Call of Night (Thorne Hill 3)

“I want a week without demons and witch-trials and people trying to kill me.”

“Let’s go to Paris. You’ll love the nightlife there.”

“I’ve never been to Paris.” I rest my head back against the seat. “And they’re much more open to vampires over there.”

“They are. Vampires have almost equal rights to their human citizens.”

“Right, I remember hearing that. And they were one of the first countries to legalize vampire-human marriages too.”

Lucas runs his hand up and down my thigh. I can feel him looking at me, but the pain in my head intensifies and I close my eyes, fearing I’m going to puke all over Lucas’s car. I turn down the heat, which is making me feel even sicker, and start shivering. It takes over half an hour to drive back to Lucas’s house in Lincoln Park.

We go right up for a shower, and Lucas pulls his bloody shirt over his head and throws it in the garbage.

“How many items of clothes have we gotten rid of because of blood?” I mumble, stripping out of my clothes. Losing my balance, Lucas catches me at the last second before I fall on the marble floor.

“Are you feeling all right, Callie?” He looks into my eyes, searching for an answer.

“I’m tired,” I admit. “Really tired and I have a headache.”

“Aspirin,” he starts, not sounding sure of himself. “That’s what humans take for headaches, right?”

“Not so much anymore. I usually take Advil instead. Aspirin can thin your blood so it’s probably not a good thing for me to take.”

“I will get you some.”

“Shower with me first?”

“Of course.” Lucas helps me strip out of the rest of my clothes and get into the shower. I feel a little better once we’re both clean. I run my hand over his chest. There’s not even a mark on him.

“You need to eat. You lost a lot of blood. Again.”

“I’m not drinking from you tonight.”

“Do you need to drink from somebody else?” I tip my head up, eyes shut to keep the water out.

“No.” He turns the temperature of the water up a little more for me. “I don’t want anyone else’s blood. Nothing tastes as good as you do, Callie.”

“You told me before that vampires aren’t usually monogamous.”

“Correct.”

“But you are with me.”

“You’re an exception to a lot of rules.” His hands slide over my body and he holds me close, kissing the top of my head. “Now let’s get you into bed.” He shuts off the shower and wraps a towel around my body.

“You’re so good to me,” I say when he lays me down in his bed after drying me off.

“And you’re too good for me.” He smiles and plants a kiss on my forehead. “You’re hot.”

“Mmmhh, yeah I am.”

“No, I mean that literally. You’re hotter than usual.”

“Maybe because we were in a hot shower?”

“Perhaps.” Lucas puts his hand to my forehead. “Do you want me to get you anything?”

“Just some water.”

Lucas hurries out of the room and comes back with a glass of ice water. I suck it down and then fall back into bed. I’m so dizzy and something just feels off. I can’t explain it. Binx curls up next to me, and I lay on my side, arms wrapped around my familiar, and fall asleep.

I wake up with a sore throat and an ache in my chest that gets worse when I breathe. Binx is stretched out next to me, taking up a surprising amount of space for how small he is in cat-form. The master bedroom doors are open, and I hear Lucas talking to someone downstairs. The house is dark, and I have no idea what time it is. I feel like I only slept for a few hours and then at the same time days might have passed.

I use the bathroom and am startled by my appearance. My eyes are bloodshot, like I spent the night drinking, and dark purple circles hang under them. I must have used more energy than I thought last night killing that demon. Pulling on underwear and a t-shirt dress, I go downstairs to find Lucas.

“Hey,” I say, seeing Eliza sitting cross-legged on the couch in the living room. My voice comes out scratchy and hoarse.

“I heard you had a fun night.”

“It was riveting.” I clear my throat, trying to get rid of the nasty feeling. I swallow hard and just make it worse. “What time is it?”

“Ten AM. Almost my bedtime.”

“Oh, I didn’t realize I slept that long.”

Eliza tips her head, looking at me. “You look like you could use more sleep.”

“Yeah,” I agree. “I think I’ll take a nap later. Where did Lucas go?”

“In his office, but don’t bother him. He’s in the middle of something.”

“Care to elaborate?”

“Not really. Business bores me.” She picks up her phone and texts someone, fingers moving with impressive speed. Binx comes down the stairs and beats me into the kitchen, ready for me to make him breakfast.

I plug in the coffee pot first and sink down at the island counter with my head in my hands. Man, I feel like shit. The last time I felt a magic-hangover like this was when I used the hellfire to kill the demon. Last night was intense, but nowhere near the level of I’m going to die as the night in the woods.

Then again, I haven’t had the best habits lately and Lucas has been drinking from me almost nightly. We knew it would catch up with me sooner or later. I hoped it would be later.

I chug the coffee to help pull me from the fog my brain is in, and then scramble eggs to share with Binx. There’s one package of frozen sausage left in the freezer, and I pop it in the microwave.

Eating usually makes me feel better after a night of drinking and especially after Lucas has drank a lot of my blood. My body craves protein and water, and I just consumed plenty of that. Lucas is still in the office and it sounds like he’s on the phone. I don’t want to bother him, so I get my phone from my purse and call Evander.

The call goes to his voicemail right away, which usually means he’s at the Academy. My mind is so fuzzy I don’t even know what day of the week it is, but if it’s a weekday then he’s teaching a summer class right now.

“Hey,” I say to his voicemail. “Remember that weird rat-demon-dog-whatever the fuck thing Kristy told you about? We fought off more yesterday and then killed a real demon. I think it’s over, but something feels weird about it. It just doesn’t make sense. Call me when you get a chance and I’ll assign tons of research for you to do on my behalf. Love you, bye!” I en

d the call and go into the kitchen for more water. My throat feels raw and my chest hurts even more when I take in a deep breath.

I down another glass, blink a few times, and tell myself I’ll be back to normal soon. Maybe after another nap. Sitting at the island counter again, I rest my head on the cool quartz and groan.

“What’s wrong with you?” Eliza sits next to me, setting down a little bag full of nail polish.

“I don’t know,” grumble.

“You sound terrible.” She looks through bottles of nail polish and picks out a bright pink color.

“I feel terrible.”

“Are you sick?”

The thought hadn’t occurred to me because I haven’t been sick in years. I actually don’t remember the last time I had a cold. I’ve always had a strong immune system and only ended up in the infirmary at school because of injuries, not illness.

“Maybe. It hurts to breathe, kinda like it did when I inhaled the smoke from the hellfire.”

“Did you inhale smoke last night?”

“No, but it was pretty dusty inside that old building.”

Lucas comes into the kitchen, smiling when he sees me. He comes right over and puts his hand to my forehead. “You’re still hotter than normal.”

“I am?”

He looks into my eyes. “Why would you be hotter than normal?”

“It’s called a fever,” Eliza quips. “Have you been dead for that long? Humans get fevers. It happens when they’re sick.”

“You’re sick?” Lucas is suddenly concerned.

“I’m feeling a little rundown, and with everything that’s been going on, I’m actually not surprised I got a cold.”

“What can I do to make you better?”

“Watch a movie with me?” I suggest. “I’m tired and want to go back to sleep.”

“What about the medicine?”

“Oh, right. Yeah, something for my headache would be nice.”

Lucas turns to Eliza. “Have Monica bring over everything necessary to care for a human with a cold.”

“Lucas,” I say a little sternly. “It’s a cold. They last for a few days and then I’ll be back to normal. It’s not like I’m dying or anything.”