Chapter 34

It's been almost 3 hours since I left San Francisco. I close my eyes for a moment, resting my forehead against the cold bus window. I couldn't take a plane because Nick could easily track it. So, I took a night bus heading to California. Greg had already booked a plane ticket in my name to Washington DC, just to divert Nick's attention for a while. I also left some clues indicating that I would go to Washington.

I hug my backpack, which contains some clothes and two bottles of blood. I only brought cash, the only way to contact Greg if I need help is through a payphone. But I'm sure there are no payphones in Redforest National Park, California. I sigh as I feel the window next to me fogging up. I'm grateful this bus is quite empty because I'm still not sure about the control I have if I'm around humans for too long.

I gaze out into the night darkness, my mind blank. What is Nick doing right now? He should be awake and probably looking for me. No, he must be looking for me.

I glance at the digital clock on the bus wall briefly from my corner seat, it's 1 in the morning. I close my eyes again as the bus stops at the next station. The bus will arrive in California at 6 am and then I will—

A familiar smell makes my eyes snap open wide. My heart sinks as I look at the man standing in front of the bus door, his dark blue eyes glaring at me angrily. A hint of panic still clearly visible on his face. He's only wearing a slightly wrinkled blue shirt with his sleeves haphazardly rolled up to his elbows and black pants. His brown hair is still as messy as when I left him at the hotel earlier. He suddenly walks very quickly towards my seat, causing three other bus passengers to glance briefly at us. My body freezes as he stands in front of me, how could he be here?

"What are you doing?" I can almost hear the growl in his voice. But my panic over my failed plan outweighs my fear of being caught. "I—I have to go." I reply without moving from my seat.

"Sir, you have to pay before you get on." The bus driver's annoyed voice is heard from behind him. Nick reaches out and grabs my wrist with his strong grip, not hurting me but firm, taking my backpack with his other hand.

"Nick, wait—"

"Shut up, Eleanor." He cuts me off without looking at me at all. His Aston Martin is parked not far from the bus stop, and from the haphazard parking position, I know Nick was in a hurry when he stopped the car. He throws my backpack onto the back seat before opening the door for me. "Get in." He commands without looking at me, the anger still evident in his eyes. I faintly hear the sound of the bus moving away, leaving us alone. The cold night wind blows slowly, but Nick doesn't seem to be affected by the cold even though he's only wearing a shirt.

"Get in. Eleanor." He repeats, this time with a harsher tone. I don't answer, just looking at him until finally Nick meets my gaze. The hint of panic is still visible on his forehead, and I see the anger in his eyes. I've made him like this... But this is my only chance.

"I can't go back now." I say, this time with a softer tone than before.

"Eleanor, get in. Before I lose my patience."

I shake my head. "You don't understand, Nick." Suddenly he slams the car door very hard, the sound echoing in the middle of the night. Then, the next moment, he walks quickly towards me until my back is against his car door, his hands on both sides of my body, trapping me.

"I don't understand?" He repeats my words with a low voice, his face getting closer until our distance is only a few inches. My heart beats irregularly, my breathing too. "So make me understand, Eleanor. Why did you leave me?"

I can't take my eyes off his dark blue eyes, almost turning black. He looks so messy right now, as if the first thing he did when he opened his eyes was look for me. I lift one of my hands to touch his face, but Nick moves away before I can touch him. "Don't do that again."

"Nick..."

"Don't touch me. Don't let me touch you again if in return you're going to leave me."

His words feel more painful than a slap to me.

"Are you going to Alastair?" His voice when he mentions Alastair is filled with hatred. "So what we did before this was goodbye for me?" his forehead creases in anger, and I see a hurt expression in his eyes that have turned cold.

