Page 13 of Fractured Constellations
I push through the crowd—fuck, there are so many people—and manage to make my way outside just as my new stepsister falls onto a bench and then slumps down, her eyes rolling.
Rushing over, I catch her just as she almost slides off the bench, cursing at how drunk she clearly is. It’s been less than an hour, which surprises me, as I thought she didn’t drink.
“B–Blade?” she slurs, and I notice that her breath doesn’t smell of alcohol. A pit opens up in my stomach as I see the fruity drink next to her, only half drunk.
“What have you drunk, Goldilocks?” I rumble, shaking her a little when her eyes close. She snaps them open, barely able to focus on me.
“Virgin… cocktail,” she says, and my brows furrow. “Blondie gave it to me. So hot.”
Her flushed cheeks make me wonder if she’s referring to the blonde person she mentioned, or the fact she feels hot, but when I press the back of my hand to her forehead, I hiss.
“Fuck, Goldilocks, you’re burning up.” Fishing my phone out of my pocket, I hit dial on Chase’s number. “Get outside. Now.” I hang up, shaking Luna again as she slumps against me. “Wake up, Princess.”
“D–don’t feel good, B–Blade,” she murmurs, barely able to keep her eyes open.
“I know, Princess. We’ll get you home, I promise,” I say, my voice unusually soft as I hear my brothers approach.
“Woah, looks like she can’t handle her liquor.” Thorn laughs, and I shoot him a glare.
“She’s not drunk. Something else is wrong.” His face immediately loses all mirth, and he rushes over, spotting the drink.
“Who gave her a drink?” he snarls, and I shrug.
“Someone she called blondie,” I state, gathering her in my arms, deciding we can’t do much more here but maybe back home we can help her.
Chase takes charge, as he so often does even though I’m the oldest. “We need to get her home before she makes a scene.”
We head around the side, Thorn hurrying ahead, no doubt to find a valet to bring the car around. Thorn is waiting in the driver’s seat as I approach, and normally no one else drives my baby, but this is an emergency.
My heart is thudding loudly inside my chest, something I’m not used to as I carry her in my arms. She’s so fucking light, too light for someone her age really, and something inside me makes my arms draw her closer to my body.
Chase opens the back door, and I carefully place Luna in, buckling her seat belt before I jog around to the other side and get in next to her, Chase taking the front passenger. The atmosphere in the car is tense as we drive away, Luna’s head lolling as I keep my gaze fixed on her. My arm darts around her before I’ve even thought about it, steadying her head against my shoulder.
“Do you think she was drugged?” Chase asks, and I purse my lips, a sour taste filling my mouth.
“Maybe. She said her drink was a virgin cocktail,” I tell them, and Luna blinks her blue eyes open, staring straight at me. Her pupils are blown wide, her gaze going unfocused, and my hand clenches into a fist against the seat behind her. I know we wanted to fuck with her, but not like this. Drugging women is a line that none of us would ever cross.
“Maybe we should take her to the hospital?” Thorn suggests, and I watch as panic makes her straighten.
“No! I’m fine. Something just messed with some meds I take,” she says, her voice clearer than it has been since I foundher. She blinks as she tries to get her eyes to focus. “Just take me home please.”
Something tightens inside my chest at her calling our house home, but it’s not annoyance like I expect it to be. I choose not to examine it too closely, and soon, we’re pulling back into our driveway.
I’m out of the car before it’s even fully stopped, rushing to her side and opening the door just as she reaches for the handle. Our gazes meet again, and although her gaze is still a little unfocused, she’s more with it now.
I still slide my arms underneath her, lifting her out of the truck even though she protests weekly. “I’m fine, Blade. I can walk.”
“Doubtful,” I reply, striding into the house. No one greets us. I told Jerry and the others we’d sort ourselves when we got back, and contrary to what we told Luna, we were always going to bring her back when she’d had enough. We’re not total bastards.
I take her to her room, the others following behind, and settle her on her bed once we get inside. She immediately snuggles onto her side, curling up into a fetal position and closing her eyes.
Exhaling, I sit down next to her and start untying those ridiculous glittery Converse of hers.
“What are you doing?” Thorn asks, his voice a low whisper, and I look up, finding him watching her, studying the rise and fall of her chest.
“She can’t sleep in shoes,” I tell him, resuming my work until I have them both off and set down on the floor.
“Her temperature has come down,” he says, the back of his hand brushing her forehead. “I’ll grab her a bottle of water, for when she wakes up. Maybe some painkillers?”
