Xavier turned off the car and its low hum disappeared. Then it hit me, really hit me. I was at Sage Sanctum for the first time in over a year. I couldn’t tell if it was just me being weird or if the atmosphere actually did feel different.

“C’mon, I’ll take you to your lodgings so you can get some rest.”

Thankfully, the gate to the teacher’s area was close to the car park and I didn’t have to walk through the student campus. I signed a few release forms and then entered. Xavier walked me past Eli’s house. With every step I took, I grew more and more tense. There was a faint glow under his cream curtains and my heartbeat sped up. I dropped my stare to my white running shoes, making sure it didn’t linger on his house for too long. I didn’t want Xavier making any more comments on ‘loving who you love’ or whatever he said.

I didn’t have to walk far from Eli’s house to get to my own. A few short streets down and we reached the visitors’ lodgings. They were piled next to each other, like giant pieces of Lego. Being so close to him but not seeing him was torture. Xavier put my bag down on the small, white porch and pulled a cell phone out from his pocket. He dialed a few numbers and then hit call. I leaned against a light brown support beam that held up the porch. It was hard, but I could’ve easily fallen asleep against it.

“Mr Aleksandrov sir… yes… she’s here… Okay… will do… bye.” He hung up and put the black touch screen back into his pants.

“Mr Aleksandrov will be here soon. You might want to go in and unpack a little.”

I picked up my backpack and slung it over my shoulders. I opened the door and rubbed the cold wall, looking for a light switch. My fingers ran over the switch and I flicked it on. To the left of the door was a small living room area with a couch, a bookcase, and the smallest fireplace I had ever seen. Tucked against the wall to my right was a small kitchen, fitted with a dishwasher, stainless steel sink, and a coffee machine. In the back left corner was a door, which had to be the bedroom. There was no other door, so my guess was the bathroom adjoined the bedroom. I stepped inside and almost instantly the place made me feel more welcome and relaxed than my shitty apartment did in a whole year. I felt at home.

Xavier entered behind me and stood by the front door, arms folded tightly across his chest, looking all professional like in his guardian uniform. Impressive? Yes. I admire their dedication and professionalism, but no guardian angel could wear the uniform the way Eli did and provoke that thrilling feeling in my stomach.

The cool metal of the door handle felt right in my hand and I turned it. Creaking slightly, the door opened. To my surprise, the room was quite spacious. Like the rest of the house, the walls were white. The light of the moon filtered in through the semi-drawn blinds, making patterns on the light blue duvet of the double bed. I threw my bag down onto the bed and started unpacking. It would only take a few seconds to pull everything out and put it in a drawer. I didn’t bring much and I was planning on leaving again after Mr Aleksandrov’s party. If they found me in Gerald Harbor, there’s no doubt they’d find me here. Besides that, I needed something—anything to distract me from running down to Eli’s house and begging his forgiveness. A soft knock brought my attention back to the door.

“Ruby?”

I turned and met Xavier’s smiling, but still so very tired, face.

“He’s here.”

Unable to contain my excitement, I crossed quickly to the front room. The muscles surrounding my mouth began to ache. It became apparent I was smiling too hard. In the living room, I met Mr Aleksandrov. Four guardians, including Xavier, stood behind Ivan, but there was no Eli, and I was unsure whether to be relieved or disappointed.

“It’s so nice to see you again.” He extended his hand and I placed mine in his. Mr Aleksandrov glanced down at the necklace I had wrapped securely around my wrist.

“You’re alive and well, so I trust the charm is serving you well?”

I smiled awkwardly, unsure of whether to tell him that Hunter discovered it last night.

“Very well.” It wasn’t a total lie. It did work well for a year or so, and Lucian had no idea I was there in Gerald the night he stepped into the Turquoise Bar.

“That’s good. I brought you a welcoming gift.”

As he stepped aside, the worn ends of his dark gray robe made a slight ‘whooshing’ sound as it glided across the tiles.

