The Way You Bite(54)

The other wolves in the room started at Blay, frozen with shock.

Blay’s mouth twitched. “Surprise. I’m not dead.”

Vee’s body shook with convulsions. The sound of her head still hitting the floor had Lexan’s muscles swelling against the restraint Eric and Roman both now had him in.

“What’s wrong with her?” Lexan thundered. Don’t let her die. Jesus, let her live.

Blay rolled his eyes as he pulled a three-foot high vase away from Vee so she wouldn’t hit it during her seizure. “You’re a moron. That’s what’s wrong with her. You just encouraged her to ingest all the silver floating around in your body while conveniently forgetting she’s half wolf.”

“We discussed it. She didn’t think it’d hurt her. Oh, holy hell.” Lexan released a harsh breath as reality crashed in. Terror beat back fatigue and pain. He’d just killed her.

“His Highness has had an epiphany.” Blay pulled a small black pouch from his inner jacket pocket from which he extracted a syringe of brown fluid. “Roman, get over here. I need you to hold her arm. This has to go intravenous. Lexan, you keep your ass over there and let Eric finish.”

“What is that?” Roman asked, approaching.

“What are you about to give her?” Lexan demanded. “You will tell me.”

“The antidote.” Blay pushed a syringe of brown liquid into Vee’s arm vein and sat back. Within a few seconds, the seizure stopped and she lay still. “Now we have to pray she didn’t blow a fuse upstairs. She’ll be out for a while.”

“She’s alive?” Lexan asked.

Blay nodded.

Live through this, Vee. Live through it and I’ll figure out how to make us work.

“You kept a silver toxicity antidote secret?” Lexan asked Blay.

Blay glowered as he stalked to Lexan with another pre-loaded syringe. “I should make you suffer through whatever residual silver is stuck in your body for this act of insanity. But honestly, if you died because of it, I don’t think I could handle your spoiled runt taking the throne. Disconnect, Eric, and get out of my way.”

Eric unhooked and stepped away with his hand on his arm over the point he’d been hooked up. Blay pushed another syringe of brown fluid into Lexan’s vein through the catheter.

“How come you’re not dead? And how come you have an antidote to silver toxicity?” Eric demanded.

“Not answering the first one. To the second, I’ve had a lot of time on my hands. I own several treatment facilities around the world that focus on the incurable in our species—silver toxicity, rabies, things like that.”

Ryder declared, “I am not spoiled.” He massaged his arm where the catheter had been located.

Blay shook his head with a sigh. To Lexan he said, “Such a disgrace to let your son run around like an untrained numbnut.”

Lexan smiled. “Reminds me of you back when you were twenty-four hours away from execution by the master vamp due your rebellion. Will you take him on?”

Blay paused to stare at Ryder. “Are you asking me or ordering?”

“Asking. He’s doesn’t want to learn from me. Given the change in status of the world, that we’ll now be having open war, he needs training.”

Blay sucked his lower lip through his teeth. His eyes narrowed while evaluating Ryder, skepticism written all over his face. “I may owe you for a few times long ago, Lexan, but I won’t go easy on the kid just because he’s got golden blood flowing in his veins.”

“Great. He’s all yours.”

“Like hell you can just give me over to him into indentured servitude as if this is the Middle Ages. I’m not a post-trans juvie.” Ryder slapped his hand against the wall.

Blay pulled out a throwing blade and launched it at Ryder’s head.

Like a deer caught by headlights, Ryder stared, unmoving. The blade lodged itself deep into the drywall a few inches from his ear. A delayed scream detonated from Ryder.

The door slammed against the wall as Julio burst into the room. “What the hell?” He skidded to a halt, staring at Blay, stunned.

Blay shook his head, obviously disappointed. “You may be beyond your transition, kid, but you’re green.” He stalked to the blade and wiggled it until it dislodged from the wall. He waved the blade to accentuate his point. “Listen closely to rule number one: when there is a blade coming at your head, you duck.” Blay’s gaze shifted to Julio. “What kind of training have you been instilling in him all these years? I would feel damned naked with someone so inexperienced as my second.”

Julio stammered. “You’re…alive.”

Blay held up a silencing hand. “He’s coming with me.” He gazed out the window. “We’re about to be invaded by Squad vamps. Priority number one is to get His Majesty out of here.” He leaned close to Lexan and said, “You need to keep as still as possible for the next hour. If you don’t and your heart rate goes above one-ten, then it gets painful and possibly life-threatening.”

“I’m not leaving without Vee.” Lexan locked gazes with Blay.

“She also needs to stay as still as possible until she comes around. I’ll keep her safe until then.”

“She comes with us. With me.”