Page 18 of Awakening the Dhampir

I wanted to believe him, but how could I? I didn’t want to be around me. Why would anyone else?

“Can you finish washing?” Elliott asked. “Kenrid is bringing a bag of clean clothes for us. We really need to get out of here.”

I nodded and slowly stepped away from him. One of his long fingers trailed my jaw, and a gentle pressure under my chin made me look up at him. Once again, the sadness in his eyes caught me by surprise. He was right, though. We needed to leave. I could fall apart after we were gone.

“I can do this,” I said. “Thank you for all that.”

“I will always be here for you, Lorna.”

He reached down and picked up my wet clothes, then stepped out of the shower. I missed him immediately. My heart rate skyrocketed, and a surge of panic had me whipping the curtain aside. Elliott stood a few feet away with his fingers gripping the bottom of his wet shirt.

He hadn’t left.

I let out a stuttered breath. “Please stay,” I whispered.

“I told you I’m not going anywhere,” he assured me. “But if you’d like to watch me get out of these clothes, I’ll try to make it more entertaining for you.”

He winked at me, and heat rushed up my neck and consumed my face. I jerked the shower curtain closed and let a small smile pull at my lips. Elliott’s chuckle echoed through the room. I didn’t fully understand his support, but I was still grateful for it.

I finished getting naked and tossed the rest of my clothes out. I really hoped Elliott planned to burn them. I didn’t need any more reminders of what had happened. I found a bar of soap and a washcloth and started scrubbing away the last three weeks. Tried to, anyway. It wasn’t working. It’d never work. Not even that sandblaster I’d dreamed up could erase this.

I’ll keep the memories of each death for you, a quiet voice said in my mind.

I blinked several times. It was my voice, only not.

I don’t want us to die, she continued. Your shifter made a valid point. So did your fae. I need to feed, but I’m willing to compromise on the method.

My soapy hands stilled on my stomach. Was this my dhampir? It had to be. No one else was in my mind. My other personas weren’t real people, just convenient personalities to adopt as needed. They didn’t talk to me like this.

I don’t want to die either, I said to her. I also don’t want us to fight for control. Neither of us will win that battle. We’ll compromise.

Agreed.

Pain stabbed the base of my skull. I fell to my knees and whimpered as a spiderweb of agony raced over my brain. It probably only lasted for a couple seconds, but it stole my breath and left me with a throbbing headache.

My dhampir’s voice echoed in my mind again. The memories of today’s violence are with me now, she said. They’re there if you want them, but they won’t plague you with guilt.

I scrubbed my hands across my face and rose to my feet. I thought about today’s events, but they were blurry and scattered. I poked through the compartments in my mind and found my dhampir. Her box was open, but she didn’t come out to greet me. Maybe we could make this work. She and I, together.

Thank you, I said to her.

She didn’t reply, and I didn’t press her. We had more important things to do, like getting dressed and getting the hell out of here.

Just as I finished rinsing everything down the drain, I heard a soft tap on the door.

“Yeah?” Elliott called.

I didn’t hear the muffled reply, so I turned off the shower. A fluffy white towel appeared a second later. I took it as the bathroom door squeaked open.

“Nathan wants to leave in ten minutes.” The familiar sound of Kenrid’s voice mixed with the feel of his magic. A magic that instantly called to me, wrapping me in the longing I’d come to associate with him.

I quickly dried off and wrapped the towel around me while the men continued talking.

“We’ll be ready in just a few minutes,” Elliott said.

“Here’s a trash bag for your wet clothes,” Kenrid said. Plastic rustled, followed by a wet plop. “Damon filled the back of your truck with a bunch of boxes for us to go through when we get back.”

I peeked out of the shower to find Kenrid staring at me. His non-glamoured eyes caught mine and held on tight. I wanted to look away. I remembered what Conrad said about the fae being behind my kidnapping.

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