The White Blood Trilogy - Complete Box Set Books 1-3 Read online

  “I don’t know what to do,” said Ben. “We have to figure out what Trevor is up to and why he hasn’t left the area, but I have no idea how to do that.”

  “Does that phone you bought have internet access?” I asked.

  George held the phone out towards me. It was just a cheap flip model, but it did have a basic internet browser that displayed old mobile versions of sites like Google. I used the numerical keyboard’s T9 interface to punch in the name of the first victim and found nothing but a Facebook page that had no information visible. The second victim’s name returned a lot more search results, including a profile page on the medical clinic where the woman had worked as a nurse.

  “I think I know what Trevor is doing,” I said.

  “Well, don’t keep us waiting in suspense,” said George. “What’ve you got?”

  “There’s no information on the first victim, but the second woman worked at a clinic here in town. If I had to guess, I’d say Trevor is hitting up clinics looking for one with a supply of blood on hand.” I passed the phone back to George. “Here, go to this address.”

  We pulled up in front of the clinic where the second victim had worked, and sure enough there was police tape covering up the front entrance and a large piece of plywood covering the place where the glass door had been smashed when Trevor King must have tried to gain access to the building.

  “This is where the attack happened alright,” said Ben. “The Mad Vamp is about as powerful a vampire as they come, but he’s been locked away so long he might be running around aimlessly hitting any clinic he can find. He probably doesn’t even realize he can just search online for a blood bank. He was locked away way before the Internet was invented.”

  “There’s one on the other side of town, about a ten minute drive from here.” I said, reading the result from the phone’s web browser.

  No one spoke on the drive over to the blood bank. Trevor had been loose long enough that he must have found out about the blood bank by now, and with the sun setting in the western sky, it was likely that tonight would be the night he emerged and hit the target he was really after.

  It was full dark by the time we pulled up in front of the clinic. George was about to pull into a parking spot when our headlights illuminated the grizzly sight of none other than Trevor King himself standing in the street in front of the blood bank, literally drenched with a still wet sheen of dark crimson blood. It was all over his face and arms, and had dripped down to cover most of his chest and thighs. It was clear that he’d feasted to his fill and was about to leave when we pulled up and surprised him.

  Trevor King laughed into the night and turned to run away from us with superhuman speed. George slammed his foot down on the gas pedal, and there was a brief smell of burning rubber as the car struggled to take off. It was old and worn down, but it still had enough go in it to accelerate and keep pace behind the running vampire. We chased him for several miles before seeing him duck into an abandoned warehouse on the outskirts of town.

  “You wait in the car,” Ben said to me. “My father and I will go in after him.”

  I nodded quietly, knowing there was nothing I could do to help them. Trevor King had been the most powerful vampire in Facility 47 even when he was kept relatively benign under the influence of whiteblood, and now he was not only free of that crippling blood substitute, but freshly fed on a massive supply of human blood. I had to trust that they could take care of themselves.

  Ben and George disappeared into the building, and I heard yelled words that I couldn’t quite make out. There was a loud crash, and it sounded like a group of bulldozers was playing bumper cars inside the warehouse. I unfastened my seat belt and sat there with my hand on the door handle wondering if there was really nothing I could do when suddenly Ben came flying through a window to land on his back on the pavement. He moved slowly as though in a daze, and an instant later, Trevor King was there and on top of him, pinning him to the ground.

  George appeared shortly after, but the Mad Vamp simply swatted him away so hard that the man went flying into the wall of the warehouse where he slumped to the ground unconscious.

  Without stopping to think, I lunged from the car and grabbed at a jagged piece of wood that had splintered off the window frame when Ben had come crashing through it. I held my breath and tiptoed towards the Mad Vamp, praying that he was too distracted by Ben having come to his senses and grabbing Trevor’s throat. The two vampires rolled over, and I crouched low so I wouldn’t be seen. I waited silently just steps away from where they grabbled with each other, knowing I’d only have one chance to put an end to all of this.

  Ben must have seen me there, because his eyes widened with recognition and with a grunt he heaved Trevor King over him as he rolled and yelled “now, Jen! Do it now!”

  I jumped forward and slammed the sharp piece of wood down into Trevor’s back where I hoped with all my might that it would slip between his ribs and pierce his heart. I pushed down on it, feeling tiny splinters sting my palm as I clenched it hard and twisted it into his body. The Mad Vamp wailed and stood upright, throwing me off him to a hard landing on the pavement of the parking lot.

  It was over then. I’d clearly missed his heart, and now he’d kill me before destroying the two men who’d become like family to me in such a short space of time. I stared into his cold eyes when he turned to look at me, then I realized that he was shaking violently and that the emotion I was seeing in his face wasn’t rage but fear.

  Trevor King fell to the ground and his body shuddered and spasmed. Flames sprouted from his skin and in a matter of seconds he was consumed by a brilliant white fire that turned his body to dust and ash that scattered with the wind. Soon there was nothing left of the Mad Vamp but the charred stump of the makeshift stake I’d driven through his heart.

  “Jenny,” said Ben, now hovering over me. “Are you okay?”

