"Riley" I began "He told me about you and Anna..." I started, watching his expression closely.

He was serious, seriously angry.

I was sure Riley was going to get his ass beat after this.

"That wasn't his place" He spoke in between gritted teeth

"I was the one who pushed him for information, that's why I was teasing at him" I quickly defended, hoping to get Riley out of trouble "Besides he only told me that you were together and fought, and that's how she got her scars and how she came about to live here" I continued rambling

"Then how does Darius come into it?" He asked, crunching my stomach into knots

"I was talking to Anna. She was very forthcoming with..."

"What?" He edged, fearful she'd revealed his deepest darkest secrets to me

"Just, history" I shrugged becoming angry at his push for information "Like you said, it's not my place to say. Maybe you should speak to her directly about the truth" I answered, pulling my hands free from his, shoving them under the quilt to regain warmth stolen from Duke's coldness.

"What truth?" His voice was desperate as he sat close to me, leaning his head in close

"Ask her yourself" I raised my voice staring at him angrily "If she can tell me about her love triangle, she can tell you about it herself" I blurted out, letting my anger get the best of me.

He was taken back for a moment but easily kept his composure and his eyes trained on me.

"You have no idea what you're talking about" He was now mad at me as he spoke through his teeth, glaring.

I could understand the fear that Anna had when he'd snapped and attacked her.

"Fine, then leave me be" I spat, glaring straight back.

He wouldn't attack me. Not after everything he'd promised to protect me from, right?

Before I knew it he had edged his face closer, sending my upright body stiff against the bed head while his nose touched mine. I felt my body run cold. My heart beat erratically in my chest in fear of what might happen.

"Tell me Rosie" He demanded again, this time whispering.

Like usual, his mood swings were agitating and bothersome "Tell me what she said" He tried

I felt my body shake, my palms sweat, a lump forming in my throat as I watched him intently before answering

"I know Darius is your brother. Him and Anna, they-" I paused, unsure if I should continue

"They were seeing each other behind your back" I admitted softly, fearing he'd snap and actually take his anger out on me.

His eyes immediately grew wild, anger flashed through them as they turned a deep shade of black. His lips twitched, I felt truly afraid.

Through the silence of the dark night, a distinct clicking noise came from Duke's mouth as he violently backed away from me. He stood at the foot of the bed, I could see the fury radiating from him.

"You're lying" He whispered which caused me to gasp loudly at the sight of two sharp teeth protruding from his mouth.

I was aware I was shaking, terrified of what to do or say next.

"I'm, I'm, not" I bravely stuttered, pulling my knee's up close to my chest

I heard the same click noise shortly follow before he finally looked up at me.

His eyes were still the same charcoal black, empty and hollow.

Slowly, he moved toward me, leaning forward once he was in arms reach. Gently, he brushed his fingers along my jaw line causing me to flinch.

"I'm sorry" He whispered, vanishing from the room, leaving me in a crumpled and horrified.

I sobbed into my knees for a minute or two, until the creak of my door sounded again.

Within an instant, Riley was at my side, he held a hand on my hair, the other rubbing soothing circles around my back. I relaxed into him as I leaned against his chest, gripping at his shirt. He shushed me quietly, stroking my hair as silent tears escaped freely.

It had been a good ten minutes that I leaned heavily against Riley. My nerves calmed, and I caught my breath while I held tightly onto him.

"How did you know?" I stuttered

"I was listening from the hall" He smirked, continuing to bring that Riley humour back into my life.

I pulled back from his shirt and looked up at him. His smile was gorgeous, sympathetic as he looked down at me, slowly rubbing his thumb over my cheek

"I, I think I got you in serious trouble" I smiled in return, unable to keep an upset face when he was in front of me.

"Not as much as what you got Anna into" He commented turning my smile upside down

"What..." I mumbled.

"He's furious at her, upset, angry, unsure, hurt" He shrugged casually

I felt guilty. I'd brought this trouble upon her. I'd caused his hurt. I'd caused everything.

I tightly squeezed my eyes shut again, fearing more tears would fall.

"He was bound to find out sooner or later" Riley assured me "I wished I'd known for sure, I would have told him a long time ago if I had known it was true"

"Like that makes it any better" I sarcastically scoffed, opening my eyes, but not moving from his embrace.

Riley wrapped his arms around me and rest his chin on my head.

I felt safe with Riley, I felt relief.

He always made me feel better, and I appreciated everything he had ever done for me. My body soon relaxed and I sunk in further into the moment.

"Can you stay like this, just so I can sleep without fear of being killed?" I asked

"Sure. That's what I'm here for" He nodded as he leaned his shoulder against the headboard, letting me snuggle in closer.

I felt him pull my quilt up around my waist as I closed my eyes. I just wanted to sleep.

"If you get too cold, I'll have to scoot over" He told me, placing a finger on my cheek.

He was cold, but I didn't care, as long as he was there.

