A Dawn of Strength (A Shade of Vampire #14)(25)

“Forget it,” I said, stamping my foot on the ground. I gripped his arms and glared daggers at him. “You are not putting yourself—or me—through all that again.”

“I could go in with Derek,” Ibrahim said.

I whirled around to face the warlock.

“I’d wait with him and watch closely to see if it’s working,” he continued. “If he starts showing signs of burning, I’ll assume the experiment failed and I’ll drag him straight out before he gets too damaged.”

“It will be okay, Sofia,” Derek said.

I looked reluctantly at my husband.

“Okay,” I scoffed.

After the state I’d just seen him in, even with Ibrahim with him, I didn’t want Derek going within two miles of that damn pit again.

Still, I trusted Ibrahim, and there wasn’t much of an argument against it.

“Okay.” I heaved a sigh. I looked down at my watch. “Then we need to hurry. We’re running out of time.”

Chapter 19: Rose

As I sat with Vivienne, Anna and Ariana in one of the small private rooms, I tried to lose myself in conversation. We all tried. But every word we spoke was just an attempt to distract ourselves. Every sentence sounded forced. None of us could stop thinking about what might be going on outside the Black Heights as we sat here in the quiet of the mountains’ chambers.

I managed to remain seated for a few hours in their company until finally I could bear it no longer. I stood up and stretched my legs, feigning a yawn. I looked down at my aunt leaning back in her chair.

“I’m sure I won’t be able to, but I’m going to try to sleep,” I said. “It will be less painful… and I do still feel pretty sleep-deprived.”

Vivienne looked at me doubtfully. “Where are you going to sleep?”

“I spotted a spare room on the level above us. There might even be a spare mattress up there.”

To my dismay, she stood up and held my hand. “We’ll go together. I’d also like to try and sleep.”

“O-okay,” I said, fighting to hide the disappointment in my voice. Clearly my aunt was already suspicious of my intentions—not that I had any right to blame her for it—so now I had no choice but to play along. I forced a smile. “That will be nice, actually, to have someone else for company.”

We said goodbye to Anna and Ariana before leaving the room. Walking along the corridor toward the flight of stairs that led up to the next floor, I hoped that there was indeed a spare room up there somewhere.

Vivienne slipped an arm around my waist as we climbed the staircase. “I’m proud of you, Rose.”

I winced internally. I wished she would have saved that statement for a later time.

“I’m not sure why,” I muttered.

She raised a brow. “I’m sure most young women your age wouldn’t have managed to survive what you have… at least, not with their mental faculties intact.”

I gave her a funny look. You don’t know they’re still intact, was what I wanted to say. But now wasn't the right time for this joke considering what I was planning.

We reached the upper floor and began to walk along the corridor. We passed locked door after locked door. What was I thinking? Every human on this island was locked within these mountains now. It was unlikely we’d find a spare room without venturing further up. I was about to suggest we keep climbing to the next level when Vivienne pointed to a door at the end of the hallway. It was ajar. We walked up to it and Vivienne knocked. When nobody answered, she cautiously pushed it open.

“It’s empty,” she said, lighting up one of the lanterns fixed to the wall.

I walked inside after her and looked around the room. It was about the same size as the one we’d just left. There was a chair in one corner and three single mattresses spread out on the floor.

“Perfect,” she said, sighing and lowering herself onto one of the mattresses. She patted the one next to her, indicating that I do the same.

I flopped down onto it, spreading out my legs and looking up at the dark stone ceiling. Vivienne did the same, resting her hands over her stomach. Now I just had to hope that Vivienne would eventually grow tired enough to fall asleep.

“Have you and Uncle Xavier decided what you’ll name the baby if it’s a girl?” I asked, running a hand gently against the side of her belly.

She nodded, her face lighting up. “We talked about it on the journey back here. If we have a girl, we both love Aurora.”

“Aurora,” I repeated, listening to the name roll off my tongue. “I love it! And if you have a boy?”

Vivienne smirked. “Xavier and I had a disagreement on that. He likes Leo, while I love Isaac… Which do you prefer?”

“Leo Novak. Isaac Novak. Hmm. I gotta say, I’m leaning toward Xavier’s choice on this. Leo… it’s just such a kickass name.”

She frowned at me in mock disdain. “Well, Anna and Ariana prefer Isaac.”

“Have you asked my dad yet?” I narrowed my eyes on her. “I’ll bet you a hundred dollars he’ll prefer Leo.”

“Then I’ll ask your mother instead.” She winked at me. Then her expression became more serious as she chewed on her lower lip. “Leo. It’s just too fiery. Our son will have Novak blood running through him as it is. The least I can do is give him a name that’s a little more… relaxed.” She paused, letting out a yawn. Her eyelids flickered shut for a few moments before opening again.