Chapter 3

I followed the others through carpeted tunnels, down sloped floors and around several turns. The whole time, I was thinking it was a good thing I didn’t bolt like I had intended when I woke up, or I’d still be running up and down these halls trying to find a way out.

Several of the others went into a room with a wall of screens, I went with Victor, Troy, Michael and Daxx to weave through walls of plexiglass, or I think they were. The cells were a giant rat’s maze.

We stood in a large room. Arius came toward us down a narrow hall, he turned and then disappeared from our sight.

“He’s in a mood.” Daxx said quietly.

Victor inclined his head and looked at the floor. “There’s only one thing I know of that can set off one of my brothers in that way.”

The others all turned to give him a surprised look.

“Really?” Daxx looked to him, to me, and back to Victor.

Troy appraised me for a moment. “The fact that she doesn’t need a device…”

The wall to my right suddenly became see-through. I stepped back and watched Arius shove a man into a small room on the other side. He stood there looking angry for a moment, then walked out. The door he went through closed, and he was standing in the space with us.

“Is that him?” He asked in a low tone.

I turned, eyes wide and hesitantly glanced through the wall.

“He can’t see you.” Victor assured me.

Knowing that, I stepped closer. Hugging my waist with my arms I studied the man pacing around in the small space he’d been tossed into. He was wearing a blue cuff, similar to the red one I’d had. “What does blue mean?” I asked without taking my eyes off him.

“Not to get too close.” Daxx explained, standing beside me. “Sometimes it’s because of an ability, sometimes their feeding category. Yours was a magic jammer, at least that’s what I call them.”

I took a ragged breath. “And his means?”

“Feeding.” Arius said with disgust. “He has no abilities.”

I snorted, “He excels at acting and lying. That’s an ability.” Taking a deep breath, I turned and watched him more. “I can’t be sure; he’s not standing still long enough to…”

Arius made a noise of exasperation and stomped out. He appeared in the cell with the man. I don’t know what he said, but his mouth moved. The guy stopped and looked at him. With a scowl on his face, Arius went over to him and grabbed him by the back of the neck and turned him, holding him inches from the wall I was looking through.

“Well.” Daxx said under her breath.

It took me a moment to look away from the angry man, whose grey eyes were locked on the wall. I knew he couldn’t see me, but it was like he could. Dragging my gaze from him, I studied the man he held and then nodded. “It is him.”

Victor reached over and touched a panel beside him. “Arius.” He said.

With a jerk of his arm, Arius shoved the man, so he smacked up against the wall face-first. He left and came back in the room with us. His eyes were locked on me as he entered.

I nodded. “It’s Martin, it’s him.” I paused for a second, wondering if that was even his real name.

“I’ll go take a look at what’s in his head.” Troy said and went to move past Arius.

Arius held up his hand. “In a moment.”

Troy gave him an odd look and then glanced to Victor, who shrugged.

Arius came over, leaving mere inches between us, he leaned closer, his pale eyes locked on mine. “Did he touch you?” His tone was so quiet I barely heard him. “Paisley, did he touch you?”

I blinked and shook my head. “He scared me when I woke up, but, no, he never really made any advances, just lied his ass off to get close to me.” I hugged my waist, watching the emotions going through his eyes.

Straightening, he spun on his heel and left again.

Before I could ask, he was in the cell with the Martin again. Arius said something and closed the distance between them in one long stride. I don’t know what the guy answered but whatever it was, Arius wasn’t happy with the response. His eyes went red and he picked him up by the throat, whipping his feet right off the floor as he slammed his back against the wall. Martin struggled against the hand gripping his neck. I was momentarily stunned by the fact that Arius’ eyes were red, and without any apparent effort could hold the weight off the ground as Martin wasn’t a tiny man.

Reality came rushing through the awe. “Please go and stop him.” I looked up to Victor.

He glanced down at me, then nodded to Troy. They both left and were in the room with Arius. Victor grabbed Arius as Troy pried his hand from Martin’s neck. I couldn’t hear what they were saying.

“Usually Arius is the quiet, calm one.” Daxx said sounding shell shocked.

Someone chuckled. “Not when he’s in here, kitten, this is his domain.”

I turned and gave a wide-eyed look to the crazy twin, as he stood behind us, arms crossed over his chest.

“What has Arius so riled?” He asked, not taking his eyes off the commotion in the cell. He sighed and walked out.

