“Yeah,” I said, grimacing.
Benji sighed. “That’s no good. How could you forget something that important?”
My gut twisted both in irritation at Benji and disappointment at myself. “Well, sorry that I had other things on my mind after I got attacked by a crazy vampire. That tends to make you a bit scatterbrained.”
“Oh… Right. Sorry,” Benji murmured. “How are you feeling, by the way?”
I shrugged, not looking at him. “Okay, I guess.” I paused, then added, “I have nightmares about it.”
“Oh, Caleb,” Benji said sympathetically. “That’s shitty, I’m sorry.”
“Thanks,” I mumbled. “Anyway, that’s not my biggest issue right now. I came here to ask if you had any spare heat suppressants on hand.”
I glanced at his swollen belly, suddenly realizing what a stupid question I was asking. Why would he have brought pills to suppress a heat when that was the whole point of him coming to live here?
“You know what? Nevermind,” I said. “When I said it out loud, it occurred to me how ridiculous I’m being.”
“No, I don’t have any. But it’s okay. You’re just stressed,” Benji said gently. “Can’t you buy them from work?”
“Yeah,” I replied. “I meant to do it last night but I forgot.” Remembering what happened, I smiled. “It was funny, actually. Adriel showed up all dressed in black and scary, and freaked the hell out of my boss.”
“Oh my god.” Benji let out a sound that was half-laugh and half-groan. “I can imagine. Your boss probably thought he was there to rob the place.”
“That’s what I said!” I laughed. “You should’ve seen his face after Adriel told him he owned the business. I wouldn’t be surprised if he peed himself.”
“Adriel really is hard to read, isn’t he?” Benji asked. “Honestly, when I first met him, I was like, wow, this guy is intense. He was pretty intimidating.”
I nodded. “He is.”
“But he’s also a nice guy,” Benji continued. “Did you know he was the one to do most of the work in the nursery?”
“Really?” I said, genuinely surprised.
“Yeah. And when he found out I was pregnant, he bought a bunch of new books on pregnancy and child-raising, just for me.”
“That is nice of him,” I said.
All this time, I’d been focused on how blunt and - honestly, sometimes rude - he could be, but I hadn’t thought about his kindness. He made coffee just for me, protected me from danger, and even tried to clear the air between us the other night when I was clearly upset. Hearing what he’d done for Benji shifted my opinion of him, too. Was I giving Adriel less credit than he deserved?
“Anyway, about the pills,” Benji continued. “You should get those as soon as you can, especially since they take a while to kick in.”
“I know.” I sighed. “You’re sure there aren’t any in this huge mansion?”
“In a house full of alphas?” He quirked a playful brow. “Afraid not.”
“Figured… Then I’ll grab them tonight at work.”
Benji put his hand on my shoulder. “Good. Sorry I couldn’t be more help.”
I smiled. “It’s okay. Even just talking to you was helpful.”
“Hey, Pierce,” Benji called. “We’re done. You can come back in.” He turned to me as I got up from the couch. “Hey, where are you going?”
“I wanna spend some time playing games before my shift,” I told Benji, hoping he wouldn’t know I was lying. “Sorry. Maybe we can hang out another time. You should come to my place.”
“Sure. Okay, then. See you, Cale.”
As I headed for the door, Pierce put his hand on my shoulder as he came in the opposite direction.
“Hey,” he said in a soft voice. “Adriel hasn’t been bothering you too much, has he?”
The way he stared into my eyes made me think he knew exactly what was going on between his brother and I.
“Um… No,” I said honestly. “We had some issues but we’re getting through them, I think.”
Pierce nodded. “All right. Just know that Adriel can be difficult, and it’s not a reflection on you. Honestly, he’s more immature than he thinks he is.” He smiled. “He might even be the most immature out of all of us. Remember that.”
He gave me a friendly pat, then returned to Benji’s side. I waved goodbye and then left the lounge. But I couldn’t stop thinking about what Pierce said.
