Tate it was, then.
He wasn’t one hundred percent healed yet, but I knew he was roughly eighty-five percent when Eli had checked on him last. He was probably itching to do something.
I tapped his name and waited.
“Hello?” He answered after the third ring.
“Hey, umm, it’s Mina.” My voice shook. I wrapped my arm around my middle, trying to hold myself together. Tate didn’t need me breaking down in his ear. He needed to know what happened and where we were so he could come get us. “There’s been an accident. A car accident. We need you to pick us up.”
“Oh shit! Is everyone okay?” he asked. Concern reflected in his tone. His question had tears stinging my eyes.
My throat constricted as my gaze shifted to Eli. It took everything I had not to break.
“For the most part,” I said. “We’re near the college. At the four-way intersection where Cade Hollow and Sky Lane meet.”
“I know where that’s at. I’ll be there in a second,” he said.
Tears welled in my eyes, but I blinked them away. I would not cry. Not here. Not now.
“Thanks,” I said before I hung up.
I shoved my cell into my back pocket and glanced at the others. Dorian was on the phone. I was positive he was talking to Officer Dan. I tried to pull in a few deep breaths to calm myself; it didn’t help much.
“All right, Officer Dan said he’ll send a couple of wreckers over. They’ll take the vamp’s car to the impound and search for who the vehicle belongs to. He’s going to have mine hauled home,” Dorian said a minute later.
“Okay.” I cleared my throat. There was too much emotion still stuck in it. “Tate is on his way. I let him know where we are.”
Dorian opened his mouth to say something, but a low noise spurred from Eli. I was at his side in an instant.
“Eli!” I shouted.
His eyes blinked, taking several tries before they seemed to commit to staying open.
“What happened?” he asked. His voice was low and scratchy. He tried to force himself into a sitting position but winced. “Is everyone okay?”
“We’re fine. What about you?” I needed to know if he was okay. Were there any crazy side-effects from drinking Julian’s blood he was already feeling?
“My head hurts,” he muttered as he attempted to sit up again. This time he was successful. “I feel like I was hit by a semi-truck.”
Dorian made his way to Eli. “It wasn’t a semi-truck; it was a car.”
“Oh, man. You look like shit,” Eli said as his gaze skimmed over Dorian. “Did we get in a car accident?”
“Yes,” Julian said in a level but firm voice. “Lilith and Roman had a vampire T-bone us at the four-way stop.”
Eli’s gaze snapped to me. His eyes widened and I imagined how I must look. “Are you okay?”
His hand reached out for my face, cupping my cheek. I leaned into him. My eyes closed for a brief moment as I relished the feel of his touch.
“I’m fine,” I breathed. “I wasn’t in your vehicle, remember? I was riding with Ridley. None of this is my blood.”
“Oh, yeah. That’s right.” His brows pulled together, making it clear he was having a hard time remembering. “Ridley.” Her name fell from his lips as though it were important but he wasn’t sure why as he dropped his hand from my face. “Where is she? Is she okay?”
I licked my lips. “No. Lilith and Roman took her. The car accident was a planned thing. They knew Ridley and me would stop to check on you. That’s when Lilith and Roman came out of nowhere and took Ridley. I couldn’t stop them. I-I couldn’t get to her in time.”
Tears built in my eyes again, but I refused to let them fall. Eli reached for my hand. He pulled me close and wrapped his arms around me. His touch caused the floodgates to open.
“Shh, it’s okay. I’m sure you did everything you could,” Eli insisted as his hand smoothed across my back.
“We have to get her back, Eli,” I sobbed. “We have to.”
He pressed his lips to my forehead. “We will. First we need to get out of here though.”
“Officer Dan is coming with two wreckers. Everything will be cleaned up shortly. Also, Mina called Tate. He’s on his way to pick us up,” Dorian insisted.
“Good,” Eli said.
His grip on me released, and I wiped at my eyes trying to pull myself together. Crying wasn’t going to help. I needed to get my shit together.
“Are you sure you are okay?” Eli asked.
