Chapter 116 Ch. 86
The darkness from the night before had turned into a pale, watery yellow as the sun started to peek through the curtains.
Zara opened her eyes slowly, feeling the warmth of the bed and the soft pressure of someone’s hand in her hair. She lay there, breathing in the scent of the room, until she realized Ethan was already awake and watching her. He was propped up on one elbow, his fingers gently patting the top of her head.
“Good morning,” she whispered, her voice sounding sleepy.
“Good morning,” Ethan replied. He didn't pull his hand away, instead letting his fingers slide down to tuck a messy strand of hair behind her ear.
Zara started to sit up, but then the memory of the night before rushed back to her and she realized she didn't have a stitch of clothing on. She felt a heat that had nothing to do with the sun crawl up her neck, and she quickly grabbed the edge of the duvet, pulling it up to her chin to cover herself. She felt a bit silly for being so shy after last night, but she couldn't help the way her heart started to flutter.
Ethan just smiled knowingly, his eyes crinkling at the corners as he watched her struggle with the blankets. He didn't tease her or say anything to make it worse; he just leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss to her forehead. Zara felt herself blushing even harder, which she knew looked ridiculous, but she couldn't stop it.
“You don't have to hide,” Ethan murmured, his breath tickling her skin.
“I know, I just...” she said, biting her lip.
A loud knock on the door cut through the quiet moment, making them both jump.
“Breakfast is ready,” a guard barked from the other side of the wood. “Lorenzo says do not be late.”
“We will be right out,” Zara called back, rolling her eyes at the ceiling. She sighed and flopped back against the pillows for a second, wishing they could just stay in this room forever and forget about the rest of the world.
“What time is it even?” she groaned. “Still feel kinda sleepy.”
“It’s past ten, Zee.”
“Shit. Did I sleep that long?”
“Yeah.”
They ended up taking a quick shower together, the warm water helping to wash away some of the soreness from the night before.
By the time they dressed and made their way downstairs, Zara felt almost normal—or as normal as she could feel while living in a house full of vampires.
The dining room was quiet when they walked in. Dylan and Ivanna were missing, which made the room feel even larger and emptier than usual. Lorenzo was sitting at the head of the table, his eyes fixed on a tablet, while Imogen sat to his left, picking at a plate of fruit with a look of total boredom.
“Be quick with your meal,” Lorenzo said, not even looking up as they sat down. “You and Imogen need to go and practice. And we need blood today, and I do not want to waste any more time.”
“She is not a faucet you can just turn on whenever you want,” Ethan snapped, his hand tightening around his fork until the metal started to bend. He was so annoyed with the way his father had spoken, as if he had every right over her.
“She is a catalyst, Ethan,” Lorenzo replied, finally looking up with a cold expression. “And you are an heir who needs to remember his place. If we are to survive what is coming, we need her blood to work for us.”
“Treating her like a test subject is not going to make her powers grow any faster,” Ethan said, his voice rising as he pushed his chair back. “You are obsessed with this, and you are going to hurt her in the process.”
“I am doing what is necessary,” Lorenzo said, his voice dropping into a low, dangerous tone. “Something you clearly do not understand.”
Zara watched them, her heart starting to race. She could feel the anger radiating off Ethan, but it felt different this time. It wasn't just heat; it was a hum that she could feel in her own bones.
“You don't understand anything,” Ethan hissed, his eyes turning a deep, bloody red.
Suddenly, the air around Ethan seemed to ripple.
Zara gasped as his feet left the floor, his body rising up into the air as if he were being pulled by a string. He didn't look like he was struggling; he looked like he was a part of the air itself. A burst of power flew out from him, knocking a vase off a nearby side table and sending it crashing to the floor in a spray of glass and water.
Ethan continued to rise until he was nearly touching the high ceiling, his arms hanging at his sides while his hair floated around his face.
He looked so terrified and confused at the same time. It was definitely her blood—the first time, it was minor levitations he could barely control. And then he had begun to master it, but it suddenly stopped.
Lorenzo stood up, his chair falling backward as he stared at his son with wide eyes. He looked at Ethan, then he turned his head slowly to look at Zara, who was gripping the edge of the table so hard her knuckles were white.
“You drank from her, didn't you?” Lorenzo asked, his voice sounding curious while his eyes glinted with a strange kind of greed.
Ethan didn't answer. He just drifted back down to the floor, his feet landing softly on the marble as the red in his eyes began to fade.
“How wonderful,” Lorenzo grinned. “Imogen, take her to the room. I want those samples now.”
“Hey,” Zara said softly to Ethan as she stood up on shaky legs. “It’s okay.”
“It’s not okay.”
“Just… calm down, okay? It’s important for my safety too,” she said, and then followed Imogen out of the dining room and down the long, winding hallway that led to the small lab area.
The men with the squeaky cabinets were already there, waiting in the corners just like before. Zara sat down in the chair and watched as Imogen started to lay out the glass jars and the long, thin needles.
“You can leave,” Imogen said to the men after a bit of silence. They didn’t move.
“My apologies, let me rephrase—get out. Now.”
The guards sighed and walked out.
“Are you really using this just to give them powers?” Zara asked, watching as Imogen tied a rubber band around her arm to make the vein pop out.
“We have to try,” Imogen said, her voice sounding a bit more serious than usual. “You saw a vision, Zara. You saw war and death. That is not something that should be taken lightly, and we need every advantage we can get.”
“But the bonding,” Zara said, flinching as the needle slid into her skin. “Lorenzo said you know how to do it without making everyone tied to me. Is that actually true? Or is it impossible?”
“You know there are different bonds,” she sighed. “What’s between you and Ethan is different. And yes.”
“Yes… yes what?”
“I am working on it,” Imogen replied, watching the dark red blood start to flow into the jar. “The goal is to use the blood as a jumpstart for their own dormant abilities. If I do it right, they get the surge of power without the side effect of feeling your every heartbeat. It is complicated, and it is messy, but it is the only way.”
“I don't like being a battery,” Zara whispered, leaning her head back against the chair. “I'm just doing this because… I mean, they’ll protect me from other clans who won’t care about my safety, right?”
“Nobody likes being a tool, Zara,” Imogen said, pulling the needle out and pressing a piece of gauze to the spot. “But in a war, the tools are the only things that survive. You need to focus on your training. If you can control that burst of power, maybe you won't have to be a battery for much longer.”
“Lorenzo wouldn’t like knowing I can control my own power—shit!”
“What?” Imogen asked, not looking at her. Her hands were moving over the petri dish where she had placed some blood, and green mist swirled from her fingers.
“Lorenzo could be listening in.”
“Oh love,” Imogen laughed lightly. “I got rid of those.”