Using the large bunch of inn keys, I let myself in and go down to the basement.Muohta heads over to the clubhouse on his never-ending quest for rats.
I know now that the distillery is where Tempest made the blood and enzyme elixir, and the brewery is where she turned it into fluids.
It is not as complicated as I thought.She has left me such detailed instructions.
“Hey, guys, it’s me.”
I don’t even raise my voice.They can hear if they are here.But still, I can’t help giving a scream of shock when a panel in the wainscoting is pulled back.
It’s the one with a mane of wild dark brown hair which he keeps tied back in a ponytail.The name on his cut reads “Rabanesson.”
He doesn’t even bother greeting me.“He could do with some more blood.Can you handle that?”
I am not the bloody expert on how much blood I can lose, you monster!
“You know what?It would help if I had access to the internet, Mr.Rabanesson.I would be able to Google how many pints I could lose?—”
He cuts me off.“I am Theron, son of Rabane.The internet is working now.We will boost the signal for another two or three days.Go inside.”He hands me a flashlight.
Grr!It’s so frustrating not having access to tech 24-7.And my phone is sitting forgotten in a drawer at home now.
My concern for Shadow overrides my frustration.Ducking my head down, I crawl into the underground space behind the wooden panel after thoughtfully removing my shoes.I expected it to be dank and cramped down here, but it reminds me more of a penthouse panic room than a vampires’ bunker.
I start using the flashlight before Theron slides the panel shut.
Lying with his arm covering his eyes, Shadow acknowledges my presence.“Dearvva, Luna.I told the Riders you would come back.”
He’s wearing nothing more than his white cotton briefs in the chilly room.The front of his torso is flawless.He has a strange tattoo high up on his left bicep where it would usually be hidden by the sleeve of his t-shirt.It looks like some kind of a postmark stamp or a face.There is a light trace of chest hair on his pectoral muscles, and the hair darkens as it trails down his taut stomach towards his briefs.
As always, he fascinates me in his casual mesmerizing way.
“Dearvva?”
A gruff sigh.“It means ‘greetings’ in my language.”
Finally, I understand my lover’s history and traditions.He is a warrior from the Arctic Circle.His land is called Sápmi, and the area of his village was in the Fells, the elevated parts in Nordic countries where only spruce trees and reindeer can survive.
“I found Tempest’s recipe, Shadow.I can start brewing just as soon as I get the ingredients from Vince Pruitt.What are you going to do about J—Mr.Farmer?”
Removing his arm, Shadow opens his eyes.They are bloodshot, and the dense dark blue color has faded.He is still a devastatingly handsome young man, but now he looks elegantly wasted like one of those heroin chic male models.
He was turned into a vampire at the age of twenty-three.No wonder he looks so gorgeous.
“Where was it?The recipe?”I can’t help but notice that he ignores my question about Jake Farmer.It’s horrendous.The poor man lost his daughter, and they killed him for acting out on it.
I pat my back pocket.“Right here.The Rider with the ponytail—he says his name is Theron—he told me you need to feed?”
Shadow gives a wheezing kind of laugh.“Yep, darlin’, you could say so.But I fed on you already.You will need time to recover.”
Wincing as he shifts over, Shadow pats the space he has made for me on his narrow bed.
“Come, lie with me.”
“Let me turn on the inn’s HVAC first.”Crawling out the way I came in, I fiddle around with the thermostat before returning to my lover’s bed.
Eating that food really strengthened me.I will invite Shadow to feed on me—at least I want to.It’s so scary to overthink the best thing to do.
I imagine his fangs sliding into me with their venomous embrace.I wonder, if I were to accidentally taste one drop of fluid from him, would it doom me to an eternal living death?The same as what the Red Queen did to him?