I nodded and wiped my nose again. “Yeah, I’m fine.”
Eli shifted to Dorian. “What about you?”
“I’m good.”
“You don’t look good,” Eli insisted.
“Yeah, well neither do you.”
“I’m good. A little shaken up, I’m not gonna lie, but good nonetheless. I don’t think I’m hurt anywhere,” he said. He glanced at his body. His eyes widened when they landed on his leg.
The wound had almost entirely healed. However, the evidence of it was left behind.
“We didn’t think you were going to make it,” Dorian said.
Eli swallowed hard. His fingers brushed along the area where his wound had been. The skin was pink and seemed squishy.
“How did I?” he asked without glancing up.
Dorian’s gaze locked on me. His eyes were cold and intense. I looked away.
“I asked Julian to give you his blood.” The words fell from my lips, heavy and raw.
“You did what?” Eli snapped.
“She had me give you my blood,” Julian said. “It was either that or watch you die.”
My heart hammered as I waited for what Eli would say next. Had Dorian been right? Was taking Julian’s blood something Eli wouldn’t have agreed to, even if the alternative meant dying?
“I-I couldn’t lose you,” I insisted, not caring how selfish it made me sound. “You were dying. Right in front of me. It was the only way to keep you alive.”
Eli’s jaw worked. He didn’t look at me, but he didn’t need to. I could feel his anger rippling off him in waves.
Why was he so pissed? I didn’t understand. What was I missing?
“How much?” Eli asked. His question wasn’t directed at me, but instead to Julian.
“Enough to heal you,” Julian insisted.
Eli’s eyes narrowed. “Enough to bind me to you?”
The ground beneath my feet swayed.
“It’s too soon to tell,” Julian answered. He ran a hand through his dark hair.
What had I done?
Would Eli be bound to Julian forever now?
“Damn it,” Eli muttered. He forced himself into a standing position.
“I’m sorry,” I whispered. “I-I didn’t know. I didn’t think about the consequences. All I wanted was to save you.” More tears spilled from my eyes and anger lapped at my insides. I wasn’t the girl who cried all the damn time. I was stronger than this. However, the tears kept right on flowing.
Eli’s face softened, but his eyes remained hard. “I know.”
“Here comes someone,” Octavia said.
Dorian started up the embankment with Eli close behind him. My hands fisted at my sides, and I dug my nails into my palms until I was sure there were crescent moons embedded in the skin. I needed to get a grip on my emotions, on myself.
“It’s Tate,” Eli insisted. “Let’s head home.”
Tate brought Eli’s pickup to a stop in the middle of the road. He leaned out the driver window and flashed a saucy grin to us all. “Well, hello there. Looks like y’all are in need of a pick up.”
“Scoot over. I’m driving,” Eli insisted. He motioned for Tate to move.
Julian, Ivette, and Octavia climbed into the back of the truck while I remained where I was. I thought about riding in front, but then decided against it. Instead, I climbed into the back with them, allowing Dorian to take my seat up front. I needed time to think, time to worry about Ridley, and time to kick my own ass for causing Eli to p
otentially be bound to Julian for an undetermined length of time.
“Everything will be okay,” Julian insisted to me as Eli pulled away from the wreckage. “I don’t think I gave him enough blood for us to be bonded forever. It should only be temporary. His loyalties will remain with the pack, not me.”
I swallowed hard. Even though Julian sounded confident, his eyes gave him away. He had no idea if his words were true.
Only time would tell.
16
When we reached the Mirror Lake Trailer Park, Eli headed straight for our place. As we climbed out of his truck, I noticed Dorian was the only one having issues.
“You should see Gran,” I insisted.
“Exactly where I’m headed,” he grumbled. It was clear he was still pissed at me for allowing Julian to give Eli his blood.
I’d done what needed to be done. I’d saved his life. Wasn’t that enough? Shouldn’t he be happy I’d agreed to it?
At what cost, a voice in the back of my head reminded me.
