I threw my hands around his neck and squashed my lips against his. Forget cloud nine, I was on cloud infinity. My current happiness was limitless and that’s exactly how I wanted to keep it. My ribs moaned at me, but I ignored them. I pulled at his neck, urging him onto my bed. To my delight, he complied. He hovered above me, careful not to put his weight on my bruised muscles and busted ribs.
He pulled his lips away from mine. “This is a strange situation.”
“Could be worse,” I breathed, pulling his mouth back to mine. I ran my hands down the edge of his body and began pulling his shirt up. A low growl escaped from his chest and he caught my hand.
“You’re hurt. We aren’t going to do this now.”
“I’m fine,” I lied—well, kind of lied.
He pressed his index finger against my rib and I gasped in pain. He cocked his eyebrow and grinned in triumph. “You don’t sound fine.”
“I will be soon.”
He planted a kiss on my forehead and climbed off my bed, leaving me burning for him. Eli adjusted his shirt and turned to face me. I sat up and exhaled dramatically.
“I have to go now. Mr. Aleksandrov needs my help.”
I pouted.
“Don’t pout at me. We’ll finish this later.” He winked and left the room.
I sighed and dropped back onto my pillows, waiting for the medicine to fix me and quick.
“You can go now,” the pretty, dark-skinned doctor said as she lowered her torch from my eyes.
I smiled, happy that I now had a clean bill of health. I waited until the white circles dispersed from my vision before I slid off my bed and onto the floor. While I was sleeping, Mila had brought me a nice floor-length black funeral gown for me to change into once I got out of the ghastly, gray and blue hospital gown. Apparently, a funeral was being held for the guardian angels we’d lost. I glanced at the clock. The ceremony started in twenty minutes.
I thanked the doctor and left the room. There wasn’t much to the dank, colorless hallway and it saddened me a little. The rooms were extravagant and beautiful, completely opposite from the hallway. I made my way outside, inhaling the warm afternoon air. There was no pain when I breathed.
“You look better.” Eli smiled, eying my black dress longingly. He leaned up against the medical building, looking gorgeous in his black suit.
“Black is your color, but you’re forgetting one thing.”
He walked over to me and gestured for me to turn around. I did and he put the whistle around my neck. I stroked it. It was back where it belonged. I turned to face him. The air between us was electric, both of us wanted to continue what we’d started in the hospital, but out in the open, we weren’t allowed to touch.
“I thought we could go to the funeral together.”
“Would that be okay?”
He shrugged. “I’ve done enough damage to my reputation. I don’t see why I should stop now.”
I laughed at him and he extended his elbow. “Shall we?”
I hooked my elbow around his and we walked to the sports field. I felt strange being so dressed up in the afternoon. Sure enough, though, that feeling passed when I saw everyone else wearing similar clothing.
The field was set up beautifully. I counted a total of twenty-six coffins that were laid in even rows, adorned in black cloth and flowers.
“Are they going to be buried here?” I whispered to Eli.
“No. They’ll be sent home to their families. If they don’t have families, they’ll be cremated and sprinkled in the ocean.”
I nodded, acknowledging his information.
The ceremony was beautiful. Other guardian angels got up and paid their respects by giving speeches and final farewells. Once it was all said, we lined up and walked down every row, placing a hand on each coffin to show respect for the guardian angels that died in battle. It was sad, regardless whether I knew them personally or not. They died for me. That hit me the hardest. Eli squeezed my arm in reassurance when I pinched the bridge of my nose, forcing back my tears.
When the ceremony ended and everyone was invited for dinner at the dining hall, I decided I’d go see Hunter, before it got dark.
“Ruby!” Mila called to me from in the middle of a small crowd. She excused herself and ran over to me. Her black gown was gorgeous, covered in what looked like shining diamonds. She pulled me into a hug and I noticed she’d changed her perfume. Lavender? Orchid? I couldn’t tell.
“I am so, so happy you’re okay!” she squealed.
