Grasping the rusted metal handle on the lichen-covered door, Dorian yanked backward, stumbling as the handle tore off in his hand. “Hm,” he said, tossing it to the ground and reassessing the situation.
“Maybe there’s a window we could get in,” I suggested. “If that door is holding up the front of the building, maybe we don’t want to—”
My sentence was cut short as Dorian front-kicked the twisted door with the force of a battering ram. It split down the middle, folding inward on itself. Clods of dirt flew from the frame out onto the ground.
I marveled. “Or we could just do that.”
Even when he was weak, Dorian was still stronger than the three of us combined. I was thankful Rhome had held me back yesterday. I didn’t like to think what Dorian was capable of while out of his senses like that.
He shrugged, dusting rust and dirt off his hands. “I’m sure you would have managed to get it open last time if you’d had the time and a crowbar,” he said to Gina. “I just figured this was faster.”
“Thanks for the vaguely condescending vote of confidence,” Gina teased.
Zach leaned into her a little further and whispered something in her ear.
I saw the hint of a blush coming to her cheeks, but I said nothing. Maybe they were embarrassed to be this close when Dorian and I couldn’t—
No, never mind, not right now. Goodbye, dangerous thought. We’re food scavenging now.
We walked through a dining room. Dust-covered tables sat unused, waiting for patrons who would never come again. Chairs were tucked under some tables, but many were on their sides on the ground. Had they been pushed by animals or other looters? My boot squelched into a wet spot of carpet, and I grimaced. The amount of mold in the floors was probably sickening.
In the stainless-steel kitchen, I hit the cabinets first. The appliances must’ve been immaculate when the restaurant was in place, but frost and time had turned the entire place into a grime-covered, chilly pantry.
“Pickled jalapeño peppers with Spanish spices,” I read from a jar, before putting it into a sack.
“I’ve got ten jars of capers over here,” Zach called out. “You’re definitely not going to want to kiss me after these, Gina.”
I heard Gina’s hand on Zach’s jacket as she thumped him, followed by his indignant yelp. Ignoring them, I rolled my eyes and continued searching for edible goods. From most of the expiration dates on the bottles and cans, it seemed this place had only been left to rot about a year or two ago. Still, it was long enough for some things to get gross. I wrinkled my nose and tried not to retch as I found a whole sack of potatoes that had decomposed to little more than black sludge.
Dorian opened a cabinet and immediately closed it again, coughing.
“Bad food?” I asked.
“Dead raccoon,” he replied. “And what used to be tea, I think.”
“I would kill for some tea right now,” I admitted. “Or any hot drink. Even herbal tea.”
“Well, I can offer you a suspicious jar of maraschino cherries instead,” Dorian said, wiping off some grime to reveal the bright red beneath.
I huffed a laugh and continued to rummage, all at once painfully aware of his presence in the enclosed space. I swear I could hear him right in my ear, quickly plucking out cans. I forced myself to move on.
I gathered as many salvageable things as I could. Dorian scooted toward me with a duffel bag stuffed with a variety of items. The care with which he avoided looking at me suggested he was thinking about us, too.
So why didn’t it hurt?
Dorian moved to a different section of the kitchen. I busied myself in another cabinet. Logically, I would assume it was because his feelings for me had changed… diminished. Part of me was relieved at the thought that we were succeeding at trying to be friends. If we could spend time around one another without me having to experience crippling pain, that was objectively a good thing. But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t repress the flutter in my chest whenever I thought about kissing him again or the feeling of perfect safety and satisfaction I’d felt while tucked against his chest in those hazy moments of consciousness this morning. Maybe Dorian was finding a way to move on into a strong friendship, but I wasn’t having such an easy time.
I sighed and opened a drawer, discovering it was filled with slightly rusted knives. Shrugging, I added those to my sack. Extra weapons were never a bad thing to have around, though I wasn’t sure how accurate a cleaver would be to throw.
