Page 27 of Graced
“The other night, when you sent us that batch of bags that included the one of AB negative, yes, I drank from it.Just me and no one else.And the next morning, when I woke up…” Rhyne pointed to his eyes.“My color sight was back.”
Norris’s mouth dropped open.“It was?”
“But it didn’t last.”
The mouth grew wider.“What?”
Nodding, Rhyne informed him, “Less than three days later, I woke up to find my vision had shifted back to black and white.That’s why I brought the bag to you.To find out who the donor was so I…” He grimaced, but Norris understood.
“You wanted the color back.”
“Yeah.”
The guy glanced over Rhyne’s shoulder.“So now your roommate… Which one is he?”
“Welsh.”
“So Welsh has had a taste of Miss Lockhart’s blood, which means he can see now in color.”
“But it won’t last.In another couple of days, less, actually, it’ll revert back to the way it was.When it does, that’s going to put Grace in some serious trouble.”
Norris swallowed.“How serious?”
“Very serious.”Rhyne shoved his hands in his pockets.“We vamps, and, yes, I’m calling myself out for what I am, but you already knew that.But we vamps are still very human.And like humans, some of us are good guys, but some of us are not.In fact, more of us are on the bad side rather than the good side.”
“Why?”
“Because of our abilities.Because we’re stronger, and faster, and more agile than you.Than any of you, including trained athletes.Our eyesight, despite the color issue, is stronger.Same for our sense of hearing and smell.That’s why many, many vamps, once they’ve turned, have gone on a power trip and haven’t looked back.”
“Can I ask a stupid question?”
“Yeah, sure.”
“If you guys are so superior, why do you hide?Why don’t you come out and, say, try to take over the world and such?”
Rhyne grinned.He’d been expecting the man to ask that question.“Because we’re not invulnerable.We can be killed as easily as one of you.”
“You mean like with a wooden stake through the heart?Or?—”
Rhyne made a dismissive gesture.“A wooden stake throughanyone’sheart will kill them.And don’t get me started with the holy water or other such mumbo jumbo.I told you, that’s all Hollywood garbage.It’s not reality.”
“Sooo, anything can kill you?”
“If it can kill you, it’ll kill me.”
“Guns?”
Rhyne nodded.
“Knives?”
Another nod.
Norris let out a soft, “Whoa.”Then it hit him.“So, if Welsh’s eyes,whenWelsh’s eyes stop seeing color, you think he’s going to go after Miss Lockhart?”
“I don’t think.I know,” Rhyne grimly admitted.
“He’s gonna want more of her blood so he can see color again, huh?”
