Chapter 18
Chapter Eighteen
Adeline
Sam stands up when he notices me. “You must be freezing,” he says, looking down at my bare feet.
“I can’t stay long. They might wake up.”
“They’re at your place?”
I nod.
“I was talking to my boss. We might be able to do something to get rid of your mark.”
“You told your boss about them?”
“If you sit down, I will explain, Addie,” he says, and I sit down.
Sam looks around nervously. “I don’t work for no tech company, Addie. Your father didn’t work for one either.”
My father? Sam has never met my father, so why does he mention him?
“My father? What’s he got to do with any of this?”
“Your father worked with mine. I knew your dad. He was a good man. He was also a hunter like me.”
“A hunter?”
“Yes, we are raised to hunt down the likes of them. Usually, the oldest of each generation takes over from their parents when they turn eighteen. Your father would have introduced you to our world when you were old enough like my father did.”
“Wait, that makes no sense, Sam. My dad died in a freak accident.”
“A freak accident where they never found the body?” he says, making me think.
So much didn’t make sense about his death, but I couldn’t believe he would keep this from us.
“He was killed by a vampire, Addie,” he says, making my head snap toward him.
“You wanted to know why I came back. It was because of your bosses. I have been back for a while. We have been trying to track them for months. This is the first time they have stayed this long, so I was sent back to see why. Then I noticed you started working for them.”
“Wait, why are you tracking them?”
“We like to keep tabs on them, make sure they don’t slip up. If they do, we step in. As long as they control themselves, we usually don’t seek them out and leave them be. Well, until I found out you were their mate.”
“So, you know what mates are?”
Sam nods, cocking his head to the side, looking at my neck. I pull my hair forward, covering it, not liking how he stares at it.
He drops down in front of me, placing his hands on my thighs. “I can help you be free of them, Addie, before your bond kicks in. As long as Cyrus hasn’t marked you, the bond can be reversed.”
“How?” I ask. None of this really makes sense.
“A witch gave me this. We have a few that work for us. You only have to drink it,” he says, producing a small vial from his pocket. He hands it to me; the yellow liquid inside is shimmering.
“What is it?”
“Not sure exactly, but it worked before, the witch said. My boss also confirmed it works. You drink that, then the bond breaks, and you’re free to be with me. They will leave you alone after that,” he says, leaning forward while I examine the vial.
My eyes snap to his, and I pull back, realizing he is going to kiss me.
“Eli will feel it if you kiss me, Sam,” I tell him.
“Let him. I want you, Addie. I always have wanted you. We can be together, Addie. I love you,” he whispers before grabbing the back of my neck with his hand.
His lips crash down on mine, soft yet demanding, as I feel his tongue move between my parted lips. I kiss him back, yet I don’t feel the same sort of feeling I get when I am near Eli and Cyrus. I love Sam, always have, but now with them in the picture, this feels different.
Sam deepens the kiss, his other hand going to my lower back as he pulls me up from the bench and closer to him.
I suddenly hear a loud growl, making me jump, and I pull away from him. Eli is leaning against the railing, watching us. Sam, however, isn’t afraid of him, which I find odd because I am terrified of the look on Eli’s face.
“Addie, come here,” Eli growls.
I do what he says, worried he will hurt him, when Sam grabs my hand.
“You don’t have to go with him, Addie,” Sam says, looking down at me.
He takes the vial from my hand and holds it up. Eli’s eyes flick to it before I hear a thunderous noise erupt from his chest, making my blood run cold. Sam passes the vial back to me.
Eli lunges at him, grabbing him by his shirt and slamming him down on the concrete. I scream, rushing over, only to be stopped when arms snake around my waist, yanking me away from them.
Looking over my shoulder, I see Cyrus has grabbed me.
“Eli, don’t hurt him, please!” I cry, and he growls.
“He can’t, even if he wants to, Addie. He kills me, and he will have the entire organization after them. Isn’t that right, Eli Colten?” Sam taunts him.
Eli stops, letting his fist drop and slamming him to the ground. He stalks toward me before grabbing the vial from my hand and emptying the contents on the ground. Sam sits up, a devious smile on his lips. Cyrus’s breath on my neck makes me shiver, and his arm around my waist tightens.
“Take her home,” Eli tells Cyrus, and I feel myself get pulled away.
“No, wait,” Cyrus growls behind me, his breath on my neck giving me goosebumps.
“No more, Addie. You fight us on this, I will let Eli kill him,” Cyrus says.
I give Sam one more panicked look.
“Go, Addie. Don’t worry, you will see me again,” Sam says before his eyes dart toward Eli when he takes a step closer to him.
I suddenly feel hands grab me, a rush of air, and the feeling of moving fast as air whips around me, stinging my skin.
My stomach drops when I find myself in my room in a matter of seconds.
Cyrus places me on my feet, and I am hit with vertigo, making me sway.
Cyrus steadies me while my vision regains focus.
I clutch onto his arm, waiting for the room to settle as it spins violently.
My mother walks out of her room, leaning in the doorway with a worried look on her face.
I then hear the front door shut a little too loudly, Eli coming up the steps, and my mother jumping as he approaches her. He has a murderous look on his face.
“Is everything alright? Addie, what’s happened?” my mother asks, looking between Cyrus and Eli nervously.
