Cradling her in his arms, Nick studied her. Her face was pale, her skin clammy. “What’s wrong with her?”
Oliver shook his head and gripped his side. “I’m not sure. They drew some blood. I think maybe they took too much. Or maybe they gave her too large a dose of the tranquilizer. She said she was dizzy, then threw up. I’m dizzy, too, so I guess it could be the drug. But mine could just as easily be from a concussion.”
Eliana, Dana, and Aidan appeared in the doorway. Their faces filled with concern when they saw Oliver and Kayla.
Dana looked up at Seth. “We had to knock out the security guards. And we killed two armed hostiles on our way here. As far as we can tell, no one called in reinforcements. Aidan found Richard Roubal and a big hulking guy with bloody knuckles in a back room. Roland and Marcus finished sweeping the building and joined him. Roland is scaring the living shit out of them while Marcus keeps him from slitting their throats and Aidan reads their minds.”
Seth gripped Nick’s shoulder with one hand and Oliver’s with the other. “I’m taking these three to network headquarters in North Carolina. Henderson and his crew will be here shortly. Hold down the fort until then. I’ll take care of Roubal and the other man when I return.”
The room darkened. Then the bright lights of a state-of-the-art infirmary surrounded them.
Nick recognized it. It was nearly identical to the one in the network headquarters in Houston. But this one was larger and boasted advanced electronic exercise equipment in one corner.
Two men with glowing blue eyes currently ran at preternatural speeds on the modified treadmills.
Nick stiffened. He had forgotten the East Coast headquarters housed several vampires who had surrendered to the Immortal Guardians, hoping network doctors would be able to stave off the insanity that would soon plague them.
They slowed to a halt when Seth, Nick, Oliver, and Kayla appeared.
A petite, slender woman about Kayla’s size rose from a desk nearby. She wore blue jeans and a Tar Heels T-shirt beneath a white lab coat. Her long brown hair was pulled back in a ponytail. Her gaze swept over them, lingered on Oliver, then fell to Kayla, lying unconscious in Nick’s arms. “What happened?”
Seth motioned for Nick to lay Kayla on an exam table. “Kayla and Oliver were kidnapped and tranqed, not with the drug that affects immortals, but with another one. They drew some blood from Kayla. Then she began to feel ill. You have more experience with tranquilizers than the network doctors in Houston, so I brought her here. I can heal wounds. But I can’t remove a drug once it’s been absorbed into her system.”
Nick lowered Kayla to the table and stepped back. Oliver moved to stand at his side, his bruised and bloody face full of concern.
Seth rested a hand on Kayla’s forehead and the other on her chest.
Dr. Melanie Lipton moved to stand beside them.
The two vampires stepped off the treadmills and watched from a distance, faces sober.
After a moment, Seth swore. “The tranquilizer isn’t making her ill. She’s been poisoned.” Shifting his hand to Kayla’s arm, he ripped the bandage off and held it out to Melanie. “Whatever it is has been leeching into her from the white pad.”
Melanie took the sticky tan bandage, careful not to touch the white gauze pad in its center, and sniffed it. “I don’t recognize it.”
Seth shook his head and returned his hand to Kayla’s chest. “Nor do I. But she’s going into cardiac arrest.”
Alarmed, Nick took a step closer. “Can you stop it?”
“I’m working on it.”
Aidan appeared, one hand on Eliana’s shoulder.
Before he could teleport away again, Melanie held the bandage out to him. “Smell this. Can you tell me what poison it is?”
Aidan’s brows drew down. “She’s been poisoned?”
“Yes.”
He sniffed it, thought a moment, then shook his head. “At first I thought it might be cyanide. But I’m not sure. I’m afraid I’m not very knowledgeable when it comes to poisons.”
“Okay. Thank you.” Melanie turned to the open door and called, “Jared.”
A blur entered the room. Then a man who stood at least six-feet-eight-inches tall stared down at her. Nick had only met Jared once. The powerful immortal was as ancient as Seth but had only recently joined the ranks of the Immortal Guardians.
“Yes?”
“Get Alleck.”
Jared vanished.
“I’m going to head back to Brightwood and keep an eye on things,” Aidan said, then he disappeared as well.
Jared reappeared with an immortal about Nick’s height.
“Alleck.” Melanie crossed to him and held out the bandage. “Smell this. She’s been poisoned and is going into cardiac arrest.”
Alleck took the sticky bandage and sniffed it. His brows drew down. “At first I thought it was cyanide.” His voice carried a German accent. “I detect a hint of almonds. But…” He sniffed again. “If it is, it’s been mixed with something else.” Another sniff. “Aconite? Perhaps antimony?”
Nick took in Seth’s grim expression and looked at Alleck. “Is there an antidote?”
“Without knowing the combinations of toxins?” Alleck shook his head. “We could try hydroxocobalamin in case it is cyanide.” He looked at Melanie. “Maybe activated charcoal for the other?”
Kayla’s body stiffened, then went limp.
“What happened?” Nick blurted. Was she having a seizure?
“Her heart stopped,” Seth murmured. “I had to shock it.”
Absolute terror swept through him. “Is it beating?” There were so many other heartbeats in the room and the building that Nick couldn’t isolate hers.
“Yes. I’ve stopped the damage from progressing but am having difficulty reversing it.” He sent Nick a look that cut like a knife. “I’m afraid I’ve little experience with countering poisons. I’m usually called upon to heal injuries. And the poisons I’ve dealt with in the past were never a combination of multiple substances.”
This was a nightmare. He couldn’t lose Kayla. Couldn’t be the cause of her death. That bastard Roubal had been using her as bait to lure him and had clearly deemed her expendable.
“Why the fuck would Roubal even have something like that lying around?” Nick demanded.
“I don’t know,” Seth said. “Henderson is still looking into the man’s business dealings.”
Melanie and Alleck continued to debate treatments, then set up two IVs. One replenished the blood taken from her. The other delivered whatever antidote they had decided to administer.
Seth’s hands began to glow, which only terrified Nick more. That only happened when he was healing a lot of damage.
Again Kayla stiffened, then went limp.
Nick’s throat thickened as he blinked back tears. He rubbed his palms on his thighs, wishing he could at least hold her hand. But he couldn’t touch her while Seth was healing her.
Helpless fury careened through him, colliding with despair. “Kayla,” he murmured.
Oliver moved closer and rested a hand on his shoulder.
Silence reigned in the room. Conversations spawned by the hundreds of employees in the building formed white noise in the background.