Britten Thorne [Ballard Prote Her Vampire Ward [MF] (epub) id

[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
.I wanted to cry when we finally reached the spot.It had taken so much longer than it should have.Hours.I just couldn’t move fast enough.I sank carefully to my knees, placed the bowl on the ground, and brushed away the dead leaves and foliage.There, a large wheel.I struggled to turn it as if steering a bus, heaving at it with two hands.Alek tried to help, but it exposed his hand to the sunlight and he pulled back with a hiss.I had to stop and rest twice before I managed to open the hole in the ground, pulling the heavy door upwards.I indicated for Alek to climb down ahead of me, to keep holding my belt.He went down into the darkness by a small ladder on the side of the hole, and I followed, bowl in one hand.I pulled the door down, slammed it shut above me.The wheel turned easier now, locking it closed.The climb down was long, and I chanted the whole way.It was probably about four stories from top to bottom.I worried that it wasn’t deep enough, but we’d have to trust it.The place was heavy with old spells, old magic.I could feel it, and I didn’t even have much of an affinity for such things.It felt like a grave, but it felt safe.I finally stopped chanting once we reached the concrete floor.I yanked a cord in the ceiling, switching on the lone lightbulb.Shelves of canned goods and military rations lined two of the walls.Another shelf of nothing but water sat against the third, and a cot was pushed up against the fourth.There were two offshoot rooms - one with a toilet, and another with a tiny stove.And vents everywhere, all leading very far away.The air was stale, but I wouldn’t run out.I sank to the floor with my back to the bottles of water.Alek hung his tarp on the ladder.He took the bowl from my hand and placed it on the stove, then opened a bottle of water and pressed it to my lips.“Drink,” he said.I grabbed it from him and drank in long gulps, spilling it all over myself in the process.He waited until I came up for air.“Can you rest now?” I blinked, seeing the blood on his face as if for the first time.“Shit,” I whispered, “Are you bloody all over?”“No.Just my face and hands.Here, lie down on the cot.” My brow furrowed.“I’ll wash it off in a minute.It’s healing already.”“You look like you need to lie down more than I do,” I said, trying to speak more clearly.My voice barely worked.It was high, raspy.I took another long drink of the water.“You need to eat something, too.” He was right, but the thought of the dusty old cans of beans turned my stomach.“Was there anything in the pack?”“Shh,” he said, “Rest your voice.” He rummaged through the backpack and pulled out a couple of protein shakes and bars, kept cool by an ice pack.Carolyn was a lifesaver.I drank from one of the cans while Alek used another bottle of water to rinse the blood off himself over the little toilet.“Eat,” he said over his shoulder, “Please.It will make me feel better if you do.”I just wanted to close my eyes for the next twelve hours, but I nibbled at one of the bars.He was right, anyway, I needed to regain my strength.Cleaned up, he sat on the cot and watched me.The bar slid from my fingers before I was half finished.He moved to grab my arms, but I wrenched them away.“Take the cot, Eve.”“No.No sleep.Help my get this sword off.” He knelt in front of me and unclasped the harness.He lifted it and hung it next to the tarp.“Whatever’s coming or happening won’t be for some time, still, right?” I nodded.“So you should sleep first.I’ll wake you if I hear anything.Your phone, the door, anything.Okay?”He was making sense.I was only being contrary out of exhaustion.There was no reason not to sleep in shifts, no reason for me to sleep sitting up on the floor.“Help me up.” He took my jacket, the guns from my hips, the knives.I set an alarm on my phone for four hours, left it and my walkie on the floor nearby.I flopped onto my stomach on the cot - I felt Alek untying my boot, but was out before I could protest.-“Eve.” Someone was shaking my shoulder.“Your alarm is going off.”“I’m awake.” Why did my voice sound so funny? My memory was slow to catch up.I opened my eyes.Alek was sitting on the floor next to the cot, leaning back against the wall.I grabbed my phone and tapped the alarm off.“All’s quiet?” I asked, stalling.Sitting up would be hard.“Yeah.Not a peep from anything.Do you need more time?”“No.” Four hours.If anything was going to happen, it would be somewhat soon.I made myself sit upright on the cot.I was sore from the long walk, and weary, but otherwise not in bad shape.The food had helped.Alek wordlessly passed me another bar and shake.“Have you had anything?”“Yeah.She packed some of the blood, too.” Good.Hopefully I wouldn’t have to feed him again anytime soon.I wasn’t ready for that.Any of that.“What happens now? Will your brother call?”“He’ll show up.We don’t get reception down here.”He watched me eat in silence.As I tossed the wrapper away, he said, "There's still blood on your neck."I touched the tiny puncture wounds."Oh.""Here." He indicated the trunk, moved out from under the cot to the other side of the small room."I found more supplies." He popped it open to reveal linens, blankets, towels.He pulled out a washcloth, poured some water on it, and knelt on the floor next to the cot.Shit.I couldn't have him sitting so close.It was like the rest of my body was slowly waking upI put my hand out to take the cloth, but he gently pushed it away."This is my fault.There's no mirror down here.Let me help." I did little to resist.I felt frozen in place.Scared.I shouldn't let him touch me again at all.But God, how I wanted him to.He brushed away some stray strands of hair and wiped my neck.I could feel his fingertips, cool, calloused [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

Pokrewne