Chapter 13: I Can't

Everything hurt. My entire body was in flames. I felt on fire and anything that touched my skin made it worse.

I knew that Adria and my brother were in the room, but I couldn't concentrate on what they were saying.

All I could think about was the pain. And how once again Dane wasn't here. All of this was his fault.

And he wasn't here.

Although why would he be here? He didn't care about me.

Another piercing pain shot through me and I screamed. When was this going to end?

I whimpered thinking the pain would never stop.

Then I felt the bed shift and someone was kneeling above me, almost on top of me.

"Riley. Riley sweet heart open your eyes. Look at me."

Dane! Dane was here!

But why would he be here? He didn't love me, so why was he here?

Maybe I was dreaming.

I slowly opened my eyes, praying the little movement wouldn't spark any more pain than I was already in.

I saw his face. And it nearly undid me. He really was here.

"Riley thank God." He smiled, but seemed like he was in pain.

"Why are you here?" I managed to whisper.

He reached out to touch my shoulder and I flinched thinking that it would hurt just like when Seth or Adria had brushed my shoulder.

But when his hand touched my hair and gently moved it out of my face there was no pain.

"I don't want you here." I lied and he seemed to know it.

"I'm not going anywhere. I love you." He didn't love me, he left me.

"No." I shook my head forgetting it would cause me more pain. I whimpered as my head felt like it would explode.

"I love you Riley."

"No you don't. You left me when I needed you the most. You don't love me. You would have been there if you had."

Tears fell down my face as I said those words, believing they were the truth.

He ran his hand through his hair. "Riley I thought you wouldn't want me there. I mean you were turning into the monster that killed your father and it was all my fault. So I left."

He left because he did love me.

"I thought you didn't love me."

He smiled down at me, but before he could say anything else pain so bad I thought I would pass out hit me and I tried to curl into a ball.

Trying to make it stop.

"Dane. Make it stop." I said folding my arms across my stomach as the pain continued to spread through my body.

"Okay sweet heart. Which side did he bite you?"

What? Was this the time to ask where he had bitten me?

"What kind of question is that?" I whimpered, closing my eyes as more pain ripped through me.

"Just tell me."

"My left shoulder." His hands turned me so that I was lying flat on my back. One of his legs was in between mine.

He moved my hair off of my shoulder and pulled my shirt down my arm so he could see it. This was supposed to solve everything?

"Dane…" He looked down at me and then to my shoulder. It was then that I noticed Adria and my brother still in the room.

"I have to bite you." Dane's words stopped me.

"What?" I looked from Dane, to Seth, then back to Dane.

"I'm not letting you die. The only way your body will accept you being a shape shifter is if I bite you. There's something in all shape shifters saliva that makes your body realize what's happened. It's the only way to keep you alive. I'm not letting you die Riley."

Well that's just weird, but if it would save me…

"Seth leave. Adria get him out of here." I said looking at Seth's shock face at what Dane had just said.

Adria grabbed Seth's arm and had to drag him out of my room. She closed the door behind them.

All I could hear now was my ragged breathing. The pain was still excruciating. I tensed as he lowered his head to my shoulder.

"It's going to hurt a lot worse for a few seconds. Then the pain will stop." I could feel his breath against my shoulder and just as another wave of pain hit he bit down on the same spot the tiger had bitten me.

I screamed so loud I was sure the entire neighborhood had heard me. My world exploded around me as pain consumed me and took my breath away.

It felt as if a lifetime had passed before I could open my eyes. My room was covered in darkness and I fumbled for the light on my bedside table.

Before I could reach it I came in contact with Dane who was lying next to me.

He was still here! He hadn't left me!

I quickly wrapped my arms around him and laid my head down on his chest. I heard him chuckle above me.

"You're still here." I said smiling.

"I'm never leaving you again. Riley I'm so sorry…" Dane was interrupted as the door was thrown open and Seth came barging in. Adria trying unsuccessfully to stop him.

"Sorry I tried he's really strong when he's pissed." She piped in as Seth turned on the light above my bed.

"Dane I'd like to speak with you. Now." Seth was beyond enraged, he looked like he was ready to kill something and it was probably Dane at the moment.

"Seth wait. Let me explain everything." I tried to sit up, but my head started spinning and I fell back on my pillows.

"Okay that's not such a good idea."

Dane walked towards the door.

I tried to make Seth understand. "Seth let me explain. It wasn't his fault. He's going to say it was, but it wasn't."

