She raised her head to look at him but the pain in his eyes didn’t fade.
“‘Those of Council old will fade in time’,” he recited. “It means I may not survive this.”
“How can you assume that?”
She dropped the paper and Liam closed the distance between them.
“It’s obvious. Those who are old, close to the end, become dust once this happens.” His voice lowered. “I’ve been a member of the Council for over half a century.”
“I know, I know,” she said, her voice shaking. “But it might not happen. I mean, was there even a Council back then?”
“Since the beginning of vampires.”
She stared at him, savoring the look of his dark cropped hair, the stubble on his face, the glint of his green eyes. I can’t lose you. I can’t let you go.
“Council vampires live for over a century. I’ve almost been in this world for that long.”
“It may not be long enough!”
“You wanna risk that? Once this happens, I could turn into dust before you.”
She thought of the moment when she watched one of the vampires in the Brooklyn Council fade away in the flames. The dream of losing Liam to the car explosion. She grabbed hold of his face and pulled him toward her, pressing her lips against his in a rush of frantic passion.
She continued kissing, unwilling to break away from him. His hands went to her lower back and he angled her against his cock. He was so hard, ready, she ached to have him inside her.
His hands slid underneath her top, his skin cool to the touch. His kisses were becoming almost frantic. She fought back the urge to tear his clothes off and lose herself in the desperation and need for him. I can’t let him go.
A hand reached up to the strap of her bra, lingering there with the promise of what they could do. And she wanted that more than anything, but still hesitated.
Madison leaned away and opened her eyes, the agony of how it would feel to lose him returning. “Just have me right here. Any way you want.”
“Fuck, I love you so much. If the Awakening will give you back your humanity, at the cost of my life, then I’ll let it happen.”
She stared at him in shock. “You’re saying you would die for me?”
“I took your humanity away from you. I know you’ve missed being human, just as I once did after Cassandra turned me. As the years passed, I hated her for it. I can’t hold you back from the life you can have again. It was my fault all this happened to you.”
“So you’ll just give up? Let yourself die?”
“It’d be better than living centuries with you and missing out on what we could have. A house with an open porch drenched in sunlight. A job. A family. Tasting food, going out to watch a movie. To feel heat while fucking you.”
Tears glimmered in his eyes. “I’d never think of dying for you and leaving you alone. But this war needs to be stopped, no matter what. The loss of my life will save countless others.”
She shook her head. “Don’t you dare say that! I’m not letting you die. We’ll give up on the Awakening.”
“I…”
“It won’t happen,” she decided. “We’ll let this war continue without the prophecy. We’ll be as helpless as everyone else.”
“And you want to live knowing that when people die around you, there was a chance to stop it?”
“I don’t care,” she admitted, her voice shaking. “Would I rather have a guilty conscience or a life without you? I think you know what I choose.”
Liam said nothing more. She stared outside through the dusty glass of the door, looking past their car. Olivia’s car. The hunter who betrayed them. She would always be a werewolf, unless the Awakening changed her. It would give her a second chance.
She sensed Liam behind her but didn’t look back. Olivia would be human again, and if she tried to come after them, they would have the police on their side. Olivia would be charged with attempted murder, with no proof that she had killed Sandra.
As she thought back to that night when she accidentally broke Sandra’s neck, she knew her DNA would be on her. But since Sandra lived alone, it could’ve been possible that a werewolf had fed off her dead body, as the arrangement seemed to be.
She lowered her gaze. The police believed Madison Stevens was dead. If she were to become human, she’d need to take up another identity. But how can I live without Liam? I don’t think I’ll ever stop loving him.
He wrapped his arms around her waist, gently guiding her away from the door.
“Sunrise will be here any minute,” he said quietly. She knew he was trying to comfort her, to make her feel better about her decision.
“Please don’t make this harder for me. I know you don’t want me to do this. But I can’t live without you.”
“I know, I understand,” he said softly, and then kissed my forehead. “I would’ve made the same choice.”
She stood in his embrace as time passed. The sun rose and sunlight spilled through the door onto the floor, revealing all the dust particles floating in the air. A beautiful yellow gleam that would instantly kill them.
“We have to keep moving. I honestly don’t know how society will end up once the war escalates.”
Madison grimaced, suddenly grateful that he was behind her and couldn’t see her face contorting with pain. I shouldn’t be selfish. People will die if I don’t go ahead with this. But I won’t be able to love another. I can’t. She almost lost him when they had spent weeks apart, locked away in the Council’s prison. And to go through the loss again…
But was losing Liam worse compared to the deaths of countless others? Innocents? Her own family? Of course not. Fuck. The burden of this was messing with her head. She wanted to be righteous, to be selfless and make that choice, but losing Liam would take a part of her she wouldn’t get back. It would make all the risks, everything they’d undergone obsolete. Their love would be dust scattered to the wind to be forgotten in time like a passing dream.
“Maybe you won’t be old enough to turn into dust.”
“Do you believe that?” he asked.
