No wonder Vaughn was always looking at me with concern.
I looked like one of those dead people who came back to life on Dante’s favorite TV show. I personally couldn’t watch it because it was too violent for my tastes, but I’d caught glimpses of it now and again.
A zombie.
That was the word.
Dante would be so disappointed in me.
I needed to call him… even if it was just to tell him I was okay. He and Magnus had to be worried sick that I hadn’t checked in.
But did I want them to come get me?
I didn’t even know where I was. I hadn’t been paying close enough attention on the ride from the first house to know what state we were in.
First things first. I needed to take care of myself so I wouldn’t worry Dante and Magnus when they saw me.
Or Vaughn.
I cursed myself for that silent addition to my thoughts.
I went back to the bedroom to wake Vaughn up but when I saw him hugging my pillow, I kept my mouth shut. I considered the foodon the dresser. I didn’t care that it was cold, but I knew the meat and mashed potatoes would be too much for my stomach and would likely just make me sick again. I needed something light. Dante had always given me toast or crackers when I hadn’t been feeling well at home. Maybe I could find something like that downstairs.
If Luca and Con were still here, surely they were asleep. And if not, I wouldn’t go to the kitchen… I’d get Vaughn. But if there was no reason to wake him up, I wouldn’t… after all, I knew how to be invisible.
I left the bedroom and quietly padded down the hall to the stairs. The house was quiet. There was no TV on and I couldn’t hear anyone talking. I took my time making my way down each stair, prepared to flee back upstairs at the slightest sound.
But there was nothing.
Maybe the men had left?
There were a few lights on downstairs. When I made it to the front entryway, I could see that the kitchen was empty. To my left was the living room and I could see Con propped up in an armchair by the fireplace. He was asleep.
I didn’t see Luca.
I held my breath as I listened.
I should go back upstairs.
Or call for Vaughn.
Man up for God’s sake, Aleks.
I nodded to the voice in my head. I could do this. Even if I came across Luca and he tried something, I’d yell for everything I was worth. If I could attack Vaughn to protect myself, surely my brain would react in a similar manner around a man who wanted to harm me.
But was that what he really wanted?
He’d said he wouldn’t have hurt me.
It wasn’t something I wanted to find out for sure, so I hurried to the kitchen and began scanning the counter for a bag of bread, then realized there probably wouldn’t be any because no one appeared to currently be living in the house. The little food I’d seen upstairs had looked like it could have come from the freezer… Dante often made potatoes like that from a bag that he just had to put in the microwave. And there was always some kind of meat kept in our freezer.
I moved silently to the cabinets and began carefully opening them to see if there were any crackers. I hadn’t thought to check if there’d been glasses of anything to drink on the dresser where the food had been, so I grabbed one during my search. I’d be able to fill it with water from the bathroom faucet.
I was in the process of opening one of the long cabinets by the refrigerator when I heard a slight cough. I froze, then began frantically searching the kitchen to see who’d managed to sneak up on me. But there was no one. When I heard the sound again, I realized it was coming from outside. I’d somehow missed the fact that the kitchen door was open but the screen door was closed. There was a little bit of light out on the porch off the kitchen, but I didn’t see anyone.
It could only be Luca out there… or one of his men.
I carefully closed the cabinet and gripped the glass in my hand so I could use it as a weapon if someone came rushing through the door to grab me. Then I began backing away from the door and back toward the front entryway and stairs… and the safety of Vaughn.
