Or not,argues a small voice.
And I flash to Minaro’s class from this afternoon, which feels like it happened months ago. When I spoke of Count Dracula being a monster because he was drunk on power, William looked as if he had taken my assessment personally. Probably because at this moment he is literally the most powerful being on Earth.
He’s been lying to me from the start. He’s worse than Rochester, Darcy, and Dracula put together.
Yet as easy as it would be to write him off as a monster, William just nearly gave his life to protect mine.
And worst of all, Salma is right.
I’m in love with him.
I wrap my hands around the knife handle, getting blood on my skin and clothes. Then I tug with all my might.
William moans once the blade is out, and I watch how the blood stops spilling, like the closing of a faucet. He’s even paler than usual, and as he tries to shift position, I help prop him up against the wall.
He looks like a corpse, same as the first time I saw him.
“Are they dead?” I whisper, tears mingling with my sweat.
“Death-sleep. Once they have blood, their spines will heal, and they will awaken.”
My heart races as I realize we’re far from out of danger. “What can I do?”
“Go.”
I’m not sure I heard him correctly. “What?”
“Bar the door. Soon, I will go into death-sleep, too. If Fabiana comes looking, tell her you are my Familiar, explain what happened, and ask her to transport our bodies far from here.”
I shake my head, refusing his instructions. “I have a better idea.”
I move closer.
The first time he bit me, he was just as weak as he is now, held up only by the wall. Except then, he had to compel me to show my neck. This time, I offer it to him voluntarily.
“No,” he murmurs against my skin. “Go.”
Tears burn my eyes, but I don’t let them fall. “I’m not leaving you.”
“It is better for you this way. Your friends, too.”
I press my neck to his mouth, and still, his lips don’t part.
“I need you, William,” I whisper. “Please, don’t abandon me.”
When he still doesn’t do anything, I ask, “How can you be sure we’re safe? What if Nate and Cisco told someone else where you were? Lenny could know about this school! How will any of us be safer without you—?”
His fangs sink in, and I inhale sharply from the pain.
Agony consumes me as William drinks, and I count the seconds, hoping he will stop, until it feels like he never will. My eyes shut on their own, my thoughts growing muddled, my limbs succumbing to sleepiness—
The vampire pulls away abruptly.
“Are you all right?” he asks, holding my face in his hands.
“Mm-hmm,” I say in assent, blinking my eyes open. “Little dizzy.”
“I am sorry for bringing this danger to your life.” William’s amethyst eyes are large and glittering from up close. “I promise I will not give them any reason to threaten you again.”
