A Shade of Vampire 43: A House of Mysteries(44)

The two men started to circle each other, each weighing up their opponent. I wished Aida and Vita were here to watch this—they’d both get a kick out of it.

The fight started swiftly. Jovi hit first, sending the Druid reeling backward, but at the last moment he caught his footing and caught Jovi’s shoulder as the werewolf was about to land another blow. Jovi staggered to the ground, and without a second to recover, Draven sent him flying backward with a kick to the chest. Jovi landed on the earth, laughing. He was quick to jump back up, catching Draven in a mid-air jump and throwing him to the ground. Draven rolled, narrowly avoiding a kick. The Druid scrambled to his feet, launching into another attack. The first blow was blocked by Jovi, but the second landed—sending Jovi to the ground once again. This time the Druid managed to pin him down, and Jovi bellowed a surrender. The Druid instantly backed off, holding out his hand. Jovi took it, launching himself to his feet.

I couldn’t help but smile. Both of the men were laughing, and I’d never heard Draven make that sound before, or seen how his face transformed from the stern, focused expression—which usually gave him an air of dignity and coldness—to the handsome, laughing one that I saw now, one that made him look younger, freer somehow. I was struck by how little we knew of Draven—not just what Vita and I had been discussing earlier about the Druids in general, but Draven as a person. As a man—one I wanted to know better.

The fight continued. This time, Field jumped up, swapping places with Jovi. The werewolf came to sit down next to me, grinning.

“He handed you your ass.” I laughed.

“I know it,” Jovi replied easily. “He’s good. I didn’t expect that. I know he’s built, but he just didn’t seem the type.”

Jovi wiped a shower of sweat off his brow, flinging it in my direction.

“Eugh! Jovi!” I cried, backing away from him in horror. He laughed, flicking his hands toward me. “Stop!” I laughed, scrambling to my feet. I happened to glance over at the fight as I did so, and for a split second I saw the Druid staring at us with an unfathomable expression before Field, taking his distraction as an opportunity, flung him to the floor. I turned back to face Jovi, who hadn’t noticed Draven’s look, but had thankfully given up trying to terrorize me with his sweat.

I took my seat back, watching the fight as it resumed like nothing had happened—Draven’s focus was solely on Field.





Serena





When the boys were finished, it was approaching sunset and I decided to go indoors. I was starting to get hungry, and figured the three of us could have an early dinner if the food was ready.

I left before Jovi and Field who were still messing around—Draven had already retreated into the house—and made my way inside. When I reached the main entrance, I heard the creak of floorboards coming from above me, and assumed it was one of the girls. I climbed the staircase, but as I reached the top it was Bijarki I saw instead.

“What are you doing up here?” I asked. He was looking distinctly shifty, and I knew he’d been caught doing something he shouldn’t, whatever it was.

“Just getting a book,” he replied smoothly, taking what looked like a random one from the bookshelf next to him.

“On what?” I asked, challenging him. With a roll of his eyes, he looked down at the cover.

“The Kelpie,” he replied, holding out the cover of the book for me to see. I read the cover. The Sea Dwellers, a short history on the Kelpie. I wondered if those were the In-Between’s equivalent to merfolk.

“Really, why?” I asked.

“The conversation yesterday. I thought I could regale you all with interesting facts on Eritopia’s creatures.”

“Right,” I muttered, shoving past him on my way to our bedroom—the direction from which he’d emerged. I burst inside and shut the door firmly behind me. Vita and Aida were both fast asleep, sprawled out on the bed. I looked around the room—nothing seemed amiss. I didn’t trust that incubus in the slightest. I just knew he’d been in here, but I didn’t know why.

“Hey,” yawned Vita, waking.

“Hey,” I replied. “Are you okay?”

She looked around the room, disorientated.

“Oh, damn. I was trying to get in touch with my visions…I must have dropped off,” she said sheepishly.

“Don’t worry, and don’t exhaust yourself—you’ve done enough today.” I was all for them both getting as much rest as they could. The visions were clearly taking a toll on both of them, and I wasn’t comfortable with it. I knew we needed them to help us get out of here, but I didn’t want them to damage themselves in the process. I could already sense that their energy was low. Normally their vibrancy slammed into me whenever I saw them, but the last two days, their energy had started to diminish. It wasn’t a good sign.