Most of the remaining cabinets had been raided already, and some jars were smashed. From the droppings and occasional corpses, it was scavenging animals. They probably didn’t enjoy the fire-roasted red peppers and had moved on. Couldn’t say I blamed them. When I looked up from examining the label on a bottle of whisky, everyone had gone.
On the other side of the room, three doorways led out of the kitchen. I peeked around the corner, back into the dining room. The abandoned chairs waiting for customers sent a shiver down my spine. It was as if time continued to move everywhere but here. This dining room, this resort, had been left to rot, the sludge seeping away into nothing, forgotten by the world.
I ventured into the second doorway, which was dark. There was enough light from the windows in the kitchen behind me and from cracks in the ceiling for me to be able to see a few steps forward.
Almost immediately, however, I stumbled over something, just catching myself. Rows of old products lined wire shelves, many of the boxes bloated and consumed by rot. From the slightly musty smell, I guessed this had been the restaurant pantry. Pulling out my little flashlight, I switched it on, taking a few steps farther in with my eyes on the ground. Hearing a breathy sound, I looked up and immediately froze in place.
In a shaft of cold light coming from the ceiling, Zach pressed Gina against the wall. Her hands were buried in his wavy brown hair as they kissed passionately, too involved with each other to hear my near tumble. I swallowed my surprise and quickly backed out of the room on silent feet.
Thinking back on all the stress and intensity of the last week or so, including Zach’s injury, and back beyond that to the six weeks spent on tasks in the training facility, I realized the two of them had hardly had any time alone for several months. Hell, I’d been sharing a mattress with them for the past week. They were my family and my teammates, but they were still a couple. They deserved a few minutes of privacy.
Quietly closing the door to the pantry, I felt a presence and turned around. Dorian stared down at me, one eyebrow raised.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, a smirk coming to life on his face as he took in my bright pink cheeks. “Where are Gina and Zach?”
“Uh,” I began and cleared my throat. “They might need a minute or two…”
Both of Dorian’s dark eyebrows lifted, but his wicked smirk showed no sign of shock. “I see,” he said, enigmatic. “I thought I heard something a little… odd.” He gestured to the other end of the room. “Shall we give them some space? I don’t particularly want to eavesdrop by accident.”
I grimaced at the thought and put as much distance between myself and the closed pantry door as possible. We settled against a cobweb-covered stove range on the other side of the kitchen. His arm brushed mine by accident as he went to inspect the contents of his bag. It was by accident, right? My heart leapt into my throat, but he didn’t say anything about it.
Time for an expertly smooth change of subject.
I scratched the back of my neck, nervously. “Well, we found some food.”
“We did indeed,” Dorian replied, his expression unreadable. “Everything okay?”
I coughed lightly, trying to act casual. From the suspicious look that he was now giving me, it definitely wasn’t working.
“Fine,” I said, averting my eyes to an unusually large cobweb thick with dust. “You know… I noticed something.”
“And what is it you’ve noticed?” His eyes glittered with interest.
A hopeful note rose in m
e, but I was ready to squash it if I needed to. “I don’t have any pain in my chest,” I admitted after a moment. “Or at least, it’s much less than before.”
“Funny,” he said. “I noticed you seemed a lot better today.”
My stomach twisted into three knots. He’d been taking note of how I seemed to be doing?
“I’ve got some theories,” I said in a voice I hoped sounded casual. “My current theory is that maybe our plan to just be friends is working.” A painful lump came to my throat before I spoke again. “That our… less platonic feelings are getting weaker.”
Dorian looked at me for a long moment, then shook his head and muttered darkly, “I don’t believe that’s likely.” His bright eyes drilled into mine. “Do you want to suggest another theory?”
No. Yes. I’m terrified of what you’re going to say.
I leaned my hand against a countertop and tried to ignore the swoop in my stomach at his words.
“Perhaps as I get used to your presence, the pain is lessening,” I suggested.
We shared a moment of unspoken hope. My heart rate began to rise, but there was still no pain. I had to swallow as my mouth became dry. My hands itched to touch him.
