"Nay!" Angus halted where they'd disappeared. There was no telling where they'd teleported to. And Emma was too damned weak to fight. It was all his fault. Guilt slammed into him, doubling him over.
Robby lay a hand on his shoulder. "We'll find them."
Angus nodded, unable to speak.
"Spread out and search!" Robby yelled.
The Vamps blurred as they all zoomed around the property and into the woods, hunting for Emma. Minutes ticked by but felt like hours. Robby and Ian ran from the barn, declaring it clear. Seconds later, Jean-Luc and his two coven members emerged from the manor house, yelling that it was clear. The others had fanned out into the woods.
Angus jumped onto the stone wall and listened carefully. He turned north. Was that a scream? A woman's scream.
"This way!" He dashed into the woods. His companions spread out behind him.
"Emma!" Angus heard no response. God, he hoped he wasn't too late. If Katya kept teleporting, she could be far away.
He charged into a small clearing and skidded to a halt. His heart stuttered.
Ian stopped behind him. "She's still alive."
Barely. Angus knelt beside Emma. His heart twisted at the sight of her torn neck. Damn that Katya. She'd almost drained Emma dry.
A large amount of dust covered Emma. Her stake lay in her limp hand. She'd managed to use it while Katya was feeding. The slayer had killed one last vampire. Angus thanked God he had made her a stake. But he'd also made her weak.
"Oh, Emma." He pulled off his T-shirt and pressed it against her bleeding neck. His eyes
welled with tears.
Tree branches and bushes rustled as more people rushed into the clearing.
"How is she?" Austin demanded.
Darcy gasped. "Oh my God. Are we too late?"
Robby squatted beside Angus. "I'm so sorry."
Angus gritted his teeth. "She's no' dead yet. We can give her a transfusion." He looked at Ian and Robby. "Doona ye have some bottles of blood in yer sporrans?"
Robby looked at him sadly. "We doona have the equipment for a transfusion."
"Then we'll teleport her," Angus said. "Roman can fix her."
Jean-Luc knelt on the other side of Emma. "It's still daylight in New York. There's only
one way to save her, Angus, and you know what that is."
"Nay!" Angus blinked back tears. "I canna transform her. She couldna stomach being a vampire. They killed her parents."
"But she can be changed back," Darcy suggested. "I'm living proof of that."
Angus blinked. Of course! He'd been too panicked to realize there was another option. Did Emma still have the scrap of stained cloth? If not, he could leave her his T-shirt. It was soaked with her mortal blood.
"She's going fast," Jean-Luc warned him. "If she bleeds out, it will be too late to transform her."
Angus rubbed his brow. What choice did he have? And Roman could change her back.
"This is all my fault. She's going to hate me."
"She'll understand." Ian touched his shoulder. "I always understood."
Angus looked up. "I trapped ye in the body of a fifteen-year-old for all eternity."
Ian smiled. "Ye saved my life."
Angus took a deep breath, then unwrapped the shirt from Emma's neck. He'd have to drain the last drop of blood from her. It had to be done by a vampire in order for her to slip into a vampire coma. Then he'd have to feed her his own blood. If she accepted it and drank, she'd become one of the Undead. If she rejected his blood, she would die.
"Can I borrow asgian dubh?" He'd have to slice his arm to feed her.
Ian handed him a knife.
Angus glanced at all his friends. "Could ye leave us alone?"
CHAPTER 23
Emma remembered pain and darkness. Fear and terror. Katya's fangs ripping into her neck. A last cry for survival and the desperate use of her stake. More darkness. Murmuring voices. More fangs. How could Katya be back? Hadn't she killed that bitch?
More darkness as Emma slipped deeper into a black pit.
Then a strange dream. Her mouth tasted of blood. She choked on the metallic bitterness.
"Swallow," a voice urged her. "Ye must swallow."
More blood drizzled into her mouth. She was drowning in blood. Katya was killing her. She turned her head and coughed.
"Emma," the voice pleaded. "Drink it, please."
Angus? She opened her mouth to speak, but the words wouldn't come. She couldn't even open her eyes.
More blood poured into her mouth. She swallowed, and a comforting warmth spread through her body. She swallowed again, and it tasted sweet. What a silly dream. This couldn't be blood. It tasted too good. She drank and drank.
"That's it, sweetheart. Ye're doing fine."
Angus was happy with her. Angus loved her. Emma smiled. Angus was with her, and Katya was gone. This time when the darkness descended, she wasn't afraid.
With a jolt, Emma woke up. Her heart pounded in her chest so loud, she could hear it. A moment of panic seized her. She must be having a heart attack. She felt so strange, and she didn't know where she was.
"She's awake, Darcy! Get a bottle ready."
Emma saw Austin standing by an open door. He had found her? Then she and Angus must have been rescued.
"I just popped it into the microwave," a woman's voice yelled from a distance.
Emma sat up. Black dots swirled around her head.
"Easy."Austin stepped toward her with a worried expression.
"I–I guess I'm still weak." Emma blinked and focused on Austin. He seemed sharper than usual. She could see the stubble on his chin and every individual strand of hair on his head. And his heart was beating so loud. How could she hear that? How could she hear her own heart? She pressed a hand to her chest and noticed she was wearing flannel pajamas. "How did I get these?"
"Those are Darcy's," Austin answered. "She tried to clean you up a bit."
Right. Katya had attacked her. Emma suspected her old clothes were covered with blood. Her stomach rumbled. "I feel so hungry."
"I'm sure you are."Austin eyed her warily.
She looked around the room. It was a nice bedroom. Blue comforter. Full-sized bed. No windows. Only a night light in a wall socket. How could she see so well? Her stomach rumbled louder, then cramped. She pressed a hand to her belly. "Ouch!"
Austin strode toward the door. "Hurry, Darcy!"
Emma inhaled deeply and let it out slowly. "Where am I?"
"Zoltan Czakvar's house in Budapest."
"Who?" Another hunger pang rocked Emma. She grimaced. Austin's heart seemed to pound in her ears. She could hardly hear. Hardly think.
"Zoltan Czakvar. He's the coven master of Eastern Europe."
"I'm in a vampire's house?" Emma noticed the vein in Austin's neck. It was pulsing.
And it smelled so good. Like food. "What's happening to me?" A hunger pain struck her hard. With a cry, she fell back on the bed and curled into a ball.
"Is she all right?" Darcy rushed into the room with a tray and set it down on the bedside table.
Darcy was so close, and she smelled so good, Emma fought an urge to grab her.
"I have your breakfast." Darcy offered her a glass. "Type O. A little bland, but you should start off with a simple diet."
Emma's eyes widened. The glass was filled with blood. "No!" A sudden jab of pain pierced her mouth. She cried out.
Darcy set the glass down. "You poor thing. The same thing happened to me. They always come out the first night."
Emma covered her mouth and whimpered. Her gums were ripping in two. With a scream, she felt them rip. She lowered her hand and saw blood splattered on her palm. It was horrible! And it smelled delicious. The pain in her mouth subsided as another hunger pang struck her.