Rebirth of the Seer Read Online Free PDF Page B

me.
    The door shut with a click. “Christ on a cracker,” Chloe said. “What in God’s name happened to her?”
    I turned to face my old friend, regarding her for the first time since my unfortunate encounter with a gang of unruly vampires. The skepticism in her eyes spoke volumes. “Chloe,” I said, indulging in a deep, steadying breath and shutting out her confused thoughts. “ I know you are aware now of what manner of being I am. And I would not fault you if seeing me again is troubling. This girl shall die, though, if we do not help her.” I turned my sights to Monica, as though stating her condition aloud demanded I listen for her pulse before I could look to Chloe once more . Her frown deepened as I continued speaking. “I need this room and your help.”
    She glanced at Monica again, bringing a hand to her mouth. Her eyes widened with epiphany. “Good Lord. Please don’t tell me that’s what I think it is.”
    “A stake, yes, and obviously intended for me.” My gaze turned solemn; my tone of voice, plaintive. “More hinges on this girl’s survival than you can begin to know. Forget what I am for a moment and think of me as Peter, if just for her benefit.”
    My words hung pregnant between us. Chloe’s eyes jumped between me and Monica before she finally si ghed and nodded. “Okay, w hat do you need from me?”
    “Take her vitals. I am going to strip off this soaked jacket and wash my hands.”
    “You’re going to scrub up for this?” Despite the tone of her question, Chloe began pulling items from a set of metal drawers while I dashed for the sink. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”
    “If I do not, then who shall?” Working my arms through the sleeves of my suit coat, I shrugged it off and tossed it to the side. I t landed on a chair and was soon forgotten, my fingers working swiftly to unbutton my sleeves and fold the cuffs up to my elbows. W arm water gushed from the tap when I turned the faucet on. “It is my fault she is in this state. I should be the one to take responsibility.”
    “T he other night aside, you haven’t practiced medicine for over five years.” I ignored the weight of her stare as much as I could, reaching for the soap. When she refused to relent, I froze in place. “I’m going out on a limb here, but…” Her statement trailed off.
    I sighed and pivoted to look at Chloe. She had ceased her flurry of activity. Setting the soap back down, I rinsed my hands and shook them dry after shutting off the water. Chloe’s unspoken thoughts completed the rest of her plea and caused my stomach to sink. My former co-worker, from the days when I wore a stethoscope instead of the compliment of blades I currently bore on my person, hesitated with her mouth open as though the protest would simply drop from her tongue. A frown tugged at the corners of my mouth. “But what?” I asked.
    Her gaze shifted nervously away as she gathered whatever courage humans require for stating the absurd. “You’re a vampire, aren’t you?” Her eyes found mine again. “I wondered when I first saw you because you nearly looked like a corpse, and you knew right away what happened to the woman you asked to see. But then, you dealt with those other guys and I saw…”
    I cut her off, in part as a mercy to her. “Yes, I am a vampire, Chloe.”
    Chloe swallowed hard.  “Are you sure you can trust yourself, then? Maybe I’m speaking out of ignorance, but isn’t it a bad idea to tempt a vampire with the sight of blood?”
    Permitting myself a moment to linger on Chloe’s question, my eyes drifted to Monica again. There laid my watcher, frail and pale with crimson continuing to ebb from her wounds. For the first time in a while, I could not summon the gumption to assuage my own self-doubt. Once I pulled the stake out, nothing would hold back the deluge of blood, and I would have to fight my vampire instincts every step of the way. What if her lung had been punctured? Or an artery nicked or,