Page 35 of Cryptic Dreams
So much blood,myblood.
I see Orion race down the stairs and round two figures in the dark before he drops to his knees. He’s sobbing, crying so hard, and what he’s kneeling in front of, god it makes my stomach roll.
I see me, my almost lifeless body wrapped in strong arms, my face a mess, my clothes caked in blood. I look like I’m on the verge of death and as I scan the scene again from my vantage point, I dry heave so hard I almost throw up.
Him.
Ian.
Oh my god.
“Oh my god!” I all but shout as I pull my hand away. “Oh my god, Orion. Orion, I... I... I killed—”
“The son of a bitch that tried to kill you first,” he says as he scoots the chair closer and puts his hand on my knee before he gives it a grounding squeeze I can feel through the blankets. “You killed Ian, Z, but he had it coming. When we found you... ”
I nod. “I saw. Oh my god, Orion. How... what... oh god, this is bad. This is so bad. What am I going to do?” I push myself up further against the pillows, my panic and fear overriding the pain I still feel. “Where are we? I have to get out of here. I have to—”
“You have to rest,” he says calmly as he adjusts the pillows behind me like I’m not about to be executed for murder. “You have to rest and you need to feed. Then, when you’re feeling up to it, you really could use a shower.” Orion cracks a small smile but I can’t return it because I have no idea what the hell is going on.
“I don’t have time for those things, O. I need to get out of here. I should turn myself in or something. Maybe if I do that then the Great Counsel might show some mercy, maybe motion to handle this as a vampire matter instead of damning me straight to death if it goes in front of the human courts.” I attempt to sit up and get out of this bed I secretly never want to leave but basically collapse as soon as I do.
I am so screwed.
“What am I going to do, Orion? I can’t get up but I can’t stay here, I need to—”
“You need to calm down.” He gives me a soft smile. “Everything has been handled, you have nothing to worry about.”
“Are you nuts?!” I whisper-shout. “Ikilled someone, Orion. I killed the man I was living with, the human man that has housed me for almost thirty years, one I had a contract with that would only be voided by his death and now he’s dead.” My breaths are erratic as my panic grows. “And he died in a verynotaccidental or natural way, Orion. I don’t know how but I basically made Ian spontaneously combust and since he’s not a vampire, that looks really fucking suspicious. I need to get out of here; I have to go! You’re harboring a fugitive and the last thing I want is for either of you to get involved in this.”
But somehow, my cousin is just smiling like the jerk he is. “Z, do you trust me?”
“Yes, but—”
“Then no buts. Everything has been handled. You don’t have to worry about anything, most of all getting arrested or worse because you finally stood up for yourself.”
“But Orion—”
He shakes his head. “Everything is fine, Zephyr, and no one is the wiser. As far as everyone knows, Ian went home after work, did what he usually does then packed a bag to go on one of his fishing trips while you were at the library. Everything is going to be fine.” Then Orion smirks. “Perks of having a Descendant for a mate.”
And just like that, all the oxygen in the room disappears and I’m lightheaded.
My eyes dart around the bedroom again and the reality of where I am sinks in, glaring at me right in my still slightly sore face.
The scent.
The relatively humble though indulgent room.
The elegance and grandeur of a refined sense of taste, one that reflects an old soul that has seen much life, and though it’s simple compared to how Descendants are rumored to live, it’s obvious this room belongs to one all the same.
I don’t know how I didn’t see it before, but this is very obviously Wraith’s home. His private home outside of the nest that all Descendants have, and I am definitely sitting in his bed.
My skin crawls and my stomach turns at that thought.
I don’t want to be here. Ican’tbe here. Wraith doesn’t want me and I don’t blame him, but after our little chat in the alley I can’t imagine he’s going to be ok with this.
And the last place I want to be is sitting in his bed where he’s probably brought countless partners, where he’s done the things I’ve never even allowed myself to think about doing despite reading them in the romance novels I check out from the library. I don’t want to be in his bed, the bed Wraith has probably shared with numbers beyond my comprehension. It hurts way more than my fading injuries do.
I’m not stupid, not that naive. My kind happens to be incredibly sexual and I know for a fact most vampires bed dozens and dozens of partners before and sometimes after they find their mate. The only difference is the way the act of mating is finalized, the way vampires feed from their mates during the process, exchanging some kind of mark of possession and solidify the blood-bond by taking from their partner during coitus. That’s a pivotal part really, because after that happens, a mated pair only needs to feed from their partner, shouldonlyfeed from their partner, and not only does it provide them with a readymade food source for all time, it deepens both the life-bond and blood-bond each time they do it. Plus, feeding from a human partner is illegal and feeding from a vampire partner that isn’t your mate supposedly tastes like shit and can make you sick.
