27. Bexley

27

BEXLEY

Jacob’s chuckle caught my attention and pulled my stare back to his. I didn’t even realize I had zoned out until his sound pulled my gaze back to him.

“Bex, you’re like a sister to me. I know when you’re no longer hungry. One plate never cuts it for you.”

I sipped my water before setting the chalice down again. “Just taking my time.”

“Any reason why?”

I shrugged. “Not in a rush, I guess.”

He tilted his head as a sympathetic furrow came across his brow. “Do you want to talk about it?”

My mind raced as I stared down at my empty plate. I was officially in the belly of the beast. Not the best place to be without backup. But, then again, it was advantageous. If Delilah wanted me that badly, then I had a shot at leveraging that want to dig to the bottom of whatever the fuck was going on. I was in a precarious position, yes, but I had the skillset to use it to my advantage. I just had to focus.

And focusing meant feeding my body.

“Are you feeling sick right now?” he asked.

I slowly raked my stare over to him. “No.”

He smiled softly. “Then, maybe we’re not as bad as you’ve been made to think.”

Made to think. That was an interesting choice of words. I assumed the worst, which meant if Jacob knew about the pack and the woods and the guys and how attached I had become to them, then so did Delilah. So, I did the only thing I knew to do with the skills I was encouraged to tailor during my training.

I leaned into the fact that I was already there and decided to make it look like I was finally coming around.

“Fine,” I grumbled to myself as I filled my plate with meats and cheeses.

“There we are!” Jacob exclaimed as he clapped his hands. “Now, we’re talking. I had the kitchen cook up all of our favorites.”

I couldn’t help but smile at the sentiment before I picked off a piece of the turkey leg that I grabbed. I tossed it into my mouth while Jacob watched me with those piercing brown and red eyes of his. It was unnerving, to say the least, but the way the tender, juicy meat melted on the tip of my tongue helped to relax me a bit.

Pretty soon, I held the entire fucking turkey leg to my face while I devoured it.

It wasn’t hard to lose myself in the decadence of the food, so I simply allowed it to happen. Jesus Christ, I was starving, and I inhaled slices of cheese that tasted like the heavens while turkey leg juice dripped down my chin. I probably looked damn near maniacal, but I didn’t care. I was hungrier than I realized, and I wouldn’t be able to accomplish a damned thing with an empty stomach.

“Cheers,” Jacob said, pulling me from my calorically induced trance.

I saw him holding out what looked like a coffee mug, and I quickly grabbed my chalice. Turkey leg juice slithered all over the jewel-encrusted cup as I clinked it against his. And as his smile grew, I couldn’t help but to allow mine to do the same thing.

“To catching up,” he said.

I smiled softly before I took a long pull of my water. “To catching up.”

I turned my attention back to my massive plate of food. If protecting everyone on the outside meant staying here on the inside, then it was simply the sacrifice I had to make. Whatever the hell Delilah had going on, she was able to brainwash one of the most dependable people I’ve ever known. That meant whatever plan she crafted was in the works for a while.

And if there was anything my job at the CIA black site taught me, it was that something like this could only come down from the inside.

“Good God,” I groaned as I leaned back in my chair with a full stomach. I rubbed it softly as a yawn escaped through my lips. I shook my head to try and clear the food coma already settling hard on my shoulders. “Thanks.”

Jacob chuckled softly. “For what?”

I shrugged. “For getting me to eat.”

“You clearly needed it.”

I snickered. “Something like that.”

But when another yawn unhinged my jaw, a rush of air whooshed beside me before Jacob hovered over me with his hand outstretched.

“I’ll take you to your room. You should get some rest,” he offered.

Without thinking, I slid my hand into his, and the icy coldness of his skin shivered me to my core. I did my best not to think about it as he linked my arm with his and moved me away from the table, but dear God, it was like a popsicle.

“Don’t worry,” he said as he patted my arm, almost in comfort, “you’ll get used to it.”

I looked up at Jacob curiously. The hell did that statement mean? I’d get used to it? Used to what? Him being that cold, or me being that cold?

I didn’t want to stick around long enough to find out, which meant I had to get to work.

“Oh, God.”

