He cried her name again, every fiber of his being fighting against the power that held him immobile. With a last, desperate effort of will he freed himself and ran toward her. “Sara. Sara.” Just her name as he lifted her into his arms.
“You … came.”
He nodded, afraid they were too late, that she would die in his arms. Her cheeks were sunken, her lips bloodless.
A high-pitched scream of denial drew his attention toward the struggle between Ronan and Jarick. As the scream died away, Ronan raised his arm over his head.
Travis stared at the bloody object in his hand. It took a moment to realize it was Jarick’s heart. There was no sign of Jason Bowman. Apparently, he had taken off sometime during the fight. Not that Travis gave a damn. “Ronan!”
The urgency in Travis’ voice brought the vampire to his side.
“She’s dying,” Ronan said dispassionately.
“No!” But it was true. Her eyes were closed, her heartbeat so faint Travis could scarcely hear it.
“You have two choices. You can bring her across. Or I can give her my blood and hope it’s not too late to save her.”
Travis stared at him. How could he make a decision like that? Making her a vampire would save her life without a doubt. Did he dare take a chance that she wasn’t too far gone for Ronan’s blood to save her? Would she hate him if he stole her life to save it? How would he live with himself if he let her die?
Ronan laid his hand on Travis’ shoulder. “You need to make a decision. Now.”
“I can’t turn her,” he said, anguish thick in his voice. “Give her your blood.” And if that didn’t work? He thrust the disquieting thought aside.
“As you will.” Ronan took Sara in his arms, then sat on the porch step. “Open her mouth for me.”
Travis did as asked. Ronan bit into his own wrist. Dark red blood welled in the shallow gash. Turning his arm over, he held it over Sara’s mouth.
Travis watched, repulsed and fascinated, as the crimson drops fell on her tongue. She swallowed convulsively, once, twice, three times. Slowly, faint color returned to her cheeks. He knew a moment of relief as the beat of her heart grew stronger.
Another few minutes and Ronan ran his tongue over his wrist, sealing the wound. “She should be fine in the morning. Take her to Winona’s house. I’ll clean up this mess. And then I’m going home.”
Winona was more than willing to let Sara stay as long as necessary. She led the way to a guestroom at the back of the house.
Carl trailed behind them, looking anxious. “Is she going to be all right?”
“I don’t know,” Travis said. “I sure as hell hope so.”
Winona pulled the covers back and Travis laid Sara, ever so gently, on the mattress, then drew the blankets over her.
“You’re welcome to stay with her, if you like,” Winona offered.
“Thanks. I will, at least until sunrise.”
Winona nodded and left the room.
“What are you going to do now?” Overstreet asked.
Travis smoothed a lock of Sara’s hair from her brow. “I don’t know. How about you?”
“It’s up to Winona.” Carl glanced at Sara. “I hope she’ll be all right.”
“Thanks. You take of yourself.”
“Don’t worry. No more vampires for me.” He gave Travis’ shoulder a squeeze and left the room, quietly closing the door behind him.
Travis sat on the edge of the bed, watching Sara sleep. He hadn’t prayed in years, but he prayed now, begging Heaven to restore her to full health, to watch over her when he couldn’t be with her, to keep her safe, to grant her a long and happy life.
It wasn’t until Travis ended his prayer that he realized he’d been saying goodbye.
Chapter 29
For the second time in her life, Sara woke in a strange bedroom with no memory of how she’d gotten there. For a moment, she simply lay there staring up at the ceiling. She felt odd but couldn’t pinpoint why. She didn’t hurt anywhere. She didn’t have a headache or feel sick to her stomach. She just felt … different.
Rising, she padded to the door, then stood there, listening. She breathed a sigh of relief when she heard Carl Overstreet’s voice, followed by Winona’s laughter.
She found the two the them sitting in the kitchen, their breakfast dishes pushed aside.
Carl smiled when he saw her. “Hey, girl, how are you feeling?”
Sara shrugged. “I’m not sure. All right, I guess.”
“Would you like some breakfast?” Winona asked. “A cup of coffee?”
“Breakfast sounds wonderful, thank you.”
“Sure, sit down, hon. Bacon and eggs okay?”
“Whatever’s easiest.”
Nodding, Winona moved to the stove where she put some bacon and eggs in a pan, then poured Sara a cup of coffee.
Sara smiled her thanks. “Is everything all right here?” she asked. “I mean, now that the vampires are gone? They are all gone, aren’t they?”
Overstreet cleared his throat. “Yeah.”
“What is it?” she asked, fear for Travis’ life spiraling through her. “What’s wrong?”
“The vampires, uh, pretty much destroyed the town before they left. I’m afraid your house and your store are gone.”
She stared at him blankly. “Gone?”
“They torched your car, too. Damned vampires burned everything except the houses that belonged to members of the coven or their women.”
Sara stared into her cup. Everything she had brought with her was gone. All her clothes. Her handbag. Her checkbook and wallet and driver’s license. Her cell phone.
“Sara?”
Blinking rapidly to hold back her tears, she looked at Carl.
“What can I do?” He reached for her hand and gave it a squeeze. “I’ve got a little cash if that’ll help.”
“Thank you. Is Travis all right?”
“He was fine when I saw him last night.”
She nodded, then murmured her thanks again as Winona set a
