Free Mercy's Danger: Montgomery's Vampires Trilogy (Book #2) (Montgomery's Vampires Series) by Sloan Archer Page A

Robert’s blood against Mercy’s, hoping that it would have a reversal effect.”
    “Did it?” Leopold said hopefully.
    “I’m afraid not. It was simply mixing one human’s blood with another’s.”
    Robert fell back in his seat. “This is a nightmare.”
    Shelia, Leopold, and I looked at each other desperately. None of us could think of anything positive to say.
    “Don’t bother trying to be tactful,” Robert muttered at us. “Only a fool would miss how ghastly this is.”
    “Does this mean that Leopold can’t change him back?” I questioned. Seemed I was going to have more time with human Robert. If I were a better person, I wouldn’t have felt the tiniest tinge of relief. Selfish, I know—but I felt bad for it, if that matters.
    “I haven’t a clue about the changeover process for vampires, except for what I’ve seen in movies,” Shelia replied sheepishly. “Does it involve an exchange of Robert’s blood? Drinking it?”
    “It does,” Leopold confirmed. “I’d drink his blood first and then he’d drink mine in return.”
    “Then changing Robert should absolutely not be attempted,” Shelia said, “at least not until we get a better handle on what we’re dealing with. Like I said before, I can’t give you an absolute answer with the small amount of testing I did. But by attempting to change Robert over, Leopold, you could become human. I’m sorry, Robert, but it looks like you’re going to have to remain human for the time being.”
    Poor Shelia. She didn’t relish delivering such bad news—especially with Leopold sitting a few inches away, his steely gaze fixed on her.
    “I could continue running tests,” Shelia offered. “Perhaps I’d have different results if I tested Robert’s blood against Leopold’s. With him being Robert’s maker—”
    “There’s no need for that,” Leopold butted in.
    “No?” Robert said. “And why not?”
    Leopold waved a hand. “There’s no need to continue running tests willy-nilly. No offense intended, Shelia.”
    “None taken. It was difficult for me to run those tests on the sly. I’m not the only employee at the morgue; pilfering supplies and destroying the evidence wasn’t easy. I don’t have a laboratory at home—why would I—but my results are sound. I can promise you that.”
    “I wasn’t doubting the validity of your results, dear,” Leopold said.
    “Thank you.”
    “I’m proposing that you let me do the tests.”
    “Why?” Robert said. “You’re no scientist.”
    “You’re positively right about that. But what I am is one of the richest men in the United Kingdom. When I get home, I will immediately set up shop,” Leopold declared, making it clear that his mind was made up. “I will hire all the top scientists in Europe, and we’ll get this situation sorted.”
    Robert said, “Leopold, I don’t want to put you out. You have your own business affairs to deal with.”
    “Nonsense!” Leopold scoffed. “I made you vampire. It is my duty to look after you.”
    “But I’m no longer vampire . . .” Robert said lamely. I knew him well enough to know that he was thrilled about Leopold’s offer, despite his protests.
    Leopold smacked his lips. “You’ve known me for how long? Surely by now you grasp how futile arguing with me is.”
    “You really should let him take over,” Shelia said. “It could take me years to come up with the same results Leopold would probably produce in the matter of weeks. I’m no phlebotomist. My area of expertise is dead bodies— human dead bodies.”
    Robert traced a finger along the pattern of the sofa—muted black and gold stripes over paisley. I disliked the color scheme immensely. Robert’s taste in furniture was flamboyant to say the least (precisely what one would expect from a man from the Victorian era). I preferred the clean lines of Danish furniture of the 1960’s. But I figured if conflicting tastes in furniture was our biggest bone of contention, we were doing all