When The Grave Calls (The Veil Diaries #9) - B.L. Brunnemer Page 0,16
a heavy heart, I headed upstairs to Zeke’s room.
Did I really have to tell him? Couldn’t I just forget that I had heard from Samuel? I rejected the idea as soon as it occurred to me. I couldn’t lie to him like that. I wrung my fingers as I climbed the stairs.
I knocked on Zeke’s door, my stomach churning.
“Come in,” Zeke’s muffled voice called.
This was it. I had to tell him about Riley. God help me. I opened the door and found him sitting at the foot of his bed in only his mesh shorts, changing the channels on the TV on the wall across from him. Zeke’s room here was different to his house. Here there were no motor parts sitting around waiting to be put back together. No clothes on the floor in the corner. Simply a bed, nightstands, dresser, and television. It reminded me of a hotel to be honest. Blank and empty of anything personal.
He turned to me, his face serious. “What’s wrong?”
I licked my lips as I edged further into the room. “I have news about Riley.”
His brow furrowed as he tossed the remote on the bed and turned toward me completely. “How bad is it?”
I wrung my fingers as my chest ached. I so didn’t want to tell him. “Bad.”
His gaze ran over me before meeting mine again. “She’s a vampire, isn’t she?”
My eyes stung; my mouth grew dry. I nodded. “I got the news before the demonstration tonight.”
The blood drained from his face as he turned his head away, clenching his jaw.
I stepped closer. “Sam’s staying to get her out, but he doesn’t know when that could be. Something about keeping her free will.”
His fists clenched and unclenched.
I tried and failed to blink my tears away as the news really hit. Riley was a vampire. Her life with her family was over. Her life here, over. Any plans she had for herself were now dust. Tears trailed down my face as I stepped closer to Zeke. “I’m sorry, it’s all my fault.”
His head snapped back around, his own face harsh. “No, it’s not. It’s whoever took her. It’s their fault. It’s Jadis’ fault.” He reached up and held my face in his big hand, his thumb wiping a tear away. “It was never yours, Baby.”
My lower lip trembled as I continued to stand there silently weeping. “It feels like it. She wouldn’t have been there if it weren’t for me.”
“I know,” he said. “But she wouldn’t have been there if I never dated her. Doesn’t that really make it my fault?”
I shook my head. “I couldn’t stop them. I didn’t even get a chance.”
“They were vampires, Lexie,” he said in that soft voice. “You wouldn’t have had a chance.” His gaze ran over me. “Come here.”
I stepped into him and slipped my arms around his neck. His thick arm wrapped around me completely, enfolding me in his warmth. I buried my face in his neck and took a deep breath of engine grease. “I’m sorry, Zeke.”
“Me too.”
Chapter 4
Asher
The shattering of glass had my heart pounding as I rolled out of bed and to my feet before I even fully opened my eyes. What the hell was that? The slight scent of smoke and chemicals reached my senses the same time the faint hiss of fire did. What the hell was Jess burning this time? I grabbed my shirt from my laundry pile and pulled it on as I went out the door and down the stairs. The stench of smoke grew stronger. The sound louder. The fire alarm went off.
Cursing, I stepped off the stairs and found smoke billowing from the kitchen. A bright yellow and orange flame drew my eye. My stomach dropped. Fire.
Lexie
The hallway grew longer and longer no matter how fast I pumped my legs. It just kept growing. The girl with blonde hair and big, sad eyes was reaching out to me again. My heart pounded, my legs growing heavier as I pushed myself harder. Closer! I had to reach her! Tears fell down her face as the floor fell out from under me—
I woke up with a jerk. Out of breath, I looked up at the ceiling and tried to shake off the dream. Hopelessness clung to me like a film. I tried to grab the fleeting images, but they slipped through my fingers. Again.
Zeke half sat up, suddenly wide awake. “Huh? What’s wrong?”
I shook my head and wiped the sweat off my face. “Nightmare.”