The Vampire With the Dragon Tattoo(50)

"So you lost her?"

Dougal shook his head. "She was being sent to her new husband on a boat going up the Yangtze River. I followed after her, and I had almost caught up with her. I could see her boat, but then a storm blew in, and her boat capsized. I dove in to save her, but I was too late." He looked away with tears in his eyes. "I failed her. She saved me from slavery, and I failed her."

Leah frowned. "The storm killed her. Not you."

"If I had never left her, she would have lived. Or if I had returned just a day earlier, she would have lived."

"It's not the same," Leah insisted. "You didn't kill her. I did kill."

"It is the same. Darafer's evil possessed you and forced you. It was beyond yer control, just like a storm. Ye canna blame yerself."

She turned away. "Darafer told me about her, that she was your one and only love."

"I love you, Leah."

She scowled at him. "You said it yourself, that you'd waited three hundred years, that you wouldn't lose me again. I'm just a replacement. A cheap copy of the girl you loved three hundred years ago."

"Nay! Leah, ye're different. If some part of Li Lei's soul has found a way to come back to me, then it isna something ye're aware of. It doesna make you who ye are. Ye've accomplished things that Li Lei could never imagine. There's no one like you."

Her eyes narrowed. "Why would you think she's in me?"

"Her father was a merchant. The family name was Ka, which means merchant. Her name was Ka Li Lei. And ye're Galileah."

She flinched. "It's just a strange coincidence. I can't be her."

"It doesna matter to me. Ye're still Leah, and I love you as ye are. Ye're strong and brave and the most brilliant woman I've ever met. How could I no' love you?"

Her face crumpled. "But you fell for me because of her. You were waiting three hundred years for a replacement."

Dammit. He shouldn't have told her about Li Lei. He had thought sharing his story of regret and shame would comfort her and let her know she wasn't alone, but it had only made things worse.

Tears filled his eyes. "I waited three hundred years for a chance to love again, and it is you I love, Leah. How can I prove to you that I love you? Ye are the one I want for the rest of my life."

She turned away, a tear running down her face. "How can you want me? I'm a killer. I tried to kill you."

"Leah, please. Doona give up on yerself."

"Leave me alone. Please."

When she continued to ignore him, Dougal strode from the room, ready to hit something. He charged outside and saw Briathos standing on the bluff, looking at the sea.

"Why were you so slow?" Dougal demanded. "If you had dispatched Darafer to hell just a few seconds earlier, then his hold on Leah would have been broken, and she wouldna have killed!"

Briathos regarded him sadly, then turned to look at the sea once more.

"Do ye know how much she's suffering?" Dougal asked. The cold wind whipped at his face, making his eyes tear up. "She wants to die! Do ye even care?"

"Of course I care." Briathos sighed. "You may question what if for hours, but a truth remains that cannot be avoided." He faced Dougal. "When a child of God is consumed with evil, there is always a price to pay."

"She dinna ask for evil!"

"She was consumed nonetheless. The price must be paid." He wavered, then disappeared.

Dougal stood there, watching the waves crash on the shore. A price must be paid.

His eyes stung with tears. She was suffering so much. He couldn't bear to watch it. And now she even doubted that he loved her. How could he prove he loved her? How could he ease her suffering?

He could pay the price for her.

The idea flickered in his mind, and with desperation, he latched on to it and let it grow. It was in his power to take the pain away from her.

He strode into the school and headed for the lab. Laszlo and Gu Mina were seated together at his worktable, and Abby and Gregori were at her table.

Abby sat up. "Did you get her to eat?"

"Nay."

Abby exchanged a look with her husband. "What can we do? I'm afraid she's suicidal."

"Doona fash. I have a plan." Dougal took a deep breath. "I will erase all her memories of China. 'Twill be like she was never there. She will remember only the good progress ye're making here. But ye all must play along. Pretend she was never in China."

Gregori frowned. "That seems a bit extreme."

Abby touched his arm. "We have to do something."

