Chapter Nine
C hapter Nine
Noam
Crud . It was like the universe refused to give me a freaking break. I was starting to think the guy was stalking me.
Kyson needed to have a serious conversation with his boyfriend about boundaries, or lack thereof.
Hoping I didn’t seem obvious and not caring if I did, I spun around, heading in the opposite direction.
“Noam. Stop.”
Shoot! My freaking body did exactly what Giovanni wanted. My survival instincts malfunctioned instantly, even though my brain was screaming for it to haul butt. I had no clue what the vampire/warrior/natural-born killer wanted with me, but I prayed it wasn’t anything bad. I liked Kyson, really wanted to be friends, but I would ghost him in a heartbeat if his feral boyfriend didn’t leave me alone. I was terrified of the guy, and already I felt my body slightly trembling, and hating myself for the reaction.
Please don’t let him do anything that makes me cower in front of him.
The closer Giovanni drew to me, the more my heart raced. The guy had to be at least six-three or six-four, compared to my five-four. Admittedly, he was gorgeous, and I was willing to bet he used his looks like a weapon.
I was too terrified of him to care how handsome he was. I just wanted to stop running into him. My nerves couldn’t take it.
He moved into my line of sight, still as intimidating as ever. He studied me like I was a riddle to figure out. At least, that’s what I thought since I didn’t dare look him in the eyes.
“I’m not an asshole.”
Was this a trap? I’d never called him one, wouldn’t dare to, but was he trying to get me to admit to something I’d never said? Why? So he would have an excuse to use those daggers on me?
Despite him trying to help me the last time, I didn’t trust him.
I didn’t really trust anyone.
Except Richard . I was a little too busy trying not to wet myself to examine that thought more closely.
I wanted to defend myself, but my mouth refused to open.
He moved over to the wall, pressed his back into it, stretched his legs in front of him, then crossed his arms. “I don’t want you afraid of me, Noam. I’m trying… for Kyson.” He said the last sentence kind of low, almost like he was saying it to himself. There had also been something close to…sadness? I wasn’t sure if that was the right word, but I’d heard a hint of it in his tone.
As badly as I wanted to run, I struggled to find my voice. Since I wasn’t sure how long I would be here, I didn’t want to run or freeze up every time we crossed paths.
He didn’t say anything for the longest moment, but as time stretched out, so did my nerves. I wasn’t sure if I should ask permission to leave or simply walk away.
You don’t walk away from predators. You run from them.
Even though that was one hundred percent true, and Giovanni terrified me, I know longer repeated things in three. That had struck me the other day. I was under the same roof as three deadly predators, yet my trauma loop was gone.
And I couldn’t understand why. One hundred Martins couldn’t match the deadliness of just one predator in Winterhaven.
Finally, Giovanni made some kind of noise, though the sound of his throat clearing made me jump slightly. “I enjoyed our talk.”
My brows dipped low when he simply walked away. Had I missed something? Was that some sort of test? Had I passed?
Worse, had I failed?
Deciding not to stick around and find out, I hurried toward my bedroom, ready to put plenty of distance between us.
That had been the weirdest, scariest non-conversation I’d ever not had.
* * * *
It took every ounce of willpower to get dressed for my shift. I didn’t like working there before I’d stumbled into a medieval vampire-murder house. But now that I’d gotten just a small taste of what true friendship felt like, I dreaded dealing with my coworkers.
But what really weighed on my mind was running into my demon-possessed father. My skin still tried to crawl off my body thinking how Martin had caressed my cheek. It was a miracle I hadn’t vomited on the spot.
If I didn’t need my job, I would go hang out with Dane and Kyson, though I was pretty sure neither of them was up this early.
I stifled a yawn, eyeing the bed and wishing I could crawl back into its warm, cozy embrace. It was freaking tempting as heck, especially when my body was trying to pull me in that direction.
Richard entered the room, two mugs of coffee with him. I dang near tackled him for mine. The steam tickled my nose, though I wasn’t in a playful mood.
He grunted.
I grunted.
