Midnight Magic, page 14
Ava pushed herself away from the table abruptly. “Excuse me,” she said as politely as possible, trying to hold in her emotion.
“Ava...” Becky started.
“I’m just going to the bathroom. Chill.” Ava knew her voice was harsh, much more than she intended. She shut the door quickly, bracing her hands on the cold marble of the sink.
CHAPTER 17
It was a strange feeling for Cassius, the pulsing radar in his veins. Despite growing up in the center of vampiric history, with Leon and Cora, his parents, and even Eden and Octavius, he didn’t know much about the claiming of human blood. Leon’s studies in the 1980’s fared more toward the effect of fresh blood alternatives than they did on the blood of those marked.
Though Cassius knew his father marked his mother first before turning her, he hadn’t thought to press his father for information on the matter. He was far too angry at the man for leaving him in the dust because he’d thought Cassius didn’t belong to him.
Because he hadn’t made his transformation fast enough.
Not to mention, Cassius’s blood haze left him longing for one thing, and one thing only.
He’d tried to keep his human friendships at a distance, and romance of any sort was out of the questions. Until Eden, that was, but she was not human. She was a monster. Like him.
He wondered momentarily as he walked past the gates of Ava’s residence, how his father could stand such a bright, noticeable feeling in his blood for seven years.
Cassius could barely stand it now, and it had only been mere weeks.
The fading sunset cast a golden glow over the plantation house, and Cassius couldn’t help but remember a similar sunset, over the Duquensian Manor only a carriage ride away from Portofino.
Thoughts of her crept into his mind, souring the memory.
She’d been a different person then, Eden. She’d been mysterious, alluring, and unlike any other woman he’d met in his short twenty-four years of life. She’d been caring. A friend. She’d taken him under her dark wings.
Before he could move, the front door swung open, and Ava ran down the steps, flinging herself through the gates, and smacked into him.
He held his hands out to steady, her, the feel of his fingers on her skin sending tiny flashes of warmth through him.
“Ava?” he asked as she looked up at him, confusion in her eyes. She pushed away from his light touch, and he noticed the drop in temperature from her departure.
“What the fuck, Cas? Are you fucking stalking me...still?” Her eyes flashed with anger.
His gaze dropped to her wrist, and he could feel her blood racing as if it were his own.
I am absolutely not stalking you. I just...
His brain wanted to protest; after all he’d only sought to walk among the main streets, to clear his mind.
He’d given in to the pull of her pulse, followed it to the gates of her estate.
It wasn’t not stalking.
A sense of shame fell over him.
This isn’t me. He thought. But as soon as the thought crossed his mind, so did the memory of Liam, Brody and Logan discussing their ‘loose ends’.
She needs to know the truth. But how do I tell her? Surely, she will cast me off as insane, and why shouldn’t she?
“I did not know you resided here,” he lied. A small pang of guilt shot through him at the action.
He’d told many lies in his long life, so why was this one different?
Why did he feel the need to tell this mortal everything?
Ava narrowed her eyes at him skeptically. “Why do I not believe you?” She took off down the sidewalk.
“Where are you going?” he asked curiously.
Her long dark hair blew in the rustle of wind, and tiny autumn leaves followed in her dust.
“What kind of idiot do you take me for? Why would I tell you anything? You’re the one stalking me, remember?”
Cassius was at her side immediately. “Perhaps, we could talk?” He tried to sound as polite and safe as possible.
Ava glanced at him once more, but she didn’t run. She kept up with his pace.
“You have until I reach my destination to plead your case.” She smirked, and Cassius noted she seemed to slow down only a fraction.
“About the other night...” He opened his mouth and Ava only rolled her eyes.
“What about it?” They turned the corner block, passing Cory’s. The neon flashed, casting an aqua and red glow on her features.
“I bit you.” Cassius found strangely enough the words came easily, though he was certain after he told her the truth, she’d probably run.
Far away from him.
A part of him regretted the truth that would undoubtedly separate her from him.
This close to her, he could smell the hint of jasmine, feel her pulse within him like a steady, flowing river.
He followed her stride down the street, passing the tiny accountant office, and homes.
“Yeah, and now I’ll have your fucking teeth marks on my wrist forever. That shit left a scar, you know,”
I can work with this.
“I’m not...like you.” He struggled to speak the words, knowing the destruction they were about to bring.
Ava stopped, in front of the library and turned to him, causing him to abruptly stop himself.
