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He blinks at me. “She’s not going to die, Gabriel. Take a breath and calm down. You getting worked up and pissed right the fuck off isn’t going to help her. She will heal. Yes, far slower than if she drank our blood, but that’s her choice. We’re giving her that now, remember?” There’s an edge to his voice that makes me think he’s not finding it all that easy keeping it together right now either. He’s certainly doing a better job at it than me.
“She’ll suffer for what she did to Calla,” I vow in a dark tone.
Atlas steps close again and claps me on the shoulder. “Yes,” he agrees, “and it will be my pleasure to carry that out.” He holds my gaze for a moment, then nods. “But for now, we need to take care of the human in the other room.” He’s right.
I inhale through my nose, pulling in a deep breath to try to center myself, then exhale slowly through my mouth. I nod at him before the two of us walk back to the other room to find Lex cleaning the blood off Calla’s face and neck. Kade moved onto the couch in the few minutes we were gone and has Calla in his lap, her back against his chest and their legs stretched out in front of them while he strokes her hair.
Lex sets the bloodstained cloth down and helps her take a small drink of water before he moves out of the way, murmuring about making her something to eat as he heads into the kitchen across the room.
I approach at a calm pace, taking the spot Kade had been in on the coffee table before he moved to the couch with her. Calla’s eyes follow me, and I lean forward, catching her chin gently, tilting her face up just enough that our gazes are level. “I need you to tell us what happened, angel.”
She blinks at me, slowly registering my words. Her chin trembles as she opens her mouth to respond, then stops. Her jaw clenches against my fingers, and part of me fully expects her to yell, to scream at us for the secrets and lies.
Instead, she bursts into tears.
10
Calla
The tears come without warning. I’ve been trying so damn hard to keep them back, because I was terrified that once they started, I wouldn’t be able to get them under control. And here we are. My shoulders shake with silent sobs, and I bury my face in Kade’s chest, not wanting them to see me like this. The warmth of him, the steady beat of his heart against my cheek is grounding. And as much as I want to scream at them for everything they kept from me, the strength I’d need to do that isn’t something I have right now. There’s so much more I need to know—thattheyneed to tell me, but for once, I’m glad they aren’t just yet. I don’t think I have it in me right now.
I use the back of my sweater sleeve to dry my cheeks. The tears slow, and I sniffle, staring out at the water in the pool as it glitters in the afternoon sunlight. I feel better, at least a little. The pressure in my chest from holding back the tears has eased, though it’s been replaced by a pounding in my head—from the crying. I’m not sure where the tears came from, perhaps feeling relatively safe after not having a clue what was going on at Selene’s triggered my body to release what I’ve been keeping locked up tight. Because, despite the lingering confusion and anger I hold with regards to the secret-keeping—especially about Brighton’s family—Idofeel safe here. With them. But it’s moments like these, where that security makes me feel weak instead of strong, and I hate it.
Atlas disappears for a minute before returning, stopping in the kitchen and filling a glass of water before approaching the couch. He holds out the water glass in one hand and opens his other palm to reveal two white pills. “You should take these with food,” he says pointedly but doesn’t attempt to glamour me to eat something. Huh. Maybe I’ve finally made some progress then. Or he can tell by looking at me that the chances of vomit ending up all over the floor if he does force me to eat are too high to risk having to deal with.
I take the pills from his hand, then the glass. My hand shakes a little as I bring it to my lips and take a drink before tossing the pills back, followed by another mouthful of water to wash them down. I don’t meet his gaze, nor do I thank him. Part of me wants to refuse the painkillers, but without them, the pounding in my temples is only going to get worse.
The five of us sit in silence for a while. I doze in and out of sleep, while Kade continues running his fingers over my hair. I’m clinging to the warmth of his chest against my back more than I care to admit—and I never will out loud.
When I open my eyes next, the sun is setting outside and Kade and I are alone. I rub my eyes and struggle to sit up, finally managing it with help.
“Easy, Calla,” Kade murmurs.
“Wh-where is everyone?” I turn to look at him, my eyes tracing the hard lines of his face as I itch to reach forward and run my fingers along his jaw. Softness fills his silver gaze, along with a flicker of concern as he watches me, his dark hair falling across his forehead.
“Atlas is in his office and the others went out to pick up food for dinner and a first aid kit.” His fingers brush along my neck, making me shiver as he reaches the marks Selene left on me.
“Not used to needing that, I suppose,” I say, lowering my gaze, wanting to close my eyes against his gentle touch.
He laughs softly. “Yeah, not so much.” He cups my cheek, tilting my face back up. “How are you feeling? No bullshit.”
I blink my eyes open. “Better, I think.” The splitting headache is gone, and I don’t feel as if my chest is going to explode from the pressure building inside me. My muscles still ache, but I imagine that will last for some time, same with the cuts and bruises I sustained at Selene’s hand. But I’d much rather deal with that than risk drinking vampire blood right now.
Kade nods. “Good. Are you hungry?”
I press my lips together. The thought of food doesn’t immediately make me nauseous, so that’s a step in the right direction. “I can try to eat something.”
“Glad to hear it.” His fingers slip away from my cheek, and he taps the tip of my nose. “Gabriel mentioned making risotto. Think you’d be up for that?”
I nod, then shift away so I’m not pressed right against him. Sitting up, I slowly drop my legs over the edge of the couch, planting my stocking feet on the floor. I brace my hands on either side of myself and take a deep breath.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Kade asks in a gentle tone before I can attempt to stand.
I sigh. “I need to get out of these clothes. Should probably shower too.” I feel gross, and there’s definitely blood dried into my hair.
In a blur of movement, Kade is in front of me, leaning down and sliding his arm around my waist, guiding me up until I’m standing. My balance is slightly off, so I’m glad he’s there to lean against, but I feel ridiculous needing his help just to get off the couch.
“There you go,” he says softly in my ear.
