ROTTEN LOVE

PROMISE| 18

The pain is sharp and intense, but temporary. At first, I feel only his teeth at the base of my neck. Once deep enough, it's his lips I feel.

They are cold and unforgiving against my skin. The sensation is electric, sending tingles across my body.

I fall for the moment. My head tilts back only to be held uncharacteristically softly by stern hands.

My eyes are closed but the world around me seems to shift. It's like I am no longer at the cabin but back in the forest, a few moments earlier.

Trees surround me. I take the picture and observe every detail Maddox is showing me.

"Amica mea, over here," Maddox calls to me.

He is hunched over. I walk to him.

"What are you looking at? Did you find something," I ask him.

"Not sure. I was right at this spot when I lost control."

I get beside him in the same position he is in. I want to walk in his shoes. Once I'm at his level, I get chills. The hairs on my arms raise.

There is this familiar yet distinct feeling. The smell of mahogany is strong even though we are surrounded by pine trees. My heart dips.

"Mahogany," I point out to Maddox.

"This is a forest," he retorts.

"A pine forest."

He stands up, and observes around, "You are right. Didn't notice the difference."

"That's why we are here. To get a fresh pair of eyes," I reply.

"I love that smell," he replies.

"I've known you my whole life. Since when have you ever liked the outdoors or anything associated with it," I tease.

He raises an eyebrow at me with a smirk, "amica  mea, I did grow up with that smell."

He gets closer to me and takes a whiff.

"What are you doing," I ask amused.

"You smell like it. Your blood does at least," he says.

"It?"

"Mahogany," he replies quickly with some sort of amusement in his voice.

Oh great. My childhood crush always thought I smelled like a tree.

I sigh, "I didn't know."

He continues, "Jason does too. I guess a family trait."

Could the leftover smell be from Jason? If that's the case, then they must have lingered in this area. I look around some more, moving branches and shrubs away.

But there is nothing. No other clue. Something must have triggered Maddox in this area.

I'm about to call it a dead end when I begin to feel light-headed.

Maddox comes to me, "I am taking too much. We need to stop."

"We have not found anything," I argue.

"We know that they were in this area for a while. That's a win. We will go back tomorrow and search the grounds in actual time," he tries to convince me.

I am not satisfied. However, I do not think I have another choice. I reluctantly agree.

Maddox's fangs ease off. Some of my blood pools at the site. I grab my head at the headache of returning to the present, stumbling back.

Maddox keeps me from falling. Still, in a daze, I did not protest as he leans back down to clean up his mess. His mouth closes over the wound. He flicks his tongue and sucks.