Kidnapped by the Bad Boy Vampire Gang Leader

Chapter 24

I watched Liam go, not quite knowing what to think. I wasn't quite mad at him anymore, but I also wasn't ready to sleep anywhere near him. I was just...confused.

When he'd finally left my sight, I turned the other way. I'd decide how to feel about Liam tomorrow. Right then, I just wanted to sleep. And since I wasn't going to sleep in a cold spare room, I went to find Helena.

The next floor up was much the same as the one I'd left, minus the black door. I walked up to the third door on the left and knocked. Just as Liam said, Helena opened it.

I smiled at her strangely, not quite knowing what to say after our last encounter. This would be better than Liam's room, but maybe not by much.

"Oh! Blythe!" Helena said, bright red eyes going wide with surprise. "Did Liam send you?"

"Well, I guess so. He said...I could sleep up here...if you don't mind?" Helena nodded, stepping aside to let me in.

"Of course. I can sleep on the couch." 

I looked at the couch. It was tiny, especially for someone of Helena's height. "Oh, I'm okay on the couch. It's fine," I said, waving my hand dismissively.

Helena smiled, looking almost relieved. "If you insist," she said, sitting down on her own bed.

"I...apologize for my earlier behavior. I ignored you, and that was very rude of me," Helena said, hesitation written all over her face. She looked completely out of her depth.

"No, no!" I said quickly. "It wasn't your fault. Liam basically forced you to." I flopped down on the couch. Yet again, I found myself talking about Liam, a fact which pissed me off so much that I let out a groan.

Helena glanced around for a second, then said, almost inaudibly, "You are...not wrong."

Well, that I hadn't expected.

"Yes! Finally! Isn't he just the worst?" I asked, sitting back up. Helena bit her lip.

"I would not say the worst. Liam has the capacity to be very kind and gentle. However," Helena paused, choosing her words carefully. "He has moments during which he acts strangely. Almost like a different person entirely."

I scowled. "Oh great, another sympathizer," I muttered, grumpily throwing myself back down on the couch.

"Of course! Liam has shortcomings, but he's still managed to help every single person in this house."

"Help what, brainwash them?" I retorted. Helena sighed.

"You have been shown the absolute worst sides of our leader, so I understand that you do not want to trust Liam, nor do I expect you to. I would like you to consider, though, that we have known him for much longer than you have, and he is the best thing to happen to so many of us."

"Oh, please. I respect your perspective, but I've seen him murder another vampire in cold blood. With all due respect, I have a hard time believing that Liam cares about you guys. Or anyone else, for that matter," I said, frowning. I didn't want to get into another screaming match, but I couldn't just lie down and accept that Liam was this great person. 

I stared at the Band-Aid. He'd kidnapped me. Prevented me from ever seeing my family, my friend, or any other human forever. How the hell was I supposed to forgive that?

Helena sighed. "I do not know whether that's true. Regardless, I know I can't convince you of anything right now. We should sleep."

"And that, we can agree on," I said, pulling my legs up to my chest, closing my eyes. Definitely better than last night, but there still seemed to be a chill in the air for absolutely no reason. I shivered.

Suddenly, I felt something soft cover me from my shoulders all the way to my feet. My eyes popped open to see Helena.

"I almost forgot your blanket," she said, smiling almost tentatively. I grinned back.

"Thanks, Helena. Night!" I said. She flicked off the light.

"Goodnight, Blythe."

I closed my eyes. Despite how endless my day had been, I just couldn't seem to find sleep. I tossed and turned on the small couch, even switching sides at one point, but nothing worked. Eventually, I just sort of laid there, awake, contemplating.

For what felt like the millionth time that day, I found my mind drifting to the ever-shifting enigma that was Liam's personality. One minute I understood him perfectly. Just an evil being out to do evil things. He wanted pain, death, blood, and gore. I had no problem hating that.

And then sometimes, it seemed like he just...didn't. Like his motivations could completely change at the drop of a hat. I could deal with him if he were just evil, but this? His constant switch from good to evil and back again just didn't make any sense.

My sense of good versus evil had always been nearly perfect. Black and white. But Liam blurred those sides into this unpredictable gray that I didn't know how to fight back against. 

I had no clue what to make of someone like Liam. 

Finally, with worries about the future creating a thick, gray fog in my mind, I drifted off in a fitful sleep.