Just beyond his shoulder, she could see other death vampires arrive and leave. This had to be some sort of major Mortal Earth lair for the bloodsuckers.

Elise, can you hear me?

Gideon, her mind cried in return.There isn’t much time. I’m growing so very cold. But, from where you stood in the cavern, off to what would have been your left, is an arrival and departure point for the death vampires. I’ve been watching them come and go.

Your trace is blocked.

I had a vision, Gideon, of you coming from that place, of following my trace almost to the end then seeking the opening. But don’t come alone.

I’ll find you.

So cold.

Stay alive.

How do you stay alive when your blood is leaving your body so fast?

Gideon explained everything to Duncan, who in turn got on the com to Colonel Seriffe in order to bring several squads of Thunder God Warriors to the riverbed.

Elise had given him the start of a plan. Would it work? He wasn’t sure, but he would keep his mind open to her now, to working with her, to possibilities.

He returned to the tent, where he knew her trace still existed. He picked up the iridescent blue signature again. This time when he followed, he slowed down as he moved toward the end of the fold, and where the trace was blocked, at the junction between nether-space and real-space. Instead of pushing, he slid his perception to the left, to the area of the cavern Elise had suggested.

The opening appeared behind a thin veil of her crystal-blue trace signature. He suspected something about the nature of the block had dispersed the signature. Where the signature ended, so did the block.

He whisked himself back to Duncan, explained what they were to do and to follow his trace this time at the count of five with the entire contingent. “There are death vampires everywhere. Let Seriffe know he might want to send more warriors. We’ve hit a major lair on Mortal Earth.”

“Done,” Duncan said, holding his warrior phone to his ear. “I’ve got Seriffe on the com. Count of five. Got it. Go.”

Gideon swept through the trace once more and found himself at the veiled opening. He thought the thought and punched through, landing squarely on his feet. He thought another thought and brought his sword into his hand.

“Elise,” he shouted.

I’m here, she sent.

Her voice in his head sounded ghost-like, almost gone. Shit.

Several death vampires smiled at him and advanced. About two seconds later, all those happy expressions died. Gideon could feel the arrival of wave after wave of Militia Warriors entering the cavern behind him.

Duncan and his men moved forward as Gideon turned to his right. The grief-stricken vamp held a very limp Elise in his arms. He also held a blade poised at her neck. He smiled at Gideon.

“Too late,” he said, his smile widening.

“No,” Gideon shouted as he blurred his speed in her direction.

But when he arrived, though blood spurted in heavy pumps into the air, it wasn’t from Elise’s throat, but from the death vamp’s neck.

The bastard let her go and she crumpled to the stone floor. The death vamp put his hands to his own throat and began the healing process, backing away step by step. But Gideon did his duty, plunging the sword into his chest cavity, angling up and piercing his heart.

The death vampire looked surprised as he fell backward onto the stone floor. Gideon withdrew the sword and folded it back to his weapons locker in Scottsdale Two.

Elise lay on her side, struggling to sit up, but failing. He dipped down, lifted her into his arms and held her close. She relaxed in his arms.

“What happened?” he asked. “I saw the blade at your neck.”

She smiled. Her face was so white, her lips almost blue. “He was so pleased to see you that he forgot about me. I mustered my strength, pressed against his wrist, and pushed toward his neck. I was more successful than I believed possible because I didn’t realize that my ascension had increased my physical strength. There’s only one problem.”

“What’s that?”

“He took an awful lot of my blood.”

And with that, she passed out.

Elise woke up in a hospital, an IV hooked up to her arm and a bag of blood suspended on a nearby stand.

So they had these on Second Earth, too. Huh.

She couldn’t quite move her other arm. In fact, it was almost numb. Something really heavy was pressed against the length of her.

She turned and saw a shock of dark blond hair by her shoulder. She drew in a deep breath and the smell of toffee and man floated to her nostrils, teased her senses, then drifted on inside. All those familiar sensations returned, of sex and blood and Gideon, and his body.

She was dizzy and happy and alive.

She sighed and didn’t care that she couldn’t feel her fingers. They could all fall off so long as Gideon remained next to her like this.

Tears started to her eyes. She had survived and Gideon lived. What more did she need?

The nurse came in and met her gaze. “Oh, good. You’re awake. Feeling better?”

She thought about that for a moment. “I feel wonderful. What did you give me?”

