Page 52 of Before We Burn

When Marz turns to me, her green eyes wide and a small smile hidden at the corner of her lips, I can’t help myself. I walk over to her, breezing past Benny, to gently touch her jaw with my knuckles.

I feel Benny move closer, but I don’t acknowledge him. There’s nothing to say. He had to get over whatever it was he felt, and it’s my turn to do the same.

“You left,” I say, my voice soft as I look at Marz. Her hair is different—instead of thick voluminous curls, she’s wearing it straight. I touch a strand of hair as she turns and pours her concoction into a cup. She hands it to me, her smile never fully forming, but the shadow of one is there.

“I wanted you to sleep in. Plus, I made you this. It has bananas, strawberries, spinach, kale, and some oats. I figured you wouldn’t have an appetite, but you still need something to hold you over tonight.”

I furrow my brows and look out the small window above the sink to see the beginning of the sunset, the sky illuminated in hues of orange, purple, and red. “I slept all day?” I look around the room to see all eyes on me.

Constantine rolls her eyes and sighs. “Of course the human would sleep all day. Why are we surprised? Besides, we have more important things to talk about.”

Constantine moves from the corner and sits down. There is something so sinister about her when she gets like this. It’s obvious she is irritated in the way she carries herself. Her fox-like eyes feel haunting. She must’ve noticed me watching her because she flashes me a smile, baring her fangs, and I quickly avert my gaze and drink the smoothie Marz made me.

“So talk.” I’m shocked that Benny spoke to Constantine so casually, but in the same breath, I don’t know what kind of power Benny holds. He was born from witches—raised by them long enough that he recognized his need to lie to protect himself—so there must be something there.

Constantine’s sharp, hooded eyes focus on Benny, her russet-colored irises holding enough power to make even the bravest of men run. Not Benny, though. He leans back against the counter, folding his thick arms across his chest, his eyes meeting Constantine’s gaze.

I look at Marz who is hiding a smile, and I know she can hear the silent war they’re in. Something else happened while I was sleeping, but I can’t worry about that too much. Not until my own demons are dealt with.

“We found a connection. There are a few older vampires here, and one of them is very close to Grayce, who goes by Gray. His name is Ciro, and it seems Gray’s mate is his brother or good friend.” Constantine sounds as bored as she looks. “He operates an underground lounge for vampires and witches not too far from here.”

I raise my brow; no one seems excited about this. “When do we leave?” My voice is loud in the silent tension of the room.

Constantine’s attention turns to me, her jaw tense and her thin brow raised in distaste. She inhales deeply through her nose, then her eyes close as she slowly shakes her head. “You can’t handle looking at yourself in a mirror, Everett. Why don’t you show us the shit job you did bandaging your hand.”

I had hidden my bleeding hand in my pocket—I didn’t want the questions—but I should’ve accounted for the vampires surrounding me. They could all smell it on me the second I walked into the room—probably before that.

I groan. “I’m fine. I’m just…processing.”

Everyone’s now focused on me, and I hate it. I hate it even more when Bunny appears, gaze fixated on me. She’s uncomfortable to be around, because everytime she looks at me, I wonder if she was in the future, seeing how I die. Sometimes I want to ask her about things, but the truth keeps me from indulging my curiosity.

“Ciro is 684 years old and highly respected on the east coast. He is unpredictable and violent, and he helped fight the war against the humans without lifting his finger. He has pull, and his partner, Nadiya, is the most dangerous of us all. She’s young compared to Constantine and Ciro, but she retains human memories, which should scare you.” Bunny seemed to do her research for Constantine to only give us such a small amount of information.

“Why does this matter? Why is this all such a big deal?” I look around the room, my eye contact with Bunny having become uncomfortable. She knew that, too, because the manic smile on her face told me she still held more information.

“The reason this matters, Everett, is because your people—your species—have been trying to create a hybrid vampire.” Bunny pauses, her eyes widening as she delivers the last piece of information which alludes to the reason everyone is so hesitant. “Nadiya is not only a vampire, but a very powerful witch. She’s one of the naturally-occurring hybrids.”

This is where things go from bad to worse.

Benny’s hands go straight to his head, his fingers interlocking together and elbows pointed up, as he blows out loudly and begins to leave the room. To my surprise, Constantine follows him, her strides long and purposeful. But I don’t focus on them for long.

My focus shifts entirely to Marz as she stands there, lost in her own thoughts for once. There’s an internal battle there—something that feels not only helpless but sinister. I don’t want to go now. If things were to go wrong and a fight was to break out, the first person who would rush into battle would be Marz.

I know she can protect herself—hell, she can protect anyone if she wants to—but a hybrid? That was something no one expected.

The threat of someone creating a hybrid vampire was enough to cause Marz to go out on this adventure, but knowing that at some point it was successfully done…that made the hairs on my arms stand and fear course through my body.

I think back to the day I risked my life for Marz’s and instantly knew I would do it again. Things are getting more dangerous now. The idea of creating a hybrid is one thing, but the knowledge that it’s possible is another. We now have information that can either get us killed or tortured.

I want to sit and have a conversation with Marz, to see if there is something more there. See if she is feeling the way I am. But I know it won’t go over well. She isn’t looking for a relationship, and that’s obvious enough.

Was I looking for one?

I take another sip of the smoothie, which tastes better than I let on. There are so many things I want to say, but it’s never the right time. I just want to know what Marz is feeling; I want to know if she will be coming to my room for bed. I want her to come to my room.

She turns and begins cleaning up the mess she created while making me my drink. I think about all the times I wanted someone to show me that they cared, to think about my well being. Now Marz is showing me what it feels like to have someone see you, and it has my mind coming up with all different types of scenarios.

I wasn’t lying when I told Marz she would be very easy to love. Because behind those intense eyes and heavy presence, there is a vampire I’m already growing to love.