When Gabriel found Elena, she was pacing outside the apothecary with a worried face. From a distance, he could smell the scent of her blood, stronger this time. He fought the urge he felt, his hand clenched into tight balls.
"Elena?" He called her from safety. He could feel the itch on his gums at the place where his fangs had been before.
Elena halted in her tracks, spotting the familiar figure of Gabriel. Her worried face turned a few shades darker when she spotted the blood all over his face. Strands of his hair stuck on his face, glued to his skin by his own blood.
And when their eyes finally met, she saw a flash of anger in them. He crossed the distance between them. His fingers were cold against her skin when he caressed her cheeks.
"Who did this to you?" His eyes shifted to her slightly bare shoulders where a wound ran across to her back.
Elena met his golden orbs, a single tear drop falling from her eyes. "It's all my fault!" Her voice came out barely a whisper laced in guilt.
"It's not your fault," Gabriel comforted, wiping the tears with his thumb.
"If I had listened to Jophiel..."
Gabriel drew her to his embrace, so tight as if she'd disappear the next moment. He held her head close to his chest, a rush of emotions coursing through his being. And for once in his life, he felt his heart alive!
"I thought I had lost you!" He said after a while. She was the only thing he had! The only one! "I'll never let you out of my sight!"
He placed a kiss on her scalp. Everyone in the capital hated him and everyone associated with him. If he'd known Elena would be in the public square, all this wouldn't have happened.
"I never thought you'd love someone."
Gabriel whipped his head to that direction and saw Darion leaning on the wall. He sipped from his wineskin and wiped the red liquid with the back of his hand.
"Thank you... For saving her," he said.
Elena withdrew from Gabriel's embrace. Her eyes locked with Darion's, accompanied with a smile of gratitude.
"No need to thank me... Not with your mouth at least."
Gabriel reached in his pocket and threw a pouch of coins at Darion.
"Did you rob the royal treasury?" He asked, counting the coins.
"Being a bastard doesn't mean I'm poor." Gabriel walked close to Darion. "I owe you my wife's life."
"Which you have paid for." He sealed the pouch and pocketed it before meeting Gabriel's eyes. The two looked at each other long enough for Elena to think there was a strife between them.
"Your fighting skills are unparalleled. I offer you a place in my guard."
"An offer anyone sane would decline I might say. Who knows I might be strangled in my sleep today, tomorrow maybe." He placed his hand heavily on Gabriel's shoulder. "Some men are not created to serve."
Darion picked his sword and offered Elena a slight bow. "My Lady."
"Who said anything to do with serving?" Elena asked. Darion had to look up to confirm the words came out of her mouth.
"Join my husband's kingsguard and more coins will follow. You shall only perform your duty and will not be held accountable to anyone!"
Darion looked at Gabriel, a smirk playing on his face. "Your wife speaks more sense than you." And turning to face Elena,"Let's speak business."
Elena discussed the terms of the contract with Darion who would steal glances at Gabriel as if to shout, 'see, your wife has more wits than you bastard.'
"So?" He asked once Darion was out of sight.
"He's agreed to work in your guard," she replied.
"But...?"
"He will be wearing no armor, no formalities when speaking to either of us, and a weekly pay of a hundred crown coins."
"The council members of the royal court earns that. Who does he think he is?"
"He saved my life Gabriel," Elena reminded him. "I can't imagine what would've happened were he a second late!" He could hear the dread in her voice, and he hated it!
"I should have been there!"
His head was bent low. Could he ever forgive himself if something bad had happened to El? A range filled him, the very thought of killing whoever dared to lay their filthy hands on her clouding his mind. He'd chop them to pieces if that was what it took to keep them away from her.
The physician stepped out and Elena couldn't help but worry. She placed towards the bald man dreading the worst.
"She has lost a lot of blood. I'm afraid she might spend a few days in the apothecary."
"Is she going to be alright?" Elena asked, tugging the sleeves of the physician. She noticed it and withdrew her hands embarrassed.
"The girl will live." The physician excused himself.
"I have to be there for her!"
"The physician said the girl will live. You need to take a bath and tend to your wounds."
And speaking of bath, the thought of that vampire's hands all over her body made Elena feel disgusted with herself. She could still feel it, the hot slap, his fingers all over her... She definitely needed a bath!
Gabriel escorted her to their chambers, Elena instantly fleeing to the bathroom. She dropped her shawl on the floor in her haste. Gabriel picked it up and spotted blood on it.
The scent! How the hell had he survived close to her if her blood had this effect? He was tempted to sniff, the desire so strong it defied his will. Involuntarily, he placed the shawl close to his nostrils, the scent invading his senses like a plague. His eyes turned bloody red instantly, his gums suddenly developing an itch he'd never experienced before.
He threw the shawl on the ground and tried to fight the innate hunger he'd just developed. But what was most painful was the itch in his gums. It was so painful he had to lay on the floor, his hands rubbing through the gaps in his jaw.
He felt a sharp bone pierce through his gums, a fresh pair of fangs materializing from the very place they had been extracted!