He pulled my shoulder in place with one strong thrust, causing my mental carousel to go spinning out of control. I bit my lip until it hurt, refusing to cry or scream any more than I already had. Seemingly satisfied that he’d done his part, Derek stood up and headed for the bed. I was afraid that he was going to once again turn on Ashley. She moved as far away from him as she could until her back hit the headboard. She was still wearing nothing but her underwear. Derek glared at her but relief washed over both of us when he picked up the shirt that was hanging over the edge of the bed. He put the shirt on before retrieving a Swiss knife from his pocket. I knew what it was for.
“No. I don’t want to drink your blood.”
“Why the hell not?” He cut a gash in his palm anyway and shoved his hand in front of my face. “Drink, Sofia.” He sounded more authoritarian than he ever did before.
I sealed my lips shut as I glared at him. It was my act of defiance. It was my way of telling him that I wasn’t back at The Shade to be his slave.
“You’re trying my patience.” He withdrew his hand from me and glared at me as if I was the most exasperating, stubborn creature he’d ever laid eyes on. “Whose blood do you want to drink then? Or would you rather just bleed to death? If it’s the latter, you might as well just let me feed on you. That way, your bleeding to death could at least serve to satisfy my hunger.”
Derek was definitely making no effort to hide his irritation. I noticed how he gulped at the sight of my blood, and I wondered how much self-control it was taking him not to have a taste of it.
“Help Ashley first.”
Blood was still trickling from Ashley’s neck and she looked pale as a ghost. The expression on her face made it clear how horrified she was by the idea of drinking Derek’s blood.
“You’re joking.” Derek’s face deadpanned.
I shook my head. I kept one hand on my wound, applying pressure to it.
He muttered several curses under his breath before grabbing me by my uninjured arm and pulling me up to a standing position. The blood rush caused by the sudden motion made me too dizzy to stand on my own and I found myself falling against him. He half-carried, half-dragged me to the bed, sitting me non-too-gently over its edge before shoving his palm toward Ashley.
“Drink.” He ordered her. “Make it quick. Sofia’s losing a lot of blood.”
Ashley gave him a murderous look before holding his wrist and fingers with each hand. Then she drank. The pink was returning to Ashley’s skin, a contrast from the pale white it was only seconds ago. I looked at the bite marks on her neck. They weren’t closing yet. “Why isn’t she healing?”
“She is.” Derek assured me as he pulled his palm away from Ashley. The gash on his palm was already closing. “She takes more time to heal than you.”
“Why?”
“I haven’t the slightest clue.” He took out the Swiss knife and cut another gash in the same palm. “Your turn.” He offered his hand up to me. “Now drink.”
I grumbled as I took his hand in mine. I saw amusement flicker in his eyes once I started drinking his blood.
“Stubborn girl.”
It took about half a minute of drinking before my punctured ligament repaired itself. The skin over my wound was just about to completely close when Kyle showed up by the door. He had a smile on his face. He was most likely expecting that I had a joyous reunion with Derek. It was agonizing to see his smile fade away, a pained expression replacing it when he saw Ashley, in her state of undress, inside the room.
“Take her to the Cells.” Derek commanded the moment he realized the guard was there. “She will stand trial in front of the council tomorrow for attempting to kill me.”
Kyle’s eyes grew wide with shock. “Of course, your highness.” He approached Ashley and gently helped her up. I noticed the pained look in his eyes when he saw the bite marks on her neck.
“Wait…” I could feel Derek’s frustrated glare on me as I stood up. Ignoring him, I rushed to Ashley and embraced her, water moistening my eyes. I wanted to say something to assure her, but I found myself at a loss for words.
She was stiff against my embrace, refusing to return the gesture. “Now you return?”
“I couldn’t stay away even if I wanted to,” I whispered back.
We pulled away from each other. She looked at me coldly, her expression far too close to hatred. Unnerved by her eyes on me, I shifted my gaze toward Derek. “Let her put on something first… It’s cold there.” I could almost feel the chill just remembering what it was like to wake up in one of the dungeons.