“They’ll want to have a meeting,” Brett added. “To talk about the king of vampires.”
Fuck, Boaz thought silently.
“I know,” Manlius said. He turned and walked out of the infirmary.
Boaz gave Brett a tired smile and followed him out.
When he stepped outside, Manlius was already in the truck waiting. Boaz got in, and they drove in silence for a while.
“We have to get rid of everything that has his blood,” Manlius said out of nowhere. “Try to contain this as much as we can.”
“Yes,” Boaz said, his chest tight. “Does this mean he’s still infected?”
“Yes,” Manlius said. “He’s a fucking ticking time bomb waiting to go off at any moment.”
“But he looks fine,” Boaz said, still trying to process everything. He couldn’t believe this was happening.
“He’s not,” Manlius said, glancing at him. “I wanted him to be fine too. But…”
He isn’t. Boaz’s nails dug into his thighs.
“Are you okay?” Manlius asked after a while.
Boaz shook his head. He was finally happy. He had finally found someone he really liked, someone he thought he might be falling in love with.
Manlius reached out and placed his hand over Boaz’s. “Don’t think the worst. He hasn’t shown any signs of becoming dangerous.”
“You just said he was a ticking time bomb a minute ago,” Boaz said.
Manlius opened his mouth, then shut it again.
“It’s bad, isn’t it?” Boaz asked quietly.
“Yes,” Manlius said, shifting in his seat. “If the kids weren’t infected, maybe the families would be understanding. And he could promise to stay in the mountains and be careful, but…”
“They’re not going to let him live. Not again,” Boaz finished for him.
“I’m sorry,” Manlius said.
“Why?” Boaz said, his fingernails digging into his thighs. “Him and I just started seeing each other. It’s not like we’re in love or anything.”
Manlius frowned but said nothing.
They drove in silence after that, Boaz doing his best to shut his mind off. He should have been thinking about the young witches, about what to do next, but all he could think about was Alexander. The idea of not seeing him again, or of him being sick, was tearing him apart.
Fuck. He needed to see him now.
Boaz reached for his phone in his pocket, but Alexander didn’t have one. He would have to wait until Alexander came to him.
“Where are we going?” Boaz asked when Manlius didn’t turn toward his home, even as they drove through Claremore.
“We have to get rid of any trace of his blood, just in case someone else comes into contact with it. We can’t risk anyone else being infected.”
They arrived at the monastery and hurried inside. Manlius headed straight for the cellar without waiting to speak to anyone in charge. Boaz shook his head as he followed.
“Maybe we should ask for permission before we go rummaging around,” Boaz said as they descended the stairs.
“We don’t have time for that,” Manlius said impatiently. “Help me find the damn stake.”