Bloodshed

Chapter Twenty-Six: Kick it in the Ass (Duke's POV)

It had been two days since Audrey left with Lincoln, Gabriel, and Nero to find Master. Two days, but it had felt like a lifetime. Without the hum of their thoughts, things were too quiet, and I found myself feeling lonesome, for the first time in eons. Sure, Dr. Hadley and a few of the other vampires had stayed behind, but their thoughts were nothing compared to the flurry of minds that normally provided the background noise in my head. 

I was lost, unsure of what to do with myself. 

I tried to do things I enjoyed, like reading and fishing, but I couldn't focus. The others on the mainland, and all the things that could go wrong haunted me. Not to mention the unfamiliar stillness of the island hanging over me like a cloud. 

So, I sat on the dock, letting my toes dangle in the ocean and stared out at the horizon. The silence was deafening, even with the gentle laps of water hitting the shore and a soft breeze rustling the surrounding trees. I sighed, if only for something to hear, and lied back on the dock before closing my eyes. 

I wasn't sure how long I was there when a familiar thought pattern began to trickle into my head. It was faint, and at first, I thought that perhaps it was a dream. Then the thoughts got louder, and I bolted upright.

"Nero?" I breathed, scanning the horizon. 

I retreated to the shore to get a better vantage point, and spotted a small raft quickly approaching the island, with Nero manning the controls. His mind was a tangled mass of concern and bitterness. He was angry about having to share Audrey, a thought that was practically on a loop in his mind. But it was also mixed with confliction, as if he was considering something I couldn't quite make out, which piqued my interest. 

I watched silently as he turned off his engine and let the boat drift toward the dock before he finally hopped out to secure it with a rope. 

Too much has happened, and I am too tired to tell you about everything. Nero's thoughts rang clear in my mind. Go ahead and rummage around for the information. Oh, and could you have someone prepare one of the dorm rooms for Audrey's mom? She's with me and--

"Vanessa lives?" I interrupted, darting to stand before him.

Nero gasped, and then offered me a scowl. "And she sleeps. So, if you could quietly arrange a place for her to sleep, that would be great."

I studied Nero, unperturbed by his crankiness, and began filtering through the contents of his mind. The parts he would open up to me, that is. After a moment, I came across something that made me go ramrod straight.

"You let her go to him?" I seethed, fury and panic coursing through my body.

I could see Nero bristle, defensive, before he took a step closer to me. "I didn't have a choice. She Influenced me!"

"That may be," I bit out, carefully trying to reign in my temper. "But did you have to obey Gabriel? Did you truly have to come here while he stayed behind to play knight in shining armor to our queen?"

That may not have been Gabriel's reason for staying behind, and poor Nero did not deserve my ire, but I was so angry. I had instructed Gabriel to keep her safe, warned him what would happen if he hadn't. And the very minute she is away from me and under his care, she falls prey to Master's schemes! 

I caught Nero thinking about how, despite Gabriel's past transgressions, he could not be capable of trying to manipulate the situation to make him look like a hero. And that he had sent Nero and Vanessa away to protect them. 

That may have very well been the case, but I was too angry to care.

"Oh, you know he always has an ulterior motive." I hissed, turning my back to him. "You would be foolish to believe otherwise."