I turned to see him enter the cell as well. He leaned against the open door and said something. His brothers stopped and looked at him.

“I’d turn the speaker on, but I have no idea how.” Daxx said softly. She glanced to Michael who gave a quick shake of his head and looked at me.

“I’m sure there’s nothing pleasant being said.” He said.

I turned to stare at Chase. He stood still and seemed bored with the whole thing, nothing like the lunatic that I’d met earlier.

Arius threw his hands up and backed away from Martin. He motioned to Troy, who nodded. Chase, Arius and Victor left the cell. Arius stomped by where we stood and kept going. I watched until he turned and vanished in the clear tunnels.

“I’ll go make sure he doesn’t kill someone.” Michael jogged after him.

I watched Victor glance to Troy, then in the direction Arius had gone in.

Chase leaned against the entrance; his hands tucked in his pockets. “I haven’t had nearly enough sleep or coffee to apologize with my usual flare,” he motioned a hand toward me, “but I deeply regret our first meeting earlier.”

He was so not like the man she’d met earlier. “We all have moments.” I said with a slight shrug.

He laughed, “It was a moment all right. Naughty mate of mine.” He glanced to Victor, “while I ingest copious amounts of caffeine, perhaps someone could fill in the details of what I’ve missed.” He motioned in the direction Arius had gone. “And what is going on with the pretty one.”

Daxx turned from the cell Troy was in and nodded. “We should get Paisley something to eat anyway. At some point all this is going to sink in and a full stomach will help her pace while trying to sort it out.”

Victor nodded, glancing away from Troy. “I’ll stay and wait for Troy.” He looked to me briefly, “or stop Arius from choking him.”

Daxx hadn’t been kidding. I was pacing around the large room I’d awakened in earlier. The others had gone to have a nap, although I had no idea what time of day or night it was, sleep was a long way off for me. I’d been brought back to this room, even been allowed to lock the door. I stopped and stood in the middle of the room. This was a far cry from the room I rented. The bathroom alone was twice the size of my room.

Mentally recapping time. I was in another realm. I shrugged, that was cool, in a never-dreamt-possible sort of way. Huffing out a breath I walked toward the amazing closet—that I was told to pick whatever I wanted from… In another realm of good people, as opposed to those controlling the island. Daxx referred them as team bad, I had other descriptions for them, but hers seemed more polite. So the good people… were they even people?

I shook my head; I’d come back to that. The good ones from this realm were working to stop team bad. I could live with that. I’d even help if I was able. The idea of me, literally stopping those jerks in their tracks so they could be tossed off the island, held a great appeal to me.

Taking a deep breath, I turned and walked in the other direction. The good people in this other realm were old, very old and their eyes changed colors because they fed on—more than food. I stopped, put my hands on my hips and stared at the carpet.

Yeah, this was so far from mental digestion, it wasn’t funny. Music. I needed music to process. I’d searched the whole room for a radio, but there wasn’t anything. Music was my—everything. When I was happy, mad, when moments were too heavy, or I needed an escape—music was the answer. This was definitely in the too heavy, bordering on crushing me flat category. It had been the longest two weeks of my life without my music. The island had been so silent that a few times I was tempted to run around screaming, just to have some sort of sound.

Sighing, I turned back toward the bed, then stopped and looked at it. The bed may, in fact, be bigger than my entire room in my realm. Groaning, I walked toward it, now I was back to step one all over again.

A knock on the door had me jumping so high, I probably looked like a startled cat. Going over, I unlocked it and opened it enough to peek out.

Arius stood there; his face completely void of expression. He held up a phone then held out his other hand.

Wireless earbuds. I gasped and flung the door open and took them. He continued to hold the phone out, so I took that too.

“Bethany and Rafael loaded plenty of music onto it. They didn’t know what your preference was.”

More excited than a child on Christmas morning, I opened the music app and started scrolling. “I like all kinds.” I recognized many songs. “Oh, this is great.” I was nodding.

“Bethany said wires were annoying, so she got you earbuds.”

I opened my hand and looked at them. “They probably cost more than a weeks’ rent.” I mumbled. “I don’t have any money, but…”

He shook his head, “We don’t expect you to reimburse us.”

“Oh.” I looked at the phone again. “Thank you.” I waved my hand around, “I’ve been losing my mind in the silence. Thoughts in my head are often at full volume.”

