A Castle of Sand (A Shade of Vampire #3)(56)

Derek nodded. “I’ll go to the port to speak with him. You coming, Sofia?”

He gave me a look that was practically begging me not to go, but I wasn’t going to miss out on seeing Ben. He was still my best friend, someone who mattered dearly to me, so I nodded. “Yes. I’m going.”

Derek didn’t bother to hide the disappointment in his face, but understood me enough to know that he could do little to dissuade me from going.

Once we reached the port, an underwater facility that contained cells where new arrivals were held before they were allowed to enter the island, we were immediately brought to the cell where they were keeping Ben.

The moment we arrived, he stood up from the cot where he’d been seated. His eyes first fell on Derek and I watched him for a trace of the usual hatred he had whenever he looked at the prince of The Shade, but there was none of it. Ben just looked from Derek to me and once his eyes were on me, they stayed there.

Derek stared for a while before shaking his head. “I can’t stand this. I’ll be speaking with you in a while and I expect you to answer all my questions truthfully, but for now, before we get into the nitty-gritty of your sudden appearance here, I’m going to leave Sofia with you. I know that you two will want to spend time alone.”

Ben seemed sincerely grateful. “Thank you.”

Derek just grunted and nodded before leaving us on our own. I knew how Ben’s presence was eating at him. Ben, after all, was the reason I’d decided to leave The Shade before. I couldn’t blame him for being threatened that Ben was back, but I was also peeved. I’d just agreed to marry him. Was that not assurance enough that I was his?

Derek kissed my cheek. “You’ll be alright?” he asked.

I smiled and nodded. “I’ll be fine, Derek. We’ll call if we need anything.”

Derek and Xavier left, shutting the door behind them.

The moment I was finally alone with Ben, all I could think to do was stare at him. It felt like an eternity since I’d last seen him. His blonde hair was now shaved. He looked a lot more buff, stronger, bigger. He also appeared to have matured in likeness. Still, he was just as handsome as I remembered him to be.

It took me a while to finish studying him. When my gaze fell on his blue eyes and saw them moist with tears, I was taken aback. I had no idea what to say to him or even how to conduct myself around him.

“How’ve you been, Ben?” I managed to croak out. I hated the awkwardness we had between us. It was never this way before.

“I’ve been better,” he admitted, his fists clenching as he said the words. “And you? Has he been treating you well?”

“Derek?” Just saying my fiancé’s name put a smile on my face. “I just agreed to marry him. I guess that should answer your question.”

I expected a violent reaction from my best friend, but apart from the spark of surprise in his eyes, he just nodded with resignation and said, “I’m happy for you.”

His reaction was enough for me to realize that something had changed in him and I wondered what could have happened to bring about such a change. “Why are you here, Ben?” So many questions were whirling in my mind regarding his return to The Shade and I had no idea where to begin. “How could you have possibly known how to get here? Ben, please…you can’t give away the location of The Shade to the hunters…”

“I really just wanted to see you, Sofia, find out if you’re alright, if he’s treating you the way you deserve to be treated.” The longing that I saw in his eyes as he stared at me made my heart ache on his behalf. “I missed you so much.”

No matter how much I tried to harden my heart against him, to try and figure out why he was at The Shade out of instinct to protect the man I loved, Ben still mattered too much to me, and I couldn’t help the tear from running down my cheek as my shoulders sagged. “I missed you too, Ben.”

He spread his arms in a welcoming gesture and I quickly responded by running to him for an embrace. I sobbed as I nuzzled my face against his neck. “I thought you’d never be able to forgive me for leaving.”

“I did too,” he admitted, “but you’re Sofia. You’ll always be my Rose Red and I couldn’t bear the idea of always being resentful of you. I realize now that you were right to leave. It seems Derek Novak deserves you far more than I ever will.”

I could sense the sincerity in his words and despite all the qualms I had over his sudden appearance at the island, I could honestly say to myself that I was glad to have Ben back.

CHAPTER 38: DEREK

I was anxiously pacing the floor right outside the cell where I’d left Sofia and Ben.

“You just left them there?” Xavier asked. “Without even bothering to interrogate the lad?”

“Shush,” I snapped at him.

He was my second-in-command when it came to all military matters at The Shade and I was expecting him to question my judgment over why on earth I would leave Ben—an obvious risk to the island—to have a grand reunion with Sofia, who in truth was also a risk to the island. Despite what Xavier might have been thinking, however, I hadn’t gone entirely mad. I still had my protective instincts toward The Shade completely intact. I wanted to listen in on every word coming out of both Sofia and Ben’s mouths. I felt bad not trusting Sofia and eavesdropping on her conversation with her best friend, but I couldn’t help but give in to the temptation to do it.