Page 9 of Eternally Yours

My body bristled at the fact my father still didn’t take me seriously. “He thinks this is a phase?” I asked. “That eventually I’m gonna come strolling through his doors once again? He destroyed my life, Cat. I’ll never forgive him for what he did. I’m never going back.”

Catherine grabbed me by the shoulders, her eyes narrowing, face taut. “Listen to me, Nic. What we did here will have dire repercussions. No one can find out I helped you. And you need to find a way to get her out of the city before your father hears of this. He won’t hesitate to have her killed. When she wakes up from this stupor, she’s going to need human blood, and not the kind you keep stored in your fridge. You can’t have her prowling the streets of New York, leaving a wake of dead bodies.”

Pushing away from her, I paced, hands on my waist. “What am I supposed to do, bring her a willing human? This isn’t the coven. I don’t have blood hosts at the ready.”

“Am I supposed to keep solving your problems?”

I stopped pacing and glanced over at Loren lying on my bed. She looked so peaceful, oblivious to what was happening to her. Unaware I had taken her humanity. That I’d stolen everything from her. I was no different than my father. But I’d had no other choice. Losing another human to this stupid war was not an option. “She will learn to drink from the bag,” I said.

“Has it been that long, Nic, since you were a babe?” Catherine asked, stepping closer. “Do you not remember the insatiable hunger that claws at your insides when you take your first vampire breath? She’s gonna need warm blood. As a newborn, she’s going to be dangerous, and being here,” she added, gesturing to my apartment with her hands, “will create temptation she won’t be able to resist.”

“Where do you suggest I take her?”

Cocking her head to the side, she said, “There was a time when I too thought about leaving. I had a place built. Somewhere I could hunker down while I figured out how to start over.”

My brows dipped. “You built a hideout and never told me about it?”

“It was a stupid idea,” she uttered quickly, dismissing the fact I knew why she’d contemplated leaving. “The coven is my home. I never finished the renovations, but the cabin is still there and no one knows about it but me. You’ll be safe there. It should give you the time you need to teach her about us. About who she is now. Maybe you can show her how to hunt deer. Keep her fed until we can figure this whole thing out.”

“Where’s this place?” I asked, curious how she managed to keep this secret from me.

“Vermont. I’ll text you the address. You should leave as soon as the sun goes down.”

“Speaking of the sun,” I said. “How are you going to get back now?”

“Don’t worry about me. I have my ways.”

“Cat…”

“Janus is downstairs in the underground garage. He’ll make sure I get out safely.”

Her lover. One of the sacrificial human donors the coven kept for feedings. Catherine had grown quite smitten with the man over the years, their relationship growing to more than it should. But Cat was clever. Bedding a human wasn’t forbidden. Sex normally accompanied feedings because of the aphrodisiacal properties in our blood, but mating alone wasn’t against the rules. Creating the eternal bond that would link them together forever? That’s what was forbidden.

It was how we preserved the bloodlines. Mates were only to be vampires who’d been established for years. Unions were arranged for the purposes of bringing wealth, honor, and power to a family.

Bullshit—that’s what it was. All that nonsense made sense centuries back, but civilization had changed. Vampires needed to evolve as well. But my father refused to see it that way.

I followed Cat to the front door. She turned and said, “The code for the lock is my death day. You remember the date, right?”

I nodded. How could I forget? Even if it was centuries ago, the memory still blazed hot in my mind. I’d been there when she was given the choice of death or eternal life. Catherine hadn’t flinched. She’d never been more certain about leaving the world of mortal men.

Before walking out, she turned to me once more, her gaze hard. “Don’t do it, Nic. Don’t mate with her.”

“I won’t.”

Her shoulders fell as she let out a heavy breath. “What happened with Elizabeth... I don’t ever want to see you go through that again.”

“I know,” I whispered, my chest tightening at the memory. “You don’t need to worry about that.”

Her eyes flickered with doubt, as if she knew my promise was a lie. With a tight-lipped smile, she gave my arm a gentle squeeze, leaning in to feather a kiss against my cheek. Bidding me farewell, she disappeared down the staircase leading to the garage.

Chapter Five

Loren

Ientered a windowless, marble grand ballroom, a huge chandelier glimmering high above the center of the room. The walls were painted in hues of ecru and gold, the decor rich with French overindulgence. Faces obscured behind elaborate masquerade masks, guests dressed in extravagant historical-looking gowns and tuxedos glided over the dance floor in synchrony to a whimsical waltz, unaware of my presence.

Swaying to the tune, I ambled through the horde of bodies, my own red, corseted gown swishing at my feet. The room sparkled as flamelight flickered from crystal lanterns. Perfumed with gardenia and rose petals, the air was saturated with a flowery sweetness that tickled my nose. Enchanted by this dreamlike masquerade, time seemed to stand still as I became one with the music.

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