  I blinked back tears and swallowed, worried that I’d either start sobbing or laughing uncontrollably, but unsure of which one would come out if I opened my mouth. “You know me,” I finally muttered, “I don’t need anyone to tell me to wait in the car.”

  The sound of grunting laughter sounded from behind us and we turned to see George limping across the parking lot. “She’s going to fit right in.”

  “Fight right in with what?” I asked.

  “Nothing, don’t worry about it now,” said Ben. “Let’s just make sure you didn’t break anything when King through you off himself.”

  “No dammit,” I pushed myself up and stood without Ben’s help. “You two have been quiet about where it was you planned to go to find safe haven, but I think it’s time you let me in on your secret. I did just kill the oldest vampire the government is aware of.”

  “She has a right to know,” said George.

  “OK, Well there’s a vampire sanctuary in Bermuda,” explained Ben. “We were half way there when I realized you’d been captured, and we turned back to help you escape. I’d have taken you with us from the beginning if I could, but there’s a reason you can’t come with us.”

  “What, I’m not good enough for your special sanctuary?” I asked. It sounded bitchy, and I knew it, but I was a little cranky from having just shoved a stake into the heart of a centuries old vampire who nearly killed me and the man I loved.

  “They don’t allow humans,” said George in as kindly a voice as he could manage. “It’s not that we didn’t want to take you along, but the only way you can come with us is if Ben turns you.”

  I stepped backwards, nearly tripping over my own feet as I tried to deal with what he’d just said. “No, that’s not an option.” I shook my head and rubbed my temples. A pounding headache was setting in.

  “I don't want you to do anything you do not feel comfortable with but you might have no choice.” said Ben. “Just think about what you’ll have to go through if you stay here. Every government agency will be looking for you, and they won’t rest until they’ve caught you. Do you want to go bac
k to prison? Do you want to experience the kind of treatment that we had to endure in Facility 47? What do you think they’ll do to someone who helped vampires escape?”

  “I… I don’t know… it’s all too much for me to process.” There was nothing I could do to stop the hot tears from streaking down my face.

  I felt Ben’s arms wrap around me and as much as I wanted to shrug him off and run off into the night, I wanted his comfort even more.

  “There’s another option we can try,” he said. “It’s very rare that they let a non-vampire in, but there is a provision that they may accept a worthy mortal. It’s never happened before, but if we can prove to them that you can be valuable, then maybe we can work something out.”

  “It’s worth a shot at least,” said George. “And it’s certainly better than the alternative.”

  “It’s your decision to make,” said Ben. “I won’t pressure you into anything. This incident with Trevor will have the authorities crawling all over this place and we can’t hide any longer. We’re going to have to see if we can get to the boat and get it to leave earlier than scheduled.”

  “I’ll come with you,” I said quietly. “I don’t want to be a vampire, but I’ll come with you and hope they accept me as worthy.”

  “If that doesn’t work, you should know that they’ll kill you if you refuse to let me turn you.” Ben kissed me on the forehead. “I don’t like it any more than you do, but it’s the way it is with these people. They do what they have to in order to survive, and there’s no use trying to fight against their law.”

  “Let’s cross that bridge when we come to it,” said George. “Right now, we’ve got to get the hell out of here.”

  I followed Ben to the car and slid into the passenger seat. We pulled out and away from the crumbling old warehouse and I thought about where my life had brought me. I was stuck at a crossroads with only two options, it seemed. Life in prison with no chance of parole, or eternal life as one of the undead.

  At least the latter option would mean I still get to see my lover, the former option would mean a lifetime being back on my own again.

  Chapter7

  Pale blue pre-dawn light filtered in through the car windows when I woke up. I blinked sleep from my eyes and rubbed at the aching knot in my shoulder from where I’d been awkwardly leaning against the car door, and I saw that we were driving along a narrow road that wound through what looked like coastal forest of tropical plants and palm trees. After taking time to eat and rest, George had taken over the driving and driven through the quiet morning hours when everyone around us was still sleeping. I didn’t remember falling asleep, after everything that had happened with Trevor King, I must have been too exhausted to stay awake any longer.

  “We’re almost there,” said Ben when he saw me sit upright. “I called the boat and it’s there and ready for us. All we have to do is get aboard and we’ll be home free.”

  I yawned and tried to stretch the kinks from my body. “Is there a real bed on this boat? I can’t remember the last time I had a proper night’s sleep.”

  George laughed from the driver’s seat. “It’s not the most luxurious of vessels, but I think you’ll find it comfortable enough. That is, provided you don’t get seasick. One of the best things about being turned vamp is that I don’t hurl my guts out every time I step on a boat.”

  “You don’t have to worry about me,” I said. “I don’t really get motion sick, and I’m ready to sleep for days if we can get some peace, quiet, and a soft mattress.”

  “Well, we’re just about there,” said Ben. “I also asked the captain to see that proper food was brought on board for you. No more fast food meals for a few days.”

  “Now that’s the best news so far.” I grinned and squeezed Ben’s hand.

