Page 100 of Forsaking All Others
“Cat,” taking her by the arm I pull her to the side of the cave entrance, away from the racing water and near to the shore. “That’s madness.”
She rolls her eyes but allows me to pull her into the reeds by the waterside.
“You need to obtain more pieces another way. Going back isn’t feasible.”
“I thought you were supposed to be getting to know us, Viscount,” she snaps, “not interfering in the contest.”
“This is me getting to know your rationale for suicide,” I grin.
“I have to go back,” she says quietly, looking from me to the forest in front of us before moving to push aside the reeds and step onto dry land. “But you’re right. I can’t go against the current; it’s ridiculous.”
“So, your plan?” I follow her as she steps out of the dense reeds and cranes her neck to look up the steep, forested mountainside. “Tell me you’re not thinking what it looks like you’re thinking.”
“I’m thinking,” she sighs, “that I need to go over the mountain, drop back into the river and float through the tunnel again, collecting the clues I missed as I go.”
She starts moving deeper into the tree line, not waiting for my reply.
“Cat,” I mutter, reluctantly following. “It could take days to get over this mountain. And there are no cameras here. It’s dangerous.”
“I don’t have days,” she mutters, “so I need to keep moving. I couldn't care less if I’m filmed.”
She takes another four or five paces before turning to look at me.
“Are you coming, or not?”
I sigh heavily before overtaking her and leading the way.
“I’ll push through the undergrowth. You follow,” I grunt. “I can pull you up the steep parts.”
“Isn’t that cheating?” She huffs.
“No cameras,” I smirk back over my shoulder at her, “and anyway, they say the only rule is that there are no rules. I’m simply embracing that.”
“Great,” she scowls, “I get coveted alone time with the bachelor and a helping hand. But there’s no point, because even if I win, I won’t get what I truly want.”
I shake my head as I keep walking. I knew she wouldn’t let this go.
“Cat, when, if, you get to the final two, I’ll tell you everything you want to know about marriage to a vampire and immortality.”
“Tell me now.”
“There are things I can’t tell you and things I won’t tell you until the time comes.”
“If I’m killed on the show the truth dies with me anyhow,” she huffs, “so I can hardly run to the tabloids and say ‘hey, vampires still kill people for food and a whole heap of other shit too,’ now can I?”
“It’s not that,” I sigh. “There’s so much lore and law involved in vampire affairs. It’s not a simple explanation.”
She reaches forward and grabs my forearm, pulling me to a stop.
Turning around I meet her earnest gaze.
“Try.”
Frowning, I nod before turning and continuing the climb. She’s just not going to be satisfied unless I give her information.
“It has strings, Cat. It’s not a free pass to eternity. It’s not something you’d want if you fully understood it, and it’s not something I’m ever going to offer any wife of mine.”
She’s silent for a long time, and I wonder if she’s thinking up another argument to find out more, or if she's so pissed she isn’t planning on speaking to me for the rest of the journey. Either way, the heat is so oppressive and the climb so exhausting, I’m not in any hurry to continue our conversation.
