Page 13 of Resurrection
Where the hell is Marcus now?I have no idea why I think one monster can save me from another, but the energy coming from this one in pulsing waves tells me Marcus is the lesser of two evils.
“You are scaring her, Sire.” Andrei pops his head out from behind the death that is staring at me, unblinking.
“I most certainly am not.” Goosebumps cover me from head to toe when the baritone of his voice drums into my chest. Even if I die now, I am sure I’ll be hearing it in the afterlife.
“Umm, I think Andrei is right, Sire. She looks paler than when she passed out earlier.” The deep voice of Marcus makes me lean to the side and look behind the one they call Sire.
Marcus sees me and nods encouragingly with a tight smile, as if telling me everything is okay. What the hell can be okay when this Sire guy looks like he wants to rip me apart? Andrei tries to move around him to come closer to me, and in my attempt to keep distance between us, I topple off the chair and slam my hip and my shoulder on the unforgiving tiles. With a grunt, I scramble up and stay crouching. If they try to get closer again, I’ll bolt around the pool. I know they’ll catch me, but anything is better than sitting here.
“If she hurts herself, I will rip your head off,” the Sire tells Andrei with a murderous glare.
“My voice used to calm her earlier. I was only trying to help.” When Andrei lifts his hands in surrender, the Sire guy raises an eyebrow at him. He’s calling him an idiot louder than if he said the words.
Returning his focus on me, the Sire takes a slight step closer. “Stand up so I can see you.” Unclenching his fists, he lifts one hand slightly towards me before dropping it down to hang next to his side. I am watching his movements so intently that I almost miss the trembling of his hands. Why are his hands shaking? Why do I even care?
Not wanting him to come closer, I slowly lift myself up from my crouching. Standing up, his height is less scary. While I was almost plastered on the tiles, he looked like a giant looming over me. But that tremble of his hands gives me enough courage tolift my chin stubbornly and stare up at his face. Everything that has happened since last night makes me act crazy. One moment I’m terrified, wishing for them to kill me and be done with it. The next, I want to fight them every chance I get. Insanity sounds more realistic with each breath I take. When he sniffs slightly and his face twists in disgust, I lose my shit all together. Screaming like a banshee, I jump at him, pounding my fists on his chest with all the strength of a mosquito hitting an elephant.
That pisses me off even more. I continue punching, kicking, and screaming like a nut job while he stands as still as a statue, taking it all. He doesn’t stop me or hit back. His arms hang down his sides, and he accepts all my anger like a punching bag. I don’t know how long I keep at it, but eventually, all the adrenaline drains from my body and my legs give out from under me. Before I hit the floor, two strong arms wrap around me, cradling me to a firm chest. My head plops limply on his shoulder, and the scent of some expensive cologne fills my nostrils, emphasizing my stench even more. A sob is all I have the strength to utter before he starts walking. His movements are so smooth he doesn’t even jostle me.
“Is she going to be okay?” Marcus’s voice is soft from somewhere behind the broad shoulders.
“I think I might’ve been right. She is mute,” Andrei adds softly.
“The two of you are idiots!” The man holding me cradled to his chest snaps angrily. “And the Council will pay greatly for bringing her to this state.”
Chapter Thirteen
Silent tears trickle down my face, soaking the expensive shirt under my cheek. I know it’s costly because the softness of the fabric is like nothing I’ve ever felt before. Blurry images of my surroundings pass by while I’m carried through the hallway. The lobby is deathly silent as the monster cradling me to his chest strides purposely through it. Numbly, I watch the hanging chandeliers with their soft-yellow glow sparkle through my tear-filled gaze. The painted ceiling tiles—or whatever they are called—don’t inspire awe in me anymore. They resemble twisted, laughing faces, gloating at my predicament. No one says a word. I can’t even hear their footsteps until we reach the elevators.
I can feel the presence of all three monsters like a fist around my heart. I’m so cold. With each passing moment, the chill settles more firmly in my soul, in my bones. Almost jumping out of my skin when the softdingsounds before the doors slide open, I’m surprised the monster doesn’t drop me. When my body jerks at the sound, he only tightens his hold on me slightly. He stops with one foot inside the elevators, and from the corners of my eyes, I see two different hands lash out at each side of the entrance, holding the doors open for him. They should let themclose now and crush me alongside the monster. It’s a better way to die than whatever they have planned for me.
“I will take the stairs with her.” The baritone vibrates through his chest into mine and settles. A current of energy follows it, racing through my spine from my tailbone and all the way to the top of my head.
“We will all go—” Andrei starts, but a low growl cuts him off. The hairs on the back of my neck stand on end from the sound.
“You two will go clean up the…” the Sire trails off, and his face tilts down, glancing at me. “Clean up the mess upstairs before I bring her there.”
Before he turns around, Marcus and Andrei slide into the elevator without any further comments. Even in my state, I can’t help but wonder what kind of a mess they need to clean up. What does a monster’s place look like? Will I see other humans tortured and killed before I meet my end? Crazy images of horror after horror float in my mind while the monster carries me to his den.
He is surprisingly gentle for a killer.
I still haven’t been jostled, even when he starts climbing the stairs. Every step he takes on the soft red carpet under his feet is purposeful and slow, either for my benefit, which I doubt, or to give the other two time to clean up whatever mess he didn’t want me to see. Why that mattered to him is beyond me. Then again, almost everything is beyond me at this point.
The shaking of my body continues, and now my teeth start chattering as well. The tears haven’t stopped sliding down my face, and the white shirt is beginning to look gray, no doubt from all the dirt I’m smudging on it with my tears. In the middle of it all, the scent of the man holding me enters my stuffy nostrils, creating a tingling sensation in the center of my chest. With great effort, I move my hand there, pressing my fingers between my breasts in hopes to make it go away.
It only makes me tremble harder.
“Do not fear me.” His words make my head snap up, lodging my heart in my throat. “You should never fear me.” Looking down at me, he doesn’t stop climbing the stairs.
The neon lights that glow above our heads create star-like specks in his black eyes. My face is so close to his, I should be able to see his pupils. I see none. Only blackness sprinkled with white specks, like staring at the universe sprinkled with stars. It’s challenging to take a breath, my lungs shriveling in my chest. Something ancient is lurking behind his gaze. Something alien and powerful.
Something deadly.
Duh, April. He is a damn monster that feeds on the blood of humans, you idiot.My mind screams at me, and flinching, I snap my focus away from his face.What the hell is the matter with me?
“I know you are scared,” he murmurs, almost making me believe we are taking a stroll instead of him taking me to my death. “What they have done to you cannot be taken back.” I can feel his eyes staring at the top of my head. I don’t dare move. “I believe it can be healed.” We keep going for a few long minutes before he sighs. “I will do everything so you can heal.”
Keeping my face down and hidden from him, my eyebrows incredulously climb all the way up to my hairline. Maybe everyone is scared of these Italians because they are all mental. Listening to him talk, part of me thinks I have finally found myself a guardian angel that will protect me. That from this moment on, I’ll be safe. It’s so stupid that I almost laugh.