I shook my head and relaxed my entire body into him. He just wrapped his arms closer around me as he rest his cheek on my hair, soothing me to sleep within the next five minutes.

•

When I woke the next morning, I found myself nestled in the same position I had been when I'd fallen asleep, right beside Riley.

I flickered my eyes open, adjusting them to the harsh light.

I shifted my head, looking upwards to Riley's face. He was sound asleep, his face soft and calm as his lips slightly parted for his breathe to escape. He looked just as peaceful as Duke had when I had witnessed him asleep.

Memories returned in my head at the thought of Duke's name. I remembered last night and what had happened, it instantly made my head hurt.

This was where I wanted to stay. I wanted to stay close and comfortable with Riley all day until things died down, until drama foreclosed forever.

My wish soon faded as Riley stirred awake and stretched his arms out wide on either side of my head. I could hear him yawn as his muscles relaxed from stretching. His hand met my hair as he gently stroked it.

"How did you sleep?" He asked, obviously knowing I was wide awake

I shrugged "Better when you're here. I don't have nightmares"

"That's good" He sighed as he shifted uncomfortably

"What's wrong?" I asked, lifting my head from his chest to sit up

He gave me a weak smile, before patting his stomach suggestively

"I've got a beautiful girl snuggled up on my unsatisfied stomach " He smiled smugly as he winked at me

I screwed my face up "Thanks for the compliment, but it sounded repulsive" I answered as he hopped up and stretched his entire body out

"You should shower and get refreshed anyway. I'll suss out how Duke is, and Anna, then I'll let you know whether it's safe to come down or not" He smiled as he headed towards the door

"Thanks Riley" I smiled, genuinely grateful he was around to look out for me.

Riley took one last wink at me before flashing from the room.

I stay sitting in bed for a moment, feeling the sudden emptiness now that Riley was gone. He was all I had at the moment.

After seeing Duke's piercing teeth, I had to admit, I was back to being afraid of him. It was intimidating and terrifying to see just how easily I'd set him off.

Not to mention it brought the fear of Ryde and memories of when he'd attacked me rushing back.

I peeled myself out of bed and shuffled through my dresser, settling on a pair of black tights and a plain grey shirt before heading to the shower.

It was refreshing, just like Riley had said. I allowed the warm water to drench all over my body, easing up all the tense muscles.

I hopped out after about ten minutes and blow dried my hair.

I desperately needed it cut, it was becoming brittle and dry at the ends as I combed through.

Once done, I let my damp hair settle back into its natural wavy position. I tugged on my clothes and applied a little makeup.

When I hoped out, I came face to face with Riley, who was already waiting on the edge of my bed. He was dressed in a fresh clean set of clothes. His face wasn't happy as I approached. It made me nervous.

"Looks like I'll be cooped up in here all day then. You should stay, we can watch movies and-"

"He fired Anna" He cut me off, watching me closely

"He fired her, because of me?" I asked, shocked

"Not because of you, because of what she did to him. Here he was feeling guilty for letting her down when she had done something to let him down as well" His words were close to what I'd been thinking over and over for the past 24 hours.

"So, what happens now?" I asked as I folded my arms across my chest

"Duke's pretty upset, only because he didn't know for so long. He's also pretty upset because he knows he scared you last night and pushed you too far when he shouldn't have. The boy's life pretty much consists of feeling guilty over girls" He smiled as he stood in front of me

I didn't say anything, because he was right. He had pushed me too far. I was scared of him again.

"But I think watching movies and hanging out up here sounds good for today" He smiled, pushing my shoulder gently to snap me from my trance. I smiled weakly in return before taking a seat on the edge of my bed where Riley had been.

"If you want I could try talking Duke into letting me take you down to the lake again today. I mean, he's awfully vulnerable at the moment, so it shouldn't be too hard" He winked at me this time pulling me up by my arm.

"Relax sunshine, it'll brush over" He assured me leaning his face in close to mine

"I hope so. But, one more question?" I tried.

I needed to know I hadn't gotten Riley kicked out or in too much strife.

"One more, then that's it" He warned, pointing a finger into the throat of my neck

"How much trouble did I get you into?" I asked, worried I would lose him

He shrugged and moved towards the small lounge area

"Not sure yet. Like I said, he's too upset to punish anyone at the moment" He shrugged, unbothered by what would happen once Duke did recover from the blow

I moved in to follow him, as he lay across the sofa, pressing the start button on the television.

"If you're hungry, let me know, I'll run down and make you something" He spoke, flicking through a group of DVD's on the coffee table

"You know how to cook?" I asked raising an eyebrow at him as I sat on the edge of the couch beside his feet

"I do actually. When I was human, I worked as a chef for a fancy restaurant" He smiled cockily as he threw me a DVD he'd picked.

It was an action movie, tons of explosions I assumed from the front cover.

I walked to the TV unit and set the DVD up, taking a comfortable seat at the end of the couch, Riley's ankles and socked feet propped up on my lap.

