"Adriana!" exclaimed a low voice I knew so well. I turned around and smiled slightly at Ethan who was standing behind me, looking shocked.

"What are you doing here? I thought Sabrina told you to rest."

I sighed.

"She did but I had something important that needed to be done."

He raised his eyebrows at me. I averted my eyes and looked towards the ground.

"Adriana," he said softly, surprising me. I had expected him to yell at me. I looked at him and he had a gentle expression on his face that I had never seen before.

"What you have just gone through, what Elara has gone through, it's not easy to come back from that. It was a terrifying ordeal for both of you. You used so much energy and now you are here trying to expend more. You may think you have recovered but doing so much can harm you in the long run."

I stared at him.

"I never did ask you- how old are you?" I blurted out before I could stop myself.

He looked surprised and then smirked at me. I blushed. I couldn't believe I'd just asked him that.

"How old do you think I am?" he asked.

"Well, you said that vampires live twice as long as humans do and don't age so... my guess is around a hundred and twenty."

He burst out laughing.

"I'm twenty-five."

I felt embarrassed and a little shocked. He was only three years older than I was.

"But you're so wise all the time," I mumbled.

He laughed harder.

"Always so many indirect compliments Adriana," he said, running a hand through his messy black hair.

I blushed again. Why was I always making stupid remarks around him? It was like my brain didn't have a filter.

"So, what are you doing here?" I asked to change the subject. "And how is Elara doing?"

His expression turned serious again.

"I'm worried. She should have healed by now but her wound's still bad. I have managed to secure a human volunteer for today but I'm on the lookout for more. Rufus is not home so I have to find new contacts. Even if he was I wouldn't have told him anything about this." he muttered darkly.

"Why not?"

"He can't be trusted. If he knew what Caleb did to us, he might go to the wolves to start a new war which will cause too much bloodshed. And he will hurt Elara for not standing up to the Burmonte's name by getting mauled by a wolf."

He looked positively murderous as he said this and I felt mad too.

"That Rufus is so shady!" I burst out. "He murdered Caleb's grandfather and now wants to hurt Elara."

He smiled slightly.

"Yeah, he's shady. But I won't let him get near her."

"Speaking of shady," I said, "I kind of saw you at the gas station the other night and..."

"The wolves had started the fight." he interrupted me. "I had to stop them from taking things too far. The guy I hit was just unconscious- he was quite alright the next day. Wolves heal fast you know."

He looked at me intently.

"I'm sorry if I frightened you, Adriana. I know what I did was violent and there is no excuse for that."

"I understand," I said, softly. "But I wasn't talking about that. I meant you gave me a look when you saw me there. The look scared me more than what you did to the wolf."

"I know it might sound unbelievable but I was worried about you," he said, running a hand through his hair again making it even messier. His hair always looked so unbelievably soft. I cleared my throat and looked away. I was getting distracted.

"Worried about me?" I echoed.

"And I was angry at the wolves for picking fights everywhere and making the town unsafe for the humans." his expression darkened. "After what happened with Sabrina last year, I didn't want anything happening to you."

I bit my lip, unsure of what to say.

"And I was furious at you for being so incredibly stupid to drive around at night when you know it was unsafe."

"I forgot to get gas."

"So you decided to risk your life for it at two at night?"

I began to laugh.

"What?"

"It does sound funny when you put it like that."

Both of us started to laugh. Ethan put his hands into his pockets, looking slightly uncomfortable. The expression didn't suit him at all.

"What?" I asked.

"I don't know how to say this Adriana, but I have grown to care about you," he said. "I told Caleb you were one of the kindest people I knew because at that moment, I thought we were going to die and I couldn't stand the thought of you not knowing what I thought about you."

I was stunned. Ethan continued, warming up.

"You are reckless, smart, kind and brave and I admire you a lot. I know you think you are a coward for hiding your powers but you did what was right."

I smiled at him and he smiled back.

"And you are so funny, I can't even tell you." his smile turned into a smirk. "And I love your compliments."

"I'm glad you find amusement in my embarrassment," I muttered.

