Chapter 210

Joseph’s POV

Tessa had already been gone for a couple of hours and I wasn’t really sure what more to do in her apartment. I’ve already cleaned every inch of it and even went as far as doing her laundry. She would probably kill me for going through her laundry basket, but I needed to preoccupy my time so I would stop thinking about all the dangers Tessa could be in.

I had to trust her and trust that she could handle herself. Besides, Ruby was with her, and I know Ruby would never let anything happen to her.

I wanted to be here when she got back. It was Sunday, so, I didn’t have much to do this evening. But then I started to think that I could have at least grabbed my laptop from my house and got a bit of writing done while I waited for Tessa’s return.

Just as I decided to run to my house and grab my laptop, my phone started to ring. I frowned as I clutched my phone and stared at the lit-up screen.

Carter.

“This better be good,” I murmured into the phone as I pressed it to my cheek.

“I did something terrible,” Carter’s voice came out strained, almost in a whisper as it pained him to speak.

It got my attention really quickly though; I furrowed my brows together.

“Everything okay?” I asked.

“No,” Carter sighed. “I’m such an idiot.”

“What did you do?”

There was a moment of pause where I thought we were disconnected. But when I looked at the phone and saw the timer ticking up, my frown deepened as I put the phone back to my cheek.

“Carter?” I urged. “What happened?”

Carter sighed again.

“I should have told you before you left, but I didn’t. Tessa knows something is wrong and I’m worried she’s going to hear it from Ruby first…”

“Hear what??” I asked, panic rising within me.

I got into a fight with Ruby…”

I froze.

“This is why you called me?” I asked, sounding and feeling incredibly annoyed. “You fought with someone you shouldn’t even be with.”

“Who I’m with, isn’t your business,” Carter said firmly. “But yes. That day Tessa and I went into town to get that antidote, I left my phone on the training ground and Ruby called me.”

He paused for a moment to gather his thoughts and then I heard him take a deep breath.

“One of the warriors Bloodslaves found it and answered it,” Carter explained. “Obviously Ruby got the wrong idea and the bloodslave ran her mouth and told Ruby I was doing warrior duties, which of course confused her even more.”

My stomach tightened.

“Who’s bloodslave is she?” I said through my teeth; the fact that she was bold enough to answer Carter’s personal cell phone was beyond me.

“She’s newer,” Carter muttered. “She belongs to Derek.”

I rolled my eyes; Derek wasn’t the brightest light bulb, so it made sense that his bloodslave wasn’t either. But I can see why Carter was annoyed and upset because Ruby was probably thinking he was with another woman when in fact Ruby was the only woman Carter had been serious about in a long time. Carter might act like a playboy, but he’s sensitive and when he loves, he loves hard.

Ruby happened to capture his attention, and I could tell he was falling for her even before her mind was wiped. I knew it was hard for him to say goodbye and then have her not remember him.

As an Elder, I didn’t like the idea of him reuniting with her and risking the chance of her finding out about anything. But as a friend, I was glad he took a chance and followed his heart. His heart led him back to Ruby, just like mine would always lead me back to Tessa.

“So, then what happened?” I asked. “Did she break up with you after accusing you of cheating?”

I was kind of invested in this now; I was starting to understand why girls enjoyed gossiping so much. When it didn’t involve me, it was fun to listen to.

“I don’t really know,” Carter sighed. “But the Bloodslave told me a female called and when I saw that it was Ruby. I called her back. We argued and then I said something truly stupid and you’re going to kill me for it.”

I furrowed my brows together.

“What did you say to her, Carter?”

He took another deep breath.

“She was livid and hurt. I tried to explain to her that the girl wasn’t my lover of any sort and that I just worked with her. Which wasn’t a complete lie. But she didn’t believe me. She was crying upset and confused about the whole warrior thing. After a bit of arguing and trying to calm her down… it just came out.”

“What came out?” I asked immediately.

There was a tightness in my stomach and a part of me was fearing for what his next words were.

“I told her that I’m a vampire…”

My entire body froze from his words. My breath was whooshed right out of me, and I sat on the couch with wide eyes and a phone that might shatter from the intensity of my clutch.

“You did what?” I asked in a low and deep tone.

“She didn’t believe me,” Carter quickly added “She thought I was lying and hung up.”

