A Slave to Love

Chapter 54: Plan

By the time I crawled into bed I was too exhausted to even do homework, but I didn't care. I passed out until my alarm droned loud and obnoxious to wake me from my coma, forced myself out of bed and through the motions of getting ready and piecing myself together to look like a functional person, then headed downstairs for breakfast.

Jordan was waiting for me in the kitchen. "You didn't come down for dinner," he said as a greeting.

"I was tired."

"You can't keep missing meals; it's not healthy. Keep it up and you'll just deteriorate faster unless you make up," he said, but his scold was gentle and colored with concern.

"Jordan, please. Not today," I put my head in my hands, "I'm done hearing about all this stupid vampire stuff. I just want to go home with my mom and my friends and where the only vampires I know will be the ones in movies and books."

Jordan had no comment for me on that one, so he handed me my breakfast, squeezed my shoulder, and went back to cooking.

I was glad for the silence. I was so sick about hearing about Blade, what I should do, what would happen if I did this or that. I wanted to be left alone. Why was it so hard for me to just be upset and for that to be okay?

Aidan finally got the message and didn't bother to try coaxing me into talking either, so the ride to school was silent except for the engine and the low volume of the radio I all but tuned out. My friends seemed to have picked up on the fact that I wasn't interested in socializing either, so they left me to my quiet and talked around me instead of trying to get me to engage. 

The day dragged until lunch, where Jill and I were walking from the gym building to the cafeteria in the cold and snow. Nothing better than sweating for an hour and walking outside with sweaty hair into the icy winter weather. At least Jill was too busy complaining about her makeup running to care that I wasn't actually participating in the conversation, so her voice became pleasant white noise by the time we were halfway there, able to duck under some of the covered archways for protection from the wind.

"Kiana?" The voice was deep and rumbling, unfamiliar as it yanked me back to the present moment. Some large hulking figure I didn't recognize, at least mid thirties, in a light jacket that didn't go with this cold weather at all. A scar across his cheek led to ruby red eyes that sent a vicious chill down my spine that had nothing to do with the icy winter wind.

Jill stared up at this tall man with his squashed looking nose and scowling expression, and her eyes narrowed in distaste.

"Yes?" I said, shrinking into warmth and comfort of my scarf wrapped around my neck.

"I have something to discuss with you," he said, in such a way that assured me that he had nothing to say to me, and if he did it wouldn't be pleasant.

"Jill? You go on ahead, I'll catch up," I told her, eyes never leaving the vampire. I wasn't going to drag her back into this. She had already gotten hurt once and it seemed like pushing fate to put her in harms way a second time; I wasn't sure they valued her life enough to let her live this time and she deserved better than to deal with this again. 

"Are you sure?" she asked, arching an eyebrow at the vampire like his very presence disgusted her.

"I want to talk to her alone," the vamp said, shooting her a look.

"I'll be fine, Jill, just go," I said.

"If you say so," she said, strutting past the vamp all while giving him a serious side-eye that at any other moment I would have found hilarious, if not for the fact that one or both of us could very well end up dead in the next five seconds.