Page 77 of The Vampire and the Barista

CHAPTER 26

Olly screeched to a halt outside their home and jumped out, opening the back door for Ivan.

Ivan got out and helped Jamie. “Shall I carry you, love?”

“I can walk, it might be slow though,” Jamie replied. “Wait, I don’t want Karl or Kitty to see me like this.”

As they were talking, the front door opened, and Dave, Seth and Adrian ran down the front steps.

“Oh my god!” Dave exclaimed, looking at Jamie.

Ivan looked at Seth. “Jay doesn’t want Karl or Kitty to see him like this.”

“They’re in the kitchen,” Seth replied.

“Carry Jamie up to your room, you can do it before they see Jamie like this. I’ll follow you up,” Adrian told him.

“Okay,” Ivan said. “I’ll be gentle, sweetheart.”

“I trust you,” Jamie said softly.

As gently as he could, Ivan picked Jamie up and rushed him inside, Adrian quickly following, both of them a blur.

“Olly, do you know what happened?” Dave asked.

“His dad found him. He said Derrick saved him.”

“What? How? No, don’t answer that, let’s go up and see Jamie,” Dave said, as they rushed inside.

Ivan laid Jamie down and climbed onto the bed next to him.

“Jamie, I’m going to put my hands on you and see how badly you’re hurt,” Adrian said softly, sitting on the side of their bed.

“Don’t use too much energy on me, Adrian. You might need to help someone worse off than me later,” Jamie said softly.

Adrian leant closer to Jamie and smiled gently. “I’ll use whatever I need to heal you,” saying this, Adrian laid his hands on Jamie’s arm and closed his eyes.

Seth, Olly and Dave came into the room, staying silent and watching Adrian work.

Ivan was beside himself with worry; only the fact that Adrian was healing Jamie helped. As it was, Seth walked over to his side and laid a hand on his shoulder, offering silent support.

They watched as Adrian’s hair strands started to lose their colour and saw the cuts and bruises on Jamie’s face fade, his eye going back to normal.

A few moments later, Adrian opened his eyes and took his hands off Jamie. “How do you feel?”

Jamie moved, and Ivan helped him sit up. “Pain-free, and I can now see out of both eyes, thank you, Adrian.”

“You’re welcome. You had a broken cheekbone and eye socket. Brusing to your kidneys and stomach, and a slight concussion.”

“All the places he hit me,” Jamie said.

“What happened, Jay?” Dave asked him.

“I had just left the library and was walking past the alleyway when I was shoved into it. Dad started demanding to know where Karl and Kitty were. I wouldn’t tell him, hence the beating. I called out for help, and the next thing I know dad went flying into the back wall, and Derrick was suddenly standing over my dad. Derrick told me to leave, so I did, and then Ivan and Olly arrived.”

“The alley was empty when I went to look; all I found was Jamie’s bag,” Olly added.

“Dad said that Karl and Kitty needed to be back living under his roof,” Jamie said. “There must be a reason why, and not just so he could hurt them.”