Page 30 of Thorn of Sorrow

With my arms filled with food, I slowly straightened then turned. No one was there, yet the weight of something unseen pressed against me.

The stillness stretched inside the kitchen, so absolute that even breathing felt like an intrusion.

Someone was in the room with me. The hairs on my arms recoiled, bristling like they wanted to crawl off my skin and escape.

Stepping to the island in the center of the room, I set everything down, ready to bolt if necessary.

How much more “necessary” do you need when you clearly hear someone holding back a gag, moron?

My inner voice was rude but had a point. No vampire hiding in the shadows was waiting to jump out and yell, “Surprise!”

Unless they derived a sick thrill out of surprising their meal.

Will you shut the hell up and get out of here? And don’t forget to play it cool. Act nonchalant. Do not panic and maybe you’ll walk out of here alive.

I gave a relaxed shrug and turned back around like I was brushing off my suspicions. But inwardly, I was cursing at how fast my heart was beating. Whoever was spying on me would be able to hear the sound.

Screw subtlety. I’d already been tortured once, possessed twice, and wasn’t trying for a fourth encounter. But I couldn’t move, knowing as soon as I ran, the real terror would begin. It was one thing knowing someone was watching, another to have a deadly predator actively pursuing me.

I drew in slow, shallow breaths, a bead of sweat sliding down from my temple.

Run!

But I couldn’t bring myself to shatter the illusion of being safe as long as I didn’t move a muscle.

I thought of Giovanni, how he’d looked at me, not with repulsion but with reverence. How he’d kissed my scars and, for a fleeting moment, made me feel whole.

Desired. Cherished.

“I love you. Does that scare you?”

Those three words had made me feel wanted for the first time in my life, like I wasn’t so easily discarded.

Like I finally mattered to at least one person in my lonely existence.

I’d wanted desperately to tell him that I loved him too, that I’d been in love with him since the night we’d met, but the words had become tangled in fear.

What if I said them and then Giovanni lost interest in me, becoming yet another person who’d found it easy to simply walk out of my life?

Giovanni abandoning me would cut me deeper than any blade Osiris had pressed against my skin. It would hurt more than all my scars combined.

“Whoever you are, know that I will fight you. Not because I don’t want to die but because I finally have a chance to live.” A soft, quick exhale pushed from my lungs, a cathartic release after burying my feelings for Giovanni for so long.

“And how many more have to die?” a disembodied voice replied, hatred sharpening with every word.

Damn. I’d been hoping like crazy I was just being paranoid and no one was actually in the room with me.

Also, I had no idea what he was talking about. Quietly swallowing, my gaze flicked toward the kitchen door. Could I make it out before he caught me?

Not a chance in hell.

Vampires were extremely fast. The guy would tackle me before I made it to the door. I had to think of a way out of this situation. Immortal didn’t equal invincible. I could still die, but I didn’t want it to be tonight.

Now I wished I hadn’t told Giovanni I needed some time to myself. In hindsight, that might’ve been a little insensitive considering we’d shared something profound together.

And not just the mind-blowing sex, though I was eager— Will you stop thinking about his large dick and focus, dumbass? You won’t get a repeat if you’re dead.

“Humans couldn’t possibly understand how it feels to live for so long. Your kind is all about instant gratification.” There was a rhythm to his voice, like the slow ticking of a clock counting down to something inevitable.

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