Awakened by Inger Iversen Page B

where I found the gash. I shook my head in disbelief that I had taken from him so
     viciously. He wasn’t dead and that was a relief. My cell rang and I sprang up and
     placed the phone to my ear.
    “Is this the legendary Kale Grey?” The unfamiliar voice on the other end of the line
     gave a low rumbling laugh.
    I used my shoulder to keep the phone to my ear and picked up the intern’s feet and
     dragged him out of sight of the double doors. “Infamous, maybe.”
    I chuckled as I thought of the names that I’d been called over the years. “Legendary”
     was not one of them. Leech, treacherous parasite, and—the least creative but most
     used—blood-sucker. There was no originality but it was still amusing. “Who is this?”
    I placed the intern in a chair and glanced again at the gash on his shoulder. The
     blood had started to dry around the wound, so I went to the door, cracking it open
     to glance around. The hallway was empty.
    I went back to the young man. His face was pale, and his breathing was shallow. I
     was lucky that he was alive; I pulled my up sleeve to bite my wrist and smiled.
    “Funny. Yeah, well, I’m sitting here at my girlfriend’s house, wondering when she’s
     coming home.”
    I had more important things to worry about than some stranger’s relationship. “Can
     you tell me why you think I care?” I asked, then bit my wrist and placed it to the
     wound on the intern’s shoulder. The healing was instantaneous.
    “Because when Mia comes home, I am going to rip her throat out for her betrayal.”
    A click signaled the end of the call.
    I placed the phone back in my pocket and cursed. I’d forgotten about the Chorý that
     was left behind, the one that Alex asked me to take care of. I left the hospital and
     headed back to the cottage to pick up my vehicle. On the way to Elmwood City, I called
     Jace, only to get no answer.
    I arrived at the lake near Mia’s home and parked the car on the side farthest from
     the house.
    I ventured into the woods, following the rogue Chorý’s scent to Mia’s backyard. A
     figure stood in one of the windows on the second floor, awaiting my arrival. I hadn’t
     expected to arrive unnoticed, but I’d hoped. With Mia’s parents out of town and Mia
     with Alex, I wasn’t worried about any unexpected guests.
    The back door was wide open. I headed inside and followed the melted ice up two flights
     of stairs and into a room in the back. I entered slowly, keeping my hands at my sides
     to show that I had no weapon. I was sure that this wouldn’t end well, but I needed
     to assess the situation before it blew up.
    “And I thought you said that you didn’t care,” crooned a husky voice from the corner
     veiled in darkness.
    “Who says that I care?” I shrugged.
    “Your presence here says a lot, wouldn’t you say?”
    “Or maybe I want to send you back to Laurent with a message.”
    “Do I look like some errand boy to you?” The bald man stepped from the shadows. Anger
     marred his face.
    “You telling me that you aren’t Laurent’s whipping boy?”
    The bald man growled in anger and then visibly calmed. He raised his hands in surrender.
     An innocent look replaced the dark shadows that had at first plagued his face. “Hey,
     I’m just sitting here waiting for my blond princess to come home, and you break in
     and insult me.”
    “And I guess I should just leave and let you, what was it you said—”
    “Oh, I said that I am going to rip her throat out for her betrayal.”
    I rolled my eyes. “Betrayal. Is that what this is all about?” I shook my head and
     looked to the ceiling, searching in vain for patience.
    “Okay I can see you’re getting bored, so let’s spice things up a bit. I say we make
     this a game, shall we? I’m Xavier, and you must be Kale.” He swayed, and he leaned
     into the purple wall in Mia’s room.
    The moon’s light reflected from the bright white snow outside, illuminating the room
     in a milky haze.