18. Eighteen

Idon’t know what came over me. I’d wanted to kill Atreyis, and that transformed into a lust that I had little strength to deny.

And now emotions stirred within.

What I did could never happen again. The fires that lingered inside me would be snuffed out. The problems that I’d tried to leave behind me needed addressing, not whatever blossomed in my chest.

Atreyis was not the sort I should have affection for.

“Alora is meeting us in Belfor. I’d rather sunbathe on the Isles of Dawn, but our bloodbath at Mr. Darcy’s made a big stink.” Atreyis talked easily for the last several hours while we walked.

He talked when he was avoiding something. I’d deducted as much from our time together. I’d wanted relief—needed it—but I wouldn’t allow him to facilitate it. A small tantrum was had and then he let it go. Thank the gods for that because I doubted I’d be able to contain myself had he touched me in the way I desired.

Unfortunately, I learned what happens when you long for someone who doesn’t long for you in return. But maybe, just maybe, now that I’d released some of this yearning, I’d be able to focus.

“Why Belfor? Seems an odd place for a rendezvous,” I asked him.

The moon was full tonight. Prominent and bright in the sky. Was it relevant? No, but it distracted me from that shimmer in his eyes whenever he grinned at me.

“We share a crash house there. It”s sort of like a sanctuary when we run into trouble and need to lay low, which happens more often than not.” He chuckled and stretched his arms.

The motion lifted his shirt, revealing that trail of hair I found so appealing. Stuffing my hands in my pockets, I nodded. “You two seem close.” Gods, I am pathetic.

“Oh, my little cherub, I’m not close to anyone.” He winked at me.

“I find that difficult to believe, considering she was so comfortable around your nudity.” It was driving me mad, not knowing the extent of their relationship.

He stopped. “Alora came into my life when I was eighteen. We fucked for a while. She wanted more, and I didn’t. Now she hangs around to annoy and lecture me about life choices.” He fisted his hip and tapped his foot. “So yes, she’s seen my cock plenty.”

“I see.” There would be no more of this conversation. I’d already begun to see red again, so I pressed forward.

“What about you? After that display back there, I am convinced you’ve had your fair share of fucking. Got any formers?” He nudged me playfully, but I wasn’t in the mood. My stomach flipped and twisted.

“That is private.”

“Come on! Just one tiny piece of information so I can dream about it.” He batted his eyelashes at me.

Even though I tried so hard not to react, it did make me smile. I quite liked the idea of being in his dreams, preferably without another accompanying it. “We were an item for a century.”

“What!” He stopped again, jaw gaping, and moved to stand in front of me.

“Vampyrs live a long time, Atreyis.”

“Well, obviously, but… a century? Must’ve been the best sex ever.” He rubbed his neck.

“I loved him. Deeply.”

“One of those, then, aren’t you?”

“I beg your pardon?” I frowned.

“You know. The happily ever after types.” Then he put on his dramatics. He cupped his hands and looked up at the sky. “Forever and ever. Die together and buried with each other”s genitals entangled.”

“The words that come out of your mouth,” I chuckled and sidestepped around him.

He followed me, walking so close that the heat from his shoulder penetrated my shirt and warmed my flesh. “What happened then? Mr. romantical.”

“When I needed him most, he abandoned me.” I braved a glance in his direction.

He seemed to be chewing on what to say. “He is an idiot. You have a glorious tongue.”

I palmed my face.

Belfor was a bustling city—not like the rundown town I’d run rampant through. To be honest, I was not sure I could recall the name. Lengen? Langen? It was one of those towns that didn’t have its spot on a map. But Belfor was the polar opposite. The port there held trades with many kingdoms and lands. They were an isolated government and didn’t fall within the Veros border or Aflem’s. Humans and Elves.

One didn’t see the Aflen people too often outside their kingdom, but I suspected we would spot a few mixed in with the Belfor populous. A blend of every species traveled through there.

A crash house—as Atreyis called it—in Belfor seemed like a poor idea unless the purpose was to hide in plain sight.

There were no brownstones like in the Under Cloud, nor were their cottages and gable-roofed houses as there were in Veros. Rows upon rows of sawtooth roofs comprised most of the residential part. And then the closer to the port you traveled, the more congested buildings became. Stacked on top of each other, it felt like. Partly due to the hillside on which the city was built. Steep, narrow stairways valleyed between the maze of shops, restaurants, and other businesses that led to the top of the hill, where the massive palace resided. Five rulers lived there.

Enforcers were scarce in Belfor, but for whatever reason, I’d already spotted three different squads while we weaved through the market and inched closer to the docks. Atreyis plucked a meat skewer from a stall, and I gaped.

