Ruins A.G.A. 2nd Novel in the Ruinsaga series

Chapter 20 .

Lily

We decided we would travel along the back of the RU in? cafe instead of walking straight up to the front. We didn't encounter any more zombies on our way, but it was clearer and clearer that the zombie bite was affecting Alex. Sweat dripped down his temples. He was pallid. The rim underneath his eyes had grown dark and hollow. Mason and Elsie kept looking at him with concern. The two werecats looked at him as if they might have to kill him at any moment. Gunnor seemed unconcerned. The rest of us stayed close to each other just in case.

Alex stopped and turned to look at Gunnor who had been walking behind him. We had all been keeping an eye on him so we all noticed when he stopped. Molly was extra close to Arthur since Alex got bitten. She stood so close to him now that she rubbed up against him. He patted her head gently.

"I'm not going to make it through the fight like this," Alex said. "If I drink some of your blood, will that stave off the zombie effect?"

"Possibly," Gunnor said. "Probably. Your alpha isn't going to like it though."

"It isn't his decision," Alex said.

Mason and Elsie exchanged a glance.

"I don't think he is going to like that either," Gunnor said. One of his fingernails elongated and he slid it over his wrist. Crimson blood oozed out. He held his wrist out towards Alex, but Mason grabbed Gunnor's wrist and held it away from Alex.

"Erik will know," he said. "And he won't be happy."

"A little bit of my blood now won't make him a vampire werewolf hybrid," Gunnor said. "The process takes a lot more blood and a lot more time than that. And there is a bit of vampire magic involved."

"Will drinking a little bit of the vampire's blood break his bond with his alpha?" Zoe asked.

"Possibly temporarily," Gunnor replied. "It will bond him to me while my blood is in his system. It's possible he will be bonded to both of us." The cut on Gunnor's wrist was beginning to seal. "I haven't tried this before."

"Erik will know," Mason repeated.

"He already knows I'm turning into a werewolf zombie," Alex said. "He's been trying to talk to me, but I refuse to answer."

Mason and Elsie exchanged another concerned glance.

Elsie's hand wrapped around Alex's tricep and she said, "You can't drink his blood, Alex. You can't break your bond with Erik and align it with a vampire."

Alex ripped his arm away from Elsie and a rare display of emotion crossed his face as his brows knitted together in anger and frustration and his lips tightened. "Better than turning into a zombie," he said. He grabbed Gunnor's now healed wrist away from Mason and bit into it.

Gunnor didn't flinch, didn't seem surprised. A slow smile spread across his lips as he watched Alex drink his blood. His red eyes glowed. Mason and Elsie stood by helplessly. When Alex pulled away, he licked the blood on his lips. The glow in Gunnor's eyes dimmed.

Mason and Elsie both cried out at the same time. They clasped their heads as if they hurt and dropped to their knees. Alex didn't react at all except to look at Gunnor who blinked at him calmly.

"Their alpha is angry," Zoe simply said.

I started to take a step to Elsie to see if she was alright, but just as quickly as they dropped to the ground, Elsie and her brother stood back up no longer in pain.

"Erik is sending Liam," Mason said. His voice was strained.

"Who is Liam?" Tanner asked. "I mean, I know who he is. He and Erik were seniors when Grace and I were freshmen, but who is he in context of the werewolf pack? Why is he sending him?"