Page 17 of The Mafia Bloodline
For once, Volken was still asleep beside me. The room was dim, the shutters drawn tight against the sunlight that would turn him to ash. His arm draped across my waist. The sight of him asleep, still, peaceful, almost human, did strange things to me.
But then the ache in my stomach hit, low and deep, and I groaned.
“Oh, no…” I muttered, sitting up slowly. It didn’t take a genius to know what was happening. I’d gotten my period.
I slipped quietly from the bed, careful not to wake him, and pulled on leggings and a hoodie. My bag didn’t hold much, definitely not what I needed. “Of course,” I whispered, glaring at my reflection. “Of all the times…”
I tied my hair into a messy bun and tiptoed out, the mansion was hushed, sunlight pooling faintly through the tall windows.
I made my way toward the family wing, where I knew Sorcha and Layla would be with the children.
Sure enough, I found Sorcha in the sitting room, perched on a couch with her little girl, Suraya, who was trying to braid her mother’s hair and getting it adorably tangled.
“Runa!” Sorcha smiled as she saw me. “You’re up early.”
“Yeah,” I said, tugging at my sleeve. “Listen… uh… I need something. Kind of… personal.”
Her brow furrowed. “Personal?”
I lowered my voice. “Pads. Or tampons. Or… something.”
It took a beat before she understood. Then her eyes went wide. “Oh. Ohhh.”
“Yeah.”
Her head whipped around toward the door, eyes darting like she was expecting an army to come bursting in.
“What?” I frowned also looking that way.
She stood quickly, scooping up Suraya and setting her down. “Okay, we need to get you back to your room. Now.”
I blinked. “Wait, what?”
“Runa,” she hissed, grabbing my wrist. “You’re bleeding.”
“I know that,” I reply with a frown.
Her expression tightened. “And there are vampires in the house.”
I stared at her for a second, then…God help me…I laughed. “Oh, come on, you’re joking. You mean Volken’s going to… what? Sniff me out and think uuu, snack?”
Sorcha didn’t laugh. “Exactly that, but not just Volken.”
My laughter died.
She hurried me through the hall, half-dragging, half-pushing me back toward the guest wing. I was still giggling nervously, shaking my head. “Okay, this is officially ridiculous. I’m not some walking blood bag. It’s fine.”
“You won’t be saying that once you have been going at it like bunnies.” I hear Sorcha mutter.
We rounded the corner just as Ivan appeared, his usually calm face twisted in sharp concern.
“Sorcha,” he said quickly, his gaze darting between us, nostrils flaring slightly. “What’s going on?”
“She needs to get back to her room now,” Sorcha said.
Ivan’s eyes locked on mine, and I could tell from his expression that he understood exactly what was going on. He stepped forward, gently taking my arm. “Come. Quickly.”
I was about to argue when I heard it…footsteps, fast and heavy, coming from the hall behind us.