“Are you trying to draw attention to us?” I whispered, cupping his arm.

We”d been traveling for days thus far, and he still somehow surprised me.

“He didn’t even notice; besides, everyone is closing down for the night.”

He was correct in that regard. Doors and window shutters were pulled closed, and the civilian traffic calmed down. Dawn approached. “Are we close to this… safe house?”

“Yes! How many times are you going to ask? Fuck.” He bit viciously into his meat and glared at me.

“Until we arrive.” I returned the look.

The salt from the sea whirled in the humid air when we finally reached the tucked-away apartment-like building. Several homes stuffed into one massive chalk-white structure. He lifted a random pot by the burnt red door and palmed a key. But when he went to unlock the door, it nudged open slightly.

“Well, that isn’t a good fucking sign,” he breathed and rushed in.

Blood permeated the space. Fresh, and I caught the distinct scent of an ogre. Atreyis fumbled to get a light on. A wild foot stuck out from behind a dusty sofa. The faint heartbeat behind it told me all I needed to know. With haste, I gathered Alora’s limp body into my arms. Her wounds were extensive. Several stabs to her torso and a wide gash across her temple. She was barely conscious.

“Fuck! Dammit, Alora!” Atreyis rushed to us and cupped her face tenderly.

“Is there a bed?” I asked.

“Yeah, the room.” His voice cracked.

I laid her down as gently as I could, but she still cried out. Her skin was ashen, and she’d lost significant blood.

“How did this happen!” Atreyis barked and hopped on the bed.

“An ogre was here,” I said, smelling the air. The scent was unmistakable.

“Tanner,” he said with that insidious tone I’d heard with Mr. Darcy.

Now was not the time to go out seeking vengeance. “She will bleed out entirely without intervention. I need thread, a needle, and alcohol.”

“Wash… room,” she gargled and managed to angle her hand to point.

Atreyis’ hands trembled, trying to put pressure on her abdomen while I located a box. At least she was prepared for something like this. “Move out of my way,” I ordered.

“Is she… will she….” He couldn’t form words, and how deeply he cared for this woman became so bloody clear.

Dumping the contents of the pint-sized whiskey bottle over her wounds, she winced and coughed. Her fitted top needed to go. Elongating my index fingernail, I sliced the fabric and halted at her breasts. Pushing the tattered garment aside, I better viewed the injuries. This was… bad. Even if I stitched her, I wasn’t sure she’d survive. This hadn’t happened within the last few minutes. She’d been lying there for hours—if not longer.

Threading the needle, I glanced over at Atreyis. “She needs blood.”

“Take it. Take it all,” he lifted his arms.

“Is there an apothecary near?”

“Fuck. Maybe? I don’t know.”

“I suggest you find one, or I cannot save her.” I glared at him, and he bit his lip.

“Don’t you fucking leave me, Alora. I’ll… I’ll fix it. Fuck. Gods.” He jumped from the bed, raked a hand through his hair, and then pushed through the bedroom door.

I’d never stitched anyone before. And I’d never given a transfusion before. But for the sake of them both, I pretended I had.

Studying the jagged flesh, I manipulated the needle through it. She watched me with hooded eyes as guilt swam through me. Had I not given into my bestial impulses with Atreyis, we might have been able to stop this.Our tryst delayed us, and even though it took us two days to get here, I couldn”t help but blame myself for this woman”s fate.

“Punctured… organs…” Her voice broke my concentration.

“Yes,” I agreed. But it was the unspoken words that haunted me then.

Merely suturing the skin would do nothing for the destruction within. Alora was a shifter, though, and they had some healing capabilities. If she weren’t so bloody weak, I’d have already turned her to spare her life. In this state, my blood would shut down her heart, and she’d die before the change took hold, even though it was a fast process.

“How long will it take for your wounds to mend themselves?” I asked her.

“Poison,” she croaked once more.

Growling, I swiped some of her blood onto my finger and tasted the substance. Sure, as I was alive, there was a brutal toxin in her veins. A toxin that I could quickly drain. Suppose she weren’t minutes from death. Atreyis’ mother just died from something I couldn’t remedy; I would not let it happen to this woman.

You are Nova Born.

Would I truly risk the exposure for this stranger? I’d been a coward all this time. I was hiding behind my pain and fears. Did she deserve this? And worst of all, because of me? I made my choice by double-checking that Atreyis was not in the room or the apartment.

“What I am about to do can never be spoken of. No one can know. Is that understood?” I asked her.

“Yes,” she whispered, and blood spewed from her lips.

I could do this. I must do this.