A Castle of Sand (A Shade of Vampire #3)(78)

I found myself wondering where my father was. Does he know that Lucas is gone? That we’re the only two Novaks left? I held back the tears. I wasn’t about to break down. Not in front of all these hunters.

Death and darkness surrounded us and it felt like there was more of it to come.

My arm tightened around Sofia, who gently whimpered at the motion as she snuggled closer to me, trying to sleep her heartbreak away. I knew she was hurting. I knew how important Ben was to her.

“So you’re Derek Novak.” The girl with blue-streaked hair, sitting next to Aiden, had been glaring daggers at me ever since she had laid eyes on me. “Ben’s dead because of you?”

I narrowed my eyes at her, trying to make sense of her twisted logic. “How is his death my fault?”

She shrugged one shoulder. “Your brother killed him.”

“I’m not my brother. Just in case you didn’t notice, he’s dead right along with every other person you murdered back there.” The discourse we were having made it brilliantly clear that I wasn’t going to get along with this particular hunter. From the way she was shooting glares from me to Sofia, it seemed she wasn’t much of a fan of the girl I loved either.

“What did you do to her?” It was Aiden who spoke up this time. “Does she really believe that she’s in love with you?”

“Why don’t you ask her that question yourself when she wakes up? If you think I’ve somehow brainwashed her, you’re wrong. I truly love your daughter.”

The face darkened. It looked as if he was debating within himself whether or not he should kill me while Sofia was asleep. I wouldn’t have been surprised if he did exactly that.

“I don’t trust you,” he eventually spoke up.

“The feeling is mutual, sir.”

“My daughter is the only reason you’re still alive, Derek. I can’t promise that I’ll be able to protect you from the other hunters once we arrive at our destination.”

I stared right at him, making it a point to look straight into his eyes. No matter how much mistrust there was between us, he was still Sofia’s father and for that reason alone, he deserved my respect. “I realize that.”

“And yet you still came with us?”

I nodded. “I can’t leave Sofia. Not after everything that happened at The Oasis. I was walking right to my death when I went there to get her. What difference does it make now?”

He eyed me warily, hatred one of the many emotions being channelled by his cold glare, but there was also one other emotion that wasn’t there before. Respect. The rest of the ride was spent in silence, with me getting rather accustomed to the nasty stares I was still receiving.

Finally, Aiden and the blue-haired huntress started fidgeting in their seats and stretching their necks. I peeked outside the window and saw a long runway strip.

“Derek?” Sofia blinked her eyes several times, before full wakefulness came upon her. “Ben?”

I shook my head sadly. Tears once again moistened her eyes, but this time, none of them spilled over. She held back the tears and nodded in acceptance even as she gulped down the pain. This was her life now. A life surrounded by warring factions of vampire covens and hunters. Ben wasn’t the first person she’d lost since getting caught up in this world I lived in, and he definitely wasn’t going to be the last.

I could see her disheartenment, and I found myself fighting against the idea that I would lose her to her own jadedness. I wanted to preserve her, keep her innocent.

“What’s on your mind, Sofia?” I found myself asking.

Her hand caught mine, gripping tightly, before looking me straight in the eye. “I wouldn’t know what to do if I ever lost you.”

CHAPTER 57: SOFIA

After the chopper landed on the runway, both Derek and I were given a set of clothes we could change into before we were ushered into the private jet, a clear indication of the kind of affluence, power and wealth the hunters had. We made ourselves comfortable inside.

I could tell that something was bothering Derek as he sat on the seat next to mine. It was easy to see from the listlessness of his blue eyes and the many times I noticed him swallow hard.

I grabbed hold of his wrist and looked questioningly. He gave me a quick glance and I could swear I saw his lips quiver. He wiggled my hand away and shook his head. “I’m fine.”

You’re headed for hunter headquarters. How could you be fine? I knew better than to force information out of him when he was acting all broody and intense so I just nodded and kissed his cheek. The moment I did, I could sense him tense and I realized exactly what was bothering him. He was craving my blood. Of course. He hadn’t had any blood since I had fed him back at level seven.

I wondered if there was anything I could do to divert his attention toward something else and I remembered by encounter with Claudia back at The Oasis. The fact that she was seated somewhere inside the jet was unsettling.

“Back at The Oasis,” I spoke up, careful not to touch Derek in any way, wondering how we were ever going to last as a couple if we couldn’t even make physical contact without him wanting to sink his teeth into me whenever he felt hungry. “I think Claudia tried to turn me.”

His eyes widened. “She did what?”

“She told me that it was her gift for me. She bit into my neck, but Ben came to shoot her and she attacked him…”