“I could say the same thing about you.” I was still mad that she’d run off and got herself caught by Lucian.
“I know, I know. I’m sorry, I wanted to help and it failed. You can’t say it has never happened to you.”
I smiled at her. “It’s over. Lucian is dead, so I guess it doesn’t really matter.”
She smiled back. From behind her came Mr. Aleksandrov.
“Ruby, so good to see that you’re alive and well.”
“You too,” I replied.
“Your blood worked,” he added. “Once Hunter’s mood goes back to normal, we can run tests and sort out regular donating intervals. That’ll keep the council off your back.”
“Done.”
If donating blood every week or month meant I didn’t have to meet the council and I could give people a second chance at life, then it was worth it. Mr. Aleksandrov and Mila were expected to host the dinner, so they bade us farewell us and followed everyone else to the hall. I turned around to face Eli.
“Are you going to see Hunter?” he asked.
Was I that obvious?
“I’ll come with you.”
“Are you sure?”
He hooked his arm around mine and we headed toward the outskirts of the school. The cells were concealed underground on the outside of the safety border. We didn’t talk for the most part. Eli held sticks out of the way for me and helped me over logs and big boulders. I was capable of doing this myself, but I enjoyed the way his hands ignited my blood and sent goosebumps over my skin. He noticed, too. Every now and again he’d bite his lip or growl seductively when we got too close. It was a miracle we made it to the cells without ripping each other’s clothes off, really.
An eerie chill rolled over me as we approached the tunnel that burrowed deep underground. I glanced around the entrance, but I saw no one guarding it. Maybe they felt like they didn’t have to. Hunter wasn’t a vampire anymore.
“There are no guards?”
“There are guards. They’re concealing themselves—watching from a distance.”
I peered over my shoulder, but couldn’t see anything obvious. Eli nudged me down into the cells first and as we walked, he kept a firm arm around my waist. The air grew thinner, denser, and I was finding it hard to breathe. Ignoring the rising panic in my chest, I picked up my pace, eager to find more space. I thought it’d get easier when I stepped into the open space of the cell, and it was to a certain degree, but my chest was still heavy.
“Are you all right?” Eli asked, noticing my breaths deepen.
“Yeah, let’s just get this over with. I don’t want to be down here for long.”
He pulled me in front of the double mirror and I saw Hunter, slouching over the side of his bed. His head was buried between his knees.
“You sure you want to go in there?”
I nodded. Eli proceeded to open the door. A big clanking noise vibrated through the cell, piercing my ears. I stepped in and Hunter didn’t look up. Eli closed the door behind me, but left it open a crack so he could come in if he needed to.
“Hunter?” His name came out a lot quieter than I intended and I realized it was because I was scared of him and what he might do.
Slowly, he lifted his head up. Involuntarily, I smiled at him when I met his blue eyes. He was back, it had worked. Joy flooded me and the confined space of the cell was a distant fear.
“Why’d you come?”
I was confused. “Because you asked for me...”
“I’ve been asking for you for the last two days. Why now?”
I stepped closer to him. “I only got out of the hospital half an hour ago.”
“Don’t lie to me!” he shouted, standing up.
I swallowed hard. “I’m not lying to you.”
He stared at me, his face hard and difficult to read. He seemed as unstable as Gwydion explained. There were so many emotions behind his eyes and I couldn’t predict how this meeting was going to go... He launched at me, slamming me into the wall and pressing his mouth against mine. I pushed against him with all my strength and he stumbled backwards.
Now it was my turn to shout. “What are you doing?”
“I’m kissing you.”
“Don’t.”
“Why? Because De Luca is on the other side of the mirror?”
“No,” I placed my hands sternly on my hips. “Don’t kiss me because I don’t want you to.”
His lips curved into the cheeky smile that he used to have before he was a vampire. “Don’t lie. You forget that I’ve heard how fast your heart beats when you’re around me.”
“You were a vampire. I was scared.”
