“That’s sort of awesome.”
Her smile widened. “It is, isn’t it?” She sobered as she continued. “I was unable to read your DNA on my last visit because the numbers were moving at a rapid rate; the equations were changing so swiftly, I didn’t even have time to calculate them. This meant I had no idea if the transition was working or failing. Now that the transition is over, I’d like to take another look. Would that be fine with you?”
“Sure.”
Lena gave me a winning smile. “Wonderful. Just be still for me.” She didn’t move or touch me; just looked at me, her gaze focused and intent, yet not meeting my eyes. Finally, she blinked and straightened. Jared handed her an NST, which she took gratefully.
My stomach churned at the smell, and I tasted bile in my throat. Butch gently rubbed my back until the nausea subsided. Thankfully, Lena drank the NST quickly and Jared took away the bottle.
“Tell us,” said Butch.
Lena cocked her head. “I must say, I’m still a little befuddled by your DNA, Imani.”
That wasn’t good news. “You can’t read it?”
“I can read some of it, but it is difficult. What I can tell you, Imani, is that your DNA is no longer in flux. Your body’s state is now frozen, just like that of a vampire.”
“So I won’t age?”
“No. You are once again immortal.”
Well, that was both good and bad. Aging would be a problem, since I intended to spend eternity with Butch. But if I was weaker than before and couldn’t regain that strength, that would be a major problem. I was a member of the legion. I couldn’t afford to be weak. “And the transition won’t reverse?”
She shook her head. “You will neither go back to what you were before nor alter any further.”
Rubbing my back again, Butch asked Lena, “What else can you tell us?”
She crossed one leg over the other. “The serum failed. Imani isn’t even half-human. Her DNA is more vampire than human, but…some of the equations are now incredibly long and complex. They also contain unfamiliar symbols.” And that very clearly concerned her.
His brow furrowed. “What does that mean for Imani?”
“I do not know as I am unable to read the equations. Her DNA is not something I have seen before.”
“Do you have any idea why my DNA suddenly has these complicated equations?”
“It could indicate that the serum caused side effects,” she suggested. “It could indicate that your vampiric system adapted in an attempt to fight the serum. Or it could even be that the serum and your system ‘clashed’ in a way that caused your DNA to change in certain areas. In fact, it could be all three. I can only speculate as I have never come across anything like this before.”
Sighing, Sam gave me a weak smile. “I’m just glad you’re alive.”
Jared nodded before turning to Lena. “Any suspicions on what might come next for Imani?”
There was a brief, pensive silence before she replied, “Honestly, Jared, I have no idea.”
He sighed, his gaze moving back to me. “We’ll just have to take this one night at a time. Luther’s blaming himself for not foreseeing the danger to you. We’ve told him to stop beating himself up about it, but it’s not placating him.”
“Please tell him that I don’t blame him at all,” I said, feeling bad for the Advisor. The person to blame for this was in one of the containment cells. “Butch told me you have Tait, Juliet, and Marco in custody. Are they talking?”
Sam raked a hand through her hair. “Only a little. I’m sorry to say this, Imani, but we have no bloody clue who did this to you. Each of them denied it, so we brought in Ryder.” He had the ability to sift through a person’s mind, accessing their memories. “He went to Juliet first, and she slammed him with a psychic blast that’s put him in a temporary coma.”
I gaped. “What?”
“Turns out that it’s not actually an offensive gift. It’s defensive. If her mind senses an intrusion, it reflexively strikes out.”
Damn, that had to have hurt him pretty bad.
“That left us with the option of torturing them until someone confessed,” said Jared. “But Butch made us promise not to start that without him. Sam and I thought that leaving the three of them to stew for a few nights, thirsty and tired and agitated, might make them more likely to talk. We’ll soon see.”
“I can get Marco to talk,” rumbled Butch.
“Torture won’t work on Marco,” I said. “His gift is to block pain.”
Butch didn’t seem deterred by that. “There are different kinds of pain, baby. Facing the person who has you—someone he very mistakenly thinks belongs to him—will provoke him.”
Sam pushed back her shoulders. “All right, let’s go interview our suspects.”
CHAPTER TWELVE
(Butch)
I’d expected the bunny to be pacing with nerves, thirst, and anger. But Tait was settled in a chair in her cell, admiring her long nails, as if she didn’t have a care in the world. I was glad Imani wasn’t with us, because this scene would have pissed her off something fierce. Sam, Jared, and I remained silent, waiting Tait out. It didn’t take long for her to break.
“Since none of you are looking at me with murder in your eyes, I am assuming that Imani is alive. Shame,” she sighed. Her attention snapped to me as I snarled. A hint of wariness appeared in her eyes, but it didn’t mollify me.
“I have to say,” began Sam, “trying to kill her with a serum instead of challenging her to a duel—now that was cowardly.”
Tait sniffed. “I did not inject her with the serum, though I would like to shake the hand of the person who did. Still, I suppose it is good news that she made it through the transition alive; it means I will not be executed for a murder I didn’t commit.”
“She might be alive, but that doesn’t mean you won’t be punished for the attempt on her life.”
“I had nothing to do with that.”
“Why do you despise Imani so much?” asked Jared.
“She deserted Marco, our Sire. That is unforgiveable.”
“But you like doing the first-born duties,” said Sam. “You like directly serving Marco in all things.”