Lullaby (The Fable Series, Book 2)

Chapter Twenty Six

You already know where to find me, Ash. You already know.

I wake up gasping for air.

Mia's fleeting voice rings in my ears, her final words an echoing whisper that fades into silence.

I can't hear the wind or the rain anymore. The storm must have passed.

Wan starlight shines through the window – it's still dark outside, probably a few hours until sunrise.

I don't have much time.

I slip out of bed, shivering as it dawns on me that I fell asleep wearing my rain-soaked silk dress. I'm in too much of a hurry to get changed into something warmer, so I pull the cream-colored chunky knit blanket off the end of the bed, and wrap it around myself before slipping on a pair of flats.

As quietly as I can, I open my bedroom door, and creep stealthily down the passageway, sure that at any moment one of the old wooden floorboards will creak and give me away. I pass Kitty's room, Lyall's, Elliot's. As I reach Felix's door, I pause. It's closed, and some part of me feels like barging in, demanding an explanation for his earlier behavior.

The way he was looking at me.

The way his eyes widened with desire, and perhaps also despair, as he inspected the bleeding wound on my foot.

The way he seemed to lose control.

As I remember the gash I got on my sole while walking through the dark forest earlier, I realize with a jolt that I can't feel any pain in my foot.

Gingerly, I flex my foot in my shoe. Nothing. No pain at all. I don't need to take off my ballet flats to know that the gash is completely healed up, erased just like the bite Felix left on my neck.

The strangeness of it all sends a shiver down my spine, and I clasp the knitted blanket tighter around my shoulders. I continue to creep along the passage, my head swirling with confusion.

I make it all the way to the bottom of the spiral staircase without making a single sound, but the second I reach the landing, I tumble forward and land in a heap on the living room floor with a loud thump.

Something at the foot of the stairs tripped me up.

Something that I am now lying on top of.

I lift myself up onto my elbows, and almost scream when I see Alastaire's face inches away from my own. I'm sprawled out on top of him. I can feel the rise and fall of his chest beneath me, the beating of his heart.

His eyes are closed, and he's breathing soundly, his sleep apparently unbroken despite me tripping over him.

I guess that's what drinking a whole bottle of champagne in one go will do to you. He's dead to the world. Thank god.

He was out cold in the middle of the room with Lyall when I came home earlier, so I'm guessing he must have woken up and dragged himself to the stairs in a drunken attempt to get into bed before passing out again.

Please don't wake up please don't wake up please don't wake up.

I tense my muscles, ready to shift myself off of him, when suddenly his whole body quivers, and his arms wrap around me, squeezing me tightly against his chest.

"Mmmm cupcake..." he mumbles. "Mmm... mmmmy cuppy.... angel... I loveyjmhasrfrwy wmdej nrghun..."

His sleep talking turns into gibberish mid-sentence, and he falls silent again.

His arms are still tightly wrapped around me.

I cringe internally at the thought of Felix finding me at the foot of the staircase wrapped up in Alastaire's arms, our bodies pressed together tighter than sardines.