I whipped my head around at the moan echoing down the hallway Jacob led me into. Those same warm white candlelight sconces illuminated as we came closer to them, but I stopped in my tracks at the sound.

“Oooooh, yeah,” the same voice groaned.

“Uuuuh, Jacob?” I asked.

He chuckled darkly before he continued escorting me down the hallway. “Don’t ask questions you’re not ready for yet.”

“Oh, shit,” the bodiless voice whimpered.

I cleared my throat and giggled. “Well, at least she’s having fun.”

“Something like that.”

I didn’t know what the fuck Jacob meant by that, and it didn’t leave me with a warm, rosy feeling in my gut. Still, I moved away from the moaning and groaning and followed him down the hall until we came to a sleek black door with a crystal doorknob. He didn’t say anything as he relinquished my arm and opened the door for me, and I realized why the second the door eased open.

Because behind that door was the most beautiful room I’d ever seen in my life.

“Holy shit,” I said breathlessly as I walked through the threshold.

The massive king-size bed in the middle of the room was held up by a black four poster wooden bed frame. The sleek black sheets seemed to shimmer with starlight, almost as if they had a life of their own. A fireplace off to the side ignited without a second thought, seemingly from out of nowhere. It filled the room with a warm glow and a juicy warmth that immediately pulled me to its side. And as I eased myself down into a luxurious, high-backed chair next to the fire, Jacob perched on the edge of the bed.

“You can activate the fire just by clapping your hands. Try it,” he urged.

I furrowed my brow at him before I looked over at the fire. I clapped my hands together, and immediately, the flame seemed to suck itself back down into the wood that hadn’t yet been charred.

“Now, clap again,” Jacob said.

I did as he asked, giving him the illusion that I trusted him, and I clapped my hands. And just like magic, the fire returned.

“Why isn’t the wood burning?” I asked as I looked over at him.

Jacob chuckled. “That’s the impressive part about this place. It’s laced with latent magic. It makes things easier on us that way.”

“Right…” I said, nodding my head as I turned my attention back to the fire.

Jacob stood and came to my side. “By your bed, you have both a wine decanter and a carafe of ice water. They’re always chilled, and they never run dry.”

I had to admit, the idea tugged a soft smile across my cheeks. I gazed at the wood in the fireplace that wasn’t burning. It was… amazing to watch.

I’d be impressed if they were, you know, not trying to fucking kill everyone.

“Good to know,” I said softly.

He pointed around the room, but I only knew that from the movements in my peripheral. The fire had me absolutely entranced. Or maybe its warmth just beckoned for me to sleep. Either way, I eased further into the plush cushions of the high-back chair as my body settled into a state of rest.

“There are fresh linens and towels over there in that closet. The hot water never runs out, so feel free to shower or bathe as long as you want. The kitchen is always open, but there are set mealtimes. So feel free to eat whenever you wish, just know that regular mealtimes are shared by all.”

I nodded as he spoke, but I didn’t say anything.

“Bex?”

“Hmmm?”

“Look at me.”

That finally pulled my gaze away from the fire and I looked up into the face of the man who used to be my best friend. “Yeah?”

He crouched down and placed his cold ass hand on my knee. “Can I get you anything else?”

I searched his gaze before I shook my head softly. “Not that I can think of, no.”

“What are you thinking of, then?”

“Honestly?” I asked, turning my attention back to the fire.

He squeezed my knee softly. “Always.”

I heaved a heavy sigh. “I’m thinking that a hot bath sounds great right about now.”

He laughed as he stood. “Then I’ll leave you to it. I’ll be back in the morning to fetch you for breakfast and we can talk some more.”

“Fetch me?” I asked with a snicker as I peeked up at him. “You make me sound like a stick.”

He smiled at me, and for the smallest of moments, he looked like my partner again. My brother. My confidant.

“I’ve missed that wit of yours,” he said.

His words hugged my heart, and it broke down my defenses just a tad. “I’ve missed you so much, Jacob.”

And the second my eyes welled with tears, his hand reached for mine.

“Get in here,” he muttered as he pulled me up from the chair.

I threw my arms around his neck, ignoring how absolutely freezing he was. I didn’t care that I shivered against him. I didn’t care that I cried on his shoulder. Jacob was alive. Against all odds, against all natural consequences, he was alive.

