“What can I do?” Aaron asked without taking his eyes off Blake.
“Don’t move,” Blake said just as Aaron noticed the sack that now held Rupert.
Nineteen
Blake
“What’s that?” Aaron asked, and I could sense the moment his curiosity and confusion turned to fear.
“You know what it is,” Marlon said. He fought to control his urge to end Aaron. Not out of the need to kill but simply the fact that Aaron drove him nuts with his constant questions and doubt. The scent of his blood was so strong this close to him, but if he was going to be brave enough to face us knowing we were both vampires, then I would force myself to be strong enough to deny my urge to drink from him.
“Blake, I needed to know you’re okay,” he said and without moving a muscle, waited for me to speak.
My body was frozen in place, but my senses were very much alive while I estimated how many steps I needed to reach him, and how fast I could rip his throat out. “Aaron, I don’t want to hurt you, but the only reason I’m not tearing you apart is because Marlon is controlling me,” I said and hoped for once he’d listen.
Of fucking course, he stepped closer to me. “I’ve known you nearly my whole life. Get it together. You’re my friend, and I don’t give a shit what you are,” he said with his hands on his hips.
“I have to leave for a while.”
“What? You can’t leave. Where will you go? What about your family? Your job?” Aaron shouted and moved closer to me. The draw of his blood overwhelmed me so much I was thankful Marlon still had control over me.
“We have to find Josiah and destroy him. He won’t stop killing, and he won’t leave us alone. He’ll disappear for a while only to return and destroy everything we have, and kill anyone we’ve grown close to. That includes you, Aaron. He won’t stop at destroying us,” Marlon said.
“Blake?” His eyes locked on mine, and I could see how hurt he was by this information. We’d been there for each other through so much, and neither of us had ever considered leaving town. Now here I was, ready to follow my mate, whom I’d just met, to who knew where.
“We’ll come back. I swear it. And I’ll do my best to get control of myself. I’ve never struggled with something so much as I am with this,” I admitted and realized how hard I was panting, trying to both fight the urge to drink him dry and the compulsion that drove me to want to do it.
His eyes searched mine for deception, and finding none, he rushed at me and wrapped me in a hug. I stiffened at his closeness and forced myself not to bite him even though his neck was so close all I’d need to do was turn my head. “You fucking better,” he finally said. “When are you leaving?”
“Tonight, as soon as we can,” Marlon said. “I don’t want to lose his trail.”
“How do you know where he went—no, never mind, I don’t want to know. Just come back soon and check in when you can. You have my phone number,” Aaron said as he pulled back and forced me to meet his eyes. “Promise me.”
“I promise,” I said, making him smile. “Please, you need to back away.”
“Good luck,” he said and looked between Marlon and me before he hurried out the door.
I sagged with relief as soon as the door shut behind him, and Marlon was instantly at my side. “You did as well as you could, love. I know that wasn’t easy, but I promise after a while you will be able to live among humans without wanting to eat them.” He pulled me into his arms and grazed his nose along my neck. “We really need to leave.”
After a quick kiss, I hurried to strip off my ruined clothing and threw it all away in the bottom of the trash. Then after the fastest shower I’d ever had, I packed extra clothes and a few supplies into a backpack. By the time he came back, I was ready to go. Marlon disposed of what was left of Rupert in a nearby field, assuring me there would be nothing there by morning. The house was a mess. The blood had been mostly cleaned up, but it was obvious there’d been a struggle. I sent Aaron a message asking him to please clean it up enough so my family wouldn’t worry. He agreed and made me promise again to return.
“We need to go,” Marlon said, and we hurried out to my truck.
“Can you still follow him if we’re driving?”
“Yes, I do not need to follow his scent.”
“Why didn’t you smell him when they came here earlier?” I asked because I didn’t understand how his senses could be so heightened, but he’d still miss the scent of someone he thought was his mate.
“Because his scent was not the same, and because I’ve never changed another vampire, I did not recognize him for who he was. I was only aware of two vampires, not who they were. Sadly, I have failed you. I told you I wouldn’t let any harm come to you, and as soon as the devil was at the door I failed to protect you,” Marlon said and leaned against the truck.
“I don’t blame you, but I’m not sure about this life. I don’t want to deal with that until we find Josiah. If he hurts anyone I love—” I couldn’t even finish the sentence because I was instantly consumed with deep rage.
Marlon reached out and cupped my cheek. “He won’t get the chance. We’ll find him before he can harm anyone. He’s been playing this game for a long time, and I’m sure he’s come back here occasionally just to make sure I was still buried. But he had no clue about you or your relationship with him until he was in the same room as you. I doubt he had time to look for your family.”
“We need to stop him,” I said, but I really meant tear him to pieces and let him burn up in the sun.
“And we will,” Marlon said. “We’ll need to find a place to stay when the sun comes up. Believe me, you do not want to experience that.”
