First Drop of Crimson
Chapter Fifteen

"What problem?" Denise and Spade asked at the same time.
Chad swiped at the drop of her blood, bringing it toward his mouth - and then his arm was gripped in Spade's hand.
"If you taste her blood," Spade said, very quietly, "I'll kill you."
Francine stood up at that. "You have a very good reputation, but I won't tolerate threats - "
"There will be no threats, as long as he doesn't try to taste her blood again," Spade cut her off, his tone pleasant and lethal at the same time.
"Just like the other vampire," Chad said, shaking his head.
Denise leaned forward. "What other vampire?"
Spade wiped her blood off Chad's finger, then with an arched brow, squirted it with the solution from the bottle and wiped it again.
"The vampire that was with that human, the one who had the brands like yours," Chad replied, sounding a little annoyed. "He freaked over us not tasting the human's blood. I'd forgotten about it until just now."
Spade met her gaze, but Denise already knew not to say anything. Still, inside, she hummed with excitement. It verified that the vampire who brought Nathanial to Chad and Francine all those years ago obviously knew Nathanial's blood had been turned into a drug from the brands. Just like hers. Tracking Nathanial through the Red Dragon trade would work. It had to.
"Remember the bloke's name?" Spade asked.
Both Chad and Francine shook their heads. "He was a young vampire at the time. That's all I remember," Chad said.
"Must have been his property," Spade said, dismissing it as if it were nothing. "Not polite to try and feed from someone's property, even a drop."
He didn't trust them knowing. Denise felt a shiver of fear. She'd been so focused on the brands turning her into a monster, she hadn't dwelled on how their other side effect might be dangerous. Spade might not want anything to do with the drugging effects of her blood, but others would. Red Dragon was the substance vampires bought to get high, and here Denise had it running all through her veins.
"As I said, we have a problem," Chad continued. "Her blood overpowered the mixture in the ink, which means anything we'd tattoo over her brands would be worthless. We need to increase the dosage in the ink. A lot."
"Okay, so do it," Denise said. "Do whatever you did with my...with that other human who had brands like this."
"It will burn," Francine said in a sympathetic tone.
If it would keep Raum from tracking her and possibly stop her from warping into a monster, it could burn like hell and she'd still do it.
"That's okay. Let's just get it over with," Denise replied steadily.
Francine patted her. "Chad, use the Jerusalem salt," she said, her tone becoming brisk and businesslike.
Chad picked a small bottle out of his suitcase and gave Spade a meaningful look. "This changes the price."
Denise cringed in guilt even as Spade snapped, "Let that be the last mention you make of price in front of her."
"Chad," Francine said in a lightly chastising way. Then she smiled at Spade. "My apologies. We'll settle such matters once everything is complete. The important thing is to get our lovely girl here taken care of."
"Quite," Spade said, still with an edge in his voice.
Denise wanted the ground to swallow her, but she refused to let her embarrassment show. I don't care what Spade says, I'm going to find a way to repay him, she promised herself.
"What's Jerusalem salt?" she asked, to change the subject.
"Salt is a natural weapon against demons. Jerusalem salt is even more powerful, because it's drawn from the place where all the major religions of the world converge. Then it's specially milled there and mixed with, well, with things I can't tell you," Francine finished with a smile. "But it should work to cover the power in your brands."
"Ready," Chad said a minute later. He dipped another metal stick into his new ink creation, then jabbed the tip into Denise's forearm.
Fire sizzled up her arm, so unexpected and intense, Denise couldn't stop from crying out and jerking her arm back. They'd said it would hurt, but she hadn't been prepared for this kind of agony. It was just as bad as when Raum had branded her.
"Turning black," Chad said in satisfaction, staring at the drop of blood that pearled on her arm. Then his gaze flicked to Spade. "You'll need to hold her down while we do the tattooing."
Denise tried to push her attention past the flaming pain in her arm. It didn't even seem possible that it had come from a wound so small, it was little more than a needle prick.
"How much tattooing? A few outlines?" she asked.
Her hope was dashed by Chad's reply. "I'll be filling in a pattern over both your arms. It will take a few hours."
