LAST SUMMER
Ms. Jackson elected to take on their pig-in-a-service-animal-vest form for the walk from the parking garage to Rory’s condo, but we didn’t run into anyone else on the way.
In addition to his backpack, Arch carried the two large potted plants Pia needed for her magic, which I appreciated—not that I told him—because my strength and stamina were for shit right now.
When we got to Rory’s door, I took out my keyring and unlocked it. Arch made a scoffing noise. “You have a key, and you want me to believe you’re not sleeping with him?”
I opened the door and ushered Pia and Ms. Jackson inside. “This again? Rory and I are friends. Friends have keys to each other’s places, but I guess you wouldn’t know because you’ve obviously never had a friend before!”
Leaving the door open behind me, I marched into the condo. Pia’s stricken face was the first indication that I might have gone a little too far with my comment. I glanced back at Arch. His face was blank, but he was looking at the floor, and he hadn’t moved from just outside the door. Fuck.
I dropped my backpack on the couch and went back to Arch. “I’m sorry. That was a shitty thing to say.”
He shrugged but didn’t meet my eyes. “It’s not shitty if it’s true.
My dad wouldn’t let me have any friends who weren’t Hunters, but then he said I couldn’t be friends with any Hunter kids because they’d end up reporting to me when we worked together in the future.
” He spread out his hands in a ta-da gesture.
“Therefore, no friends.” He shouldered past me and asked Pia where she wanted her plants.
Well, fuck. Why couldn’t he stay a one-dimensional asshole so I could keep disliking him?
The rest of the evening was full of icy silence between me and Arch, both of us only speaking to Pia and Ms. Jackson.
We filled the time with more episodes of Supernatural until Pia was tired enough to sleep.
Arch and I did agree that she and Ms. Jackson should get Rory’s bed, but then he and I had a whispered argument over who would get the sofa.
Finally I plopped down in the armchair, put my feet on the coffee table, and crossed my arms. With a huge sigh, Arch pulled one of the throw blankets off the back of the couch and tossed it in my face.
Because I still felt bad about my comment regarding his lack of friends, I pretended he’d done it accidentally.
I should’ve expected the nightmare. It was only the second night since my injury after all.
In my dream, the male vampire snatched me and Ellis, but this time I knew what was about to happen, so I fought even harder.
Ellis kept saying my name, which was a little distracting.
I needed to focus so I’d be prepared for what came next.
Which was why, when the female vampire grabbed my arm, I didn’t hesitate to punch her.
The pain in my knuckles woke me up in time to see Arch stagger back and fall onto the couch, a hand clapped to one side of his face.
“Shit!” Sitting up in the chair, I glanced down at my hand, which was starting to swell, but the skin wasn’t broken. “Fuck, I’m sorry. Are you okay?”
He glared. “Of course. You don’t hit that hard.” But still he touched his cheek gingerly. The room was too dark for me to see any damage.
I stood. “Come into the kitchen so I can look at it, and I’ll get you some ice.”
I got the glare again. “I’m fine.”
I rolled my eyes, which I assumed he could see with his super-duper Hunter vision. “Well, I’m getting ice for my hand, so you get some for your face.”
“Manny?” Crap.
I jogged to the bedroom door. “We’re fine, Pia. I had a nightmare and I startled Arch. He’s being grumpy about it.” I couldn’t make out Pia’s expression, but Ms. Jackson’s eyes glowed briefly before they shut them again.
“Okay.”
“You want some water or anything?”
“No, thanks.” The sheets rustled like she was lying back down.
“Alright, sorry to wake you. We’ll get up for real in a few hours and go see Rory and the guys, okay?”
“Okay. Goodnight.”
I pulled the door so it was only open a few inches, instead of being all the way open like before.
Hopefully that would be enough to keep us from disturbing Pia any further.
In the kitchen I turned on the lights under the cabinets.
Arch hadn’t followed me, so I didn’t bother with Rory’s first aid kit.
I pulled out two clean kitchen towels and loaded them with about two cups of ice each.
The fridge had an automatic ice maker, luckily, so there was plenty.
My hand would be bruised by morning, but I was able to move it easily, so nothing was broken.
Which hopefully meant I hadn’t hit Arch hard enough to do any significant damage.
Was it too much to pray Rory, Ellis, and Shane wouldn’t notice our injuries in the morning?
I doubted they’d believe me if I said I’d been dreaming when I punched Arch.
I rolled the ice up in the towels and took them to the living room.
Arch was still sitting on the couch, but he’d leaned his head back on the cushions.
Instead of handing him the ice pack right away, I went over to the armchair, set down one of the ice packs, and picked up my phone.
Turning on the flashlight, I went around the back of the couch. “Hold still and close your eyes.”
He opened them instead. “I told you, I’m fine.”
“And I’m a fucking nurse. If you don’t let me examine you now, I’ll just wait until you’re asleep.”
“You’ll be asking me to punch you instead.” He actually seemed a little worried.
I snorted. “Look, I get that you’re Mister Macho Hunter dude or whatever, but I’ve been dodging patients trying to hit me or worse ever since nursing school. You won’t connect, I promise.”
“What? That’s horrible.”
“That’s life. People get belligerent when they’re in pain, especially if they’ve been drinking or doing drugs. Now will you let me look at you or not?”
He eyed me. “As long as you tell me what your dream was about.”
“Seriously?”
“Yes.” His gaze didn’t leave mine.
“Ugh. Fine. Hold this.” I handed him the ice pack. “Now close your eyes.” The skin wasn’t broken, so I carefully examined his cheek and eye socket, prodding gently as I went. “I was dreaming about when Ellis and I were taken.”
“Ellis kind of told me what happened, but I feel like he left a lot out.”
I shrugged. “There wasn’t a lot to it. He and I were standing next to each other.
A vampire ran up from behind and grabbed us, one under each arm.
” He opened his mouth, so I covered it with my palm.
I ignored how soft his lips were. “Yes, we struggled. No, we couldn’t get out.
The guy was huge, and he was holding us horizontal to the ground. ”
Arch held up a hand, so I released his mouth. “I was just gonna ask how he was holding both of you at once. Thanks for explaining.”
I released some of the tension from my shoulders and cracked my neck from side to side. “Sorry. Your face will be fine. You can put the ice on it now.”
I turned off my flashlight and went back to the armchair.
“We were in a big clearing, and when the vampire got close to the trees, another vampire ran up and took me from him. She smelled me or something, I’m not sure.
Anyway, she shouted, “Human!” and clawed my belly open before tossing me on the ground.
” I wrapped the throw blanket around me, then curled my legs up so I was huddled on the chair cushion, holding the ice pack on my knuckles.
“I was reliving everything in my dream, and you touched me right when I was expecting the other vampire to take me from the first one.”
He nodded. “Got it. Thanks for telling me. And Ms. Jackson healed your wound with their magic?”
“Yeah. I was unconscious for that part.”
“Thank fuck for that.”
“No shit.”
Eventually I fell back asleep.