“Really now? What are you going to tell me you’re a vampire or something?” She raised her eyebrows at him, and her tone was sarcastic.
Cassius felt awash with heat, that had nothing to do with pulse, nothing to do the weather. It seemed like forever until he found the words.
“Actually, yes. I am. A vampire. It is my venom that healed your wounds.” He stood straight, his eyes never breaking her gaze.
Ava rolled her eyes and laughed.
“Fucking delusional too. You’re a piece of work, aren’t you, Cassius? God damn, it’s always the fucking hot ones that are completely bonkers.” She turned away from him, as if to move forward and leave him as he deserved, but instead she remained in place. She turned her head once more, in his direction.
Did she just call me...hot? Cassius wasn’t sure how to take her words. They were spoken with sarcasm, after all.
“A fucking vampire? Like Dracula-I-want-to-suck-your-blood-vampire?” Her lips twisted in a sarcastic smile, but he could see her eyes betrayed her. And even if they hadn’t, the increased pulse inside of him told him she considered the truth in his words.
“Yes. Although, I don’t particularly care for that comparison. Most of the stories have it all wrong.” He swallowed nervously, his hands finding their way into his pockets.
Ava stood still, facing the dusk.
“Those men...the ones that attacked your friend...”
Ava turned around slowly, her amber eyes tinged with alarm.
“They were vampires too. The girls at The Heights...” The words poured out of him without warning now, faster and faster. The overwhelming feeling of caring, the swell of protectiveness he felt toward this girl, this Ava, was startling to him, but he also had to admit that it wasn’t entirely the mark’s fault. He’d cared for humans before. Friends like Penny, Rocco, Marguerite, Pierre. He’d felt protective of them too, once, without a mark to blame.
You always have to be the hero, don’t you? Eden’s words swam in his head.
“You’re telling me, that the murders plaguing Chester are because of vampires?” She chewed at her lip.
“I know it sounds crazy...” The golden sunset lit her up from behind like a halo.
“You’re absolutely right. It is crazy.” Her voice was even, as she looked up at him.
“But you know it is true....don’t you?” He refused to move from his spot, noting the space between them.
Ava stalked closer to him, her eyes burning with fire.
With her pulse racing beneath his skin, he could tell she was frightened. The last thing he wanted was to frighten her, but—
“Your time is up. If I catch you stalking me again, vampire or not, I will make your life a living hell, Cassius. You will regret the day you fucking bit me. Am I clear?” Her eyes burned into his, and he nodded in response.
“Absolutely.”
CHAPTER 18
Vampire.
The word reverberated in her cerebellum, and although she knew she should run, far away from this crazy stalker, her wrist burned with heat, her skin prickled with goosebumps, and as she looked into glowing green eyes, she knew it was true.
She knew it in her blood.
She lay in her bed, eyes settled on the shimmering scar on her wrist. In his presence it burned, while the rest of her skin felt tiny prickles of ice, goosebumps. It was insane to think he had something to do with it, but she knew. She’d always been a believer in the paranormal; after all, it was in her blood. She’d known the lengths her family went to, changing their names to Michaels, because they wanted to escape the shadow of their family’s lineage. Crowley.
Ava had always felt drawn to her history, being a descendant of one of the most famous occultists in history. She’d amassed a small collection of books on such things—witchcraft, ghosts, divination, cryptozoology. But vampires—
She tossed in her bed, turning over on her stomach, looking out the window at the dark forest beyond.
If what Cassius said was true...that vampires truly were the ones responsible for the murders at Chester...responsible for Ross’s death...
How do I fight off something that isn’t even human?
Ava could throw a punch, and even evade an attacker, but a vampire? She doubted a solid right hook would deter something with fangs and super strength that wasn’t alive or dead.
A knock sounded on her door, and Ava jumped.
Mal stood in the doorway.
“Hey, Simba.” His voice was serious, and in the harsh shadows of the hallway, she could see the highlight of the hallway lights on his face. Mal hadn’t looked this serious since their parent’s funeral.
“Can I come in?” he asked, and she didn’t miss the worry in his voice.
“Of course.” She nodded and he entered, shutting the door behind him.
“There’s something we need to talk about. I know you’re going to have a lot of questions...but...” Mal ran his hand through his hair as he took a seat in the butterfly chair in front of her desk. He leaned on his knees, running his hands over his face before continuing.
