Page 73 of Blood Illusions

I swallowed hard and refused to cower beneath his hostile gaze. “It was a necessary evil. If it wasn’t for him, Damon and I would have been turned into mummies.”

Justice sucked in his breath and turned away. He’d just saved my dad, and I’d turned on him the first chance I got.

Dad narrowed his eyes, his expression hardening. “A necessary evil? You call allying with the monsters we’ve dedicated our lives to destroying necessary?” He sat up straighter against the wall. “We’re hunters, Sawyer. We’re Grants. We don’t make deals with the enemy. We don’t rely on them for survival.”

I felt his disappointment weighing me down, but hey, a girl’s got to stand her ground. “Dad, news flash. The world’s not a simple comic book. Sometimes, to kick monster butt, we gotta color outside the lines. And this Justice guy? He’s playing for our team, at least for now.”

He scoffed, a bitter laugh escaping him. “Justice? Is that what you’re calling it now? Making deals with vampires in the name of justice?” Scorn laced his voice as he flashed a hateful gaze over Justice. “You think this…this vampire can be trusted? That he won’t turn on you the moment it suits him?”

I clenched my fists, fighting to keep my voice steady. “According to him, he rescued you once before. He saved your life here, Dad. Isn’t that worth something?”

“Saved my life?” His voice rose in anger and incredulity. “I’ve spent my entire life fighting these creatures, teaching you and Damon to do the same. Now you tell me my life was saved by one of them? What does that make me, Sawyer? What does that make us?”

His words echoed in the silent room, heavy with the unspoken fears and doubts that had always haunted our family. It was more than distrust of vampires. It was the fear of what it meant to rely on them, to owe them.

Luckily, he didn’t ask how Justice saved his life. Right now, he thought it was rescuing him from this cell.

“Dad, I’m not saying it’s ideal, but it was the only option. We needed him.” My voice was a whisper, a plea for understanding in a world that had suddenly become far more complex than the black-and-white morals we had always lived by.

He turned away, his shoulders tense. “Your mother would be so disappointed in you,” he muttered, more to himself than to me.

His words were like a cold slap across my face. I winced, and tears stung my eyes.

As he refused to look at me, the divide between us felt wider than ever. In saving him, I had crossed into uncharted territory, and I wasn’t sure if he would ever forgive me. When he found out I allowed Justice to give him his blood…

As we sat in the tense silence, I noticed Dad’s gaze sharpen suddenly, his head tilting as if hearing something distant. His hand went to his temple, rubbing it to clear a fog only he could feel.

Oh, crap. Was that the vampire blood? I shot Justice an accusing glare, and he shrugged innocently.

Innocent, my ass. He knew something like this would happen.

I cleared my throat. “Dad, you okay?” Concern laced my nervous voice.

Dad blinked rapidly, looking around as if seeing the room for the first time. “It’s…everything’s so loud. And clear. What’s happening to me, Sawyer?”

I scrubbed my face. “I don’t know, Dad.”

It was happening faster than I thought. The vampire blood was working its magic. Or its curse, depending on how you looked at it. “Take deep breaths, Dad. You’re probably disoriented from…everything that’s happened.”

He wasn’t buying it. His eyes, now unnaturally bright, fixed on me with a piercing intensity. “This is more than disorientation. I can feel everything. My body, it’s like it’s healing, but it’s too fast, too strange.”

I watched, torn between relief at his recovery and dread at how he’d react when he learned the truth. He rose to his feet, moving with a steadiness that belied his recent ordeal. Then he paused, his head cocking to the side. “I can hear the blood rushing in your veins, Sawyer. Why can I hear that?” His accusatory tone made me wilt like a shrinking violet.

The question hung in the air, heavy with implications. I swallowed hard, my mind racing for the right words. How did you tell a lifelong hunter that he owed his life to the very creature he’s sworn to destroy?

“Dad, there’s something you need to know.” My voice was barely above a whisper. “About how you were saved…”

He looked at me, confusion and dawning realization in his eyes. At that moment, I knew no matter how I framed it, the truth would change everything.

He reached over and grabbed Justice by the shirt, wrapping his fist in the material. “What did you do to me, fang?”

I hesitated, knowing this would hit hard. “Well, you see, you got a bit of vampire cocktail. A lifesaver, really. Courtesy of our new buddy Justice.”

Justice put his hand on Dad’s wrist. “Don’t worry. You’re not a vampire. The effect is only temporary. You were dying. There was no way you’d make it through the catacombs and past the vampires guarding the stairs.”

Dad released his shirt. “You put salt across the stairwell?”

Justice nodded. “Yes. They can’t come down here for now.”

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