Black Sunshine (Dark Eyes 1)

Oh, no.

I don’t want to ask the question.

But I do. “How did she die?”

She swallows. “He killed her.”

My eyes go round, mouth drops. “Accidently?” I whisper.

“He says no. It wasn’t an accident. They weren’t married, she had a little boy with someone else. He died too.”

“Oh my god,” I breathe, my chest feeling heavy. I can’t tell if I need to be sorry for Solon, or if I need to be scared of him. He loved her and he killed her? And her child?

I need to be scared of him.

“As a result,” she goes on, “I don’t think he lets himself get too close to women. Whether that’s on a physical or emotional level, I don’t know, maybe it’s all the same to him. So please, don’t take it personally. It’s just the way he is, and the sooner you accept it, the better. For everyone.”

I nod, taking a long sip of my tea, trying to soothe my feelings with the hot liquid. It’s not really working.

“You’ll patch things up though,” she adds. “He’s really fond of you.”

“Fond of me?” I repeat dryly. “Like some kind of pet.”

“Hey, I’ll take being his pet over being the woman who runs his nightclub,” she says with a sad smile. Something tells me those googly-eyes I saw her making at him are tied to her having been in love with him at some point.

Sucks to be her.

I feel the change in energy in the air and finish the rest of my tea, getting to my feet. “I should get going,” I tell her. “Thank you for the tea.”

I go over to the dresser and get my purse, relishing the weight of the chains as I put it crossbody. It anchors me to my past life somehow, my normal life.

“You’re welcome. Are you coming back?” she asks as she gets to her feet.

I shrug, heading to the door. “I don’t know. I’m sure there’s no escaping this place when you’re a vampire.”

“There really isn’t,” she says. “But if you ever want to get coffee or a drink, you know, out of this place, let me know. I already programmed my number into your phone. And if you ever need anything at all, and you don’t feel comfortable talking to Solon, you can always ask me.”

“Okay,” I tell her, feeling grateful. “Thank you.” I frown. “How did you get into my phone without the Face ID?”

She grins. “Magic tricks. Don’t worry, I’m still human. Someone has to keep all you vamps in line.”

“You have quite the job,” I tell her, opening the door. “And I thought my gig at Hot Topic when I was sixteen was hard.”

Amethyst laughs, a musical sound, and she walks me down to the front door, saying our goodbyes.

Once I’m outside the house, stepping into the foggy night, I feel eyes on top of my head.

I crane my neck back to look up at the house.

Of course, I see no one there.

Chapter Sixteen

A few days pass and I’m not sleeping again.

My mind won’t shut off, my eyes just won’t close, and I can hear every single noise in this goddamn hotel, no matter how many earplugs I shove in my ears.

I can’t stop thinking about Solon.