It was just barely past eight pm when Eliot exited his room and found Claire nervously waiting in the inn’s lobby. She was next to the front desk, her eyes glued to not Eliot’s door then, but rather the door of the room next to his, which Lucian had quickly disappeared behind only seconds after leaving Eliot that evening.

Eliot raised a brow at the fact that her attention was so locked to that door that she didn’t even fully turn her eyes his way as he entered the room on his own two feet, further proof that there seemed to be no trace of the illness that had nearly taken his life. He took a subtle breath before moving toward her and fully redirecting her attention as he wrapped his arms around her waist and turned her to him, covering her mouth with a long kiss.

At the display of affection, the elderly innkeeper tutted and turned his eyes away with a clearing of his throat, which simply caused Eliot’s lips to curl into a smile before making himself end that kiss. Though, Claire seemed even more shocked by the gesture. It was true that they had been lovers for the last few months, but their passion was most always reserved for when the two had been alone in their quarters, no other prying eyes nearby. The only time he had truly been so openly affectionate to her in front of others was on the night that she had met his family and the two of them had been playing up a relationship that was nowhere near as intimate as the one the two had now. And of course, there was their night with Aidan. But that was a completely different story as well.

“You seem, better” she whispered hoarsely, trying to cover her own shock at the blatant display of affection. Again, he was nothing but affectionate to her in private moments, but even those had all been initiated by Claire rather than Eliot. He did always return her affections on the nights they had spent together, but she always felt like it was her desire that was responsible for every time they had even made love at all. Perhaps it was his brush with death that made him that much more eager to show and receive affection, realizing how short life truly was. But perhaps there was another reason for his suddenly much more affectionate behavior, as well as that miraculous recovery of his.

“Clean bill of health” he smiled down at her, still standing close, his hands holding her own tightly, “seems I’ll once again be able to share your bed tonight” he smiled as the innkeeper cast the two of them another look of disapproval, but remained silent.

Claire swallowed a bit as she looked up at him. Now it was quite obvious to her that something had severely changed in him. Due to his own conflicted nature and desires, he had always guarded his feelings closely, afraid to allow others to see what he ever truly wanted. But now, he was behaving like all the rest of her former lovers, most of whom only felt that desire so strongly because of the vampiric blood running through their veins...

And on that thought she had to give in to finally discovering if her fears about how Lucian had ‘cured’ him were actually true after all. She forced as much courage as she could and adjusted her vision as she looked up at him. She couldn’t help the tiny, saddened gasp as her eyes confirmed the fear that the choice she had struggled with so fiercely had now been made for her after all.

“What is it, love?” Eliot asked, immediately noting the change in her expression as she looked back at him, traces of red struggling to remain hidden behind her emerald eyes.

Trying to find a response, Claire cast another wary glance at the innkeeper. She knew that that was not the moment to even try to explain her sudden upset, or if she even should. As Eliot still seemed blissfully unaware of what had been done to him, and shattering that bliss so soon after he had truly believed his life had been coming to an end; it just seemed cruel. She didn’t want to so quickly take that away from him with the harsh reality of what had been done unknowingly to him. Though, once that terrible withdrawal began...

She shook her head at that thought, before trying to force a smile back to her lips. “If you’re feeling so much better, how would you like to head to the nearest train station to arrange our departure tonight?” she offered, still trying as best she could to hold that smile.

Eliot looked more than a bit startled by the suggestion, his eyes briefly turning toward the door her own had been locked on earlier, “You’re ready to get on the train already? Tonight?” he asked softly.

“Why would we stay?” she asked warily. “Our trip has already taken much longer than we expected, hasn’t it?”

“I just thought that you might want to rest, for at least one more night,” he replied quietly.

“Rest?” she returned with a raise of her brow, as if to say, ‘you do remember what I am, don’t you?’

Eliot looked down again with a forced smile, “I suppose if you want to go already, then that’s what we shall do” he stated with another sad look toward the door that Lucian was currently behind.

Claire knew that she could not risk letting Lucian have any further access to Eliot. He may have only given him his blood once, but it was possible that he had given it to him a second time that night, during his so-called ‘examination.’ And if he was allowed one more night with Eliot, then the bond would be complete, and there would be nothing more dangerous than allowing oneself any true closeness with a mortal who was bound to another Kindred. That was just a cold, hard fact of their existence.

Seeing that Eliot still seemed unhappy with the idea of leaving so soon, despite him releasing her hands from his grip and turning toward the front door, Claire had to make herself speak again. “Before you head to the station, you could come upstairs and help me sort out our belongings, I suppose.” It was true that she wanted to get him away from Lucian as soon as possible, and she herself had a few private words she wanted to share with Lucian before leaving, but she still felt she needed to try and explain at least a bit about why she was so eager to leave. And she didn’t wish to do it within the hearing of mortal ears.

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

Eliot then allowed another soft smile as he looked back her way, “if we go back to your room, we might get too distracted to catch the next train.”

Eliot’s words caused the innkeeper to shake his head once more, and Claire to have to try and force another smile despite her inner turmoil about what had transpired since she had foolishly trusted another Kindred who she couldn’t even properly read, and worse, she had trusted him with Eliot’s very life.

Upon arriving in the room upstairs, Claire had only just closed the door before Eliot was pulling her into his arms, covering her mouth with another passionate kiss. As much as she did revel in that kiss, Claire forced herself to pull away after a few moments, “Eliot” she stated softly, bringing her hands up to his chest as she pulled her lips back from his own.

