Page 36 of Depths of Obsession
“But… but… what the hell, Mia? What the hell is going on?” My head spins, and I can’t get the image of Luca—his fangs—out of my mind. I press against the headboard, trying to flee the truth. “That can’t be real,” I whisper, almost to myself.
“It’s real.” Luca crosses his arms over his chest. “We… The Valdici’s…we’re vampires.”
Mia shoots him a sharp look, but he ignores her, continuing. “The sooner you understand that what you saw is real, that vampires are real, the sooner we can move forward.”
“No.” I shake my head, panic clawing up my throat. “This is bullshit. Vampires aren’t real. You guys are in some… crazy cult.” I press my back into the headboard, trying to get away. Turning to Mia, I grip her hands. “We need to leave. We need to get out of here, now. This is some whacked-out shit, and we need to go.” I try to get out of bed, but Mia stops me, her hands firm on my shoulders.
“I’m sorry, Pippa,” she says, her voice gentle but firm. “I didn’t want you to find out this way. I didn’t want you to find out at all, but it’s true. Vampires exist. All sorts of magickal creatures exist. When you think about it, it makes sense.”
“Makes sense?” I stare at her, incredulous. I jerk my shoulders to dislodge her hands, but she grips me harder. “What kind of drugs is he feeding you?” I glare at Renzo.
Mia smiles sadly. “Believe me, I wish it were drugs, but it’s not. Renzo, Nico, and Luca are vampires. There are witches—real witches, not the kind with pointy hats. There are demons and mages. There are… all the magickal creatures we’ve read about in stories. They all exist, and they’ve been here all along. We just can’t, or don’t want to see it.”
I shake my head, my heart pounding. They’ve all gone insane. There’s no way this is real. I blink, an idea forming. It’s a dream. It has to be. My face is healed—there’s no way it could have healed in a day, cream or not. I’m just dreaming. I pinch myself, hard. “Ow.”
“You’re awake, little one,” Luca’s voice softens, his eyes watching me closely.
Renzo clears his throat, stepping forward. “I know it’s a lot to take in.”
I shoot my gaze back to Luca, my voice shaking. “My father shot you. I saw it. You staggered.”
He nods, his expression reluctant. “I was weaker than I normally would be because I had to use the magick realm to get to you so quickly. It can… drain us sometimes. It fades after an hour or two, but I was slower, weaker than I should have been.”
“Where’s the bullet hole?” I demand.
“There isn’t one.” He pulls his shirt up, revealing smooth skin over defined abs, unmarred by any wound.
I turn to Mia, my eyes wide, tears stinging at the corners. “Why are you lying to me? Why is this happening?” My voice breaks, and hot liquid slips down my cheeks as I start to cry. “If your magic cream healed my face, why is my mother in Switzerland?” I demand, my gaze snapping back to Luca.
“The cream can only do so much,” Luca says, his voice gentle. “Your mother has internal injuries.”
I close my eyes, the truth sinking in. My father beat her badly enough to put her in a hospital. I knew it, deep down, but I couldn’t face it. I don’t want to face any of this. It can’t be real.
I need to fucking wake up.
Mia’s voice breaks through my thoughts. “Would you like something to eat?” She points to a tray of scones, clotted cream, and jam beside the bed.
I look at the tray, my stomach churning. Scones are my favorite, but I don’t think I could eat right now. My eyes flick to the knife beside it, and an idea forms. “Maybe,” I say, my voice small.
Mia hands me the tray, placing it in my lap. Fighting the urge to gag again, I force myself to pick up a scone. My fingers are clumsy as I try to spread the cream. Luca moves closer, reaching out to help, and I lunge, stabbing him in the arm with the butter knife.
“Pippa!” Mia exclaims, her eyes wide with shock.
Luca pulls his arm back, the knife sticking out of it, his lips curving into a faint smile, his eyes twinkling. He’s amused. “Are you testing me, little one?” He pulls the knife out, blood running down his arm. I watch, transfixed, as the cut closes, the skin knits together until it’s like it was never there. I grab his arm, twisting it, trying to find the wound, but there’s nothing.
“Do you believe me now?” he asks, his voice soft.
I look down at the knife with blood on the blade, then back at his arm, my mind reeling. I have to be dreaming. I grab the knife, my hand trembling, and move to stab my own arm, but Luca catches my wrist, his grip firm. “No, Pippa. You’re not going to hurt yourself.” He takes the knife from me, his gaze never wavering. “You’re not dreaming. You’re not drugged. This isn’t a cult. You need to accept that vampires, as well as all kinds of other magickal creatures, are real.” He sits on the bed and gently scrapes his thumbnail on my arm. I feel that. I’m not dreaming.
So I must be going insane. Tears prick again, and I gulp the emotion back.
A silence stretches between us, heavy and charged. Renzo touches Mia’s shoulder, and she stands. Nico and Renzo follow her out of the room. Luca stays, his eyes locked on mine.
“I think your real issue is accepting what your father did and that he’s gone. It’s not going to be easy, and it will take time. None of this is pleasant, but you’re strong, little one, and you’re not stupid. Stop fighting reality. When you accept it, you can move forward.” He hands me back the knife, his expression softening. “Don’t hurt yourself. It won’t prove anything. Eat your scones. Get some rest. I’ll be back to check on you later.”
He turns and leaves the room. I jump a bit as the door closes behind him, my heart pounding, my mind still spinning. Can this really be happening? I push back the blankets and climb out of bed. My legs are shaky as I make my way to the ensuite bathroom. I stare at my reflection in the mirror. My face is fine. Almost perfect, with just a faint shadow of bruising around my eyes, a mere hint of what happened. There’s dried blood in my hair. I tilt my head, examining my ear. My earlobe is torn, the result of when Papa struck me and ripped my earring out. My head spins and my vision swims. My heartbeat pounds in my ears as I grip the countertop.
Oh my God.It happened. It all happened. I didn’t want to believe it. Denying vampires are real means then none of it was real. I don’t want it to be real because if it is then my father really did do all those horrible things.
