Chapter 25

 

It took Michael and Chase to get him back to my room. He was barely able to keep himself upright by the time we reached it.

Once they got him propped up in the bed, I dismissed them, assuring them I would call if I needed anyone.

I bathed his cuts again, they were starting to clot, iced a hand that looked no better and then sat on the bed staring at him. The time to wait had passed, my patience was depleted. “Tell me what happened.”

Quinton lifted his eyes and looked at me. “I did.”

Shaking my head, I crawled up the bed and sat closer to him. “Not that. Tell me what happened all those years ago.”

“Oh that.” He closed his eyes again.

“Damariss Maxx,” I blurted out before I could change my mind.

His eyes opened again and he gave me an odd look.

“My real name,” I whispered.

“Damariss,” he said quietly, “I like it.”

I rolled my eyes. “No one likes it.” I smiled at him. “Now you have to tell me your secret.”

He sighed. “I almost killed a woman. From your side.” He panted to catch his breath, “in the early nineteen hundreds.”

I didn’t know what to say to any of that, so I just placed my hand on his waist and sat there without saying anything, hoping he’d continue.

“I’d go and see her. She was so pretty and knew what I was and she was okay with it. Human essence is…” He stopped suddenly like he wasn’t sure what to say.

“Better?” I asked.

Nodding, he tried to straighten up on the bed, without moving much. “I didn’t just like her for that.” He took a shaky breath. “We fooled around.”

I was a little surprised, but kept my mouth shut.

He cleared his throat. “I got carried away, mixing feeding and…” His eyes darted around the room like he was trying to figure out how to say something.

I bobbed my head. “Sex. I get it.”

“It’s dangerous. I took too much and before I came to my senses she was almost void.” His sad eyes filled with pain. “I brought her back with me, breaking more laws than I should have gotten away with.” His voice faded.

“What happened to her?”

“Blood didn’t work, several of my brothers tried. It prolonged what was left of her time, but she never recovered.” A tear rolled down his cheek and I froze not knowing what to do. “She existed, quiet and docile for a few more years, Mitz cared for her here.”

I couldn’t imagine having to live through something like that and then have to be reminded every day afterward for even a day, never mind a few years. “I’m sorry, Quinton.”

He looked at me with so much hurt in his eyes. “I took her life, her vibrancy from her—”

“You got caught up in the moment and made a mistake.” I reached over and touched his cheek gently. “I think you’ve paid your penance.”

Quinton shook his head. “No amount of time will ever make it right.”

Sitting back, I looked at him for a moment. “I didn’t say it would make it right. But you need to look after yourself too.”

He shook his head.

I panicked at the thought of being here in this reality without him. I couldn’t do it. “Quinton, don’t leave me to deal with all of this on my own.”

I caught the annoyed look he gave me before he lowered his eyes so I couldn’t see what he was thinking. “You’re not alone, you will never be here.”

“No. I have several giants that hover over me like I’m a prize possession. You’re the only friend I have here.”

His eyes moved back to mine quickly. “You think of me as a friend?”

I nodded, not sure why he was so surprised.

“I haven’t been close to anyone in a hundred and fifty years.”

I shrugged. “Well, your people skills are a little rusty, but I’m no social butterfly either, so we’ll work on it.”

“Damariss, I don’t know what to say.”

I grunted. “You can start by not saying my name.”

“I like it.” He tried to shrug nonchalantly but hissed out a breath when he was reminded of the state of his beaten body.

“Let me help you, Quinton.”

His eyes skimmed my face and he shook his head. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

“You won’t hurt me. You seem have developed this serious big brother thing with me and I know you would never do anything to hurt me.” He shook his head. “Please, I need you to be okay.” I’d never told anyone I needed them and it must have been clear to hear in the way my voice trembled because he looked at me with so many thoughts going through his eyes, I couldn’t keep up.

“I don’t know if I can.” Wincing, he lifted his good hand and held my chin gently. “I’d be afraid of hurting you.”

Shrugging out of his hold, I scrambled off the bed and went over and grabbed my phone. “Pick a brother then, we won’t be alone so you don’t have to worry.”

He was quiet for a long time before he heaved a painful sigh and looked up at me as I hovered with the phone over him. “Troy.”

Nodding, I hit the number to call him. When he answered with concern in his voice I quickly said. “Can you come to my room, now?” I waited for his short reply and then hung up the phone and set it on the table. “There.” When I looked back down at him, his eyes were going red slowly. I swallowed the reality of what I was offering suddenly dawning on me. I’d just offered up my neck to a being from a race I still didn’t quite understand and was giving my blessing for him to take a bite. Would it hurt?

“You don’t have to do this,” he said quietly as if he could read my thoughts. As far as I knew he couldn’t.

“I want to.” I sat down, hoping to convey that this wasn’t a big deal, even though my heart was doing double-time inside my chest. Unable to sit I jumped up off the bed and took my raptor off my back and set it beside the phone. I didn’t want a reflex reaction to make me stab the man I was trying to help.