“Is he here?”

“He is, sire. I’ve placed him in the adjoining room”

“I want to see him.”

“Dominic, I don’t know if that’s a good idea,” Sully said. “He’s sleeping right now and—”

“I want to see him!” Dominic growled silently.

“As you wish.” Sully bowed his head and walked out of the room.

Dominic closed his eyes. That little bit of bravado had sucked the energy right out of him. His eyelids felt like they were attached to lead weights. He couldn’t ever remember being this tired, not even when he fought in the French Revolution, and that had been a bloody battle that lasted for ages.

Dominic opened his eyes and turned his head when he heard the door open. He watched Sully walk in, a man cradled carefully in his arms. Dominic’s curiosity was piqued when he got a good look at the tuff of sunlight-blond hair sticking out of the blanket wrapped around the young man.

“Is he okay?” Dominic asked when Sully laid the unconscious man down next to him.

“Yes, he’s just sleeping.” Sully grimaced and folded his hands in front of him as he stood up next to the side of the bed. “I’m afraid I had to give him a sedative.”

Dominic’s eyes shot up and met Sully’s for a moment then went back down to the man lying beside him. An unnatural concern for the human filled him. “Why?”

“I do not believe he was fully informed of the conditions of the contract by his family, sire.”

“What?” Dominic snapped. “He signed the contract, did he not?”

“He did, but I think he believed he was signing a contract between him and his father, not you. When I informed him of the contract between the two of you, he resisted. That’s when I had to sedate him.”

“He does not want to be a donor?” When Sully remained silent, Dominic turned to look at him. “Say what is on your mind, Sully.”

“I am unsure of what exactly Erickson told the boy, Dominic, but I do not believe he is fully aware of the situation.”

“What exactly did he think he was signing?”

“As I said, a contract between him and his father.”

“For what purpose?”

“Again, I am unsure.”

“Well, what do you know then?” Dominic snapped silently. He hated the silent communication he had to use due to his ill health. He’d much rather be stomping his foot and shouting to the heavens than having to use mental telepathy. It was too draining on him and didn’t have the same effect.

“He is a perfect match, Dominic.”

Dominic sighed and laid his head down on the pillow next to Danny’s. “Let me see him.”

Sully reached down and pulled the edges of the blanket back to reveal the sleeping man’s perfect heart-shaped face. Dominic inhaled sharply at the beauty laid out before him. He had not expected his blood donor to look so handsome.

“He is a beauty.”

“No one is to touch him.” Dominic growled, his eyes narrowing. He had a sudden urge to attack Sully. He just didn’t have the energy. “I will rip out the throat of the first man to touch a hair on his head.” Sully arched an eyebrow at Dominic, a gesture that very few men got away with in front of him. It was only Sully’s years of service and friendship that allowed him to get away with it unscathed.

“Don’t you think you’d better regain your strength before you start making threats?” Sully asked, arching a dark eyebrow at Dominic. “I doubt you could rip out the throat of a fly right now.”

“We must begin the process right away,” Dominic replied as he continued to stare at Daniel, ignoring Sully’s observation about his dwindling health. “I will need my strength to keep the watchers away from him.”

“You will.” Sully nodded his agreement, a slight grimace crossing his face. “Once they learn that Daniel is your match, they won’t hesitate to take him out.”

“I want the sentries doubled,” Dominic growled. He had an unfamiliar need to keep Daniel safe, something he wasn’t used to. “I am appointing you his Sàssari until I am able to protect him on my own.”

Sully visibly gulped. “Sàssari?”

Dominic started to chuckle at Sully’s shock but it quickly turned into a cough, shaking his body with the force of it. By the time Dominic was done coughing, Sully was standing next to him, a glass of water in one hand and a handkerchief in the other.

“You’re getting worse, Dominic,” Sully said as he gently wiped the blood away from the corner of Dominic’s mouth. “We must start the blood letting as soon as possible or we may be too late.”

Dominic nodded. He knew Sully was right. He was growing weaker by the hour. He already couldn’t walk or sit up on his own. Soon, he wouldn’t be able to lift his hands or turn his head. Dominic was most worried about being able to use his fangs. If he didn’t have the strength to drink blood, he’d die.

“How soon can we start?” he asked Sully. “I’m growing tired.”

“I can draw some blood for now or give you his wrist, your choice.”

“I am not so weak that I cannot drink from the source,” Dominic growled, curling back the corner of his upper lip, showing the tips of his fangs. “Give me his wrist.”