Total pages in book: 116
Estimated words: 108376 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 542(@200wpm)___ 434(@250wpm)___ 361(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 108376 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 542(@200wpm)___ 434(@250wpm)___ 361(@300wpm)
What was wrong with me? Never in a million years did I imagine I’d feel such a strong urge to save those two from their fates. A few weeks ago I wouldn’t have batted an eyelid if I heard they were in danger, but everything was different now. Things had changed.
I had changed. And my feelings for Vas, well, those were something I had yet to sort through. Those same feelings were stuck like a stray twig in my heart as everyone peppered me with more and more questions. I was exhausted trying to keep up, and when Dad noticed how weak I was he announced that the interrogation was over and he was taking me home.
Sergeant Davis and the other members of the Guard went to deal with the situation at the prison. Vas and Sven might be out of their reach but Serg was still on the loose somewhere. Although I imagined he’d be difficult to catch in his eagle form. I still felt a twinge of dismay about his escape but it couldn’t be helped.
Mum and Rebecca brought Carrabelle to see a doctor and have her injuries looked at, while Peter, Grace and I climbed into the back of my dad’s car. Peter tucked me under his arm and I closed my eyes, the rumble of the engine soothing my frayed nerves.
It was a bittersweet feeling to step inside my house. Grace hugged me for a long time at the bottom of the stairs before Dad told Peter to bring me to my room.
I was in a daze as my boyfriend quietly and carefully undressed me then helped me into the shower. I’d never been so tired in my life. It was a struggle to keep my eyes open while I washed.
I emerged from the bathroom wrapped in a soft, fluffy robe that felt sinfully luxurious after the harshness of the prison. Peter sat near the foot of my bed and I could see from the dark circles under his eyes that he hadn’t been sleeping well.
Stepping in front of him, I ran my fingers through his hair that had grown long and a little scruffy again. I liked it best this way. Affection and love filled my heart as I stared down at him and his hand came out to softly caress my hip.
“I missed you,” I whispered and Peter emitted a slow breath.
“I missed you more than words can express.” His hand slid up to my ribs and a shudder went through me. At the same time, Vas’ mark sizzled hot under my skin. I wasn’t quite sure what it meant but I had a fair idea.
Peter stilled, his eyes roaming to the spot where I felt the mark alive and beating within me. He frowned, his eyebrows wrinkling, and I suddenly feared he could sense it was there, so much stronger than before. I didn’t want to talk about it, and I definitely didn’t want him asking me questions, so I brought up a different subject.
“Belinda told me about your dad, and how your mother’s not been well.”
Peter glanced at me, distracted. “Belinda?”
“Right,” I breathed. “I haven’t told you about her ghost. She’s been visiting me from the other side, or well, the in-between. For some reason she hasn’t moved on but we don’t know why yet.”
“That is…so strange.”
“Tell me about it. I had her check on you while I was in the prison. I hope you don’t mind. I just really needed to know how you were doing. She told me about your dad and how you’d moved back into your parents’ house to care for your mother and brothers.”
Peter seemed a little unnerved to hear a ghost had been spying on him, but finally, he gave a tired sigh. “Yes, there was nobody else to step in and…it’s been exhausting. I’m not sure what I would’ve done if it weren’t for Angela. She’s been helping me out, cooking meals for my brothers, doing laundry. I told her she didn’t have to, of course, but she insisted.”
Hearing this, I pressed my lips together flat. When Belinda first told me about Angela being there for Peter I’d been relieved, but now that I was home and hearing it from him first hand, I felt somewhat…proprietary.
Finally, I said, “I would’ve expected Sophia to help you out. Angela’s never been a close friend of yours.”
He rubbed his jaw. “It was random, really. I was talking with her after class when my mother called with the news about Dad. She saw I was upset and insisted on picking my brothers up from school while I went to the house to check on Mum. Ever since then she’s been a Godsend. I think she might’ve been a saint in another life because my brothers can be a handful at the best of times.”