Then we took a sip of our coffees, both letting out a small sigh. “I don’t want to go,” I blurted out, half of my brain still asleep.
Immediately Richard set his mug on the dresser and headed for my bed.
“I didn’t say I wasn’t going.” My words doing more than I ever thought they would. Richard stopped mid-step, groaning like he was about to protest. He spun, glaring at the floor as if he had a personal vendetta against it before retrieving his coffee mug.
As soon as we stepped outside, I wanted to run back inside. It was bad enough I hated mornings, but I really hated cold ones.
“Breakfast?” Richard asked from the driver’s side. All I could manage was to stick up my thumb. My brain hadn’t absorbed enough caffeine to interact with anyone.
I was basically on auto-pilot the entire ride into town, until Richard pulled into the local diner’s parking lot. It was called Eatery, but the Y had burned out on the neon sign, so it simply read Eater.
I’d thought Richard would pick up some breakfast in a drive-thru, but clearly, he had other plans.
I glanced at him as we walked through the door, wondering if he was okay. Richard was an amazing cook, but I guessed even bona fide badass cooks didn’t mind letting someone else flip pancakes for them.
Ooh. Pancakes with blueberry syrup. All I had was ten bucks until I got paid but hoped that was enough for a decent breakfast. I also hoped we had enough time to sit down and eat. The last thing I wanted was to hang out in the breakroom at work.
We ended up at a table toward the back, although the front of the diner was almost empty. Ashwood was such a dead town. As I sat there, I scanned the diner for any sign of my father. The last thing I needed was for him to show up. One encounter with him had been enough. If Richard hadn’t been there…
T he waitress, a middle-aged woman with a friendly smile, approached our table and handed us menus. “Good morning, you two. What can I get you to drink?”
“Coffee, please,” I said, stifling another yawn.
“Same for me,” Richard added, his eyes scanning the menu.
As soon as she walked away, I turned my gaze on Richard. He must’ve felt me staring because he glanced at me. A slow smile pulled at the side of his mouth. “You wore me out last night, and now I’m starving.”
He chuckled warmly as I felt heat erupting over my face, causing me to quickly glance down. Last night had been amazing.
“I’ll be right back.” I stood, my face still flushed. “I need to splash some water on my face to wake up.”
Or cool down.
Richard started to stand, but I gaped at him. “It’s the bathroom.” I gestured around the diner. “This place is dead. If anyone follows, you can come check on me.”
I walked away before he could answer. I loved being with him, loved the time we spent together, but I needed a moment to myself.
The bathroom was empty when I walked in, just as I expected. I turned on the faucet and let the cool water run over my hands for a moment before splashing some on my face. The chill helped clear the lingering fog of sleep from my mind.
As I patted my face dry with a paper towel, I studied my reflection in the mirror. There was color in my cheeks now, a healthy glow that hadn’t been there before. My eyes looked brighter, more alive.
The reason for that change was sitting out in the diner, probably checking his watch and debating whether to come check on me. I smiled at the thought. Richard’s protectiveness should have chafed, but instead, it made me feel cherished. Being with Richard, feeling safe and cared for, was healing parts of me I thought were broken forever.
Last night with Richard had been incredible. The way he touched me, kissed me, made me feel things I’d never experienced before. It was exhilarating and terrifying all at once. I was falling for him, hard and fast, and that scared the heck out of me.
The sound of the bathroom door creaking open jolted me out of my thoughts. I tensed, head whipping around, but relaxed slightly when I saw it was just an older man heading for the urinals. I grabbed a paper towel and quickly dried my face before exiting the bathroom.
As I walked back to our table, I froze mid-step. My heart seized, ice flooding my veins.
Martin was there. Sitting across from Richard in the booth.
His cold eyes flicked to me, and a cruel smile curled his lips. “There you are, Noam. So nice of you to join us.”
I couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe. Panic clawed at my throat. How had he found me here? What was he going to do?
Richard’s face was like stone, his eyes molten gold and furious as they bored into Martin. The air around him crackled with barely restrained violence.
“Walk away. Now.” Richard’s voice was low and deadly calm. “While you still can.”
