Page 28

Silence crashes over the cavern. Blood and death surround us. Theo turns back to me, looking a little worse for wear.

‘You okay?’ he asks.

I nod. ‘You didn’t have to protect me. I haven’t done anything to deserve it.’

‘If what you say is true and you didn’t know any of this was here, then you don’t deserve the same fate as your … friends.’ He crouches beside me, eyes locked on mine. ‘I don’t know what’s going on, and I don’t understand why either of us are here, but I’m ready to find out. If you are.’

I can’t speak. My heart is still slamming against my ribs, almost painfully. I hastily get to my feet.

‘Shall we find out?’ Theo asks, raising a brow.

Blood rushes to my face, and I feel light-headed. I am lost. I don’t know who to trust or what to do. I just witnessed the boys I’ve known for most of my life be brutally slaughtered right in front of me.

I don’t feel safe going, but I sure as hell don’t feel safe staying, either.

Slowly, I nod.

‘Okay—’

Something slashes across my body. I stare down at the blood oozing from my shirt. Theo gasps, staring at me wide-eyed, Lucy appears behind him, a feral look in her eyes, one of the weapons clutched in her hand.

She slinks into the darkness, disappearing just as quickly as before. Leaving behind only the faint echo of her laugh.

Theo darts forward and catches me. I didn’t even realise I was falling. My hands tremble as I touch my abdomen, blood spilling out through my fingers.

Everything hurts, but at the same time, I feel numb. The world tilts sideways, my vision blurring in and out of focus. My chest burns, my side’s wet and hot. I try to breathe, but it catches, each inhale is painful.

‘Tara. Tara, stay with me.’

Theo’s hands are on me – warm, steady, pressing down hard where the pain is the worst. I want to tell him to stop, that it hurts too much, but my mouth isn’t working. Everything around me is fading.

‘You’re going to be okay,’ he says, voice urgent. ‘Come on. Open your eyes.’

I force my eyes open. The world swims, but I see him. His face, dirt on his cheek, blood smeared through his blond hair, panic in his demonic eyes. As dark and eerie as they are, they suit his handsome face. Like they’re gentler than others I’ve seen.

‘You need to drink my blood,’ he says, and I feel cold terror snap through me.

No, no, absolutely not.

I shake my head – or try to.

‘No, I don’t want to be a vampire,’ I say weakly, attempting to push him away from me, even though there’s no strength left in my arms.

‘You won’t become one from drinking a bit of blood,’ he explains, voice tense with urgency.

I want to push him away, but I can’t even lift my arms. Everything’s so heavy. My body’s giving up. My heart stumbles in my chest like it’s forgotten how to beat.

‘Tara, you’re dying. My blood will heal you,’ he says, and there’s something raw behind his words.

‘No …’ The word tears out of me, cracked and useless. ‘You kill people. Your kind kills people.’

He doesn’t flinch, just nods. ‘Yes. But so does yours.’

So does yours.

My fingers are numb. My chest is cold. I’m slipping, fast. He raises his wrist to his mouth. I watch, paralysed, as he bites down. Blood spills from the wound, running down his wrist.

‘Just take it,’ he says. ‘You can go back to hating me later.’