Chapter
Twelve
I’m really starting to hate how dark the house is. Sitting up, I bring my hands to my face and rub my eyes. I’m still in Xavier’s bed, but I’m alone. The metal curtains are drawn, sealing out all light and making it impossible to tell what time it is. I feel somewhat rested, so I must have slept for a few hours at least.
But it still has to be daylight.
Fuck, I hope it’s still daylight. Because if it is, then the chance of any vampires from this house leaving are low, but not zero. A knot starts to form in my stomach and overwhelming anxiety rises in me faster than I can get out of the damn bed.
Blood seeks blood, I’ve learned that lesson many times over.
The Order wants revenge on the Malus vampires for killing hunters and the Malus vampires will get their revenge on the Order for coming after their family. And it’s no secret that the vampires will win this battle, but it won’t be without casualties.
How the hell am I going to get both sides to chill the fuck out? Turning on the bedside lamp, I shake my head at my own thoughts, feeling guilty for wanting Xavier to get revenge on the Order. The more time that passes, the more the wound festersand hurts. I was lied to my entire life. My parents were brutally murdered so I could be treated like a lab rat.
And it was all for nothing.
My powers couldn’t be replicated. Super soldiers were never created. There’s comfort in that, but it makes me so. Fucking. Pissed.
“I won’t let your deaths go unavenged,” I whisper and look up, making a promise to my parents. “The Order will never hurt another family like that again.”
I get up to use the bathroom and am surprised to see all my stuff from my old bathroom is in here. My clothes are in the closet too. How the hell did Xavier pull this off without waking me up? Like most hunters, I’m a pretty light sleeper.
After using the bathroom, I twist my hair into a messy bun on the top of my head and get in the shower. I blink and get a flash of Devon’s blood swirling down the drain. Shaking myself, I reach down inside and focus on my training. Acknowledge my feelings but push them to the side because I have more important things to do right now than sit around and feel sorry for myself.
I get dressed in workout clothes, needing to move my body in order to feel better. But before I go out of the room, I pause in front of the bathroom mirror and look at the bite on my neck. There aren’t two nice little neat puncture wounds like before. No, my flesh has been torn, like a rabid dog bite. This could have been very bad given all the veins and arteries in my neck. Devon’s fangs got me closer to the base of my neck, and he didn’t sink them in very deep before Xavier pulled him off. Still, the wound is gross and bruised. I’ve had worse, but covering this thing up is going to be a bitch.
My phone has been plugged in to charge and is on the dresser near the door, which I hadn’t noticed before. It’s almost four PM and knowing I only have a few hours of daylight left means Ibetter hurry and–well… I don’t know. I need to come up with a plan before I can execute it.
“Wren!” Mabel says, coming out of her room as soon as I step into the hall. Fake, bright light pours down on us from the large windows in the two-story foyer. “You’re up!”
“Yeah. How are you doing?”
“Great! We’re all going out tonight. It’s our first big family outing in a while!”
“Oh,” I say and start downstairs. Mabel follows. “The summit?”
“Yes. And I think we should all dress in various shades of blue tonight.” She zooms in front of me and looks at the wound on my neck. “And I have just the thing to cover this up.”
“It’s a little warm for a turtleneck.”
She laughs. “And you have way too nice of a body to cover up like that or an event like this. I have a dress that comes with a scarf, but it’s a scarf that hangs behind your shoulders.”
“Oh, I think I know what you mean. They’re fancy.”
Her head moves up and down, excitedly. “It’s dark blue and will look stunning on you! I can do your hair and makeup.”
“I would appreciate that a lot. I’m going to get a quick workout in first.”
“Okay.” She claps her hands together. “I’m going to pick out everyone else’s dresses!”
“Are these meetings usually fancy?” I ask.
“Not really, but there’s no harm in being overdressed. And we always look nice.”
“I can see that,” I say, since Xavier and Theo are always wearing designer suits.
“I never really thanked you,” Mabel starts coming down the stairs with me. “Not just for saving my life, but for everything.”
