The next night, Lilian had been lying in bed for hours, her body felt weak and exhausted, but she was unable to sleep. Her mind kept spinning in circles, stuck on the same fear. She had been counting hours like a prisoner waiting for execution.
Around eleven, she finally gave up on sleep and just stared at the ceiling. Her hand kept moving to her neck now the bandages had lifted, tracing the wounds. The skin was still tender, reminding her of what was about to happen.
Then the heat like fire exploded in her veins.
It started at the bite marks, the searing pain like someone had pressed a red-hot-iron into the wounds. For a split second, Lilian thought the wounds had become infected, the burning sensation didn't stay in her neck.
The heat raced through her blood like gasoline catching fire, moved through her throat, her chest, and spread out through her arms and legs with each of her heart beating.
Within seconds, she felt like her entire body was being burned alive from the inside out.
The pain was indescribable. It wasn't like the time she had broken her arm falling off her bike as a kid or the migraines she had in college. Even the vampire's bite in the alley was nothing compared to this.
This was a completely different category of suffering, something her brain didn't have reference points for. It felt as if her blood had turned to lava. Like every cell in her body was being set on fire simultaneously. Her bones ached as if they were melting, and her skin felt too tight, and everything inside her was trying to claw its way out.
Lilian tried to sit up, tried to call for help like they had told her to do, but her body didn't listen.
Her muscles seized as the first wave of spasm hit. Her back arched off the bed, her spine bending in an angle that should have been impossible, every nerve ending screaming in agony. Her fingers clawed at the sheets, her nails digging into the expensive fabric hard enough to tear.
She managed to suck in just enough air to make a sound. It wasn't even a scream, more like a choked gasp that barely qualified as audible. But apparently, it was enough.
The bedroom door slammed open so hard against the wall with a sharp crack. The sound of splintering wood echoed in her fever-hazed mind as three figures showed up.
Dante stood in the doorway, his dark eyes immediately finding her convulsing form of the bed. He wore dark sleep pants and nothing else, his pale chest bare and his hair slightly mussed like he had been resting but not sleeping. Adrian and Lucien appeared behind him almost at the same time, as if they had formed out of the shadows themselves, both dressed in simple nightwear.
All three of them moved with that vampire speed, crossing the distance from the door to bed so fast, and the next, they were surrounding her bed.
"The fever's started," Dante said, his voice was calm, cutting through the roaring in Lilian's ears. He was at her side instantly, pressing a cool hand to her forehead. "Her temperature's already too high. We need to get her into cold water now."
The touch of his hand against her burning skin was such a relief, exactly what she needed, making her whimper, desperate for more of that cold.
"I've got her," Adrian said.
Adrian slid one arm beneath her knees and the other behind her back, lifting her from the bed as if she weighed nothing, cradling her against his chest. His body was naturally cold, and Lilian instinctively pressed her face into his shoulder without thinking, seeking more of that coolness, making a half sob and half breath of relief from her throat.
"I know it hurts," Adrian whispered near her ear. "We're here. Just hold on."
After that, everything blurred into motion and voices. Adrian carried her into the bathroom with Dante and Lucien close behind, making no sound when they walked on the marble floor despite their speed.
When they entered, the light snapped on, suddenly too bright, forcing Lilian to squeeze her eyes shut. She heard the roar of the bathtub faucet, the sound amplified by her heightened senses.
Adrian sat her on the edge of the tub, keeping one arm around her waist to keep her upright while her body continued to shake with the tremors she couldn't control.
"We need to get these clothes off," Dante said urgently. "They're soaked with sweat. It's just trapping the heat."
Lilian wanted to say she could do it herself, but when she tried to lift her arms, they barely moved. Her body no longer felt like it belonged to her.
"Lilian," Adrian said gently, crouching down to look her in the eyes. His blue eyes were serious but kind. "We need to take off your pajamas to put you in the bath. Is that okay? We'll leave your underwear on."
She managed a weak and jerky nod, too far gone in the fever to care about modesty anymore. She felt like she was dying.
Adrian worked fast. His cool fingers unbuttoned her pajama top and peeled the damp fabric away from her skin. Then came her pants.
Dante supported her from behind to keep her from falling over. His hands were firm on her bare shoulders, holding her upright as her body shook uncontrollably.
The air against her exposed skin felt icy cold, even with the fever raging through her. She shivered hard, left in only her tank top and underwear, both soaked with sweat and sticking uncomfortably to her skin.
"Water's ready," Lucien said from the tub, where he was testing the temperature. The massive bathtub was already half full, steam rising from the surface in lazy, thin curls. "It's not cold, but cool enough to bring her temperature down gradually."
"Good," Dante replied, and with Adrian, he lifted Lilian and lowered her into the water gently. When it reached her shoulders and soaked through her clothes, the relief was so powerful that Lilian actually moaned.
The sound embarrassed her, way too loud for the situation, but she didn't have the strength to care. The cool water felt like heaven after being stuck in the inferno consuming her from the inside.
"That's it," Adrian whispered softly, his one hand stayed at the back of her head to keep it above water, his fingers were gentle in her sweat-dampened hair. "Just breathe, Lilian. We've got you."