AllFreeNovel
Share Us
But if he did nothing, he would be hurting his mate.
His throat clenched, and before his emotions could get the best of him, Bertram fled the post office for the privacy of his car. There, blinking away tears, he wrenched open the glove box and fetched a largely depleted pad of paper from inside. One click of its attached pen later, he started to write.
S—
Tensions here have reached their breaking point, and until things settle down, I am unable to leave. When the danger is over and the council has released me from my current duty, know that I am yours. Until then, please be strong for me. I will be with you soon, love. I vow it.
Know I mean it when I say I love you more than life itself.
Forever yours,
—B
He sent the letter off that day, not knowing when Sorin would receive it, but well aware it didn’t really matter—no matter when he did, Bertram would be no closer to being with him, and wouldn’t be until after Alistair’s eggs had hatched and the Topaz clan had gotten bored of trying to exact revenge.
When that day came, Bertram would drop everything to find Sorin and make things right.
But then, a few months later, the impossible came to pass—a single Amethyst egg was born from a beta, not only ruining Bertram’s plans, but catalyzing a series of events that would spell his doom.
2
Sorin
“Is now a bad time?”
Sorin, who was sitting with his head in his hands as the pain between his temples threatened to split his skull in two, looked up to see Sandrine had joined him. She was dressed for work—crisp collared shirt and smart gray slacks with her hair twisted up in a tidy bun to keep it out of her face—and had two mugs of coffee in hand. One, rim decorated with lipstick stains, proclaimed “BREAK UP WITH HIM” in bold sans serif lettering. The other displayed custom artwork—the silhouette of a proud purple dragon, surrounded by his four rambunctious whelps.
Sandrine passed that one to him.
“Is it ever a good time?” he joked listlessly as he took the mug from her, but upon seeing how the surface of the coffee shook and sloshed in his trembling hand, his sense of humor crumpled. The pain he felt inside was beginning to physically manifest again—he saw it plain as day. It seemed not even his best efforts to control himself were working. Leaving HQ to sit in the vineyard, soaking in the sun during quiet meditation, used to be enough to take the edge off, but he had been out here all morning, and it didn’t seem to be helping anymore.
Sandrine looked at him pityingly, concern dragging the corners of her lips down.
“Today is just a particularly bad day,” Sorin told her apologetically. “But coffee will help. Thanks.”
“Have you eaten?” Sandrine asked.
He shook his head. “No.”
“You should eat.” She looked over her shoulder at the winery, beneath which the Vanguard had established a secret, sprawling headquarters that spanned several floors down into the earth. “I’ll go to mess and get you something. A breakfast burrito? It’s ten. They should still have some kicking around. Or… is it Tuesday? Lillie usually brings croissants from that cute bakery in town—Connexion de Confection, I think? There might be a few left. I’ll bring you some fruit and cheese to go with it.”
“I’m not hungry.”
“Raven.” She fixed her stubborn gaze on him. “You need to eat.”
“I don’t know if I’d be able to keep it down.”
Sandrine sipped her coffee in irritation, buying herself a few moments to consider the situation at hand, then seemed to come to a conclusion, for she sat there in the vineyard with him and made herself comfortable, crossing her legs.
“How long has it been since your last meal?” she asked, the click of her nails a rolling cascade as she drummed the side of her coffee cup.
Sorin couldn’t remember. His head throbbed like an infected wound, distracting him, making it hard to think. “I ate a piece of buttered toast yesterday,” he said after a few quiet moments of struggle.
“Do you mean the piece of half-eaten toast I found on a plate outside your bedroom door?” Sandrine arched a brow and took his coffee mug back from him. “I’ve changed my mind. You don’t need caffeine—you need a meal replacement shake. And probably a vacation. How long has it been since you took time off?”
Sorin rubbed his temples. “I don’t know.”
“Exactly.” Sandrine set his mug aside and gave his thigh a gentle squeeze. “You need to be more gentle with yourself. We’ll survive for a few weeks without you, I promise. Take some time to rest and heal, and once you’re feeling better, we’ll figure things out from there.”