"Nick..." I reach out my hand again to touch him, but Nick swipes my hand away roughly and steps back one more step. "Don't touch me." His breath is heavier than before as if he's trying hard to control his anger. We stand in silence for a few moments until Nick finally regains control of himself, his eyes returning to their original color. But his heavy breathing remains. He closes his eyes and frowns for a moment, "Get in, Eleanor." He murmurs before walking towards the driver's door and getting in. I open his car door and get in. We don't speak at all during the journey, even when I know the route we're taking is not back to San Francisco, I don't ask him. Until the sun rises a few hours later, Nick only stops the car twice to refuel, he calls Erik several times but I can't make out what they're talking about because Nick only answers briefly. Two hours later we arrive in Manhattan after almost 7 hours of travel, my body feels tired and I desperately need blood but I dare not touch my backpack on the back seat. Nick takes my backpack and walks towards his house while I follow him from behind.

Erik was already waiting for us in the kitchen, he had prepared two glasses full of blood wine for us. He just smiled politely when I thanked him. Erik rarely spoke, his cold and expressionless demeanor made him look like a robot. Like David in the movie Prometheus. His blonde hair and clothes almost always looked the same, formal. But he never made me feel awkward or uncomfortable during this time.

Nick finished his wine in one gulp and then set his glass down. Suddenly he turned to me, still drinking my wine. I set down my glass, still ¾ full, and licked my lips nervously.

"Erik will look after you while I'm gone," he said for the first time in 8 hours.

"You're leaving?" I asked even though I already knew the answer.

"Three days," he replied, then turned towards the second floor. I followed him from behind, my panic returning quickly. "Nick, are you going to kill him?"

He climbed the stairs without answering. "Would you still do it if I begged you not to?" My steps felt heavier, maybe because of my tiredness, but I tried to keep up with him.

"Nick!" I called out as he reached the top of the stairs, to my surprise, he turned to face me. His face looked calm but his eyes were starting to darken again.

"Are you going to beg me, Eleanor? Not to kill Alastair after what he did to you?" He spoke each word slowly and clearly.

My stomach felt even more nauseous with nervousness. I knew how all of this looked to Nick, he thought I did it for Alastair. "I... I didn't—"

"Then what's next? Do you want me to let you go too?" he asked in the same tone as before. Flat and cold. "I've told you from the beginning. There's no turning back for you."

My legs started to feel weak. This time I knew the reason wasn't because of my nervousness, I reached out my hand to grip the staircase railing. I should have finished my blood wine immediately, I was almost reaching my limit. But I couldn't stop now, Nick had to listen to me. "Nick, I didn't do it for Alas—"

"Sir?" Erik's voice cut me off from the bottom of the stairs. Nick shifted his gaze away from me.

"Everything is ready," Erik murmured quietly before walking away again. Nick just glanced briefly at me before leaving me. A few seconds later, I let my body slump down to lean on the top step, my breathing becoming even more difficult. So this is what it feels like to be too late to drink blood? I close my eyes as my vision starts to blur. My left hand is still gripping the staircase railing. The nausea in my stomach makes me feel even worse. Should I ask Erik for help? I'm not sure I can walk right now.

"Nick..." I whisper between my labored breaths. A cold hand touches my arm, I open my eyes to see Erik's gray eyes kneeling beside me. He's kneeling beside me, "Are you okay, Miss Heather?"

I can only weakly shake my head in response to his question.

"Your body temperature is too high." Erik touches my forehead this time, intending to help me stand when a sound stops him.

"Eleanor?" Greg's voice suddenly comes from the front door. "What's wrong with her?" He helps me stand along with Erik and takes me to the nearest sofa. Erik goes again to get blood for me.

"Nick asked me to look for you last night," he murmurs very softly, "When he told me you had been found, I immediately went to Manhattan. Did you go to meet..." He paused for a moment, observing me, "What's wrong with you?"

I shake my head again, closing my eyes, a cold sweat slightly dampening my forehead. My body couldn't move freely.

"I'll call Nick." He touches my hand briefly before leaving me. With labored breaths, my hand reaches out to Greg who walks away. My vision starts to fill with black spots. I don't know what happens next because the last thing I remember is the sound of footsteps.