  There was a growing knot of concern in my stomach, but I tried my best to hide it from Ben and his father. They were risking a lot by taking me to their safe haven, and although I’d been upset at first, the hours after our fight with Trevor King had given me enough time to think about what all of this meant for Ben and George. If they brought me to their haven and I wasn’t found worthy, there was no telling what might happen to them. Neither of them would say it directly, but I sensed that there would be trouble if I decided to go against any order to turn me.

  That was the real issue. If I wasn’t found worthy, and I decided not to become a vampire, it wasn’t like they could just let me go. I didn’t know if Ben was just too naive to see it, or if he was trying to protect me from the truth, but the only other option apart from being turned was death. Whoever ran the sanctuary wouldn’t likely think twice about killing a human who could risk their whole operation. If they had no use for me, I’d have to face up to the real choice of letting Ben make me a vampire or running from an entirely new threat.

  I tried not to think about it as the road widened and we approached a nondescript building with several worn out boats bobbing at the dock behind it. The car’s wheels crunched over the gravel parking lot and George parked it in a quiet corner of the lot where the thick foliage of a nearby cluster of trees did a decent job of shading it from anyone looking for their car from an airplane or helicopter. They all climbed out and gathered their few belongings, ensuring that they’d left nothing behind that would lead anyone to identify them.

  “Sun’s going to be up soon,” said Ben. “We should get a move on so we can get out while it’s still a little dark.”

  Not two steps towards the marina, George stopped dead in his tracks and held out a hand gesturing us to do the same.

  “Something’s not right here,” he said. Ben’s father sniffed at the air and squinted around them. “Can you feel it, son?”

  “I’m not sure,” replied Ben. “Look, we’re all tense from what happened today. Let’s just get on the boat and get out of here.”

  “Get back in the car now!” yelled George, suddenly pivoting and pushing us both back towards the vehicle.

  At the same moment, multiple intensely bright spotlights lit up and flooded our vision, blinding me and making it impossible to see where they were coming from. A mechanical whumping sound filled the air, and I quickly recognized it as the sound of a helicopter approaching low over the trees.

  “It’s a damn trap,” said George. “They knew right were to find us!”

  He ducked into the car and I practically dove into the back of the car after Ben pulled the door open for me. Scuttling across the wide backseat bench, I made room for Ben who was pushing his way into the car right behind me.

  “Go go go!” he yelled, and George put the car in gear and peeled out backwards, spraying gravel into the headlights in front of the car as he went.

  George yanked on the emergency brake and turned the steering wheel hard to one side, sending the car into a slide that spun it completely around. Slamming the emergency brake back into place, he put his food down on the gas pedal and our car fishtailed out of the parking lot as fast as it’s little engine would go.

  “We won’t be able to outrun them,” said Ben, looking back over his shoulder.

  From what I could see, four or five cars were tailing us, and only the narrow rough road prevented them from overtaking us and forcing us to pull over.

  “This is the police,” said a disembodied voice coming from a loudspeaker that was probably mounted to the helicopter. “Pull over and step out of the vehicle with your hands up. There is nowhere you can run to; we have you surrounded.”

  The message repeated a few times, but George showed no sign of slowing down or giving into their commands. He pushed the car as hard as it would go, and I could hear the engine protesting at the demands being placed upon it. We wouldn’t last long like this, and everyone in the car knew it.

  “How the hell did they know we’d go for that boat?” asked Ben.

  Inwardly, I cursed myself for being so stupid. How could I have forgotten about what I’d said to the agent after my arrest and interrogation?

  “I’m so
sorry,” I said, shaking my head and fighting back tears. “This is all my fault. When they put me in prison they twisted everything around on me. They convinced me that you were just using me the whole time and that you planned to take Trevor King out with you the whole time.”

  “What are you saying?” asked Ben.

  “I told them about the boat. I didn’t give them any details, but they knew you were going to get on a boat. I thought you were gone anyway and that it would be too late for them to get to you even if they knew. I can’t believe how stupid I was.”

  The tears began to flow and there was nothing I could do to stop them. I sobbed and wiped at my face with the back of one hand, holding on to the car to keep from sliding around with the other. The sound of the helicopter and the police voice blaring over the loudspeaker thundered through my chest, and I felt myself dropping into a serious panic attack. My chest tightened and it was difficult to breathe. I couldn’t think. I couldn’t move. I just cried and held on for dear life.

  “Jen,” said Ben in a commanding voice. “You can’t blame yourself for this. If anything, it’s my fault for not asking you the right questions when we rescued you. You should never have wound up in prison, and we should never have left you behind. It’s not your fault that Trevor King escaped with us, and you are not to blame for what’s happening now, do you hear me?”

  He cupped my cheeks with his hands and pulled my face towards him so he could look me in the eye. There was something behind those eyes that was so sincere that it made me want to cry even more. I’d ruined our chance at escape and now we’d all rot in prison for what I’d done.

  “I should have kept quiet. I’m so sorry.”

  “Now’s not the time for that.” Ben pulled me towards him and hugged me tight as George pulled the car through a violent bend in the road. “Let’s just get through this. We all need to focus on what’s going on right now, and we can’t blame ourselves for what’s been done. We’ve both made mistakes, but what’s important now is that we move past them. Can you do that for me?”