Blood Bound

Chapter 29: Reunion

Scowling, I accept it and down the drink in one gulp. I only feel a small taste of bitter oak and malt flavour but the liquid still burns my throat. It's raw and not my preferred alcohol at all but Kenji likes to keep a few bottles of Japanese whiskies around the house. It probably reminds him of home. I look around and I linger on the swords up on the mantelpiece. Old Japanese ones that used to belong to Kenji's guardian. They're most likely stained with blood.

„You want to tell me how this all happened?" he asks. It's not an order but a request, the kind a worried friend might inquire. I look up and am relieved to see that the scorn in his eyes has partly left, to be replaced with genuine concern.

I take a deep, shuddering breath and recount everything that has happened so far. I have to fill in the blanks when Leia was taking care of things as I slept. Kenji's expression becomes grimmer and grimmer the more I tell him.

„ . . . and a couple of hours ago we were just attacked by a fucking hunter!" I finish with a huff, feeling flushed. Especially after telling him how that bastard Tyler had nearly raped me. I take another sip of whisky that Kenji had refilled in my glass. „How did he know about us?" I ask, more to myself than to my friend.

„There are hunters everywhere, just like there are a bunch of our kind everywhere," Kenji answers in a wise, matter-of-fact tone. He then groans, his big frame settled comfortably in the sofa with one arm stretched on the back while his other hand pinches the bridge of his nose. „I'm not going to lie, Sophie. You're pretty fucked."

I expected it to be so but hearing it from him makes my stomach squirm in disappointment. „I know," I say in a low voice but Kenji either ignores it or doesn't hear me because he continues:

„I mean, Tyler's guardian has the right to ask for vengeance, even though you'll argue it was self-defence. The rules are there for you to follow. Especially that particular rule."

„I know!" I snap at him and in my frustration and anger, I throw the glass into the open fireplace. It shatters in small pieces and the fire rises and snarls with the added fuel of the alcohol. I'm already on my feet, pacing around, feeling the familiar panic I had felt in Leia's place boiling within me, spilling around like acid. I won't let that happen. Panicking is something Leia does, not me. I need to be the clear headed one. I brush the sideswept bangs out of my eyes and take a deep, measured breath. All of a sudden, I get this craving for blood, even though I just fed a couple of hours ago.

Kenji watches me silently, hunched over, his elbows perched on his knees like he's in deep contemplation.

„I'm sorry," I mutter, gesturing to the fireplace. „About all of this," I add weakly. It's the only thing I can offer and yet I feel so pathetic doing so. Powerless. It makes my heart, my spirit shrivel like a raisin and I fucking hate raisins! I hate all of this!

„It's alright," Kenji sighs, getting to his feet. He beckons me to follow him to his personal bar which I reluctantly oblige. It beats standing around fuming all by myself. He goes behind the beautifully carved mahogany bar and kneels down, disappearing from sight. Eyebrows raised in curiosity, I jump onto the railing and peek down. He's fiddling with the digits of what I assume to be a safe but when it opens, cold air escapes from it, forming into a damp mist. I realize it's a locked mini-fridge when he pulls out a chilled blood bag.

He winks at my bemused expression. „I think it's time we tackle the hard stuff," he says as he rips it open and pours the thick, crimson liquid into martini glasses.

I can't help myself grinning widely, feeling the Hunger growl appreciately within me. I'm not hungry per sé but I can never say no to a drink like that. I lift the glass to my lips and carefully take a sip. The blood is sweeter than any fruit, than any candy. I roll it around my tongue, relishing the taste before I swallow. A small moan of pleasure escapes my lips before I can stop myself.