Chapter Thirty-three

Mac had toughed out the pain in her chest and the burning pains in her abdomen through the long night and was relieved to finally see the sun peeking through her curtains. She sat up on the side of the bed, but realized she was too weak to stand. Falling back on the bed, she groaned. She now realized the pain and weakness Jon had suffered that day he had refused to feed from or in front of her. She just hoped she could be as strong as he had been.

Mac ached to reach out and touch his mind with hers, but knew she couldn’t. Tears welled up in her eyes, but she swiped them away quickly when Richie knocked on her door.

"Hey Mac," Richie called from the other side of the door. "I’m going down for coffee. Want me to bring you anything?"

"No, thank you," she called out.

Richie pushed the door open. "Mac, you really need to have something." He noticed how pale she was, but he just assumed it was the separation symptoms. "I’m bringing you something, and you’re gonna eat it, or else."

Realizing that Kristoff hadn’t told Richie about her ultimatum, Mac nodded weakly. While Richie was gone, she managed to get dressed and stumbled to the sofa in the sitting area. She curled up in one corner and tried to look normal when he came back in the room.

Richie watched her carefully while she sipped at her coffee and nibbled at the toast. Something about her screamed that she was hiding something. He wasn’t sure what it was that tipped him off, but he knew she was keeping something from him. When he’d went downstairs, he’d been told that all the vampires in the area were attending the ceremonies for Caleb, except for Mac and Jon, of course.

By that evening, Richie was really worried about Mac. She was weak and unable to get out of her bed. The sheets were soaked with the cold sweat pouring off of her. He left the room to find Maria and get fresh linens for her bed along with any help the other woman could provide. As he walked down the hall, he debated with himself whether or not he should try to let Jon know what was going on with Mac, but deciding it was something his friend should know, he turned toward the hallway where they were keeping Jon.

When he rounded the corner into the hallway, he was surprised that there weren’t any guards outside the door. Looking back over his shoulder to make sure there was no one around, he walked over and knocked discreetly on the door. No answer came from within. Once again checking to make sure he was alone in the hall, Richie slipped in the room. There were no visible signs that his friend had ever been there, but Richie knew where to check. He walked into the bathroom and quickly turned on the hot water in both the sink and the shower. He and Jon had sent messages to each other many times down through the years this way, but usually they had been some kind of smart ass remark to tease the other.

Once the steam had filled the room and clouded the mirror, Jon’s message was revealed.

Rich, they’re moving me to somewhere else in the castle. Something about you and Mac showing up at my door. Tell her I love her.

"Fuck," Richie cursed at the empty room. He grabbed a towel and dried the mirror, erasing Jon’s message so that no one else would know he’d contacted his friends. Then he stomped from the room, slamming the door behind him. He didn’t continue his search for Maria. Instead, he went in search of Kristoff.

Richie found the vampire in his office. The guitarist didn’t bother to knock; he just walked right in the room and took a seat uninvited across the desk from Kristoff. The vampire raised his eyes from his desk to look at his visitor, but didn’t say anything.

Richie cut right to the chase. "Where’s Jon?"

Kristoff had known this confrontation was coming, but he had decided he wouldn’t share the information. He wouldn’t risk Giovanni getting into trouble with the Council again because of this man’s actions or Mac’s. "I can’t tell you that."

"Can’t or won’t?" Richie asked angrily.

"Won’t," the vampire answered. At Richie’s glare, he continued, "Giovanni could be seriously reprimanded if you or Mac show up at his door again. The guards told the Council about your last visit, and they ordered him moved. If it happens again there would be serious consequences."

"He needs to know that something’s wrong with Mac," Richie told him.

"No he doesn’t," Kristoff replied. "He would only worry about something he has no control over. Why put him through that?"

Angrily, Richie stood and leaned over the desk, bracing his hands on the hard surface. "I think she’s dying!"

"She is," Kristoff answered calmly. "She’s starving herself. She has refused to drink Giovanni’s blood unless the Council allows her to see him."

The look of disbelief that washed over the guitarist’s face was almost comical. "What?" he asked, falling back in the chair. "Why would she do something so stupid?"

