But I’m no man, am I?
I’m a monster, and it’s best Nariko knows that now. She needs to live the life she deserves.
Her pain is unbearable. Even from a distance, her sniffles, the wave of immense sadness that she doesn’t understand, slam against me like a truck. I grip my chest, the pain unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. I double over, gasping for breath. My vision blurs, and I grip the saddle horn to keep myself upright.
Tires crunch across the ground, getting further and further away. The low grumble of the engines becomes quieter, fading into the distant thunder of the storm.
She’s gone.
“Oakley?” Westin shouts. “Oakley!” he yells with more urgency, running towards me.
I’m unable to move. Sweat breaks across my forehead, and the agony of missing her breaks my soul. I slide off Van Gogh, having no strength to stay upright, and smack against the wet ground. The force knocks the breath out of me, and Van Gogh neighs, bending his head down to nudge me with his nose.
“Oakley! What the hell is going on?” Westin slides on his knees, then checks me over for any injuries—like a dagger to the heart.
Westin is a vampire too. I didn’t feel comfortable having humans working on the ranch. All of my employees are paranormal of some sort. Most are vampires without a coven, and we even have a few shifters without a pack. I don’t care what beast someone is; all I care about is knowing if they have good intentions or not.
Which I can feel. It’s how I test all of my new hires. I ask them a series of questions that reveal their true nature. I’m able to sense if they are lying or if they truly have good in their beings.
Westin is a good friend. I don’t think I could have made it all these years without him and Kentucky giving me support.
“Talk to me, man. You’re fucking scaring me. Are you…are you having a heart attack? Do I call 911?”
Sweat stings my eyes, and somehow, I manage to narrow my sights at Westin. “What the hell are they going to do for me?”
“I don’t know what to do, Oakley. Tell me. What happened? What’s wrong?”
“I’ll be fine,” I grunt, the ache easing when the distance between Nariko and me is enough for me to take a breath.
Flipping to my back, I stare up at the sky, lightning still booming through the clouds.
Westin pokes his face into my line of sight; his big green eyes filled with worry. “I don’t know, man. You don’t look too good. You’re kind of pale. And you’re sweating.” He sniffs the air. “Something about you smells bitter.”
My soul.
I just need to figure out how to live without the best part of it.
It’s late by the time we step into Twisted Tina’s Diner.
Unfortunately, there were no other tornadoes today, and I’ll never admit this again, but I’m glad. I’m drained. I have no energy to chase storms for the rest of the evening. All I want to do is call it a night and start fresh tomorrow.
My head is pounding. My heart is hurting. My patience is dwindling.
And I don’t understand why. I’ve never felt this way before.
“Nari, are you okay?” Millie whispers as we wait for the hostess to seat us.
Am I?
Ever since I met that mean, grumpy cowboy, I’ve been out of sorts. He was rude. One of the rudest people I have ever encountered. I can’t get him out of my mind. Driving away from him hurt me in ways I can’t explain. It’s like there is someonedigging around in my chest to pull my heart from my body. Every twist of the wrist, every scratch of their fingernails, brings me more pain.
“I’m fine. Just tired,” I lie, scrubbing my eyes for added effect.
A bright-eyed waitress with a high blonde ponytail greets our crew with a big smile. “Hi there, welcome to Twisted Tina’s. Follow me, and I’ll take you to your booth.”
“Thank you.” Ruka’s gaze falls to her nametag. “Dixie.”
“No problem at all. Right this way, folks.” She waves at us to follow behind her.
