Adalynn worried her lower lip for a moment. “After the moon broke, Mother Nature went nuts. There were earthquakes, floods, tornadoes, crazy lightning storms…we even think the coasts got hit by tsunamis. Power went out right away in a lot of places, and it was out everywhere else within a few weeks. No internet, no cell service, no radio or TV. And as if all those disasters weren’t enough, everyone who died just…got back up and tried to rip the survivors to pieces.
“Me and Danny saw that werewolf, but we’ve seen other things, too. There was an impossibly beautiful man who was glowing all golden, and he had wings, but his eyes were cold. Once we saw these demonic-looking things perched on a roof—I swear, they looked like gargoyles come to life. We’ve seen some…spirits at night, too. And other survivors have told us about all kinds of other things.”
Irritation and alarm flared in Merrick’s chest; he did his best to suppress them, but the sudden worry was justified. “Other survivors? You don’t have companions out there you’ve not told me about, do you?”
Eyes rounding, Adalynn shook her head. “No, we’ve been alone for months. When it all started, we got out of the city as fast as we could. A lot of people had the same idea. We kept in groups for a while, but as time went on, and resources got scarce, and more and more scary stuff crawled out of the darkness…people got desperate. They got mean.
“The last group we were with ended badly. A couple of the guys got into an argument over food, and it turned into a shootout. Three people died, and a lot of people were hurt. It only got worse when the dead people got back up. So, we grabbed whatever supplies we could and took off on our own. I kept us away from major cities, using as many country roads as I could find, and we’ve avoided people as much as possible.”
Such was the nature of humanity—even when confronted with inhuman terrors and widescale disaster, they still couldn’t avoid conflict with one another. Her story wasn’t surprising, at least in that regard, and Merrick shouldn’t have felt anything over it…but he did. He felt the immense weight Adalynn carried on her shoulders, felt the fear, the sorrow, the utter weariness in her heart, felt her pain.
And he felt her spirit, her willpower, her protectiveness. Despite her sickness, she’d kept herself and her brother alive through all that. Merrick had some understanding of what it meant to be mortal, of the struggles she must’ve faced, of the fear she must’ve felt, and he was impressed with her for having overcome them.
He was proud of her.
“How long have the two of you been on your own?” Merrick asked.
Lowering her gaze, Adalynn used her fingertip to push a crumb around in a small circle atop the table. “One hundred and three days.”
The ease with which she’d offered that number suggested she’d kept careful track.
Was that because she knew her time was limited?
Merrick wanted to reach for her, wanted to comfort her, but even if she wanted that—which was unlikely—he wasn’t sure of what to say or do.
Danny’s mouth opened wide, and he released a loud, prolonged yawn.
Adalynn glanced at her brother, then down to her own plate, which was nearly clear. She seemed surprised, as though she’d not realized how much she’d eaten as she talked.
Her eyes rose to meet Merrick’s. “Thank you. For the food, and for letting us stay the night. We can find our way back to the…parlor? And I promise we won’t break anything on the way.”
If they were going to stay, that was the easiest arrangement; it kept them in a centralized location with little they could damage, and they’d be close to the front door when he kicked them out in the morning. But Adalynn still looked so worn, so tired, so weak. He couldn’t make her sleep on the couch—the cushions were firm, the armrests were hard, and the pillows were overstuffed and lumpy. It was a fine room for sitting with company, if one were inclined to do so, but it wasn’t adequate for comfortable sleep.
“I’ll show the two of you up to a bedroom,” Merrick found himself saying after a few moments.
Adalynn’s eyes widened. “A room?”
“You mean, we get to sleep in an actual bed?” Danny asked.
Merrick flattened his hands atop the table and pushed himself to his feet. “Yes. A room. With a bed. That is implied by the term bedroom, is it not?”
Adalynn’s confusion didn’t ease. “But I thought—”
“I am attempting to be a good host,” Merrick said. “For tonight, you are my guests, and the recipients of my good will.” He stepped to the side of the table and extended a hand, palm up, for Adalynn to take. His skin hummed in anticipation of her touch. “Will you accept, or do I have to be a condescending prick before you take my offer into consideration?”
She blushed again, looking contrite, but lifted her hand and placed it in his. “Well, you kind of were being one.”
A thrill arced up his arm, raising gooseflesh over his skin. He barely suppressed a shudder. The sensation continued down to a place low in his belly, where it sparked a flame. “Were?”
She smiled at him, one side of her mouth rising a little higher than the other. Her dark eyes, even in the dim light, were warm and filled with good humor. “I think your social skills are improving already.”
“I suppose I’d better ensure I kick you out promptly at dawn, then,” he replied, feeling his own lips curl into a small smile, “before your behavior influences me any further.”
“Are you flirting with my sister?” Danny asked from beside Merrick.
Adalynn whipped her head toward her brother and quickly pulled her hand out of Merrick’s. “Danny!”
Merrick curled his fingers into a loose fist—as though that could assuage his sudden sense of emptiness—and dropped his hand to his side. “Daniel, are you familiar with the saying children should be seen, not heard?”
“Nope. Are you familiar with the saying dude, don’t be a dick?”
Adalynn pressed her lips into a tight line and covered her face with her hand. “Danny…”
“What? Isn’t dick and prick the same thing? You called him a prick before!”
“So, young master Daniel will be sleeping in the front yard tonight?” Merrick asked.
“Oh, come on! Why is it okay for her to say that stuff but not me?” Danny demanded. “It is because you’re flirting, isn’t it?”
Struggling to suppress his irritation, Merrick cleared his throat. He didn’t have to answer to anyone, especially an adolescent human—though it didn’t help that, were he to be honest with himself, he had to admit the boy was correct. “Shall I show you to a room?”
“Please,” Adalynn replied, “before he says something else and I make him sleep outside.”
Chapter Four
Adalynn lay in bed staring at the dark ceiling, wide awake despite her fatigue. Sleep tugged at her consciousness, but there was a strange energy flowing through her that kept her from closing her eyes and succumbing to her weariness.
It was frustrating. She had a roof over her head, good food in her stomach, and she felt genuinely safe; not once since the Sundering had she had all three of those things simultaneously. And yet she couldn’t rest.