A Meet of Tribes (A Shade of Vampire #45)(49)

Serena





I finished treating Phoenix’s wounds once the Daughter relaxed under the effect of the healing mixture of herbs. Then I went looking for Draven. He had to know about this troubling development, and I needed to find out if he’d heard about such powerful connections before.

I found him in his study, warming up by the fire. The room was scorching hot, as usual. I instantly dripped sweat, and my lips dried up. Draven was in his chair, quiet and still, only slightly moving his head, enough for me to see his profile.

I got down to business. “There’s a weird connection between Phoenix and the Daughter.”

Several seconds went by before he nodded. “I suspected something yesterday as you know, but it felt too early to tell. What happened?” he asked.

“If the Daughter gets cut, he gets cut. The Daughter went past the shield and was attacked by a rogue shape-shifter. Phoenix was yards away within the mansion’s protective perimeter, nowhere near her at the time. The shifter cut her back, and an identical wound appeared on Phoenix’s back simultaneously. Anjani got her back to safety, and we’ve already treated their wounds. They’ll both be fine.”

I told the story in one long breath. My nerves were frayed. Not only was my brother’s life somehow linked to a Daughter of Eritopia, but my heart was helplessly thudding in my chest from standing just a couple of feet away from Draven.

“It might have something to do with Phoenix’s sentry abilities,” Draven mused, his index finger pressing against his lips. “He did spend some time with the Daughter in her shell. They most likely shared a profound bond in there, more complex than we’d originally thought.”

“Have you seen that happen before with anyone?”

“No. This is definitely a first. They must have fused somehow on a deeper, primordial level. I’d never considered the possibility before the Daughter passed out yesterday along with Phoenix,” Draven replied.

A minute passed in silence. I stood there, unable to move or utter another word. My mind raced in different directions, from Phoenix to the Daughter to Azazel and back, then to the Druid, the Oracles, and everything else in between. My brain felt like mush, and my legs refused to listen to me. I had every intention of leaving him there on his own, but my body did not compute.

“Thank you for sharing that information, Serena. I’d like to be left alone now,” he added.

It was enough to make me snap.

“What is your problem?” I asked, blood simmering in my temples. “Why are you acting like such a jerk?”

“A jerk?”

It crossed my mind then that maybe he was unfamiliar with that term as an insult.

“Disagreeable,” I replied with the first alternative that popped into my mind.

“I’ve been nothing but courteous,” he replied coldly.

“Oh, really? You’ve been pushing me away and keeping this distance between us, and I don’t understand why. What did I do, Draven? What makes me so unpleasant to be around?”

“You’re mistaken. I just need to be left alone to think,” Draven said.

But I wasn’t buying it. “You’re lying.”

Silence stretched between us. I felt my pulse in my ears. Anger poured through my veins like liquid fire. And yet, all I wanted was to understand why he’d walled himself off like this.

“I’m not lying, Serena.”

“You must think I’m an idiot. If you’ve decided to not be anywhere near me again, just say so. Stop pushing me away like I’m a little girl. I think I deserve a little bit more respect than that.”

“I can’t risk losing you!” His voice thundered through the room.

He stood up to face me, his hands balled into fists at his sides. Tension flexed a muscle in his jaw. I’d finally hit a nerve.

My heart jumped into my throat, and I blinked several times, unable to fully process his words.

“What do you mean?”

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

“I’ve decided to put some distance between the two of us after Vita’s vision of the future,” he answered, his tone soft and low. “We are clearly drawn to each other, Serena, and I’ve yet to fully grasp the meaning of that or the ensuing consequences. But I do know that if nothing else happens between us going forward, Azazel will not be given the chance to come after you to get to me.”

I didn’t say anything. His words paralyzed me, and I waited to regain some kind of sense.

“I can’t bear the thought of you getting hurt. And I can’t lose this fight against Azazel either. Too much hangs in the balance. Eritopia, my world, and my life are at stake here.” His voice shook.

His words tore me apart, but at the same time it gave me the energy I needed to respond.

“You’re a coward,” I replied, unwilling to let him off so easily.

He stilled, as if waiting for me to continue. So, I did—there was plenty more where that came from.

“If you do that, if you push me away, you’re a coward. You’re just giving in to Azazel, letting him win before we even stand up to fight him. You’re conceding before you even throw the first punch. You are a coward, Draven.”

I took a step forward, driven by an unseen force. The pain he’d caused me over the past few hours had been harnessed into a sense of determination that I’d been missing lately. I felt like I was unstoppable, and I had so much more to tell him.