My gaze drifted to Julian. He was kind. Decent. Would it be so bad if Eli ended up permanently bonded to him? Things could always be worse. At least he was still alive.
My throat closed as the alternative floated through my mind.
I could have lost him. Really lost him.
“Hey. I’m right here. You didn’t lose me. Please stop. I can’t stand feeling all the emotions flying off you right now,” Eli said as he moved to where I stood. He placed one hand on my hip and lifted my chin with his other. His intense green eyes pulled me in. “Don’t beat yourself up. You did what you felt you needed to. I understand that. We need to focus. We need to find Ridley. Preferably before Rowena finds out she was abducted.”
I swallowed hard. Apparently, Eli had taken on some of Julian’s attributes—namely his empathic tendencies.
Awesome.
“Oh crap,” Tate said. “If Rowena finds out Ridley was taken, the treaty we’ve had with the witches will be toast.”
“I know.” Eli closed his eyes. He pressed his fingertips to his temples as though warding off a headache. “I need everyone to take control of their damn emotions.” His eyes snapped open, and he glared at Julian. “How do you focus on anything with everyone’s emotions flying at you like fast-pitch softballs from every direction?”
Julian’s lips twisted into a smirk. “Over time you learn to tune it out, or you become a recluse. Why do you think I deal with animals all day instead of people?”
Eli frowned and then pulled in a deep breath.
“Okay, first things first,” he insisted. “We need to contact Arturo and let him know what happened. He needs to know Ridley is with Lilith and Roman.”
“Why? Won’t telling him piss him off?” Tate asked.
“He’ll find out sooner or later,” Octavia said. She flipped her dark hair over her shoulder. “It would be best to tell him now.”
“The question is: Do we have a way to contact him?” Julian asked.
I chewed my bottom lip, thinking of how we could go about reaching out to him. Like a lightning strike, I remembered the business card he’d left on our kitchen counter.
“His business card!” I said. “He left one behind this morning.”
Eli snapped his fingers. “He did. Okay, so we need to make a phone call.”
“While you do that, I think we’re going to head home and get cleaned up,” Julian said. “You’ve got my number. Call once you’ve spoken with Arturo and fill me in.”
Eli nodded. “Will do.”
The Montevallos piled into Julian’s car. I followed Eli and Tate to our trailer. Once inside, Eli headed for the counter where he retrieved Arturo’s business card. He pulled out his cell and punched in the numbers.
Moonshine whimpered in her crate, wanting our attention. I unlocked the door and reached inside for her. While I listened to Eli’s one-sided conversation with Arturo, I held her in my arms.
Eli explained Ridley had been taken and asked if there was anything Arturo could do to help locate her. I wasn’t sure what Arturo said, but from the look on Eli’s face I didn’t think it was anything good. My heart thundered in my chest when he hung up.
“What did he say?” Tate asked before I could.
“He said he may be able to locate Ridley, but we’d better do it soon. Lilith isn’t going to wait long before she tries to get Ridley to connect to the other side,” Eli said.
“Ridley can connect to the other side?” Tate asked. He scratched his head and glanced at me. “Your friend Ridley?”
Eli filled him in while I thought about what that might mean for Ridley. Would she even be able to do it?
“Why is she trying to open the other side, though?” Tate asked. “Who’s over there she wants to contact so damn bad?”
“I don’t know,” Eli insisted. His eyes shifted from Tate to me. “All I know is in order to locate Ridley, Arturo is going to need something of hers.”
“Like what?” My voice was thick and strange sounding.
“Anything.”
I cleared my throat before speaking again. “I don’t have anything of hers.”
Eli lifted a hand to sweep through his hair. “Damn it. That means we’re going to have to let Rowena know what happened. We’re going to have to tell her Ridley was taken. It’s the only way we’ll be able to get something of hers for Arturo.”
I licked my lips as I scratched Moonshine behind the ear. Letting Rowena know Ridley had been taken wasn’t the best idea, but neither was keeping her in the dark. This was a tricky situation. If we weren’t going to be able to get Ridley back soon, then we had no choice besides to tell her, which meant we were putting our pack, and our running grounds, at risk.