“Ruby!” Mila squealed and she dove at me, sending me stumbling backwards a few steps. When I caught my balance, I wrapped my arms around her and I was engulfed by her usual candy-scented perfume. What used to make me nauseous now made me homesick.

“Mila can stay with you tonight. That is, if you’re up to it.”

“Of course,” I replied, releasing my grip on Mila.

“I’ll let you two catch up. Xavier, no doubt, needs his sleep, as do you, Ruby.” He shot Mila a warning glance. “See you tomorrow.”

As quickly as they came, they were gone, leaving Mila and I alone.

“Mila, I’m sorry I—”

She interrupted me by raising her hand in front of my mouth. “Nope, none of that right now. Let’s just catch up and sort out the depressing details later.”

I didn’t want to skip the apology, I needed to say it. It would help lift some of the stress off my shoulders. She twirled the end of her side braid around the tips of her fingers.

“What do you plan on wearing to the party?” she asked, her eyes searching the room for some kind of outfit.

I looked down at my joggers, skinny jeans and red polo shirt. “This?”

Mila’s eyes widened. “You can’t be serious? Ruby, it’s a black tie event. You can’t wear—” She stopped and pinched the bridge of her nose in an attempt to calm herself. “Luckily, I came prepared.”

Her sandals slapped the tiles as she ran out the front door. Seconds later, she returned with three long, black bags.

“What’s this?” I asked, pulling my dark hair into a messy ponytail. It was quite humid and my hair was sticking uncomfortably to the back of my neck.

“Uncle’s party is tomorrow and we’re going to bond over dresses.” Her voice was high and her eyes wide with excitement.

Unfortunately, I didn’t share that excitement. I mean, Mila was talking to me, so I should be thankful and happy, but instead I felt uneasy. She deserved an apology, an explanation. Why was she avoiding it? She used her long, silver-tipped nails to open one of the black bags. She pulled out an amazing silver gown. In the light, it shimmered like moonlight on a clear pond.

“This is what I’m wearing.”

As she held it in front of me, I examined the gown. It was strapless and slim, a rhinestone brooch adorned the dress at the center of the bodice, and from the brooch draped some kind of chiffon fabric, giving it a summery feel. She slung the long bag and silver dress over the back of the couch.

“You have to choose between red…” She unzipped another bag and pulled out a beautiful floor-length red gown. “Or…” She unzipped the last bag and from it came an indescribably beautiful gold gown. “Can you wear gold?”

I took a few steps toward the dresses and ran my fingers along the fabric of each. The red one felt cool, like satin, beneath my fingertips. The other looked like liquid gold and felt just as smooth. The golden straps that upheld the sweetheart neckline were pebbled with shiny beads and the soft, silky material flowed smoothly to the floor. If there was any reason to choose the gold over the red, it would be because every girl, at least once in their lives, should get the chance to feel like literal gold.

“And it’s backless,” Mila added, smiling triumphantly at me.

Once the dresses were sorted, Mila made us hot chocolate and we sat on the lounge room floor. She caught me up on all the gossip I’d missed. Apparently, Raina got her claws into Ava, and she now ran around with that crew, which sucked. I had wanted Ava to keep Mila company while I was gone.

“Ava was desperate for friends.” Mila shrugged. She tried to pass it off as no big deal but I could see how upset she was in her stormy eyes.

“Her loss,” I stated confidently.

“It seems no one can stand being around me.”

Ouch. I knew she was referring to me as much as anyone else.

“That’s not true,” I protested. “I—”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to—” She paused. “No, let’s not do the whole apology thing now.”

Again, she shut down my chance to apologize.

“We can talk and clear the air once Uncle’s party is over and things go back to normal.”

“About that,” I started. “I’m leaving again after the party. Me being here isn’t safe for anyone.”

“Says you.” Her tone was harsh. “You decided it wasn’t safe for us. You’re not the only one with powers and it’s not like Eli can’t handle himself against a vampire.”

I frowned into the brown liquid. “I’m just trying to protect the people I care about.”

“When will you realize no one needs protecting? Sure, Lucian can try and kill us all, but he would never be able to take us down all at once. Behind these walls we’re safe, we have numbers. Add your sun power thingy to the bunch and we’re untouchable.”

