Taste of Vengeance ✔

Chapter 23

Juice paced down the hallway. Behind the door on his left, she lay. Before this nightmare, he would have sat at her bedside, his hand in hers.

His hand would have been warm.

He would have been alive.

Imagine she would wake up; what was he supposed to say?

Hey baby, I'm a vampire now? A blood-drinking monster?

I was just at your best friend's throat and I killed him a second time? With a wild jerk of his head, Juice tried to shake off the images. That voracious look. The hoarse growl. Juice raised his trembling hands and scraped them over his head. What a horrible mess.

Again, he looked toward the door. She was not alone; Ephraim and Scarlett were with her.

Sighing, he resumed his pacing.

. . .

Abigail opened her eyes. It was as if she had crawled through a thick mist. Vague memories haunted her mind. Opie. Juice.

She had to be going crazy.

She blinked away the haze to look around at her. A man was sitting on the edge of her bed, with raven black hair. It took a few moments before she recognized him: it was the mortician. Confused, she sat up. What was he doing here?

Wherever here was ... for she found herself in a room that was not hers. A large chandelier hung from the ceiling and she was lying in a four-poster bed. There were old-fashioned paintings, a dark red carpet...

She wanted to shuffle away, but the man put a hand on her shoulder. "Calm down, Abigail. You've had a heart attack."

A ... a what?

She moved her hand to her chest. Vaguely, indeed, she remembered the pain that had crept through her chest and upper arm.

"I ... what ..." Her voice shoke.

Tapping heels came closer. She recognized her best friend's neat hairstyle.

"Scarlett?"

She smiled, stood next to the man and stroked her hair. "We should have told you a long time ago."

"What ... tell me what? What's going on?" Confused, she looked from one to the other.

The two exchanged glances and then looked at the door.

"Get him in." The man's voice sounded hoarse.

Abigail's stomach twisted into a knot. Who - who were they talking about? Her heart squeezed painfully as images raced through her mind. Opie. Juice.

Scarlett walked away and opened the door. Soft talking sounded. Then, someone else entered the room.

Abigail's lower lip began to tremble. Juice ... It was him. Tears pricked her eyes. "How - how can this be?"

Juice remained standing just outside the door until Scarlett gave him a shove. "Don't stand there like that, idiot."

The man stumbled forward. His eyes shone with tears. "I ... I ..." A sob rolled over his lips.

Abigail rose. She wanted to take him in her arms; however, her body was too weak, and slumped back into the pillows. Juice moved closer and touched her gently. Then he broke: he began to cry and stammered sentences she didn't understand.