“I think—” I start to say, but stars, I can’t get the words out. I start sobbing harder. Amelia and Reese are there in seconds, and I try to meet their gaze through my tears, but my vision is too blurry. “Stars, it’s all my fault,” I sob out. “I don’t know much about the warlock attacks, but I don’t think this is the same. I think it was Jordan who attacked her. Maybe the woman in the garden too.” Would I have ended up just like them if Eerie and Wrath hadn’t found me?
Grim stiffens beside me. “I’m not sure these were vampire attacks, but I’ll talk to the investigators. They’ll want to talk to you again at some point.” He squeezes my shoulder. “I’m gonna go see if I can help out,” he says, more so to Amelia and Reese. “Call me if Bliss needs anything.”
Reese replaces Grim to my left and Amelia sits down next to me on the right. I’m not sure how long I’m there for, but I rest my head on Reese’s shoulders. At some point a fae officer makes her way over, asking me a series of questions. The next hour or so passes in flashes, both quickly and slowly. I don’t remember how I get home, but at some point I realize I’m all tucked into bed, with Reese next to me.
I turn so I can see her and curl up closer to her. I beg sleep to take me.
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
BLISS
Amelia and Blakehave been holed up in Blake’s room since we got back last night. Since Jordan or possibly another homicidal fae was out there somewhere, it wasn’t safe for Amelia or I to be hooking up with random fae we didn’t know, and Blake volunteered to “feed” her immediately.
Taser, Dericia, Tubbs, and I sit around the living room of the rental. Dericia is napping on the couch, her feet in Tubbs’ lap as he plays a game on his phone.
Taser is halfway through a bag of chips, sitting at the dining room table next to us. I’m trying to read, but my current romance novel is not holding my attention. It’s not a bad book, I just can’t get all the events of the previous days out of my head. The memory of Jordan ripping into me comes ramming into my head at random times, as do the images of the two dead women—Carly and Stephanie.
Grim stopped by earlier this morning. I asked for details on the attacks, on whether they’d figured out if Jordan was involved. I also asked if he knew who they were. Their names, their life stories. He told me as much as he knew from his police contacts.
My breathing turns more rapid, and one look at Taser tells me he can hear my increased heartbeat.
“Want a chip?” he asks, somehow knowing I don’t want to talk about it. I nod, throwing down my book and joining him at the table, where he hands over the chip bag. I take one out, dipping it into the salsa and crunching into it, letting the taste bring me back to the present moment.
“So Amelia and Blake are currently using the buddy system,” Taser says slowly. I look over at him as I dip another chip into salsa. “If you also need a buddy, um…” He coughs awkwardly. “Let me know. I know you probably feel okay with Grim or even Wrath, and I know things with us haven’t been easy lately, but I’m not sure you should trust anyone right now.”
“You really think either of those guys is going around killing people?”
“No,” he responds slowly. “Look, I just mean, for your safety, I’m here if you need to feed.”
I smile, an immeasurable surge of gratitude flooding me. I reach out and grip his hand in mine, giving him a light squeeze. “I’m so lucky to have you as my friend, but we shouldn’t—we can’t do that anymore.”
Taser’s eyes fall to the floor. “Why not?”
“Because someday, probably very soon, you’re going to find your mate, and when you do, this friends with benefits thing can’t fuck that up like it did with you and Stacey.”
“You really don’t need to worry about that,” Taser says, still not looking at me. He takes a chip out of the bag and cracks it into teeny tiny pieces, the chip dust falling to the table. He watches it intently, like it’s the most interesting thing in the world.
“I do, Taser. I really care about you and I want you to be happy.”
He looks over at me and gives me a soft smile. “Bliss, you’re one of my best friends. And I spend most of my time getting to play music that I love with my best friends. I don’t need any more in life.”
“Yeah, but?—”
He cuts me off with a light squeeze to my arm. “Bliss, don’t worry about me, just know I’m here if you need, and seriously, I don’t mind.”
“Okay, but when you find your mate, there will be no more of this.”
He smiles again and nods at me. “You talk as if you don’t have a mate yourself.”
“I might not. You know about that spell, how my bond is incased in some sort of unwieldy magic.”
“Yeah, but it’s there.”
His words stop me in my tracks, preventing me from taking that oh-so-addictive downward spiral into hopelessness. It’s like a bucket of cold water was thrown on me, and I get goose bumps.
Taser stands up and places his finger underneath my chin, lifting my gaze to his. “He’s out there, okay? And until you find him, I’m here for you.”
I stand up and throw my arms around his torso, hugging him tight. I’m not entirely sure how I deserve a friend like him. I’ve been so focused on myself and what happened with me that I completely ditched my closest friends. I put the rift between us, and as Taser wraps his arms around me and presses a light kiss to the top of my head, I vow that I will do whatever it takes to mend that rift, to make it as if it was never there in the first place.
