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Saint
I’m ru
“So they’re trying to ship Tillie and me to Perdita until this bitch is found.” She pushes some buttons and begins walking.
“That’s a good thing, though, right? Brantley says it’s safe there?”
Madison smiles softly, but it doesn’t reach her eyes. “Beautiful isn’t an efficient enough word to use when describing the overall aesthetic of Perdita, but beneath all of her beauty, there’s a darkness that will never wash away. And aside from that.” She ups her speed and I double check to make sure she hasn’t bumped it too high. The girl is carrying twins. My nieces or nephews. “I don’t know if anyone told you this, but I had a brother. A twin brother.” She rubs circles around her belly. “It’s why I’m having twins, I guess.”
“Oh, no one has told me.” I quiet, leaving enough silence for her to speak. Friendship is a gift. An expensive one. You can’t just give it to anyone. There are times when a friend needs someone to talk to, and there are times when they need to be talked to. Right now, I’m guessing she needs someone to talk to.
She takes a swig of her water, upping her speed again. My eyes dart between her and the number on her treadmill. Crazy woman. “They won’t. No one likes to talk about Daemon. He was so special, especially to Tillie and me. I found out he was my brother on that island. He was raised on that island” —she sucks in a breath— “he died on that island. I didn’t know him long, but as soon as I met him, we were inseparable. Tillie had a deep co
“I’m sorry to hear about your brother. I can’t even think about losing Bishop.” I wince at the thought, my eyes tearing up. “Nate has history there?”
Madison rolls her eyes. “I love him. So much. But the boy stuck his dick in places that he should never have stuck it.”
I chuckle, bumping down my speed to a walking pace. There’s no way I can talk and run without passing out, and since I didn’t end up getting much sleep last night, despite Brantley riding me into a coma, I don’t want to test my chances. Even with the bite marks on my i
“Oh, more than anything ever. They fought for their love. They fought hard.”
“Who fought hard?” Tillie interrupts from behind us, biting into a glazed donut while sneering at the gym equipment as she passes. She pauses her chewing. “See, this is why I’m bigger than you with one baby. Because while you’re exercising, I’m eating.”
Madison frowns, gesturing to the other treadmill. “Then exercise if it’ll make you feel better.”
“Fuck no.” Tillie continues eating her donut, taking a seat on the bench. “This is my chance to chill. Got lots of time to be fit, but during pregnancy is not it, and anyway, the boys are kicking us to Perdita.” She places her hands on her lap. “Maybe that’s why I’m stress eating.”
I turn off the treadmill and wipe my face with a towel. “It will be safer with you all there.”
“Mmmm.” Tillie sucks the frosting off the tip of her fingers. “You wait until you meet our replacement who is ru
Madison tosses her towel at Tillie. “Stop acting like you would actually want that job.”
Tillie muses over her words and then shrugs. “You’re right. I absolutely wouldn’t.” She looks to me. “Where are your other two girls?”
“They’re down having breakfast, where we should be.” I call out while passing her, making my way down to the kitchen with both pregnant bellies in tow. As soon as I round the kitchen corner, the smell of fried fat hits my nose and puts my head in a spin. My hand flies up to cover my mouth as I dash back down the hallway and into the guest bathroom, flipping open the toilet and expelling everything I ate last night. I swipe my mouth with the back of my hand and flush, knocking the cover down and taking a seat on top. Sweat beads at my temples as my stomach rolls.
“Can he do this, too? Make you sick?” Brantley interrupts from the doorway, filling the space completely.
I shrug. “I don’t know. Maybe.” Reaching for the mouthwash that’s on the counter, I take a swig while pumping soap into my palms and scrubbing. “Ivy can go with them to Perdita,” I say, after I’ve spat and rinsed my hands.
Brantley stares at me, and it’s the first time I’ve noticed the slight dark circles under his eyes. With anyone else, it would look exactly what it is. Rough. Drained. But with Brantley, it just makes him look more like a damn vampire. Scary. Deranged. Volatile. Which he is. Usually he’s so assertive and staunch, but since telling him about my visions last night, he’s more on edge.
“Done. But Ophelia stays. We might need her.”
I dry my hands and lean against the sink. “You should go get some sleep.”
“I’m fine.”
I close the space between us, lifting his heavy arm and placing it over my shoulder. “You should go and get some sleep.” Looking up at him hurts my neck.
“Bacon is ready!” Ophelia calls out from the kitchen.
Brantley moans. “You do realize all of these people, including Tillie and Madison, are only allowed in this house because of you, right?”
I tilt my head while keeping my eyes on his, pressing my lips to his arm. “I know.” I step out from under him. “Please get some sleep. I can’t imagine you grumpier than usual.” The bacon smell doesn’t hit me as hard as before as I pull out one of the stools beneath the kitchen island.
“Can he make me nauseous?” I ask Ophelia as she scoops scrambled eggs into a large bowl.
She peers up at me from beneath her lashes. “No. Remember, it’s not paranormal. It’s science, but—more.” I know Ophelia believes in the science side of everything, but I’ve seen things. How can she classify me seeing a dead girl as science?
Tillie smothers thick spread over her toast. “I swear boys make you hungrier than girls. I was never like this before.”
Before I can ask her about her last pregnancy, the boys pile in and start loading their plates.
“Hey.” I turn in my seat, looking at Bishop. “Where’s Eli?” I haven’t seen him since the ceremony.
Bishop tilts his chin, a satisfied grin flashing over his mouth. “Busy.”
“Okay…” My stomach rumbles, but the sweat is still sticky on my shirt from my run, so I tear it off and toss it to the other side of the room.
I take a plate and move to the dining table, listening as they all talk about normal conversations that don’t include crazy witch mothers and rich covens.
I watched her carefully this time. A little more than usual. I’d begun to look forward to the times I could attach myself to her. I fed off of it. Needed it. I didn’t want it to ever stop. She was looking down at a gravestone in the Vitiosis cemetery, her hair down over her shoulders and her eyes weak. She was in a dream state. Not knowing what was happening to her, but not caring either. This was the part where I knocked on her head and got her to let me in, but they were catching onto what I was doing. They weren’t far behind. I wasn’t at all surprised by this. I knew every step I took was just one copied.