“Oh, my God, River!” Lalia gasped. “Why are you so cold?”
I didn’t want to start explaining to her. She’d been through enough trauma as it was. There would be time for that later.
“I’ve just been worried sick about you,” I said, running my hands through her hair. “How are you? How’s your asthma?”
“She had an attack,” the older girl next to her said. “Some woman came in and helped her.”
“What’s your name?” I asked her.
“Morgan,” she replied.
“Someone came in to help Lalia?” I asked. “Who?”
“She was a big fat woman,” Lalia mumbled against my shoulder.
“And she helped your asthma? How?”
“She gave me some horrible juice.”
“Juice?”
“Tasted real sour,” she replied.
“And how is it that you two ended up sharing a cell together?” I asked.
“I guess because Lalia is only six,” Morgan replied, “they didn’t think it was wise to put her by herself.”
Lalia was still holding onto me so tight she was practically choking my neck.
“So you’re okay?” I said. “What have you been doing all this time?”
“Just sittin’ on our butts,” Lalia muttered.
I looked toward Hassan. “And how are you?”
He looked shaken. “As well as I can be, I guess—certainly much better than a few hours ago now that I’ve escaped that place.”
“Where are we?” Lalia asked. “And who was that tall man who saved us?”
Again, I wasn’t sure how to explain without freaking her out more than she already was. Once we were out of this place, I would explain everything to her.
I also realized that we’d been making too much noise. I raised a finger to my lips. “That tall man’s name is Joseph,” I whispered. “He’s going to try to help us all out of here. But now, we just need to be quiet, okay?”
* * *
I spent the next two hours holding my sister in the sauna. I told her to stop asking questions, which she did. She seemed content to just be in my arms.
Then it was time for me to leave.
“I’ll be back soon,” I whispered.
“Huh? Where are you going?” Lalia looked panicked and clung tighter to me.
“I need to go speak to Joseph. I promise I won’t leave you long. Just stay here and keep quiet.”
Lalia looked like the last thing she wanted to do was let go of me, but I detached myself from her, and placed her in the furthest corner of the room on the bench.
I found Joseph pacing up and down in his bedroom, the container of my blood clutched in his hands.
He looked toward me as I entered.
“So… are you ready for what’s next?” he asked, his voice deep.
I didn’t know that I would ever feel ready for what we had planned next. But it was now or never.
“Yes,” I said, with as much confidence as I could muster.
“It sounds like the party is dying down up there now,” he said, looking up at the ceiling.
I followed him out of the bedroom toward the front door. He opened it and we both stepped out, looking around. Vampires and half-bloods were descending through The Oasis’ entrance and heading back to their apartments. We remained standing by the doorway for the next fifteen minutes, until the last trickle of revelers seemed to have returned. But strangely, neither of us had spotted Jeramiah, Lucretia or Michael yet.
I looked back at the clock hanging from the hallway. It was already 2:30am.
We were running out of time.
I exchanged glances with Joseph.
“Where do you think they are?” I whispered.
He shrugged. “We just need to keep waiting.”
Ten minutes later, all three of them finally descended. I wondered why they had taken longer than the others. I didn’t give it too much thought though. I was just relieved that they had finally come.
I was expecting the couple to part ways with Michael once they arrived outside Jeramiah’s apartment, but instead they remained standing and talking. Joseph and I looked away as Jeramiah turned, spotting us standing in the doorway.
Joseph’s hands found my waist. He lowered his mouth to my ear. “Put your arms around my neck and pretend that you’re kissing me,” he breathed.
I stared at him, raising a brow.
Then I realized why he was asking this of me. Standing here doing nothing but staring looked odd. We needed to look like we were doing something.
Joseph positioned me in front of him, so that he still had full view of the trio. Slowly, I draped my arms around Joseph’s neck and craned my neck upward. He leaned down until our lips were less than an inch apart. My breathing quickened as his green eyes met mine. He lowered his mouth to my cheek and pressed his lips gently against it, then averted his gaze back toward Jeramiah.
My skin tingled at the touch of his lips, so close to the side of my mouth. I hadn’t expected him to touch me. But now that he was… I couldn’t say that I objected. At all. When his hand rested on the small of my back, pulling me closer still, I felt butterflies in my stomach.
Geez, River. Get a grip.
He’s just an… incredibly handsome guy.
“Are they still there?” I breathed, attempting to distract myself from his touch.
He didn’t respond for almost a minute as his lips continued to graze my cheek. Then he said, “They’re gone now.”