Page 96 of Thicker than Blood
“For?” Elias prods.
“Attempting to kill you.”
“That wasn’t so hard, was it?” Elias turns to me. “Are you satisfied with his apology, love?”
“Yes. Thank you.”
Elias steps closer to Tristan, and I’m assaulted by a wave of his dark emotions—anger, pity, frustration—nearly causing me to stumble.
“It’s such a shame, Trist. You could have had anything you wanted with your beauty, but you were greedy. It pains me to do this.”
Tristan’s face is a hard mask. “Oh please. You delight in killing. I’m not special to you. To be clear, you mean nothing to me, Elias. You were a conquest for power. Nothing more. Now, do what you must.”
Without hesitating, Elias reaches up and claws the front of Tristan’s throat, easily ripping the flesh apart as he pulls him off the wall, his restraints spilling to the floor in broken pieces.
I watch in awe as Elias rips Tristan’s head from his neck like he’s breaking a soft cookie in half. Tristan’s body slumps on the floor, while Elias holds his head by the hair. Tristan’s face is frozen in a mask of shock.
Elias, unflinching, turns around and hands the head to Benicio. “I want it and Fisher’s head on display tonight at Paradiso. It’s a clear message about what will happen when someone else gets a bright idea.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Please also gather Tristan’s blood in a container. A gift for my consort.”
Benicio bows his head with a smile on his lips.
Elias turns his gaze to me, and as it immediately softens, he smiles. “Come, my love. Let’s shower and change. Then we’ll join our friends and celebrate our love.”
I nod, still processing what I just witnessed. “Will I ever be like that?”
“Like what?” he asks, leading me up the stairs.
“A killer?”
“You already are. The good news is that in this day and age, it’s rarely necessary. We get our blood donated, and fortunately, uprisings are rare. Will you want to kill? Yes, at first. Your monster very much wanted to tear Tristan apart, but you’re still too close to your humanity to allow it. It’s charming.” He pauses, kissing my hand. “Someday, you’ll forget what it felt like tobe mortal. You’ll forget society’s arbitrary rules and constructs. You’ll adopt those of the supernatural world.”
We finish the walk upstairs, and once we reach the landing, I throw my arms around his neck. He chuckles, squeezing me tight.
“What’s this?”
I step back, gazing up at him. “Thank you.”
“For?”
“All of it. For the first time since I lost my family, I have a purpose again. A future. I’ve just been existing, thinking if I threw myself into my research, I’d find happiness, but I was never going to because I wasn’t fully me yet. Because of you, I am.”
He rubs my cheek. “We’re going to have a beautiful eternity together. Are you ready to step into all that you are, my love?”
“I’m ready.”
Epilogue
Five years Later
Geordi
“… G
iven the research and successful clinical trials, you can see that phase two of the vaccine is effective and ready to roll out to the public. We have a plan by district, alphabetical by household, and will provide the information on how to receive the vaccine via mail, social media advertising, flyers, and traditional media outlets.”