“Mal is everything ok...”
“Dallas told me you’ve been bit.”
Memories of earlier, of her spar with Dallas flashed in her mind.
His fingers running over her skin, brushing her bite mark on her wrist. The sting.
Cassius’s...vampire bite.
Of course, she thought.
He must have seen it and wondered what happened. Any sane person would wonder why one had teeth mark scars on their wrist.
“It’s nothing, just... I was at a party and things got...out of hand.”
She hid her wrist under her pillow.
“I haven’t told you the truth. I thought...I thought I could keep it from you. That’d you’d be safer if you didn’t know but...clearly I was wrong.”
Mal looked into her eyes, and she could see sadness and fear in them.
“Mal, you’re not making sense.” She hugged her pillow in front of her.
“All the trips I go on, Ava.... I’m not just playing gigs.”
Ava’s blood chilled. It was as if she knew what was coming, and she didn’t want to hear it any more than Mal wanted to speak it.
“I hunt monsters, Ava. The kind that bite you...and leave marks like the one on your wrist. The kind that makes the monster under the bed look tame. The kind...”
“Vampires, you mean.” Her fingers tightened around the pillow, squeezing it with anxious energy.
“Yes. Dallas too. He’s my partner. We hunt them together.”
Ava blinked her eyes, trying to hold back the onslaught of emotion that seemed to be trying to push its way up and out of her through her eyes.
“Vampires aren’t real...” she whispered. But even as she said it, she knew it was not true.
“Unfortunately, Ava they are very real. And you’ve been bitten by one.”
CHAPTER 19
Ava tried to focus on the lecture, but she couldn’t. Not that she didn’t find Medieval history interesting, she’d always loved history, but the slides of classical paintings amidst the dark lecture hall made it easy to zone out.
That, and she couldn’t stop thinking about Cassius.
Every ounce of her being knew he was telling the truth, and if she’d had any qualms about it, Mal’s visit squashed any doubt.
That explains the dusty amp.
Ava glanced around the spacious lecture hall, her gaze settling on the various heads in the chairs, and she couldn’t help but wonder if one of them was next, or if one of them was not who they seemed.
Ava’s skin prickled with goosebumps, and her wrist flared with heat as three men ambled down the steps in the darkness, and she couldn’t deny her curiosity as she turned.
Liam and his friends sauntered down the steps, quietly, and as they passed her, Liam shot her a devilish smirk. “Ava.” He smiled lightly as he passed her.
His friend, the one who’d irritated Mal at the pizza shop, gave her a sly grin as he passed, and flashes of memories pushed forth.
Brody.
Dark eyes peering up at her from between her legs, black blood on his lips.
That backward hat.
Ava felt her blood chill as she watched them travel the steps to the seats in the front of the room, taking the prickle of ice and heated sensation with them.
Well, that can’t be coincidence.
“Do you know those guys?” Ember whispered, poking her arm.
Ava turned to her friend. “I think so,” she answered.
Ember’s brows furrowed together. “What do you mean you think so?” she pushed.
“They were at the party. You know, the one I went to with Ross.” Ava slumped in her seat, her head rolling back on the padded backing of the chair. The slide changed, the bright lights in the darkness showing another classical painting.
“Are you going to the service?” Ember asked.
Ava shifted uncomfortably in her seat. Without any leads, and no physical evidence, it wasn’t likely Ross’s body would be found. They’d declared him deceased, if only for the closure it would provide his family. The funeral service at St. Sebastian’s Church was in three days. It was televised everywhere, posters strewn all throughout the bulletin boards and message boards on campus, and she hadn’t been able to look at any of them.
The reality of his death was everywhere.
It haunted her every move, and even more so now that she knew the truth behind his demise.
Fucking vampires. Truth is always stranger than fiction.
“I don’t know.” It was an honest answer.
Ember pursed her lips, her hand still on Ava’s arm. Warm, friendly, soothing.
“Well, if you decide you want to go, you don’t have to go alone.” She smiled sweetly.
“Thanks.”
The lights came on, and Ava glanced at her phone.
2:00.
The sound of bristling students shoving books and binders into bags and backpacks echoed in the hall. Ember slung her backpack over her shoulder as she scooted past Ava to the hallway to join the crowd.
“See you tomorrow.” She smiled as she faded out between the stream of students in a hurry for their next class.
