Page 48 of Two Thousand Shadows

“I didn’t mean it like that. Just…you know…”

“No, I don’t know. Why don’t you spell it out for me?” the witch with bright-red hair demanded as he took a menacing step toward Leo.

“Oh, come on!” Leo threw up his hands in frustration. “It’s not like I did the whole ‘I’m melting! Oh, what a world!’ bit.” This time, though, Leo might have done his best Wicked Witch impersonation with the high-pitched voice and sinking to the floor.

Thankfully, Junjie grabbed his arm and pulled him down the hall before he could dig the hole he was creating even deeper. He didn’t know when to quit. It wasn’t like he was saying that witches needed to die. Only that a particular vampire needed to be double dead.

“Wait,” Leo called out as they got out of sight of the witches. “What about Erik? Is he okay? Did Jiang Chong get near him?” He didn’t think the vampire had laid a fang on the little guy. If he had, it was doubtful that Junjie or Jiang Chong would still be alive. Junjie would have done whatever it took to keep the child safe.

Junjie shook his head and motioned to the room they’d stopped outside of. “Jiang Chong never got close to Erik. Would you like to see him?” he whispered.

Leo nodded and Junjie opened the door, leading him into the small room overflowing with toys and stuffed animals. Anightlight in the shape of a white bunny bounding across a green field burned on the far wall. Erik was lying on his side, sleeping peacefully, with his arms wrapped around a strange but soft doll that appeared to be an avocado with eyes. This was definitely something he’d gotten from Mei Lian. His lips were parted, and his cheeks were flushed slightly. The soft sound of his gentle breathing filled the room, and something in Leo longed to shift into his cat form and curl up next to the boy.

“He had a bad scare with everyone panicked. Plus, Kai arrived in his dragon form to scare off Jiang Chong. The roaring terrified Erik. It took a long time for him to calm down. The second he calmed, he fell asleep.” Junjie kneeled by the bed and ran his fingers through the boy’s hair, brushing it from his forehead.

“I’m sure after some sleep, he’ll be fine. He’ll bounce right back. Cats are resilient like that,” Leo murmured. He held out his hand to help Junjie to his feet. The vampire stared at it for a moment before giving a tiny nod and taking it. Junjie released it the second he was standing and led Leo out of the room and across the hall to his own private chambers.

Leo crossed to the center of the chamber, trying to ignore the enormous bed pushed against one wall. Now was not the time to seduce the vampire. He’d had a terrible night and was still reeling from everything that had happened. Junjie needed a friend.

The too-quiet man closed the door and stood facing it for a couple of heartbeats. When he turned to face Leo, his expression was solemn, and his eyes were closed as if he couldn’t stand to even meet Leo’s gaze. This was a lot worse than being overcome and afraid.

“I would understand if you wished to take Erik from us,” Junjie said, his voice low and rough.

“I beg your pardon?” Leo cried. His brain locked up. What the fuck was this? The idea hadn’t even crossed his mind.

Junjie’s eyes jumped to his face and lines dug deep into his forehead. He seemed confused as well, but he continued. “You gave us Erik because you thought we could keep him safe. Tonight, Jiang Chong entered the grounds of the manor. While he didn’t get into the house, we all know that he’ll return.”

“Yeah, and you’re going to kick his ass when he does.” Leo stomped over to where Junjie was standing, his shoulders slumped and head bowed as if he were folding in on himself at just the idea of losing Erik. Leo grabbed his shoulders, careful not to touch his injured right arm, and shook him. “Jiang Chong is temporary. You’ll kill him, and everything will be fine. Iforcedyou into taking that little boy because I thought you and your clan would give him a warm and loving home for his entire life. You’d teach him to be smart, brave, resourceful, and loving. It wasn’t only about keeping him safe.”

“You’re sure?”

Leo leaned as close as he could, the tip of his nose touching Junjie’s. “Yes! Hell, yes! Besides, I know that you’d be dead before Jiang Chong or anyone laid a finger on that boy.”

“I would,” Junjie agreed in a trembling voice, his eyes going wide for the first time.

Leo exhaled a heavy breath and smiled at the vampire, who was showing some signs of life. “All of the Zhang clan would. There is no better place in all the world for Erik than right here.”

The left corner of Junjie’s lips twitched into an almost smirk. “Surrounded by vampires.”

“And an elf. And a dragon. Why not?” He shrugged one shoulder and slid his hand up to cup Junjie’s cheek. “One tiny kitten in the middle of thousands of years of magic and power. How could anyone ever touch him?”

Junjie nodded, and that soft expression lingered for another second, then Leo watched it melt away. But where sadness and worry had painted his face earlier, there was now cold hardness creeping in. Junjie stepped out of his grasp and partially turned away from him. His left hand balled into a fist at his side while the right remained limp.

“I couldn’t kill him,” Junjie whispered, his voice trembling with what sounded like low-banked rage. “No matter how hard I pressed, how flawless my every strike, he slipped away like an eel. I couldn’t manage more than a few flesh wounds.”

“He’s a sneaky, cowardly bastard. Those are the hardest to kill. But you’ll get him,” Leo reassured him.

Junjie was shaking his head almost as soon as Leo started speaking. “The moment you get too close, or he senses that he’s losing, he slips into the dead realm. You can’t follow because he’ll leave you there. You’re blind to his location. It’s just waiting until he reappears to stab you in the back. Or worse, he escapes completely.”

That wasn’t exactly worse in Leo’s book, but he let that go. Junjie needed to vent his frustration and anger about his creator, and Leo was more than happy to serve as his support.

The vampire began pacing the open space, moving from the center of the room to the bathroom doorway. “He knew the others were away.”

“The asshole must have been watching the manor, waiting for an opportunity when the fewest number of people would be home.”

Junjie grunted. He stopped and whipped around to Leo, eyes wide. “He knows about Erik. And that Moon is a fledgling. Both are vulnerable to his attack. Moon wouldn’t stand a chance against him. And Erik…”

“You’re going to stop him,” Leo stated, trying to infuse those words with all of his confidence, but Junjie’s head was shaking.

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