“We should test that theory,” Dorian said, his voice low and rich. He reached out.
My breathing started coming faster as his hand covered mine. No pain. I closed my eyes to let the moment linger. What a blissful feeling it was to touch him. To have him touch me.
We faced one another. I was sure he could hear my thundering pulse.
A cobweb had drifted down into his midnight hair. I swept it away with a gentle movement, instinctively leaning closer as I did. His face lowered to mine. My breath caught in my throat. Our noses brushed. My mind was poised on the precipice above elation, ready and willing to tumble downward.
He moved closer, and as he did so, his foot caught the edge of my sack of food, the measly collection clinking together. I closed my eyes, suddenly feeling hollow as I realized I couldn’t do this. Not now. Our lives were so unpredictable. We were surviving off capers and weak oatmeal. People were injured. There was a division between the groups that had to be addressed. Dorian had nearly died less than a day ago. So had I. This was not the time to act on these new and unfamiliar feelings.
It took all my willpower, but I gently put space between us once again. He let out the smallest exhalation of disappointment as I turned away from him. I shook my head as guilt and desire warred within me. Ultimately, guilt won.
“Dorian,” I said, my voice shaking, “I can’t—we can’t. There’s too much going on. We need to focus on our team.”
How could I kiss him, knowing the dangerous situation we were in? Our relationship until now had been unpredictable at best, distracting, tumultuous, and near-lethal at worst. Trying to figure it out right now was too much. It required levels of emotional and physical energy I couldn’t afford to spend. I needed to be there for my team. How could I do that while playing tug-o-war with my feelings for Dorian?
And what if Dorian had been affected by the dark energy overload in ways we didn’t know about yet? Bravi said she’d never sensed so much dark energy in a body before. Who knew whether that would have a lasting effect? If he went savage again, I wouldn’t be safe around him. No one would be. I tried to shut out the memory of his black eyes and snapping fangs.
Dorian closed his eyes and stepped back as if reeling himself in. “You’re right,” he said. “You’re right, and I know that too.”
I sucked in a breath of relief. We had done the right thing.
“Beans!” Zach shouted suddenly as he exploded into the kitchen.
Gina, who looked rosy but equally pleased, followed him into the kitchen. In her arms were several cans of beans. White beans, black beans, baked beans. It was a protein fantasy for starving survivors in the wild.
“They’re still good,” she said. “And there’s two bottles of wine in there, too.”
They weren’t out of breath because they’d worked so hard to find beans, but… I’d let it slide.
“Great job, guys.” I pushed Dorian’s duffel bag toward them. “Let’s get these supplies back to camp.”
Chapter Fourteen
We returned to our hideout in the late afternoon, taking an extra hour or so to make a quick visit to the main resort building to take any remaining bottles of liquor from the bar.
“It’ll serve as a disinfectant in an emergency,” Gina argued.
“Yeah, for inside as well as outside,” Zach added with faux innocence.
Roxy let out a grateful cheer when she saw the cans of beans Zach proudly showed off.
Laini stared at the exchange, utterly lost. “What are beans?”
“Just wait until she sees what they think of the booze,” Gina muttered.
I chuckled as I helped Gina sort the supplies and rations from our trip.
Passing me his full bag, Dorian dragged a hand across his tired face. When he pulled it away, he wore a look of resolve. He strode to the center of the cavern.
“I’m calling a meeting,” Dorian announced. “To figure out our next steps.” Even exhausted, he took on the air of leadership well.
Rhome and Roxy joined Dorian, and the rest of the humans turned their attention toward him as well. Gina and I made it clear we were listening, sitting by one of the fires as we unpacked the four bags. Bryce sat with a weary-looking Zach near the main firepit.
The new vampires remained at the edges, but nobody pushed back or made snide comments. Were they remembering how strong Dorian had been yesterday? Even crazed, it took four other vampires to hold him down. They might not participate… but if they would watch and possibly comment, we might be able to start to build a bridge between our groups.
