Storm (Blood Haze: Book Two) A Paranormal Romance (22 page)

sure they were talking at first, but I could hear

the pitch rise and fall, and it was a little choppy –

broken up like words. I just assumed they were

speaking,” I answered.

Liam’s mouth gaped open, and he shook his

head. Then he looked at Alexi.

“What are you thinking?” Alexi asked.

“Can we talk privately?” Liam asked, grabbing

his arm and escorting him down the tunnel.

I strained to hear what they were saying, but I

couldn’t hear a word.

“I’m so sorry I couldn’t protect you before,”

Kai told me, looking dejected.

“It’s not your fault,” I told him, putting my

hand on his arm.

“I didn’t even see anything, Alice,” he said. “I

saw the door open, and I tried to shield you,

expecting someone to come in. But no one ever

did. The next thing I knew, I was waking up to

Alexi and Liam shouting.”

“Same here,” Max said. “I came downstairs

and I just got really tired all of a sudden. Then I

woke up when Alexi and Liam got back and were

calling your name.”

“Couldn’t you use any powers again them?”

Kai asked me.

“I didn’t have a chance,” I said. “By the time I

realized what was happening, they used some

white gas on me and I passed out.”

Alexi was suddenly standing in the mouth of

the tunnel.

“What did you say?” he asked very seriously.

“Umm… I said they used a white gas on me

and it made me go to sleep,” I repeated.

“Oh, this is
not
good,” Alexi muttered. “
Not

good.”

“I thought that was another myth,” Liam said

quietly.

“Me, too,” Alexi agreed. “Clearly, we were all

wrong. But how much will it cost us?”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“Alice, if these are wraiths that can use magic

and have the ability to gas, we’re in bigger

trouble than I thought,” Alexi said, clearly

anxious.

“We have to warn the others!” Liam gasped.

“What’s going on?” I asked.

“Father said we were not to leave the bunker

under any circumstances,” Alexi argued, ignoring

my question. “We can’t put Alice in danger,

either.”

“If those wraiths come here, there won’t be

anyone left to protect her,” Liam warned.

“You’re doing it again,” I grumbled.

“Sorry, Alice,” Alexi apologized. “This is just

really distressing.”

“Why? What’s going on? Liam, what did you

mean there won’t be anyone left?” I asked.

“If they can use gas, they can kill a whole

room full of people in seconds, and there’s

nothing anyone can do about it,” Liam said

gravely.

“What?” I gasped. “We have to warn them!”

“Alice, Alexi is right,” Liam argued. “We

can’t risk you.”

“Don’t be ridiculous!” I shouted. “We can’t

just leave them to die!”

“Every single person up there would gladly

give up their life to protect you,” Alexi insisted.

“They all know who you are and what you can

do, and they all understand how important you

are.”

“Everyone keeps saying that,” I said. “But no

one has given me a valid reason why I’m so

important that it’s worth risking so many lives to

protect me!”

“I can’t explain it just yet,” Alexi said. “I will

when I can, I promise. But please, just trust me.”

“Please, Alexi,” I pleaded with him, tears

filling my eyes. “We can’t just let them die.”

“I’ll go,” Kai offered. “I’ll warn them.”

“No!” I shouted.

“I’m the most expendable,” he explained

somberly. “I have no powers, and I’ve already

proven I can’t protect you.”

“No!” I said. “You’re
not
expendable!”

“She’s right,” Max said suddenly. “
I
am.”

“What? No!” I screamed at him. “You’re not

expendable, either!”

“Of course I am,” Max argued. “I don’t have

any powers, either. I didn’t finish my training, so

I can’t even view like my father. And I’m not as

physically strong as a vampire, so I can’t protect

you.”

“Max, you’re
not
expendable, and you’re
not

going,” I demanded. “End of story.”

“Alice, be reasonable,” Liam begged. “Max is

right. He’s the logical choice.”

“This is not about logic!” I shouted at Liam.

“None of you is expendable as far as I’m

concerned. Do you understand that? None of

you!”

“Then our hands are tied, I’m afraid,” Alexi

said sadly. “We can’t risk you, Alice.”

“Alexi,” I reminded him gently. “Your father

is up there.”

“And my father is willing to give up his life to

protect you,” Alexi said. “As am I.”

“We all are,” Kai said.

“This is
not
open for discussion,” I said

firmly. “We
have
to warn them.”

“Alice…” Alexi started to object.

“Stop it!” I shouted. “I’m not open to hearing

any further arguments on the matter. We’ll go

together.”

“No,” Alexi said quickly. “We can’t…”

“Alexi, don’t you dare say you can’t risk me,”

I growled, glaring at him stormily. “If you won’t

come with me, I’ll go on my own.”

“You know we won’t let you,” Alexi said

softly.

“And you think you can stop me?” I spat.

“You wouldn’t,” Alexi argued.

“Watch me,” I challenged. “So help me, I’ll

put every last one of you to sleep and then lock

you in here.”

Alexi sighed.

“You’re stubborn,” he mused.

“Very,” I shot back.

He sighed again.

“Very well, we’ll go together,” Alexi finally

conceded. “Before we go, can I speak to you

alone?”

“Sure,” I said, starting down the tunnel.

Alexi grabbed my hand and said, “No, let’s go

to the bathroom.”

“Okay…” I said, a little confused.

We went into the bathroom and Alexi gently

closed the door.

“I don’t have to explain to you how dangerous

this is,” he said seriously.

“No, you don’t,” I admitted. “I understand the

danger, but I’m not willing to sit back and do

nothing.”

“I don’t know how this is going to turn out,”

he said. “So I… I need to do something first. I

don’t want… I don’t want either of us to die

having never…”

“What is it, Alexi?” I asked.