Tucking his hands in his pockets, he leaned against the doorframe. “I can imagine it’s a lot to take in.”

I nodded. “It is, but at the same time, it’s not.”

His eyes searched mine as I spoke.

“Some of it just clicks, like I should have known all along.” I motioned for him to come in, finally realizing he wouldn’t unless asked. Despite the rage in the cells, he didn’t feel like he was a threat. I smirked at the thought as he walked by, because I was such a good judge of character that I’d let some jerk lure me to be held as a prisoner on an island.

I left the door open and went toward the couch. “If you go all red-eyed rage on me, I swear I’ll stop you in your tracks and leave you there until I’m too exhausted to hold my hand up any longer.” I warned him, only half joking.

He inclined his head. “Fair enough, warning received.”

This man was far calmer than the one that dangled Martin by his throat. “You kind of freaked me out earlier.” I sat on the couch, pulling my legs up to tuck under me.

He stood there for a moment, his grey eyes moving over me, then sat in one of the big chairs across from me. “I’m sorry about that.” His jaw clenched. “It wasn’t my intention.” He motioned to me, “the idea of an innocent, one not even aware of our world being held against their will,” his large shoulders shrugged slightly, “it upsets me.”

I snorted, “Yeah it upset me too.” I sat there looking at him, trying to see how old he was. With his long black hair, not so much as a single grey showing, no wrinkles—I had no idea. “So, how old are you?”

“Two hundred and fifty,” he smirked, “well almost fifty-one if we’re counting days.”

“That could get exhausting, counting days.” I studied his face for a second. “You don’t look at day over twenty-nine, if that helps.”

His mouth quirked again. “You’d be surprised how hard it is to look old around here.”

I laughed. “Yeah, that’s a problem most can relate to.” I rolled my eyes. “Aside from the whole other realm thing, the eyes and odd diets, the age thing is right up there on the list of the hardest to grasp things.”

He made a motion with his hand. “If you have any questions, I don’t mind answering them.”

I opened my mouth then closed it and thought for a moment. “Honestly, there’s about a hundred that are all knotted in a big mess,” I tapped my head, “up here right now.” I shifted, so the cloth wasn’t rubbing against my hip. “Earlier when you offered,” I swallow, wondering how to word it, “blood,” I said slowly, “for the bruises…”

He nodded.

“I honestly thought, vampire.”

Arius smiled, a real smile, changing the whole appearance of his dark, brooding normal resting face. “That’s a common misconception.”

“No doubt.” I fidgeted with the phone in my hand. “So how do you guys do that? I mean emotions, essence,” I blew out an exaggerated breath, “because I’m telling you, I’ve imagined some pretty freaky methods.”

He clasped his hands in his lap, looking regal. “I’m afraid explaining would only fuel your vampire theory.”

Raising one eyebrow I tilted my head. “Answers like that only make me want to know more, but not, all at the same time.”

“If you wish to know I will tell you,” he held up a hand, “if you promise not to run away screaming.”

I frowned, “had that reaction often?”

He nodded. “More often then we’d wish it.”

I looked down at the phone in my hand, debating if I really needed to know. How bad could it be? I sat back; my eyes connected with his. “Okay. Go for it.” I nodded, more to myself then him.

“Very well.” He looked down and didn’t move, just sat there with his hands clasped in his lap.

I guess he had to think of the best way to word it. When he looked back at me his eyes were glowing red, like they had been in the cells. I swallowed and made myself keep looking at them. “That’s going to take some getting used to.”

He tilted his head but didn’t speak.

“Are you breaking me in gradually here?”

He grinned, “Something like that.”

I almost dropped the phone. Leaning forward on the couch I looked at his mouth, he even opened it slowly, so I could see the fangs. Fangs. Pointed, scary-ass fangs. In his mouth. “Yeah, so,” I swallowed nervously, “that might make someone think vampire.” He closed his mouth while I was still looking at it. When I looked back to his eyes they were grey again.

“You didn’t jump up or scream.” He smirked.

I nodded in slow motion. “Yeah, I think stunned best describes my current state.” I looked at his mouth again. “Could be a delayed freak-out, not sure right now.” Sitting back, I hugged my knees to my chest. “So, fangs.” He nodded. “I’m guessing there is biting involved.”

“For essence feeders, yes.” He was so calm, his voice quiet.

“No fangs for the others?”

He shook his head.