The sound of sirens in the distance pierced the silence. She arched her head back to look up at him. He exchanged a glance with her.
“It must be getting bad out there,” he said quietly. She bit her lip, knowing what he implied. She didn’t realize how tense she was until she stepped out of his hold and faced him.
“For you to die because of me…”
Tears fell from her eyes and she didn’t wipe them away. Liam touched her, letting them fall against his skin. The sirens were getting closer. Her eyes widened. She heard the screeching of tires as the patrol cars pulled up directly outside.
Liam lowered his hand. “Someone must’ve called them. The moment we step outside, we’ll burn.”
She flinched. “I know. Maybe we can just stay in here…”
“This is the NYPD,” a voice blared from outside. “Please step out of the building and an officer will escort you safely to a patrol car. You will not be harmed unless you do not comply.”
Liam’s expression was grim. “They’re being cautious. With what’s happening at the Council, they’ll be aggravated.”
“We can’t leave.”
“They’ll open fire, it’ll seem too suspicious.”
“But we can heal.”
Liam stared at her. “They’ll force their way in. Either way, we’ll die from the sunlight.”
Madison stared painfully toward the door. He was right, and she didn’t want him to be. The police would force them outside and they would both meet a swift death. But at least I’ll die with him. She noticed the intensity in his green eyes. He wouldn’t want that. If either one of us is going to die, then the war should end as well.
She took a deep breath and reached for Liam’s hand. He gripped hers tightly, and his touch was reassuring.
“Looks like fate really exists. Let’s get this over with,” she conceded. She faced Liam as he stood before her, his expression ille
gible.
“I love you, Madison.”
“I love you, too.”
Then he pulled her into a passionate kiss, his tongue caressing the edge of her lips and sliding inside as his hands roamed her body, grasping her tightly.
His mouth released hers and he pressed his nose against her forehead, gently kissing her skin. When he met her eyes, she saw the emergence of his fangs. He was going to taste her, and the pleasure made her fangs elongate at the thought of it. This time, she didn’t want to repress it. This could be the last moment I have with him. He lowered his mouth to her neck, gently pulling back her hair to reveal her throat. She felt his breath against her skin and glanced nervously toward the door.
At any moment the police could break inside. There was no time to waste. She swallowed and lowered her mouth to Liam’s neck. The length of her fangs felt abnormal since it had been some time since they were elongated.
How would Liam taste? The thought almost made her hastily bite him, but still she hesitated. This could be the last time she would be with him, and it would be a moment of desperation, lost in the lust of feeding.
There was a sharp sting as his fangs pierced her skin. She grimaced and then felt him suck, taking her blood into him. At first she was lost in the sensation until she heard the police moving toward the door and shouting for them to come out.
It snapped her from her state of disbelief. She tightened her hold on Liam’s back as he continued to feed from her.
“I don’t want to lose you,” she murmured. But there was no other choice.
She blinked back tears and gave in to her primal feelings. Two combining. Her fangs bit gently into him and his cool blood flowed into her mouth. She didn’t know whether he tasted different or if it was simply because she was feeding from the one she loved, but the pleasure that spread through her body was hard to deny. She closed her eyes, shutting out the sound of the police outside, shutting out the thought that Liam could die.
Her fingers dug into Liam’s back, her lips hard against his neck as the tears ran down her cheeks. She was clinging to the love of her life, the one who had been by her side through everything. The one I would’ve given up my humanity for.
Liam was sucking until it became almost painful. The glass in the door smashed, the police forcing their way inside. She didn’t open her eyes, didn’t look behind them. She focused on feeling Liam, tasting him, unwilling to let go.
Then heard a distant pounding, a faint thudding. She slowly opened her eyes. Am I…? It was unmistakable. The blood was pounding in her body, her heart was coming to life and she could feel it pumping loudly in her chest. Then she felt the air - breathing it in through her nose made it sting, and she almost sneezed.
She could feel herself coming alive and every part of it was bliss. There was a cramp in her leg and the dusty air made her eyes water. The sharp pain from Liam’s bite began to throb and she quickly pulled her mouth away from him, gasping as she attempted to tell him to stop.
His blood became warm. And it meant only one thing. She felt Liam slow and he pulled free from her neck, his face flushed, a smear of blood around his lips as he stared at her.
She looked into his eyes, unable to move or think. When her thoughts finally returned, she breathed in air and noticed how his chest was rising and falling with each breath. She tilted her head to kiss him and as his breath hit her skin, she could feel its warmth.
“You’re…”
She couldn’t finish. The door was thrown open with force and the police officers immediately stepped inside. She closed her eyes, a great relief flooding through her. A weight had been lifted. Her heart was thudding with both fear and amazement.
One of the officers had moved in behind her, but she couldn’t sense him. When he took hold of her arms, she moved without protest, opening her eyes to look at Liam.
He survived.
They were led outside and as she was escorted into the sunlight, she stared up at the sky, exhilaration rushing through her as she realized she would never need to hide from the sun again.
