the back of my neck. I whirl around faster than the speed of light, positioning myself in front of Aurora, using my body as a shield.
The hallway is empty, though, and I don’t smell anyone approaching.
“What is it, Saxon?”
“I don’t know. I sensed something strange. Didn’t you?”
No sooner do I utter those words than the lights begin to flicker, going out completely for a few seconds before turning back on. Now there’s a tall man standing a few feet from us. He’s wearing a hoodie over his head, which is concealing part of his face. I can only see his sharp jawline.
“Who the fuck are you?” I ask.
Pulling his hoodie back, he lifts his chin, and pierces us with his bright blue-eyed stare. Son of a bitch. It’s one of the warlocks who lied to the High Witch to cover for us.
“Ryker.” She walks around me. “I hope you’re here because you have the spell.”
“I have a spell, but not what you were expecting.” He switches his attention to me, or better yet, to my bandaged chest. “So it’s true. You did get impaled by a dragon.”
“How do you know?”
He gives me an amused stare. “Everyone in the supe community knows by now. You and your friends are getting quite a reputation. That’s not why I’m here, though. Should we continue our conversation in a place more private?”
Sudden dizziness hits me, making me sway on the spot. Aurora is quick to link her arm with mine, stabilizing me. I wouldn’t mind her assistance if we didn’t have an audience. I hate being weak.
“You need to feed, don’t you?” the warlock pipes up.
I grumble, but it’s Aurora who replies. “Yes, from me. Let’s get going.”
She drags my ass back to her apartment. In hindsight, I don’t know why I was arguing with her about drinking from blood bags. It’s obvious that it wouldn’t have helped me at all. A yawn sneaks up on me, which I try to cover with my fist. Aurora’s hard stare immediately zeroes in on my face, almost burning a hole through it.
“You’re not going into hibernation, are you?”
I’m beginning to feel fatigued, but that could be attributed to the fact that it’s already morning. But sometimes, the process of hibernation can sneak up, and before I know it, I’m waking up a few decades later. Fuck. There’s no way Aurora would wait for me for that long—that is, if she’s still alive when I come out of my forced slumber. The thought alone makes me sick to my stomach.
“I don’t think so,” I lie.
There’s a chance it’s happening, but I don’t want to worry her. She already has too much on her plate. Besides, if the process has begun, there isn’t much she can do to stop it.
Once inside her apartment, I steer us straight toward the couch. I need to lie down because my eyelids are getting heavier and heavier.
“Sax, are you sure you’re okay?”
I yawn again. “Yes, Rora. I’m fine. Go see what Ryker has come up with.” She remains standing next to the couch, watching me intently. “Go on. I’m fine.”
“Don’t lie down then. I don’t want you falling asleep before you feed.”
With effort, I return to a sitting position. Damn it. This lethargy is not normal. I pull my cell phone out and text Ronan. He needs to bring me blood ASAP. I don’t know how long Aurora will be busy with the warlock.
“I thought you were going to look into breaking the blood vow.” She turns to him.
“We couldn’t find a way to do it without alerting the old hag. She can’t know we’re investigating her.”
“So what’s your solution?”
“We’re going to remove the blockage that prevents you from … mating with the vampire. I understand that’s causing you a lot of headache.”
I sit up straighter. “That would be very helpful.”
To my surprise, the warlock smirks. I didn’t think he had any sense of humor within him. All I ever got from him on the few occasions we met was his deadly vibe.
Aurora furrows her eyebrows and folds her arms. “I have a question about the blood vow.”
“Go on.”
“You said Elena can have access to the grimoire through it. Does that mean our minds are connected somehow? Can she spy on me too?”
“I’ve never heard of a blood vow granting that kind of connection. Why do you ask?”
“Something strange happened earlier. I had to feed Saxon and fight the repel spell at the same time. Somehow, I got a glimpse of Elena.