He bent down and placed a kiss on my head. Then they left and the others trickled out too after them, leaving Caleb and I standing alone in the music room once again. He had moved over to a corner as soon as the crowd of vampires had entered.
One look at his ashen face, and I knew what he was about to say.
Chapter 40: Rose
“I need to leave now.”
I realized that inviting him onto the island had been nothing more than an excuse to delay this moment.
Gulping back the lump in my throat, I nodded. I looped my arm through his and we walked out of the music room, through the corridors and out of the penthouse. Neither of us spoke a word as we took the elevator down to the ground and made our way back along the forest path toward the Port.
Throughout The Shade’s history, the Port always had been a place of goodbyes. But I had never hated the place as much as I did now.
I walked with him until he stopped at the edge of the jetty.
His breathing mirrored my own as he looked down into my eyes one last time. Heavy. Constricted.
“I’d rather not drag this out any longer,” he said, his voice husky as he detached my arm from his.
I nodded, biting my lip to prevent it from trembling.
“Goodbye,” he said.
“Goodbye.”
He turned and motioned to climb back through the hatch.
“Caleb,” I stammered just before he lifted himself off the ground.
He turned to look back down at me, frowning.
“What?”
“If there’s ever a way you can free yourself from that island… Please, come back here.”
He froze at my words, his chocolate-brown eyes locked on mine. Then something sparked in them that I had never witnessed in such intensity. Passion. Desire. Fire. Before I could even realize what was happening, he’d leapt back down and wrapped an arm around my waist, pulling me close against him. Gripping the base of my neck with his other hand, he forced his lips against mine.
The strength of his hunger for me overpowered my ability to return it in kind. I closed my eyes and reached my hands into his hair, gripping it and pulling myself closer against his body. Breathing in his scent, I relished every second that his tongue brushed against mine.
And then just as abruptly, it was over.
Still breathing heavily, he pulled away.
“I don’t belong in your world, Rose.”
He lifted himself up against the vessel and a few seconds later, he was gone.
When the hatch clicked shut, I could no longer hold back the tears. The ache in my chest consumed me.
Damn this cruel port and its tradition of first-and-last kisses.
As the submarine disappeared beneath the waves, it felt like a piece of me was drowning with it.
Chapter 41: Aiden
My life and the lives of most other vampires on this island had been utterly taken over by the disappearance of the twins. We’d used every hour of the day worrying about them and trying to locate them.
Although Ben appeared shaken by whatever he had gone through in Stellan’s island—far more shaken than Rose—the twins were back.
Life can finally return to normalcy.
The first thing I did was seek out Adelle. She’d been worried sick just like the rest of us, but she hadn’t come with us on any of our excursions because she—along with Abby and a few other witches—had to keep up their duties looking after the children on the island.
I suspected that at this time of day she might still be in her office in the school. I raced through the corridors and knocked on the door, relieved to see that my guess had been correct.
She stood up, her eyes widening as soon as she saw me.
“What’s going on?” she asked, hurrying over to me.
“They’re back,” I panted. “Both twins are safe.”
She clapped a palm over her forehead and breathed out.
“Oh, thank heavens. It feels like this whole island has been holding its breath for their return.”
“Ben’s extremely shaken by whatever happened to him,” I continued. “He has refused to talk about details with anyone yet. But at least physically, he’s recovering under Corrine’s expert care.”
“And Rose?”
“She seems to be fine. A few scratches, but nothing to speak of.”
“I can’t tell you how relieved I am,” Adelle said, leaning against a desk and brushing hair away from her face with the back of her sleeve.
Mirroring her body language, I leaned against the chalkboard.
“Things can finally return to normal,” I said.
“You look exhausted,” she commented, eyeing me.
I nodded. “I think I’m going to go and get some rest. I just wanted to make sure you’d heard the news first.”
“Thank you. It’s much appreciated.”
“And… uh, there also was one other thing I wanted to say.”