When the crowd diminished, Ava exited out of the building as well. When she stepped out of the shade of the building, her lips twisted into a smile. Dallas leaned against his motorcycle, and the bright sunlight shone down on him, casting shadows on his thick arms, his tattoos standing out vividly even at a distance from his sleeveless muscle shirt.
“Would it kill you to wear a shirt that didn’t have gaping holes in it?” She stopped in front of him, watching him spin his keys amidst his thick fingers. His blue eyes sparkled with charm.
“You know what they say, flaunt it if you got it.” He smirked.
Ava rolled her eyes. “Too bad you’re old. I hear things stop working after you turn thirty.” She grabbed the helmet he offered her.
“Oh, I can assure you, kitten, my machine is in perfect working order.” He winked as he straddled his bike, the motion elongating his thighs, strained against his dark wash jeans.
“Where’s Mal?” she asked as she positioned herself behind him.
“He had some business to take care of. He’ll meet up with us later.”
Ava wrapped her arms around Dallas’s waist, her fingers brushing against his abs through his flimsy tank. They felt hard and warm.
“You know, I could get used to this mode of transportation. It’s pretty badass.” She held on tight to him.
Dallas turned his head slightly, regarding her with a smile.
“I’ll show you badass. Hang tight, kitten.”
“What the hell is this?” Ava dismounted off the bike, staring at the unassuming building buried in the brick wall in front of her. It didn’t look like anything....operable.
“Mal told me he had the talk with you.” Dallas hung the helmet on the handlebar, kicking down the kickstand to rest on the side of the broken concrete walk.
It was hard to believe anyone even knew about the place, being as it was far out, and not surrounded by much more than an abandoned gas station, and a half-crumbled structure.
“That doesn’t explain why you brought me to this hole in the wall.” She cast him a rueful glance.
“Is this your idea of badass? Because if it is, I think we need to have a serious talk. Your dementia may be setting in.” She jabbed him.
“Come on.” He motioned for her to follow, and she did.
Ava had seen plenty of gyms, both in her cheerleading days in Massachusetts, and in her time in Chester, but she’d never seen a gym like this.
Despite being embedded into a hobbit hole, the place was pristine and well kept. It didn’t boast traditional machines, although there were a few she recognized. Leg lifts, barbell benches, push up machines. There was a boxing ring, as well as a track that looked like the paint was fresh.
“Ava...” Becky started.
“I’m just going to the bathroom. Chill.” Ava knew her voice was harsh, much more than she intended. She shut the door quickly, bracing her hands on the cold marble of the sink.
CHAPTER 17
It was a strange feeling for Cassius, the pulsing radar in his veins. Despite growing up in the center of vampiric history, with Leon and Cora, his parents, and even Eden and Octavius, he didn’t know much about the claiming of human blood. Leon’s studies in the 1980’s fared more toward the effect of fresh blood alternatives than they did on the blood of those marked.
Though Cassius knew his father marked his mother first before turning her, he hadn’t thought to press his father for information on the matter. He was far too angry at the man for leaving him in the dust because he’d thought Cassius didn’t belong to him.
Because he hadn’t made his transformation fast enough.
Not to mention, Cassius’s blood haze left him longing for one thing, and one thing only.
He’d tried to keep his human friendships at a distance, and romance of any sort was out of the questions. Until Eden, that was, but she was not human. She was a monster. Like him.
He wondered momentarily as he walked past the gates of Ava’s residence, how his father could stand such a bright, noticeable feeling in his blood for seven years.
Cassius could barely stand it now, and it had only been mere weeks.
The fading sunset cast a golden glow over the plantation house, and Cassius couldn’t help but remember a similar sunset, over the Duquensian Manor only a carriage ride away from Portofino.
Thoughts of her crept into his mind, souring the memory.
She’d been a different person then, Eden. She’d been mysterious, alluring, and unlike any other woman he’d met in his short twenty-four years of life. She’d been caring. A friend. She’d taken him under her dark wings.
Before he could move, the front door swung open, and Ava ran down the steps, flinging herself through the gates, and smacked into him.
He held his hands out to steady, her, the feel of his fingers on her skin sending tiny flashes of warmth through him.
“Ava?” he asked as she looked up at him, confusion in her eyes. She pushed away from his light touch, and he noticed the drop in temperature from her departure.
“What the fuck, Cas? Are you fucking stalking me...still?” Her eyes flashed with anger.
His gaze dropped to her wrist, and he could feel her blood racing as if it were his own.
