The Queen of Blood

Ch 21: Darts to Conflict

Luke stares up at the stars through the trees of the clearing, his hands clutching a danger to his chest, hands cramped from holding so tightly for so long and the cold is certainly no help.

It felt like his joints were frozen stiff, and his muscles ached from multiple causes. Bruises definitely, and several scrapes and cuts. Grazes too, not to sound like a pussy. Those fuckers hurt.

He was awfully aware of how hungry he was too, as they had not had time to stop and hunt and they had used up what little food they had brought. They had been on the move constantly, only stopping after they emerged from a cave and had to out their torches out in fear of being spotted by scavengers in the forest.

They were hasty to find their resistance camp again, even though they knew it would be difficult to find. They had made a break for it and run only hours before the camp had moved. Even if they managed to make it back to where the last set up had been it would be hard to track them down. It might be possible that one of their friends or maybe his own mother had left little secret clues for them to be able to find them in case they came back, but then again him running off with Jake yet again might have been the final straw and his mother might have forced herself to stop helping him deal with the consequences of his own decisions.

He felt guilty. Very guilty. He knew she had been worried sick about him when he disappeared off with the youngsters to attack a vampire village and leave a message for the Queen. And the other reckless behavior he'd been up too, like drinking and fighting, arguing, and locking everyone out. He couldn't forgive himself for letting Estrella sacrifice her life for his stupidity of spraining his ankle. But he should've been there for his mother too, instead of adding to her stress and worry. Ella was her daughter, and there he was breaking his mother's heart more.

He turned his head and glowered at Jake, who snored in his slumber. He felt even more stupid for following this idiot on some suicide mission to try to rescue Ella from the Palace, in the Capital of all places.

And then a second time for following the idiot into launching himself off a ledge at the Queen.

"You're no good to anyone dead, Luke. Jake may not give a shit about his life anymore but that doesn't mean you don't, stop following him like a blind sheep," Cole said, tightening Luke's bandage with a tug that might've been a little too rough as it made the boy curse and bite his tongue.

Luke said nothing. He felt ashamed after seeing his mother cry and scream at him about how worried she was and how she couldn't bare to lose another child. He felt even more ashamed at his father's disapproving look.

"A son should bury his father, not the other way around, boy. He should protect his mother, not recklessly leave her dying of worry," Cole said further, tying off the bandage. He stood and dusted his hands, looking down on Luke who was tied to a medical bed in the medical tent, several others injured on various levels from their attack on the village.

"What do you think Estrella would say about this? About how you're carelessly leading children to their deaths-"

"You have no clue what Ella would say-" Luke begins to snap, his eyes shimmering with angry tears.

"Son, I know exactly what she would say," Cole spoke calmly, crouching down to be eye level with the boy, "she would tell you to eat. To stop drinking. To stop fighting. To stop letting what is not in your control destroy you. But most of all she would tell you to think for the bigger picture, and to stop acting on your emotions. Use your head, boy."

The two stared at each other, Luke breathing heavily with anger but unable to retort, knowing Cole is right and not wanting to accept that yet.