Chapter Eight
Jared slid his black leather trench coat over my shoulders, covering me as I started to shiver from the shock.
“I don’t understand,” I muttered, looking up into Jared’s navy eyes. “Rose killed you.”
“Killed me?” He shook his head and shifted so I sat beside him. “Let’s go back to Donavan’s house and I’ll explain everything.”
I concentrated on the bonds that connected me to Damian. Monique rested as Dez tried to find a way to call Rose to blast her for sending a dragon out after us.
“A dragon. They sent a dragon out in broad daylight. What in the hell were they thinking?” Damian muttered in my mind, followed by some angry words in a language I didn’t understand.
I snorted. “No. We need to talk first. I think we’re safe for now.”
“Come on, Sarah,” Jared argued, taking my hand and trying to get me to my feet. “Let’s make sure you’re not internally bleeding from that hit and get you something to drink.”
I wouldn’t budge. I had Damian’s blood in me, and it would take more than a werewolf to get me to move when I didn’t want to. “How?” I demanded.
Jared sighed, running a hand through his shoulder length brown hair. “I’ll explain, I promise, love. I will; but first, how did you do that?”
I blinked. My mind whirled. “Do what?”
“Change. We’re not even close to a full moon.”
“Oh that. Side effects from Damian’s blood.”
A look passed through Jared’s eyes too fast for me to recognize it. “Of course.” Jared stood, holding out a hand to me. “Walk with me?” he asked softly. Jared’s arms around me felt reassuringly firm as I stumbled to my feet.
He was alive.
My mind could barely believe it as we walked parallel to Donavan’s home and away from the dead dragon. Everything I knew about the BMC told me Jared died, yet here he stood in front of me. I didn’t know why or how, but I needed to know.
“How?” I asked again as I felt tears start to well. Is he on the run like I am, having broken his contract? Or is this his new mission, and the BMC removed him from the system as a precaution?
The thought of him as the bad guy made my blood run cold as we walked. He’d easily be able to get near me, gaining my trust just to turn around and kill me. I shook my head, trying to clear those vile thoughts from my head. He loves me. No way he’d betray me.
Holding up a finger, Jared said, “In a minute,” as Damian appeared five feet in front of us. I wondered how Jared knew that Damian approached, then I remembered the first time I met him. Damian spoke in my mind, even though I never had a drop of his blood. He had probably contacted Jared himself and I never even knew.
“How is she?” he asked Jared.
“Once the shock wears off, she’ll be better.”
“She thought you died. You should have called.”
“If I had known, I would have. How long do we have until Rose realizes that the dragon is dead?”
“Hopefully, Samson,” Damian said, indicating the dead dragon, “won’t be missed for a while. Aminka is trying to see what Rose will throw at us next, but the future is murky. We’ve already had a run in with the BMC operative in charge of killing Sarah. If we find what she’s looking for, we might be able to sway her to our side. Dez is working on it.”
“Who was it?” Jared asked.
Damian turned to me, unsure of how to answer.
“Amythist Dyier,” I said. “I’m pretty sure she’s on our side. She would have attacked me already if she wasn’t. She’d kill puppies if it meant she’d finally get her revenge on that demon. I don’t blame her.” I smiled slightly as I looked at Jared. “I’d feel the same way.”
Damian mulled this over. “That is good. I’ll have Dez try to contact her. In the mean time, no one leaves this property. When the sun sets, we’ll transfer over to Malevolent Dead.”
“Why?” Jared and I asked in unison.
“The BMC will be less likely to throw another dragon at us if we’re in the city. They will keep their attempts low key to avoid exposure.”
“And Rose?” Jared asked.
“Probably at Haven,” I answered. “She’s not going to show herself until there’s nothing else she can throw at us.”
Damian sighed as he sensed my thoughts. “It’s not your fault, Sarah. The BMC hasn’t liked the DeLocket Clan or me for quite some time. Otherwise, they would have ceased their attempts on Monique when Dez told them she carried twins.”
“Why?” I asked.
“A witch married to a werewolf isn’t what they consider a natural union. I fall into the same category, being a born vampire. They are using you as a reason behind their attacks.” Damian glanced at Jared before looking back at me, and I saw the sadness in his plum-colored eyes. I peeked into his mind and saw that he had hoped that Jared really was dead. Damian’s eyes narrowed and he suddenly shut me out of his thoughts. He didn’t want me to see the pain in his heart, but it was too late. I couldn’t do or say anything that would make it better. “Rest,” Damian said, “and worry about our impending doom later.”
Damian turned and vanished, and I blinked at the sudden emptiness in front of me. No matter how long Damian and I worked together, I’d never get used to that.
“How are you feeling?” Jared asked as he brushed his fingertips down my arm.
“Now that my mind is processing everything properly–better. Are you going to tell me what happened or am I going to have to beat it out of you?”
Jared sat down and leaned against a pine tree, and I settled down next to him so I could see his face.
“When I returned to Blood Moon’s headquarters, they gave me the option of renewing my contract. I didn’t realize that my six years were up. I declined, and they thanked me for my service and paid me for the Skyner job. By the way, they paid me your portion too, so as soon as this is over, we’ll go to the bank and transfer it over.”
“They just let you go?”
Jared laughed. “My contract was up, Sarah. They had no choice. The second I left, my only concern was getting back to you. I never wanted to leave in the first place, and I had hoped that you and Damian didn’t get too close while I had been away.” I heard the regret in his tone. What does he think…
“You think Damian and I are dating?” I asked as my eyes widened in surprise. At Jared’s uncomfortable look, I laughed. “God, no. Jared, I love you. Yeah, I drank Damian’s blood, but that was so we all wouldn’t get murdered in our beds, not because I love him.”
“And now?”
“Now I am faster, stronger, and able to change into a wolf whenever I want. I can accurately guess a vampire’s age, and I can feel Damian’s emotions and hear his thoughts. Which is only fair because he could always do all that with me.”
Jared smiled, looking me in the eyes for the first time, since we entered the clearing. “I missed you.”
“Even my twitchy PTSD issues?”
Bending down, Jared lightly kissed my lips. “Especially those. They remind me that I have a lot to make up for with you.”
I felt tears in my eyes at his words. “I thought…because I didn’t try hard enough…” I couldn’t finish before the first tear fell and I mentally broke.
I sobbed into Jared’s shirt as he held me close, murmuring reassurances into my ear. I cried until my body hurt and the tears stopped coming. I cried for everything I had been forced to endure over the last six years. I cried for Jared giving me yet another chance to be happy with him. As he felt me relax, Jared’s tight grip loosened and he started running a hand through my hair.
There was no way in hell I would ever let him go again.
“You dyed your hair,” he whispered.
“I thought you died,” I rasped. My stomach rumbled and I laughed. “I have to get something to eat.”
Jared snorted when I made no move to get up. “Do you think we can get room service out here?”
I shifted to make a smart retort when I saw the heat in his eyes as he stared down at me. Some time during my breakdown Jared’s jacket had shifted, exposing my flesh down to the curve of my hip. My body tightened as I kept eye contact with him. Butterflies exploded in my stomach as Jared slowly came down to me.
“If you don’t want to, tell me.”
I didn’t have to ask what he meant, because I felt the same way. I felt desire consume me in a way I had never felt before. I wanted only to feel Jared’s touch him inside me.
Nothing, not even the BMC, could stop this.