Page 183 of Vampires of Eden

“Drink this, please? Maybe it’ll help.”

He nods and wraps his fingers around mine to pull the glass to his mouth. With my aura still warmly encircling us, I hold my breath, watching and silently willing it to go down smoothly.

Daniel pulls the glass away and clears his throat loudly. The sound startles me because I assume it’s the beginning of another fit. But he takes a deep breath, blows it out, then brings the glass forward for a second sip.

He finishes the glass. I reach to refill it, but he gently takes hold of my wrist and shakes his head. “Nah—” The sound comes out crunchy, like crumbling ashes and he clears his throat again.

“Not now?” I ask.

His tired eyes soften and he nods. He mouths the word “Yes.”

I set the glass down, then wrap my arms around his shoulders and bring him into my chest. I close my eyes tightly. All the emotion I’d been pushing back spills forward and tears fall from my eyes. “You scared the shit out of me, Danny.” I bend and nuzzle my face into the chaotic mess of his hair. He smells of smoke and burnt things, but his undertone is like an autumn solstice and ripened cherries. Cool and sweet like always.

His hands lift and embrace my arms around him in a still moment. I feel his nature growing stronger within his frame—pulsing and responding to our shared essence and lifeblood. The bond between us is so new. Barely a day old, but already, our connection is resilient.

I kiss the top of his head and lift from the embrace. I have no idea what time it is, but I should let Amber know he’s awake. When I look down, I’m surprised to see Daniel’s eyes glowing as he meets my gaze. They shimmer in pale purple and golden, like a sunset descending over a horizon.

My eyes naturally alight in response as I gently cup his head with my palms. “Thank you for coming back to me.”

He huffs and closes his eyes. He doesn’t try to speak.

“I need to get Amber so she can check on you. I’ll be right back.”

I shift to stand from the bed, but Daniel’s grip tightens on my wrist. I draw nearer to him once more. “What’s wrong?” I ask.

He stares up at me with his alighted twilight irises and somehow, I know. I can’t explain it, but I do. So, I settle down next to him, making it easier for him to access my neck. I raise my chin and Daniel leans in and bites me.

I wasn’t expecting anything at all, but a heady swirl of emotions fills my head and heart as he pulls. Love and pleasure. Excitement for me and our bond. Gratitude and trust. All of it floods my being like a rosy cloud and I gasp, feeling the tears threaten to well up in my eyes yet again.

I submit to him, sitting still and allowing him to take as much as he needs. When he’s finished, he licks my neck, then meets my eyes. Daniel sighs and mouths, “Thank you.”

“I don’t deserve any gratitude,” I say, wiping the corners of my eyes, “If I’d listened to you and let you come with me to talk to my parents, this wouldn’t have happened.” In the background of my mantra and concentration to heal Danny, this truth loomed guiltily in my mind like a dark shadow.

I should have listened to him and we should have stayed together. I’ll never make that mistake again.

Daniel shakes his head in dispute, but that’s probably because he can’t talk at the moment. I reach across him to pour another glass of water.

“Have more, please? While I grab Amber. I need to text Leoni too. I thought she’d be staying here with us, but I don’t sense her.”

When Danny has the glass and is drinking without issue, I climb off the bed, then go to crack the door open and poke my head through the gap. The house is silent, but I sense Amber just down the hall. I leave the door open and stalk in her direction.

As I move, a series of new mantras begin playing in my head.

Danny’s throat just needs more time to recover.

I will hear his voice again.

Very soon.

CHAPTER 44

Daniel

When I close my eyes, black clouds of smoke fill the air. A blazing red-orange fire burns all around me. The space is too small, ensnaring me like a caged animal. The imagery is branded into the back of my eyelids. I can’t unsee it. I can’t forget the heat of the flames licking at my skin and clothes, snapping and hissing at me like a sea of vicious and angry snakes.

I couldn’t sleep last night. Maybe my body was done with being unconscious?

The sun shines softly from behind the stained-glass window along the outer wall, telling me it’s early morning. Alexander lies beside me in his street clothes, passed out on top of the duvet and curled into my side.