Page 22 of Until the Heart Stops
Her golden brows pulled together and she gestured to the package in my lap. “What did he send you, love?”
Oh. The gift. His words had been gift enough for me. But I folded up the letter and placed it to the side.
The box was about the size of my palm, silver like the rest. I tugged open the top and gasped. There, nestled in the silk, was a crystal phial, stoppered with the same black wax he always used to seal his letters.
“Merciful fucking goddess,” I breathed.
Adrienne swore softly, the old springs of her mattress groaning as she rose to her knees to get a better look. “Is that…”
“His blood,” I finished for her.
Centuries ago, vampires would give their intended a phial of their blood. Once consumed it would create a temporary bond, spanning a few days or weeks depending on how much blood was consumed and how powerful the immortal was. I didn’t know much about the bond—I’d read that it allowed the vampire to find their intended regardless of distance. But other than a few vague ideas, I was unsure how I would be affected if I was to drink. Plus, due to the Covenant’s new laws, such conversations weretaboo amongst vampires. I wouldn’t have been able to ask even if I’d wanted to.
We stared at the phial for ages until I finally lowered the box to my lap and placed the lid back over it. “I cannot do this.”
“What? Why not?!” Her hands curled around my shoulders, shaking me.
A noise of distress slipped through my lips. “Because we don’t know what will happen if I drink his blood, Adrienne! And who knows who this immortal is. Do I want to give him this unlimited access to me? To my body?”
Heat curled through my belly even as I argued the point. I did not know this male and to drink would be beyond foolish. For all I knew this was an elaborate scheme, his tantalizing words merely a trap for my lonely heart.
Adrienne was silent for so long I finally turned to look at her. She knelt on her bed, staring at her hands tangled in her lap, nightdress sliding off one shoulder.
“What is it?”
Her shoulders moved with a deep breath. “If you drink…you will feel what he feels. His heartbeat. His desire. His longing. And he will feel yours.”
“Oh, Adrienne.” I covered her hands with mine.
She shook her head, lifting her crystalline gaze to mine. “I have not done it, Lilith…though he has offered many times. Enough that I fear that he will not offer again.”
I shifted closer until our knees touched, separated only by the thin bedframe. “You don’t know that, Addie.”
A small furrow appeared between her brows, her sadness tangible in the space between us. “He will soon grow tired of me, I know it.” Before I could respond she shook back her hair and gave a forced laugh. “But that ismy woe and not yours. If you drink, you will feel what he feels.”
A faraway look passed across her eyes before she shook herself and squeezed my hands, rose from her pallet and crossed to the small wardrobe we kept.
“Will he influence my emotions?” I asked, deciding against pushing her.
A small grin pulled at the corner of her mouth. “Not your emotions, no.”
“But other things?”
The grin grew wider as a pale flush crept across her cheeks. “Yes, I believe so.”
Goddess. I could only gape at her while she dressed, twisting her hair off her neck and securing it with a golden pin gifted to her by the very immortal we spoke of. She padded to my side, turning to give me her back. Silently I finished the laces of her corset, tucked the strings beneath her skirt and pressed my forehead against her spine.
“If Eamon asked to change you, would you let him?”
Adrienne stiffened, hands flexing against the fabric. “I don’t think so.”
“Why? If you would drink his blood if he offered it again, does that not mean you’re open to the idea?”
She huffed a laugh, her neck curving as she dipped her chin. “Immortality seems like a monstrous prospect. Eamon is a rarity amongst his peers.”
It was true. Amongst those immortals who shared a similar age, he alone retained his kindness and warmth. Most succumbed to their greed and cruelty long before. I found a similar hesitation after so many years of living alongside vampires. They could be as cold as they were generous, as callous as they were kind. But was that not the same for all living creatures?
The tension rippled off of Adrienne in waves and I sighed. “What would you do, if you were me?”
