Page 37 of Knave

“Three.” Ferris used every ounce of his vampire speed to slide under the door.

The sound of Mouse’s strained grunt as he passed beneath the heavy metal made his breath catch. But he shoved himself to his feet before it slammed shut. Mouse jumped away from the door, covering her mouth with her hands.

“Bloody hell.” Ferris sucked in deep breaths, chest heaving. If the gate had fallen on him, fuck being trapped, he would’ve been cut in two. “Now I expect you to help save my arse every time.” He chuckled softly as he drew her to him, kissing her temple.

Mouse leaned into him for a moment. “I told you I could do it.”

“You sure as fuck did.” He set his chin on top of her head and willed his heart to slow. There wasn’t enough blood in his veins for it to race like this. He had control of himself for now, but he didn’t want to test it either. Mouse had been through too much with Rav and Imogen for him to blindside her with a bite. “We need our bags.”

Chapter Sixteen

Mouse

Hunger clawed within Mouse but not like it had before she’d drank from Ferris. Back in the alley at the club, she’dalmostlost control with him. This time she had. It was something she could never let happen again, yet part of her had known to drink from him slowly, savoring his taste, instead of ripping apart his throat.

As they entered the palace through a large hole in the castle wall’s side, Ferris’s eyelids fluttered. There was no sign of the Jabberwocky or any other danger for that matter. A good thing. But if the beast returned, Mouse would have to do her best to carry Ferris—she didn’t think he could make it much farther.

They traveled down several crumbling hallways, then to one with shattered glass littering the floor that opened to the main entrance of the castle. Mouse wrapped her arm around Ferris’s waist, searching for a place to hide.Aha! A small crevice rested beneath the stairs, the perfect place for Ferris to remain out of view in case danger struck again.

Ferris had saved Mouse, pulling her back from the brink of madness, had touched her in a way that made her see stars. It was more than a distraction from feeding on Ferris, more than him just trying to help her.

She guided him to the stairs and found his gaze trained on her neck, the tip of his tongue sweeping across his lower lip. If Ferris didn’t feed soon, he would attack her, the same way she’d done to him. Any other time, Mouse would hold out her wrist, but if she gave him what he wanted in that moment, the monster within her could rise once more. And this time she might not be able to hold back from tearing out his throat. If she did, life wouldn’t exist for her any longer.

“Wait under the stairs,” Mouse whispered. “I’ll collect our backpacks, then we’ll drink and get cleaned up at the lake before searching the library.” They were both covered in sweat, blood, and grime, and they needed to make certain the Jabberwocky couldn’t sniff them out as easily if it did return.

“No,” Ferris swayed, his gaze never leaving her throat. “I’ll grab them. You shouldn’t have to go into the library by yourself.”

“I’m fine and can do it quicker.” Mouse held both his arms, steadying him as she brought him to a sitting position beneath the stairs. He was too weak to argue with her about it. “Save your strength or we may murder each other, and neither of us wants that now, do we?”

“You smell so fucking good,” Ferris slurred, his fangs lowering. He shook his head, sobering himself. “Go and be careful.”

Mouse was hesitant to leave him, but she nodded and raced up the staircase, not wanting to waste a drop of any more time. Her movements stayed quiet, her feet barely touching the floor as she used what energy she had left for her enhanced speed. When she came across the library doors, her stomach sank. Pushing away the anxious feeling, she snatched their backpacks and left.

Heart pounding, she stormed to the main entrance just as fast, wishing for the Jabberwocky not to show its monstrous face.

It had only taken her a few seconds to reach Ferris, yet it seemed like an eternity passed. His skin was paler, perspiration dotted his brow, and he clenched his stomach as his breaths came out ragged.

“Hold it together for a little longer,” she said quickly, unzipping his backpack first to fish out both his canteens of water.

“I’ve never been this damn hungry before,” he rasped. “I’ve gone much longer without feeding.”

“You’ve also never worked yourself like this.” She opened a pouch of powdered blood and poured it into one of the canteens. As the delicious metal smell struck her nose, she held her breath or else she would pour the powder directly into her mouth. She wouldn’t care about the chalkier taste or how much harder it was to swallow—shecravedit.

Steady, Mouse.

She slowly inhaled as she shook the canteen to mix the powder and water.

“You drink first,” Ferris demanded, even though he looked half dead.

“No.” She shoved the bottle into his hand.

“Stubborn vampire.” He smirked but put the mixture to his lips, growling as he drank, deep and lusty.

Taking a swallow to push away her burning desire, she took the other canteen and poured in the powder. The liquid was warm when it hit her tastebuds, a moan escaping her mouth while the blood slid down her throat, strengthening everything inside of her. Her tiredness dissipated, the hunger lessening.

“Let’s drink another,” Ferris said, appearing more like himself, his eyelids no longer fluttering and his voice steady. “Just in case we run into some shit again.”

“Smart idea.” Mouse fixed them both a drink in the last two canteens from her bag, then they finished them off. Only a tiny hint of hunger buried itself in her stomach, and she hadn’t felt this full in a while, but with Ferris’s blood pulsing in her veins along with the provisions, it should hopefully hold her over for a bit.

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