A metallic glint caught his attention from the corner of his eye. One of the humans was waving a scalpel over him menacingly.

“I wanna watch you bleed, leech” he spat at Roman. The blade was dragged viciously from his elbow down to his wrist. Roman winced at the sting. For a brief moment, he almost laughed madly—why did they go from burning to cutting? Did they think that was going to do it? It didn’t take long for Roman to realize that the length of the cut on his arm must have nicked a vein. He felt the blood pool thick and sticky underneath him.

“Not too fast now. I want to enjoy this. And make sure you collect some of the blood,” a fading voice said.

Roman felt cold all over. Despite himself, he couldn’t stop himself from shivering, which his human captors seemed to take great delight in. Through the din in his ears, he could hear them cackle. Everything after that was a blur of nausea, dizziness, and flashes of pain as they continued to burn, shock, and cut. But the longer the torture continued, the more numb Roman became. He shivered from the shock and found his eyes failing to stay open.

The cruel irony of it all was not lost on Roman. After hundreds of years, he finally found a woman worthy of being his mate. But instead of spending a life together in complete and utter bliss, he had already lost her. Even if she did want to talk to him again, there was no point. There was no getting out of this. He was going to die here.

At least Jessica is safe. He didn’t think he could live with himself if it were her strapped to the table being bled like a pig for slaughter. He would rip everyone in this room’s throats out if they hurt her. If this was the end of the line for him, they would never have to find out about her. They’d never lay a finger on her. That was more than enough for him.

The blackness at the edge of his sight widened and soon, Roman was swallowed up by the darkness.

CHAPTER 12

To say that Jessica was overwhelmed was beyond an understatement. Finding out vampires were real was a big enough shock to last most people a lifetime. I still don’t know if I believe I’m in a room full of vampires. But then her grandmother drops the bomb on her that Jessica and Roman were a “mated pair” and “bonded for life”?

“This is so fucking insane,” Jessica said. For once, Maureen did not tell her off for swearing.

“I know, sweet pea. It’s a lot to take in.”

“I mean, how did that mating thing even happen? I didn’t do anything! At least I don’t think I did anything.”

“Your powers aren’t just healing things physically. It’s more like complete physical and emotional empathy. You know exactly what other people truly need. Because you two were bonded when you touched his blood, well, your powers must have gotten a jump start from the physical and emotional reaction.”

Maureen might as well have been talking advanced calculus for all Jessica understood. A tremor of regret fluttered in her chest. If she had only been open to learning more of this from her grandmother, maybe she wouldn’t have chased Roman off when he was only trying to explain himself. Perhaps he wouldn’t be missing right now if she had just known how to tune in to what he was feeling.

“We need to find Roman before he’s… before they—”

“I know. And I know how to help you find him.” Maureen took Jessica by the arm and dragged her further away from the cluster of vampires. Jessica didn’t pay attention to where she was getting dragged. All she knew was that Roman was missing.

“Look, your powers allow you to connect to people in a completely empathic way. It’s why you are so in tune with how they are feeling and know exactly what they need. But there’s more than one way your powers can be used,” Maureen said. She guided Jessica to sit down on the floor. She made Jessica take several deep breaths before continuing with her instructions.

“You need to take a deep look inside yourself. Find the core of your power in your heart. It’s there, and it’s awakening. All you have to do is call it forward, and it will answer for you.

Look inside my heart? She has to be joking. But at this point, Jessica didn’t have a choice. Roman needed her to find him.

At her grandma’s direction, she allowed her breathing to be slow and even. Focusing on the center of her chest, she repeatedly called her power forward. Begging, asking for it to come to her aid. Please. I need you now more than ever.

A deep discomfort settled in Jessica’s chest. It felt like a boulder had been strapped to her, and she had just been told to go run a marathon. She resisted the instinct to flee from the discomfort and let her grandma’s words guide her through it. Once again, she called for it.

And there it was. Inside her, there was a hum, the current of energy made of warmth and light. It coursed through her veins, filling her with an energy and a vitality she had never felt before. It was like she had just chugged three energy drinks with none of the heart palpitations.

