Page 46 of Bad Luck Vampire

“Good—” she began, but paused without finishing the word as movement distracted her.

At first, Sophie didn’t see what had caught her attention. In fact, with its lights off as they were, the car was almost on him before she spotted the dark sedan speeding straight for Alasdair, who had stopped to peer back up to her balcony, probably because her good night had been paused midword. Sophie opened her mouth to shout a warning into the phone, but there wasn’t even time for that before the car hit him.

Clutching her phone, Sophie watched in horror as the front bumper plowed into his legs. She watched him crash onto the hood, his head bouncing off the front windshield, and then his body vaulted over the hood of the car and slammed onto the pavement behind it as the vehicle sped off down the road.

Her scream finally leaving her, Sophie whirled and raced through her apartment. She didn’t bother waiting for the elevator but instead ran for the stairwell.

Sophie had never taken stairs as fast as she did that night. Later it would occur to her that she was lucky to make it down the twelve flights without stumbling and breaking her neck, but that didn’t even cross her mind then. She was just desperate to get to Alasdair.

Sixteen

The only thing Alasdair could think in the brief moment that he lay there broken in the road was that it was good he hadn’t lost consciousness. He’d heard Sophie’s scream as he’d been thrown over the roof of the car, and knew she’d be on her way down to him. Which meant that despite the injuries he’d sustained and the pain he was in, he had to get himself to the SUV and get out of there. He could not let her see that he was wounded. There was no way he could explain how quickly he would heal afterward.

That thought in mind, Alasdair forced himself to sit up and nearly passed out at the agony the move caused him. Panting, he took a second to take inventory of his injuries. Both of his legs were definitely broken, though in different spots. If the pain he was suffering hadn’t already told him that, the sight of his fibula sticking out of his right leg and the way his left leg was twisted from the knee down would have clued him in to it.

Judging by the pain he was experiencing in his pelvis, hips, and lower back, Alasdair suspected one or all of those were also broken. As was his right arm, he noted, glancing down at the shattered limb. And there was something wet running down his head and neck. No doubt from a head wound. Not only had the side of his head smashed into the windshield of the car that had run him down, but he’d also hit the pavement headfirst when he’d come down hard off the back of the car that had hit him.

Knowing the exact injuries he’d sustained didn’t really help or make a lick of difference in that moment. Alasdair still needed to get his ass in the SUV and quickly.

Gritting his teeth, he considered the situation. Standing was out of the question. His legs were not in working order, which meant he’d have to drag himself the rest of the way to the SUV. Fortunately, it was only about six feet away from where he’d landed on the pavement. Unfortunately, that six feet seemed like six miles in that moment.

Only the fear of Sophie seeing him like this gave him the strength and determination Alasdair needed to drag himself to the SUV. With just his left arm still in use, it was an arduous job, but he did make it to the vehicle, and even managed to open the door. He then grasped the steering wheel and pulled himself up to sit on the running board.

Panting and in agony, Alasdair paused briefly there to glance around the street and over at the apartment. Fortunately, there didn’t seem to be anyone around to witness the accident, and Sophie hadn’t yet made an appearance.

But she would, he reminded himself. Mouth tightening, Alasdair released the steering wheel and reached for the grab handle over the door. Using that, he managed to pull himself up onto the edge of the driver’s seat. He then paused briefly to take a breath before using his unbroken arm to lift each leg inside one after the other. He then tugged the driver’s door closed with relief.

The worst of it over, Alasdair sagged back in the seat and closed his eyes as he waited for the shattering pain to ease up. It wasn’t going to stop, and he knew that, but he was hoping it would improve at least a little now that he wasn’t moving. Sadly, his not moving didn’t mean his body wasn’t, at least not the damaged bones, tendons, and tissue. They were already trying to repair themselves, which was even more painful than the actual breaking had been. It didn’t help that a lot of blood was being used up to do it either. He could already feel the cramping starting as the nanos in his blood mined his body for every last drop of the precious liquid they could find to use in the repairs. It was only going to get worse. He needed to get back to the Enforcer house.

There was still blood in the cooler in the back of the SUV, he hadn’t used even half of it earlier. Alasdair briefly considered trying to get to it, but wasn’t sure he could. It wasn’t like dragging himself across the flat pavement. He’d have to maneuver into the back seat, and then over it into the open compartment in the back. That would cause a hell of a lot more pain than the cramping presently was. Besides, once there Alasdair suspected he wouldn’t be able to control himself. He’d end up emptying the cooler of blood, which would make the healing kick into high gear. Badly wounded as he was, healing was not going to be easy or quiet. He had no doubt he’d end up screaming his head off once the nanos set to work in earnest, and this was no place for that.

Sighing, Alasdair opened his eyes and glanced toward the apartment building again. Sophie was just pushing through the front door and hurrying toward the street. She was barefoot, her robe flowing out to reveal that she was also bare under it as well.

Forcing himself to sit up, Alasdair ran his uninjured hand over his face to wipe away what he could of the dirt and blood that might be there. Hoping that the darkness would hide whatever he’d missed, he then reached around the steering wheel with his left hand to push the button to start the engine. When the center panel immediately lit up, illuminating him in what he suspected was gory detail, Alasdair cursed.

Working quickly now, he pushed the button to roll down his window and then turned the engine off again and tried to look natural and not like he was in agony.

“Are you all right?” Sophie’s voice was high and anxious as she rushed up to the side of the vehicle.

“I’m fine,” he growled. “You shouldn’t be out here. It’s cold and ye’re barefoot. Ye’re also naked under that damned robe. I want you to go right back inside and—”

“Let me see,” she demanded, reaching for his door handle.

Fortunately, Alasdair was quicker than her and managed to hit the button to lock the doors before she could open his.

“Unlock the door, Alasdair. I want to make sure that you’re all right. You landed on the car hard when it hit you, and the ground even harder. You—”

“I am fine.” Alasdair repeated the lie in a sharp tone. He then took a deep breath in an effort to sound less testy before adding, “It wasn’t as bad as it probably looked from above. I saw the car coming out of the corner of my eye before it hit me and hopped onto the hood then somersaulted over the rest of the vehicle. I probably will not even have any bruising from it by tomorrow.”

“But—” she began with a combination of confusion and disbelief.

“Sophie, love,” he interrupted firmly. “I really have to get to work. I only waited here because I saw that you were no longer on the balcony and suspected you were on your way down here. Otherwise, I’d already be gone. Now go back inside. I need to get to work and you shouldn’t be out here like this. I’ll call you tomorrow.”

Much to his surprise she stood silently for a minute, a stunned look on her face, and then gave a small nod and leaned quickly forward to press a kiss to his cheek. Before he could even react, Sophie then whirled away and rushed back across the street.

Alasdair released a relieved breath as she moved away. He watched Sophie until she was inside and stepping onto the elevator. But once the doors closed, he sagged back in his seat again and considered his situation. He needed to leave. If he didn’t and Sophie came back out onto the balcony to check on him and saw that he was still there, he had no doubt she would come right back down and insist on getting a better look at him. He couldn’t risk that.

Unfortunately, driving was impossible in his present condition. Neither leg was functional enough to manage the brakes and gas. Maybe he should call the Enforcer house and have Mortimer send someone out. They could control the amount of blood he took in, give him just enough to ease the cramping for the ride, then they could drive him back. They could even control Sophie if she should come back before they arrived and sorted out that he wasn’t “fine” as he’d claimed. They could wipe her mind of whatever she might discover before their arrival too.

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