Chapter Four

I watched my arrow speed through the wind until its blade finally sank into the dummy target made out of pieces of mismatched fabrics sown together and hay stuffing. Old buttons were used for eyes, and a thick line of thread formed a permanent frown onto its face. My arrow jutted out of its shoulder, many inches away from where its heart was supposed to be in if it had one.

Sweat run down the sides of my face as my vision faded in and out for a fraction of a second once again. The frustration worsened the headache that was already pounding against my skull consistently for the past few days. The lack of sleep was probably catching up to me, and my body was paying the price.

“Your aim is even worse today.”

I quickly turned around to find Kyle walking past the slightly ajar barn doors to join me. He was holding a bow with one hand while a satchel and a quiver full of newly sharpened arrows were strapped across his torso. The afternoon sunlight behind him made his dirty blonde hair brighter and the specks of green in his blue eyes show.

After catching myself blatantly ogling him, the embarrassment sunk in and a subtle blush formed on my cheeks. I turned around for a moment to hastily place my weapon on the ground before wiping the sweat away from my face with the back of my hand and fixing my hair. “Umm…How did you know I was here?”

“I heard from the captain,” he shrugged while flashing me a knowing smile. “You’re not the type to just take a break even when your superiors basically forced you to do so.”

“Well, in my defense, it’s pretty hard to stay still when you’re used to working.”

Kyle chuckled. The sweet sound echoed in my ears. “Yeah, whatever you say. Anyway, would you like a drink?”

He walked towards the futon that we made out of hay and burlap bags and sank comfortably into it after hastily setting his equipment onto the ground. As I made myself comfortable beside him, he fished out a couple of flasks from his satchel. With a proud, almost childish smile, he presented them to me.

“The guild bar was restocking earlier today,” he began to explain, the excitement in his eyes gradually growing more intense. “I sneaked out some whiskey when Jared wasn’t looking.”

“You do realize that you can buy these for just six copper coins, right?” With a chuckle, I reached out a hand to accept the flask, but my headache worsened as if to remind me that I was in no shape to consume alcohol. I retracted my arm and smiled apologetically at him. “I’m good though, thank you.”

“What’s wrong?” he frowned in question and tilted his head. Though confused, he didn’t press me further and stashed the other flask into his bag. “You rarely turn down a drink. Are you actually ill?”

“No, it’s not that…I just have a slight headache is all.”

I don’t like the strange after taste of alcohol. I never did. But if it was Kyle who was handing me a drink, I never refuse. Although, of course, the man himself had not a single clue.

“Are you sure?” his voice was laced with concern. After taking a sip of his whiskey, he continued, “You tend to undermine your sickness. Your body isn’t as tough as you think it is, you know.”

“I know! Don’t worry.”

As soon as the words left my mouth, a sharp, almost excruciating pain formed in the small of my back, right where my tattoo and the vampire’s mark were. My vision spun, and the next thing I knew, I was on the ground with the pebbles scratching my left cheek. I wanted to scream, but my throat tightened and knocked the air right out of my lungs.

I saw how Kyle threw his flask away and jump out of his seat in alarm to assist me. Albeit blurry, I noticed the panic on his face. His lips moved, but the ringing in my ears had drowned out the words.

It wasn’t the tattoo. It was Calum Reed’s symbol etched onto my skin that was causing the pain. I realized that when I managed to focus on the pain for a few seconds and make out the shape of where the burning sensation was coming from. My hand unknowingly crept towards the small of my back, and Kyle’s curious eyes naturally followed it. It was only when he attempted to lift my shirt to examine me did my voice come back.

“No!” I screamed so loud that my throat hurt a little. He flinched visibly and opened his mouth to protest, but I cut him off. “I-I’m fine. Just…don’t touch me.”

“But…” my hearing came back at last, although there was still a dull ache in my eardrums. Instead of looking at me while he talked, which he always does, his wide eyes continued to stare at my hand that was caressing the symbol underneath my clothes. I wasn’t sure if it was just me or he was actually looking more and more bewildered with each passing moment. “Avery, it’s…glowing.”

My voice came out as a whisper this time. “What?”

“It’s—”

Before he could finish his sentence, we heard galloping horses shortly before the wooden barn doors were kicked open. We snapped our heads in attention towards the newcomer. It was Calum Reed, riding on a white steed with his cloak flapping with the wind. Half of his face was covered by a hood, but there was no way I could forget those unnaturally sharp canines. They looked especially sinister today.

Kyle sprung up immediately upon seeing him before positioning himself in front of me in a protective stance. His weapons were sitting by the makeshift futon so he waved his fists in the air instead.

The sight of Calum Reed, for some reason, made the pain disappear. In its place, a strong urge to run into his arms settled in. I would prefer the pain any day. Slowly, I pushed myself off of the ground. “Why are you here?”

Kyle visibly relaxed from his stance, albeit slightly. He turned his head to glimpse at me over his shoulder, a confused frown etched on his face. “You know him, Avery?”

“I mean—”

“Yes, she does,” the vampire interrupted after hopping off of his horse. He then brought a hand up to lower his hood. His blood-red eyes were brighter than I remember. When Calum Reed strolled towards where we stood, Kyle’s fists were waving provocatively once more. “And there is something that we have to do. So, if you do not mind, step out of my way.”

“No. She’s not going anywhere,” Kyle scoffed at him.

“Oh, I apologize. I phrased that wrong,” Calum chuckled at him mockingly. His lips formed into a smile, revealing his canines more, but his eyes showed not a hint of amusement. “I did not mean that to sound like a request—move away or I will not show you mercy.”

“You think that would scare me?”

“If you were not ignorant, I know it would.”

I finally snapped out of my confused trance and placed a hand on Kyle’s shoulder before the situation escalates. One of the things that I learned from working in a male-dominated job was that fights among them break out so often just because they’ve too much ego to back down.

“Stop it, you two,” I stepped forward, past Kyle, to face Calum Reed. He looked rather disheveled compared to the last time I saw him, though with his usual elegance, he didn’t look as bad as I probably did. “Why are you here? How did you find me?”

“You know him, Avery?” I heard Kyle ask. “What’s going on?”

I looked back at him just to flash him a reassuring smile. “It’s nothing. All’s good.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes,” I nodded and smiled wider. “I think it’s time for you to go, Kyle. I’ll see you at the guild.”

As expected, he still seemed hesitant but decided to follow me anyway. After quickly grabbing his stuff, he walked out the doors, though not without throwing daggers at Calum Reed with his eyes. It was flattering how much he cared.

The barn was rather dark when the doors were completely closed shut, which I guess was a perk for a vampire like my companion. Sunlight still streamed through the holes on the roof and the tiny screened windows that lined the top of either walls. I reckoned that it wasn’t harmful enough for him when he ditched his hooded coat to the ground.

“What’s going on?” I broke the ice. The strange urge to throw myself at him was still there, and it was admittedly difficult to fight against. “How did you even know that I was here?”

“I just followed your scent,” he replied nonchalantly as if doing so was normal. “It was fairly easy since I have not consumed your blood in almost a week now despite being bonded.”

Cold shiver ran down my spine, and I instinctively took a step back while my right hand patted my hip. The leathered hilt of my knife came in contact with my palm as expected. “You…really want my blood?”

“I am sure I made myself clear on that.”

“B-But—”

Without warning, he took a step closer and wrapped his arms around my waist. Being a trained assassin basically my entire life, my reflexes can be pretty frightening especially when I feel agitated. So, when Calum Reed moved to embrace me, I unsheathed my knife and buried the blade into that spot on his chest where his heart was—all in a quick split-second. Blood as red as his eyes trickled down my arm.