His lack of emotion and movement was starting to get to me a bit. “You know if you blinked or moved more often, that would help discredit the vamp thing.” I nodded. “Okay, so, fangs.” I looked at his mouth again. “You just, what, bite someone to get essence?”

He inhaled deeply, his large chest rising. “There’s more to it than just biting, but for the sake of an easier explanation we’ll go with that.”

“As the one without fangs, all I’m saying is ouch.”

Arius smiled. “We can make it not painful, if we chose to.”

I frowned, “is that right?”

He nodded. “It is.”

“Okay.” I looked down at the floor briefly. “We’ll just file that for later discussions.”

“If you wish.”

We sat there for a few moments, just looking at each other. I don’t know what he was trying to see, but I knew I was trying to see if he looked like something other than a large, quite good-looking man. “Today when I refused the blood thing, what were you trying to do in my head?”

He cleared his throat, “persuade you otherwise.”

I raised an eyebrow at him, “and you were hoping to do that how?”

He actually moved and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees and looking at me. “I have an ability. I can touch someone and look into their eyes and suggest they do what I wish.”

I opened my mouth, then closed it when I realized he was serious. “Well that would be a handy thing.” I smirked. “So it doesn’t work on me I take it, or we wouldn’t be having this talk.”

He shook his head slowly. “It doesn’t.”

“It only works on some?”

The nerve in his jaw twitched. “There are very few it doesn’t work on.”

I frowned. “Really. I guess that’s good for me, my head is hack-proof.”

He smirked, but his eyes were still studying me. Sighing, he sat back again. His dark mood returned that quickly.

“I don’t think I’m going to settle down any time soon, so I was wondering,” his grey eyes flicked to mine, “if I had paper or something I could draw the layout of that building on the island.” I shrugged, “I can give a rough description of the building and areas I tried,” I rolled my eyes, “before I jumped off the cliff.”

“I watched you jump.” He said quietly. “I was on the other closest island, facing those rocks you were trying to reach.”

I gave him a shocked look. “You must be a fast swimmer.”

“Fast enough.” His eyes moved over me slowly, “I was swimming as soon as I saw you go over the edge.”

“I did say thank you, didn’t I? For getting to me. I doubt I would have made it.” I winced, “sorry about the whole struggling and kicking you part.”

His look lightened. “It’s understandable to fight when you’re grabbed in the middle of a swim.”

I heaved a big sigh. “I’m still shocked I did it. Considering that’s my biggest phobia.”

“Swimming?”

I shook my head. “Heights. It took a lot to jump,” I shrugged, “but when I heard them looking for me, it gave me the shove I needed.”

His eyes held mine for a moment. “I will take you to Victor’s office, there’s a white board that you can use to draw the building’s schematic.” Standing, he stood there and waited for me to get up.

I got up and went over to the bed to sit down, putting my shoes back on quickly. Getting up I grabbed the jacket I’d picked out of the closet. “Should we leave a trail of crumbs?” He gave me an odd look. “So I can find my way back here again.”

He smiled, “that won’t be necessary.” He motioned to the phone as I picked it up again. “All of our numbers are programmed in. Alona and Chase are awake right now, so if you need help you can call either of them.”

I followed him to the hallway. “Everyone else went to sleep, shouldn’t you be sleeping?”

He sighed. “All of us are used to broken sleep, I’ll go after I check in at the cells again.”

I gave him a hesitant glance.

“I won’t go near him again, if that’s your concern.” He walked slowly beside me.

“It’s just harder to get information out of someone that has stopped breathing.” I tucked the phone and earbuds into my pocket.

“I don’t usually lose control, but it’s been a day of,” he looked down at me, “unexpected events.”

I chuckled. “That’s putting it mildly.” I glanced at his long hair that moved as he walked. “I’m jealous.”

He gave me a confused look.

I motioned to his hair. “Your hair is prettier than mine.”

“When you have so many brothers,” he grinned, “standing out is important.”

I looked at the long ebony hair again. “I’d say you succeeded there,” I shrugged, “but if you want my opinion, your eyes are what make you stand out from the rest.”

Those very eyes moved over me as we walked. “I always thought they made me stand out in the wrong way.”

I shook my head. “No. I like that mine are different. Some people have brown eyes, some have a lighter brown. Mine are a pale amber.” I gave him a small smile. “I like them. They’re uniquely mine.”

