‘I just want you to finish what you started.’
ChapterThirty-One
QUINN
‘No.’
The world stops for a second as the echo of the word bounces around inside my skull. Abby’s standing at the foot of my bed, hands wrapping around the bedrail like it’s my throat and she’s trying to strangle me. I don’t remember her being violent when we were together, but I wouldn’t put it past the woman who’s standing in front of me now.
When I first discovered that she was a vampire, I couldn’t imagine it. I can imagine it now. She’s wearing an expression like she wants to suck every last drop of my blood out and then spit it all back in my face. I’m glad I’m flanked by three other vampires, at least one of which I know would fight to the death for me.
And then there’s Florence.
I think my heart momentarily stopped as she walked into the room just now. I looked up to see Cam there, and then she stepped out from behind him and everything paused. I don’t want to read too much into the reason why she’s back, though. Not yet. I’m not sure I could take it ifshe’s here to break things off, not when I already feel like I’ve crumbled into a million pieces and been glued back together.
Her face isn’t giving anything away, though, save for the absolute daggers she was shooting Abby when her back was turned. I’m just hoping like hell that her disinterested expression the rest of the time is an act to avoid riling Abby up and not because she’s about to break my heart.
‘Why should I?’ Abby says, turning one hand to inspect her nails, lips pressed tightly together. I mean, it’s a fair question. I did break up with her, and I don’t remember the specifics, but I can’t imagine that the version of me I was then dealt with it in a particularly sensitive manner.
But I was just, as Bram likes to point out, stupid. Oblivious, maybe. I didn’t have bad intentions or anything, I just didn’t know how to deal with my emotions. And I’ve grown a lot since then.
Ok, I’ve grownquitea lot since then.
I take a deep breath and meet Abby’s glare head on. ‘I guess I thought you might have an ounce of humanity in you.’
She scoffs. ‘I’m not human, Quinn.’
Clearly. If only I’d heeded Bram’s warning about her.
‘No one else in this room is human,’ I say, ‘and yet none of them have lost their humanity.’
She laughs. Actually laughs, like a pantomime villain, before her mouth pulls into a sharp smirk. ‘Get one of them to do it, then.’
God, if only. The transition process as Cam explained it earlier scares the shit out of me, and the idea of Abby doing it makes me want to vomit, but needs must. I can’t end up like Albert. God, the image of him stuck in that chair has haunted me ever since.
‘It doesn’t work like that. It’s you or nobody.’
She levels me with a stare, half scathing, half disinterested. ‘Then it’s nobody.’
I feel it like a physical blow. My small flame of hope burns to nothing and flickers out.
‘So it’s a no?’ I manage to say, fighting the tightening of my still-sore throat.
She laughs again, more quietly this time, and when she speaks, that’s quiet too, a low, threatening hum of a voice which makes my skin prickle with goosebumps.
‘It’s ahell no.’
I see Bram’s hands clench into fists at his sides, his jaw so tense that a muscle pulses under his skin. I imagine he wants to rip Abby to pieces but, perhaps knowing it won’t do any good, he does nothing.
I’m no expert, but presumably you can’tforcea vampire to turn you.
‘Why did you come here?’ I thought it would come out sharper, but I just sound resigned. ‘If you already knew you weren’t going to help me, why even bother?’
‘Because,’ she says coolly, ‘I wanted to see your face when I told you no.’
Wow. Hell hath no fury like a vampire scorned, it seems.
She turns on her heel and I think she’s going to flounce out of the room, but just as she gets to the door, she turns back to me.