CHAPTER 12

Edmund

I love how feisty she is.

I love how confident she is.

I love how she is fighting me every step of the way, but I know she wants me as much as I want her.

As we're standing, facing each other, with her motionless, I can feel desire oozing off of her. I can see little droplets of sweat on her temples. I want to lick them off of her with my tongue. I want to taste every part of her body. I want to make her mine, to make her scream my name in ecstasy. I want to take her right here, right now.

I know she wants me to. She doesn't have to say anything for me to see it. If I kissed her right now, she would kiss me back. She would take her fingers through my hair, feel my hands traveling all over her body, feeling every inch of her.

The very thought gets me harder than ever. I try to fight this feeling, but it's hard. I swallow heavily, just standing there.

"Try to get away," I taunt her. "Look, I'm not even using all my strength."

Her cheeks flare up at this teasing. That is what I wanted to achieve. She needs to put that adrenaline to good use. She is so strong, but she isn't aware of it yet. She needs to be pushed over the edge. She needs to show herself what she is capable of, and she can't do that if she's walking inside the confines of her comfort zone. None of us can do that. We need to be pushed beyond our limits. We need to be angry, raging mad.

Her nose flares up. Her eyes are staring at me. The little hairs on the line of her upper forehead are standing on end. Everything about her is screaming in protest, but she is still keeping herself back.

"Why don't you just let go?" I ask, pressing my nose against hers.

"I am in control," she tells me.

"You think you are," I corrected her. "But you're not. Just because you're not doing anything, it doesn't mean you're in control. Not doing anything is still a choice you've made. A choice to remain inactive. A choice to give power and control over to someone else… in this case, me."

This time, she tries to push me away.

She does it so suddenly that she almost manages to do it, but I regain control easily and keep her in place. I smirk at her try.

"That was good," I nod. "Now, try again."

She doesn't do it immediately. She wants that element of surprise, but she lost it.

"You're enjoying this, aren't you?" she suddenly asks, her lips parted. They look so juicy, so kissable.

"About as much as you are," I grin back at her. She wasn't expecting me to say that. I love how her eyes widen when I catch her off guard.

This is the moment I can't control myself any longer. I've been standing too close to her for far too long. We're alone. I know that no one will return for at least another few hours. We have the whole woods to ourselves.

The thought of just taking her here makes my cock throb inside my trousers. My mind is flooded by the memory of how soft and juicy her pussy was, how effortlessly I could glide inside of her, fucking her brains out.

That is what I want to do now.

With that single thought in mind, I lean over to kiss her, when suddenly, I hear a branch snap somewhere behind us.

I immediately let go of her, turning around, shielding her with my body. It is an instinctual response. I'm not even aware of the fact that I'm doing it.

There is someone here with us. I recognized her instantly. Bianca's friend.

She hesitates to come nearer, standing by a tree, keeping a safe distance from us.

"Rose!" Bianca shouts out her name and rushes over to her.

I watch the girls hug, but I don't let my guard down. If Rose is here, that means any of the other shifters could be here as well. It is not safe. At least, it is not as safe as I thought it was.

"I've been looking for you all night," Rose says when the two girls finally stop hugging.

But I understand this need. This is the only person Bianca has left on her side from the town. It must be a horrible feeling to know that everyone you knew suddenly thinks you are the enemy. Even worse, that everyone you know now wants to hurt you.

"What happened?" Bianca asks. I can hear the concern in her voice.

Rose hesitates before continuing, as if she's looking for the right words to tell us what's going on.

"I overheard the Elder say that they are planning an attack," she finally tells us.

"An attack?" Bianca gasps loudly, pressing her hand to her lips. Her eyes are wide with shock.

I, on the other hand, am not that shocked or surprised.

"This was to be expected," I nod, telling Rose.

"I didn't say anything," she assures me apologetically. Something is telling me that she can be trusted.

"I know," I smile. "It's OK. We couldn't keep our presence here a secret for much longer. Besides, I pretty much revealed myself when I saved Bianca from that group."

Rose turns to her. "Gala?"

"Yes," Bianca nods. Then, her attention is addressed towards me. "Then, this is all my fault."

"No," I shake my head. "Don't think that way. None of this is anyone's fault. It's just how life unraveled. Now we have to see what we can do."

"But all the other vampires are scattered about," Bianca points out.

"Yes," I nod again, thinking. "We can't gather them all and bring them back. We need to wait for them here." I turn to Rose. "Do the shifters know where we are?"

"I don't know," Rose shrugs. "I don't think so."

"I also don't think so," I agree. "If they knew where we were, they would be here already. Seeing they aren't, that might mean we still have the upper hand on them."

"What do you suggest?" I hear Bianca ask.