All of a sudden, I realized we were standing close. Too close. I could smell his distinctive faint scent of vanilla and peppermint. Or maybe I was just hungry.

His face was beautiful as it had always been and covered with faint purple bruises from where Caleb had hit him. I looked in those piercing blue eyes which always made me forget myself and blushed as I realised I was probably staring at him. I bit back a groan. Why was I like this?

I looked at him again and found him staring at me intensely with those sapphire eyes and this time I did not look away. I wanted this. And I was done being scared.

I wasn't sure who had closed the distance between us. And I didn't care.

Maybe the time stopped when his lips met mine. I was aware of every touch. His skin was colder than mine, his hands gentle as he pulled me closer. My heart was pounding in my chest as I slid my fingers into his midnight hair, the inky tresses as soft as silk against my fingers. I could only focus on how soft he felt against my mouth, how addictively he invaded all my senses.

He pushed me back up against a wall and I was still kissing him wildly. I was breathless. No one I'd ever kissed had made me feel like this.

Finally, both of us seemed to realise we were in the middle of the street. With a sigh, I pulled away from him.

He looked about as stunned as I felt.

"Well, that was something," I said, just to break the silence.

He grinned at me, his dark hair all messed up.

"Of course it was. I am an incredible kisser."

I rolled my eyes and laughed. He still looked tired but happier.

I knew I liked him. I'd known for some time. He was caring and funny and he understood me. We'd been through so much together. I also knew that both of us needed time to heal, to make this work. But right now, I didn't care about that as I threaded my fingers through his.

"You're a chicken, Ethan Burmonte," I said, grinning. "You couldn't even make the first move."

He glared at me in mock anger and I laughed.

"Should I walk you home?" He asked, raising his eyebrows.

"One kiss and you're a gentleman?"

I laughed.

"I'd love that. But right now, we should go over to your house to check up on Elara."

He nodded his expression grim.

"You're right. But you are going to stay home and rest while I check up on her. You look as if you're about to faint."

I nodded, suddenly feeling too tired to argue.

"I'll visit in the evening," I said and he nodded.

I removed my hand from his and immediately felt more alone. Oh well, I would see him soon enough.

"I'll walk you till the end of the street." He said suddenly and I nodded.

We walked hand in hand towards the lane that led to my house.

"There's one thing I don't understand," I said. "How did I come to this very town where my mom used to be?" I had told him all about Azari on our way back.

He looked serious.

"Audersbury is a place of magic Adriana. And here, blood calls to blood. It is quite possible that fate brought you here."

"How poetic." I sighed. "Well, I am glad it did because I got a chance to meet you and Sabrina and Elara and all these other people. I also got a chance to discover my powers and in the process, I discovered myself."

He squeezed my hand.

"I am glad you came here too."

Both of us were silent after that. I knew Ethan had to go back to Elara. I waved goodbye to him and began walking away alone. When I looked back, he was still staring at me with those intense blue eyes.

I opened the front gate and headed slowly upstairs. Sabrina and I had used the guest rooms on the ground floor after coming from the warehouse because none of us had been in the condition to climb up the stairs. It had been two days since I'd gone to my bedroom.

As soon as I reached the top of the stairs, my phone rang loudly. It was Sabrina. I winced. She was probably calling to yell at me for going out.

"Hello?" I said.

"Adriana!" yelled Sabrina frantically, crying loudly. "Is Ethan with you?"

"No, why? What's wrong?" I asked her, my heart thundering?

"Elara burst into black flames and she is not moving-"

My heart went cold. I felt the phone slip from my hands as I tried to fight off another dream.

No, No, No, I felt myself chanting. Not her, not her.

I caught brief glimpses of Elara lying motionless on her bed as the dream overpowered me. She was pale and still and as beautiful as ever. And she was dead.

Breathing heavily, I staggered towards my bedroom. My red locket had lost its brightness and was now dull. I slumped to the floor. My heart felt like it was tearing apart. Lovely, kind, Elara had succumbed to that horrible magic.

I twisted the doorknob and the door creaked open. I gasped.

The whole room was covered in roses.