“Oh, my. Thank you, Kiev!” he enthused, gratitude shining in his eyes. “Gonna try using these in my carpentry… see if I can make my carvings more pretty.”
For the next week, each night I roamed the island, hunting for more gifts she might accept. And the following day, I placed them in front of the well before sunset.
Sometimes she took the gifts, other times she left them. At first I felt confused—and agitated—that there appeared to be no rhyme or reason for which she would take and which she would leave. Though I supposed that I should have been grateful she was accepting anything from me at all. It meant that I had established at least some kind of rapport with her.
Still, I tried to use whatever observations I was able to make to better understand her personality, and improve my presents. It was only after the seventh day that it hit me.
While accepting a clay pot, she would reject a pearl. While taking rope, she would leave behind a bracelet.
At least one thing had become clear to me: she chose practicality over beauty.
On the eighth night, I was sure that I’d managed to find something that would make her happy. A dagger I’d found washed up on the shore.
But on the ninth evening, she didn’t show up.
Unsure of what to do with myself, I waited around the well until late into the night. But when it was clear that she wasn’t coming, I ran through the forest and stopped at the edge of the lake. A lantern hung near her front door, but no lights glowed through the curtains of her cabin.
Questioning whether I was making the right choice, I jumped into the water and swam toward her house. Climbing onto the balcony, I smirked as I noticed her new table in the same spot her old one had been. I bent down and placed the dagger outside her front door.
I spent the next few hours cleaning the exterior of her house, using coarse leaves I’d found on plants growing in the water. I scrubbed the windows, the roof, the railing… anywhere that looked unkempt. I worked as silently as possible so that I wouldn’t wake her and give her yet another fright with my eyes.
After I was satisfied that I’d done a noticeable job, I dipped my hand into the water and plucked a handful of bright blue water lilies. I left them outside her door, next to the blade, hoping she’d find them in the morning before they became too wilted.
But as I swam back toward the mainland, I wondered if that had been a mistake. She might not have wanted me to pick her lilies. She might have preferred them to be growing in the water rather than dead on her porch.
That might have made her hate me again.
Chapter 26: Mona
What the hell have they been putting in that vampire’s blood?
I still couldn’t shake the feeling that Saira was behind all of this. After all, if it hadn’t been for her hot-headedness, he wouldn’t have been on this island in the first place. But, of course, when I visited her tree house to question her, she’d denied having anything to do with Kiev’s behavior.
“Maybe he just really likes you,” she’d said innocently, while knitting a scarf on her lap. “Maybe he’s had a change of heart.”
I’d scoffed, wondering how she could take me to be so naive.
The truth was, the vampire’s attention unnerved me. Deeply. I didn’t understand where it had come from, or why he was doing it. His own explanation was an insult to my intelligence. I’d spent the last night sleeping on a hill top, in the open air, because I’d felt so stifled. I wanted to get away from the island. Wash myself of its presence. Of his presence. Even if only for a few hours.
I didn’t tell Saira or Matteo that I was leaving. They’d only attempt to convince me not to venture out alone. I told the werewolf guarding the gate that I wouldn’t be gone for long. I ran across the hot sand and splashed into the cool waves. Ducking underwater, I relished the feeling of weightlessness for a few moments before calling out to my dolphins. Both came racing toward me, their heads bobbing up to the surface. I strapped them into the harnesses of one of the small sail boats moored in our port, and, gripping the reins, urged them forward.
I didn’t know where I would go. Any direction would do. I just needed to be alone. I didn’t slow down until I could no longer see the shorelines of any islands. I slowed the dolphins to a stop and tied their reins securely around a post. The dark color of the water surrounding us betrayed how deep we were now. I shuddered a little, reminding myself of the type of creatures that lurked in these depths. But at that moment, the solitude was worth the worry.
I lay down in the center of the boat and gazed up at the clear blue sky, the sun beating down on me.
I never should have accepted anything from that vampire. It’s only encouraged him further.
I knew the type of man he was. Entitled. Uncompromising. Aggressive. If given an inch, he’d string it into a mile. He couldn’t receive even the slightest bit of lenience without pushing to take full advantage of it. I couldn’t accept any more of his gifts. And I could no longer visit the well at the same time each evening.
If I avoided him long enough, he’d grow tired of whatever game he was playing. And move on to badgering somebody else.
I closed my eyes, shutting out the world and relishing the sun’s warmth on my skin. The waves rocked the boat gently from side to side, as if it were a cradle.
The gifts I’ve received from him in the past few days outnumber the gifts I’ve received in my entire life. And most of them can’t have been easy to find on the island. He must have spent hours, maybe even days… Why is he spending so much time thinking about me?
I dozed in and out of consciousness, losing count of how many hours passed by. Despite promising myself to cast aside all thoughts of the vampire, I couldn’t get him out of my head.
Why am I still thinking about him? I left the island to get away from him.
A cool spray of water brought me to my senses. I scrambled up and looked over the edge of the boat. Kai and Evie had started splashing around wildly in the water. It was only when I looked up that I realized why.
Oh, no.
A large ship loomed toward us at an alarming speed. The Skull Crusher was inscribed in thick letters at its bow. I grabbed the reins and tugged at the dolphins to hurry forward in the opposite direction. As soon as they picked up speed, I turned back. A dozen trolls armed with bows and arrows stared down at me from the distance.
“Hurry!” I breathed. My dolphins’ supernatural speed suddenly seemed insufficient.
“Oi!” a voice bellowed down at me.
I turned around again to face the ocean ahead, hoping they hadn’t already recognized me.