A Hero of Realms(20)

I nodded stiffly.

“So you’re just going to stand there all night?” she asked.

Truth be told, I hadn’t thought past the next hour. For all I knew, Aisha could return before then with Arron.

“Perhaps,” I murmured vaguely.

Julie shrugged, then stepped out of the room. She passed by me and headed down the stairs.

When she returned a few minutes later, her arm empty of the towels, I was still standing in the same spot. She passed by me again and headed toward her door, but before entering, she hesitated.

“I remember when I was newly turned,” she commented. “It was really tough… I don’t mind swapping rooms with you if it could help prevent a murder…” She arched a brow in question. “I haven’t unpacked yet, so it doesn’t make a lot of difference to me.”

I looked at her, weighing her words and wondering whether there was any point in accepting her offer if Aisha was going to return soon… Still, I didn’t have any guarantee that the jinni would be fast. I thought it wiser to accept. If the corridors got busier, I’d be thankful for a private room.

“If you don’t mind,” I said. “I would be grateful.”

She moved back into her room and reappeared a few moments later carrying a large brown shoulder bag. She wore the black cloak she’d had on earlier.

She handed me her key, and I gave her mine.

“Well, goodbye… again.” She looked amused as she left the corridor and padded down the staircase.

Now that I had calmed down, I felt that it was safe for me to step away from the window. I entered my new room. It was no larger than the one I’d left on level six, and came with the same basic amenities—a single bed and a small bathroom attached. Although this one had a window, to my pleasant surprise. I pushed it open. Now I wouldn’t even need to stand in the corridor when I wanted fresh air. The more I kept to myself, the better.

I sat on the bed and leaned against the wall, staring out of the window at the glistening sea beyond. The moon still had full reign over the sky, but I guessed it would only be a few hours before the first signs of day showed on the horizon.

I found myself wondering whether the island was protected by a spell of night. And if it wasn’t, I wondered what most vampires did to cope during the day, especially those who lived here full time. I guessed that was why this place came so alive at night.

I hadn’t thought that I would stand a chance of drifting off to sleep that night, and while what I drifted off into could hardly be called sleep—my senses were still alert—it was a far more comfortable state than being awake. I managed to find some semblance of peace amidst the storm.

A peace that was broken an hour later when the window above me blasted open.





Chapter 13: Ben





Splinters of glass rained down on me. I leapt to my feet and found myself face to face with a tall, broad-shouldered vampire I’d never seen in my life. His hair was short, fine and black. A mask covered the upper portion of his face, but from the structure of his cheekbones and the tone of his skin, he appeared to be of Asian descent.

His brown eyes widened behind his mask and he looked just as shocked to see me as I felt to see him. He quickly recovered, however, and lurched forward, motioning to grab my neck. My leg shot out and I kicked him hard in the gut, sending him shooting backward and colliding with the wall.

He crumpled to the floor, but was again fast to regain composure. Reaching beneath his cloak, he slid out a sharp wooden stake.

“Where’s Ms. Duan?” he hissed.

Ms. Duan? Is he looking for Julie?

“Who are you?” I glowered at him.

His grip on the stake tightened, and he moved closer to me. “Where is the woman?” he said in a low, threatening voice.

I had not the slightest clue as to why this man had just broken through the window, and what he wanted with Julie—assuming she was Ms. Duan. I wasn’t sure how he knew that Julie had booked this room, but whoever he was, he didn’t exactly give me the impression that he was a friend of hers.

It would have been easy to just tell him we’d swapped rooms and she was now in Room 67. But, although the last thing I needed was any kind of trouble, I wasn’t about to tell him where the young woman was staying. Not after the help she’d offered me. For all I knew, he could be here to murder her. He’d certainly come equipped with the means to do so…

Eyeing the tip of the stake this vampire had pointed at me, I squared my shoulders and broadened my stance, gearing up to disarm him.

“I don’t know who Ms. Duan is,” I said through gritted teeth. “But I do know that you have exactly thirty seconds to climb back out of that window.”