Arius paused in step and looked down at me. “So do I.” Clearing his throat, he motioned to a door. “This is our private practice room, so if you work out and need somewhere with space, this is the place to come.” He stopped and pushed open one of the double doors.

I stepped in and stood there. “Oh.” I didn’t know what to say. It was bigger than most gymnasiums, and one whole wall was lined with weapons. Every kind of weapon possible, except guns, as far as I could tell. “What do you practice?” I gave him a wide-eyed look.

He smirked. “Whatever we want.” He motioned to the large mat covering over half the room. “Alona practices Tai Chi often, so if you ever can’t find her this is usually where she is.”

“I guess picking up emotions from everyone is hard, I can see needing a quiet place.”

“Yes.” He motioned to the hall again.

I went back out. “These halls are endless.”

He chuckled. “I’m still not sure I know each one, and I grew up here.”

I looked at his feet and back up to his face as we walked. “You mastered the growing part.”

“That is Michael’s office,” he pointed to a door, then motioned to the one just down from it. “That is Victor’s office.”

I nodded. “He won’t mind me in it while he’s not?”

Opening the door, he held it for me. “No, especially if you can shed light on the island. We’ve been trying for some time to figure out how to get on it.”

I snorted, “Well I figured out the off part, so hopefully you can find the way on.” I looked around the large room. There was a table in the middle, like it was used for meetings. A big desk was over in the corner with bookshelves along one wall. Turning, I walked over to a large map on the wall. “Is this where we are? The other realm?”

Arius came over and crossed his arms over his chest and looked at it. “That’s Alterealm.”

I glanced at him. “Creative name.”

He laughed. “It was named that long before anyone I know existed.”

“It’s huge, like whole other country kind of huge.” I don’t know why I thought it would be otherwise. “And your brothers are kings of all that?” I moved my hand in a circle over the map.

“They are.” He pointed across the room. “There’s the board.” He went over and looked in a drawer in the desk. Pulling out some markers, he came back and set them on a table beside the large board.

I looked up at it. I was only five foot three and it had to reach at least seven feet up the wall. “I might have to stand on a chair to reach all of it.”

He smirked and looked down at my feet. “Just don’t fall.” He turned and leaned against the board, crossing his arms over his chest. Hesitantly he reached out and brushed the hair back from my forehead. “I can’t persuade you to let me help heal this, and your other injuries?”

I touched the bruise on my forehead. Pain was in his eyes as he looked down at me. “I don’t think I’m there yet.” He continued to look at me. I didn’t know what it was like when he used his ability, but looking away from his eyes was still hard for me. I felt drawn to them. I swallowed nervously. “If I ever get there, I mean, I don’t have fangs to bite you with to get blood…”

He pulled a short, very sharp looking knife from somewhere behind him.

I winced. “You cut yourself? Ouch. You guys into pain or something?”

His lips quirked. “I don’t think any of us are.” He shrugged those large shoulders of his. “A little bit of discomfort to help someone else is a small sacrifice.”

“So, you cut yourself and drip blood into my mouth?”

He grinned. “We really need to expunge all the alternate ‘facts’ you’ve picked up from the movies from your mind.”

I gave him a playful sneer. “I’m sorry, until today the only people I knew of with fangs were actors in movies.” I looked at the knife again. “How much blood are we talking about?”

“Quantity and frequency depend on the injury and it’s severity that requires healing.” He brushed the hair back from my bruise again.

“For mine?” I wasn’t sure why my voice sounded breathless.

“Very little. I haven’t seen the cuts from your fall, but Daxx assured me they weren’t serious.” He glanced at my mouth and lingered for a moment before holding my eyes in his gaze. “Are you there yet? I can almost hear your mind processing this.”

I smirked. “I’m a very curious person that likes to have the facts.”

He made a quiet noise in his throat. “Here’s a fact for you. Outside of my family, no one has held my gaze as often, or as long as you do. They all fear me.”

“That sounds lonely. I think eyes are the most beautiful part of a body. No two pair are the same. Even with twins, the pattern in the irises are different.”

“What are mine like?” He leaned down slightly to close the difference in our height.

I studied his eyes for a moment. They were pretty, but I certainly wasn’t using that word with a man as virile and masculine as him. “They’re very deceiving, in a gorgeous way. They appear to be so pale, but the irises actually have fine black lines throughout them. They are uniquely yours.”

“You’re forgetting how much my brother Emil and I resemble each other.”