The most immature? How was what possible? When I thought of someone who was immature, Adriel wasn’t the kind of person who came to mind. I thought about schoolyard bullies and people who got into obnoxious arguments - the opposite of how the cool, calm Adriel held himself.
I wandered the mansion until I found the front hall again. I couldn’t tell if it was just my nerves or not, but my skin prickled. I glanced over my shoulder to see if anyone was watching. The hall was empty, except for a pair of beady black eyes a dozen feet off the ground. A bat blinked down at me from the ceiling, its small furry body almost lost in the ceiling’s intricate pattern.
I sighed in relief. Just a bat.
That meant no one would notice if I left. I was free to leave… until anyone noticed I was gone. But I wasn’t going to let that happen. I didn’t even have to go all the way to work - all I had to do was run to the corner store and grab a cheap pack of heat suppressants from there, which would work well enough to tide me over.
I can’t afford to go through a heat now, I thought desperately. I knew the changes in my body when it happened - the gradual rise in temperature, the strange itchy sensation in my muscles, the distracted mind. The signs could be different for every omega, but they all meant one thing. They all signalled a coming heat.
And I was not going to let that happen.
As my hand gripped the door handle, I cast one last uneasy glance over my shoulder. The hall was empty. And most importantly of all, there was no sign of Margaret. Just the thought of her face made my skin crawl.
There was no question about it. The night she attacked me… that was a worse memory than the entire time I spent sick in the hospital. My brain made sure I didn’t forget it, either - hence the constant nightmares.
Thanks, brain! I thought sarcastically.
I opened the front door as quietly as possible. Then, when it was clear, I made a run for it. The long driveway was a hassle, but at least it was all downhill. Soon, sweat dripped down my face. My muscles screamed for air, but I felt free. No Margaret, no illness, no Adriel hovering over my shoulder...
Thinking of Adriel made me frown. I didn’t mean to feel so ungrateful. I should’ve been glad for him going out of his way to help me instead of resenting him. But I didn’t really resent him. That wasn’t my problem, but I couldn’t figure out what it was. My mind was a chaotic, confused wreck. Frustration welled within me.
Why did I feel this way? Why couldn’t I just realize how I really felt?
I slowed to a walk when I reached the gate. Thankfully, it easily opened from the inside. But I had another problem now. How the hell was I going to get back in?
“Shit,” I muttered. I looked around and found a stick, then jammed it in between the gate and hoped it would last long enough for me to return. “Please don’t break...”
It didn’t, so I took that as my cue to book it for the nearest corner store. I grabbed a pack of heat suppressants - thank god the Shadowcity government implemented widespread birth control - and got out.
With my prize in hand, I needed to get back as soon as possible, hopefully before anyone realized I was gone in the first place. Although my muscles were sore and I was tired from the burst of exercise, I pushed myself to run back.
By the time I reached the gate I was dripping with sweat and exhausted. I reached for the gate and -
The stick wasn’t there anymore. The gates were completely shut.
I gasped. Instantly I was filled with dread.
“Ohh, no, no, no...” I moaned.
A cold voice from b
ehind me made me jump. “Is there a problem, Caleb Foster?”
I turned, slowly and miserably, to see Adriel’s furious expression glaring down at me.
7
Adriel
Was I surprised when one of the bat servants told me Caleb had snuck out? Not really.
Did that change the fact that I was disappointed and enraged with him when I found out? Absolutely not.
He cowered before me now, his big brown eyes wide with fear and guilt.
“Come with me,” I said in a cold, quiet voice.
Caleb didn’t resist as I took him by the arm. With a burst of speed, I half-dragged and half-carried him back to the cottage in the blink of an eye.
When we were safely back home, I whirled to him and demanded, “What do you think you were doing?”
Caleb averted his eyes, like a child who was caught with his hand in the cookie jar. “I was - “
“Don’t bother, because I don’t want to hear it,” I interrupted. The anger inside me boiled over. I couldn’t remember the last time I was so frustrated. “Whatever it was, it wasn’t worth the danger you put yourself in. Do you have any idea what could have happened to you?”
