“What do you think it is?” Damien asks.
“Human and vampire trafficking, unfortunately. But, judging by this information, the little shit didn’t rank very high in the organization.”
I shiver at Jacob’s words. It’s exactly what I thought. Owen was in some deep shit, and I was way too close to him. I don’t really want to think about it.
“This here—” Jacob leans forward and shows us one of the last pages. “I think this was about you, Killien.” There’s a certain weight to his words, as if he feels guilty for it.
“I thought so too . . .” I whisper.
Damien’s eyes widen as he snatches the notebook from Jacob’s hand and brings it closer to his face. I never told him, because I didn’t want him to worry.
“Ginger, exotic taste, almost unused . . .” Damien reads, his voice trailing off at the end. I know the words by heart, I don’t need him to keep reading to know what comes next, but he reads it out loud anyway. “Suitable for auction.”
“Fucking hell—” Jacob lets out a long, heavy sigh as the room goes completely silent. The sun still casts an orange light on his face, slightly diffused by the reflection on the marble.
There’s a knot in my throat as I stare at Damien reclining back onto my chest as if he can’t hold himself up, making me sink deeper into the soft velvety fabric. His hands tremble, eyes fixed on the page, lips slightly parted. I tried so hard to protect him from this information, but I knew he’d eventually find out.
“I’m sorry,” Jacob sobs, startling both of us. “I’m so, so sorry, Killien . . .”
Damien drops the notebook beside us and jumps out of my lap. His footsteps are light on the hardwood floors as he hurries to sit on the sectional beside Jacob. “What the hell are you apologizing for?”
I should be jealous watching my brother wrap his arms around his ex-boyfriend and pull him closer, but I’m not. If anything, I’m fascinated by them.
“I failed you—” Jacob’s voice breaks and I find myself jumping to my feet too.
Damien kisses the top of Jacob’s head, his eyes meeting mine and encouraging me to comfort our broken friend. Hesitantly, I slide on the empty seat on Jacob’s other side and place a hand on his shoulder. To my surprise, he seems to lean into my touch while he wipes away the tears from his face.
“No, you didn’t,” I say. “None of this was your fault, you didn’t know.”
“But I should have—” Jacob keeps his head down, as if he can’t look me in the eyes. “I let my guard down and I exposed everyone to a danger that is far too big for me to control.”
“Well, you said it yourself,” Damien chuckles. “This is far bigger than you, Jacob. You couldn’t have known.”
“I should have read the signs,” Jacob insists. “They were there, I just missed them.”
“It wasn’t just you he tricked, though,” I say, finally getting him to meet my gaze. There’s so much pain in his eyes that I just want to hold him. “Everyone bought his act. And you’re not responsible for anyone else’s actions. I should have never picked him to feed from.”
“Abby was a much better option . . .” Damien looks at me through the corner of his eyes, as if he’s scolding me. But it doesn’t bother me; I know he’s right.
“Still, I’m sorry, Killien.” Jacob’s hand rests on my knee and I feel my body heat up under his touch.
It’s not a reaction I was expecting to have in such an emotional moment, but I don’t fight it. Instead, I embrace it. I guess I got that from Damien in the past weeks. By now, I already know that I’m into Jacob. I always was; it just took a while for me to process it. As usual, I’m slow as fuck in that department. And I’m done resisting my impulses and desires.
“Don’t apologize.” I smile at him, letting the warmth of his hand sink into me through the layer of fabric that separates our skin. “It’s over now, anyway.”
“Yeah . . . it might be. But you should watch out anyway. What happened must have pissed some people off. You removed a pawn from someone’s chessboard.” Jacob sighs again. “Do you mind if I keep this notebook? If I find someone who moves in more powerful circles and can help, I should show them this.”
“Sure, I’d rather not have it, anyway.” I shrug, wondering if I should give him the cash too. It’s dirty, and I want nothing to do with Owen’s disgusting business, but Damien and I have no income right now. We’re not even hunting humans or doing anything illegal. We’re just lying low until we figure things out.
“Did you find money with this?” Jacob asks, almost as if he’d read my mind.
Damien goes tense, his eyes quickly darting towards me, silently begging me not to tell. But I can’t lie, can I? I don’t want to break Jacob’s trust now that we have him back.
“Yeah,” I say, staring at my brother while he shakes his head in disapproval.
“Okay.” Jacob nods. “Keep it, but don’t waste it. If you don’t use it, someone else will. Even if you think it’s wrong, you should take it as compensation for the damage done to you.”
I’m frozen by his words, getting lost in his dark brown eyes and how the orange ray of sunlight that hits half of his face makes one of them much lighter than the other. I look for any sign that he’s joking, but no. He’s staring back at me with a lot of hidden emotions, but all of them are serious and heavy.