He gulped.

“I know you know this already, but I’ve never

really…”

“Spit it out,” I said impatiently.

He took a deep breath, then slowly lifted the

hood of his cloak and let it fall behind him. I

stared in awe. I’d seen him once before, but I’d

been so panicked trying to save his life that I

hadn’t really been able to absorb it. Now, it was

startling.

His skin was the palest, purest white skin I’d

ever seen. His hair was also snow white, and it

flowed down his shoulders is silky waves. His

violet eyes were striking, and they carried a level

of emotion I’d rarely seen. The scar that crossed

his face from above his eye to below his ear on

the other side marred the delicacy of his face, but

it was not frightening or disgusting.

“Oh, Alexi…”

I

breathed.

“You’re…

beautiful…”

I slowly reached out and touched his snowy

skin, and he grabbed my wrist.

“Alice…” he whispered, closing his eyes and

feeling my hand against his cheek. “I know I

promised that I wouldn’t do this. But I never

thought… I didn’t expect… that I might lose you

so soon.”

“What is it, Alexi?” I asked, searching his

violet eyes.

“I love you, Alice,” he said at once. “I’ve

loved you for so long, even before we met. And

now that I’ve had the chance to know you –

really know
you – I realize I can’t ever live

without you. I had to tell you before it’s too late.

In case we don’t make it, in case the worst

should happen, I need you to know how much I

love you.”

“I already know,” I told him truthfully.

“You couldn’t possibly know the extent of

what I feel for you, Alice,” he confessed. “I can’t

put it into words. There
are
no words. I know

this is going to complicate things for you even

further, and I’m sorry. If we make it, I will do my

best to suppress my feelings for you for as long

as I need to. I’m hoping someday you will love

me in return, but if that day never comes, I will

accept it as long as you are happy.”

“Alexi, I…” I struggled to say the words.

“You don’t have to say anything,” he said. “I

just wanted you to know. In case something

happens, I needed you to know.”

I didn’t want to say the words. I already had

Kai and Max at each other’s throats, and it was

all they could do to keep from killing each other.

They were in complete internal turmoil because

of my indecision. I loved Kai. I knew I wanted to

be with him. He was the one. But I loved Max,

too.

But until that moment, there in the bathroom

before we would go and face mortal danger

together, I realized I loved Alexi, too. I didn’t

want to feel that way. I hoped the day would

never come that I would come to love him the

way he said I would, but it was true. And because

we might be facing death, I felt the same way he

did. I couldn’t let the chance slip by to tell him.

“I have to confess something to you,” I said at

last.

“What is it, my love?” he asked. “You can tell

me anything.”

“I…” I gulped. “I love you, Alexi. God help

me, I love you.”

My eyes filled with tears, and I saw that his

did, too. His lips parted as if he wanted to say

something, but no words would come. Finally,

after a long moment, he spoke.

“You’ve seen my face… and you… love me?”

he asked in surprise.

“Alexi,

you’re

beautiful,”

I

insisted.

“Everything about you is so beautiful I can’t

even explain it. You’re so beautiful it makes me

want to cry!”

I stood on my toes and put my hands on his

face. I gently kissed the scar that tried to hide his

beauty.

“No one has ever said that to me before,” he

whispered. “I’ve always been told I was ugly.

People have always cringed at my face, so I

decided to hide it. I haven’t let anyone see my

face in years.”

“Shh,” I shushed him. “It’s beautiful. You’re

beautiful.”

I let my hands slide around from his cheeks

and into his hair, and I pulled him toward me. I

thought of Kai, and I knew how much this would

hurt him, but Alexi was right. I knew we might

die, and Alexi didn’t deserve to die without ever

having kissed me. To tell the truth, I didn’t want

that, either. I wanted to kiss him.

His breath was hot on my face, and I could

feel it grow ragged with excitement. His face

slowly inched closer to mine, as if he were giving

me a chance to resist. But I didn’t want to resist.

I parted my lips and closed my eyes, and a faint

gasp of anticipation escaped my lips at the

moment I felt his lips brush lightly against mine.

Emboldened by my lack of resistance, his lips

pressed against mine, and my pulse quickened. I

hadn’t realized just how strong my feelings for

him were, but in his kiss, I could feel a thousand

raw emotions boiling over.

I heard him moan gently, and I knew the kiss

was just as magical as it was for me. It fueled my

passion, and I wrapped my arms around his neck

and pushed him back against the wall, pressing

my body against his.

I pushed Kai and Max to the back of my mind

just for that one moment. I’d already had this

moment with them, and now Alexi deserved his. I

allowed myself to be completely wrapped into

that rapturous kiss.

Alexi’s strong arms wrapped around me, and

he lifted me off the ground. I wrapped my legs

around his waist, and my arms embraced him as

tightly as they could. I never wanted to let go.

“I knew it…” Alexi whispered. “I knew you

would love me.”

“I do,” I sighed. “I love you.”

His lips found mine again, and we both

moaned contentedly.

“I don’t want to lose you,” he said, his voice

breaking. “Even if we make it through this, I

don’t want to lose you.”

“You won’t,” I promised, stroking his cheek.

“I’ll always love you.”

“But you love them, too,” he mentioned,

referring to Kai and Max.

I opened my mouth, but the words refused to

come. I couldn’t think of anything I could say

that would make it better.

“I can still wait for you,” he told me. “We’ve

had this moment, but I don’t expect anything

more from you until you’re ready.”

“Thank you, Alexi,” I said. “That’s one reason

why I’ve come to love you so much. Things are

so natural with you. You never pressure me,

never try to make me feel guilty. I wish I could