Dane blamed himself for what had happened, but he couldn't control everything, even if he was the king and all.

Seth seemed to look right through me as he headed out the door with Dane.

He couldn't even look at me. I had turned into the one thing he hated.

"Don't worry he'll see reason eventually. He has to, you're his sister." Adria said walking over to sit next to me.

"I hope so." I sighed wondering if he would ever be able to see me as he had before everything changed.

"And don't worry there's always option B to make him see reason."

"What's that?"

"Me." She said, still smiling.

Seth's Point of View

She was a shape shifter now. She was the same thing that had killed my father. The same thing I despised.

Dane said it was his fault. He shouldn't have gotten her involved in everything, but I knew that wasn't true.

She had gotten way too involved the night our dad died.

Dane loved her. I could see it in his eyes. I didn't know if I liked that. Maybe it would be good for her.

To find someone to love. She lost dad, she deserved someone to love. But she was still my little sister and I was wary of any guy she liked.

The whole shape shifting thing changed everything.

I sighed and sat down on the living room couch. I told Dane if he loved Riley enough he would let her make the decisions about her life.

And he couldn't influence her in any way. She was only eighteen. She still had to get through college.

Dane could be in her life to an extent. Of course Dane hadn't taken that remark very kindly.

He had walked away and probably went back to check on Riley.

I didn't know what to do now. I guess wait until Riley was ready to talk… about everything. Everything she kept from me.

I rubbed the back of my neck, feeling the knots there that had formed from all the stress of last night.

Then I felt someone else's hands there massaging my neck and shoulders for me. "Riley thinks you hate her now."

Adria.

I still didn't know what to think of her. Although her hands were amazing.

"I don't hate her. I love her. She's my sister." Her hands stopped moving and she sighed loudly.

"Yeah well not looking at her is kind of a sign that you hate her. That you see her as something different now. As something bad. She's looks up to you Seth and now you've made her feel like she's something wrong. You call yourself her brother…"

I know I hadn't been able to look at Riley. I just… I didn't want to think of her as different now, that everything would change, but it looked like it was too late now.

I still loved Riley. I always would. I guess I just needed to take some time to get used to the whole idea of shape shifters.

"God Shape shifters sure know how to ruin someone's life." I didn't know I had said the last part out loud until I was unceremoniously pushed off the couch and onto the living room floor.

Adria came to stand over me. "I know I didn't just hear you say that." Her eyes looked venomous as I stared up at her.

"I didn't mean to say that out loud." Wrong words to say at the moment.

Her eyes seemed to get narrower as she put her foot against my throat and pressed down, cutting off my air supply.

"Do you have a death wish? The only reason I'm not going to kill you is because Riley wouldn't like that." She folded her arms in a defiant gesture.

Well I wasn't going to let her have all the power in this well, weird relationship we were having, so I swiftly locked my arms around her leg and twisted so that she fell on her back and then I quickly rolled on top of her so she couldn't move.

I trapped her arms above her head with my hands and smiled triumphantly.

"You know for a shape shifter you're kind of slow." I said chuckling as she pouted.

"I didn't think you would hurt a woman, but I guess I was wrong." I hurt her? God Seth, you don't throw down a girl and take her hostage.

What is wrong with me?

It had to be something about this girl beneath me. Ever since I met her I couldn't get her out of my head.

"You're hurt? I didn't mean to. God, I'm sorry." I eased my weight off of her and the next thing I know she has me pinned below her.

"Just kidding." She said smiling down at me.

Now I was the one pouting. "That was mean. I really thought I hurt you."

She shrugged, "I'm just a really good liar." She said still smiling.

"Didn't your mom ever tell you lying bad?" After the shock of her pinning me down, I came to realize how closely her body was pressed against mine.

It felt right and I couldn't help, but move my hands so they were against her hips. I rubbed them up her sides and felt her shudder at my touch.

"Stop." She said breathlessly, but didn't try to stop my hands as the climbed up her back. I looked up at her saw her eyes dilate.

One of my hands moved to the back of her head and I slowly pushed it down until our lips were merely centimeters away.

The only sound that could be heard was our ragged breathing as we stared at each other.

"I can't." She whispered.

"Sure you can." I said moving a tiny bit forward. Towards her mouth. It was then that she jumped off of me.

"I said stop!" She seemed panicked. Her eyes were slightly misted and I was confused as hell.

"I have to go." And with that she walked out the front door.

Women were too damned confusing.