“Claire” he smiled down at her, his eyes moving over her with clear desire then.

“I realize what you’re doing, Eliot” she made herself say as she finally moved out of his continued embrace.

“I’d think what I’m doing is pretty obvious, considering how many times we’ve done just that in the last few months” he teased as he reached for her again, only for her to take another step out of his reach. Though that gesture did cause his smile to falter as he brought his questioning eyes back up to her face.

“You’re trying to postpone our departure” she pointed out sadly.

Eliot’s gaze faltered again at her statement, “I thought I was trying to seduce you. Apparently not very well” he stated with a sad smile.

“When have you ever tried to seduce me, Eliot?” she asked with a sad sniffle.

Eliot scoffed slightly then, “are you sure you’re not the one who’s fallen ill? We’ve made love many, many times, Claire. And you did seem to quite enjoy those times, so...”

“Of course I’ve enjoyed them” she agreed, feeling bad for ever making him doubt that fact with her behavior that night, but there were more important problems to deal with right then, “we need to leave New York, Eliot. As soon as we can. We can’t give into any distractions. No matter how much we’d like to” she made herself add with another sad smile.

Eliot sighed as he finally turned away and moved to take a frustrated seat on the bed. He then ran his hands through those long curls before looking back at where Claire remained just inside the door, her eyes cast downwards sadly.

“And why is it so important that we leave New York right this moment?” he asked, trying to keep his tone soft.

Claire sighed, “I think the more pressing question is why you don’t want to leave” she whispered.

Another scoff, “I asked you first.”

“Think about it, Eliot. What logical reason do you have to want to stay here even? Come on, convince me. Why should we stay? Can you actually even tell me why you would even want to at all? Honestly?” she stated softly.

Eliot shook his head again, though the struggle to find that answer was obvious. He truly did not have any idea why he did feel the need to stay. And that was a slightly scary thought when made to see it clearly. He took a deep breath before making his eyes finally turn back to where Claire still stood, waiting for the answer she seemed to already know.

“Is he like you?” Eliot asked in a choked whisper, the question startling Claire as well.

“He?” she managed, allowing herself to take a slight step closer.

“Lucian. He’s like you, isn’t he?” he made himself ask, at last giving into the suspicions that he had forced to the back of his mind.

Claire looked down again, her voice shaking as she realized that she may need to give him some very unpleasant news, and very soon. And letting him know what their blood was capable of doing, without him even knowing it had happened to him at all? And knowing that she had been the one to even let Lucian near him in the first place? She doubted that would help strengthen his trust in her in any way.

“Is there a reason you would think that?” she returned quietly.

“His hands. They were as cold as yours. He didn’t come to check on any of us before sunset. I got better, seemingly overnight... He is like you, isn’t he?” he swallowed hard, “and he did something to me, didn’t he?” he whispered through increasingly panicked breaths.

Moving to take a seat next to him, trying to comfort him with a hand upon his leg, Claire sniffled again, “did you see him do something to you?” she asked sadly.

“I was barely conscious, Claire... I know he gave me something last night, but I couldn’t tell you what. I mean, he’s a doctor. We’re supposed to trust doctors, aren’t we?” he asked through another sniffle, “what did he do to me, Claire? You know, don’t you?” he asked as he looked back at her with desperation.

“I don’t actually know. I wasn’t in the room after all. But...”

“What did he do?” he repeated with more fear, trying to hold back even more panic then.

Claire swallowed again, not able to look directly at him as she made herself answer, “one thing that could explain everything” another shaky sigh, “is if he... gave you some of his blood.”

“His blood?” Eliot repeated, not even sure how to react to that.

“That’s the main reason I want us to leave. I don’t want him around you any longer. Not if he did that.”

Eliot was very nearly having a panic attack at that point, which made it even harder for him to manage words, “am I going to become one of you?” he made himself ask, terror in his eyes as he looked back at her. It was true that he had nearly asked Claire to do that very thing to him. But it was when he had truly believed that there was absolutely no other alternative than imminent death, or becoming like her. And it was Claire, the woman he had come to care so, so deeply for, not some random stranger who could have any number of terrible intentions in mind for him.

“No, it doesn’t work that way, Eliot” she assured him, “you only become one of us if you die, then are given our blood. It can’t turn the living, only the dead” she added more quietly.

“But what if I did die last night? And then he brought me back? That would explain why I’m not sick at all anymore, wouldn’t it?” he pressed, fully panicking at that point.

“Believe me Eliot, if that had happened, it would have happened already. And you would know it. You wouldn’t have woken til sunset. You wouldn’t have been able to eat that dinner tonight. Only one thing would have filled your hunger anymore. And you wouldn’t be feeling your heart beating a hundred miles a minute like it is right now. It wouldn’t be beating at all anymore” she added more softly.

“But I’m not sick anymore.”

“Our blood has that affect. It heals nearly anything once it’s in you. “

Eliot was quiet a long moment before looking back at her, “but if your blood could have healed me and made me better too... then why didn’t you do that, to save me?” he asked in a pained whisper.

The pain in his voice was reflected in Claire’s eyes then, “I very nearly did” she admitted.

“Very nearly?” he stated with a bit of coolness.

“Then we reached land and, I no longer had to. Or at least I hoped I no longer had to. I hoped that Lucian would save you.”

“But I was still sick. I still could have died, while you were hoping. And it was Lucian that actually was the one who saved me after all, wasn’t it?”