"It is the only way." Dougal's heart squeezed in his chest. She wouldn't remember their night of lovemaking in Tiger Town. She wouldn't know that she'd agreed to marry him. How could he erase bits and pieces of their relationship? The holes left behind would make her suspicious.

The solution hit him like a battle-axe, and he stumbled back. The only way to protect her was to make a clean sweep. No memories of China, and no memories of him. She wouldn't suffer from the humiliation of feeling like a replacement. She would simply complete her job here, then return home to Houston, happy and proud that she'd accomplished something good.

She would be free from pain. He would take all her suffering away and heap it on himself. He would pay the price.

"I'll erase myself," he whispered.

Abby gasped.

Laszlo frowned. "Surely that is going too far."

Dougal shook his head. "It is the only way I can protect her."

He trudged down the hall and entered her dorm. She was still in bed, refusing to look at him.

He sat on the edge of her bed, his heart breaking. He would have to lose her in order to save her.

His eyes burned with tears. "I will find you again. No matter what. If it takes another three hundred years. Or a thousand years. I will find you."

She looked at him. "Are you going somewhere?"

"Aye." He placed his hand on her forehead, slipped into her mind, and began erasing.                       
       
           



       Chapter Thirty-two





A week later

Leah finished checking her patient's blood pressure and smiled at him. "Perfect! You're one hundred percent back to normal."

"Thank you, Dr. Chin." He grinned. "Does that mean I can go home?"

She nodded, looping her stethoscope around her neck. "Tonight. We'll have one of the Vamps teleport you back."

Her patient bowed his head. "Thank you! Thank you, Dr. Chin. I can't wait to see my family again."

"And we have a parting gift for you, thanks to our benefactor, Kyo. A sack of rice for you and your family."

"Thank you!" He beamed at the other six patients, who had come out of stasis the day before. "We're free!"

They all cheered, and Leah grinned. She was so glad she'd accepted this job. At first, working with Vamps and shifters had seemed totally bizarre, but as far as she could tell, they were all a bunch of great guys who were making a difference fighting evil. They even had a resident angel, Briathos, who stopped by every day.

"Are you married, Dr. Chin?" one of the patients asked.

"You can't have her. I want her," another patient said. "Marry me, Dr. Chin. I'll give you five chickens!"

"I'll give you a pig," another boasted.

Leah laughed. "That's very sweet, but I'm married to my work."

From what she'd heard there were still close to a thousand mutated soldiers who needed to be changed back. She hoped they would all welcome the change like these guys had. They were eager to be reunited with families they hadn't seen in years. And they were angry at Master Han for turning them into mindless robots. Unpaid robots, it turned out. Most of these boys had agreed to join Master Han believing he would send their wages to their families. But once Master Han had people under his control, he no longer paid them the wage they'd been promised.

"I have more good news for you," she continued. "We're going to reimburse you for your lost wages."

Her patients clapped and cheered. "Thank you!" they shouted over and over.

Leah gave them high fives. After Angus and Roman had learned how these young men had been cheated from their earnings, they'd decided to make things right. It was a touching gesture from the Vamps, Leah thought, but also a smart move. In the future, all the cured soldiers would be on the side of the Vamps.

"I'll bring you something yummy from the cafeteria." She left the clinic as they continued to cheer.

Briathos was standing in the hallway, and he nodded at her as she passed. "You have done well. The Heavenly Father is most pleased."

"Oh. Thank you." Wow. Even God was happy with her. Did life get any better than this?

"May I be of service?" Briathos asked.

"I'm fine. Thank you." She hurried down the hall to the cafeteria, wondering why the angel asked her that every day. Maybe it was just an angelic thing.

She piled six ice cream sandwiches and six juice boxes on a tray and delivered them to her fan club in the clinic. They were still arguing over who should win her hand, though they forgot about her when they saw the ice cream.

Smiling, she strolled into the lab. "Hi, Abby. Hi, Mina."

They greeted her with smiles.