She shuddered as Chad got out that odd-looking power drill that she now knew was the tattoo machine. Hours, being held down while she experienced the same sort of pain that had almost driven her mad when Raum inflicted it on her for a mere few minutes. Denise thought she'd throw up, but there was no other choice.
"I'm going to need a drink first," she said, inhaling deeply. Maybe a whole bottle. Or a concussion. Anything to numb the pain.
"Denise." Spade knelt beside her, intensity lurking in his gaze. "You made me swear a blood oath, but you can release me from it. Let me ease this for you. You don't need to feel a thing."
She was confused for a second, but then his meaning clicked. "No. I don't want you controlling my mind."
"And I don't want to hold you down while you're in agony for hours," Spade replied flatly. "If you hadn't made me swear by my blood not to mesmerize you, I wouldn't even ask."
She turned to Francine. "The other guy with the brands like mine, did he handle it on his own? Or did he have the vampire with him mind-trick him?"
Francine's expression was guarded. "He couldn't be mesmerized. The vampire tried, but it didn't work."
Because of the effect of the brands, Denise realized with a sinking feeling. The inhumanity in Nathanial had grown to a point where even a vampire's power couldn't breach it.
"The vampire with him was young, you said, and I am a Master," Spade replied. "I can do it."
He had total confidence in his voice. Denise wavered. It wasn't just the pain she feared, although the burn in her arm still throbbed enough for that fear to be very real. Even if the logical part of her realized it was for a necessary cause, being held down while she was, in essence, tortured for hours by a vampire would bring on a PTSD attack as surely she breathed. Even now, that familiar-feeling panic was rising in her. It seemed inevitable that she would lose control of her mind one way or the other, either in a flashback of that horrible night, or from the pull of Spade's eyes.
"Trust me, Denise," he said, very softly.
She took a deep breath. The idea of giving up con trol of her mind was something she fiercely hated. Already her PTSD had cost her enough of that. But...she did trust him. As odd as it was, she trusted Spade more than anyone else in her life right now. Besides, she'd wanted to show Spade her gratitude. Well, keeping him from needing to restrain her for hours while she had a severe panic attack seemed like the least she could do.
"All right."
Spade smiled, and the sight of it distracted her from everything else for a second. He was handsome even with his normal guarded expression, but when he smiled, he was breathtaking. Pity he didn't smile more often.
His eyes changed, becoming green in the next instant. Denise's first instinct was to look away, because she knew this would be different from every other time she'd seen them this way, but she didn't. She stared right into his gaze as their color flared even brighter.
"I can feel you resisting me." His voice sounded deeper. Almost vibrating. "Let me in, Denise. It's all right. You'll be safe..."
Her eyelids suddenly felt heavier. Spade was still talking, but his words became indistinct, blurring together. Her vision narrowed until it seemed like all she could see was the beautiful emerald blaze from his eyes. Their powerful glow wasn't frightening anymore. They were so lovely...
She blinked. Spade's face was still right in front of hers, his expression intense. Resignation rose in her.
"It's not working," she said, steeling herself for what was to come.
A smile eased across Spade's face. "You're finished."
Denise looked at her arms. Intricate patterns covered the brands from her wrists to her elbows, like black lace stitched into her skin. There was no pain, not even a twinge. Francine and Chad were gone, but she was in front of the fireplace with her arms stretched across the table, something like Vaseline spread on them.
"Wow, you're good," Denise breathed.
Spade's laugh held an undercurrent of wickedness. "You have no idea."
That was when she also noticed the towels were off and her hands were back to normal. Tears sprang into her eyes. Had this cured her?
"Do you think it's gone? All of it?" With her whole heart, she hoped the demon's essence inside her had been driven out.
Spade sobered. "I tasted a drop of your blood before I took you out of the trance. It's still altered."
Disappointment coursed through her, but she pushed it back. "Maybe it won't get worse now. Then when I deliver Nathanial, it'll all be gone."
And you can walk away, she silently added to Spade. They'd both be able to go back to what their lives were before this mess. Somehow, the thought wasn't as comforting as it used to be.