The movie seemed to take my mind of a lot of the current issues going on. It was an action movie along with a comedy. Riley's laugh was probably the only thing that made me laugh during the whole thing.

After it had finished, I'd asked Riley to make me something to eat as my stomach growled angrily. He'd returned minutes later with two large croissants, warm and smothered in butter, just the way I liked them.

While I ate, Riley put on another movie, this time it was an rom-com. It was pretty funny, and I found myself relaxed further into the couch than I probably should have.

I ended up lying down in the same position Riley was, only my head near his feet, and his head near my feet.

His coldness didn't bother me as all that touched him, were my hips against his waist.

Half way through the movie, there was a knock on the bedroom door. Riley and I looked at each other before he called out

"Who is it?"

If it was Duke, he would have simply barged in, unfussed as to who or what was going on inside the room.

The door opened, and in popped Seth. He was dressed extremely stylish today, with a pair of black skinny jeans, grey suede vans, and a grey jacket opened on his torso to reveal the dark tight shirt beneath.

"Morning" He greeted walking towards us, plopping himself down on the chair I was so used to seeing Duke seated on

"One question, what the hell happened last night?" He quickly shot as he narrowed his eyes in between the two of us.

Riley rolled his eyes, and pressed pause on the movie.

"What? You haven't dug through Duke's or mine, or pretty's brain yet for the gossip?" Riley shot back, propping himself up on his elbows as I twisted my body towards Seth

"Well, of course I have Riles. But I'd also like for you to tell me personally how it all happened?" He spoke sarcastically, eyeing Riley off

"It happened exactly how it happened in our minds. Anna told pretty that she'd cheated on Duke with his bro, and then pretty told Dukey pukey, then bam!, Anna and him are at it, and she's fired" Riley explained with movie like qualities.

Seth shook his head

"It's amazing what I miss when I'm gone for a few hours" He seemed more disappointed that he'd missed out on the action rather than anything else

"Where were you exactly anyways?" Riley asked curiously

"I was busy keeping an eye on Ryde and his friends, digging for info on the next plan of attack" He continued, catching my full attention

"And?" I edged curiously as I sat up

"And, I've discovered they've collected quite a few new recruits with abilities, ready to test out" He gestured to me

"New recruits, abilities?"

"Yes, but that's not the important part. Duke told you about Thomas yet?" Seth asked, ignoring my questions

I nodded, "Yeah"

"Duke told you that Thomas was a friend, and him and his family were murdered by a rich powerful man seeking a Cure to restart his mother's original life, yes?" Seth continued

I nodded again "Yes..."

"That was Dodge, Ryde's brother. Ryde is stupid, but Dodge.. he's something else"

"Why didn't they use Thomas's blood for their mother?" I asked

"Cause they happened to have a younger sister that wished for mortality too. She is now living her human life thanks to Thomas"

"I'm as good as dead" I threw my hands in the air, accepting yet another blow

"Not exactly, Duke and I have already discussed it. There's going to be a war, and we're fighting. We plan on gaining a few of our own recruits. We're going to be ready, and once they come, we're going to kill them, for good" Seth explained kicking his feet up on the coffee table

"Recruits, like who?" Riley interjected curiously

"Grant, Harriss, Parry, Darius, Jaymi" Seth counted them off on his fingers.

I automatically halted on Darius's name.

"Woah, Darius?" I spoke before Riley could speak

"Duke may hate him more than ever right now, but everyone knows Darius is a damn good asset. He's strong" Seth explained "Duke's all about protecting you at the moment" Seth raised his eyebrows suggestively

I rolled my eyes "Only because he wants to make it right for Thomas" I defended.

He didn't care about me.

"He's also enthusiastic about making it right after how much he scared you last night" Seth continued, waggling his eyebrows

"Whatever" I folded my arms across my chest "And who is Parry and Jaymi?" I asked curious of the names I'd never heard before

"Parry is a family friend of Duke's. He's burly and tough, extremely threatening. Jaymi is tactical, smooth, and very good with logic. She's also a babe" Seth winked at me as he explained

"She?" I asked, worried she'd be too small and fragile to fight powerful killers like Ryde

"She" Seth repeated

"Is a babe" Riley interjected again seeming all ears "Don't worry pretty, she's a lovely girl. You'll get on well with her" Riley assured me, patting me on the knee

"I still stand firm that Grant is the one you should be most worried about" Seth continued

"His slippery hands are all about getting to know you better" Riley spoke, seeming disgusted as he stuck his tongue out

"Ew" Was all I replied with as I leaned back into the sofa

"When do they get here?" Riley asked, lying back down

"Throughout the day tomorrow" Seth answered, staring at the still picture on the television "What are we watching?" He asked, pointing to it

"It's awesome" Riley smiled, picking up the remote and clicking the play button "Sit, watch"

I leaned back against the couch as we resumed watch on the movie, gaining another laughing body on Seth's behalf.

I was surprised Grant was Riley's brother. Seth seemed more like him than Grant did.