Page 14 of Touched By Darkness

The buttons pop free, and I hear the ripping of fabric. The knot I did over my navel tightens instead of letting go, and Apollo manages to pull me back. I stagger, the shirt dropping from one of my shoulders, my eyes widening in fear.

I’m fucked.

The front door bursts open just as my back hits Apollo’s chest. With the impact, Apollo whirls around. The person standing on the threshold is... Wait, is that Donatello? Why does he have a jacket over his head?

“What the fuck?” Apollo breathes behind me.

Donatello walks into the living room and kicks the door shut. Once he’s out of the sun, he drops the jacket, and his eyes meet mine.

“Duck,” he breathes, and then he pounces.

Holy speed, Batman. I’m lucky my instincts kick in before my brain does because my knees give out, and I drop to the ground just as Donatello flies over my head. He swoops like a freaking superhero, colliding with Apollo so hard even my bones rattle.

Why is he here? I just ran away from him. He’s either invested in helping me for unknown and malicious reasons, or he’s pitying the poor human whose life just did a one-eighty flip. I’d put my chips on the first option.

The two crash into my couch, and I hear it rip. Crap, it was so expensive. The midnight blue fabric was silk against my skin. I shoot a glance over my shoulder to see shreds of it as the two fight, punching and shoving off, moving faster than I thought possible. Apollo roars, making me shiver as I crawl away from the fight and closer to the door.

“Who the fuck are you?” Apollo roars, his voice so like gravel it surprises me. I glance at them again, and they’re at a standoff now, Donatello with his back to me. Is he protecting me? But why? If he wants the reward, he could give me to Apollo.

“Does it matter?” Donatello replies, not even out of breath as he tucks a strand of blond hair behind an ear. “I won’t let you take her.”

Apollo’s nostrils flare, and he breathes in deeply. “Vampire. Another vampire. Who the fuck do you work for?”

There. There it is. I stop my crawling, watching them. This is the moment Donatello will reveal he works for the same person who sent the vampire lying dead in my bedroom. He’ll reveal it was all some grand, mischievous plan, and that I was right in not trusting him. I have to hear this.

Donatello’s spine straightens. “Another vampire?”

“There’s a dead one in the bedroom. For now,” I offer, knowing very well I shouldn’t be making myself known. The two turn to gawk at me. I clear my throat, looking away. “You can keep at it.”

“I don’t know who the other vampire is,” Donatello says.Truth. “And I’m not here to hurt her. I’m here to keep her safe.”

Fuck. That’s also true. The power in his words washes over my body, making me weak in the knees. It’s a good thing I’m already on all fours. I stare at his back, golden hair falling to his shoulders in soft waves. He’s in pants and a long-sleeved shirt. I shoot a glance at the jacket discarded next to me. He’s a vampire, and it’s daytime. He risked his life to come after me when he didn’t have to.

I shouldn’t be tearing up, but I am. I blink quickly before anyone can see it. Crap, I’m much lonelier than I expected.

Apollo shakes his head, teeth still bared. “As if I’d believe a bloodsucker. What do you want? Is she already worth money in Hiram?”

Hiram? Where’s that? I swallow, getting to my feet. “Apollo,” I start, and he glances at me once more. “He’s not lying.”

Apollo frowns. “How could you know?”

“I just do.”

He chuckles. “Don’t take this the wrong way, mate, but I’m not risking your life on a gut feeling.”

The tension coming off Donatello is so absurd I feel it. I almost expect him to be fuming by now. He’s silent as a statue. “What did you call her?” I hear his voice say, but I don’t perceive the movement of his lips.

Apollo curls his nose, baring his teeth again. Oh, I better hide. “Mate,” Apollo roars. “She’s my mate. Anything against it?”

Donatello pounces again, much more violently this time since I’m not in the way. Apollo takes the blow, and the two collapse over my dining table, the one I’ve never used. The wood turns to dust as it crumbles beneath them. Fists hit flesh. Apollo shoves Donatello off, but Donatello gets to his feet in a second. Their moves are faster than before as if now they mean it. There’s an inherent sort of tension between them I can’t understand. Like there’s more to it.

My heart races again. I sneak a glance at the door. This is the time to run. The two are busy exchanging blows. But then why don’t I feel like I should go? Why are my legs so heavy, forcing me to stay in here?

Apollo’s back slams into my TV, and the two fall to the floor. The crash of my expensive shit breaking shakes me back to reality.

I stand tall. “Enough, the two of you.” And they stop. Donatello hovering over Apollo, Apollo stretched on the floor, his hands covered in dark scales once more. “If you want to kill each other, do that somewhere else. You’re fucking up my place.”

Apollo gets to his feet and unfolds his impressive height. The lowered brows should be a sign of how unamused he is at my interruption. It’s not his sixty-five-inch TV he just broke, is it? I guess Donatello’s presence between us makes me a little bolder. Or at least bolder than I’d be when facing a six feet three tall cop who can change into some kind of predator.

---