I was relieved that she’d been in the safe room at Victor’s when Roman’s men converged on the estate. To our dismay, though, no one had spotted Roman in the chaos.
I grinned at my niece. “Are you a ninja?”
She rolled her bright-blue eyes that sparkled, framed by her stark black hair. “You didn’t hear me?” The light in her eyes vanished as she blanched.
I shook my head. “I smelled you.” Before I did anything else, I had to see Dr. Vieira. “I think the explosion compromised my hearing.” Or the chip. The fucking thing needed to come out. I should’ve heard her heartbeat long before now.
She pursed her lips, her gaze rounding on the carpeted floor. She had one of those looks that sent an army of nerves to clutch my stomach. An expression that screamed that she’d had a vision or a dream either about me or Layla. Hell, she’d seen Rianne killing Layla. Maybe it was too late.
My heart came to a screeching halt. “Abbey, what’s wrong?”For fuck’s sake, please don’t tell me Layla is dead.
She sat on the mattress at the end of the bed, fidgeting with one of her fingernails.
I moved my remaining weapons out of the way and joined her, closing my somewhat trembling hands into fists and resting them in my lap. I could feel her anxiety so strongly, I almost lost my breath. I hated and loved my empath ability, but this was one time I didn’t want to feel Abbey’s emotions.
My ten-year-old niece shouldn’t be carrying the world on her shoulders. She was an extraordinary human. She was born to a vampire father, Edmund Rain, and a human, Rachel. Both were deceased. Still, Abbey was slowly changing into a vampire as she aged, which was unheard of among our kind. Her DNA had started shifting when she was just two years old, along with her ability to see into the future. But that was only one of her remarkable powers, and if the prophecy proved to be true, then Abbey would become the only female vampire in our existence to procreate if she chose to when the time came.
Silence hung over us for a beat as her fear and trepidation enhanced mine to the point that sweat beaded on my forehead.
“You can tell me,” I assured her. Abbey disliked sharing her visions with anyone, and I couldn’t blame her. What she saw in the future was hardly ever good.
She shuddered and picked at a piece of lint on her black leggings. “Roman will capture me, Uncle Sam. I’ve seen it.”
I lost the ability to breathe. She didn’t mention Layla, but I set that aside for the moment, as my niece meant the world to me. “No, he won’t” was all I could say despite my gut agreeing with her. “Your visions have been off lately.” That had been true about two months ago, but I wasn’t certain if it was still true now.
She darted her worried blue gaze up at me. “Maybe they have. But the recurring dreams of Roman tells me he’ll capture me. I just don’t know how or when.”
I swore my heart stopped cold. Roman needed to die and soon.
I draped my arms around her, then tugged her into my chest. “You know we won’t let that happen. Your mom and dad will burn down Earth before they allow Roman to take you. I will too.” I kissed the top of her head, desperately wanting to erase all her bad memories so she could enjoy her youth.
She sighed. “You can’t stop fate, Uncle Sam.”
Wanna see me try?
I held in a growl, knowing she was right—hating that she was right. “What else is bothering you? Is that what you came in to tell me?” I didn’t think it was though.
She pulled away, then placed her small hand on my face. It was her way of seeing into my future and how she sometimes confirmed what she’d seen in one of her dreams.
A veil of blackness dropped over me for a split second before she let go and jumped up, anxiety dripping off her, her big blue eyes wider than ever.
Fuck. This isn’t good.
I caught her wrist before she darted off. “Hey, whatever you saw won’t come true.” Those were the only words I had. “You can tell me. I won’t freak out.” At least not in front of her.
Her gaze was downcast before she raised her chin and blinked. “I… saw you as a monster.” A tear cascaded down her rosy cheek.
I knew she wasn’t referring to me as a vampire, even though humans would call my kind monsters. Still, I didn’t know how to respond. My sweet and precious niece had frozen my brain cells.
She shuddered. “I can’t explain it, but you won’t be Sam.”
I tucked wispy strands of her hair behind her ear. “You know I love you.” Not that my statement would erase her vision—but it was helping me temper the fear that was cinching my heart.
She bit her bottom lip. “Yeah. But I’m afraid for you. I saw you attacking…” She swallowed as more tears pooled in her eyes. “Layla. You don’t want to, but you won’t be able to stop yourself.”
It took all the restraint I had not to lose my shit. “The chip,” I mumbled. I would bet that fucking device was to blame. I wrapped her in my arms. “I won’t do that.” I had to believe my statement—but given my recent actions, I wasn’t so sure I could.
Two days ago, when I’d woken up from my coma, I’d learned I’d been the very monster Abbey was probably referring to.