“Good, very good. Now we can put it to work,” Maureen said. Without warning, Maureen pulled a small knife from her pocket and cut her own arm.

“Jesus Christ, Grandma!” Jessica swore.

Maureen didn’t seem to heed her granddaughter’s alarm. Instead, she looked at Jessica and expectantly held her bleeding arm.

“Try healing the cut by touching my arm,” Maureen instructed. Jessica tentatively touched the arm. She felt the sting of the cut as if her own body was injured. She focused on the warm, glowing sensations she felt at her center. As the blood coagulated and the skin fused, she felt almost giddy. Why had she been so afraid of this power for so long? The more she used it, the lighter and happier she felt.

“Good, now try without touching me,” Maureen said as she made another cut along her arm.

“How?” Jessica asked.

“Imagine that your power is a beam of energy leaving your body, then project that beam at me.”

Jessica did as instructed. She imagined the light leaving her body and washing over her grandmother. Guiding her body to heal as if she was directly touching her. Soon the second cut began to heal.

Jessica couldn’t believe how light she felt. It was as if she could soar away from this bleak desert and go anywhere in the world. She was free, and she was changed.

“Excellent! I knew that your powers would be strong! Keep going, find the center of it,” Maureen cried. Jessica frowned. She thought she had found it.

“I don’t understand,” she said.

“You need to look deeper. Right inside your heart, the very core of your power.”

So once again, Jessica closed her eyes. It wasn’t as easy as before. When she tried, she felt like she was just slamming into a brick wall. The more she tried, the harder it felt, like she kept hitting the wall harder and harder.

“I can’t do it,” Jessica groaned, her concentration evaporating like mist.

“Yes, you can. At this point, the only thing that’s blocking you is yourself, sweet pea.”

Jessica groaned, but she shut her eyes and tried again. The only thing blocking me is myself. So what exactly am I blocking? Maybe, if she tried to understand herself like she understood the pain of others, she could find the answer.

So she searched. Whatever was blocking her had to be there for a reason. If she could find the reason, she could find a way around the blockage.

The more she searched, the more she could see it. There were a lot of barriers that were around her heart. Some she was surprised to find that she had put there herself. Ever since she lost her mom, there were many things she had repressed. She wanted nothing to do with the power that seemingly took her mother away from her.

In an ironic twist, she thought it was her power that was reinforcing the barrier, as if it was there to protect her from all the pain of dealing with her unresolved feelings or her fear of connecting closely with people. She had even put up a new barrier right when Roman was starting to make her believe that being in love with someone might not be a bad idea.

But Roman wasn’t her mother. He hadn’t left her. She had left him because she was afraid of getting hurt. But now Roman needed her.

She pushed past the discomfort. She put the wall there, she could get over it. Opening herself up to the love she had for Roman, the confidence she felt mere moments ago using her powers more intently than ever before.

A rush of warmth flooded her skin. She found the center of her heart. There it was, a pure radiant energy that cackled like a fire. She was filled with warmth and light. It was there for her to control and mold as she saw fit. She opened her eyes and was surprised that the glow wasn’t just symbolic. Her skin absolutely shimmered.

Maureen’s eyes glistened with tears as she met Jessica’s gaze. Without words, she got up and embraced Jessica in a tight hug.

“You’re ready,” she said. There was so much Jessica wanted to say to Maureen, but the lump in her throat wouldn’t let the words flow.

“I need to get back in there and find Roman,” Jessica said. Maureen nodded, and the two made their way back to the room. Most of the group turned their heads curiously, but there was no hostility in the room. Well, except for Arabella.

“Oh look, the useless human is back,” Arabella sneered. Before Jessica could make any kind of comeback, Maureen crossed over the room and stood before Arabella, shoulders squared, and chin held up.

“Don’t talk about my granddaughter that way unless you want to see the back end of a cane. Vampire or human, I’ll give you the worst beatdown of your lifetime.”