Chapter 15
Seraphim
Sam went straight to bed when they got back to the cabin, leaving Lock to secure their humans in the basement. He was clearly frustrated. It was more evident when she wasn’t around. The guy had no idea how to deal with her emotions. He’d already called Mark a few times, but he didn’t have much advice to offer. Time. Love. Trying to talk. I didn’t think any of those were the solution and neither did Lock.
After he joined her in bed, I made a bold decision and flew across the lake, materializing on their dock. Being this close, I felt the pull tugging at my blood. Clenching my fists, I let heat travel over my skin, relishing the burn of it.
How strong of an approach was I going to take here? I had no fear of Lock, especially since I was loaded up on fresh blood. Sam would feel a certain kinship with me that would probably keep her from immediately attacking, but if she saw me as a threat to her mate, it might override our connection.
The problem was that I fully expected Lock to attack me as soon as he saw me. If I could avoid that, we could all have a chat. He was so desperate, I was sure I could convince him to let me help. Back in Colorado, he sat and listened to what I had to say. We needed to get to that point again.
As I drew out more magic, a sharp pain erupted in my chest, making me fall to my knees. I just had blood, but it felt like my veins were dry. There was still a huge store of fire energy inside of me, so I knew it wasn’t actually coming from me. I was feeling it through the connection.
Being this close wasn’t a good idea. Whatever was going on with her, it was affecting me dangerously. Getting to my feet, I turned around to head back to my cabin, but Sam materialized on the dock with her arms crossed.
“Fuck,” I muttered.
“Raf.”
The corner of my lip twitched when she said my name. I clenched my teeth and started to shift, but she latched onto my wrist. When heat erupted between our skin, I felt her draw some of my energy. She released me immediately and stepped back.
My brow furrowed at her reaction. That should’ve been something she’d been craving. Sharing magic between us was natural and it would help with whatever she was going through. Why was she recoiling from it?
Spreading my mirage further to include her, I stepped closer.
“What the fuck is wrong with you?”
“Me?” she scoffed. “You’re the one being a stalker.”
“How long have you known I was here?”
“Ever since you got to that cabin. You followed us out of town too.”
“Hm. I’ve always prided myself on being sneaky. I usually choose to go that route in video games.”
“You’re terrible at it, clearly.”
“Way to destroy a guy’s confidence.”
She failed to completely hide the way her lips started to curve upward. Clearing her throat, she looked over my shoulder quickly, then back at me.
“Are you here to kill me?”
I hesitated. “No.”
“Then what are you doing?”
“Just watching. There have been a lot of storms lately and I know lightning gives you anxiety.”
“Funny.”
“Well, that’s my best trait.”
“I forgot how annoying you are.”
“It hasn’t been that long.”
With a smirk, I stepped toward her. She moved back again, which just reignited my curiosity. She had essentially no grasp on any of her vampire abilities, so when I rushed behind her, she wasn’t quick enough to stop me from grabbing onto her biceps. I gritted my teeth against the aggressive way her body pulled my energy into her.
After a moment, I swore and released her. “Why are you so weak?”
“I’m not.”
“It’s affecting me too, you know. Every day, I feel like I haven’t drank blood. I’m in pain and your fucking emotions are making me depressed. Do you know how many family-sized packs of Oreos I’ve had this week?”
“I don’t care.”
“Twelve, Sam. Twelve.”
“It sounds like you have an impulse issue.”
“Clearly, but this is something else entirely. I’m pretty sure my brain is completely devoid of dopamine, which shouldn’t be possible. Our blood keeps us in tip top shape.”
“Maybe you’re broken.”
Crossing my arms, I narrowed my eyes at her. “When did you last feed?”
“I don’t need you doing this too.’
“I’m fucking serious, Sam. This is getting really old.”
“Then go away. The further you are, the less it affects you, right?”
“Yeah, but there’s only so far that goes. Now that the connection has been opened, on top of you being a vampire, it’s been solidified. I can never escape.”
“Sounds like a personal problem.”
“Tell me what’s going on.”
“No.”
“Tell me right fucking now.”
“No,” she repeated more firmly.
I was thrust back by a gust of wind. Dropping onto the dock, I felt panic rise in my chest at the way she wrapped an arm around herself. Her breaths were too quick and somehow she looked pale.
My speculations weren’t anywhere near accurate. Sam wasn’t just weak. She was fucking useless. The smallest expulsion of magic had her doubling over.
