Mark of Betrayal (Dark Secrets #3)(51)
Author: A.M. Hudson

“He was just checking in on you—he does that from time to time. I cover his scent for him.”

“Cover it? With what?”

“Garlic.” She grinned.

“What does that do?”

“You really don’t know much about vampires, do you?”

“Morg,” I huffed, rolling my head to the side. “How does it work?”

“Like a mask—it blocks the scent, leaving a rancid perfume. People will know someone’s been spraying it around, but won’t know why.”

“So, how have I not noticed he’s been here? I’d have smelled him a mile off.”

“Precisely why he only comes when you’re asleep.”

“Asleep?” My jaw jutted forward. “He watches me while I sleep?”

She laughed. “Trust me, he doesn’t like being the creepy stalker, but he said he’d go mad if he didn’t get to see you. So, if sleep-time is all he gets, he said that’s better than a padded cell.”

All the disgust blew out of me in a short huff. “Okay, that’s kind of sweet. But I’m still mad. Why didn’t he wake me—tell me he was here?”

“He’s trying to figure things out too, Ara.”

“Like what?”

“Like how he feels.”

“He’s not sure?”

“It’s more that he’s not sure how you feel about him. I think he can sense it, you know—your confusion.”

“I’m not really confused,” I said.

“Right. Of course you’re not. You never are.” She leaned on the wall. “But, I think he’s wondering if maybe you’ve moved on—in your heart. Like maybe he’s not enough for you.”

“Why would he think that? I never said or felt anything like that.”

Morgaine cleared her throat and crossed her arms over her chest. “You know those dreams you’ve been having?”

“Dreams?”

“About Jason.”

“What do you know about them? I never told you about them, did I?” I went through my conversations with her.

“No, you didn’t,” she said. “But David saw a few.”

“What?”

Morgaine flicked her cherry red hair and smiled. “When you sleep, you’re not as good at that mind-block thing as when you’re awake.”

I sunk back and leaned on the wall across from her. “What…what did he see?”

“You tell me.”

“I—his childhood?” I tried.

She shrugged, her shoulders staying up for a second. “I don’t really know. All I know is that he’s pretty convinced you don’t love him so much now, and that if he doesn’t do something soon, he’s going to lose you forever.”

I breathed out, touching my collarbone. “But, that couldn’t be further from the truth. I’ve just got a lot of issues to work through. But I still love him.”

“Then tell him that.”

“How? He won’t speak to me. He…he comes here and doesn’t tell me. How am I supposed to even apologise for the argument we had?”

“You know, this not speaking to you thing is for a reason. And it’s not what you think.”

“Well, what is it?”

“He…he dug up some info on your family, and it’s bad news. That’s all I know.” She raised her hands before I could jump in with an inquisition. “He’s worried that, with you catching his thoughts sometimes, especially when you get…” she cleared her throat, “—hot, that you might see something he’s not ready to tell you.”

“But shouldn’t I know? If he knows something about me, he should tell me—I have a right to know, too.”

“No. Not until he’s sure. He doesn’t want you to be upset for no reason if it turns out to be wrong.”

“If what does? What does he know?”

“I don’t know, Amara. He wouldn’t tell me. Look—” she touched my shoulder, “—have faith in him, for once. Just once, don’t go looking for trouble. He will come to you when he’s ready—”

“No, he won’t, Morgaine. You know he won’t tell me if it’s something that’ll upset me. Please?” My voice quivered with desperation. “Morg? Please?”

She rolled her eyes, at herself, I think, and exhaled. “Okay, look, all I can tell you is that…he took a DNA sample from you while you were sleeping and—”

“He did?”

“Yes.” She touched her thumb to her cheek. “Just a swab. But…he had it matched against your great grandmother—you remember that really old woman I discovered?”

“Yeah, my mum’s grandmother.”

“It wasn’t a match. So, he fed her blood while she was sleeping—did that a few times and…nothing. She’s not Lilithian. And she’s not related to you—in any way.”

“So…my mum wasn’t really my mum?” I said quietly, already knowing that deep down inside.

Morgaine shook her head. “I’m sorry, Amara.”

“Me too,” I muttered, more to myself than her. “So…what about my dad, then? Is he actually my dad?”

“I don’t know. David wouldn’t tell me that much. He’s very guarded about all this, Princess.”

“Okay.” I nodded, a little breathless. “So—”

“So, for now—” she patted my shoulder, “—just know that he’s checking in on you from time to time, and maybe you can leave him a note or something.”

“No. Checking in on me is not good enough. He should have come to me. He should have told me all that.”

“He will in his own time.” She turned me so I faced her, and held both my shoulders firmly. “Don’t you bring this up with him, Amara. I told you that stuff in confidence. If you want him to trust me, he can’t know I told you anything, or he will keep things from me, too. Got it?”

I nodded. “Fine. But I’m still allowed to be mad at him for sleep-stalking me and not telling me he’s been coming here.”

“Yes, you have every right.” She smiled and shook her head. “But he has to stop coming here anyway. The vamp-rebellion arrives tomorrow and then it’ll be impossible for him to get past the guards.”

“Why?”

“We have some very skilled trackers. One of the guys was our top vampire Scout; he will smell David, and he will know he’s alive. Had the Scout been Lilithian, we could’ve risked him knowing about David. But, if he’s a mole, then we could lose this battle before it’s begun. So, David promised not to come after tomorrow.”