Tall, Dark & Lonely (Pyte/Sentinel #1)(60)

“Please, baby, let go!” Madison was whimpering.

Ephraim pulled harder on her arm. He was going to kill her. He brushed his free hand down her cheeks before dropping his hand away.

It hurt so much. If felt like her arm was stuck in a powerful vacuum with teeth and she couldn’t pull away. She was starting to feel light headed. She closed her eyes, waiting for the darkness to come. She heard a click and opened her eyes.

Ephraim held his gun against his chest. He squeezed his eyes shut before he pulled the trigger. The bullet pierced his skin and bone like a hot knife through butter, making a path through his heart until it slammed into his spine. His body slammed violently against the tub. Her arm fell away and she instinctively moved to cover her ears as Chris dragged her limp body out of the tub seconds before a river of blood would have soaked her pants.

Chapter 15

“Wakey, wakey,” Chris’s taunting voice said.

Ephraim opened his eyes and swore. Chris stood at the end of his bed, holding his gun.

“Put that down before you hurt yourself.”

“Sure thing. As soon as I know you won’t attack Madison again I’ll just go ahead and do that.”

His head shot off the pillow. He tried to sit up, but was pulled short by his arms. “What the hell?” Both wrists were handcuffed to the iron frame of the bed. Four pairs of cuffs attached to each hand. “A little over kill, don't you think?” He looked pointedly at the cuffs.

“Oh, I would say that anyone that could shoot themselves in the heart and fully recover two hours later should be tied to the bed with as many handcuffs as we could find.”

“Where’s Madison? Is she okay?”

“You mean after she passed out from the shock of you shooting yourself and of course let’s not forget the blood loss? Yeah, she’s peachy.”

“Chris, I’m not in the mood for this shit, tell me where she is.”

“You’re no fun.” He gestured towards the front of the house. “After the gun went off, grandma came running. Thankfully Madison convinced her that the gun you gave her for safety accidentally went off.” He cocked his head to the side. “By the way you’re in deep shit with Mrs. Buckman for giving Madison a gun.”

“That’s the least of my worries right now, wouldn't you say?”

“True, anyway Mrs. Buckman, or Grandma as I’m allowed to call her,” he grinned, “dragged Madison downstairs for a surprise birthday dinner. But don’t worry I stayed and mended you to health when Grandma wouldn’t take no for an answer from Madison. We told her I was upset from my mom abandoning me and all that jazz.”

“So, she’s okay?”

“Yup.”

“Your mom left you?”

“Yup.”

“What a bitch.” Ephraim managed to pull himself up a little on the pillows.

“That she is, but not to worry, Madison is taking over.”

“God help us,” Ephraim muttered.

Chris placed the gun in the top drawer of the bureau. “She thinks you forgot her birthday you know.”

“Fuck, I didn’t forget her birthday.”

“I know.”

His eyes shot to Chris. “Wait, how do you know?”

Chris rolled his eyes as if it should be very obvious. “I found the boxes when I was taking your clothes off.”

Ephraim looked down at his body and for the first time noticed that he was clean and naked. “You cleaned me?”

“Hell no!” Chris said, disgusted. “Madison snuck back up to do that. Then she helped me put you in bed.”

“She didn’t see the boxes, did she?”

“No, I put them under your pillow before she turned around.”

“Good, thank you,” he said relieved. “You think you could uncuff me now?”

“Sorry, man, I have orders not to do that. Madison said she would bring me a huge slice of cake if I left you cuffed.”

“You’re leaving me like this for cake?” he asked dumbfounded that cake held that kind of power over the boy. He wondered if it was like bloodlust.

“Well, that and you are a bloodsucker.”

“Shit. Did Madison explain it to you?”

He nodded. “Pretty much. I got the basics down. I’m to keep my mouth shut. Vampires really exist. You’re a Pyte, which I don’t completely understand what the hell that is except you can go out into the sun and all that shit.”

“Anyone ever tell you that you swear too much?”

He pondered that question. “I believe it may have been mentioned a time or two.”

“What is it you want to know?”

“You’re going to answer my questions?” he sounded surprised.

“In exchange that you keep what I tell you between the three of us.”

“I will. I promise!”

“Okay then, ask away.” He laid back and tried to get comfortable.

“Okay, um how old are you?”

“Two-hundred and six years old.”

Chris’s eyes shot up. “Little old to be dating a twenty-four year old wouldn’t you say?”

“Chris.” That one word held a world of warning.

Chris put his hands in surrender. “Relax big guy, I’m just saying.”