I am absolutely not stalking you. I just...
His brain wanted to protest; after all he’d only sought to walk among the main streets, to clear his mind.
He’d given in to the pull of her pulse, followed it to the gates of her estate.
It wasn’t not stalking.
A sense of shame fell over him.
This isn’t me. He thought. But as soon as the thought crossed his mind, so did the memory of Liam, Brody and Logan discussing their ‘loose ends’.
She needs to know the truth. But how do I tell her? Surely, she will cast me off as insane, and why shouldn’t she?
“I did not know you resided here,” he lied. A small pang of guilt shot through him at the action.
He’d told many lies in his long life, so why was this one different?
Why did he feel the need to tell this mortal everything?
Ava narrowed her eyes at him skeptically. “Why do I not believe you?” She took off down the sidewalk.
“Where are you going?” he asked curiously.
Her long dark hair blew in the rustle of wind, and tiny autumn leaves followed in her dust.
“What kind of idiot do you take me for? Why would I tell you anything? You’re the one stalking me, remember?”
Cassius was at her side immediately. “Perhaps, we could talk?” He tried to sound as polite and safe as possible.
Ava glanced at him once more, but she didn’t run. She kept up with his pace.
“You have until I reach my destination to plead your case.” She smirked, and Cassius noted she seemed to slow down only a fraction.
“About the other night...” He opened his mouth and Ava only rolled her eyes.
“What about it?” They turned the corner block, passing Cory’s. The neon flashed, casting an aqua and red glow on her features.
“I bit you.” Cassius found strangely enough the words came easily, though he was certain after he told her the truth, she’d probably run.
Far away from him.
A part of him regretted the truth that would undoubtedly separate her from him.
This close to her, he could smell the hint of jasmine, feel her pulse within him like a steady, flowing river.
He followed her stride down the street, passing the tiny accountant office, and homes.
“Yeah, and now I’ll have your fucking teeth marks on my wrist forever. That shit left a scar, you know,”
I can work with this.
“I’m not...like you.” He struggled to speak the words, knowing the destruction they were about to bring.
Ava stopped, in front of the library and turned to him, causing him to abruptly stop himself.
“Really now? What are you going to tell me you’re a vampire or something?” She raised her eyebrows at him, and her tone was sarcastic.
Cassius felt awash with heat, that had nothing to do with pulse, nothing to do the weather. It seemed like forever until he found the words.
“Actually, yes. I am. A vampire. It is my venom that healed your wounds.” He stood straight, his eyes never breaking her gaze.
Ava rolled her eyes and laughed.
“Fucking delusional too. You’re a piece of work, aren’t you, Cassius? God damn, it’s always the fucking hot ones that are completely bonkers.” She turned away from him, as if to move forward and leave him as he deserved, but instead she remained in place. She turned her head once more, in his direction.
Did she just call me...hot? Cassius wasn’t sure how to take her words. They were spoken with sarcasm, after all.
“A fucking vampire? Like Dracula-I-want-to-suck-your-blood-vampire?” Her lips twisted in a sarcastic smile, but he could see her eyes betrayed her. And even if they hadn’t, the increased pulse inside of him told him she considered the truth in his words.
“Yes. Although, I don’t particularly care for that comparison. Most of the stories have it all wrong.” He swallowed nervously, his hands finding their way into his pockets.
Ava stood still, facing the dusk.
“Those men...the ones that attacked your friend...”
Ava turned around slowly, her amber eyes tinged with alarm.
“They were vampires too. The girls at The Heights...” The words poured out of him without warning now, faster and faster. The overwhelming feeling of caring, the swell of protectiveness he felt toward this girl, this Ava, was startling to him, but he also had to admit that it wasn’t entirely the mark’s fault. He’d cared for humans before. Friends like Penny, Rocco, Marguerite, Pierre. He’d felt protective of them too, once, without a mark to blame.
You always have to be the hero, don’t you? Eden’s words swam in his head.
“You’re telling me, that the murders plaguing Chester are because of vampires?” She chewed at her lip.
“I know it sounds crazy...” The golden sunset lit her up from behind like a halo.
“You’re absolutely right. It is crazy.” Her voice was even, as she looked up at him.
“But you know it is true....don’t you?” He refused to move from his spot, noting the space between them.
Ava stalked closer to him, her eyes burning with fire.
