Vampire Blood (Vampire Bite #2)

Chapter Twelve

Lucas

I woke with a start, the warmth of Annika beside me gone. The bed was cool, the space where she had slept barely disturbed. A shiver ran down my spine. I didn’t think, didn’t hesitate. I threw the blanket aside and rushed to the door.

Annika?

The weight of her absence pressed against me. I wasn’t sure what made me go outside. Maybe it was the instinct to search, to find her before my mind could spiral further. Maybe I just needed to move. I shoved the door open and stepped into the cool morning air. I crossed the yard, searching the familiar grounds for any sign of her.

“Lucas.”

I froze. The voice cut through the quiet, and I spun around to find Callum standing near the edge of the yard.

“She’s not in the house,” I said, the words rough, as if I hadn’t expected anyone else to speak.

Callum didn’t seem surprised. “I saw her. She’s with Kael. By the old well.”

A chill washed over me, something dark and uneasy coiling in my gut.

Kael.

I’d been wary of him from the start, but hearing he was with Annika now...

Without thinking, I started toward the well.

Callum’s voice stopped me. “She’s not a child, Lucas. She knows what she’s doing.”

I clenched my fists, frustration bubbling inside me. “She’s with him—alone.”

Callum stepped closer, his eyes hard. “Kael’s not the one you need to worry about.”

I didn’t look back at Callum, even as I heard his steps trailing behind me.

I just had to get to her.

I reached the old well, my boots crunching against the gravel path, the sound louder than it should have been in the quiet morning. My heart thudded in my chest, a mix of concern and... something else. Something darker.

There they were, standing just a few feet away, barely visible through the brush. Annika and Kael.

They were talking, sitting close… too close.

She was mine, wasn’t she? The thought gnawed at me, the jealousy settling in my bones.

Kael, as always, looked so calm, so unbothered. He was saying something, his hand gesturing to the trees in a way that looked almost playful. But his eyes, those eyes... I couldn’t stop staring. They were too calculated, too sharp, like he was constantly sizing up the world. And in that moment, it felt like he was sizing up Annika too.

I clenched my jaw, my gaze narrowing. He was too damn close.

I didn’t trust him. Not even after everything. Not after he’d come through for us, not after he’d infiltrated the camp. There was something about him that rubbed me the wrong way. Something I couldn’t put into words.

I stayed there, hidden in the shadows, watching them. I told myself I wasn’t going to make a scene. Annika wouldn’t want me to. She’d be angry if I stormed over there, if I let jealousy get the better of me.

But the feeling was still there, gnawing at me, wrapping around my chest tighter with every second that passed. I hated how my emotions were so tangled, so raw.

I didn’t want to be this person, the one who couldn’t control himself, the one who acted on instinct without thinking of the consequences. Annika didn’t deserve that. She didn’t deserve me making things harder for her, making her feel suffocated.

So I stayed back, watching them. Kael, ever the calm one, gesturing with his hands, saying something to her. And Annika, with that smile of hers that always seemed to melt my insides.

I turned away slightly, leaning back against the trunk of a nearby tree, trying to get my bearings. My thoughts were scattered, my emotions all over the place.

That’s when I heard it.

“Lucas.” Callum had followed me. He sighed, shaking his head. “You’re worried, but you don’t need to be.”

I breathed heavily, wordlessly.

He met my eyes, his expression serious, not a hint of doubt in his voice. “Annika loves you. You know that, right?”

I felt my breath catch in my throat. The words, so simple, so raw, hit me in a way I didn’t expect. I had spent so long convincing myself that I wasn’t good enough for her, that she deserved better than someone like me. And yet, Callum was looking at me like he was certain of something I wasn’t.

“I—” I couldn’t finish the thought. I wasn’t sure I even knew how to respond.

“Listen, you’ve fought for her,” Callum continued, his voice softer now. “And you’ll keep fighting. But you can’t let doubt take over. She’s not going anywhere. She’s with you, and she always will be.”

I looked back at Annika. She was still talking to Kael, but now, it felt different. Her posture, the way she tilted her head, the way she looked at him—everything felt like a warning. Something that had been creeping at the edge of my thoughts, something I hadn’t wanted to admit.

But Callum’s words resonated in a way that made it impossible to ignore.

I didn’t want to be afraid of losing her. I didn’t want to doubt what we had, what we’d fought for.

Still, it was hard to shake the fear that something might slip through my fingers, that despite everything, I wasn’t enough for her.

But Callum was right.

Annika loved me. And that was something I needed to remember—especially now.

Callum’s words were still echoing in my mind as I turned away from the trees and started walking back toward the town. I didn’t have the luxury of lingering on feelings, not now, not with everything that was at stake. But a part of me, the part I usually kept buried, wanted to believe him.

I couldn’t be weak. I couldn’t be the kind of man who let his doubts control him. Annika deserved better than that, better than me faltering when I was supposed to be strong for her.

We needed to take action. And for that, I needed information. Information that could only come from one person, the one I hated to deal with, the one who was locked beneath the earth in a cell meant for monsters.

“Callum,” I said, not looking back as I walked, my steps sure and purposeful. “We’re going back to the cell. I need answers. We’re not getting any closer to finding Aurelius or dealing with the rogue shifters without more help.”