"She’s desperate to see him," Kristoff answered. "I knew the Council would never allow her to see him, unless I could show them that it was impeding the trial. I haven’t went to them with her demand yet, but will show them at the start of Giovanni’s trial tomorrow when she can’t show up to give testimony."

"Will she make it til tomorrow?" Richie asked, worry evident in his tone.

"She will," Kristoff assured him. "It will be close, and she’ll be so weak that she’ll need a lot of blood, but she’ll make it."

"Will Jon be able to provide enough for her?"

"He’ll be fed enough to be able to, or at least be provided with more after she feeds, if he needs it." Kristoff paused, giving Richie a hard look. He had argued with himself for a long time over whether or not this man could be trusted with his plans to help Giovanni, but now he decided that if Giovanni trusted him then so could he. "I have a plan," he told the guitarist softly.

Richie leaned forward, unsure if he’d heard the vampire correctly. "What kind of plan?"

"To get Giovanni out of here if the trial doesn’t go his way."

"Well then," Richie said in relief, "let’s hear it."


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After hearing Kristoff’s plan, Richie went back to his room feeling pretty unsure of the effectiveness of said plan. The whole thing consisted of waiting until they had Jon tied to the stake, then Kristoff and Mac would put their mental abilities to good use. Kristoff had told Richie that Jon wouldn’t act on his own behalf, but that the Council would assume it was Jon and Mac doing the damage. That would keep Kristoff and Maria out of danger. Richie’s part in the plan was to acquire the get-away vehicle and get them all out of there once Jon was free.

Richie was having a hard time believing that Jon wouldn’t act to save himself, but the fact that he’d voluntarily come here to face judgement, knowing what could happen was what had Richie doubting Jon doing anything to save himself. The tiny voice in the back of his head kept telling him that Jon’s death would mean Mac’s, and that Jon would do anything to save her.

After a brief stop in his room, Richie went to Mac’s. He was very worried about her. She was in very bad shape, unconscious, sweating bullets, and moaning in pain. She thrashed about on the bed, occasionally calling out Jon’s name. Unbidden, anger rose in Richie’s chest; she was doing this to herself. Oh, he understood her reasoning, but he knew Jon’s own anger would rise when he learned her condition. A tight smile flashed across full lips. The Council didn’t know what they were in for tomorrow. Richie had seen Jon’s temper in full blown mode. Thunder and lightening were the best way for him to describe it, and tomorrow there would be a full blown hurricane in that courtroom. He just hoped that the winds wouldn’t blow his way.

Richie sat by Mac’s bedside throughout the long night. Maria had come by to administer a sedative that had seemed to help Mac rest. Richie wondered why they didn’t just give Jon’s blood to Mac via a transfusion. Maria had explained that the blood had to filter into the blood stream by way of the digestion system. They could try to force feed her the blood, but otherwise they were helpless. Besides, Maria and Kristoff supported her efforts to see Jon and wouldn’t try to get around her refusal to drink the blood. They would only try to make her more comfortable while she rebelled against the system that kept her from her lifemate.

By the time a vampire came by to get Richie for the proceedings that afternoon, Mac was weak, limp, and lifeless. Her breathing was labored. Richie hadn’t had any luck getting her to wake up and respond to him in any way. He just hoped that the Council would see reason, because Mac was beyond seeing it for herself.



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Jon arrived at the courtroom before anyone. His guards led him to the front row of seats and sat on either side of him, waiting for the arrival of the witnesses and the Council. He knew something was wrong when Richie entered the room alone. Without Mac. It wasn’t only the fact that his friend was alone; it was the look on Richie’s face that told Jon all he needed to know. There was something terribly wrong.

Instinctively, Jon stood up and took a step toward his friend, but a restraining hand on his arm brought his gaze to one of the guards. Frowning, Jon called out across the space that separated him from Richie. "What’s wrong?"

Before Richie could answer, the Council filed into the room. They all took their seats, and Jon leveled his icy blue gaze on Kristoff. "Where’s Mac?" he demanded.

"Giovanni," Kristoff began seriously, "we’ll get to that soon."

