Becoming A Witch (Raya Book 1)

Chapter 27

Raya felt a burning in her throat. It kind of felt like the time she had strep throat. She couldn't swallow a thing, and felt like dying from the pain of it. This time it wasn't so bad, she supposed. After all, if she was looking on the bright side of things, she didn't feel like dying.

She did feel that headache she had the last time she woke up in a daze. The time when Shane drank her nearly dry and she was unconscious for three days. This time she remembered exactly what happened right before she passed out.

Demetri!

Did it work?

Was he dead?

Raya's eyes flew open as she sprung up in bed. She was surprised to see both Colton and Shane in her room. Surprised, but not all that disappointed. She didn't know how she got tucked in, but finding two handsome men staring down at her, she didn't put too much into figuring it out.

Colton was leaning against the dresser along the wall across from her bed. In the reflection, she saw Shane leaning against the wall next to the small night table beside her side of the bed.

With her sudden action, the two of them stood at attention. Neither of them coming any closer, but both of them analyzing her as if they were waiting for something. She noticed that Shane had a calculating look on his face, and Colton tried to reach for the butt of his gun; which was not at his hip since he was out of uniform.

Out of uniform. That means I've been out longer than just a couple of hours. Right?

She tried to ask how long she was out, but when she tried to speak, her throat felt like she'd swallowed shards of red hot pieces of metal. Raya grasped her throat with a shaky hand and looked about for a glass of water; to no avail. She needed something to cool her burning throat.

"Thirsty?" Shane asked as he kept eye contact with her through the mirror above the dresser.

Unable to speak, Raya closed her mouth and nodded. Even the feel of air rushing into her lungs hurt.

He lifted his chin in Colton's direction. Raya looked back at Colton to see that he held a white styrofoam cup in his hand. There was a clear straw sticking out of it.

Raya braced herself to get up, but stilled herself when Colton made his way to her instead. She gratefully took the cup from him and drank from the straw without bothering to peek under the lid to see what was inside first.

The first tentative drink was like pure ambrosia. As if satisfaction could be liquified, Raya gulped the thick pleasure laden drink. All too soon, she heard the slurping at the bottom of the cup. Raya's eyes shot open, it was only then that she realized they were closed in ecstasy while she drank.

With the fire in her throat temporarily squelched, Raya put the empty cup on the night stand next to her alarm clock, and finally asked, "Is he dead?"

The men answered in unison, "yes," knowing exactly who she was talking about without having to ask her to clarify.

Relief flooded her, a tension she didn't know she carried left her body on a heavy sigh. Tears collected in her eyes. Tears of pure unadulterated joy.

For a while she just sat there, just enjoying the complete relief. She tossed herself back on the bed reveling in her newly found hope. Hope for whatever might come to her. She and Shane could be a couple without thinking of the repercussions of Demetri's jealousy. They could go back to being them without her having to put every bit of energy into preparing for a battle that she knew was coming. She could call up Mavis, and they could show off their different types of magics. There was so much that she wanted, so much, that it took a while for her racing mind to slow enough for her to notice something. Something that she wasn't ready for. Something that she wasn't used to hearing.

Heartbeats.

Loud, as if they were on speakers for the world to hear.

Heartbeats.

Raya propped up on her elbows. She looked between the two men who still eyed her with caution.

"What is going on," she demanded.

When the two exchanged a look, Raya knew that she wouldn't like what she heard. She was just about to repeat herself, when they tried to answer.

As if they spoke at the same time, each one saying his peace above the other, things might have turned out better for themselves. As if it would lessen the weight of what they said. As if they were in a race to get their version out first, so the other would be the one to feel her wrath, both of them were practically shouting.

"I had to-" Colton began.

"We couldn't let you die-" from Shane.

"-if there were any other way-" Colton continued.

"-not at Demetri's hands-" Shane professed.

"-of course we would have-"

"-not unless we tried first-"

Finally Raya cut the two of them off, having had her fill of what sounded like a bunch of gibberish. "Just tell me," she insisted.

Again they echoed each other, suddenly becoming one voice when they answered. "You're a vampire."

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Thank you for taking this journey with me! I hope to hear all your thoughts on this project. Please feel free to tell me what you think about the way this story turned out. Thanks again! I appreciate all of you!😘

Make sure you check out the other books in the sequel. The second is called "Surviving as a Vampire". The cover is below. Hope to see you there!