I felt my body relax, but I was still furious that Carter was so stupid. Now she’s going to be asking questions and snooping around and Carter is going to have to figure out how to fix this mistake.

“Does Bernard know?” I asked, standing to my feet and pacing the living room.

“Not yet,” Carter said softly. “I found out about this before the bonfire. He’s going to be furious.”

“He’s the overseer, Carter. If you don’t tell him and he finds out from someone else, it won’t end well for you.”

“I know,” Carter groaned. “She won’t return my calls. Have you spoken to her?”

“Is that why you are calling me?” I asked through my teeth. “To ask if I’ve seen her?”

There was silence on the other end and then Carter whispered, “Kind of….”

The amount of annoyance I felt couldn’t be described. There was rage that boiled in the pit of my stomach.

“I saw her a couple of hours ago when she came to pick Tessa up. They went to a club,” I said, trying to calm myself down before I went back to the mountains and tore Carter’s head off his shoulders.

“A club?” Carter asked and I could hear the worry in his tone, but I was too pissed to care.

“Yeah. Maybe she will find someone less stupid,” I said through my teeth.

On that note, I hung up.

I needed to get my computer and drown myself in my next book because if I didn’t, I was seriously going to hurt someone.

I grabbed my keys off the counter and left Tessa’s apartment. I got into my car and started to drive in the direction of my house. I had to go through the downtown area which is where I knew the club that Tessa and Ruby went to.

She’s been there for a couple of hours, so I wasn’t expecting to see her. But when I saw the security officers running out of the club and down the street, my heart sank in my stomach. I knew something was wrong and somehow, I knew Tessa was involved.

I stepped harder on the gas, trying to get ahead of the officers and see who or what they were chasing.

Then I saw them.

Ruby had Tessa’s arm in her hand, and they were running. They were both clearly drunk and I felt rage against the officers chasing them.

I sped up until I was in front of them and then I spun my car to the side so the passenger door was facing them. Ruby nearly ran into the car and her eyes grew large as I swung the passenger door open.

“Get in!” I ordered.

“Joseph?” Tessa breathed; her eyes narrowed in my direction.

“I said get in!” I ordered again.

I could see the officers running in our direction and they weren’t looking happy.

Ruby pulled Tessa toward the car and then she slid into the back seat while Tessa scrambled to get into the front seat.

I could already smell the tequila that Tessa drank. Her words were slurred, and she looked like she was about to fall asleep.

We drove until we reached Ruby’s apartment.

“I’ll help her inside,” I said to Tessa as I opened my car door. “Stay here, please.”

“Okay,” she whispered, her eyes closed and her head leaning on her door.

I got out of the car and helped Ruby out of the backseat. She staggered around but I eventually got her up the stairs of her apartment and toward her door.

“Oh, I need my keys,” she murmured as she clumsily rummaged through her purse.

I waited patiently while she got her keys and attempted to unlock the door. But with her drunken sight, she was unable to put the key in the keyhole.

After her 5(th) attempt, I grabbed her keys from her and unlocked the door myself.

She sighed.

“Thanks…” she whispered as she stepped into her apartment.

Her shoulders were slumped, and I realized at that moment that she didn’t just look tired, she looked sad. The conversation with Carter roamed through my mind and I realized why she was sad.

She froze when she got into her apartment though and she turned to face me.

“Why do men lie?” She surprised me by asking.

I raised my brows at her question.

“I don’t—”

“Why can’t they just be honest?” She continued, tears welling in her eyes. “Why does it have to be so hard…”

I sighed, knowing she wasn’t going to let this go.

“Sometimes they lie to protect those they care about. Because if they knew the truth, it would change how one views the other…”

She met my eyes.

“Do you think they can ever be trusted again once that trust has been broken?” She asked.

I thought about it for a moment, but then I nodded.

“Yeah, I think it’s possible. It’ll take time. But if he truly cared about you and you care about him, then it’ll be worth it.”

She nodded and some tears escaped her eyes.

“I never gave him a proper chance to explain…” she whispered. “For all I know, Carter could have been telling me the truth.”

My body went cold from her words.

Before I could say anything, she let out a bitter laugh.

“Imagine that? Me being in love with a vampire. Who would have thought.”