Page 27 of Taste of Death

“They’re also busy preparing for the blood mate ceremony,” I pointed out. “So again, I’m not a huge priority at the moment.”

“Ah, that’s right,” Novak said like he’d forgotten.

“Are you going?”

“I wasn’t planning on it.”

“I don’t blame you,” I scoffed.

A smile tugged at the corner of Novak’s lips. “Aren’t you going? It’s a big day for your friend, right?”

“I don’t think I have much of a choice.”

Novak pulled out the stool from under the counter and sat down. He seemed closer to me, resting his elbows on the marble surface and leaning in slightly. “Are you still angry at her for bringing this change upon you?”

I sighed, tilting my head back to admire the pendant lights hanging from the ceiling. “I don’t know. Honestly, I’m tired of feeling mad at her. I’m tired of feeling depressed and resentful of what I am now, but I’m not ready to completely forgive her yet.” I folded my arms on the counter, speaking aloud the thoughts forming in my head. “And I feel bad because I know she feels awful over what happened to me. She’s my best friend and I don’t want her to suffer.” I frowned. “But she’s found the love of her life and is perfectly happy in Blood ‘til Dawn, so it’s not like she’s suffering that much.”

“Relationships are complicated,” Novak said with a sympathetic nod. “Especially our longest and closest ones. Sometimes it’s the people we love most who hurt us more than we ever thought possible.”

When I looked at him, it was impossible for my gaze not to travel up the length of his exposed forearms. Jesus, since when did I become a forearm fetishist?

“Sounds like you speak from experience,” I mused.

He laughed dryly. “Yes, and I don’t have many regrets, but one of the big ones is holding onto a lot of unresolved feelings toward my family. And as you can see,” he lifted and spread his hands out with a wry expression, “they’re all gone. I can’t even say I loved everyone in my clan, but it’s… haunting to have resentments and old wounds never be resolved. You don’t want that.” He brought his hands down and straightened. “Even with a nearly thousand-year lifespan, you never know when Temkra will take you to eternal rest.”

It was good advice that I was taking very much to heart. But my brain snagged on certain details.

“So, what Cyan said the other day, about your clan being monsters?”

Novak’s eyes closed for a long moment and he nodded. “It’s true. We started noticing it a couple hundred years ago. No one knows for sure, but I believe it’s a disease, possibly viral in nature. Most people call it Rathka’s Curse. But all of my clan succumbed to it, except for me. They’re… unrecognizable, impossible to reason with. And yes, they’ve been known to cannibalize.” He let out a short scoff. “A good example of being technically alive but not living a life. They may as well be dead. They’re certainly not vampires, or even people, anymore.”

“Holy shit,” I breathed, staring at him in shock. “Novak, that’s terrible. Are you saying they’re out there but you can’t help them in any way?”

He ran a hand through his hair, suddenly looking exhausted. “Hasn’t been for a lack of trying. I’ve dedicated the last hundred years of my life to finding a cure. But nothing so far has worked. As far as most are concerned, I’m the last of my line.”

A hundred years. I couldn’t imagine being completely alone for that long. How could he stand it? I assumed he was single, but maybe I was wrong. Whichever the case, his relationship status definitely wasn’t my business. Although once the thought crossed my mind, I was suddenly insatiably curious to know.

A mirthless smile crossed his face as he watched me. “Are you questioning your decision to show up unannounced to my house?”

“No. I mean, I’ll go if I’m bothering you. I don’t want to be a nuisance, but I just… That’s so awful, Novak. I can’t even imagine losing everyone.”

“You’re not a bother at all.” He paused as if he were going to say more but decided against it. “And you might as well know what the story is with my clan. All of Sanguine knows, so now you’re in the loop.”

He tried to sound nonchalant, but it couldn’t have been easy to talk about. That coldness from before had returned, and I wondered if it was a mask he put on to shove down his emotions. If that was true, maybe he didn’t intend to seem so callous when we parted at Blood ‘til Dawn’s compound.

Or maybe I was just desperately looking for a connection that wasn’t there.

“I’m really sorry about your family,” I said. “And that you never resolved things with them. You make a good point. I know Tavia’s heart was in the right place when she had me changed, I just… ”

To my surprise, Novak leaned toward me and gently knocked his shoulder against mine. The contact was one thing that sent my skin flushing with heat, but the scent of him was something else. That warm, masculine fragrance invaded my senses and hit my brain like a drug. I felt my fangs lengthen and kept my lips firmly clamped shut to hide them.

“I’m sure it would mean a lot to her if you attended her mating ceremony.” Novak was apparently unaware of his effect on me. “As in, willingly and happily supporting her.”

The words left my mouth before I could fully comprehend what I was asking.

“Will you come with me?”

Chapter 9

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