I forced myself to look at her. Her eyes were shimmering with tears. She swallowed hard, trying to force them back. It seemed my leaving hurt her more than I’d thought. Was it foolish of me to return and expect things to go back to normal? That I could waltz into these people’s lives for a night and then waltz out again with no hard feelings? Yes, I suppose it was.

“Eli almost died,” I mumbled, recalling that night.

When her eyes widened, I realized that maybe Eli hadn’t told anyone that story.

“What do you mean?”

“We were at Gerald Harbor… and I was fighting Lucian.”

Images of Lucian crying in pain with two wooden stakes stuck into his body filled my mind. “Instead of killing him with my powers, I tried to fight him one on one and I almost did it, but Eli came into the room. He was more worried about me than he was about his surroundings and he was stabbed.”

I heard Mila gasp but I couldn’t see her. I was too immersed in the horrific visions of last year. I closed my eyes in an attempt to shake Eli’s haunting face but I couldn’t. My cheek tingled as a single tear traced down it.

“There was blood everywhere and I panicked… I let Hunter feed Eli his blood in order to save him.”

The visions dissipated and I looked at Mila, who was holding her hand over her mouth.

“That’s why I had to leave. In the few moments I thought Eli was going to die, I couldn’t handle it. It felt like my heart was ripped from my chest, it hurt so much. Hunter told me that when the time comes, Lucian will kill everyone I’ve ever loved, and if I want to protect the ones I love, then I need to face it on my own. I couldn’t have anyone’s death on my conscience.”

Mila scooted closer to me and I couldn’t decide if her perfume was comforting me or making me nauseous.

“They’re trying to isolate you; they know they can’t take on everyone.” She glanced down and twirled the end of her braid around her finger again. “Why didn’t you kill Hunter when you had the chance?”

There it was. The question I’d been asking myself since the night at Gerald Harbor. I kept telling myself it was because I felt guilty or that I was the reason he was a vampire in the first place—and it was true to some extent, but that wasn’t the whole reason, which was a stupid thing to say because I didn’t even know what the whole reason was.

“Because…because I care for him too much. I couldn’t do it.”

Her brows knitted together, she didn’t understand. Thankfully, she didn’t try to. She wrapped her arm around my shoulder. “If it helps…I was never mad at you. I don’t want your apology because I feel like I owe you one. There’s something I need to tell you.”

My heart sank and my stomach knotted. A million thoughts engulfed my mind—was it Eli? It explained why he wasn’t the one to pick me up and why he wasn’t Mr Aleksandrov’s right hand man tonight.

“What is it?” I prompted Mila urgently.

“Uncle is going to make Eli my guardian angel.”

A jealous pang hit my stomach and I frowned. Eli was my guardian angel, I mean, not anymore, but I still felt possessive of him. The thought of him sharing the bond we had with someone else was unnerving.

“Don’t hate me.” Mila knelt in front of me demanding my attention. “I’ve been putting it off, Eli has as well. I wanted to tell you myself… I didn’t want you to find out from anyone else, but come Monday, I will be tattooed and bonded to Eli.”

I knew it was a great idea, I wouldn’t trust anyone other than Eli with Mila’s life and I knew he’d protect her no matter what, but I still couldn’t shake the jealous feeling.

“It’s a lot to take in,” I breathed, finally.

Mila nodded.

“But I trust Eli and I know he’ll keep you safe. That’s all I want.”

She wrapped her arms around my neck, pulling me close.

“I am so glad you’re back, besty.”

I smiled. “Me too.”

IT’S GOLD

Sleep didn’t come easy last night. It could be because I opted to sleep on the too hard couch instead of the double bed or because I couldn’t rid myself of Eli’s presence. He was only a street or two away and it was killing me not being able to see him. Not that I’d know what to say when I saw him or if he’d even talk to me. I guess my lack of sleep could also be narrowed down to my jealousy of Mila and her soon-to-be bond with Eli.