Unless there was another way to get something of Ridley’s.
“We need Benji,” I said.
Eli glanced at me. “Benji. You’re right.”
“Who’s Benji? I know he’s part of that little group you used to hang with, but which one was he again?” Tate asked.
“The really southern one,” I said.
“Oh, you mean the one with a wad of dip in his mouth all the time? How’s he going to help us?”
“He’s Ridley’s boyfriend. He might have something of hers he could lend us or, worse case scenario he can get in and out of Rowena’s house without suspicion if we play our cards right,” Eli insisted. He pinned me in place with the intensity of his stare. “Are you sure you want to bring him into this?”
My mind dipped back to my birthday party and how Benji had reacted to the things he’d seen. He hadn’t been able to stomach them.
This was different, though.
Benji wouldn’t be pulled into the supernatural side of it all. I’d keep my explanations short and to the point. He would only know what was necessary.
Besides, there was no other choice. Not really.
Either I went to Benji for help in getting something of Ridley’s, or we told Rowena what happened and risk our pack suffering for my mistake.
I swallowed hard. “Yeah, I’m sure.”
17
I stared at the tractor as it circled the large field in front of me, creating a path in its wake. Benji operated the piece of machinery, oblivious to me. I’d sent him a text saying I needed to talk to him earlier, and he’d told me where to find him.
Now that I was here, I couldn’t bring myself to pull him from what he was doing.
On the drive over I’d come to realize asking for something of Ridley’s wasn’t going to be as simple as I’d thought. Benji would have questions. Ones I knew I shouldn’t answer, but I couldn’t promise myself I wouldn’t. Could I leave him in the dark about what happened to Ridley? The situation was serious. Ridley had been taken by the Midnight Reaper. Even if the supernatural was left out of the equation, this was serious.
Rowena flashed through my mind. Maybe we should tell her too. She was Ridley’s aunt. Didn’t she deserve to know as well? Unease shifted through my stomach. I didn’t want
Benji to get hurt—I didn’t want to bring him into the supernatural world because the consequences could be deadly—but wasn’t it necessary in this situation?
Benji loved Ridley. His feelings for her had grown into something so much more than what he felt when he first introduced her to our group during a dinner at Rosemary’s Diner. I could see it in the way he looked at her now—as though there was no one else around.
Benji deserved to know she was in trouble.
My feet started forward. I ducked under the wooden fence and eased my way into the field of freshly cut hay, waiting for him to spot me. My nose tickled at the dust being kicked up from the tractor as I continued toward him. He had yet to see me. He was caught up in what he was doing. A smile twisted my lips. The farm life suited him. He seemed at home on his tractor, plowing the field. I hated to be the bearer of bad news when he looked so at peace.
When Benji spotted me his hand lifted in a wave, and a wide smile spread onto his face, making the wad of dip in his mouth more prominent.
He killed the engine on the tractor.
“Hey there, stranger,” he shouted out over the rumbling die down of the piece of machinery. “I was beginnin’ to wonder if you were ever gonna show.”
“Here I am.” I continued toward him, trying to remain cool, calm, and collected. “Are you supposed to plow this whole field by yourself today?” I asked as I crammed my hands into the back pockets of my jeans and glanced around, looking anywhere besides him.
“I am.” I noticed him slip off the tractor from the corner of my eye and start toward me. I glanced at him. He spit as he walked. I wanted to say something smart ass about him dipping, but the look on his face had my words dissolving before they made it to my lips. “Gonna be up late tonight I guess, considerin’ you didn’t come out here to talk to me about hay. What’s up?”
His intense stare remained on me. I could tell he was trying to pick apart why I was here by my expression. “I don’t know where to start,” I admitted. There was never a good place when telling someone the supernatural world existed, but when you were about to inform them their girlfriend was a witch who’d been abducted by crazy ass vampires, it became complicated.
Moon Revealed (Mirror Lake Wolves Book 6) Page 10