With her pulse racing beneath his skin, he could tell she was frightened. The last thing he wanted was to frighten her, but—
“Your time is up. If I catch you stalking me again, vampire or not, I will make your life a living hell, Cassius. You will regret the day you fucking bit me. Am I clear?” Her eyes burned into his, and he nodded in response.
“Absolutely.”
CHAPTER 18
Vampire.
The word reverberated in her cerebellum, and although she knew she should run, far away from this crazy stalker, her wrist burned with heat, her skin prickled with goosebumps, and as she looked into glowing green eyes, she knew it was true.
She knew it in her blood.
She lay in her bed, eyes settled on the shimmering scar on her wrist. In his presence it burned, while the rest of her skin felt tiny prickles of ice, goosebumps. It was insane to think he had something to do with it, but she knew. She’d always been a believer in the paranormal; after all, it was in her blood. She’d known the lengths her family went to, changing their names to Michaels, because they wanted to escape the shadow of their family’s lineage. Crowley.
Ava had always felt drawn to her history, being a descendant of one of the most famous occultists in history. She’d amassed a small collection of books on such things—witchcraft, ghosts, divination, cryptozoology. But vampires—
She tossed in her bed, turning over on her stomach, looking out the window at the dark forest beyond.
If what Cassius said was true...that vampires truly were the ones responsible for the murders at Chester...responsible for Ross’s death...
How do I fight off something that isn’t even human?
Ava could throw a punch, and even evade an attacker, but a vampire? She doubted a solid right hook would deter something with fangs and super strength that wasn’t alive or dead.
A knock sounded on her door, and Ava jumped.
Mal stood in the doorway.
“Hey, Simba.” His voice was serious, and in the harsh shadows of the hallway, she could see the highlight of the hallway lights on his face. Mal hadn’t looked this serious since their parent’s funeral.
“Can I come in?” he asked, and she didn’t miss the worry in his voice.
“Of course.” She nodded and he entered, shutting the door behind him.
“There’s something we need to talk about. I know you’re going to have a lot of questions...but...” Mal ran his hand through his hair as he took a seat in the butterfly chair in front of her desk. He leaned on his knees, running his hands over his face before continuing.
“Mal is everything ok...”
“Dallas told me you’ve been bit.”
Memories of earlier, of her spar with Dallas flashed in her mind.
His fingers running over her skin, brushing her bite mark on her wrist. The sting.
Cassius’s...vampire bite.
Of course, she thought.
He must have seen it and wondered what happened. Any sane person would wonder why one had teeth mark scars on their wrist.
“It’s nothing, just... I was at a party and things got...out of hand.”
She hid her wrist under her pillow.
“I haven’t told you the truth. I thought...I thought I could keep it from you. That’d you’d be safer if you didn’t know but...clearly I was wrong.”
Mal looked into her eyes, and she could see sadness and fear in them.
“Mal, you’re not making sense.” She hugged her pillow in front of her.
“All the trips I go on, Ava.... I’m not just playing gigs.”
Ava’s blood chilled. It was as if she knew what was coming, and she didn’t want to hear it any more than Mal wanted to speak it.
“I hunt monsters, Ava. The kind that bite you...and leave marks like the one on your wrist. The kind that makes the monster under the bed look tame. The kind...”
“Vampires, you mean.” Her fingers tightened around the pillow, squeezing it with anxious energy.
“Yes. Dallas too. He’s my partner. We hunt them together.”
Ava blinked her eyes, trying to hold back the onslaught of emotion that seemed to be trying to push its way up and out of her through her eyes.
“Vampires aren’t real...” she whispered. But even as she said it, she knew it was not true.
“Unfortunately, Ava they are very real. And you’ve been bitten by one.”
CHAPTER 19
Ava tried to focus on the lecture, but she couldn’t. Not that she didn’t find Medieval history interesting, she’d always loved history, but the slides of classical paintings amidst the dark lecture hall made it easy to zone out.
That, and she couldn’t stop thinking about Cassius.
Every ounce of her being knew he was telling the truth, and if she’d had any qualms about it, Mal’s visit squashed any doubt.
That explains the dusty amp.
Ava glanced around the spacious lecture hall, her gaze settling on the various heads in the chairs, and she couldn’t help but wonder if one of them was next, or if one of them was not who they seemed.
Ava’s skin prickled with goosebumps, and her wrist flared with heat as three men ambled down the steps in the darkness, and she couldn’t deny her curiosity as she turned.
