Blood: The Third Course

Chapter Nineteen

Priya wriggled in her position between the two men and pulled on her seatbelt and the way the edge dug into her neck and shoulder. William glanced at her, a broad unabashed grin on his lips before he turned away, chuckling under his breath as he watched the traffic coming out of the intersection.

"What?" she asked.

Straightening out his grin, which admittedly took a few moments, William fiddled with the knob on the end of the indicator.

"What? Me? Nothing," he said.

Thomas leaned forwards on the other side of her and peered past her to look at William.

"What?" he asked.

Priya glanced at Thomas and back to William.

"He's laughing at me," she said.

"I'm not."

"Why are you laughing at her?" Thomas asked.

"I'm not laughing," William replied, turning and showing them a very stern glare, which may have been enough to convince her usually, but there was a gleam in his eye that Priya didn't see often. He turned back to the road and pulled the van out into the traffic, taking the intersection with ease and pulling into the carpark only a few dozen feet past the turning.

"You were laughing," Priya grumbled as he made another turning, bringing them closer to the entrance.

"You're wearing a seatbelt," he muttered, leaning forwards over the steering wheel and looking both ways. He pouted, a look of serious concentration over his face, something Priya saw even less than the twinkle in his eye.

"I like being safe."

"You're a supernatural being," he replied absently.

"So? That doesn't mean I can't abide road safety?"

"It means you don't have to," William said before turning to Thomas. "Where exactly are we going? I want out of here fast."

"There's drop off parking," Thomas said, also leaning forwards. "Someone has to stay with the van, though."

"Not an option," William said.

"Why?"

Priya looked between the two of them as Thomas frowned out of the window.

"It really is the best solution, Will. I run in, grab what we need, and meet you back out here. If anyone asks, I'm picking up a prescription."

"I said no," William said firmly. He drove the van around past the drop off spaces and pulled into a short stay spot at the end of the row.

"This might have been less conspicuous if we'd brought a normal car," Priya chuckled. "This van looks like we're here to abduct people. Which, I understand is probably usually what it's used for."

William only raised an eyebrow and smirked in return.

Thomas jumped out of the passenger side door, leaving it open for Priya to follow him out. She unclipped her seatbelt, and touched William's arm, bringing him back from climbing out himself.

"Why can't he go in alone?" she asked.

"Because I said so," was all he said before he jumped out and snapped the door shut behind him.

Priya climbed out of the van, and the moment she shut the door, the little lights on the underside of the wing mirrors flashed and the doors clicked locked with a beep. She rounded the back of the van after Thomas and together the three of them stared at the entrance.