I stood up straight, dipping my hands into my pockets as I took a few steps closer to her, casually closing the distance between us.
“And what’s that?” she asked, her eyebrows arched.
“Adelle, I—”
The door crashed open and Sofia sped in, her face alight with panic, sweat dripping from her brow.
“Have you seen Anna?” she panted.
“No,” I said, walking up to my daughter and gripping her shoulders. “What’s wrong, darling?”
“Kyle said she’s disappeared.”
Adelle and I both stared at Sofia, dumbstruck.
Chapter 42: Sofia
I stood staring across our kitchen table at Derek.
“A setup,” I murmured.
“What else could this be?” He glared back at me. “As soon as they realized we’d shown up without Anna, those vampires had Caleb concoct an excuse to enter this island—that he was returning Rose to us. And while he was here, he swiped Anna.”
His words sent my head into a tailspin. Every inch of the island had been searched. Anna had well and truly disappeared. Kyle was distraught, although he was trying to put on a brave face for Ariana and Jason.
“I can’t believe we could have been so stupid and gullible as to trust that vampire,” Derek seethed, throwing his hands in the air.
“Derek,” I gasped, tears burning my eyes. “Anna’s pregnant. She’s eight months pregnant, goddamn it!”
I picked up a vase from the table and hurled it against the floor, shattering it into a thousand pieces.
I sank to my knees, fighting back the tears. I never had been one to express my feelings with violence, but this was about Anna.
Whoever is responsible for Anna’s disappearance—be it Caleb or someone else—has just called upon a very different side of me than anyone is used to witnessing.
Chapter 43: Caleb
I swore as soon as the hatch slammed shut above me.
The taste of Rose was still alive on my tongue, her scent still haunting my senses.
What the hell was I thinking?
I stormed through the passageway and sat down in the control room, lowering the submarine as quickly as I could. Getting away as quickly as I could. Away from her.
As the dark waters flooded past us, I ramped up the speed.
“Hello, Caleb.”
I whirled around to see Stellan standing a few inches away from me, a syringe between his fingers.
He stabbed it into my neck before I could react.
“Staying away for so many hours allowing me time to recover could have been excusable, but using one of my submarines to hold me captive in? You sure are a fool,” he hissed in my ear as I sank to the floor. “I always keep keys on me.” He lifted up a small chain of keys from a hidden pouch within his shirt and dangled them in front of me. He gripped me roughly and dragged my limp body out of the control room, down the steps toward the lower deck.
He stopped in front of the storage chamber. Before opening the door, he leaned down over me. His eyes gl
inting, he withdrew another syringe from his pocket and stabbed it into my neck. Blackness was clouding my vision fast now.
“Hm,” he muttered loud enough for me to hear. “This dosage should be enough to keep you unconscious for just over seven days. Now I just need to decide where to dump you for all that time…”
He swung the door of the chamber open. I caught a glimpse of a young pregnant woman lying still in a corner before he flung me down against the hard floor and locked the door, plunging the room into darkness.
* * *
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Other Books by Bella Forrest
A SHADE OF VAMPIRE SERIES
A Shade of Vampire (Book 1)
A Shade of Blood (Book 2)
A Castle of Sand (Book 3)
A Shadow of Light (Book 4)
A Blaze of Sun (Book 5)
A Gate of Night (Book 6)
A Break of Day (Book 7)
A Shade of Novak (Book 8)
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A SHADE OF KIEV SERIES
A Shade of Kiev 1
A Shade of Kiev 2
* * *
BEAUTIFUL MONSTER SERIES
Beautiful Monster 1
Beautiful Monster 2
* * *
For an updated list of Bella’s books, please visit her website: www.bellaforrest.net
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Also, sign up to her New Release email list and you’ll automatically get notified as soon as her next book is available: www.forrestbooks.com
Bella Forrest, A Shade of Novak
(Series: A Shade of Vampire # 8)
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