Page 56 of Mortis

Teddy answered with a sleepy hum, and my heart pounded against my ribs.

Slowly, careful not to startle him, I climbed to my feet. The bed was pushed against the wall, and Teddy had already shuffled towards it, leaving the side nearest the door free for me. I lowered myself cautiously onto the mattress. The bedframe creaked beneath my weight, and for one single alarming breath, I feared it might collapse entirely.

When it held firm, I allowed myself to lie beside him. The moment my head touched the pillow, I was enveloped by Teddy’s sweet scent.

My mouth watered.

Deep inside me, the Beast stirred.

Stay back, I warned Him silently. No matter how delicious this mortal smells, he is not yours.

Since Teddy had recently become the source of His nourishment, the Beast begrudgingly retreated. Even so, being surrounded by such temptation would be the greatest test of my restraint.

My horns knocked gently against the wooden headboard. With a quiet sigh, I shuffled lower down the bed until my hooves hung over the edge. But I didn’t mind. Despite Teddy’s intoxicating scent, and a mattress far too short for my body, I had never felt so comfortable. It was like lying upon a cloud infused with warm honey.

Teddy rolled onto his side. Without thinking, I mirrored him, and we looked at one another in silence. Moonlight spilled through the bedroom window, bathing everything in pale silver. It softened the gentle curve of Teddy’s face. His button nose. His full lips. He had removed his glasses at some point, and without them, there was nothing hiding his eyes. The moon transformed them from bright blue into something almost pearlescent. Grey and soft.

So very beautiful.

He reached across the space between us and carefully brushed a strand of smoky hair away from my face. Then his hand came to rest on the mattress between us, only millimetres from my own. If either of us moved, our fingers would touch.

Despite lying beside a monster, Teddy showed no fear.

Only trust.

“Goodnight, Kael,” he whispered.

Then his eyes closed, and within moments, sleep claimed him.

I watched him for a long while before finally allowing myself to smile and whisper into the darkness.

“Goodnight, my saviour.”

8

TEDDY

“We’re heading out shortly, Teddy Bear.”

I finished blending the foundation across Carol Jacobs’s face before placing the makeup sponge on the table. Her skin sat between two shades, and it had taken me far longer than I’d care to admit to match it to the photograph her family had provided. It still wasn’t perfect. But it was better than my first attempt, when she’d looked like she’d fallen face-first into a bottle of fake tan.

“Okay,” I replied to Arlo, who was lingering in the doorway. “Hope it goes well.”

He grimaced and glanced over his shoulder towards the service entrance. Kael had disappeared about ten minutes earlier to help Grandad load the hearse.

“It’s a green burial in the pouring rain. We’ll be lucky if the pallbearers don’t end up slinging mud across the field.”

I laughed. “It might brighten up the service.”

“All the attendees are Mr Smith’s hippie mates,” Arlo replied. “I think it’ll be bright enough, even with the drizzle.”

I pulled the sheet up over Carol’s face before wheeling the embalming table towards the refrigeration units.

“Remember,” I corrected. “It’s not Mr Smith. It’s White Wolf.”

Arlo rolled his eyes. “You’d think the bloke grew up barefoot on a commune. He was an accountant until eight years ago.”

I shrugged. “People like what they like.”