“Yeah, I do,” Caleb mumbled. “Death and destruction, et cetera.”
“Is this a game to you?” I asked. “Because I’m not playing around.”
Caleb met my eyes now and to my surprise, there was a glint of defiance in them. “No, it’s not a game. This is my life.”
“And you’re putting it on thin ice.”
“No, I’m not!” Caleb cried. “Look, I made sure Margaret wasn’t around when I left the house, okay?”
“Did anyone else know of this stupid plan?” I demanded.
“No,” Caleb said. “If they did, do you think they’d let me leave?”
I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. Couldn’t he see how irresponsible he was being? “I wonder why that is.”
For a moment Caleb’s eyes widened, as if realizing something. He frowned deeply. “I get what Pierce meant now. He was right.”
“What?” I asked. “What did Pierce tell you?”
Tears welled up in Caleb’s eyes. “He said you were the most immature of all.”
Without another word, Caleb turned and ran upstairs. I stood there in shock, unable to believe my eyes. He was the one acting childish, and yet he - and Pierce, apparently - thought I was the immature one?
But in Caleb’s haste to leave, he forgot the plastic bag he’d been carrying. Curious, I looked inside to see a box of heat suppressants.
“Oh, dear,” I murmured.
Instantly, I felt a wave of guilt for yelling at Caleb. I picked up the box and made my way up the stairs with a sigh.
“Caleb? I asked, rapping my knuckles on his door. “You left your things downstairs. I have them here for you.”
There was a pause, then the soft sound of footsteps. Caleb opened the door, his face flushed with embarrassment. “Sorry. Thanks.”
“I’m the one who should be sorry,” I said. “I see your leaving was a… time sensitive issue.”
Caleb nodded and took the box. “I’m, uh, gonna take one of these right now. Hang on.”
He hurried to the ensuite, downed a pill, and returned a moment later.
“So, yeah. That was why I had to go outside,” he finished.
“Why didn’t you just ask me to come with you?” I said. “You didn’t have to sneak out.”
“I thought you would think I was stupid or scatterbrained,” Caleb mumbled. “For not bringing my own pills in the first place.”
Did I really give off that kind of vibe? Then again, I did grow startlingly upset with him just a moment ago.
What is wrong with me? Why is there such a disconnect between us?
“I’m sorry,” I said. “I don’t mean to harm you, or upset you. But do you at least understand why I got angry?”
Caleb met my eyes but didn’t speak.
“It’s because I was worried about you,” I told him. “Very worried.”
“You were?” he asked softly.
“Yes.” I took a step closer to him and put my hands on his shoulders. “I don’t want anything bad to happen to you. If it did, it would be my fault, and I could not live with that.”
Caleb let out a half-laugh. “Why would it be your fault if I did something stupid?”
I quirked a brow and crossed my arms. “So you agree it was stupid.”
Caleb’s face fell, but then he laughed for real this time. “Shut up.”
I couldn’t help but smile as well. The tension in the air melted away.
“Caleb,” I said. “I don’t want to see you get hurt. That’s my only concern. It’s not because I want to smother you.” I ran a hand through my hair. “I know I’m not very good at this. To be honest, this… human interaction is more difficult than I thought. It’s been ages since I spent time with anyone who wasn’t my family. Apparently, I’ve forgotten how.”
“You’re trying,” Caleb admitted. “I guess I should apologize, too. I don’t know what I was expecting, but it wasn’t this.” He wrapped his arms around himself. “I thought living with my idol would be all fun and games. Which I realize is dumb, in hindsight. You’re your own person, not just my fantasy of you.”
My brows raised. “Your fantasy of me?”
Caleb’s face turned beet red. “N-not like that, I mean - “
“I’m joking,” I said. “Or attempting to joke. Apparently it didn’t come across.”
His blush deepened. “Oh. Haha.”
“Will you be all right?” I asked seriously. “With the pills, I mean?”
Caleb’s smile faded slightly. “Probably. My heat’s not supposed to start for another week, and I just took a pill, so it should kick in on time.”
“Good.” I nodded. “That would be a problem, indeed.”
