Page 44 of Afflicted

It’s getting dark, and we’re all ordered to stay there on the grass.

The red-headed vamp stands at the cafeteria doors, pulling a handgun from her waistband. The two men who started the mini riot are dragged out and thrown to their knees in front of her.

“You all want to riot?” She asks loudly. “You all want to start throwing things and acting like fucking barbarians? When we’re doing everything we can to protect you?” She’s livid. She’s so angry, she’s shaking. “So you all know, this is how we deal with rioters.”

The crowd cries out as she points her gun at the back of the head of one of the men. I want to cover my face, I don’t want to see it, but I’m frozen in place.

The man’s face explodes in a shower of blood and bones, brain matter flinging across the ground. The gunshot is drowned out by the screams around me.

The other man is on his back, crawling away from her, his lips moving as he probably begs for his life and promises to never do it again. The vamp advances on him, and shoots him square in the forehead. He goes limp, stretched out on the dusty ground.

The red-head turns to us, pointing her gun in the air. “Anyone else?” She shouts.

We all fall silent but for the soft sounds of people crying. She looks at us all, eyebrows raised, red eyes blazing.

“This is how we treat rioters.” She points the gun at the bloody corpse at her feet. “If you want to end up like them, then you do what they just did. We will not tolerate any unrest. Do I make myself clear?”

She’s answered with nothing but silence. She exhales heavily, tucking her gun away, and waves a hand towards us. “Get them into the dorms,” she orders.

“See?” Matt whispers to me as we walk. “I told you. They’re monsters. These feeders are all fucking monsters.”

CHAPTER15

JULIET

The next fewdays pass in a bit of a blur. We get up, we eat, we’re allowed to walk around a little. Gardening duty is strictly regulated, with small teams under tight supervision going down one at a time. If the last attack changed the mood of the compound, then the riot totally obliterated it. The delicate trust that existed between us and the feeders, no matter how precarious it sometimes felt, it was at least there.

Now there are two fresh graves in the cemetery and a whole lot of dark looks in the feeders’ direction. Everyone is on edge, constantly waiting for the other side to strike the first blow.

It’s exhausting.

I almost forget about draining. But then it’s Monday morning, and I’m called out of bed just after dawn and ushered into the shower. I stand under the hot water, my arms hugged around myself, wondering if Silas is watching me through the mirror.

I squeeze my eyes shut as I remember the look on his face as he held me during the riot. The relief when he saw I wasn’t hurt. The fury in his eyes when Matt hurt me. Sure, it was an accident. But to a man like Silas, I doubt that matters.

Why do I like him?

I open my eyes, blinking away droplets of water as they cling to my lashes. It’s the first time I’ve admitted to myself that I might actually like Silas. It’s such a strange feeling. I’ve never felt close to a feeder before - why would I? But with him, it’s different. He feels safe.

But Matt made it pretty clear he doesn’t want Silas anywhere near me. I shudder to think what would have happened if I hadn’t intervened. Matt was out for blood, but Silas is the one with the strength to take it.

We all go through the motions, drying off and getting dressed, heading to the cafeteria for a stale breakfast barely anyone chokes down. Like sheep, lost in a new field, we head for the clinic. No one talks. Hardly anyone even looks up.

This sucks.

But my heart damn near leaps out of my chest when, instead of the usual vamps who deal with us in the clinic, Silas pushes through the blue curtain.

“Hello there.” He smiles at me, even though his eyes darken when he looks at my black eye, that’s still a really unique shade of purple.

“Hi. You on medic duty now?”

“Only for our VIPs.”

“And I’m one of those?” I laugh. “Well, you can tell them the turndown service sucks.”

“I’ll pass that on.” He sits beside me, raising his eyes to gaze at me with a small smile as he fastens the tourniquet around my arm. “You OK?”

I nod, suppressing a gasp as he taps the vein in my arm. His hands are really warm.

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