“No, it wasn’t fear. It was love. You love me.”
My words didn’t come out as confident as I’d meant them to. “No, I don’t.”
He ran at me, slamming me against the wall and slapping his palms against the concrete beside me. “Damn it! Admit it!”
Tears choked me and I didn’t know if it was because I was scared or guilty. “I have nothing to admit to you.”
“You’re lying,” he whispered. “You couldn’t kill me because you love me, and once I’m out of here, I’ll prove it to you.”
“Eli?” I called, my voice cracking. “I’ve had enough. I want to go.”
The door creaked and Eli stepped in. He paused for a moment, his arms folded firmly across his chest. He looked like he wanted to kill Hunter, but Hunter ignored Eli’s presence.
“Why’d you bring me back? Hm?” he growled, narrowing his blue eyes at me. “So I can sit and watch Eli have the happy ending that I want? I’d rather be a vampire.”
I pushed against Hunter, but he wouldn’t back off.
“Let her go,” Eli ordered.
Hunter grinned. “Or what?”
“Or I’ll come over there and make you let her go.”
Hunter snorted. He pushed his tongue into his cheek and weighed his options. Hunter wasn’t dumb enough to take on Eli. It’d be a pretty hard battle to pick a winner, they both had their strengths, but with the experience that Eli had, he’d definitely come out on top
“All right,” he sighed. He stepped away from me and I ran out the door and up the tunnel. The walls seemed to be closing in on me and I felt sick.
“I’ll prove it!” Hunter called after me. “I’ll prove that you love me.”
When I reached the top, I gasped for air and let my body absorb the sun’s warmth—it calmed me. I stood alone for a few moments, waiting for Eli to join me at the top.
“Are you finished here?” Eli asked, appearing at the mouth of the tunnel.
I nodded my head. I studied Eli as he watched me. He seemed content. He wasn’t angry or sad, he wasn’t anything. We walked back the way we came, only this time we passed by my mother’s cabin. I stopped.
“Can we go in?”
Eli looked up at the sky. “It’s getting dark.”
He was right, the sun was beginning to set, but I’d say we had at least two hours until complete darkness.
“It’ll only take a minute,” I replied, inching toward the cabin anyway.
He followed behind me. Unlike the first time I came here, the door was unlocked. I stepped inside. Everything was the same as I’d left it, except the smell. The decomposing wood smell was new. I was a vampire the last time I was here. A sickening shudder rolled down my spine at the thought of it.
“I want to take a few things of my mother’s back to my house, if that’s okay?”
“Go ahead.”
I circled the room, touching everything and trying to decide what items would have the most sentimental value.
“Do you want to talk?” Eli asked.
I squeezed my eyes shut and bit my tongue. I had hoped he wouldn’t bring the cell up, at least not until I wrapped my mind around it. I turned to face him and sat on the bed.
“Sure,” I managed to reply in a somewhat cheery tone.
Eli crossed the room and leaned against the bathroom door. His green eyes peered down at me and I felt uncomfortable.
“That must’ve been difficult for you,” he said.
“It was. I couldn’t get through to him and I—”
“Do you love him?”
“What? No, I don’t love him.” No, you don’t. My heart concurred.
“Somehow, I’m not entirely convinced,” Eli added.
Neither was I. I sighed. “Look, I’m in such a messed up place right now. Do I like Hunter? Yes. Do I like him more than I should? Yes. Do I love him? Would I choose him over you? No. No, I wouldn’t.” I glanced down at my hands. “Are you mad?”
Eli joined me on the bed and took my hands in his. “I’m not mad. We can’t control our emotions. Sometimes this kind of thing happens. We’ve been through a lot, but so have you and Hunter. You’re fooling yourself if you think there’s nothing there.” He tucked a lock of hair behind my ear. “I’m not saying act on it and I’m not telling you not to care for Hunter. I’m simply telling you to let yourself feel what you want to feel, because if you don’t explore your emotions, it’ll mess with your head.”