“Yeah,” Caleb said with a chuckle. “If I didn’t get them on time, I’d end up like Benji.”
The image of Benji and his large belly popped into my mind. For a moment, I imagined it was Caleb instead of his brother. A strange feeling came over me, and I didn’t know what to do with it. It pulled me in deeper, but I panicked. I needed to get away.
“Right,” I mumbled. “Well, if that’s settled, you should get ready for your shift.”
“Oh, yeah,” Caleb said. “Don’t wanna be late.”
Unaware of the thoughts running through my head, Caleb turned around and dressed himself. I looked away in a daze, but not before catching a glimpse of his bare chest as he took his shirt off.
What is wrong with me? Stop staring!
I scowled and wrenched my eyes away. I told Caleb, “I’ll be waiting downstairs.”
“Okay!” he called.
* * *
We arrived at Midnight Run! with time to spare. Caleb took his place behind the counter.
“Where’s Jess?” I asked.
“Oh, she doesn’t work on Thursdays,” Caleb said. “Apparently it's the night we get the least amount of customers, so Lewis doesn’t want to have more people on staff than necessary.”
“I see.”
I joined Caleb, taking a seat in one of the chairs behind the counter. If his boss was here right now, he apparently had no interest in interrogating me again tonight.
Good. Let’s keep it that way.
The shift went on as normal. Caleb greeted customers, rang up their items, and suggested products when prompted. It was an easy job, if a mind-numbing one. I found myself becoming distracted by my own thoughts, especially those of my book. I hadn’t mentioned it to anyone, since I kept my work ideas private, but I was currently battling a writer’s block. The plot just wasn’t working the way I wanted it to, making me severely frustrated.
For about an hour, no new customers arrived. Caleb sighed and leaned on the counter. “I’m gonna rearrange some product, since I’m supposed to do something if there’s nobody here.”
“Your boss doesn’t seem to be here,” I
commented.
“He’s not in right now,” Caleb said, “but he does check the cameras sometimes to make sure we aren’t goofing off.”
I furrowed my brow. “Okay. Do what you need to do.”
Caleb leapt over the counter and started fixing displays and stock on the shelves. Meanwhile, I delved deeper into my thoughts and tried to untangle the knot in my story.
The bell on the door jingled. Caleb turned to the customer. “Hi, there. Is there anything I - “
He cut off sharply and the store went quiet. The abrupt sound instantly aroused my suspicion. A tense aura gripped everything.
I saw him. A man dressed in all black with his face covered. A man who didn’t want to be recognized for what he was about to do.
Caleb’s eyes widened as fear began to spread across his face.
Time slowed.
The masked man reached for an item on his belt. I didn’t know what it was, but I wasn’t going to give him time to pull it out.
In one lightning-fast motion, I lunged past the counter and pinned the man to the far wall. A shelf of product behind him collapsed. Caleb cried out.
“What do you think you’re doing?” I snarled at the man. Only his eyes were visible behind the mask, and they went crazed with terror now.
“The fuck?” he said, his voice full of fear. “Let go of me, man!”
Instead of complying, my grip on his wrists tightened, hard enough to be painful but not to break anything.
“I will not. What is on your belt?” I demanded.
Behind me, I heard Caleb breathing heavily as he dialed a phone number. “Hello? Please help, there’s a man trying to rob the store at - “
“What is on your belt?” I snapped when the man didn’t reply.
When the man still didn’t answer, I acted. Too fast for him to escape, I clutched both his wrists in one hand while grabbing the item with the other.
A pocket knife, I thought.
Anger boiled inside me. I snatched the item and crushed it in my hand. The leftover debris fell to the floor. My hand was unharmed.
The man whimpered. “What the hell?”
“The police are coming,” Caleb told me in a shaky voice. The waver of fear in his voice infuriated me even further. How dare this man threaten Caleb? I wasn’t a violent vampire, but right now it took everything I had not to kill this scum on the spot.
Omega’s Vampire Bodyguard: Tenebrae Brothers Book 2 Page 5
