The howling wind rattling her windows woke Lexi. She blinked into the darkness before rolling over to stare at the night pressing against the glass.
Rain plastered the window as the wind blew it against the panes and whipped it across the land. Normally, she loved the sounds of a storm, but there was something about this storm that made her feel lonely. It was as if the world beyond that window had ceased to exist and only she remained.
Pushing aside her blankets, she rose and walked over to the glass. She rested her fingers against the cool surface as a rolling wave of thunder built to a crescendo that shook the manor. In the distance, lightning pierced the earth.
Electricity crackled the air as more bolts illuminated the scorched earth beyond the glass. The broken and barren landscape didn’t help her feel less alone in the world. She turned away from the window.
She eyed her bed, but sleep would elude her for as long as the storm raged. She grabbed her robe—her adult one—pulled it on, and tied it. Leaving her room behind, she padded down the hall to find something to munch on while watching the storm.
She was almost to the end of the hall when a muffled shout halted her. Straining to hear over the rain beating against the roof and the howling wind, she listened for another sound but didn’t hear anything.
Had she imagined it? Did the storm create the noise?
Turning, her eyes fell on Brokk’s door, and she crept toward it. Had he experienced a setback?
Her hand fell on the knob, and she hesitated before starting to turn it. She didn’t want to knock and risk waking him if he was sleeping, but she couldn’t just walk in there.
When the thunder faded away again, another muffled shout sounded, and she realized it wasn’t coming from Brokk’s room. She retreated from his door and retraced her steps down the hall until she stood outside the room she’d given to Cole.
She rested her hand on the knob but didn’t turn it. However, when another muffled shout started seconds before another clap of thunder boomed through the night, she knew she couldn’t walk away without checking on him first. For all she knew, someone had broken into the manor and was attacking him.
That possibility speared her into motion, and before she could think about it anymore, she turned the knob and inched the door open. If someone was attacking him, then she couldn’t alert them to her presence.
The element of surprise was her biggest advantage here. And if no one was in the room with him, then she didn’t want to wake him.
However, when the door was open enough for her to see into the room, she realized he was alone. Flashes of lightning revealed the small dresser, fireplace, and bathroom door across from the king-sized bed. Dark blue curtains framed the windows.
On the bed, Cole lay entangled in the dark blue comforter. His face was turned away from her, and his hands were twisted into the sheets. The corded muscles of his arms and neck stood starkly out.
Black ciphers ran from the tips of his fingers, up his arms, across his shoulders, and a few of the flames licked at his chin. She couldn’t tell if they went down his back, but there weren’t any on his chest.
When his head turned toward her, Lexi prepared to bolt. She was about to be caught entering his room. However, when his eyes remained closed, she realized he was having a nightmare.
Some of her tension eased, and she started to retreat, but a muffled sound of anguish stopped her. She’d heard sounds like that coming from wounded animals before, and it tore at her heart.
She couldn’t walk away from any creature in distress, let alone Cole.
Knowing she was playing with fire, she stepped away from the door and closed it behind her. She stared at it for a second before taking a deep breath, gathering her courage, and cautiously approaching the bed.
Uncertain of what to do, she stood beside him as thunder boomed and lightning illuminated the room. This close to him, she couldn’t help but marvel over the power he emanated.
He was nearly twice her size, and though he was also a half-breed, he was a combination of two of the most powerful immortal creatures in existence. His half-breed status made him more powerful, unlike her.
Her human half made her weaker; she was immortal, and she was faster and stronger than any human, but she didn’t possess the same strength as a full-blooded vampire. She couldn’t even transport.
When he thrashed on the bed and his head twisted away, Lexi buried her trepidation and stretched a hand toward him. A bolt struck right outside the manor; its electricity caused the hair on her nape to rise at the same time her fingers met his flesh.
She wasn’t sure if it was the electricity pulsing through the room or the contact with him, but her entire body tingled and her heart raced. She didn’t have time to figure it out before his eyes flew open, his hand seized her wrist, and he jerked her forward.
Before she had a chance to react, he pinned her beneath him, and his hand was enclosing on her throat. Then her air cut off.