Cyrus walks over to her, grabbing her face. My mother’s face goes slack as she stares at him, her eyes glazing over.
“Leave her alone,” I tell him, staggering toward my bedroom door. I feel like I am walking on the moon, the floor moving with each step.
“Nothing is going on. Go to bed, Debbie, and forget this encounter,” Cyrus says before letting her go.
She turns as if on auto pilot, walking back to her room.
“Mom!” I call to her, but she doesn’t even turn, just walks into her room and closes the door.
“What did you do to her?” I demand.
Cyrus turns on his heel, glaring at me, and I take a step back at the demonic look on his face. Eli growls, stepping into the room before shutting the door. My heart rate picks up, and the back of my knees hits the bed, forcing me to drop into the bed.
“I can’t believe you would still go to him, even after knowing you are marked by me!” Eli bellows.
Goosebumps rise on my skin, my hair standing on end. “You can’t just stop me from talking to my friends. You don’t get to decide that for me.”
“He isn’t a friend, Addie. You know that. We are leaving tomorrow for Soya, and you will be coming with us,” Eli says, stepping forward and gripping my arm.
“Eli, let her go,” Cyrus says to him.
“She fucking kissed him!”
“I know, Eli. I was there. Now, let her go,” Cyrus warns him.
Eli lets me go, shoving me back on the bed. I get up, heading for the door to leave and check on my mother.
“You are not leaving this goddamn room. Now sit the fuck down, Adeline, or we will leave now,” Eli growls, jerking me back.
“I am not staying here while you are acting like that, and I am not going to fucking Soya!” I scream, sick of telling them I am not leaving. I shake his arm off, walking to the door.
“I will help your sister, erase everything, give her a clean slate,” Cyrus says, making me stop.
“How?”
“Her records are easy for us to have deleted, and I can compel her like I just did to your mother. She will never do drugs again. Maya can have her mother back, and you can feel guilt-free about leaving your mother,” Cyrus says behind me.
I feel his hand go to my hip as he tugs my back against his chest.
“I will help your sister, but you come with us, and you stop fighting against the mate bond,” he whispers below my ear. I shiver when his breath moves across my neck.
I shake my head, not wanting to agree.
“Maya could have her mother back, Addie. Your mother will have her daughter and you your sister.”
“But I will be gone,” I whisper.
“They can visit, but yes, you won’t be coming back here for a while,” Cyrus says, his hand moving over my stomach.
“You would be happy with us, Addie. We would be yours and you ours,” he says before kissing my jaw, his hand moving underneath my shirt. Sparks move over my skin, warming me wherever he touches.
“Do you want to be ours, Addie?” he asks, kissing my neck, and I lean back into him, loving the feel of his hands over my skin, the tingles rushing south, making my core pulsate.
“Say yes, Addie,” Cyrus growls, his hand slipping into my pants before cupping my pussy. His hands rub over my slit, his fingers slick with my arousal.
“Give in to us, my love,” he whispers, running his nose along my neck to my jaw. He kisses Eli’s mark, and I shiver. His fangs press against my neck, a strange fogginess slipping over me, making me feel light and airy.
“Ada, I can’t wake grandma,” Maya’s voice sounds on the other side of the door with a soft knocking, bringing me out of my fog bubble.
Cyrus’s hand slips out of my pants, and I walk to the door. Opening the door, I find Maya with her unicorn plushie tucked under her arm, her hair all messy, wearing her matching unicorn pajamas. Scooping her up, I walk toward her room, placing her back in bed.
“Grandma is just sleeping. She is tired,” I tell her, tucking the blanket back in around her.
When I go to leave Maya, a soft little voice reaches my ears.
“You sleep with me, Aunty Ada?” she asks, shuffling over in her single bed.
I walk to the bedroom door, flicking the light switch off before turning back and climbing in with Maya. Her little arm drapes over my neck as she snuggles closer.
“Ada?”
“Yes, Maya?”
“Grandma will be sad when you go, and so will mommy.”
“Were you listening on the other side of the door? You know what grandma says about eavesdropping,” I tell her, and she goes quiet.
“Can Mr. Cyrus really fix mommy?” Maya asks. Her curls tickle my cheek as she snuggles closer.
“I don’t know, Maya,” I whisper, unsure if he can just magically cure addiction away. It kind of seems unrealistic to think someone can possibly erase years of drug abuse.
“Mr. Cyrus will try?” asks Maya, and I roll over to face her, brushing her hair from her face.
“He will if I leave with them. Means I won’t live here anymore,” I tell her, and I watch her eyebrows furrow before she looks up at me.
“But I will see you every day?” she asks, and my eyes fill with tears.
I have raised her for four years alongside my mother; she is more mine than my sister’s, but at the end of the day, she has never been mine to begin with.
But could I walk away from her? Taking her with me would kill my mother.
She has endured enough; I can’t take the only thing making her hold on away from her.
“No, but you would be able to ring me and maybe visit, and I might be able to visit,” I tell her, wondering who she will choose, even though I have now made up my mind. Taylor is my sister, her mother. Even if it kills me, you make sacrifices for family. Family always comes first.
“I will miss you when you go,” Maya whispers, and I nod, swallowing the lump that’s formed in my throat before answering.
“I will miss you, too.”