My limbs feel wooden and hollow as I’m caught up in the exodus. The group jostles me until I can make my legs carry me, stumbling, out into the yard. Wails follow me outside, drowning out the sounds of crackling flames and my fellow hunters. I suck in the air greedily but immediately regret it. The pungent stenchof accelerant and fire threatens to choke me as the agonized screams fall silent one by one. I hold my breath.
We took the horde of vampires completely off guard. More than a dozen of the dangerous creatures are dead and dusted. We suffered no casualties. On top of that, the intel I was so worried about turned out to be sound.
I should be thrilled, but I can’t quiet the sick feeling in my gut. This isn’t our way; we don’t do dirty work for the very beings we dedicate our lives to hunting. I look at the sooty faces around me. Most are grinning and chattering about our victory. No one looks the way I feel.
Why isn’t anyone else asking questions?
My nausea spikes, and I stagger to an unoccupied corner of the yard, dodging a few burning clumps of grass. I lose the contents of my stomach on top of an angry anthill, grateful that I tied my braids back this morning. When there’s nothing left to purge, I drag the back of my hand across my mouth. It’s shaking. I will it to stop. I take a swig of water from my canteen as a bead of sweat drips off my chin and lands in the dust.
After I’ve managed a few deep breaths, I turn back toward the burning house. Angus stands at the corner, his arms crossed as he watches me. I say nothing and neither does he, but I feel his eyes on me for the entire march back to the rendezvous point.
SHEENA
Brush, spit, rinse, and repeat.Running my tongue over my freshly cleaned teeth, I pull my hair into a high, tight ponytailand square my shoulders. Supernatural boot camp is back in business. But there’s a conversation I need to have first.
It’s been radio silence from Ciprian since I called him out for being a bad friend. Now that I know it wasn’t quite the premeditated ambush I first imagined, I’m eager to clear the air. Callum put him in a tough spot. Even with all the bad blood between them, Ciprian refused to throw his brother under the bus. That warms my heart.
I slide into my cutoff shorts and tank top and pull out my phone with a sigh. There’s no point in stalling any longer.
Can we talk?
Why?
Because we had a fight
Blood… tears… yelling in front of an audience. Remember?
It’s early, Sheena
Who’s Sheena? This is bestie
Are you sure? I fucking scared you
Yeah you did
But you’re a literal nightmare and I’m scared of everything
For the record, I am sorry
I know you are. I am too.
What the fuck for?
I was too harsh on you
ffs we need to work on your killer instinct
So, breakfast?
Ciprian suggests we meet at a nearby diner for breakfast. I’m a little—okay, a lot—nervous about going out in public, but he assures me the diner’s owned and operated by the enclave and not very busy this time of year. Callum and Gideon won’t like it if I leave the protection of the compound, but I’m not about to ask for anyone’s permission to go out to eat.
Stepping out of the bathroom, I paste a cheery smile on my face. “I’m going to breakfast with Ciprian.”
Gideon pauses in the middle of sliding into his gray sweatpants and smiles up at me. “If you’ll wait two minutes, I’ll walk down with you.”
I admire his flexing muscles for a moment, then shrug. “It’s actually a few miles away, I think. He says it’s a diner.”
Callum looks up from his phone, brow furrowed. Now that they know I don’t mean Sarah’s kitchen down the hall, I have their complete attention.