"We’ll get to that now," Jon said softly, menacingly. A muscle twitched in his jaw.
The hair on Richie’s arms and neck stood at attention, expecting the coming storm. A small, satisfactory smirk pulled the right corner of his full lips upward. This was going to get real interesting real fast.

The three heads at the table on the dias bent together, and Richie looked at Jon. "She’s dying, Jon. She’s refused to drink your blood, until they," he said, jerking his head in the Council’s direction, "allow her to see you."

Jon’s angry roar filled the room. He broke free of his guards and launched himself across the room toward the dias. In the blink of an eye, he had flown across the table and had Kristoff by his shirt front and slammed against the wall behind the table where the other two Council members sat. They both looked on with wide eyes, as Kristoff did nothing to defend himself from Jon’s attack. Jon held the other vampire pressed against the wall.

"Why didn’t you tell me?" Jon growled, his voice held a slight lisp as he spoke around his fangs.

"What purpose would it have served, but, to make you worry?" Kristoff countered.

"And you think I’m not worried now?" Jon demanded. "I’m warning you now, Kris. If you and the Council," he said that last word with contempt, "don’t allow me to go to her, I will not be responsible for my actions. I’ll take out every last one of you that stands between us that I can."

"And, I’ll help him," Richie announced. He stood with his feet apart, braced for anything, his hands clenched into tight fists. He would help his friend in any way; they would fight their way out of this room, standing shoulder to shoulder. If that’s what it took.

Jon looked over his shoulder at Richie and smiled his thanks. Richie gave him a slight nod in acknowledgement. Jon finally released Kristoff and took a step back, but still glaring at his friend, he said softly, "I’ll let you discuss this with the others."

Richie watched in astonishment as Jon calmly walked to stand in front of the table, but without stepping off the dias. Jon stood on the same level as the other vampires, daring them to challenge his presence there.

Sebastian and Kristoff argued heatedly for several long moments, while Constantine looked on quietly. Richie’s gaze rested on the surfer vampire. The guitarist realized that Connie’s vote would be the deciding vote in more than just today’s discussion. Constantine was the only truly neutral party on the Council. Kristoff was firmly on Jon’s side, and for whatever reason, Sebastian seemed to be totally against him.

Constantine’s voice rose above the argument. "Would you be willing to submit to a meeting of minds after you were allowed to see her?"

Richie didn’t know what the vampire meant, but Jon did. He was asking if Jon would allow one or all of the Council members to invade his mind afterwards, to make sure he had not tried to influence Mac’s testimony while they were alone together. It was not possible for one vampire to invade another’s mind without permission. Most vampires wouldn’t allow a Council member inside their head, because once in there they would be able to not only access the memories in question, but any memory there, including any wrong doing the vampire had committed in their lifetime that had not already been admitted to the Council.

The room had suddenly fallen silent after Constantine’s question. Jon knew the risk he was taking, when into the silence he answered, "Yes." He realized that the Council member or members would then be able to access his memories of the night he turned Mac. They would be able to know what happened, and be able to judge him without any witness testimony. Once they had been in his head, anything Richie or Mac had to say wouldn’t matter.

Kristoff gasped. "Giovanni, do you realize what you are agreeing to?"

"Yeah," Jon nodded, "whatever it takes to save Mac."

Kristoff shook his head. "I will not allow this, unless it is agreed that the only memories that will be viewed are the ones of the meeting between Giovanni and his lifemate. We will not access the memories that would condemn him, and in effect cause him to testify against himself."

"I’ll join minds with Giovanni," Constantine offered. "I’m the only one," he glared at the other Council members, "who obviously hasn’t already made up their mind as to his guilt or innocence. And, I will only view the memories of the meeting in question. I don’t think it’d be anywhere near polite for all of us to invade his and his lifemate’s privacy in such a way. You two will just have to take my word for it when I tell you that he did not discuss his case with her."

"I can agree to that," Kristoff quickly answered.

After several long seconds, Sebastian nodded curtly.

Jon didn’t wait any longer; he turned and ran from the room. Richie quickly followed him, knowing his friend didn’t even know where Mac was.