"I have to think about it for a moment," I say, inhaling deeply.

I rake my fingers through my hair, looking around. "We might have to go to higher ground," I think aloud. "Up to the mountain. They will expect us to be here, in the woods. They will search through the whole thing."

"But the well is supposed to be here," Bianca reminds me of something I already know. "You'll have to go down every day in search of it. Think of the wasted time."

"Well, what do you suggest?" I ask.

"Hide in plain sight," Bianca says.

I frown. "What do you mean?"

She doesn't reply immediately. Instead, she turns to Rose. "Do you remember the old, abandoned factory, just outside of town?"

Rose picks up on it immediately. "You mean the old Miller factory?"

"Yes," Bianca confirms. Her eyes are glowing. I can tell that her mind is working a million miles an hour. Whatever idea she has, it's sure to be a good one. I'm positive.

"But it's barely standing up," Rose doesn't seem to agree. "It might crumble down any moment."

"It has a cellar," Bianca notes. "Remember?"

"Oh, yeah," Rose nods. This time, she is smiling. She's coming around to the idea. And I have to admit, so am I.

Bianca turns to face me. "The shifters will expect you to hide deeper in the woods or maybe in the mountains. What they won't be expecting is for you to hide right underneath their noses, in their very town."

"You know, that makes a lot of sense," I say, considering what she is saying. "They won't be looking for us there."

"I can show you where the factory is," Bianca says. "When everyone returns."

"I can go back and see if I can find out more about this attack," Rose informs us.

Bianca looks even more worried now than before. "Just be careful, OK?" she tells her.

I approach Rose as well. "You really should be careful," I repeat what Bianca has already said. "If they find out that you've been telling us everything…" I dare not even say it aloud, but I'm sure that they both know exactly what I mean. Shifters have never been known for their kind and forgiving nature.

To be honest, I'm not sure how they decided to take in Bianca. She had a lot of luck. I'm guessing Milena, the woman who took care of her, was the deciding force on that one. Otherwise, the Elders usually don't allow strangers to reside with them, especially if those strangers are humans.

"I know the danger I'm in," Rose tells us both.

I can hear the slight tremble in her voice. She is frightened. Of course, she is, and she should be. But I can also tell that she loves Bianca. They share a special bond, and honestly, if I didn't see it firsthand, I wouldn't think that a shifter could ever get so attached to a human.

But these are special circumstances. This is a situation unlike any other, and of course, we all act differently. Even though I act differently. Usually, I wouldn't even look at a human twice. None of us vampires would. I guess that is why they're all wondering why she is with us. That is why I had to explain that we need her expertise on the area and the town as well, if we are to find that damn well.

"But I also know that this is the right thing to do," Rose continues. "This is all Gala's fault. She probably told the Elder some made up story about betrayal and vampires, and of course, they ate it up."

She sounds pissed. I almost chuckle at it.

"You're right," Bianca nods. "If only I'd been strong enough to fight her when I needed to…"

I put my hand on Bianca's shoulder. "What did I tell you about fighting?"

She lifts her eyes to meet mine. "If you can't run away, fight dirty?"

I laugh, taken aback by her need to joke. Rose joins in, and a moment later, all three of us are laughing together.

"Not quite, but I guess that could work, too," I nod when the attack of laughter died down. "What I was referring to was the fact that you can't really fight if the odds are stacked against you. From what I remember, you were all alone, and supposed to take on what… five people?" I furrow my brows, regretting that I didn't kick at least one ass there.

"Well, none of that matters now, I suppose," she shrugs her shoulders.

"Exactly," I agree. "No point in thinking about coulda, woulda, shouldas. What we need to do is focus on the here and the now."

"So, what's the plan then?" Rose asks.

"We wait for everyone else to come back," I tell her. "Then, Bianca will take us to the abandoned factory."

"I will meet you there tonight, if I have any news," Rose confirms.

We all nod. Somehow, the moment feels solemn, sacred even. No one wants to break it by speaking, but we can't stand like that in silence forever.

Bianca breaks it by wrapping her arms around Rose's neck. They hug again.

I take a few steps back, giving them a moment. I'm still amazed at this shifter's willingness to go against her own clan and protect someone so different from her, someone she is not supposed to consider a priority. She is going against everyone she knows, and she is well aware of the fact that it might end really badly for her.

When they release each other from their embrace, Rose turns to me.

"Take good care of her," she tells me. Those words awaken something inside of me, something that grips my heart, and tugs at it strongly.

"I will," I promise, realizing that it is a promise I have already given to myself the moment I saw her for the first time.

Rose waves goodbye, then disappears in the woods. Bianca turns to me, her eyes wide and sparkling.

"This won't end well, will it?"