Liam and his friends sauntered down the steps, quietly, and as they passed her, Liam shot her a devilish smirk. “Ava.” He smiled lightly as he passed her.
His friend, the one who’d irritated Mal at the pizza shop, gave her a sly grin as he passed, and flashes of memories pushed forth.
Brody.
Dark eyes peering up at her from between her legs, black blood on his lips.
That backward hat.
Ava felt her blood chill as she watched them travel the steps to the seats in the front of the room, taking the prickle of ice and heated sensation with them.
Well, that can’t be coincidence.
“Do you know those guys?” Ember whispered, poking her arm.
Ava turned to her friend. “I think so,” she answered.
Ember’s brows furrowed together. “What do you mean you think so?” she pushed.
“They were at the party. You know, the one I went to with Ross.” Ava slumped in her seat, her head rolling back on the padded backing of the chair. The slide changed, the bright lights in the darkness showing another classical painting.
“Are you going to the service?” Ember asked.
Ava shifted uncomfortably in her seat. Without any leads, and no physical evidence, it wasn’t likely Ross’s body would be found. They’d declared him deceased, if only for the closure it would provide his family. The funeral service at St. Sebastian’s Church was in three days. It was televised everywhere, posters strewn all throughout the bulletin boards and message boards on campus, and she hadn’t been able to look at any of them.
The reality of his death was everywhere.
It haunted her every move, and even more so now that she knew the truth behind his demise.
Fucking vampires. Truth is always stranger than fiction.
“I don’t know.” It was an honest answer.
Ember pursed her lips, her hand still on Ava’s arm. Warm, friendly, soothing.
“Well, if you decide you want to go, you don’t have to go alone.” She smiled sweetly.
“Thanks.”
The lights came on, and Ava glanced at her phone.
2:00.
The sound of bristling students shoving books and binders into bags and backpacks echoed in the hall. Ember slung her backpack over her shoulder as she scooted past Ava to the hallway to join the crowd.
“See you tomorrow.” She smiled as she faded out between the stream of students in a hurry for their next class.
When the crowd diminished, Ava exited out of the building as well. When she stepped out of the shade of the building, her lips twisted into a smile. Dallas leaned against his motorcycle, and the bright sunlight shone down on him, casting shadows on his thick arms, his tattoos standing out vividly even at a distance from his sleeveless muscle shirt.
“Would it kill you to wear a shirt that didn’t have gaping holes in it?” She stopped in front of him, watching him spin his keys amidst his thick fingers. His blue eyes sparkled with charm.
“You know what they say, flaunt it if you got it.” He smirked.
Ava rolled her eyes. “Too bad you’re old. I hear things stop working after you turn thirty.” She grabbed the helmet he offered her.
“Oh, I can assure you, kitten, my machine is in perfect working order.” He winked as he straddled his bike, the motion elongating his thighs, strained against his dark wash jeans.
“Where’s Mal?” she asked as she positioned herself behind him.
“He had some business to take care of. He’ll meet up with us later.”
Ava wrapped her arms around Dallas’s waist, her fingers brushing against his abs through his flimsy tank. They felt hard and warm.
“You know, I could get used to this mode of transportation. It’s pretty badass.” She held on tight to him.
Dallas turned his head slightly, regarding her with a smile.
“I’ll show you badass. Hang tight, kitten.”
“What the hell is this?” Ava dismounted off the bike, staring at the unassuming building buried in the brick wall in front of her. It didn’t look like anything....operable.
“Mal told me he had the talk with you.” Dallas hung the helmet on the handlebar, kicking down the kickstand to rest on the side of the broken concrete walk.
It was hard to believe anyone even knew about the place, being as it was far out, and not surrounded by much more than an abandoned gas station, and a half-crumbled structure.
“That doesn’t explain why you brought me to this hole in the wall.” She cast him a rueful glance.
“Is this your idea of badass? Because if it is, I think we need to have a serious talk. Your dementia may be setting in.” She jabbed him.
“Come on.” He motioned for her to follow, and she did.
Ava had seen plenty of gyms, both in her cheerleading days in Massachusetts, and in her time in Chester, but she’d never seen a gym like this.
Despite being embedded into a hobbit hole, the place was pristine and well kept. It didn’t boast traditional machines, although there were a few she recognized. Leg lifts, barbell benches, push up machines. There was a boxing ring, as well as a track that looked like the paint was fresh.
