Read Online Vampirates 3: Blood Captain by Justin Somper - Free Book Online Page B

will rise and you must sleep through the hours of light.”
    Grace watched as Lorcan’s fingers struggled to find his laces. She was about to help him but a sudden instinct held her back. Somehow she knew that this was something he had to do for himself. She turned to Mosh Zu and saw that he was nodding at her. Had he read her thought or sent her his own?
    “Are you going to examine his wound?” she asked out loud.
    Mosh Zu smiled. “You are a step ahead of me, Grace.” He turned toward Lorcan. They both watched as he eased off the second of his boots. “Let us get you settled on the bed, Lorcan. And then, if you’ll permit me, I shall indeed examine your wound.”
    Lorcan nodded. “Of course, sir.”
    Mosh Zu shook his head. “There’s no need to call me sir. I would much prefer you to call me Mosh Zu.”
    “All right,” Lorcan said, with a nod.
    “Come on.” Olivier began bustling the others out of the room. “I’ll take you to your rooms and we’ll leave Mosh Zu in peace to make his diagnosis.”
    Grace was disappointed. She was so eager to know Mosh Zu’s verdict on Lorcan’s wound.
    “I think Grace would like to stay while I examine her friend,” Mosh Zu said. “That’s right, isn’t it?”
    “Yes,” she said. “If that’s all right . . . I mean, with you too, Lorcan. I don’t want to get in the way.”
    “It’s fine by me,” Lorcan said, reaching toward her and squeezing her hand.
    “Well, if she stays, I stay,” Shanti said, reaching out for Lorcan’s other hand.
    “No,” Mosh Zu said softly but firmly. “No, I think not.”
    Shanti continued to grip Lorcan’s hand. “I’m staying,” she said. “Grace is nothing to him . . .”
    Lorcan was about to protest but Shanti was on a roll. “I’m his donor. He’s got my blood running through his veins. Or he would have if he stopped messing around and started feeding again.”
    “I’m not messing around,” Lorcan said wearily. “I have no hunger.”
    “No hunger!” Shanti snapped. “Well, find some! What kind of a vampire suddenly loses his taste for blood? It’s unheard of!”
    “No.” Lorcan shook his head. “You don’t understand.”
    “Come on,” Olivier said, putting a hand on Shanti’s shoulder. “You’re upsetting him.”
    “Get your hand off me!” Shanti said, tears of rage in her eyes. “I’ve every right to upset him. Lord knows, he’s caused me enough upset!”
    The captain had been silent until now, but now he spoke, his soft whisper like balm on the tension of the room. “Perhaps, Shanti, it would be better if you and I waited outside. We can hear Mosh Zu’s diagnosis as soon as he has made it.”
    Shanti said nothing. Her hand slipped free of Lorcan’s, though as Grace watched, she wasn’t entirely sure that this was of Shanti’s own volition. There was a strange, beatific expression on the girl’s face as she walked toward the door. They watched as she exited into the hallway. Olivier stepped out after her.
    “Thank you, Captain,” said Mosh Zu. “You , of course, are most welcome to stay while I make my examination.”
    “It’s all right,” the captain said, with a shake of his head. “I’m sure Grace will prove an able assistant. I shall leave you to your work and wait with the others outside for your diagnosis.”
    Mosh Zu looked at him, then nodded as the captain walked out of the room. The door swung shut behind him. Grace felt a slight chill. Suddenly, she was incredibly nervous. The moment she had waited for — the moment they had all waited for, toiled up the mountainside for — was fast approaching. But what if Mosh Zu’s examination only confirmed her worst fears? Maybe it was better to live in ignorance and hope.
    “Let’s take this one step at a time,” Mosh Zu said, smiling reassuringly at her. “Now, Lorcan, are you comfortable there on the bed?”
    Lorcan nodded.
    “I’m going to put you into a light sleep,” Mosh Zu explained. “It will help us to make a