did you go?”
“I—I needed time to clear my head. I wasn’t thinking straight before.”
No shit. I exhaled shakily, hating that I felt fear at seeing him again. “And now?”
“I’m better. Whatever that was—it passed. It took a while.”
I grabbed his hands so I could see them closer. His knuckles were red and it looked as if they’d recently healed from a more serious injury. I looked up at him. “Punching somebody?”
“Some thing . A wall. Concrete.”
“Did it help?”
“A little. Although the wall might disagree.” He glanced at the bed and at the damage he’d done to this wall earlier. His face showed strain. “I’m so sorry.”
I shook my head. “Don’t be sorry. It’s okay.”
His brows were drawn closely together and he studied the floor. “How can you say that? I could have hurt you.”
“You didn’t. And you wouldn’t.” I believed it. I didn’t care what Matthias had told me, Declan wasn’t like that. This was an isolated incident only.
“Nothing like that’s ever happened to me before. But . . .”
“But what?”
“I’ve felt that rising violence inside me in the past, but it was something I could control. Distant. Fleeting. There was no control for me earlier.”
The water in the bathroom turned off a moment later and Declan’s head whipped in that direction.
“Who’s here?” he asked sharply.
Damn. I’d forgotten about the showering vampire king for a blissful moment.
5
MATTHIAS EMERGED FROM THE STEAMY BATHROOM wearing nothing but a white towel wrapped low around his hips. His pale skin was scrubbed clean of any trace of the blood or injury that had been there. “Thank you, Jillian. I feel much better now.”
I’d wanted him gone. I’d helped him get his blood, heal himself, but he refused to tell me how to save Declan—if he even needed saving—until I found out where Sara was. I’d had enough trouble to deal with tonight.
Declan’s arms were flexed, his hands fisted, and veins had popped up in his neck and forehead.
“Why the fuck are you here?” The words weren’t much more than a growl.
Matthias raised his eyebrow. “Declan. You’re back.”
“Answer me.”
“Noah wanted me to deliver a vial of fusing potion to Jillian. During this delivery I was attacked and sliced open by a former blood servant and needed some time to recover.”
Declan’s gaze turned to me. “Is that true?”
I nodded. “Yes, but it’s all right now and Matthias was just leaving after he, uh, cleaned himself up.”
Matthias glanced at me. “Are you certain you feel safe alone here with the dhampyr?”
This earned him a fierce glare from Declan.
Declan had a lot of Matthias issues, starting with the lies he’d been told about the vampire that originated with Declan’s birth mother. She was dead now and you wouldn’t be seeing me putting any flowers on her grave.
Dr. Monica Gray had been the head of the research program that developed the Nightshade formula. and she was Carson’s boss. Her entire agenda wasn’t to destroy the threat of vampires as she would have had everyone believe. No, it was to destroy Matthias alone—the man who stood in the way of the release of her former lover, Kristoff.
Kristoff was Declan’s real father.
Declan didn’t know this because I hadn’t told him yet. Maybe I figured he’d been hurt so much, physically and emotionally, that one more blow might break him.
Stupid thought. Declan wasn’t that fragile.
“Your blood servant followed you here?” Declan said after the uncomfortable moment of silence passed between the three of us. He didn’t address Matthias’s comment about my current safety and neither did I. “How would they know where you are to begin with?”
“There’s a tracking device planted under my skin I didn’t know about until tonight.” Matthias’s jaw tensed. “It needs to be removed immediately. Will you help me?”
He wasn’t looking at me.
Declan stared at the vampire for
“I—I needed time to clear my head. I wasn’t thinking straight before.”
No shit. I exhaled shakily, hating that I felt fear at seeing him again. “And now?”
“I’m better. Whatever that was—it passed. It took a while.”
I grabbed his hands so I could see them closer. His knuckles were red and it looked as if they’d recently healed from a more serious injury. I looked up at him. “Punching somebody?”
“Some thing . A wall. Concrete.”
“Did it help?”
“A little. Although the wall might disagree.” He glanced at the bed and at the damage he’d done to this wall earlier. His face showed strain. “I’m so sorry.”
I shook my head. “Don’t be sorry. It’s okay.”
His brows were drawn closely together and he studied the floor. “How can you say that? I could have hurt you.”
“You didn’t. And you wouldn’t.” I believed it. I didn’t care what Matthias had told me, Declan wasn’t like that. This was an isolated incident only.
“Nothing like that’s ever happened to me before. But . . .”
“But what?”
“I’ve felt that rising violence inside me in the past, but it was something I could control. Distant. Fleeting. There was no control for me earlier.”
The water in the bathroom turned off a moment later and Declan’s head whipped in that direction.
“Who’s here?” he asked sharply.
Damn. I’d forgotten about the showering vampire king for a blissful moment.
5
MATTHIAS EMERGED FROM THE STEAMY BATHROOM wearing nothing but a white towel wrapped low around his hips. His pale skin was scrubbed clean of any trace of the blood or injury that had been there. “Thank you, Jillian. I feel much better now.”
I’d wanted him gone. I’d helped him get his blood, heal himself, but he refused to tell me how to save Declan—if he even needed saving—until I found out where Sara was. I’d had enough trouble to deal with tonight.
Declan’s arms were flexed, his hands fisted, and veins had popped up in his neck and forehead.
“Why the fuck are you here?” The words weren’t much more than a growl.
Matthias raised his eyebrow. “Declan. You’re back.”
“Answer me.”
“Noah wanted me to deliver a vial of fusing potion to Jillian. During this delivery I was attacked and sliced open by a former blood servant and needed some time to recover.”
Declan’s gaze turned to me. “Is that true?”
I nodded. “Yes, but it’s all right now and Matthias was just leaving after he, uh, cleaned himself up.”
Matthias glanced at me. “Are you certain you feel safe alone here with the dhampyr?”
This earned him a fierce glare from Declan.
Declan had a lot of Matthias issues, starting with the lies he’d been told about the vampire that originated with Declan’s birth mother. She was dead now and you wouldn’t be seeing me putting any flowers on her grave.
Dr. Monica Gray had been the head of the research program that developed the Nightshade formula. and she was Carson’s boss. Her entire agenda wasn’t to destroy the threat of vampires as she would have had everyone believe. No, it was to destroy Matthias alone—the man who stood in the way of the release of her former lover, Kristoff.
Kristoff was Declan’s real father.
Declan didn’t know this because I hadn’t told him yet. Maybe I figured he’d been hurt so much, physically and emotionally, that one more blow might break him.
Stupid thought. Declan wasn’t that fragile.
“Your blood servant followed you here?” Declan said after the uncomfortable moment of silence passed between the three of us. He didn’t address Matthias’s comment about my current safety and neither did I. “How would they know where you are to begin with?”
“There’s a tracking device planted under my skin I didn’t know about until tonight.” Matthias’s jaw tensed. “It needs to be removed immediately. Will you help me?”
He wasn’t looking at me.
Declan stared at the vampire for
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