“That’s it, let it out,” Jacob said softly as he stroked his hand through my hair. “It’s okay. I gotcha.”

“Oh—my—God—” I choked out.

“Sh, sh, sh, sh, sh,” he shushed softly.

I drew in broken breaths as my crying mounted. “I can’t believe you’re alive. I just can’t believe it.”

“I’m right here. I swear it, Bex. It’s me. Right here. With you.”

I hated how weak I felt. I collapsed against his body, and he held me tighter. Stiller. Closer. He felt like my partner. He sounded like my partner. He comforted me like my partner. I wanted so badly to trust him. I wanted so desperately to tell him everything. I needed an ally on the inside if I was going to accomplish anything, and I wanted so badly for it to be him.

I just didn’t know if I could trust him, and that made me cry even harder.

“All right, all right,” he said as he shuffled me over to the bed. “Come on, let’s get you laid down.”

I struggled to catch my breath as snot threatened to pour out of my nose. I climbed onto the bed and groaned at how soft the sheets were. The black silk sheets illuminated with a soft purple hue everywhere that I touched. As if the sheets signaled to me exactly where I was laying. Then I realized why. The soft purple glow was a heat mechanism built into the sheets. Wherever I pressed onto the sheets, the purple hue illuminated and grew with a low-grade sort of heat.

And that’s when I realized something.

This entire room was set up specifically for a human.

She knew she’d get me back here.

“Seriously,” Jacob said as he tucked me into bed, “you need rest. We’ll get coffee and breakfast in the morning and talk more. Just like old times, okay?”

God, what I wouldn’t have given for a little bit of ‘old times.’

“Now,” he said as he started his way to the bedroom door, “sleep, okay? Even if you get back up and take a bath, promise me that you’ll sleep.”

I couldn’t help but hunker down further into the warming silk sheets. “I promise.”

He smiled softly. “Good.”

But before he could close the door… “Jacob?”

He paused and swung the door back open, staring right at me. “What’s up?”

I pushed myself upright in bed. “You never did tell me what those moans were that we heard walking back.”

He studies me for a while. “Are you sure you want to know?”

I didn’t hesitate. “Yes.”

He licked his lips. “We’re vampires, Bex. And while we don’t feast on humans who don’t accept our offering, there are many humans who do.”

My eyes widened as he continued.

“So because of that, we treat those who feed us… well. We house them here, we feed them here. We give them a life of luxury, opulence, and comfort in exchange for their sacrifice.”

“Sacrifice,” I said softly.

He nodded. “Just like we willingly give ourselves over to the transformation, these humans that let us feed on them give willingly of themselves so that we may thrive. It’s a symbiotic relationship, and it’s one that we treat with the respect it deserves.”

I studied him like a fucking hawk when he spoke. And again, there were no lies on his face. No lies in his eyes. No lies in his tone of voice, or how he stood, or any sort of nonverbal cue or communication to tell me that he was leading me on.

Then again, he was a vampire. He wasn’t technically alive, right? So, did they even have nonverbal cues?

“Sleep well,” Jacob said softly before he inched my bedroom door shut.

And as I listened to his footsteps pad softly down the hallway, I couldn’t help but to flop back down into bed.

“Good God, what have I gotten myself into?” I whispered to myself.

As I tossed my arm over my eyes, my mind fell blank. For once, I didn’t know what the hell to think. If Delilah fed people whatever the fuck they needed to hear so they’d agree to being changed into a vampire, then who’s to say that she wasn’t doing the same thing with those humans they’re using as fucking cattle?

That settled it for me. I had to stay. If there were innocent people being led on before being slaughtered for fucking food, then I had no other choice. It was my duty to my country, to the inhabitants of that country, and to my pack. To the shifters that trusted me.

To my men…

Please, forgive me, you guys.

Because I knew they’d be on the lookout for me, wondering when I’d make it back. Wondering when I’d escape and come looking for them. In my gut, I knew that’s what they were doing. I knew Voss would never leave two entire packs vulnerable like that just to come after me, and I loved him for it. Jesus, I loved all three of them for it.

I just hoped they forgave me once they realized that I wasn’t going to try to escape.

Not until I had all of the information I needed to keep them safe, anyway.