Callum’s boots scuffed the dirt behind me as he caught up. “You sure about this?” he asked. “He’s not going to give you anything easily. And he’s still... dangerous.”

“I don’t care,” I muttered, my hand instinctively tightening around the hilt of the dagger at my side. “I’m not sitting around waiting for them to make the next move. We need to know what the other vampire clans are up to. Damien might be the only one who can tell us. I’ll get the information from him, one way or another.”

Callum didn’t respond right away, but I could feel his eyes on the back of my neck. He knew how much I hated dealing with Damien, how much I wanted to avoid him altogether. But sometimes, you had to put your emotions aside for the greater good.

“We’ll do it together,” Callum finally said. “But if he tries anything—”

“I know,” I snapped, cutting him off. “We handle it. We don’t back down.”

The tension felt heavier now, pressing down on me as we neared the place where I’d locked away my uncle. The air felt thicker here, as if even the earth itself could sense the weight of what was about to happen.

It didn’t matter. I was prepared for whatever came next. The answers we needed were within that damned cell, and I wasn’t leaving without them.

I didn’t look at Callum as I gestured for him to open the door. He did so without question, the heavy metal creaking under the strain.

“Damien,” I said, my voice steady, though my mind was anything but. “I’m here for answers. And you’re going to give them to me. Now.”

The silence from within was suffocating, but I didn’t flinch. I knew that man too well. He’d try to make me doubt myself, try to twist the truth. But I wouldn’t let him. Not this time.

“I’m listening,” I said, pushing further into the darkness.

Damien’s chuckle echoed from the darkness of the cell, the sound like nails scraping against a blackboard. I could feel his eyes on me, even though I couldn’t see them clearly through the bars. His presence, like always, was suffocating, filling the space with a sense of malice and old grudges.

“How many times are we going to do this dance?” he asked with contempt, as if I were wasting his time.

I stood there, unmoving, my eyes adjusting to the dim light in the chamber. Callum was by my side, silent as always. His presence was a steady reminder that I wasn’t alone in this. Still, this confrontation was mine to handle.

“I’m not here for games, Damien,” I said in an ice-cold voice. “The rogue clans, Aurelius, the shifters—you know something. I’m not leaving here until I get some answers.”

Damien’s eyes narrowed, but the mockery didn’t vanish. “Answers? You think I care about your little war, your human struggles? I have nothing to offer you.”

I leaned in closer, my fists tightening on the cold iron bars, my voice low but forceful. “You do have something to offer, Damien. Information. And if you don’t give it to me, I’ll take you to the rogue vampires myself and leave you on their doorstep wrapped up like a fucking Christmas present.”

His expression faltered for just a moment, just long enough for me to know I had hit a nerve. He quickly masked it, but the damage was done. I had him on edge.

“Do you really think I’m afraid of you, Lucas?” His smile twisted into something cruel. “You’re no threat. Not to me. Not to anyone.”

I wasn’t interested in playing his game anymore. “Where are they hiding him?” I demanded, cutting through his words. “Aurelius. You know something, and you’re going to tell me.”

Damien let out a slow, deliberate sigh as if he were humoring a child. “You don’t even know what you’re up against, do you? Aurelius isn’t some lowborn vampire, Lucas. He’s an ancient, a relic from a time before your precious town ever existed.”

I stepped closer, anger bubbling beneath my skin. “What do you mean? Tell me more.”

Damien shifted in his cell, his eyes glinting with something dangerous. “You want to know? Fine. Aurelius was sealed away long ago, but he’s not just some forgotten corpse. His power is tied to more than just blood. It’s bound to the earth itself, to an ancient place. The shifters have been trying to unlock that power, to wake him from his prison for a long time.”

“The place,” I said, my voice sharp. “Where is it?”

Damien’s eyes flickered with something like hesitation, but then he gave a small, almost imperceptible smile. “Now that’s the question, isn’t it? It’s not something you can just stumble upon, Lucas. The power of Aurelius is tied to an old site, hidden deep in the mountains. Few even know of its existence. But you—”

“Where?” I interrupted, pressing him harder. I needed him to give me something concrete.

Damien’s lips curled upward as if he enjoyed this more than he should have. “The old temple. The one buried beneath the earth, beneath the ruins of the city. The one no one remembers. My guess is that’s where they’ll attempt to awaken him.”

The words hit me like a hammer. My heart skipped a beat, the weight of what Damien was saying crashing down on me. The temple. The ruins. I had heard whispers, rumors from the older vampires, but I had never paid attention. No one had.

And now I knew why.

“Who is their leader?” I demanded to know.

Damien didn’t respond immediately. I saw him weigh the cost of giving up more, and I could almost feel the calculations running through his mind. But finally, he shrugged, a smug smile on his face. “You’re too young, too inexperienced to know him, to fight him.”

I wasn’t about to let him win this. Not now. Not after everything that had happened.

I turned to Callum, who had been standing in silence beside me, taking in everything. “We need to go there,” I said, my mind already working through the steps. “Now.”

Callum gave me a look that was half concern, half disbelief. “You sure about this? After all this? Going straight into their hands…”

“I don’t have a choice,” I said, the determination hardening my resolve.

I didn’t have time to explain. I was already walking away, moving toward the exit of the cell, my heart pounding. Every instinct in me screamed that this was the right choice, even if it meant stepping into a trap.