“Why are you like this?” I asked suddenly, shifting the focus of both men to me. “Just because you can be?”
“Mostly. Eternity is a long time to be good. Scout, darling, let me see the wound.” Charles demanded. When I didn’t move, he slammed the bottle on his desk. I flinched, and he stormed over to me. He grabbed me by the shoulders. “Show me, or I’ll strip you like the bitch you are, and you’ll be wishing Jason were still here.” His snarl bared his fangs. I blinked and raised my sweater and shirt.
He dropped my shoulders and bent down to look at my wound. He put a finger against it and swirled the blood around. I winced. He stood and nodded. “I taught my grandson well.” He backed up and went back to his desk. Grabbing the bottle and his desk phone, he made a call quickly. “Bring Aleida back in.”
A moment later, the blonde bombshell was being shoved against her will back into the room, which was locked again. “What is going on?” she demanded.
“You told the one I sent to retrieve Desiderio that you were once betrothed, but he chose Scout instead. Well, let’s see how that goes now.”
“I brought the stupid bitch to you. Why am I being brought into this? Kill her and be done with it! You promised me!” Her desperate eyes flicked over to me as she cried out. Charles came over to her. He put his hand in his pocket and pulled out a pocketknife. He rushed her and stuck the knife into her side, the same place his grandson had gotten me. I screamed right along with Aleida as she felt the burn of the Sunrise on the knife. Whatever it was made of it was horrific.
She dropped to the ground, and he kicked her. He grabbed onto my wrist and pulled me forward. I had no choice but to go with him, as he held the knife still. I was sure that I would not survive a second dose of Sunrise. He then stormed over to Desi and began removing his restraints.
“Pick one,” Charles snarled.
“You’re fucking psycho,” Desi shouted as he leaped up. “I should have just waited and killed you when you walked through the fucking door.”
“Too late. If you don’t choose, then I’ll kill you instead.”
“Desi, don’t!” I said quickly. “Just, take me.” I closed my eyes and braced myself.
“I chose once. I’m not doing it again. Do what you want, but I’m not leaving without Scout.” Desi said to Charles.
“Fine with me.” Charles dropped my hand and stormed over to Aleida, still lying on the floor. He picked her up by her hair, but as he went to stab her again, dealing the final blow, Aleida let out a roar and kicked him in the stomach as hard as she could. Charles flew across the room and hit a bookshelf.
Desi ran around to his desk and snatched the bottle of Sunrise. He extended his hand to me. “Come on, we need to get out of here. Now!”
“How?” I asked.
“The window,” Aleida said. We looked at her. She was holding her side and gasping for air. We then looked back at the large window. She was right. That was our only way out of here.
“Desi, you need to take Aleida. She won’t be able to get out on her own.”
“Fuck off. She tried to kill you.”
I pressed my lips together and glanced at Charles, who moaned. “We can’t deal with the details right now. Let’s go. Pick her up.” I took the bottle of Sunrise and waited for Desi to scoop up his ex in his arms as if she were his brand-new bride. I blanched but then closed my eyes, held tight to the bottle, and ran as hard and fast as I could through the window.
It shattered all around me, cutting my face all to hell. I fell to the ground and let out a small cry as I rolled onto the side with the stab wound. Desi and Aleida came shortly after me.
“Her car is in the front. Come on!” I shouted and began to run. Desi followed, and a moment later, we were placing her in the back and speeding off.
“What do we do now?” I asked from the passenger seat.
“I want to show the bottle to Corrine, but after that, I’m not sure.”
Afraid of someone following us, Desi didn’t stop until the sun came up. He took every small road he could, just in case. Aleida sat in the back crying and whimpering for help, but I wasn’t sure if there was a cure for a poison no one knew about.
We reached Corrine’s estate three days later, and she took us in, focusing on Aleida’s health. Charles must have used more Sunrise on her than her grandson had on me because she wasn’t getting any better. She was shaking, sweating, and bleeding from the wound still. Mine, while still an open gash, wasn’t nearly as bad.
Corrine barely acknowledged me until Aleida was healed. Then, she sent her away. There was no goodbye. I woke up one night and was told of her exit. Thankfully, mine seemed to be healing on its own, albeit slowly. It was only then that Corrine chose to pull Desi and me aside to talk.
She had warm blood prepared along with a small candy dish of cinnamon candies for Desi. We sat in her tearoom with a warm fire going as we drank.
“So I hear that both curses are broken.” She started.
Desi reached for my hand and squeezed it tightly. “They are.”
“Desiderio told me that he finally told you who he was.” A tiny smile slipped onto her lips.
