in my ribs and a pressure on
my lungs and I could hardly breathe. I came awake with a vengeance,
trying to fight off an unseen enemy before I realized how much it
hurt to move and that there was no one on top of me. But it was too
late. Something in my chest broke and I screamed.
“LeKrista!” Roman shouted. “LeKrista I can
try to heal you, but I’m afraid after what happened the last
time...”
“Do it!” I screamed and coughed, twisting on
my side to catch my breath. Dark splotches landed on the sheets and
I tasted that now familiar metallic taste of blood on my tongue.
“Oh, god,” I gasped. “Roman!” He was there in an instant and his
alarm matched my own.
“Calliope, there’s internal bleeding. I’m
going to have to do something. If it goes wrong-”
“Wrong?” she asked, not understanding.
Roman nodded, but didn’t take time to
explain. “If it goes wrong, we may need to start her heart.”
Calliope nodded and disappeared.
“What happened?” I asked. “What did he do to
me?”
“He tried to kill you.”
I looked into Roman’s eyes and I knew it was
true. I had a moment of shock before a sharp pain stabbed me from
the inside. I screamed again.
“Hold on, LeKrista. Just hold on a few more
seconds. She’ll be back with the-“
”Just do it!” I yelled and doubled up in
pain. “One way or the other I’m dead!”
“No, LeKrista. I won’t let you die.”
There are some things that are just supposed
to happen, Roman.
I didn’t say it out loud. I didn’t even mean
to think it at him, but he caught it anyway.
“There are those of us who can change things
like that,” he said to me softly. He pressed his hands to my bare
stomach and the fire began. It spread through my body until it hit
my brain and I began to seize immediately, but I didn’t lose
consciousness.
“Calli!” Roman roared. I heard every facet
of his voice and every language that had sprung from his.
Calliope came running, eyes wild, and she
gasped when she saw me. Roman flipped me so I wouldn’t choke on my
tongue and then he was gone. I whimpered as I tried to make the
convulsions stop. The fire continued to burn me up from the inside
out and I wanted to die.
Please. Please. Not like this.
I begged God to do something, to intervene
in a way I’d never experienced before. I believed in God, but He’d
never been all that real to me. I tried to breathe, but my lungs
wouldn’t work. I looked at Calliope wide-eyed, but I couldn’t form
the words to tell her.
“What?” she asked. “What is it?” She spouted
off something in Greek and shouted. “Master!”
Roman was there instantly. Where had he
gone?
“ Can’t breathe,” I thought at
him.
“She can’t breathe,” Roman told Calliope.
“LeKrista, I’m going to finish the healing if I can.”
I nodded. Something, anything. I didn’t
really care. Death would be welcome if it made this stop.
“ Please,” I begged again. When he
started the healing I thought my skin had been set on fire. I
screamed around the obstruction in my throat before I passed out
for, like, the one hundredth time.
I woke up in my room, and it took a moment
for it all to come back to me. My head spun, my throat hurt, and I
had a sudden flash of myself screaming, yelling, howling at the top
of my lungs. The vampires were looking at me, staring at me with
bewilderment. I was looking at myself through Lucretious eyes,
but...was that possible? I thought he was dead.
A cold draft wafted past me and I shivered.
I needed a hot bath.
Sitting up was painful. I dropped my legs
over the edge first to give myself some balance. By the time I
pushed up to my elbows my entire body throbbed with pain from the
effort and I had to take a break. Black spots popped across my
vision and the world swam before me. I took deep breaths, waiting
for it to recede. It wasn’t like I was in pain, but my muscles
ached and my insides didn’t want to be jostled.
Five minutes later, I made it
my lungs and I could hardly breathe. I came awake with a vengeance,
trying to fight off an unseen enemy before I realized how much it
hurt to move and that there was no one on top of me. But it was too
late. Something in my chest broke and I screamed.
“LeKrista!” Roman shouted. “LeKrista I can
try to heal you, but I’m afraid after what happened the last
time...”
“Do it!” I screamed and coughed, twisting on
my side to catch my breath. Dark splotches landed on the sheets and
I tasted that now familiar metallic taste of blood on my tongue.
“Oh, god,” I gasped. “Roman!” He was there in an instant and his
alarm matched my own.
“Calliope, there’s internal bleeding. I’m
going to have to do something. If it goes wrong-”
“Wrong?” she asked, not understanding.
Roman nodded, but didn’t take time to
explain. “If it goes wrong, we may need to start her heart.”
Calliope nodded and disappeared.
“What happened?” I asked. “What did he do to
me?”
“He tried to kill you.”
I looked into Roman’s eyes and I knew it was
true. I had a moment of shock before a sharp pain stabbed me from
the inside. I screamed again.
“Hold on, LeKrista. Just hold on a few more
seconds. She’ll be back with the-“
”Just do it!” I yelled and doubled up in
pain. “One way or the other I’m dead!”
“No, LeKrista. I won’t let you die.”
There are some things that are just supposed
to happen, Roman.
I didn’t say it out loud. I didn’t even mean
to think it at him, but he caught it anyway.
“There are those of us who can change things
like that,” he said to me softly. He pressed his hands to my bare
stomach and the fire began. It spread through my body until it hit
my brain and I began to seize immediately, but I didn’t lose
consciousness.
“Calli!” Roman roared. I heard every facet
of his voice and every language that had sprung from his.
Calliope came running, eyes wild, and she
gasped when she saw me. Roman flipped me so I wouldn’t choke on my
tongue and then he was gone. I whimpered as I tried to make the
convulsions stop. The fire continued to burn me up from the inside
out and I wanted to die.
Please. Please. Not like this.
I begged God to do something, to intervene
in a way I’d never experienced before. I believed in God, but He’d
never been all that real to me. I tried to breathe, but my lungs
wouldn’t work. I looked at Calliope wide-eyed, but I couldn’t form
the words to tell her.
“What?” she asked. “What is it?” She spouted
off something in Greek and shouted. “Master!”
Roman was there instantly. Where had he
gone?
“ Can’t breathe,” I thought at
him.
“She can’t breathe,” Roman told Calliope.
“LeKrista, I’m going to finish the healing if I can.”
I nodded. Something, anything. I didn’t
really care. Death would be welcome if it made this stop.
“ Please,” I begged again. When he
started the healing I thought my skin had been set on fire. I
screamed around the obstruction in my throat before I passed out
for, like, the one hundredth time.
I woke up in my room, and it took a moment
for it all to come back to me. My head spun, my throat hurt, and I
had a sudden flash of myself screaming, yelling, howling at the top
of my lungs. The vampires were looking at me, staring at me with
bewilderment. I was looking at myself through Lucretious eyes,
but...was that possible? I thought he was dead.
A cold draft wafted past me and I shivered.
I needed a hot bath.
Sitting up was painful. I dropped my legs
over the edge first to give myself some balance. By the time I
pushed up to my elbows my entire body throbbed with pain from the
effort and I had to take a break. Black spots popped across my
vision and the world swam before me. I took deep breaths, waiting
for it to recede. It wasn’t like I was in pain, but my muscles
ached and my insides didn’t want to be jostled.
Five minutes later, I made it
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