“Still,” I say, “you could open yourself up? Bond with someone else—”

“There is no one else, Violet.” He drags his nose along my jawline, leaning down into my neck. “Only you.” He licks me, then bites down hard into my flesh. He feeds, and I clench my eyes shut from the onslaught of twisted, possessive love he feels for me. Pours it all into me as if it’ll change the way I feel and make me want him too.

It’s overwhelming, the way purebreds can do this. I hate it. But I’ve gotten good at shutting my mind to it. To him and this influence—this pull and deeply rooted desire to make me his. It takes me almost twenty-four hours to shake off his emotional baggage. Once I do, I’m fully energized, sharp again, and I can avoid him for another eight or nine days. It’s not a great system, but it’s all I’ve got.

It’s Friday. The week has been painfully hectic with last-minute alterations and trying to fit everyone in. But the wedding ceremony has concluded without a hitch. The bride and groom looked stunning (I designed their traditional kimonos and did alterations for half the vampires in attendance), and now we’re having drinks in a Zen garden washed in dusky light. There are large lanterns glowing softly and hung in the trees surrounding us. It’s stunning. Whimsical.

“Why not invite Jae?” Nino asks, sipping his drink. He’s incredibly handsome in a slim-fitted sage-colored suit I designed for him a few months earlier. Green looks great with his honeyed skin tone and amber eyes. Haruka, not as much, so his matching kimono is deep silver with hints of the same color. Nino had considered wearing a kimono for this event but chickened out. I would have designed it for him. He’d look glorious in anything.

“For one, he told me he has the flu. Two, why would I bring a human-vampire hybrid to an aristocracy event? He’d just steal the attention away from the bride and groom.”

Nino shrugs. “That’s fair. I like Doctor Jae. He’s funny. He reminds me of myself before I was with Haruka—a little insecure.”

My mind suddenly flashes back to the first time he kissed me and slid his fingers against my cock. “Not always,” I mumble, then take a sip of my drink. Also, Jae is a damn good kisser. That’s not a distinction I usually notice about a person, but his kissing is confident and intuitive. He’s not just hungrily slopping into me like some humans have. He’s passionate, but he pays attention to what he’s doing—like he’s kissing but also listening.

“Hello, gentlemen.” Sora casually walks up beside us with a glass of white wine. Her dress is a deep midnight color and fitted to her slim curves. The red glasses she always wears pop nicely in contrast with the blue. “Drunk any good blood lately?”

Nino raises his eyebrow in a sly grin. “Well…”

“Alright, lover boy.” I smile. “Nobody wants to hear you brag about drinking ancient purebred blood.” Nino smirks and takes another pull from his glass. I turn to Sora. “Where’s hubby?”

Sora waves her free hand toward a general area. Unaffected. “Over there.”

“How are things at the hospital?” Nino asks.

“Busy—especially this week, with trying to reschedule appointments and make different arrangements for feedings. The lower ones love Doctor Jae. Is he alright? Have you heard from him?”

She’s looking at me, her head tilted. This week has been insane, but now that I think about it… “Not since… Tuesday?” I say. “Why? Have you not heard from him?”

“No, not since Wednesday morning. He no-showed yesterday and today, which is not like him at all. I tried calling him and texting him all day yesterday, but he’s not answering me. If you haven’t heard from him either, should we check on him? I don’t think he has any friends here…”

“We should check on him,” Nino interjects, his brow furrowed. “Jae said he’s never been sick before. Why is he sick now?”

I flick my wrist up and look at my watch. If I catch the next train, I can be there in forty-five minutes. Dammit. Why do I feel nervous about this?

“He came in Monday and looked exhausted and pale,” Sora says. “Gray.”

I sigh, setting my drink aside on a round high table. “I’ll go now.”

“I’ll go with you,” Nino volunteers. “Let me tell Haru real quick. He’s been invested in the doctor lately, but he definitely can’t leave right now. I can probably sneak away, though.” Nino stalks off toward his mate, standing in a crowd of vampires including the bride and groom.

I exhale a heavy sigh and run my fingers against the top of my head. My throat is tight and my heart is racing. God, I hope he’s just sleeping off some human illness. I haven’t had the chance to talk to Haruka and tell him I’ve fed from Jae.

Sora turns to me, grinning. “Jae’s demeanor is brighter the past few weeks. Cheerful and much more relaxed. I’m sure he’ll be happy to have the hospital director personally checking on him…”

I frown. “Sora, what’s your point?”

She shrugs. “It’s just interesting. For years, vampires in our aristocracy have been trying to figure you out and why you’re not bonded with Ren. I’m not one for gossip, but I feel like I’ve got the scoop. Does Ren know you prefer humans?”

I straighten my back and raise my eyebrow. “Ren lives in his own world and doesn’t care much about what other vampires like or don’t like.”

Sora laughs, bringing her wine glass to her lips. “He’s a real piece of work, that’s for sure.”

When Nino walks back through the crowd and toward us, he tells me he’s ready and we depart.

By the time we get to Jae’s apartment in Himeji, it’s eight o’clock, and there are still fissures of deep orange sunlight set against the darkened horizon.

We knock, then wait. No answer.

And again.

Nothing.

Shit.

“Shit.” I run my fingers against my scalp as Nino knocks a third time. When we’re met with the same hollow silence, he turns to me.

“I think I can unlock the door…” He focuses on the handle. “But I’ve never been given permission to enter his apartment. Have you?”

“Yeah,” I breathe. “If you open it, I can go inside.”

Nino steps forward and presses his fingertips against the lock mechanism. He closes his eyes, and I can feel the hum of his zesty purebred energy slowly radiating from his body. It’s warm, and feels almost… carbonated? Soothing, prickling bubbles against my skin. He opens his eyes, and they’re glowing. The color is like apricots. I hear a loud snap. He twists the handle, pulls, and the door opens for him.

“Impressive.” I smile, momentarily distracted by the focus and power he just exhibited.

He smirks in a laugh. “If you knew how many things I’ve destroyed in order to get to this point, you wouldn’t be.”

We both peek in, and the house is dark. A stench hits us both at the same time, because we both draw back from it. It smells stale and like something decaying. I shake my head, nearing full-blown panic. “Fuuuck.”

“Could he be dead?” Nino’s eyes are wide, his voice higher than usual. “I hadn’t even considered that.”

I frown. “Not helping.” The pair of us: two grown-ass vampires freaking out and being squeamish on a human’s doorstep. What good are we? “Shit.” I step past the threshold and straight into the main room, where the kitchen space flows into the living room. Nothing. Except a vase of wilting bird-of-paradise and lots of empty water bottles. So many. On the table, fallen onto the floor, on the counter. Like the man was dying of thirst.

Nino is standing in the doorway behind me. “I’ll open the windows from the outside? Air things out?”

“Thanks, Nino.” I look over my shoulder, and his eyes are alighted again. He lifts his hand, flicks his fingers, and the lock on the window just off the main room snaps loudly before the glass slides open.

Instinctively, I wander down a narrow hallway. It’s even darker here because there are no windows. I pass a door immediately to my right, peeking inside as I move. It’s a makeshift office space and there’s a floor table, cushion and papers spread out everywhere against the tatami. The room looks like a tornado hit it. No Jae.

There’s a door at the end of the hallway on the left. My senses are telling me he’s there. I reach the doorframe, and it’s a plain bedroom. There are more water bottles on the floor here, like the aftermath of sloppy picnic-goers.

Jae’s back is facing the door as he lies against the bed. He’s not moving at all.

Twenty-Two

Junichi