Page 42 of Love Bites
Chilly air crept into the loft through the window. I hadn't closed it since Talon left through it. He probably had other ways of getting back into the apartment, but I didn't want to risk it. Although the image of him expecting the window to be open and then smashing into it in bird form sort of amused me. I held on to it because there was little else that made me feel good just then. My stomach had quieted down a bit—I wasn't throwing up anymore, at least—but I felt dizzy every time I tried to stand. A new development I wasn't in love with.
On the plus side, I wasn't hungry, which was good because I hadn't asked Talon to bring a meal that was more than donuts and gummy bears.
I glanced at the phone in my hand.
It had been two hours since he'd called...
Maybe I should call and ask for groceries.
I tried to picture Talon in a grocery store, pushing a shopping cart and comparing different apples. Another thought that made me smile through the misery.
My gaze wandered from my phone to my hands. Still pale.
I closed my eyes. If I could just sleep until Talon came back... Any time I tried, though, an uncomfortable need for something liquid to wet my dry throat would keep me awake. I wasn't hungry, but I was thirsty.
At first I'd tried drinking a glass of water, and then another one, andanotherone for good measure. I gave up on that strategy when it did nothing but force me to run to the loo way too often. Not great when getting out of bed made you dizzy.
It seemed there was nothing I could do but wait for Talon to come back and tell me what the hell was going on with me.
Whatever the explanation was, I had a feeling that I wasn't going to like it.
After another ten minutes or so, I dragged my ass out of bed to park it on the couch instead, accidentally nudging Eddie. "Sorry, man," I said to the skeleton while I reached for one of the remote controls to turn on the TV. Anything to distract myself from that sense of impending doom that was taking hold in the back of my mind.
I found an action movie on one of the channels that seemed mildly interesting. At least there were a lot of things that exploded. I liked it when things exploded on TV. The actor was kind of hot too. Not as hot as Talon, but still. On an ordinary day, he would have had my attention.
Today, though...
I tried to focus on the show instead of whatever was going on with me, but my gaze kept flicking to the window, waiting to see a falcon.
Maybe I should call Talon, after all? Just to get an update?
Before I could break, a key turned in the door to the loft. I whirled around on the couch. In came the man I'd been waiting for—along with my younger brother.
"Luke?" I asked. He looked almost as pale as me. Wait, had something happened to him? I'd told Talon not to lay a hand on him! I glared at the vampire. "Did you—"
"Your brother is fine," he cut me off. "He insisted on coming along."
You could have just left him behind if you'd wanted to.The thought crossed my mind, but I didn't voice it.
"I was worried about you," Luke said. He rounded the couch to sit next to me. "You looked like shit in that picture." He paused. "And not only in that picture."
"Thanks."
"You know what I mean."
"Yeah, whatever." My eyes darted to a folder Luke was clutching. "What's that?"
Luke's lips drew together and he glanced at Talon as if waiting for him to explain instead. "It's some really crazy shit."
"Yeah?" I turned to Talon. "Did you find an explanation?"
Talon set a couple of folders and a notebook down on a table near the door before joining us by the couch, only one folder left in his hands. A green one. He showed it to me. It had my name on it. "This has your birth certificate, adoption papers, school report cards... All the normal records a parent keeps for their child, and then it gets unusual," Talon said.
"Unusual how?"
"Newspaper clippings of articles concerning your parents' deaths. A map of the neighborhood where you grew up. Several pictures of your birthmark with nearly illegible notes scribbled on them. A facts sheet with weird observations he made about you, detailing things like how well you see in the dark." Talon handed the folder to me. I opened it as he continued speaking. "There's notes about you in the back that might be a little upsetting," he warned.
"I don't see well in the dark at all," I murmured, finding my dad's observation that corroborated this. He'd also scribbled down notes about how good I was at various other arbitrary tasks like measuring my reflexes by making me catch matches that he threw to the floor. I’d thought it was a game at the time.