The officer escorted them into a patrol car, where they were seated at the back. She struggled to hear their voices. She’d become so accustomed to vampire senses that her hearing as a human seemed muffled.
“There’s a lot of trouble in central New York.” One of them said. “Do we really have time to deal with them?”
“Got to do something,” the other replied. “Part of the job. They could be involved with those crazy gangs.”
She stared out of the window, the sunlight warm against her skin. She smiled, and it came so easily. I’m human. And Liam didn’t die.
His hand touched hers, and the warmth from his skin made her pulse quicken. Her breathing began to slow, her cheeks flushing as she smiled from the sensation of becoming aroused. When she looked at Liam, she noticed the life in his face as if there was a deep sense of joy shining from his green eyes.
He was breathtaking as a human.
She couldn’t stop staring at him, wondering what he was thinking. Was he admiring her? Reveling in the feeling of being alive? The smile on her face was irrepressible. Liam grinned in return and they continued to look at each other until the car stopped moving.
They were taken into the station for questioning, and it passed by in a blur. She was too lost in the amazing feeling of being human again. When asked about their reason for breaking into an owned gas station, Madison glanced at Liam.
“We were looking for somewhere to be together,” he answered, taking hold of her hand.
The officer stared at the two of them and raised an eyebrow. “Right. You understand you can be charged for this? The property wasn’t abandoned.”
“I do,” Liam said firmly. “We were reacting out of fear due to the possible terrorist attack in Manhattan.”
“Okay, we’ll need your names please.”
Liam squeezed her hand and she smiled as she attempted to think of a name. It couldn’t be Madison Stevens, that identity had died months ago. But any name she chose would be checked against their records.
She gave Liam a nervous look, wishing she could talk to him privately. He nodded slightly as if he understood.
“Liam Dalton,” he said.
“Madison Dalton.”
“Are you two related?”
She smiled. “No.”
“I’ll be right back,” the officer said. He stood up and walked out of the room, leaving them alone.
“What about my identity?” she hissed, nervous.
“Don’t worry, once they see my record, it’ll be over.”
She stared at him, wondering what he could mean. Before she could ask, the officer returned.
“Right, I’ve checked out your records, no criminal convictions, you’re free to go. Since this is your first criminal offense you must pay $500 in reparation to the owner within the next four weeks.” The officer hesitated and glanced at Liam. “You’ll still be charged for misdemeanor. As for the attack on the building, it was empty. There’s nothing there. It wasn’t a terrorist attack. I’m sure you’ll be able to read about it in the news.”
Madison glanced between the two of them. The officer had to know he was once a member of the Council, otherwise Liam wouldn’t have been so certain that we would escape jail time.
“That’ll be all. I have a heap of other cases to chase up on,” he said, standing up and giving them their cue to leave. She followed Liam out of the room and when they merged into the busy street, she immediately glanced at him.
“What was that about? Did he know what you were?”
“Yes. The Council edited my records so if I was caught, I wouldn’t be charged with anything.”
“Even murder?”
“The police are too afraid of the supernatural to take action against us, as you’d understand. That’s why we got off lightly.”
“What about my records?”
“Once he saw mine, yours wouldn’t have mattered.” He stopped walking and
gently took hold of her hand. “But that’s all behind us now. We’re free.”
Chapter Twenty Three
Two weeks had passed since the Awakening took place. Madison sat at the dining table, the morning light filtering in through the window. She had a newspaper sitting open before her, detailing the events of that night the haven vampires attacked the Council. The sensation of the paper between her warm fingers was mesmerizing.
Witness reports had been confusing, many of them claiming that they were vampires and had exploded into dust but due to the lack of details and the fact that the Council building was empty, it wasn’t front page news for very long. The thought made her smile, but her heart felt heavy. She didn’t know what had become of the haven vampires, or if they managed to survive.
The Council building sustained heavy damage and was scheduled to be taken down. She stared at the image. If Jonathon had survived, no doubt he would know they had been the ones to cause the Awakening. He would be human now, unless he was old enough to become dust.
Madison heard a door open and glanced up as Liam entered, a towel wrapped around his waist. His bare chest was covered in water droplets and a small amount of steam came in through the doorway.
He closed the door and ran a hand through his hair, flashing a mischievous grin. She quickly looked away from him, feeling the immediate flush in her cheeks, the tightness below. They hadn’t slept together since becoming human, and she knew it would take a long time before Liam would adjust to all the new sensations. She didn’t want him to experience sex just yet.
He still flinched whenever the sunlight hit his face. At times he’d forgotten to eat and complained of stomach pains but she was committed to helping him every step of the way.
“Hey you,” he greeted.
He entered the living room and strode over to the kitchen. As soon as they’d been released from police custody, Liam had regained access to his bank account and purchased an apartment in New York. It was much smaller than their home in New Jersey and the double glazed windows helped with traffic noise and the heat. Winter was coming and even she struggled to cope with sudden temperature changes.
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