A Shade of Blood (A Shade of Vampire #2)(10)
Author: Bella Forrest

I found it sickening the way she talked about Derek like he was some sort of hero, but if one thing was clear to me at that point, Derek had done something to warrant her trust. Still, though he might have fooled her, he wasn’t fooling me.

Tears moistened her eyes as she was finally able to force herself to look at me. “I’m so sorry, Ben. If I didn’t wander off that night, you wouldn’t have…” She choked on her words, biting hard on her lower lip. She grabbed my hands and squeezed hard.

I wanted to comfort her, tell her that it wasn’t her fault. She couldn’t have known. She was a victim too. However, I didn’t tell her the things that I should’ve told her, because I was too preoccupied mulling over what I couldn’t bring myself to tell her.

I couldn’t tell her that after what Claudia put my body through, my sense of touch was so dulled I could barely feel Sofia’s hands on mine. I didn’t want any more of her pity.

I also couldn’t tell her that Derek was the vampire who killed Eliza, because in spite of everything we’d been through, I was no longer sure of where her loyalties stood and the idea that she wouldn’t believe me, that she could still choose Derek over me was one that I found terrifying.

CHAPTER 9: DEREK

You shouldn’t have let her go.

I tried everything I could to shut out my sister’s words and keep them from continuously circling in my mind, but it was impossible. They gnawed at me and reminded me of the truth that I already felt so immensely. Sofia was no longer around, and no matter whom I surrounded myself with or what activity I tried to immerse myself in, I could still feel her absence with every fiber of my being.

Of course, I’d lived long enough to mask what I was going through as I continued my strict schedule of meetings with the vampires I needed to carry out my commands. By the end of the day, word was already out all over the island: The prince is wide awake. He’s done taking a break and is about to get right to the bloody business of keeping The Shade safe.

I hated to admit it, but Vivienne was right. It was all a ruse, a show I had to put on in order to distract myself from the void that formed upon Sofia’s departure.

After I wrapped up the last meeting of the day, I pulled Cameron to the side. “I can trust you, can’t I?”

He nodded. “You know you can.”

“I want you to find my older brother. We had a falling out…” He almost killed Sofia. “It was a pretty big fight and he’s running scared of me now. You know how cowardly Lucas can get.”

A smirk formed on Cameron’s face. It was recognized by a handful of us that Lucas wasn’t the kind of warrior we’d like to end up on the battlefield with. He’d be sure to throw us at the enemy’s cannons if it meant he could save his life.

“What do you want me to do, Derek?” Cameron asked in his typical Scottish slur.

“I need you to find him. He’s hiding on this island somewhere, or maybe he’s even out with some of the scouts looking for new slaves he can exploit. I don’t know… I just need to know where he is.”

“What do you want me to do once I find him?”

I hesitated, but nodded when I realized what was needed. “Lock him up. In the Cells.” I can’t afford to have him go after her. “Then report back to me immediately.”

“The king isn’t going to like that. Neither will your sister.”

“Vivienne will understand. She’s always been on my side. As for my father, I’ll take care of him when he gets here. It’s just of prime importance right now that I know where Lucas is located at all times.”

Cameron nodded. “I’ll be on the lookout for him.”

Satisfied that the search for my older brother was left in capable hands, I eventually retreated to my penthouse, ready for a well-deserved rest. The moment I entered my house, however, I realized that my day was far from over. Ashley, Paige and Rosa, the other three girls who, along with Sofia, completed my harem, were waiting for me.

Harem. I grimaced at the word. What a foolish connotation. It was another one of those innovations The Shade had come up with during my four-hundred-year slumber. Keeping a house full of young, gorgeous and nubile human slaves was a reckless and lavish indulgence the Elite and some of the other Lodgers – naturalized vampire citizens of The Shade – enjoyed. From the moment I was introduced to the idea, I was never an avid fan of it, but it was this very indulgence that brought me Sofia.

I scowled at the three lovely teenagers, standing in the middle of the hall, waiting for my arrival. Seeing them only reminded me of Sofia. Hell, everything about this place reminds me of Sofia now.

“Where’s Sofia?” It was the blonde, Ashley, who spoke up. Of the three, she’d always been the gutsier one.

Half of me planned to just walk past them and head directly for my room. Something told me, however, that they would simply follow right after me so I sat on one of the couches in the living room. “I don’t know where she is exactly, but she’s definitely no longer here.” I motioned for them to take their seats across from me. The girls exchanged glances as they sat next to each other on the largest couch.

“She escaped?” Ashley asked.

“Yes,” I nodded. “Her and that boyfriend of hers… Ben.”

“Ben’s not her boyfriend,” Rosa, the pretty petite one with the short, wavy black hair spoke up. She was the one who always looked like she would die of fright whenever I was around. She still looked that way, so I had to give kudos to her for being able to speak up in front of me for what I believed was the very first time.

I exhaled, annoyed by her clarification, before nonchalantly waving a hand in the air. “I don’t really care.”

A lie. I knew it. They knew it.

Bold-faced, Paige, the sporty brunette, scoffed at me. “Oh, sure. You don’t care about her. Look… We know Sofia. She would never leave without us. She wouldn’t betray us like that.”

“But she did, didn’t she? She’s no longer here.”

“What did you do to her?” Ashley managed to ask, her voice mixed with accusation and fear.

“I helped her escape.” I grimaced even as I glared at her for daring to question me that way. “Look. If it’s any consolation, she begged me to let you come. I wouldn’t hear of it. I couldn’t risk The Shade by just letting you loose.”

“But you trust Ben enough to let him go?” Paige’s voice betrayed her frustration.