Rushing forward, I thrust my hand into her chest, making her cry out. Tears streamed down her face as I latched onto her heart. She couldn’t fight me off if she tried, but she didn’t even do that.
All I had to do was crush her heart or flood it with my magic. It would take half a second and my task would be complete. I could go back to the main purpose of this whole thing without having her muddling everything.
“Fight me, Sam.”
She shook her head, tears still running down her cheeks. Her chin was wobbling, but she stayed still.
“Samara. Fight me.”
“No,” she whispered.
My chest was rising and falling rapidly. I kept trying to finish it, but whatever she was going through made no sense and it pained me. It wasn’t the same as her sharing her feelings with me. This was an ache that grew the more I realized exactly what was happening.
It felt like my blood was reaching for her, trying to burst out of my skin just to seep into hers. It was like a chant.
Help her. Help her. Help her.
“Sam,” I said, my voice cracking. “You’re giving up.”
“You have to do this. Just do it.”
“I…”
“Do it.”
Help her. Help her. Help her.
Pulling my hand free, I took a step back. She put a palm to her chest, grimacing at the pain. Her wound was healing incredibly slowly and it just made it even more clear.
“You’ve spent all this time trying to stop this,” she said, her voice rising in anger. “Finish it.”
I shook my head. “I can’t.”
“Yes, you can.”
“Why don’t you want to live?”
Her firm expression fractured. When she fell to her knees, I appeared in front of her and pulled her against my chest. She wrapped her arms around me as she broke down, her entire body shaking violently. My eyes closed, the severity of her pain threatening to make me fall to pieces alongside her.
Heat built between our skin and she shoved me away before scrambling backward. I moved toward her again, but she shook her head and held up a hand.
“Please don’t.”
“Let me help you, Sam.”
“No. Just kill me, Seraphim. Please.”
“No.”
“You have to. There’s some big, evil monster that wants me, so do what you have to do.”
“Fuck all of that right now.”
“I’m giving you what you want!” she screamed.
God damnit. I was fucking weak. Shaking my head, I dropped the mirage and brought my knees up, hanging my arms over them as I watched her fall apart. A moment later, Lock appeared on the dock with wide eyes. When he looked at me, his lip curled and he advanced toward me.
I jerked my chin toward Sam. “That’s more important than trying to kill me right now.”
Making fists at his sides, he turned back to his mate. I saw his anger drain away before he knelt in front of her. She fought him off, not allowing him to comfort her. Sitting back, he pulled her into his lap, holding her to him as best he could.
“Feed from me.”
“No.”
“Baby, you’re struggling. It’ll help.”
“No.”
“She won’t do it,” I chimed in.
Lock looked at me over Sam’s shoulder, not bothering to conceal his hatred.
“What are you doing here?”
“I’ve been here almost as long as you have. Sam knew.”
“What?”
“She offered herself to me.”
“What the fuck does that mean?”
“I had my hand in her chest and she didn’t make a move to stop me.”
He looked at her, gritting his teeth. There was so much emotion swimming behind his eyes and it was clear he had no idea what to do with it. As Sam sobbed against his shoulder, he pressed his nose into her hair and breathed her in.
“I don’t know what to do, Samara. I don’t know what to do.”
“She’s starving herself.”
At that, she looked up at me. There was fury in her expression, but I ignored her. Even if she wanted to, she wasn’t strong enough to fight me right now.
“Sam,” Lock chided. “I told you to stop worrying about the blood.”
“She’s not worried about it. She’s purposely making herself weak.”
His mouth opened, then closed. Pulling her back, he searched her face.
“Is that true?”
She set her jaw, refusing to meet his gaze. Something changed in his expression before he moved her off of him. She stared as he marched into the house.
“Why would you do that?” she shouted at me.
I shrugged. “You’re weakening both of us with your bullshit.”
“I’m managing.”
“No, you’re not. This is making it worse.”
“Having more magic makes it worse.”
“You’re so fucking stupid, Samara.”
“Excuse me?”
“Denying your nature makes you volatile. It turns you into a mindless monster.”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
I laughed dryly. “Oh, really? If anyone understands, it’s me.”
“It’s not the same.”
“You are a fucking Ark, Sam. There’s no quelling the power in your veins.”
“Then kill me.”
“Jesus Christ.”
I was going to say more, but screaming erupted from inside. Settling my hands behind me, I leaned back and raised a brow at Sam.
It seemed her doting mate had left the chat. I had a feeling we were about to receive a heaping dose of Hemlock Giudice at his most depraved.