Midnight Pleasure [THE PLEASURE SERIES BOOK 1]

Chapter Thirty-Six - Melora

Melora leaned against the headboard of the bed, her body shaking uncontrollably. She couldn't believe that she had just done what she had done. She looked down at her hand, her nails slowly returning to their average size. Blood pooled underneath her nails and ran down her hand. Alathic's blood. She had just slashed Alathic's face. She didn't even know that her nails could grow that long until now. It felt like her body had taken control and gone into survival mode.

Her eyes widened as another thought flew through her brain. What if what she had just done put Drystan in danger? Alathic had stormed out of her room, bloody and furious. What if he was now heading toward Drystan? What if he was going to hurt or torture him again because of what she had done?

Melora felt sick as she jumped off the bed and stumbled to the door. Her left hand shook as she knocked against the door. She heard the lock jumble and stepped back as Draco poked his head through the crack in the doorframe. He looked back at the hallway one last time before squeezing through the gap and shutting the door behind him.

Draco had a smirk along his face as he looked down at her. He chuckled, "That was fucking amazing, sister."

Melora shook her head. "Draco."

"I have to give it to you, Melora," he continued. "I thought Dante and I would have to barge in here, but you finished the job. How he ran out of this room with blood all over him was amazing." He chuckled again.

Melora finally let the tears threatening to escape her eyes fall. She reached out with her clean hand and clutched at Draco's shirt. "I made him mad," she choked out.

Draco gently gripped her wrist and brought her over to the bed. He sat her down on the edge of the bed before turning around and grabbing a lone cloth. He kneeled in front of her as he took her right, and began cleaning the blood off her. "Yes," he nodded. "He was."

"What if he's going to hurt Drystan?" Melora whimpered.

Draco shook his head. "Dante won't let that happen, sister. Dante would put a stop to anything that Alathic tries." He looked up at her. "I promise."

Melora nodded as she took a couple of deep breaths, forcing herself to calm down. She had to trust that they were here to protect her and Drystan, but she still felt uneasy about everything.

Draco cleaned off the blood on her hand before standing up and sitting next to her. "I believe that it's time that we initiate our plan."

"What plan?" Melora looked up at him quickly.

Draco smiled at her. "Carwel had given us a plan before we had left. He told us to execute it when we felt the time was right. Because of your little scratching incident, we need to run it tomorrow morning." He took a deep breath and looked over at the door. "When we received your letter," he continued quietly, "Carwel immediately began to create a plan to rescue both of you. We aren't going to kill Alathic yet."

"What?" Melora gasped. "Why not?"

Draco shook his head. "Carwel made a good point that it would be too dangerous to kill him inside his castle. There are still too many people inside this castle loyal to him. They will kill us in a heartbeat if we try to kill him and get caught. Instead of killing him, Carwel decided that it would be best if we just escaped."

Melora shrugged. "The last time you helped me escape, I ended up back here. My father gave Alathic the coordinates to the compound."

Draco nodded slowly. "I figured that was how Alathic was able to find us. Your father did make me wonder how he found the compound, but that doesn't matter anymore." He looked over at her. "But we're not going back to the compound. Carwel figured that your father has connections almost everywhere. He was able to find a spot that was secluded enough to keep both you and Drystan safe until this whole ordeal with Alathic is over. That's where I'm going to take you. Carwel is moving the strongest in his army to that camp and hoping that he could draw Alathic out onto a mutual ground to finish everything."

Melora nodded as she looked over at the door. "How does Drystan get out if you're to protect me?"

"Dante is in charge of Drystan's protection, Melora," Draco reassured her as he grabbed her hand. He gave her hand a slight squeeze. "I wouldn't admit this to my brother, but he is the stronger one of us. I'm quicker than he is, but he is more robust. If anything does happen to Drystan, it would be better if Dante was to help him."

Melora looked up at him and forced a smile onto her face. "I trust you, Draco. I wouldn't have called for you if I didn't trust either of you."

Draco smiled down at her as he stood off of the bed. "Get some rest, Melora. It would be best if you had it. I'll come and wake you when it is time to leave." He turned and walked over to the door. Before he opened the door, he turned around and gave her another smile. "Get some rest, sister."

---

When the morning finally came, Melora sat on the edge of the bed where Draco had left her. It had felt to her that the moon would never set. She waited until Draco came into the room before she stood up. He handed her a few articles of clothing. He was dressed entirely in black; his eyes were the only things that weren't covered in fabric.

"I take it you didn't get any rest?" Draco asked her.

"I couldn't," she responded as she moved toward the window. She began to open the curtains on the window when Draco snapped them shut.

Draco looked down at her, his eyes stern. "You must be completely covered, Melora, before you go into the sun. Remember?"

Melora stepped back from the window and nodded at him. "Yes, I'm sorry."

Draco's eyes softened as he looked down at her. "If Drystan finds those burns on your body, I'll get strung up by my toes." He motioned to the clothes in her arms. "Get dressed, sister." He turned his back to give her privacy as she began to get dressed. She ensured that every body part was covered, including her face.

Melora tapped Drystan on the arm, letting him know she was ready to go. She could feel her heart beating wildly in her chest. She wasn't sure what would await her, but she wanted out. She wanted to be back with Drystan. No, she needed to be out of her and back with Drystan. She trusted Dante and Draco to protect both of them. She followed Draco over to the door. She knew it was better to be quiet now until they were away from the castle. She followed Draco out the door and down a hallway before stopping at a small door. He opened it and motioned for Melora to go through. She hesitated for a split second before going through.

The air was stuffy, and cobwebs lined the top of the walls. It had been a long time since anyone had been in this hallway. Draco quietly shut the door and moved further down the hallway. She didn't know how long it had been before they were met with a bright light.

"Can you swim?" Draco whispered to her. Melora looked out over the water and nodded. "Good," he breathed. "You need to hold your breath, sister." He began to wade into the water and motioned for her to follow. "Come on."

Melora waded into the water after him and took a deep breath, diving into the water. Her lungs started to ache for air. She didn't know how long she could hold her breath before she felt Draco take her hand and swim up to the surface. He pulled her up onto an embankment. "We're free to talk now."

Melora looked back across the water and was amazed at how long she could hold her breath. The small lake before them was vast. "I was able to hold my breath for that long?"

Draco nodded. "Your lungs have improved dramatically since your changing." He motioned for them to head into the woods. "We're almost there, sister."

Melora followed him quickly into the woods, not wanting to take a second look back at the castle. Her heart raced as they ran through the woods. They ran for a long time before coming onto a large cliff's side. The rock wall above them was massive. Draco placed his hand on the wall and whispered some form of enchantment. Melora watched with wonder as two large wooden doors appeared.

Draco turned to her and gave her a small smile. "The only thing left to do now is to wait."