of the war to come."
"What war?" I asked in disbelief.
"Forget it, Alex, take Mark and get out of here now." Storm ordered, stepping between Kelsey and I as he cracked his knuckles. Kelsey scowled, but her smirk came right back as she lowered her arms, spreading them out.
"What're you gonna do? Punch a girl? I thought daddykins taught you to be more chivalrous." She mocked and started to walk forward when Storm swung his hand out, sweeping it in an arc and backhanding Kelsey so hard across the face that she stumbled and almost fell backwards. She stared at him in disbelief, touching her cheek as blood oozed past her lips.
"He told me never to strike a woman. You are not a woman." Storm answered crossly, then started at Kelsey, who hissed and withdrew, only to lunge forward again. Storm caught her around the waist and threw her across the room. Kelsey cried out in pain as she struck the wall, slamming down onto a countertop covered in glass beakers before she hit the floor.
"Let's go!" Storm ordered and took Mark from me easily, heading for the door. I ran after him, glancing over my shoulder as Kelsey struggled to get up, barking curses in a foreign language. The nurse at the front desk looked up, confused at first before her eyes widened and she shot out of her seat.
"Hey! Wait, you can't--"
"Faster, Alex." Storm commanded, running ahead of me as we came to another hallway. People ducked out of our way to avoid us as we raced for the elevators. Storm started to go for the stairs, but I stopped at the doorway.
"Storm, take the stairs," I commanded, heading for the elevator doors, "I"ll take the elevators and make them think that's where we are. I'll meet you out by the Jeep. Don't you guys dare leave without me. I'm not going to get arrested." Storm stared at me for a split second before nodding quickly, whirling around and heading down the stairs quickly.
I hit the button on the elevator before stepping in as the doors opened. The doors shut just before one of the nurse's could get to me. I grimaced as the elevator steadily made its descent. I paced, glancing at the numbers as I tried to steady my brain, but everything was racing too quickly.
This was considered a kidnapping.
We were kidnapping Mark from the hospital. A hospital that had some kind of psychotic nurse working there named Kelvisia. She was from a clan called Zephyra. It was new, obviously, because it wasn't even familiar. But, what did she hope to gain by telling us those bits of information?
She wanted to get her hands on Mark. So did the rest of her clan. Is that who attacked Mark the other night? A group of people from my race? I suppose explained why it was more severe than a couple of angry high schoolers, but then who's voice did I hear that night? It couldn't have been one of our kind.
The elevator opened up to reveal a group of people waiting to get on. I quickly busted past them, almost tripping over someone's leg.
"Stop that kid!" I heard someone yell from the balcony to the right. I winced and bolted forward, counting on my human abilities compared to my supernatural abilities. If I gave my family and our kind away now, it'd ruin everything we'd worked so hard to gain.
I burst out the front doors, greeted with a blast of cold air as I sprinted toward Amber's Jeep. I spotted Storm coming in from another part of the building, holding Mark in his arms. Mark looked like a rag doll, just lying there in Storm's arms, probably totally confused as to what was happening around him.
"Holy shit," Amber exclaimed as she stood outside her door on the edge, leaning on the top to stare at us, "What just happened?"
"No time to explain, start the car! We need to get out of here!" I ordered as Storm threw open the back door and climbed in with Mark. I tore open the passenger door, jumping in as a couple nurses and security guards came out to the parking lot, yelling. One security guard pulled out his gun, but was probably aiming at our tires.
"Not my car," Amber cried as she tore out of the parking lot when a bullet bounced off the back, "How rude! Good thing I'm covered. Those assholes are gonna pay."
"This is the least of our worries now." I snapped, then leaned between the front two seats to check on Mark. Storm sat with his back against the door and Mark lying in his lap, his head against Storm's chest. I frowned as Storm stroked Mark's cheek gently, studying his face. Mark was unconscious, still looking rather sickly as he wheezed.
"That doesn't sound healthy." Amber commented as she turned onto another block, taking the long way home as she drove figure eights through the neighborhoods. I glanced at her.
"No, but did you pack the ventilator?" I asked. Amber grimaced.
"You guys worked too fast for me. I couldn't grab one before we got out here." She answered apologetically. I cursed under my breath and quickly looked at Storm, who was cradling Mark against him as if he were the most precious thing in the world.
"Storm, what do we do?" I managed. Storm looked up at me, his blue-green eyes agonized before he looked back down at Mark, who choked a little in his sleep, blood running down the sides of his mouth.
"Storm, if we don't do something within the next few hours, Mark's going to die." I insisted impatiently as Amber drove onto our road. The sound of police sirens in the distance had my heart jumping into my throat. Amber tore into the driveway and used the button above to open our three car garage. She wedged her Jeep in between the wall and my mom's Porsche.
Storm still hadn't answered me as we scrambled out of the car quickly, heading through the back gate to use the sliding door to get inside. Amber and I shared looks as we followed Storm into the house, locking all the doors as we went along, heading up the stairs.
"He's dying and those jerks were doing something," I told Amber as Storm carried Mark right into his room, placing him on the bed gingerly, "They were giving him a dangerous amount of morphine. It's any wonder he hasn't gone into respiratory arrest." Amber grimaced as she took her hat and jacket off, tossing it on Storm's floor to kneel by the bed.
"It's hard to say how much time he has left," She admitted as she ran her fingers around for Mark's pulse on his wrist and throat, "After all, he-- What the hell is that?" She moved her fingers away from Mark's throat. I frowned and Storm just stood stiffly nearby as Amber and I leaned in, pushing Mark's hospital gown away from his throat.
At the base near his tendon was a bite mark. The puncture wounds were small, but the bruising around it was severe as if someone had only bitten him to be cruel.
"He was attacked by our kind." I managed, withdrawing from the bed and covering my stomach in disgust. Our kind had made a pact years ago to stop battling against the humans. We were all creatures on the Goddess' earth. We were supposed to leave in harmony with each other, but how could we do that with rouges running around and biting people?
"That explains the massive trauma," Amber muttered, rising to her feet, "Humans can be violent, but they can't cause the same damage our people can. Without a ventilator or... the will to live..."
Storm and I stared at her as she folded her arms tightly over her chest with a grimace.
"Mark's going to die by tomorrow morning."