Joseph’s POVShe wasn’t answering her phone. I called her about 5 times, and she hasn’t answered any of them. What could possibly be wrong? I knew she’d been with Carter all day.I decided to call Carter instead.“Hey, man,” he said breathlessly into the phone.I knew he was in the middle of training. I could hear the other warriors in the background.“Is Tessa with you?” I asked.He was hesitant for a moment.“No. She went with Fae to the hot springs,” Carter answered.My heart dropped into my stomach.Fae was a human. Actually, she was Ryan’s human.“And Ryan was okay with that?” I asked.“No, but he didn’t have a choice. I approved it,” Carter answered.Ryan was going to be furious with Fae for going anywhere without him. The thought of her with Tessa made my stomach hurt. I wasn’t anticipating them to talk and hit it off. Fae wasn’t someone Tessa would typically befriend. At least, I didn’t think so.“How long ago was that?” I asked, stepping on the gas even harder.“Maybe 30 minu
Tessa’s POVI was completely numb. I knew Joseph was here and he was talking to Ryan, but I had no idea what they were saying. My main focus was on the fact that Fae had completely passed out. One minute we were talking and laughing, and the next she was complexly unconscious in the arms of Ryan because he drank so much of her blood, her body couldn’t handle it.I stared at her pale face, and she looked back at me with horror in her eyes. Then, she closed her eyes, and her entire body went limp and it should be the mesmerizing effect kicking in. I was shivering at the very sight of it. She told me that it typically happens when the vampire drinks a lot of human blood. But being a blood slave, she will recover within the day.But Ryan will keep doing it. Fae will never have a break.I didn’t even realize when Fae and Ryan left. I’m assuming Ryan lifted her out of the hot spring and carried her away. But I had no idea what kind of things he was saying to Joseph or what Joseph was saying
Tessa’s POV“She has the mark…” I whispered as the front door shut.Joseph glanced at me with a frown.“What mark?” He asked, furrowing his brows together.“The mark on her shoulder blade,” I said, looking up at him. “She has the mark of the blood slave.”His face showed something of anguish, and I knew I wasn’t just seeing things. She really did have the mark of the blood slave. But that didn’t make sense to me. She wasn’t a blood slave. She couldn’t have been. She was working as a nurse in the hospital. They said nothing about her being a blood slave.“I think this is a story she should tell you,” Joseph said slowly.I stared at him in disbelief.“So, it’s true?” I asked, shaking my head in disbelief. “Anna was a blood slave?”He nodded, meeting my eyes.“Let’s get dressed and we can talk to her on our way to the city,” he said.I sighed and went back toward his bedroom so I could grab a clean pair of clothing, completely forgetting I was still in my bathing suit.I grabbed a pair o
Tessa’s POVI stared at Anna blankly, not expecting such a question from her. I must admit that I really liked it here. Despite the blood of slaves and the hostile vampires and humans that kept watching me, I felt oddly safe being around them.The Elders made me feel very welcome and very safe, especially Anna. But I hadn’t thought about staying here forever. I mean, I suppose the point of me being here was to see if I could handle this type of lifestyle and I think I’m handling it well. But I’m not sure how I would be able to live amongst them and not be immortal.Would Joseph make me a blood slave? Is that something I would want?Or would he make me into a vampire? I could die if he did that and I’m also not sure if that’s something I would want.But every day I’m with Joseph, I fall for him a little bit more. I wanted to be with him for as long as I could, and I didn’t want to lose him after this semester. The end of the semester was approaching quickly. It was already spring, and
Tessa’s POV“Drink from me…” I said again in a raspy whisper.Joseph’s entire demeanor changed in an instant. He froze and I felt his hesitation. My heart was pounding at a rapid speed against my chest, and I wanted more than anything for him to be satisfied. I wanted him to feed from me. I wanted him to turn me into one of those blood slaves so I could be bound to him and become immortal, that way I could be with him for the rest of eternity.But when he pulled away and looked at me with uncertainty in his eyes, I felt my heart nearly shattering. I suddenly felt cold, and I could feel his withdrawal.“This had gone too far,” he said in a hoarse whisper. “I can’t drink from you.”“Why not?” I pleaded to him, hearing and hating the desperation in my own voice. “I want you to…”I reached out to run my fingers down the side of his face, but he backed away from me, standing to his feet and leaving me alone on the bed. A small whimper escaped my lips and I had to bite my bottom lip to keep
Tessa’s POVThe watering can fell to the ground and water oozed out into the soil around me. I heard the screams get fainter, but it alarmed the birds that lurked in the trees, and I watched as they flew off in the direction of the wind.My heart sank deep into my stomach as panic consumed me.The screams grew fainter, and they turned into a light sob. The world around me began to grow dreary.I met the eyes of Anna who stood nearby, and she was also staring at the sky with sorrow written all over her face. Her brows were creased, and her lips formed a thin line. The others were also mimicking her face just before looking at one another with disheartened looks.“What’s going on?” I asked as I walked toward them.“A bond was broken…” Anna said in a tone so quiet I had to strain to hear her.“What?” I gasped. “Like a blood slave bond?”She nodded her head once.“Yes,” she answered. “I need to go to her. She shouldn’t be alone.”“I’ll go with you,” I said quickly. I was trying hard not t
Tessa’s POVSNAP!With one quick motion, Bernard snapped Fae’s neck right in front of everybody and her entire body went limp against him just before falling back to the bed.I couldn’t help the scream that escaped my lips as I watched the events unfold in front of me. I thought I was going to pass out.He just killed her.Fae is dead….“Probably shouldn’t have done that in front of Tessa,” Connor muttered. “Joseph is going to be furious.”“Joseph will get over it,” Bernard said, taking a step away from Fae’s bed.“Yeah, but she’s not looking so good.”I couldn’t even form the words to speak. I was paralyzed in my place and completely shocked.What the hell just happened?“Tessa, sweetheart. How about you sit down,” Anna said, taking a gentle hold of my arm. I pulled out of her hold and stumbled away from her.“Y…you killed her,” I managed to sputter.“It’s just the process of turning someone into a vampire,” Anna said calmly. “Please, sit down.”“She’s dead! What if it doesn’t work?
Joseph’s POVAnother trail had gone cold.These new vampires were getting trickier to catch. My abilities allow me to find them once they are first awoken, but if they escape from the school, or travel far from their awakening spot, the only thing I have to go on is scent and clues that are left behind.I’ve been searching the perimeter for a little over 12 hours. I’ve been catching his scent periodically, but the trail keeps going cold.We’ve been weaving in the nearby human city, but his scent doesn’t even come close to that area.“Could he possibly be hiding under the ground?” One of the school guards had asked.“It’s possible,” I said in return. “But finding the entrance might be hard if we aren’t looking in the right spots.”“Then we will start our search for hidden passageways,” he said, looking at the others who had gathered around to help in our search.“Search the caves as well. They could have hidden passageways there,” I announced to others.They all nodded in agreement and