Page 52 of Blood So Brutal

When we returned to Scarlata together after I became a vampyre, things changed. I couldn’t kill them blindly anymore, and neither could Jessiah.

It was years before I spoke to the survivors here, and even longer before they actually trusted me. But now, with everything we had planned, our trust was the one thing we held on to. The survivors needed me, and I needed them.

“Yes, we can trust them to keep her safe. If anything, they’ll be grateful we brought her here instead of dragging her back home with us.”

His nostrils flared before he said, “Things are changing, I can feel it. Something big is coming.”

The hair on the back of my neck stood straight up. “You’re right about that, brother. Something very, very big. If we’re lucky, we just might end up on the right side of this mess.”

Chapter 16

Huntyr

Idreamt of Wolf’s blood that night. Not in the hypothetical, nice way. No, Iactuallydreamt that I could drink more of it, that he was in that bed with me, offering me the warmth from his veins.

I woke up sweating with a dry mouth, trying to get myself under control. The faint sun was already pouring through the windows, breaking up the vast darkness in the tower. I pushed myself out of bed, attempting to smooth down my hair before opening the door to my bedroom.

“Morning, sunshine,” Jessiah sang from the small kitchen, holding out a piece of dried meat. My stomach tightened.

“Where’s Wolf?” I glanced around the empty suite, taking in my surroundings in the daylight. “Where’s Abigail?”

“He’s taking a stroll around the ruins to see what he can find, and he took Abigail with him. There are people here who will take care of her.”

I stepped forward, accepting the piece of dried meat. “He’s handing her off to random vampyres?”

Jessiah avoided eye contact with me. “I wouldn’t call them random, but yes. She’ll be safer this way. Trust me.”

Okay.I had a feeling there was a lot going on here that both Jessiah and Wolf were keeping from me. I didn’t blame them. This was all very eerie, very secretive.

“He knows people here, then? A lot of them?” I was pushing the boundaries, looking for any hint that could piece this all together in my mind.

“I stay out of it, and you should too. This is Wolf’s business. It’s safer if you don’t know anything.” He got back to rummaging through whatever supplies were left in the kitchen.

“And he went alone? Is that safe?”

Jessiah shrugged. “Wolf can take care of himself. Plus, he needed to feed. I think he prefers to go alone.”

Feed.My chest tightened at the memory of Wolf sinking his teeth into me, of him caressing me, of him taking away the pain with his lips, with his body. I clamped my thighs together, my body betraying me in ways I couldn’t even begin to control.

Ididn’twant Wolf to feed from me, not after he betrayed me. But then why did it piss me off so much that he could be out there somewhere feeding from some random person? I didn’t want to picture his mouth on someone else’s neck, the moans likely leaving their lips as he pulled them close, sucking the blood from their veins and pulling the sustenance into his own body.

“You okay?” Jessiah asked, interrupting my thoughts. I cleared my throat and made my way to the large window, peering outside at the dim daylight.

“I’m fine,” I replied. “Just not sure why we came all this way if Wolf was going to leave us here alone while he did all the dirty work.”

Jessiah sighed loudly then came to peer out the window just a few feet behind me. “I figured we could think of something else to pass the time.”

I spun to face him. “Something else like what?”

A slow, mischievous smile splayed on his mouth. I was beginning to see the fun side of Jessiah, the side that wasn’t so wound up by his father, wasn't so worried about punishment or being perceived by the angels in court.

“We’re all alone in this massive tower. What better time than right now to learn how to summon your wings?”

My jaw dropped, but my body lit up at his words, like I was secretly waiting for this moment my entire life. “Are you kidding?” I asked. “You can’t possibly think I can learn to summon my wings today.”

“Why not?” he asked. “You have to learn eventually, and Asmodeus isn’t here to watch over your every move as soon as you start wielding your magic again.”

I scoffed, turning away. “I didn’t have much magic to begin with.”

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