Half-Blooded | The Dark Child Prophecy Series [✔️]

Chapter 39: Girl Who Cried Wolf

"So you don't know if you're even going back?" my older cousin asked from somewhere off to my left. "Seren, isn't that a little harsh?"

"Man, I don't blame her. Screw the wolves."

I pushed the aviator sunglasses up onto my forehead as I sat up in my borrowed lawn chair. Even though it was nighttime, the Brazilian heat was thick in the air. Through the skylights of the indoor pool terrace, the city lights of Rio streaked gold and bright blue and sparkled down on us, adding to the already-bright interior lights. Outside, the sounds of Carnivale carried on down in the city's center.

I crossed my ankles gingerly, basking in the warmth. I felt self-conscious in my one-piece bathing suit, but at least most of my scars were hidden. I hadn't healed as well as most vampires would; instead, some of the trauma I'd experienced remained on my body like painful memories. With my youth, there was only so much modern medicine and recovery could do to bring me back to normalcy again. My body would never look like it had, now traced with scars that I desperately tried to forget. 

A breeze drifted in from the open doors to the patio, and I pushed my hair away from my face. I picked up my beer bottle and took a sip. "Aren't you two supposed to be pro-peace and treaties? You're prince politicians."

My older cousin laughed, the sound deep and resonant. "Hey, we don't have to be pro-peace with the Pack if you don't want us to. You're like our little sister, too. If you say screw wolves, then I say we screw wolves," Gabriel chuckled. He stretched out across the diving board for a moment, his body long and lean with definite muscle tone. In one smooth motion, he was back up onto his feet, balancing on the wavering board with ease.

"I appreciate the sentiment. But why would I ever want to go back to the freezing Northern Hemisphere when I can lounge here in Rio with you?" I asked, leaning back to place my hands behind my head with a sigh of relief. The hot lamps above felt comforting on my healing body. "I need a permanent vacation."

Nikolas climbed out of the pool, his head shaking as he grabbed his towel from beside me in the other long-bodied chair. "Seren, take it from me, you can't hide out forever."

"Only because you got lost and didn't know how to get back," Krystal answered him, and I turned my head as she strode into the room in her bright purple dress, her dark hair pinned up in curls and braids. She walked over to the reclining chair on the opposite side of Nikolas and sat. "I think you just say you were hiding out because you didn't know how to read a map."

"Seriously, Nik, you'd think you should have inherited Aunt Eris's sense of direction. You still don't even know how to get around the Capitol Coven, do you?" I asked, smirking.

Gabriel and Krystal laughed loudly, their voices bouncing off the glass and stucco walls around us. "Oh my god, she's so right! You got lost trying to find the gym when we were kids for two hours," Gabriel howled, his deep voice echoing.

Nikolas scoffed, glaring at me from over the towel he had brought up to wipe the water off his chest. "That's a load of bull. I know my way around the coven houses perfectly well. And I was seven, Gabe, let it go!"

I started giggling again, pulling my sunglasses back down. "I'm just calling it like I see it," I said calmly as I closed my eyes.

"Yeah? Do you see this?" he asked and I squealed when suddenly he swept me up, his arms behind my shoulders and under my knees.

"Nik! Put me down! Don't throw me in the—"

I screamed until I hit the water, feeling the warm pool wash over me as I sunk. I closed my eyes and felt the pressure against my body. My feet touched the bottom, and I pushed up to the surface in one long stroke. I broke the surface, sputtering for air. I could hear Gabriel still laughing.