A Shade of Vampire 32: A Day of Glory Read Online Free Page A

other boys were a little more talkative than Field, asking questions about our island and how it came to be. Then my mother suggested that she go and find them some spare accommodations where they could have a shower, and be provided with some new clothes… as well as a haircut, if they wanted it. None of them volunteered for the latter, though they were all accepting of accommodations and clothing.
    I remained staring at Field as he stood up, and all of them headed out of the room with my mother.
    Field reminded me of somebody who had been traumatized—out of touch with other people and himself. He had a lot of growing to do emotionally. But I found myself looking forward to spending more time with him. To cracking him, chiseling away at his stony exterior and discovering the young man he really was underneath. My brother.
    I felt in a daze as the door shut behind them. I even forgot momentarily that Lawrence was still with me in the room.
    I turned to look at Lawrence, my eyes widening. “Just when you think life can’t get any stranger,” I murmured.
    He chuckled. “I know the feeling.”
    I lay back on the bed, heaving out a long, deep sigh and staring up at the ceiling. “At least you’re not my long-lost sibling.”
    “Consider me glad, too,” Lawrence muttered.
    “You could have been, for all I knew, when we found you in the basement in The Woodlands… You could have been some genetic experiment. You even showed symptoms of a half-blood.”
    “I was closer to a Bloodless than I ever was to a vampire,” Lawrence said. “I still am, though you wouldn’t know it by looking at me.”
    I sat up abruptly as I remembered Orlando. “Oh! Let’s go and check on Orlando. He’s supposed to be taking the antidote—probably anytime now.”
    Lawrence stole a kiss from me before sitting me upright and helping me into my wheelchair. Then he pushed me out of the room and into the hallway outside.
    “Where is Orlando supposed to be?” he asked, as we glanced up and down.
    “Let’s head down that way,” I said, pointing to our left. There weren’t many doors to our right, and all of them appeared to be open.
    As we moved along, Lawrence briefly pressed an ear against each closed door until he stopped, about seven along. “Sounds like Corrine is in here.”
    He pushed me to the door and allowed me to listen too. It was Corrine. I reached out and knocked.
    We entered to find Orlando lying in bed, Corrine by his side.
    “Hey,” I said, offering him a smile as Lawrence pushed me toward them. “What’s going on?”
    “We gave Orlando the antidote,” Corrine said, eyeing him. “He seems to be making progress. Of course, the change is not going to be as drastic as it was with you. But if the antidote can purge the Bloodless virus from Orlando’s system, which is what is making him so ill, he should be healthy again very soon.”
    I narrowed my eyes, examining his complexion. I didn’t think it was my imagination—he definitely looked warmer than the last time I saw him… Though that had been just when he had walked in on me and Lawrence kissing. I could hardly expect him not to have a pale face after witnessing that.
    “How are you feeling?” I asked Orlando.
    He avoided my gaze. “Fine.”
    “I’ve got to go and check on some things,” Corrine said, patting Orlando on the arm. “You stay here and rest.”
    As Corrine left, I glanced at Lawrence. I really owed Orlando some time, just the two of us. “Hey, Lawrence, do you mind giving Orlando and me a few minutes?”
    “Sure,” Lawrence said, even as he frowned slightly. “I’ll, uh, wait outside.”
    He backed out of the room and closed the door politely behind him, while I returned my focus to Orlando. Now that we were on our own, he looked at me. His brown eyes were glassy.
    I reached out and held his hand, which felt almost warm. “Hey. I… I wanted to talk about earlier.” About us . “Lawrence… he’s my boyfriend.”
    Orlando nodded,