Page 49

What drew Ms. Eli further apart were the patches of hair that formed on her cheeks. The waves that slipped from her bun which had once rested perfectly on her crown. Icy-green eyes that housed a swelling hunger, dulling the woman I knew.

She was a predator after their prey, a shell of herself, in the same manner that our mother descended into when her episodes dawned.

Ms. Eli rapidly turned to me and stepped in my direction. It gave leeway to the intruder, their shadow vanishing before I could take it into account. My focus was on Ms. Eli’s possession long before I had regarded it.

Ms. Eli was slow as she grew close, each step followed by a pause and a roll from her shoulders.

“Stop,” a trembling tone said, Ms. Eli’s lips widening and exposing a few narrow, shark-like fangs as they lengthened. “This. . . isn’t. . .”

It was as if two voices battled each other upon the same lips. One amplified the softness of the other, the two confined in a battle that translated into her body. She progressed forward, her upper body pushing backward, opposing the bottom half. Yet, I remained frigid, waiting for her.

My chest tightened once Ms. Eli closed the space between us. She was like lightning, her ambush one that I met with swift deflection and blurred motions. I maintained my balance by following her shift in movement. The fight within herself surged, each slash grazing my dress shirt but never quite penetrating.

Ms. Eli’s eyes widened and exposed a cry that bared unspoken words, ones that I entirely understood without a sound. It called to me, awakening anew old instincts.

She suddenly halted. Normally, her heat radiated like the sun, but it flourished into a frenzied wildfire on top of my iciness.

“Please,” she whispered, Ms. Eli’s true voice hinting as she twisted her fists into my shirt. Sharp points pressed against my flesh while she rested her forehead on my chest. “Make it stop.” Her words were a whimper, one that was followed by a wavering sob and heavy sniffles.

She tumbled forward, my arms wrapping around her instantly. “It’s okay, Katerina,” I whispered, my voice a soft rustle against the heavy air. “It’s okay.” Though my words repeated, I couldn’t quite acknowledge if it was for Katerina or myself.

Katerina slumped further into me, my hold tightening and scooping her into my chest. It was unconscious, instinctive, and remarkably natural. Her trembles vibrated against my body, but her eyes shut, and the tension in her shoulders eased the closer I brought her to me.

A familiar presence swelled in the air, and Tristan stormed through the hall. His arrival was brisker than I had anticipated.

“Recover all of the footage from the first floor. The intruder escaped, but there must be a way to trace them.”

“I’ll get to it after you leave first.” He stretched his arms, but I pulled away.

“What do you think you’re doing?”

“I was just— I didn’t know you wanted to carry her.” Tristan cleared his throat, his shoulders suddenly straightening.

Though I noticed the wonder in his raised eyebrows, I paced toward the exit that led west of the hospital. “Round the car to the other side. The humans escaped through the main and rear entrances.”

“Alek,” he said as he halted. “What happened with the intruder?”

I held a sigh within my chest. “They were able to find us and lure out Katerina. She handled it perfectly. I’m safe.” Though his gaze studied me, searching for a potential, hidden answer in my demeanor, he nodded in defeat.

Tristan pressed his lips into a mic against his suit’s inner lapel, his eyebrows meeting. “No one saw you, correct?”

“No. The humans were preoccupied with their hysteria.” We walked through plastic doors and into another adjoining hall, the floor lifeless, the bones of what once was indicative. “Where’s Raphael?”

“I sent him off with my driver. I also relayed that you’d be late due to complications during feeding.”

“We can’t risk him knowing what occurred. No one, to be specific. We can’t let what little lead we possess regarding the intruder be intercepted.”

Tristan flared his nostrils and responded, “If Sonia finds out, then you’ll be taking the fall.”

“I’ll be as guilty as a sinner.”

My gaze trailed onto Katerina. She was stilling, the trembles refining into occasional minor jerks. The line between her eyebrows didn’t unwind, though, further tightening her eyelids.

Tristan chuckled. “You like her.”

“Excuse me?” I abruptly stopped. Never had Tristan ignored me, all before today.

The limousine rounded to where we stood outside, and I rested Katerina inside on an extensive row. Tristan bowed, the driver exiting onto the main road.