Page 86 of Love Bleeds
Chapter Thirty
Two days. It took Vlad two whole days and a full night to text me back, saying that he had the goods. I stared at his message, trying to identify how I felt. On the one hand, I was so relieved that the wait was over that I nearly dropped the phone. On the other hand, I was getting a terrible stomach ache.
Because now I had to meet Vlad.
And then I would have to build a bomb.
I'd played with explosives before, but never with anything actually strong enough to kill someone. Or several someone's.
I was a nerd, not a murderer. I wasn't sure if I could actually kill anyone.
At least, that was how I felt until I conjured an image of Nicolai in my mind.Him, I could definitely kill.
Holding on to the burning rage that simmered in my guts at the thought of Crimson's so-called sire, I shot a text back at Vlad. I was going to meet him in an hour.
I looked at the clock over the door that connected the dining room with the hallway. I'd been sitting at the table in front of my laptop, the building plans for the vampire headquarters opened.
It was nearing 9pm. We'd already eaten and my siblings had retreated to other areas of the house. Briefly, I thought about what they might be doing now. Elena might be asleep already, morning-person that she was. Collin and Talon were probably busy with the kid. Jared might be working on one of his model kits. Remy might come down to the kitchen to stress-cook again, but other than that, the coast was pretty much clear.
If I left straight away, I could probably slip out unnoticed.
Except Collin's words came back to haunt me. That I was so self-centered that I didn't care how my family felt when I put myself in danger.
And I couldn't forget the way Jared had looked at me after I woke from my coma.
I didn't trust Vlad, not a hundred percent. I would have been stupid too. I was still going to meet him, yes, but I didn't trust him.
What if he had an ambush waiting for me?
He'd picked the location after all.
This might all be part of some elaborate plan that Nicolai had cooked up, I needed to at least acknowledge that.
Coming to a decision, I rose from the dining table and made my way up the stairs to Jared's bedroom.
"Come in," he said after I knocked. "Luke?"
"I'm heading out," I stated. "I was wondering if you'd want to come with me."
Jared had been sitting at his desk, reading a magazine, but now he put it aside to focus all his attention on me. "Where are you going?"
"Remember that vampire who shot Nicolai with a poisoned dart? He's going to help us again, so I'm going out to meet him."
"Do you think that's--"
"No, I don't think it's a good idea, but it's the only one I have. It's the only one anyone has right now."
Jared considered this for a moment before giving me a response. I appreciated that about him. Even though he was the oldest of us, he never treated me like a baby the way the others did. He'd never dismissed my thoughts or ideas out of hand.
It was probably part of what made him so good at his job.
"Collin and Talon are working on convincing the witches to change their minds."
I shook my head. "That's going to take forever. I can't wait that long." I did my best to make my words sound as final as I could. This was my decision and I wasn't going to be swayed. "They don't want me to see Crimson. Do you think they'd act that way if he wasfine?"
"They just don't want you to go out."
"I'm not so sure about that, and anyway, I'm going. You can't change my mind. I only wanted to let you know, because... I'm sorry about... you know."
