Page 48 of Wonder
He relaxed a bit more. “Okay. True.” I didn’t point out that we were touching, and even unbonded partners with strong connections could mind-speak while skin-to-skin. No need to worry him until I tested it.
“We should probably clean up. And, um, we can see how far from each other the bond will let us get.” Most partners had about a five- to ten-foot radius from each other for the first few days after bonding. Reno and I hadn’t remembered to discuss how we’d navigate that, but if the bond wasn’t complete, it might not be an issue.
He must’ve had the same thought, because he swallowed. “Okay. Let’s head for the bathroom. I’ll go first.” His body was stiff as he slid to the edge of the bed.
I dropped his hand, and—“Ow!” I leaned forward, clutching as much of Reno’s body as I could. I’d never heard of bonded partners who couldn’t even let go of each other.
Our bond was majorly fucked up.
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – APRIL, 1992
I’d lost the trail. I’d flown here to arrive ahead of them, but they’d paid the captain to dock in Santos, three hundred miles to the south. The first mate had told me all about the “tour group” of nineteen people, one of whom was very ill with cancer and had to be carried to shore.
I’d been so angry I’d left the docks on foot and walked for hours. Theluchd-òl folacould be anywhere by now. I’d have to start from scratch. Again. Talk to Wonders and listen for rumors of disappearances. It’d be years before I caught up with them. Fuck.
But right now, I needed to feed. Rio had small pockets of Wonders here and there, usually family groups. Magic carriers were more likely to be out and about on their own, like the one walking into the mercado down the block.
I sped up, planning to linger around the entrance so I could intercept him as he left. But he hadn’t been inside more than a few minutes when he exited, walking backwards with his arms raised defensively. A tiny woman in a green apron yelled at him in Portuguese, something about not wanting his kind in thestore. She didn’t have any magic, so that couldn’t be what she was referring to.
The man walked stiffly away, heading in the same direction I was going. He turned right at the first corner, and when I followed, I found him leaning against the building, his face in his hands.
“Are you alright, friend?” I addressed him in English in hopes he might be my mate.
He dropped his hands and barked a laugh. “No. I—” He blinked at me. I’d stopped a few feet away so I wouldn’t be a threat. He examined my magic core. I didn’t resonate with him, so even though he spoke English, he wasn’t my mate. Which was too bad, because he was attractive, a little thin, but with thick black curls, copper skin, and ink-dark eyes. “Whatareyou?” He held his hands up. “Sorry, that was rude of me.”
I smiled. “I don’t mind.” I looked around to make sure we were alone. “I’m a vampire.” When I’d first set out on my mission, I’d avoided telling anyone what I was. Most Wonders had never met any of the Royal Guard, and their only reference points for vampires was the novelDraculaand silly myths. But over time I’d cared less, and I’d had some success getting Wonders and magic carriers to voluntarily let me feed from them for the sheer novelty of it. Most of the time, though, I still wiped their memory afterward.
He gaped for a few seconds, then laughed. “No shit?”
“It’s true. Do you mind if I ask what happened at the mercado?”
He hesitated, and I could tell he was considering brushing me off or lying, but in the end he turned his head and pointed at the right side of his neck, where he had an ulcerous lesion.
“You have AIDS.” Now that I was close enough, I could smell the sickness in him, but his magic was still strong.
He nodded. His shoulders slumped and his head drooped so he was staring at the ground. “I was on AZT, but it stopped working.” He only had a few connections, and they were faint, childhood friendships that had faded over time.
“I’m sorry. That’s rough.” The woman at the mercado no doubt thought she or her customers could catch it just by being in the same room. Ignorant and bigoted.
He lifted his head. “Now you know, you can leave. It won’t hurt my feelings. You’re a tourist, right? Do you need directions back to your hotel?”
Shit, he’d been treated horribly by more people than not, I’d have bet. I shrugged and switched to Portuguese. “I’m not leaving. Even if I could catch it, I know it’s not transmissible through the air, unlike some assholes.” I hiked my thumb back toward the mercado. “And I’m not exactly a tourist. I’m here on business, I guess you could say.”
He blinked a couple of times, then changed to Portuguese as well. “Your accent is impressive. But, really, I’m fine.”
I gave him an overdone rakish grin. “You are.” I wiggled my eyebrows. He looked at me like I had a screw loose, but he did smile. “It might interest you to know that vampires can’t catch human diseases at all.”
His eyebrows went up. “You can’t? You can’t catch HIV?”
I shook my head and moved closer, reaching out to run my finger along the neck of his shirt. “Not even if you let me suck your blood.”
His mouth dropped open, and his face brightened. “You... you don’t mind being around me?”
“Not at all.” I thought back to his attempt to go to the mercado. “In fact, would you like to join me for dinner? I do eat regular food too.”
He smiled. “Could we pick something up and eat at my place?”
I grinned back. “Sounds great, but I’m not from around here, so you’ll have to choose.”