I shook my head still looking at his eyes. “No. You have similar coloring, but your eyes are silvery-grey, where his are closer to blue.”

“When did you have time to study Emil’s eyes to notice such detail?” His brows furrowed.

I shrugged. “Immediately, it’s what I notice first about a person.”

He straightened up slightly but didn’t look away. “Let me heal your injuries, please. I’m responsible for one, and after being the only person in my life to look me in the eyes—since I was fifteen—I want nothing more than to do anything in my power to make your life perfect.

I smiled. “Perfect? Not just better?”

He shook his head. “You deserve perfect.”

“Because I complimented your eyes?”

His lips quirked. “That certainly didn’t hurt.”

I watched his gaze move over my face again. There was something in the way he looked at me, but I wasn’t sure what it meant.

“Paisley, please let me.”

My breath hitched in my chest. “Okay, but only because you asked, and didn’t try to persuade me again.”

He touched my chin lightly with his finger. “Trying that again, with you—felt wrong.” Leaning back, he pulled his shirt over his head.

I took a mental picture of the perfectly toned muscles in front of my eyes. So that’s what an eight-pack looked like. Across the side of his ribs he had a long-jagged scar. I touched it softly. “How did you get this?”

He put his hand over mine. “My job isn’t always dealing with scrawny con artists.” He released my hand. “A prisoner managed to get a weapon in that wasn’t metal—it had some sort of chemical or poison it that prevented me from healing. Even with my blood.”

“Is he still alive?”

Arius gave me an odd look. “Yes, he is, and still a resident in my cells.”

“Cutting yourself for me, it will heal?” The idea of adding a mark to such a work of art bothered me.

“It will, in less than a minute.”

I met his look. “That’s handy.”

He smiled. “Very.”

“Okay,” I bobbed my head quickly, “let’s do this before I chicken out.” I couldn’t believe I was about to drink blood. Then again, on the scale of strange new things, this wasn’t close to the top of the list.

I turned my head when he lifted the knife to his chest. Just because I knew how the blood would get there, doesn’t mean I wanted to watch. When he gently grasped the back of my head, I looked to see blood running down his chest.

“Less than a minute.” He reminded me softly.

Leaning closer, I licked the blood off his chest and then put my tongue against the cut.

He inhaled deeply, his hand flexing against my head.

The cut healed, and I was almost disappointed. Apparently, my palate was okay with blood. I looked up at him. His red eyes were watching me.

“I didn’t realize I’d have this reaction.” He whispered.

“You don’t normally when you do this?”

He shook his head slightly.

“Why with me?”

“Everything with you is different.” He moved my hair from my forehead and rubbed his thumb lightly over where the bruise had been. It didn’t hurt. His hand trailed down the side of my face to cup my jaw.

“The black lines are still in your eyes.” I said quietly, “I thought they’d be pure red.”

Those red eyes flicked back to mine. His chest rose and fell under my hand.

I looked at his mouth and wondered if I was brave enough to look at his fangs this close up. I reached up and touched his mouth, so he’d open it more. He did, with his red eyes locked on mine.

Heaving a sigh, he lifted his head and straightened. Pulling out his phone, he looked at it. “I’m sorry. I’m needed in the cells.”

I dropped my hands away from him. “Something wrong?” I watched his eyes change back to the grey. It was the coolest thing I’d ever seen.

“Someone was brought in that is not being cooperative.”

“You don’t have guards to deal with that sort of thing?”

He put his knife back into the case. “I do, but all citizens on this side know me. Fear me. So quite often, I just have to be present and they cooperate, fearing I’ll look them in the eye.”

My heart pained for him. “Arius, that’s so sad.” Hugging my waist, I watched him pull his shirt back on. “I get it, though.” I whispered, “The few times in my life I’ve told someone what I can do, they never look at me the same again.”

He gave me a tender look. “I will never look at you as they did.” He stepped closer and touched my chin gently. “Draw your map, do not fall off the chair, and call if you need me.”

“I thought you were going to sleep soon.”

He grinned, “I don’t have a problem answering the phone knowing there’s a pretty woman on the other end. My brothers, however, I can ignore and go back to sleep.” Slowly, he stepped back from me, then turned and left.

I stood there for a moment. Reaching down, I pulled the waist of the track pants open. The scrapes along my hip was gone. I opened my mouth to voice my thoughts out loud, then realized I had none. There was nothing I could say to that.