Martin simply laughed, the sound like nails on a chalkboard. He leaned back casually in the chair. “Now, is that any way to speak to your boyfriend’s father? Noam and I have a lot of catching up to do.”
“You’re not my father,” I managed to choke out, shocked that I’d finally stood up for myself. “You’re a-a monster.”
Something dark and ugly flashed in Martin’s eyes, Silo’s eyes. “Careful, boy. You forget your place.” He started to rise from the booth, and I stumbled back a step.
Richard was between us in a heartbeat, his honed body shielding me. The few people in the diner turned to look our way. Our waitress stood by the counter, a tray of food resting on one palm, but she hadn’t moved any farther. I saw my blueberry pancakes, but I no longer wanted them.
I just wanted to get out of the diner as quickly as possible.
Peeking around Richard, I watched Martin/Silo take a step toward us, his smile dripping with amusement. He was uncaring we had an audience. He moved closer, his steps drawn out, clearly enjoying every second of this.
I heard Richard say something under his breath, but I couldn’t make out the words. Something brushed against my back, scaring the crap out of me. When I glanced over my shoulder, I saw the same ripple in the air I’d seen when we were run off the road, the ripple that had taken us from the car to the castle.
Now that I stood still instead of flying through the thing, it looked like heat coming off of pavement, only vertical.
And in the middle of a diner.
Martin’s eyes narrowed. “You can run, but I will get Noam back.” His features smoothed, turning playful, making me want to vomit. His grin was cold and taunting. “After all, little mouse, we never did finish our game of hide and seek.”
Don’t panic, don’t panic, don’t panic.
Just pretend this is a game so you can calm down. Panic is your enemy.
My eyes widened when I saw what looked like a blue glow around Martin’s fingers. It looked like a ball of static that grew. Murmurs erupted around us, but I didn’t dare take my eyes off of Martin’s hands to glance at the customers.
“You want a fight?” Richard said in a calm, even voice. “Then you’ll have to find me, little mouse.”
I had no idea what he was talking about and didn’t have time to wonder. Richard shoved me backward, and I fell through the shimmering ripple, noticing it kind of tickled.
As soon as I passed through, I landed on the hard ground, a shot of pain erupting on the left side of my body. Then I realized we hadn’t returned to the castle.
At least, not Winterhaven. Maybe. I wasn’t sure.
I lay on a dirt-packed road, a majestic castle right in front of us. Its towering stone walls stretched high into the stormy sky, their weathered surfaces bearing the scars of time.
Heavy iron gates loomed ahead, reinforced with thick wooden beams, the kind built to withstand war. A sprawling courtyard lay just beyond, partially obscured by the mist curling at the base of the walls, hinting at the secrets locked within.
Richard got to his feet and glanced around, his face growing pale.
“Where are we?” I grunted, my side still hurting as I managed to get up. “Is this the outside of Winterhaven?”
Slowly, Richard shook his head. “No,” he whispered.
From his look alone, and now the dread in his voice, this wasn’t good. “Then where are we, Richard?” I didn’t like the knot forming in my stomach and wanted it to go away.
I knew I should’ve crawled back in bed.
Richard took a cautious step forward, his gaze flicking around, his eyes wide, his mouth dropped open slightly. “How can this be?”
“What?” I yanked on his arm, trying to get his attention. He barely looked at me before continuing to glance around. “You’re scaring me.”
His gaze immediately found mine, his features softening a fraction. But I saw the fear swimming in his eyes. “We’re standing in front of Wellington Castle… My home.”
The last two words were spoken with such pain, such agony, I knew this wasn’t going to be a joyous homecoming. Richard had come to mean the world to me, had healed me in ways I never thought possible. He’d stood by my side, patient and caring, coaxing out the man buried under a lifetime of pain.
But it was his pain at the forefront right now, and if there was anything I could do to ease the agony clear in his eyes, I would help to fight whatever battles he was about to face.
Even if I was scared out of my mind. Richard was worth it, because my fight had been worth it to him. Swallowing, I turned to face the gate, wondering what horrors lay beyond them.