"Thank you for having me over," I said, embracing Nora with a warm hug.
Nora giggled softly into my ear. "I'm so glad you could visit," she replied, slowly pulling away from my arms. "And I'm happy you didn't have to stay too long in the hospital."
"Me too," I chuckled, feeling a bit guilty. "Five days weren't that bad."
Nora knew I'd been in the hospital, but she only thought it was due to pregnancy sickness. She had no idea about the car accident that Tyler caused in yet another attempt to assassinate me.
Only a day ago, Professor Hank had just been released from the hospital. Miraculously, he survived his fatal injuries and made a full recovery, all thanks to Zoey's healing abilities. Without her healing gift, I feared we might have lost him. However, I couldn't share these details with Nora, of course.
"Lucky for you!" Nora giggled. "Don't forget, we have to turn in our portfolio project this week."
"I won't forget. We just need to review it for any grammar errors, and then it will be good to go," I replied, swinging the door to her dorm room wide open.
"Yup! See you later," Nora waved as I stepped out into the hallway. "If you get too cold, come back inside."
"I'll be fine. Rose is almost here," I replied, waving goodbye.
"Alright, talk to you soon."
After descending the stairs, I stepped outside for some much-needed fresh air that swirled into my face. There's nothing fresher than feeling a brisk breeze against my skin, especially when I'm overheated from carrying the extra weight growing inside my belly.
Closing my eyes, I whispered to my unborn triplets, "You three are getting way too big to haul around."
Officially, I was nearing my final trimester. Today was March 1st, which meant these little ones were expected to arrive at any time next month. Recently, Dr. Riley moved my due date from May 1st to April, as she believed it was unlikely that I would carry them to the end of the original due date.
"Victoria..." I distinctly heard my name get whispered through the wind.
My eyes snapped open, and I scanned over the parking lot and the area beyond the campus buildings. All I could see was an ordinary scene: a few people chatting in the yard, and a guy playing fetch with his dog in the snow. Every time he threw the ball, the dog's barking echoed across the yard as the large dog chased and retrieved the toy in its mouth.
While I watched the dog and its owner play, my gaze caught sight of a large, oversized wolf near the picnic tables. Within seconds, the blackish-gray wolf disappeared into a patch of trees before anyone else seemed to notice.
Ever since I recovered from near-death due to hypothermia, I've noticed that this large wolf has been intermittently following me.
Whenever Darlene and I tried to pursue it, the wolf would disappear without a trace. Sometimes, it felt like I was losing my mind, but I knew I wasn't imagining things. Darlene mentioned that the wolf was a Shapeshifter vampire from Levi's Coven. Or perhaps we were both hallucinating since we never managed to catch up to him to ask his name.
"Victoria..." the whisper came again.
My eyes darted around, but there was no one near me. Not even the unnoticed wolf was in sight. Nothing appeared out of the ordinary.
"Victoria!"
"Ah—" I jumped out of my skin as a hand snaked around my mouth from behind, muffling out my scream.
"Relax, it's just me," Bradley, Sharlene's older brother, announced his presence.
I breathed heavily after he released my mouth. "You scared me!" I scolded, glaring at him as he stepped forward and stood alongside me.
Without a smile on his face, he nodded to my fright and enveloped himself in an unsettling silence. As his gaze pierced through the campus, the intensity in his eyes darkened.
Under Chester's clan, Bradley worked as Chester's advisor. Normally, he always had an easygoing personality, but after Tyler's last attack, his demeanor shifted dramatically to one that was stringent and joyless. He took his orders to protect me to the next extreme and surely maintained the utmost vigilance. However, I couldn't complain because Chester had assigned his clan to provide additional protection for me since Kai had lacked help with those who had been recovering from the recent war.
Even now, with everyone recovered from their detained healing sleep, Chester still hasn't dismissed his clan from keeping a watchful eye on me. As I neared the end of my pregnancy, everyone had become overly protective of me after the incident with Tyler.
"Did you hear someone whispering my name?" I asked, feeling perturbed as the voice echoed in my mind, especially when I thought about Tyler.
Being straightforward, Bradley replied, "That was me. I was trying to grab your attention."
I mumbled under my breath, "It didn't sound like you."
Bradley's voice was deep and distinct, but this one sounded eerier, like an alluring male whisper. Unlike anything I'd ever heard before.
As I opened my mouth to ask him more questions, Bradley let out a low, absurd growl that thundered deep beneath his chest. Without warning, he backed up, vanishing from my side. A sharp cracking sound echoed as I turned to witness Bradley smashing another vampire against the brick wall of the dorm building.
In complete surrender, the vampire exclaimed, raising his hands, "It's just me!"
Thrown off guard, Bradley's tenacious grip tightened on the vampire's coat. "Ryder, why are you sneaking around like that?" he aggressively asked. "I could've accidentally hurt you!"
"I'm sorry!" Ryder quickly replied, keeping his hands up in a pleading gesture. "I didn't mean to startle you!"
In shock, I blinked several times before it finally clicked that Ryder was the offspring of Levi and Clarice. When his eyes made a lock onto mine, it dawned on me that Ryder had also saved us that day from Tyler's attack.
"You're the one who rescued me, Darlene, and Professor Hank," I acknowledged, piecing together the memory of that horrific attack.
Things have been a little hazy in my memory after Tyler's assault. Pieces of what happened that evening have been slowly resurfacing, which Zoey assured me was normal.
Hesitant to answer, Ryder shyly nodded, "Yes... It was me."
As Bradley finally loosened his balled-up grip and released his coat, Ryder exhaled a heavy breath, gradually relaxing his tense shoulders as his hands casually lowered.
"Thanks for saving us. Sorry, I didn't get the chance to say it sooner; my memory's been a bit foggy," I explained, expressing a genuine smile.
Ryder's face brightened with happiness, but when he caught a glimpse of Bradley's austere manner, his cheerful aura dampened as his shoulders went slightly slumped.
"You're welcome, and it's okay. You were in critical condition, so it's understandable. But..." Ryder hesitated, shifting another nervous peek at Bradley's furrowed brow before continuing, "I'm happy you both made a full recovery," his eyes fell to my belly with a gentle smile.