"Lissa, clean up, get dressed and eat, I want you in my study in an hour," Merrill said as he forced Gavin and the other vampire away from my room. I did all those things as ordered, crying most of the time before making my way to Merrill's study just under the wire. I had a pocket full of tissues with me too. I couldn't stop the tears. I hadn't put any shoes on so my knees were up to my chest in my favorite chair.
Merrill had his back turned to me, staring out the window. At least my nose didn't run any more when I wept. Not worth becoming vampire over, I assure you. Merrill didn't turn around when he spoke. "The Council has to maintain order, Lissa," he began. "They have to be fair in their dealings with all vampires. If a rule is broken then punishment is given. It's as simple as that." Good for them. I'm sure they never made a mistake. I wanted to say it out loud but I didn't.
So far, too, I hadn't been on the receiving end of too much fairness, I don't think. From the idiots who'd turned me to Gavin hunting me down, preparing to eliminate me the moment the Council gave the word. And now this. No good deed truly goes unpunished. "You should be thankful they didn't require your life," Merrill went on. If they'd killed me, it would have been quicker and less painful and it would save me from listening to this crap now. I remained silent, wiping tears away with a tissue. Yeah. See if I ever put any effort into saving their worthless hides again. They reminded me of a bunch of stuffed parrots. The kind you can pull the string on and get one of a handful of pre-recorded words and sayings. Had I cared for Merrill? That wouldn't happen again.
"Lissa, you should make every effort to follow the rules from this point forward," Merrill went on. "You have two strikes against you. I can only imagine what one more will do."
As lectures go, this one was sucking just as much as quite a few others I'd gotten. I wondered if we were anywhere close to being done. Merrill had come around his desk and knelt down beside my chair. He reached out to touch my cheek and I jerked away from him. "Don't touch me," I said sullenly. He pulled his hand back and stood. If someone beat me, that didn't mean I had to love them. If they watched while someone else beat me, it didn't mean I loved them for that, either. And they certainly weren't going to put their hands on me afterward like everything was all right and nothing had happened.
"Gavin wants to see you," Merrill sighed.
"I don't want to see him," I muttered. "Ever."
"Lissa, please."
"Don't make me talk to him. Or to you. Or any other vampire on this God-forsaken planet."
"Very well. Go to your room," Merrill ordered. "I am keeping your cell phone and your computer for the time being." I almost laughed at his words. I wanted to tell him what he could do with my laptop and cell phone, but I didn't. I just got up from my seat, walked out of his study and went straight to my room.
Gavin passed my bedroom several times before he stopped. I didn't want to see him. Truly. I couldn't think of a single soul I'd met since becoming vampire that I would have welcomed right then. They'd all sold me down the river in one way or another. I huddled on my sofa, watching television for a little while, listening to the news concerning the usual rapes, murders, stabbings, child abuse, domestic violence—the entire gamut of human mistreatment, one for the other. Too bad there wasn't vampire television; I'm sure my beating would have been televised as a warning to others. Half an hour before dawn, I went to my bedside table and pulled Gavin's ring from my finger, setting it down where he could find it. Then I turned to mist and made my way out the barest of cracks around the window, floating up to the roof. Dawn was too near for the stars to be visible except for one or two, far off. Carefully I undressed and folded my clothes. Even with the absence of ash as a telltale sign, my clothing would let them know they needn't come looking for me. There wasn't any concrete around the manor to stand on. Nothing else, either, that might prevent me from digging my way into the soil in case the pain became unbearable. The rooftop was the next best thing. I knew the moment the sun peeked over the horizon, although my eyes were closed. My skin burned, and then blackened and began to boil as dawn broke over tranquil, English fields.
* * *
"Lissa!" Merrill's shout could be heard from one end of the manor to the other. He fled to the rooftop as fast as he could, the sun warm on his skin as he flew. "Lissa!" Merrill was crying her name as he found her, her skin completely blackened and flaking away. She toppled over as he rushed toward her. Wrapping Lissa's body in his arms, Merrill pulled her from the rooftop and sped toward a window.
The End
* * *
The Blood Destiny series continues with Blood Sense, coming soon to an e-reader near you.
About the Author:
Connie Suttle lives in Oklahoma with her patient, long-suffering husband and three cats (the cats are not long-suffering and are certainly not patient). Connie adores fantasy of all kinds and loves vampires, werewolves and most other things one might bump into in the night. When she isn't reading, she's writing (except when the cats are hungry). For information on forthcoming titles, please visit her website at www.subtledemon.com, her blog at subtledemon.blogspot.com or follow subtledemon on twitter or Subtle Demon on Facebook.
Blood Passage (Blood Destiny #2) Page 25
