Page 20 of Claim the Twilight
EZEKIEL
Orina glows with vibrant life, and I ache to touch her. Hold her. But the wards act as a sentry, keeping us apart so all we can do is drink each other in with our gazes. The silence stretches for several beats before she breaks it.
“I’m a vampire,” she says softly.
I choke back a relieved laugh. “Yes, Little Silver, you are.”
She licks her lips. “I heard Ingrid in the vista. She was in my head.”
“Yes, she was able to reach you where I could not.”
She nods slowly as if absorbing my words, then looks up sharply. “Where is she? I want to see her.”
It’s normal for the newly turned to be a little out of sorts, a little confused, but Orina already seems lucid. “Ingrid is recharging. You’ll see her soon.”
Orina’s shoulders sag. “I don’t think I’d have made it out without her guidance. I was…confused.”
“I should have been more candid with you while I was in the vista.”
Her eyes widen. “I didn’t eject you.”
“I surmised as much. It was the vampiric essence that jarred me out. But you were able to subdue it?”
A slight frown mars her forehead, and she shakes her head slightly. “I didn’t subdue it. I…I embraced it.”
Of course she did, my clever, clever girl.
Her gaze flicks from side to side, and I can hear her heartbeat quicken. “The others! Padma, Merry, and Holly. They were there, and?—”
“They’re safe. It’s all right. They’re safe.”
A little of the tension drains from her shoulders. “Where are they?”
“They went looking for Jacqueline, but I’m sure they’ll be back soon.”
Her eyes go wide. “What if they get hurt? Loviator is out there, and?—”
“Godor is with them. He won’t allow any harm to come to them.”
“Jacqueline’s probably long gone. Like hell would she have stayed in Dracul.”
“She can’t leave even if she wants to.” I tell Orina about the wards.
“What about Ordell? How will he get into Dracul?”
Her pulse is hammering now, the artery in her neck throbbing hard. “Orina, stop a moment. Take a breath. How doyoufeel?”
She drops her gaze to the flagstones. “You mean, now that I’m a vampire?”
“Yes. Are you hungry?”
Her gaze whips up to mine, and pinpricks of crimson bloom in her irises. The beast inside me sits up and takes notice. Her gaze drops to my lips, then my throat, and she closes her eyes.
“If the gnawing sensation in the pit of my belly is hunger, then yes…Yes, I’m hungry, but I can’t…I can’t hurt anyone, Ezekiel. I’ll need my blood bagged.” She swallows hard. “I never thought I’d ever have to say those words.”
A new vampire would be ravenous, chomping at the bit to feed, and yet here she stands. Composed and articulate. She truly is a wonder.
“We have bagged blood. I had Matthew fetch some. Aside from hungry, how are you feeling?”
