A Shade of Blood (A Shade of Vampire #2)(30)

As the glass-covered tube lifted the speedboat up to open seas, I realized that I had to act fast. The moment the boat reached The Shade’s boundaries, I would no longer be under the protection of its darkness; I would be exposed to broad daylight. The longer I stayed close to The Shade, however, the greater the chances that the guards could reel me back to the island.

I did a quick inspection of what I had in the boat with me. All I had was a toolbox, a first-aid kit and a rolled up sheet of canopy used to cover the boat when not in use. That was exactly what I needed. I unrolled the sheet and it became my savior from the sun.

It protected me from the sun’s rays, but not from its sweltering heat. Floating in the middle of the sea with that sheet over me, while the sun’s rays were beating at me, felt a lot like being inside an oven. It was a struggle starting the boat and there were unavoidable times when I happened to move the wrong way and accidentally exposed my flesh to the sun. The way it seemed to burn right through my skin down to my very bones was excruciating.

Rumor was that there was no more painful death than to have a vampire burn under the rays of the sun. I was not sure if that was true. I’d never actually seen a vampire die because of exposure to the sun, but I wasn’t about to put it to the test anytime soon. Besides, the few times I found my flesh exposed to it was painful enough to convince me that the rumor was true.

I eventually had to stop the boat – somewhere in the middle of the Mediterranean – to wait until the sun had set. I couldn’t reach the shore in my condition. I had to wait for dusk. It was only a few hours, but it felt like days, but I had what it took to wait it out.

The sun eventually faded into twilight. I survived. For a moment, thoughts of Sofia flashed through my mind. I could practically feel her blood running through me, still taste her sweet blood on my lips. I wanted her so badly, just thinking about her made me ache, but she was back at the island. I would seek her out eventually and make her mine, but I knew I had to set thoughts of her aside for the time being. What I needed to do was make my way to the one person who had any chance of overpowering my younger brother.

Our father. Gregor Novak.

CHAPTER 22: SOFIA

Standing by my bed, inside my bedroom, thoughts of how much I missed Derek quickly faded away when Ben’s lips parted from mine. The way he looked at me – like I was precious to him – made me forget any doubt I might have had regarding his intentions. We stared at each other for a couple of seconds, both rather shaken by the encounter, until his cheeks began to flush red. I didn’t remember the last time I’d seen Ben blush.

It called my attention to the bruises he got from his fight. I began to wonder how he could kiss me and not ache from the way I accidentally touched the bruise on his cheek and the gash on his side.

Whatever questions I had regarding his physical state, however, were brushed aside when his eyes settled on my lips, which felt a bit swollen after his rather adamant kiss. “Wow, Sofia. You really are Rose Red.”

I found the breathlessness in his voice endearing. It made me feel wanted, desired – something I didn’t remember him ever making me feel before. My hands were still clasping his neck. I leaned my forehead against one of his broad shoulders. Both his hands were on my waist, his thumbs softly brushing over my flat stomach.

“Rose Red?”

“You know… from the fairy tale…” He took a step away from me, one eye winking at me as he made the character reference “Snow White’s sister?”

“Yeah… I know who Rose Red is. How am I Rose Red?”

“Well, isn’t she just like Snow White only with red hair?” He showed me a toothy grin. He took my hand and began caressing my arm with his fingers. “Skin as white as snow…” He then shifted his focus back to my lips, where he planted one soft kiss, smiling while his lips were still pressed against mine. “Lips blood red…”

I never really saw this side of him before. It was a strange sensation having my knees buckle beneath me that way.

“I’m not that white. My lips aren’t that red.”

His strong hands supported my weight. “Sofia, you’re as fair as fair gets, and you should really see your lips after you’ve just been kissed.” He was looking at my mouth as if it were the tastiest treat he’d ever had the pleasure of having.

I couldn’t help but smile. No wonder girls swoon…

“Ben and Sofia sitting in a tree…”

It was almost funny the way Ben’s eyes widened the moment he heard Abby’s high-pitched sing-song voice. Both our gazes quickly shifted toward the door where the five-year-old was standing.

Mischief was written all over her small face as a smug smile lifted the corners of her lips. She was still wearing the denim skirt and pink button-down blouse she went to school in. Her right hand was planted firmly on her hip, while her left arm hung limply on her side, one arm of Colin, her stuffed elephant, clutched in her hand. Her blonde curls swayed from left to right, moving along with her head, which was bobbing from one side to the other as she finished her song: “…K-I-S-S-I-N-G.”

“You runt…” Ben glared at her. “What are you doing here?”

“Oversized meanie…” Abby stuck a tongue out at her older brother. “I came to see Sofia just like I always do when I get back from school,” she responded with all the dignity a girl her age could muster. “What are you doing here, Ben?” Her scowl disappeared and her face fell when she got a better look of his face. Whatever mischief she was about to cause was replaced by horror at what she saw. It looked like she was close to sobbing. “What happened to you, Ben? Why do you keep getting beat up?”