Part 23 (1/2)
Alex recalled all of the cats running around the castle. There were dozens, and half of the females were pregnant. He probably encouraged them to breed to provide him with a steady supply. And she was going to puke if she kept thinking about it.
”When the Brethren held me prisoner in Rome,” Richard said, ”they refused to let me feed. I endured the deprivation as long as possible, but in time it became apparent that I had to feed on something or wither away. My choices were limited to the rats that infested the catacombs, or the stray cats I a.s.sumed had wandered in from the city streets to feed on them.”
”I'd have picked the cats,” she admitted.
”Their bodies contained a greater quant.i.ty of blood, so I had to feed less often.” He bared his pointed, feline teeth in a grotesque smile. ”It wasn't until after some years of feeding on them that I discovered the Brethren had deliberately put both types of animals into the Kyn cell block.”
”Jesus. Why?”
”They wished to see how feeding on animal blood would affect us.” His pupils expanded to black diamonds as he limped toward her. ”I expect there was some hope of soul saving or reformation involved initially. Then it seemed to become some form of entertainment for them.”
”And h.e.l.l for you.” Despite everything she felt about the high lord, Alex experienced a small twinge of sympathy. ”Nothing but cat blood ever since, right?”
”Not entirely,” Richard told her, ”I have never told anyone this, but I have managed to control my condition by also drinking a little human blood each day.”
That supported her theory, and may have explained why Richard's Kyn DNA had remained dormant instead of being replaced by the feline-adapted DNA. ”How little?”
”A teaspoon in every feeding, or a single swallow from a human. Any more than that makes me violently ill.”
”Who do you get the blood from? eliane,” Alex guessed, remembering the tresora's penchant for high-necked blouses.
”Providing me with s.e.x and blood are part of her duties.” He made it sound like secretarial work.
That clinched it. ”You know, you're a total jerk with women, but we'll save that chat for another time. I have an idea, if you want to hear it.”
He leaned against her dissection table. ”Tell me.”
Alex explained why she believed the blood of stray cats Richard was forced to live on had caused the Kyn pathogen to alter his DNA, the reason behind his physical mutations. ”I think I can reverse it, too. You'll have to stop feeding on feline blood.”
”Do you propose to starve me, as they did?”
”No.” Alex checked the refrigeration unit, but saw her human blood supply bin was empty. She couldn't remember using the last unit, but she had been wrapped up in her research. ”I want to inject you with a serum. It'll be human blood mixed with a small amount of feline blood. If that works, I'll add some Kyn tranquilizer to the next batch.”
”Why must you tranquilize me?”
”I'm pretty sure this is going to make you feel sick, so the tranquilizer will slow down your body processes and help keep your reaction to a minimum. The presence of the feline blood should force the pathogen to digest the human blood cells. We'll have to take it slow, but by decreasing the amount of feline blood with each dose, I think we'll wake up your Kyn DNA and put the changeling process in remission.”
He looked at her for a long, silent moment. ”By doing this, you will save me.”
She didn't want his grat.i.tude, or the credit for what she was about to do. ”You saved yourself, Richard. If you hadn't ingested human blood daily, you would never have held on to your humanity, such as it is, for as long as you have.” She hit the intercom.
”Korvel, I need a unit of human blood, please.”
One of Richard's servants delivered the bag of blood and, after giving the high lord a frightened look, hurried out of the lab.
”How many humans did you slaughter this time?” Alex asked as she prepared the serum.
”I cannot say.” He bared his arm for her and watched as she injected him. ”What does it matter?”
”Humans are our friends. We like humans. And if we kill all the humans, we don't have any dinner.” She withdrew the syringe and sighed. ”I hate being a vampire. It's really freaking out my brother. Have I mentioned that?”
Richard got up quickly from the stool and turned his back on her. ”I can feel it moving in my veins.”
”It might make you puke.” She looked around for an empty container. ”Just relax and let it happen.”
”Let it happen.” His voice dropped to a low growl. ”I am done with letting it happen. It should not have happened. Not to me. I am king.”
The anger startled Alex. ”Richard? Look at me.”
He looked. His pupils had shrunk down to slivers, and his fangs shot out of his mouth, three times longer than Alex had ever seen them.
”Right, this is not working.” She grabbed the bag of blood, but it was marked as human, type A. She took a sip from it and immediately spit it out. ”G.o.dd.a.m.n it, this isn't human blood. What the h.e.l.l is going on?”
”You think to poison me.” Richard whipped out his arm, sending a row of beakers and a microscope cras.h.i.+ng to the floor. ”I am king. I will never die.”
”Then let's go for calming down the king,” Alex said softly, not moving. ”Someone gave me the wrong bag, Richard. That's what's making you nuts. Hang on, and I'll-”
”b.i.t.c.h.” He picked up the edge of a table and turned it over. Her computer exploded in a fountain of sparks, and the cracked console of the a.n.a.lyzer began spitting out sample strips. The high lord tore out of his cloak and dropped onto all fours, where his twisted body a.s.sumed a new, powerful configuration.Alex backed away, turning to run.
From behind Richard leaped at her, latching onto her back with his curved claws and dragging her to the floor. His hot breath burned the back of her neck as he held her head down with one paw and began ripping at the back of her lab coat with the other.
”Richard.” Alex could feel his erect c.o.c.k jabbing at the seat of her trousers. Something sticking out from the side of his shaft penetrated her clothing like sharp thorns, and she remembered an article she had read about male cats having barbed organs.
She'd tear out her own throat before she let him put that inside her.
Alex screamed, throwing her head back and smas.h.i.+ng it into Richard's teeth. He roared, digging his claws deep into her shoulder and ripping at her flesh. She tried to throw him off, but he had her pinned too well.
”My lord,” a cool voice said. ”Forgive me.”
Alex felt Richard stiffen and fall over, and scrambled out from under his weight. A pressure dart planted in the center of his back wiggled back and forth.
”Doctor.” eliane put aside the tranquilizer gun and helped Alex to her feet. ”You are badly injured.”
”No s.h.i.+t. I think I owe you a huge apology.” She looked over the tresora's shoulder to see Korvel and Stefan rush in. ”I think someone gave me pure feline blood instead of human. It made him do this.”
”Who?” eliane demanded.
”Lady Elizabeth,” eliane said. ”She wishes him dead.”
”You have no proof,” the captain said.
”She told me that she'd kill my brother if I found a cure for Richard,” Alex said, groaning as she tried to feel how badly the high lord had ripped up her back. ”Does that work for you?”
”Why did you not tell me?” Korvel demanded.
”Like you'd have believed me.” She was dripping blood all over Richard, and saw his lacerated lips heal under the crimson splashes. ”Wait a minute.” She dropped down and wiped her blood from his face with her sleeve. All the hair around his mouth came with it, and the split in his upper lip disappeared. ”Pick up that microscope and see if it's still working.” Through the shrinking tunnel of her vision, she groped for a box of slides Richard had knocked to the floor.
”You are hurt.” Korvel reached for her.