Quinn's Undying Rose

“Oh, I gave him a flash drive, but an empty one.” Rose motioned to Vera. “Vera was so kind as to make sure there was one that looked identical to the real one. While Keegan was checking it, we had just enough time to get Blake out of the room and—”

“But not enough time to save yourselves,” Quinn interrupted.

“No.” Rose hesitated. “How did you find me?”

“We’ll talk about that later. First, I’ve got to take care of this mess here.”

Quinn turned, then looked at Wesley who was standing near the door. “A word.”

As soon as they reached the corridor, he turned to Wesley, who appeared apprehensive and immediately went on the defensive. “Hey, I only wanted to help.”

“I wanted to thank you,” Quinn interrupted.

Wesley looked at him, stunned.

“No matter what Thomas says, if you hadn’t broken their concentration, Thomas would have died. You saved his life.”

“I did?” He paused, then smiled. “I did.”

Quinn gave him a friendly slap on the shoulder. “Now, what was that stuff?”

“Just something I’ve been working on. I found the recipe in Francine’s books. It’s supposed to paralyze a vampire.” He grinned sheepishly. “Guess it didn’t quite work that way, but hey, it worked out fine anyway, right?”

Quinn rolled his eyes. “No more using any untried potions, are we clear on that?”

A hopeful look spread over Wesley’s face. “You mean I can try them out on you guys first?”

“I didn’t say that! And no, you can’t.”

“Oh. But, if you want me to help you guys, you should support my research.”

Quinn exhaled. “Research?”

“Yeah. I mean, next time we get attacked by evil vampires, we should be prepared.”

“I think you should leave that up to us. And not a word of this to Thomas. He’s going to be pissed at you for a while anyway. No need to stir more shit up by telling anybody that you’re working on your witchcraft.”

“Fine.”

As he looked at Wesley, Quinn guessed that the last word had not yet been spoken on that subject.

38

By the time all human witnesses to the fight had had their memories wiped and the injured had been taken care of, it was almost daytime.

Blake’s injury had healed quickly, and he seemed to suddenly be all excited about the fact that he was related to two vampires.

“So, tell me more. What was it like to see history happen?” Blake asked Rose, his eyes wide.

She smiled. “You don’t think it’s history when you’re right in the middle of it. It becomes history later.”

“There you are.”

Rose turned to see Quinn enter the living room. Her heartbeat instantly spiked. They hadn’t had a single minute alone since the fight, and she yearned to feel his arms around her. But she also knew that she owned him something—the truth.

“Can we talk?” she asked him. “In private.”

“Of course.” Quinn smiled at his grandson. “Excuse us, Blake.”

As Quinn followed her out of the room and up the stairs, her body tensed. The moment they entered their bedroom, she turned to him.

“Now that Blake is safe, it’s time for the truth.”

His expression was serious when he nodded without saying anything.

“We have to talk about Wallace, your sire.”

She avoided looking at him, tears threatening to overwhelm her. She forced them back. Once he knew the truth, her life would be over. But she was ready. Blake was safe, and Quinn would make sure it remained that way. She had fulfilled all promises she’d made to Charlotte.

“Wallace turned me against my will. He attacked me as I tried to flee London, murdered my coachman, and made me into this. Wallace is dead. I killed him the night I awoke as a vampire.”

Lifting her chin, she looked at Quinn. Her revelation didn’t seem to surprise him much.

He simply nodded. “I know.”

Shock coursed through her veins. “You do? How?”

“I guessed it when I read Keegan’s text messages. Thomas set it up so he got duplicates of everything that was sent. I put two and two together. I realized that the only reason why you couldn’t tell me about your turning had to be because it would lead back to Wallace.”

She swallowed hard, wondering why he had even bothered saving her, knowing what she’d done.

“Now that you know, do what you need to do. Kill me to avenge your sire’s death.”