She jerked her head toward Gideon then toward the bag of blood. “Sleeping Beauty here is a match. He donated. How does your neck feel? It was pretty torn up.”

She felt the gauze, pressing to the skin beneath. “I think it’s all healed. Is that possible?”

The nurse smiled. She had warm gray eyes. “You’re ascended. Everything’s possible. But let me have a look.” She moved to the side of the bed and peeled the gauze back. “It looks perfect. Not even a bruise. But I’m not surprised. One of our major healers was here, Horace. He worked on you for awhile as well.”

“If I don’t get the chance, please thank him for me.”

“I will.”

Elise glanced at Gideon. “So how much blood did he give me, anyway, to be this done up? Is he okay?”

He snorted in his sleep.

The nurse laughed. “You wouldn’t believe how much he fussed over you. Then he barked about how he needed to give you more blood and kept after the doctors so much that Colonel Seriffe finally ordered us to give him something to sleep.”

“You drugged him.”

The nurse nodded.

“Well, he can be pretty stubborn.”

The nurse snorted. “Understatement, but then I’ve never met a Militia Warrior who wasn’t.”

Elise thought back on all the events of the past twenty-four hours. But there was a gap she needed filled in. “Can you tell me if you know anything about what happened at the river? Maybe you overheard something, but did everyone make it out okay? Rachel, Duncan, and the others?”

The nurse drew close and put a hand on her shoulder. “They all made it out. The Colonel said when you came around I was to be sure and tell you. He knew you’d be worried. Rachel and Warrior Duncan were here for a few minutes, but you were still out cold.” She lowered her voice. “I heard it from reception that they got into a huge fight, right in front of Colonel Seriffe. Warrior Duncan is in big trouble. They used to date, you know, Duncan and Rachel. I lost the pool when they didn’t get married.”

Elise smiled. But her arm was pretty numb, so she slowly pulled the poor limb out from under Gideon and flexed her fingers a few times to get that awful tingling started, then she put her arm around his shoulders. He moved into her, and murmured something in his sleep about freedom, and snuggled close.

“You’ve got yourself a good man there.”

Elise met the nurse’s gaze and nodded. She smiled again but this time tears started to her eyes and wouldn’t stop. “I know. Believe me, I know.”

To his mind, she sent,Don’t worry. You’ll have your freedom.

Chapter Nine

When Gideon awoke, his face was smashed into a pillow. He blinked a few times, uncertain of where he was. The room was lit with a soft glow. The blinds on the windows showed black slits between.

Nighttime.

Where was he?

He felt groggy as hell.

He heard movement, as though someone behind him was moving from one part of the room, then back.

He turned over, stretched, and yawned. He blinked again. “Elise? You’re up? Christ, how long did I sleep that you’re up and moving around? This is the hospital, right?”

“Yes. I’ve been discharged. I was just waiting to say goodbye.”

At that he sat up, a little too fast. His head swam. He put his hand to his head. Then he remembered. “Seriffe ordered me to take those damn pills.”

She shrugged and a smile turned up one side of her mouth. “You were a little … out of control.”

“No, I wasn’t.” He tried to remember. He had been insistent that she receive the best care. She’d looked so pale. “I thought you needed more blood.”

She chuckled. “Gideon, reports are that you yelled at the doctor for ten minutes. You called him an asshole. He finally called Seriffe.”

“I did all that? Jesus.”

“Yeah, but it was kinda sweet. You were looking out for me.”

He glanced at the suitcase on the stand by the door. “What are you doing?”

He watched her swallow and she didn’t exactly meet his gaze. “I thought I’d go to a hotel. I have a little money saved. I hear the Bredstone is one of the best in the world.”

The Bredstone was over by White Lake on the other side of the White Tanks. “That’s pretty far away.” He scowled. He could feel his brow forming a solid ridge.

He slipped his legs over the side of the bed and ran his hands through his hair, pushing it away from his face. He couldn’t imagine what he looked or smelled like. He’d been battling, then he’d come here. He’d had enough sense to change into jeans and a T-shirt, but yeah, he needed a shower.

He leaned over and did some floor-staring. He really didn’t want her to go to the hotel. He also didn’t want to crowd her. “So do you want to go to a hotel?” He swung his head to look at her. He felt like he was about sixteen and trying to gauge if his hoped-for girlfriend wanted a second date.