Once he was sure he had everyone’s attention, Dorian began speaking. “We have new members. They sustained injuries escaping the Bureau and need a few days to heal.”
Roxy lifted a solitary hand in greeting, and Louise gave a small wave. Grayson couldn’t seem to lift his arm yet. Colin sat quietly beside Laini on a couch but tilted his head in response.
“A few days,” Oleah muttered in disdain. “For bumps and bruises.”
I glared at her, offended on behalf of my team. Sorry, we’re not superpowered beings from another dimension.
“They suffered injuries while under interrogation at the Bureau,” I said, addressing everyone on purpose to avoid meeting Oleah’s gaze. “And they were all crucial in ensuring that Dorian and I made it safely back here.” The vampires might only care about the Dorian part, but Roxy’s team had helped him.
“They’ll stay and heal,” Bryce agreed firmly. “It shouldn’t take more than a few days to get them back in shape. They’re strong soldiers I trained myself.”
Louise smiled softly at Bryce’s praise. She seemed to be slowly regaining possession of her wits.
Sike studied Louise, concern flickering beneath the surface. Maybe even conflicted relief alongside it.
“Agreed,” Dorian said, “but everyone who can fight must continue with our missions.”
“And what missions are those?” Rhome asked, crossing his arms over his chest. His inquisitive look swung between Dorian and me.
I left Gina to stack the last of the scavenged supplies and stepped into the center with Dorian. “I have some ideas,” I said, “but let’s hear what Dorian is suggesting first.”
Dorian gave me a nod of thanks. “We all know the Bureau has been increasing its presence in the Canyonlands, but we need to find ways to keep a constant eye on the area to monitor what exactly is being done to the breach. Are they just monitoring it, or are they starting to get arrogant and mess with it?” He took a pause, his expression grave. “Rhome and Bryce filled me in this morning on what little we know about the dark energy weapon that took me down yesterday. Fighting the Bureau has just become much more dangerous for us vampire folk than we previously thought. Unfortunately, the weapon may narrow our choices of escape or
seeking refuge elsewhere.”
Many nodded in agreement. To my surprise, even some of the newer vampires seemed receptive to this discussion. Doubt they want to end up like Dorian did.
Logic. Strategy. I drew myself up straight, feeling a spike of energy. The Bureau may have taught me everything I knew, but we had our own team now. An unusual unit, but it could work.
“What if some of us just returned to the Canyonlands permanently?” Rhome asked. His dark eyes flashed with worry and a dash of hope.
“We can’t stay beyond scouting missions,” Dorian declared. “It’s too dangerous with the Bureau, but we can’t neglect the area. We don’t know if other vampires seeking refuge on Earth might arrive at that location… or any others that might return to us from the Immortal Plane.”
“I volunteer,” Rhome said bluntly. “I won’t be assigned anywhere else.”
“I understand,” Dorian said. “Who else will scout the Canyonlands? We need strength and stealth.”
“I’ll go,” Bravi said with a confident tilt to her chin. She and Sike nodded to one another.
“Me too,” Sike agreed.
Louise glanced at him with a flash of admiration.
“Anyone else willing to join them?” Dorian asked, scanning the crowd.
To my surprise, the twins stepped forward with Arlonne. A moment later, Vonn followed suit. Maybe the newer vampires were more willing to help out than I had initially thought. They might be curious about other vampires coming to join them…
“Excellent,” Dorian said. “Let’s form teams for rotating shifts.”
The twins, Arlonne, and Vonn moved closer to our group. It was odd to see them leave the other vampires, who were still knit tightly together.
“Better to keep the groups small,” Bryce said with a pensive frown. “The Bureau is more likely to detect large groups of redbills moving into the Canyonlands.”
“We’ll keep it to teams of two or three,” Dorian said. “Regular rotations will allow us to give each team some relief. We will keep observational trips to the Canyonlands short to avoid detection.”
Darklight 2: Darkthirst Page 16