Bitter Blood (Blood and Moonlight Book 3)(31)

“I want to help.” Guilt and grief were heavy in her voice and obvious on her face. “I did this, Aidan. I didn’t bite him, but I’m the one who didn’t take more care with Paris. I was stuck on us all being these super monsters…like we could take on anything and survive. I thought even if he got hurt, your blood would heal him.”

My f*cking blood.

“I’m so sorry,” Jane whispered.

Aidan glanced at her. She was staring at Paris, and tears glinted in her eyes. “I wish I could go back. I know you didn’t want this. I am sorry!”

“Save the sorries,” Annette ordered, voice flat. “We have to fix him. We get him stable, then we figure out how the hell this happened.”

Jane swallowed.

Vincent hurried back into the room. He had a blood bag in his hand. Aidan stared at the bag and—

Are my canines lengthening? Shit, they were. Not normal, not at all damn normal.

Vincent ripped open the top of the bag. He caught the back of Paris’s head with one hand and pushed the blood bag toward Paris’s mouth. “Let’s see how you like this one…”

Paris started to guzzle the blood. A faint smile curved Vincent’s lips and—

Paris yanked his head away, retching up the blood.

“Fuck,” Vincent snapped.

Annette’s footsteps shuffled closer.

Paris let out a loud, desperate scream, one that made Aidan’s muscles clench. There was so much pain and fury in that sound. And Paris…

His eyes were on Jane. Devouring her.

“Maybe…maybe he needs werewolf blood,” Jane whispered. “The same way I did. I mean, he was a werewolf before, so maybe he has to have the same type of blood that I do.”

Aidan turned his head and stared down at Jane. There were tear tracks drying on her cheeks.

“Jane couldn’t keep down the other blood, either,” Vincent said softly. “Not bagged human blood. Not blood straight from a human victim. The only time she was sane was when she had your blood.” He stared at Aidan, his mouth tight. “Because you had already changed her.”

I’d given Jane werewolf blood. Paris already was a werewolf before this change. Yeah, shit, okay, it made sense that his friend would need werewolf blood, too. Locking his teeth, Aidan stepped closer to Paris. He lifted his wrist, offering it to Paris. “You still in there, buddy?” Aidan asked. He needed Paris to talk to him. Needed to know that his friend was still with him.

But Paris just growled. And he was jerking his head, trying to see around Aidan to look at Jane.

“He…He had some of my blood.” Jane’s voice was halting. “At Dr. Bob’s lab…I told you that Paris bit me. He kept that blood down.”

But it sure hadn’t calmed him down from the look of things.

“I can give him more,” Jane said quickly. “Just to tide him over.”

But Aidan shook his head, and even though he hated to say it, he had to voice his fear. “What if your blood makes him…worse, Jane?”

She sucked in a sharp painful breath.

Shit. “Your blood is changing me.” Why deny it? He figured they all needed to get past the denial stage. “We have no idea what it could do to him.”

Vincent gave a grim nod. “Can’t believe I’m saying this but…I agree with the alpha.”

Paris snarled. Spittle flew from his mouth.

“He shouldn’t even be a vamp,” Vincent added “We don’t want to f*ck things up any more than they already are.”

“So I’m f*cked up now?” Jane’s voice had gone completely flat.

No, to him, she was completely perfect but…

I don’t want her giving up her blood. Aidan pushed his forearm against Paris’s mouth. He felt those fangs slide deep into him, sinking hard and then—

Paris stilled. His lashes had closed when he bit Aidan. For a moment, they stayed closed as if he were savoring his meal, but then his lashes slowly lifted. The wildness seemed to fade from his golden gaze, the insanity cleared for a mere instant in time.

And Aidan was staring into his friend’s eyes again.

Paris tore his mouth from Aidan. Blood dripped from his lips. “K-kill…me…” Paris rasped out the words.

Aidan shook his head. “No, you don’t want—”

But Paris nodded, even as the sanity began to seep from his gaze. “Kill me…” Then, in a quick rush, he whispered, “Before I kill you.”

And Paris lunged toward him, snapping the chain that bound his right wrist. Aidan grabbed his friend and slammed Paris back, ramming Paris’s head into the heavy stone of the wall.

Thunk.

Paris dropped to the floor.

“You killed him!” Annette cried.

But Aidan shook his head. “He’ll rise again in a few hours.” Because if you wanted to kill a vamp, there were only a few tricks that really worked.

A stake to the heart.

A beheading.

Fire.

Annette scrambled to Paris’s side, her fingers flying over him.

Aidan’s hands clenched into fists.

“Well, that bought us a bit of time.” Vincent inclined his head toward Aidan. “Why don’t we finish this outside?”

Aidan would like to finish him outside. Ending the vamp’s life had never been more tempting but…