“I can’t…” The effort of talking only increased the ache. “I can’t.”
“Then I’m going to call Ryker, so you don’t have to talk.”
“No.”
“You’re all raspy, like Ryker gets when he forgets to slake. Did you forget?”
“No.” His brain could respond only to direct questions while he fought. Fought so hard. Everything in him, fighting. Struggling to—
Thirst. Thirst. Thirst. Thirst. Thirst.
“So this has nothing to do with thirst?”
He clawed at the ache in his throat. He couldn’t speak.
“That’s it,” she whispered, relief in her voice because she didn’t understand, thought he was normal. “Ryker gets like this sometimes when he’s obsessing on a case, but you know that, right? He’ll skip a slaking and come into my bar with his eyes full silver. Though I guess it’s harder to see that on you, because your eyes are already metallic. Is that how I missed it?”
She was trying to distract him with chatter. She didn’t understand.
“Okay.” Her voice gentled when he still couldn’t respond. “Once we exit up ahead, we’re close to Slake It Off. I’ll drive us. Just switch places with me. You can do that, right?”
He couldn’t think. Couldn’t hear her. Slake It Off? She’d once said he was banned. So if she was going there, then she was going away. His hand shot out and gripped her wrist.
Instantly Claire broke his grip and shoved him into the door. “You do not grab me like that, Tai. I don’t care how thirsty you are.”
“Don’t leave me.”
“Who said anything about leaving? What is wrong with you?”
Tell her. He had to fight harder, fight hard enough to tell her. Words. Tell her the truth she was never supposed to know. Tell her and watch her eyes go cold, watch her walk away forever, hear her tell him never to contact her again.
“I’m a bloodfiend,” he said.
He hid his face in his hands and bowed over at the weight of the truth he’d just spoken into the air. She would always know now. And this final thing was too much. He groaned as the thirst reminded him of every human he’d just rescued, bleeding humans, vulnerable humans.
PREY.
The word screamed in his head. He should dart back to the scene and…
HUNT THE PREY. TAKE THE PREY.
No. No, he wouldn’t. Never. They were people. Not prey. Never prey, even if the thirst killed him someday. People. “Please don’t leave me. I don’t want to hurt them.”
“You think you’d hurt humans if you were alone right now?” she whispered.
“I don’t know. I never have, but I don’t know. Claire, please.”
He couldn’t lift his head. The shame weighed too much.
“I won’t leave you, Tai. I’ll stay right here.”
Gently her hand settled on the back of his neck, and her thumb drew a slow, soothing circle at the base of his hairline. He wanted to weep. She knew the worst truth about him, and still she was willing to touch him.
Twelve
Tai was a bloodfiend.
She couldn’t process it. Too many implications hurtled full-speed at her brain, and some of them made her want to scream or cry, and now wasn’t the time for indulging either of those impulses. Right now, Tai needed help.
