Chapter Eighty-three

Flying through the door to the safe house, Bram huffed. The room, save for where a still pale, unmoving Gavin lay, there was no one in the room. He opened the door to where the feeders were put, and they crawled away from him, curling together in a corner. It was still just the four of them. He slammed the door shut and locked it again. Her phone, and any other devices any of them had on them, were laying on the bed beside Gavin. Bram heart thrummed uncomfortably in his chest. He could see a note folded there too, but he didn’t want to touch it. He didn’t want to think that she had taken the kids and left. What the hell was he going to do?

His hand trembled as it lifted the paper. He swallowed hard, unfolding it:

*Bram,*
*I’m so sorry. I didn’t want to go. I had to. None of us are safe with you right now. We’ll find each other again when all of this blows over. I’m not angry with you. I just need to make sure the children are safe. I’m still praying that you bring our others home. I will make sure to keep in touch with you so you don’t worry. I also took your money. I’m sorry. I didn’t know what else to do and I needed to know I wouldn’t be tracked. I honestly believe this will make it easier for you to save Tyler. You won’t have to worry about me or the kids now. You can put all your focus on them. They need you now more than we do.*
*I love you. Please don’t be mad.*

Slumping onto the end of the bed, Bram covered his face. She was right though. She was safer disappearing than staying here with him. People weren’t watching her. They were targeting him. And now that they were mated, he would be able to know if she was in trouble. He’d find her if anything happened. Until then, he needed to let her disappear. Sighing, he folded the note up, pressing it into his pocket.

Turning around, he looked over at Gavin. He didn’t look any different. The wounds had healed more throughout the night, but his heart wasn’t beating, and his skin was even darker grey than it had been before. He moved to the head of the bed, resting Gavin’s head on his lap, as he started drained blood into his mouth again. Though he was losing hope that he would wake. If it was going to work, he was pretty sure it would have by now. With Izabella and the kids gone, he was going on the hunt for Tyler. He had to think of a way to find out from Mihaela where she was keeping him.

Dialing Tyler’s number, the phone rang, but no one answered. He was tempted to throw the damn thing across the room, but he couldn’t. If Izabella wanted to get a hold of him, this is how she would do it. Despair wasn’t something Bram was used to. But his chest hurt and the world felt completely bleak. Not only was Izabella gone, but so was Tyler. Staring at his phone, he grumbled, “I should have killed that bitch when I had the chance.”

His phone rang. It was his mother again. “Yeah.” Bram grumbled. Putting the phone on speaker and laying it down on the bed beside him.

“Is everything okay?” She worried. “You sounded so distraught. What happened?” Her voice echoed in the empty, desolate room.

“Izabella and the children are gone.” He could hear the pain in his own voice. But he still didn’t trust her enough to tell her the truth. “I swear, when I get my hands on her, Mihaela is going to wish she were dead.”

“She got them?” Scarlet’s voice trembled. “We need to find them. I’m going to come to the city. I’ll call you when I land.”

“You’re coming on a plane? You have other portals. Just use one of them.” Bram said in surprise. Pressing the blood down his arm. This would be the last time he would try with Gavin. Now that the wounds were mostly healed, there should be some sort of response from his body. But nothing was happening.

“I can’t. After you hung up, that was the first thing I was going to do. But when I went and looked at the others, they were destroyed too. I’m guessing it wasn’t you then?” There it was again. That tired, worried voice. He almost felt sorry for her. “I was going to make your father come too, but I don’t think I can get him on a plane. Even a midnight flight.”

“He can barely answer a phone. You’re not going to get him on a flight.” Bram ran his unbloodied hand through his hair. “Alright, call me when you get in. I’ll pick you up. Before you go, is there anything else I should know?”

“She can’t use fire, but she can use electricity. If you really go after her, make sure you stay away from water.” Bram grunted, that was why when she hit him the other day it hurt so damn much. She had friggin’ electrocuted him.

“Got it. Let me know when to expect you. I have to wrap my head around all this. But I'm going to warn you, don’t bother coming if you’re going to try to stop me from killing her. After all this, I will not allow her to live.”

“We need to focus on getting Izabella away from her. She likely doesn’t know that the last transport is down. She’ll be wanting to get here to the castle so that she can frame us. I’ll put some people at the airport to watch for her. I guess it’s best for your father to stay here. He can do something if she does show up.”

Knocking his head against the wall, he closed his eyes. “Do you really think Vlad will stop Mihaela to try to save my human mate?” He laughed mirthlessly.

“He will if I tell him to.” His mother said, matter-of-factly. “Be careful, lay low until I get there.”

“Yeah, that’s not going to happen. That bitch has my mate, my kids, my only friend, and she killed Tyler’s mate. She’s going to fucking burn at the stake.” He growled. He kinda felt bad lying to his mother. Oh. No. Wait. He didn’t feel bad at all.

“Bram!” His mother yelled. Witches weren’t fond of burning at the stake.

“If that’s not what she wanted, she shouldn’t have tried to fuck me.” He clicked the phone off. There was absolutely no difference in Gavin. He could almost feel Tyler’s heart breaking when he realized Gavin was gone. And so soon after finding him too. Bram licked his wounds. When he stood, he pulled the blanket up and over Gavin’s face. He would leave him here. That way Tyler might at least get a goodbye in or decide how he wanted to take care of the body. “I’m sorry I couldn’t save you. I really did try my damnedest.” They’d known each other for about eighty years. They hadn’t always been close, but Gavin had made a lasting impression in his life these last few days.

He'd never imagined he could care for so many people so quickly.

Bram went to the side door, opening it. Grabbing one of the feeders by the arm, his fangs slid into their flesh. They cried out, the others curling up together in the corner crying. None of them could talk. Their tongues were gone, and their vocal cords already worn. When he was done, the body slipped from his hand, landing on the ground beside the others. He would leave the rest here. Just in case he needed them later. He actually did feel bad for them. He brought in the coffee and food he’d gotten for Izabella and the kids. “Make it last.” He said, before shutting the door behind him.

Picking up Izabella’s phone and putting the others in a pile at the foot of the bed, he left. There was no point in him staying here alone. He’d gotten it for them and Gavin. Bram headed back to his apartment. He wanted to grab his car and laptop. It was still early in the day. Most of the people he could talk to about where Tyler could be, wouldn’t be out until later tonight. Vampires didn’t exactly hang out during the day. He also figured he could use some sleep, but wasn’t sure how he would be able to do that.

As he headed back toward his building, a familiar scent was in the air. When Bram looked around, he saw Izabella’s church, the one her father used to minister at, was across the street. He stood there for a long time, staring at it. It was an old building that was starting to show it's age and wear. Thick oak doors were only opened Sunday mornings. There was a side door they used the rest of the week. There were a lot of healthy, flower filled bushes and hedgerows. Two large pots stood to either side of the door with large red hibiscus flowers on either side. He could have sworn he could smell her. He’d never wished he could walk into a church before, but at that moment, he was very tempted to find out what would happen. A regular vampire would burst into flame once they hit holy ground. Bram had never tried.

Considering she left to protect her and the children, he shouldn’t even be contemplating it.

***

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