A Blaze of Sun (A Shade of Vampire #5)(12)

He immediately heeded to my command and I could swear that I saw Emilia smirk. I hated how my stomach fluttered at the sight of her. The sight of her was breathtaking. She was even more beautiful in person than she was in my dreams.

Why are you thinking this way, Novak? I grimaced as I approached her. I stood over her kneeling form and watched as she raised her eyes to meet mine.

She flashed a smile at me. “I knew it. You couldn’t let me die.”

I wanted to wipe that self-confident smirk off her face, but I knew it was true. The idea of watching her die didn’t sit well with me. Why? She’s the original vampire’s daughter. She’s most likely made of pure wickedness. Why wouldn’t I want to see her die? Frustrated by my own thoughts, I held her by the jaw and twisted her neck in one powerful motion. I heard her bone crack and I found my gut clutching at the sound. How could she have this effect on me?

I watched her paralyzed body fall to the ground. They were going to drag her into prison before returning her neck into place. Then she would heal and return to consciousness. It usually took a couple of hours before a vampire with a broken neck could come back to their senses.

I found myself watching as they dragged Emilia away from the field.

“Word is that the other squads are also finding it easy to take down the attackers from the other choppers.” Pierre stood beside me, his eyes set on the chopper on the field. “What are we going to do with that?”

I shrugged. “I’m sure we’ll figure something out.” I momentarily glanced at the chopper before turning back to see Emilia’s body being dragged away. There’s just something about her. We have a connection and I can’t deny it. I couldn’t keep my eyes off Emilia until I saw another breathtaking sight coming toward me.

Sofia.

No matter how many times I’d seen her, Sofia still took my breath away and that moment was no exception. The realization relieved me, because despite the connection I felt with Emilia, catching my breath upon seeing Sofia running toward me was enough assurance that the connection I had with my lovely redhead was far greater than the one I had with the intriguing brunette.

Sofia threw herself into my arms and I held on to her tight. “We won, Derek,” she whispered into my ear, her breath hot against my skin.

“Yes…” I nodded before kissing her on the cheek. “We did. We won.” I stated the words without any hint of triumph or pride.

She pulled away from me and looked up at my face. She narrowed her eyes. “You don’t seem happy at all. Why?”

I tried to make sense of what just happened. “I don’t know. I’ve fought many battles before, Sofia. This win seemed too easy. I might sound crazy, but it’s almost as if they wanted us to win this one.”

From the expression on her face, I knew that something was bothering her about the battle too. She began to look around the field. We barely lost any of our men, but we practically annihilated all of those who attacked.

Sofia wet her lips as she once again gazed up at me. “Why on earth would they let us win?”

I shrugged at Sofia, but I couldn’t help but look in the direction where they had dragged Emilia. I have a feeling it has something to do with her.

Chapter 6: Sofia

The romantic setting of the top floor of the Lighthouse was dangerous and I knew it. Surrounded by candlelight and having Derek all to myself, feeling his passionate kisses on my lips and his hands on my body, I knew we were in danger of once again going too far. I couldn’t allow that, because I knew Derek well enough to know that he wouldn’t be able to forgive himself.

So when things were getting heated, I was the one who pulled away. When he gave me a questioning look, I simply smiled and said, “You know why.”

He understood immediately and nodded at me before stealing another peck on the lips.

After making sure that everything was in order after the battle, Derek suggested that we both spend the night at the Lighthouse, something I eagerly agreed to.

The Lighthouse was the only man-made structure outside of the Crimson Fortress. Only recently did anyone aside from me and Vivienne find out that it existed. It served as our escape from the troubles of The Shade. It was where we always went to when we didn’t want to be found. This time, however, there were people who would know how to find us if they wanted to, but it was already a given that if Derek and I decided to spend time at the Lighthouse, it was because we didn’t want to get interrupted. The citizens of The Shade respected that so we were never interrupted when we were there.

“I wish we could get some sort of musical instrument up here,” Derek mused, as he leaned back on the couch and motioned for me to sit on the space beside him and snuggle against him, a request I quickly obliged.

I leaned my head on his shoulder, smiling at his love for music and the skill by which he was able to handle any instrument he got his hands on. “Why not? We could have a guitar up here or even a violin…”

“You like it when I play?”

“I love it when you play.”

He grinned, knowing full well that I meant it and that I wasn’t just trying to flatter him. Of course, he wasn’t exactly the kind who needed to be flattered. “Of course you do. How could you not? I’m amazing.”

I hit him on the face with one of the pillows. “You’re awfully humble.”

“I think it’s the victory getting into my head.”