A Trail of Echoes (A Shade of Vampire #18)(31)

I wasn’t sure that I would ever meet another guy like Benjamin Novak. I wasn’t sure there was another guy like him.

He’d told me that we could still stay in touch, but of course it wouldn’t be the same. Being so far apart… we would drift apart eventually. No doubt he would find someone else. Maybe I would too.

I just wished somehow we could stay together, even though I knew that it was impossible if I wanted to see my family again. My family who so desperately needed me.

Still, I found myself voicing my impossible fantasy. “I wish we didn’t have to part,” I whispered.

He reached for my face and tilted it upward, so that he could look me in the eyes. His green gaze fixed on me. He ran his tongue over his lips, which parted slightly, as if he were about to answer. Then he dipped his head and claimed my lips in a slow, passionate kiss.

“I don’t know what the future holds for either of us, River,” he said softly. Lifting his face, he looked down on me like I was the most precious thing in the world. “I’m just grateful that, tonight, I have you.”

Chapter 21: Ben

Thankfully, we got through the hurricane without too much damage to the submarine. After that, the rest of the journey flew by. I kept expecting another obstacle to derail us, but no. We passed the rest of the way smoothly. So smoothly that I was almost suspicious.

I began to feel more and more nervous as we neared the boundary of The Shade. As we reached within several dozen miles, my throat was tight. The night I had murdered Yasmine replayed in my mind, every horrifying detail. I tried to shove the memory out of my mind.

Nothing like that is going to happen this time. I will have River’s blood, and I’ll stay by the boundary.

As we were closing the distance, I noticed something strange. Five huge gray vessels, evenly spaced around the island.

What are they?

They certainly didn’t belong to The Shade. And if they weren’t The Shade’s ships, whom else could they belong to other than… the hunters?

How would they know The Shade’s location?

I sped up the submarine, pushing aside thoughts of the ships as I focused on reaching the boundary.

I raised the top half of the submarine from the water just as we were about to pass through. River stared as what had previously been an expanse of ocean turned into a view of a magnificent dark island as the first half of the submarine entered within the boundary. Part of me was grateful that we had even managed to enter inside. I was worried that something might’ve caused the spell to wear off and I wouldn’t be allowed to enter.

Even the merfolk in the back seemed to sense that we were entering someplace new, since I felt and heard movement near the back of the submarine as the rest of the vessel passed through the boundary.

Now fully inside, I scanned the length of the shoreline anxiously. Although a part of me was yearning to see my friends and family again, I just was not ready for it yet. I was glad that I couldn’t spot anyone on the beach, nor by the Port.

River picked up the container of her blood that she had prepared for me earlier and slipped it into the compartment next to my seat.

“Are you sure that’s enough for you?” she asked, eyeing the container nervously.

I looked down at it. “This’ll be okay. I won’t be hanging around long here anyway.”

I was actually surprised by how much blood she’d managed to draw in a short time. Clearly she didn’t want a repeat of what had happened in the Egyptian guesthouse.

My heart was pounding by the time we reached the jetty. Taking River’s hand, as well as the container of blood, I stopped by the ladder beneath the hatch. I gathered her in my arms and pressed my lips against her neck, drawing in her scent and then kissing her deeply.

Her eyes were glassy as she looked up at me. “I can’t believe we’re here,” she said. “Thank you so much.”

She pulled my neck further down and pressed her mouth against mine again.

I held her head in my hands. “I’ll see you once more before I leave. Just come to the Port and wave to me—I’ll be watching for you. But until then, do you know exactly what to do?” Although we’d already discussed it, I wanted to be sure that she was comfortable.

“Yes,” she said. “I need to ask the first person I come across to take me to your parents—Derek and Sofia Novak. I need to say that I’m your friend, and you have sent me here. I need to tell them that you’re okay, and ask them to take me to see the witches to help me find a cure.”

She looked nervous, even though I had assured her everyone on the island would treat her well. Of course, having told her that this island was packed full of strange supernatural creatures she hadn’t come across before—like werewolves and ogres—I couldn’t expect her to feel anything but nervous.

She climbed up through the hatch, and closed it behind her. I headed back to the control room and watched as she made her way along the jetty. She entered the clearing, then disappeared into the woods.

I just hoped that, for the sake of her nerves, Brett wouldn’t be the first person she came across.

Chapter 22: River

I stared around at the dark island in wonder. I could still hardly believe that I was here. The Shade. A mystical island filled with supernaturals, an island I hadn’t known even existed until a short while ago.