The quadbike is there, parked out of sight between the henhouse and the outhouse.When I get close enough, I can smell the oil.He sabotaged the ATV as an excuse to take his sweet time returning to the inn.
Finally, I have footsteps I can follow.
Only the footprints are looping back to Ben’s house.
Hiding in plain sight.The oldest trick in the book.
And I left Aila and Amelia there alone.Jordan’s scent must have been camouflaged by the leaking blood.
The wind picks up as the clouds gather in a massive storm overhead.The treetops sway like river reeds.The creek water sloshes and heaves.The sound of happy holidaymakers screaming in the bar.The sound of doors slamming open as they rush out to see the phenomenon.
But I notice none of this.I am running like lightning towards Ben’s house.
Bats skitter and flutter as they try to fly out of my way.They are as disturbed by the sound of gunfire as I am.
Once again, I am greeted by the smell of blood as I approach Ben’s house.
Blasting through the mudroom backdoor, I rush into the kitchen.
Amelia.
No.It’s Aila.She’s lying like a broken doll in the living room.
Her precious fluids are draining out onto the rag rug carpet, her hand reaching towards her mother as if it’s Aila’s last act to protect her.
The sky starts to creak and groan to hide the thunderous roar that bellows out of me.
Walls and floorboards are shaking.The vibrations make the furniture tremble.
She is in my arms, the final heartbeats sputtering in her chest.Blood and bile spill over my hands as I try to piece the hole in her shattered ribcage back together.
As the skyquake groans overhead, I suck Aila’s blood.
Prising her mouth open by using my thumb, I bite my lips and kiss her.Ripping open my wrist with my fangs, I drip my poisonous fluids over that gaping hole in her ribs, a hole so large I can see her bullet-shredded liver.
This is not how the Red Queen changed me, but my bloody instincts take over.
My senses tell me things hang in the balance.
Aila’s body seems to fight the poison as it floods into her flesh, spreading like a virus over her organs.Her heart protests, palpitating like a butterfly trapped in a spiderweb.
Large tears of blood drip onto her face.I look around, searching for the source.
That stone cold killer inside me dares to whisper.
You’re crying.
No.I’m shouting.Cursing the world that turned me into this poisonous predator.Railing against the fate that forces me to hide away in the darkness instead of walk by my lady’s side.
Wiping the droplets of blood off my skin, I call her back to me.
“Darlin’, if you’re the brave fighter I know you are, I’m asking you to fight this one last time.And this is a fight you’re gonna have to do on your own.But I promise you, you’re not alone.”
What was it like to be so young with such a dangerous situation envelop her?
How long has she been hiding from her ex?
Ten years.
