My eyes widen at the thought. Shit, does he? I aim a pressing look at Alex and mouth, Death Walkers.
He looks reluctant as he presses his lips together, refusing to answer me. The strangest fear starts to rouse inside me as I realize that we still haven’t found Laylen and that Alex looks like he’s going to be sick.
“Would you stop smelling the blood!” Nicholas cries as thunder booms and lightening snaps.
Blood! Oh, no, please, please don’t let it be Laylen. I start to run around the tree trunk and dive headfirst into the madness, not caring about anything but making sure that Laylen’s okay.
Alex snags me by the arm and drags me back to him. I fight to get away, but he cradles me against his frozen wet chest and I bury my face into it listening to his heart as I feel my own heart pleading to stop beating. Not Laylen. This can’t be happening. He means too much to me. So much and I need him.
“He tried to attack me first.” Nicholas snaps and it’s overlapped by the sound of the crisp raindrops. “It was self-defense. Besides, you would have frozen him to death anyway.”
There’s a pause and it becomes pretty clear that Nicholas can be verbal with the Death Walkers. The only other person I’ve seen do this is Stephan and it makes me wonder why? Why can they communicate with them and the rest of us can’t?
“So what if Stephan created Laylen?” Nicholas growls venomously. “Creating another Vampire isn’t that complicated.”
My head snaps up to Alex and he looks down at me. Sympathy and confusion float between us as we try to figure out what to do and what this all could mean.
“I’m not messing around,” Nicholas insists. “I know what has to be done…. I know, but it might be a little difficult to find her. She’s powerful and getting more powerful by the day. She can do things normal Foreseers can’t… Fine, whatever. Let’s go back and I’ll see what I can do.”
There’s a faint swoosh and I swear I can feel energy building and then dissipating before the ice droplets turn back to rain. Minutes later, Alex peers around the corner of the tree trunk as he lets go of me.
Unable to stand it any longer, I shove my way past him and run out into the open.
“Gemma wait!” he calls out, following after me.
I sprint through the rain, splashing puddles and breaking the ice apart on the ground as I run toward a figure lying on the ground. I think I know who it is before I get there, but the irrational side of my mind is telling me I’m wrong
As I approach the lifeless body, Laylen’s blond hair comes into view, and I slam to a stop beside him, dropping to my knees in the mud while Alex stops just behind me.
“He’s not… he’s not dead…” Tears sting at my eyes as I press a hand to Laylen’s heart where a small, wooden stick is lodged. His arms and legs are sprawled out and he looks pallid. Rain soaks his shirt along with blood, and the harder it pours, the further his body sinks into the unstable ground, almost as if it’s quicksand. The prickle gnaws at the back of my neck and I start to sink, too. I beg for it to simply take us because feeling this massive hole burrowing into my heart is exceedingly painful, too painful for me to be able to bear life anymore.
Alex crouches down and examines Laylen’s body. “He’s not dead,” Alex says, putting his hands on the stick, and wrapping his fingers around it. “Not yet anyway.”
“Not yet anyway,” I repeat, horrified, shielding my eyes from the rain as I gape at him. “Does that mean he’s going to die?”
“Not if we can get him some…” Alex’s face contorts as he yanks the stick out of Laylen’s chest and tosses it aside into the wet grass
It leaves behind a gaping hole in his chest and I swear to God my own chest—or at least heart—is working to match it. Alex presses his hand over the wound, putting pressure on it as blood gushes out.
“How do we heal him?” I ask, touching Laylen’s forehead. His eyes are shut and his skin is icy cold, more than it normally is
“We need blood,” Alex states without looking at me.
I glance down at my wrist, rubbing my thumb across my vein. “I can do it,” I say softly.
I expect him to argue, but he only nods, pushing to his feet. “Fine.” He heads for the trees and I turn my head to look at him.
“Where are you going!” I call out.
He pauses with his back to me, rain showering down his body, droplets beading across his back muscles. “I…I can’t watch you like that… with him…” He hikes through the mud and vanishes into the trees.
I turn back to Laylen, feeling the slightest pang of guilt, but then I jump back, startled. Laylen’s eyes are open and he doesn’t say anything as he reaches for my arm. His body’s need to feed and rejuvenate his frail state is overcoming everything else. His fangs immediately slip out from his mouth. He doesn’t speak as he lifts his head up, parts his lips, and lets out a weak growl before his fangs plunge into the vein on my wrist. I feel the jolt to my heart instantly and the need to be with him only moments later. I want him to feed off me, need him to do it. His eyes lock on mine as he drinks my blood, savoring the taste of it. His skin looks less and less pale, his blue eyes regaining some of their luster with each swallow and his chest stiches back up. Eventually, I lie down on top of him and let myself head to a place that’s only going to bring heartbreak.