Relentless (Vampire Awakenings #11) - Brenda K. Davies Page 0,108

about Dante to have any pity for Maya. Tension vibrated from every inch of him, and rage hummed across their bond. She wanted to take him away from here, hug him, and assure him he was loved, because that was what he needed most right now.

Maya’s gaze fell to their joined hands, and a small smile played at the corners of her mouth. “I’m sorry, but I don’t know your name. I’m Maya.” She extended a delicate hand across the space separating them.

Cassidy took it. “Cassidy.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“You also.”

Cassidy released her hand, and Maya took a deep breath before speaking. “After I left you in the library, I went to the ice cream place with my friends—”

“I know,” Dante said. “I’ve retraced what’s known about that night, read the reports, and talked to the witnesses. I joined the police force so I could gain access to most of that information.”

Maya blinked at him. “I was curious why you decided to become an officer instead of following our dream.”

And he was curious why she was sitting in a million-dollar home instead of being buried in the woods, but he didn’t voice the question. She was aware of his anger and growing bitterness; he didn’t have to hammer it home.

“I enjoyed my career,” he stated.

She hesitated before speaking again. “Good, I’m glad.”

He didn’t want to hear how glad she was about anything in his life. “What happened after you left your friends?”

When Maya looked over his shoulder, a distant look crossed her face. “They were all going to a party, but I was tired, so I decided to return to my dorm. Some things about that night are so vivid, but I barely remember other events. I recall looking at the stars and thinking what a beautiful night it was when something suddenly felt… wrong.”

“What do you mean wrong?” Dante asked when she stopped speaking.

She gripped her hands so tightly in her lap that her knuckles turned white, and no color remained in her face. Her foot tapped against the ground at an increasing rate as her eyes took on a haunted look.

Whatever happened that night, it wasn’t something she liked recalling. Despite his anger with her, sorrow rose in his chest. She was a stranger to him, but she was also his sister.

“I felt like someone was watching me, following me. I turned to search the campus but didn’t see anyone, yet I was certain someone was watching me. I walked faster, but I could feel it there, breathing down my neck. And I could feel its hot breath against my flesh, but every time I turned, there was nothing there. I’d never been so scared, but I felt so stupid because obviously, there was nothing there.

“I was near the tree with all the names carved into it, so close to my dorm, I could see the window to my room when it attacked. It went from playing with me to pushing me to the ground and tearing at me. I tried to scream, but its weight pressing my chest into the ground made it impossible to breathe.”

Maya’s breath came faster as she rested her hand against her chest while her eyes remained on the window over his shoulder. “I could see people moving around their rooms; a party was going on in the rec room. If I could scream, they would hear me, but… but—”

“Easy,” Dante said as he leaned across the space separating them and rested his hand on her knee. “It’s okay. It’s over; you’re here with us now.”

Her eyes spun toward him, and for a minute, she didn’t seem to recognize him. Then some of her anxiety eased and her shoulders slumped. She clasped his hand in both of hers so hard his bones grated together, but he didn’t protest.

“I’ve never been so scared in my life. I was going to die, and there was nothing I could do to stop it. I clawed at the ground as I fought to get out from under its heavy weight, but it was crushing me. And then… it bit me.”

Dante stiffened; she’d obviously come into contact with a vampire at some point in her life, but the idea of it brutalizing her in such a way made his blood boil. Tears shimmered in her eyes when they met his again.

“I didn’t know it was possible to experience such pain and continue living,” she whispered.

“I understand completely,” Cassidy said.

Dante’s teeth grated together at the reminder of what