Page 7 of Salvation
“You’re ignoring me, Luna. Tell him how terrified you are of having this baby, especially here in this shit hole where we have no doctor!”
She blew out a long breath. “I don’t want him to get the wrong impression.”
“Which is what, that you are scared shitless of having a baby in this nightmare we now live in? I would think he would expect that to be perfectly normal. As a matter of fact, I would not be shocked to learn he feels the same. Hell, most of us are frightened for you.”
That forced her gaze on her friend. If the others were afraid for her, then did she really have any hope? She might die in childbirth. She recalled her mother telling her how difficult her pregnancy with Luna had been and labor a nightmare that finally resulted in a cesarian because Luna simply refused to come out.
“I can’t believe with all the people we have here, not one is a doctor or nurse,” Luna said.
“Well, Wolfe is trained since he is a Navy Seal, but that’s in combat trauma, not birthing babies!”
“I know everything you are saying is right. I need to talk to him and tell him how scared I am.” She let out another long sigh. “I promise I will.”
“Good, and what about your relationship?”
“What relationship? We are barely even friends at this point. He’s busy trying to keep us all alive and move us out of here.”
“Do you want a relationship? You two are having a child together. You should at the very least be friends. But do you want more?”
She thought for a moment. “I don’t really know, to be honest. I mean, I don’t love him and it’s all a lot to think about right now.”
“You don’t have to love him today, but you need to think about what you want, Luna, because he is a man and will eventually find himself a woman to be with. Can you handle that?”
Could she? At the moment she felt nothing but pressure to have a relationship with her baby’s father because it seemed like the right thing to do. Was she doing this for everyone else, or herself? She needed more time to think.
CHAPTERFOUR
There was practicallya small town staying at the hotel and they were on a mission to head to Kentucky. Aurora had to wonder if Lilith had ever planned to tell her or if she would have kept it to herself and allowed the group to slip away with her unaware. Why would Lilith want to keep this from her? She planned to confront her friend and ask that very question.
The sun had painted the sky a beautiful pink. A few clouds left streaks of white and orange across a sea of blue, and had it not been for the trashed buildings and the occasional body, she might consider it a beautiful morning. It was strange to walk the streets of a once grand city now in dead silence. Even in the early morning hours, LA had never been this peaceful before the Red Death. Mother Nature was staking her claim as well. She would see the odd tree growing in a place that would never have been allowed before. Weeds forced their way through every crack they could find, and she had to wonder what this place might look like in yet another year. She didn’t want to stick around and find out.
Aurora headed back toward Our Lady of the Angels, knowing Lilith would hang close by, waiting for her to return. She picked up speed until she was on a dead run. A blur to a human which were few and far between these days, but now there was a hotel full of them. She nearly licked her lips at the thought of something other than demon blood. Did the vampires feed off of each other? She knew absolutely nothing about life as a vampire other than what Lilith had taught her, which was the basics. How to eat, glamour, and use her superior strength. There had to be more, and now that she knew there were others, she craved a connection.
Slowing to a fast walk, she found Lilith sitting on the steps to the Cathedral. She climbed the stairs until she reached her friend.
“Odd to see you here. I thought you would burn or something if you got too close?”
Lilith stood and smoothed her palms down her black leather pants. The demon towered three inches over Aurora’s own five-foot-seven.
“I was concerned about your welfare.”
“Hmm, is that why you failed to tell me there is a small town living in that hotel?” She slammed her hands to her hips to emphasize her mood. “That is a far cry from a few vampires and humans.”
“I withheld the information because I did not know yet if they posed a threat.” Lilith reached out and smoothed Aurora’s hair away from her face. “As I said, I am concerned about your safety.”
She wanted to be mad, but her anger suddenly deflated. “I get that, but I can’t live here forever. I made contact with a young girl who was away from the others.”
Lilith’s brows hiked up over her black gaze. “Did you feed from her?”
“No. I glamoured her into talking. I learned there are several vampires and humans living together and they are making their way to Kentucky, where others have started a new community.” She debated on telling Lilith about the girl being pregnant with a vampire baby but didn’t see how that information was important to this conversation.
“I see the desire in your eyes, Aurora. I do not think it wise that you make further contact. You know nothing of these vampires. They may experiment on you or even kill you.”
“Why? According to the girl, they live in harmony. The humans agreed to feed the vampires and the women are kept safe. Why would they experiment on me? I am like them.”
Lilith’s gaze narrowed, and her mouth pressed into a tight line. “I didn’t want to tell you this, but you are forcing my hand. You are not like them, Aurora. The other vampires.”
She shook her head. “How? What do you mean?”
