Free Drip Drop Teardrop, a Novella by Samantha Young Page A

a different
time is no excuse. I believed myself above others and thus they
were below my notice or my kindness.”
    “ Were you
physically cruel?” she asked carefully, fearful of his
answer.
    Brennus shook his head.
“I’m a very big man and aware of my physical prowess over others. I
knew using it against them could be dangerous and unfair. I was
arrogant but I had a little sense of honour. No, mostly I was
condescending and curt. I had little patience for most people and
very little sympathy for the plight of others.”
    “ What’s the
worst thing you ever did?” It was such a morbid question but if she
was to give this man a chance, if she was to have any chance of
loving him, then she had to know this stuff. They didn’t have the
luxury of time to figure it all out.
    Nodding his head, Avery
knew Brennus understood that. He sighed heavily and took a sip of
his coffee. His face had grown a little stark, like his skin was
stretched too tight over the bones of his face. “The worst thing I
ever did… was to a friend. Caedmon. We grew up together. Both our
families were well off, we were of an age. Very close. And stupid.
We got into quite a tangle over women.”
    Avery could just imagine
them. Two good looking rich boys devastating the town. “What age
were you?”
    “ Sixteen.”
    Her jaw dropped and he
laughed. It was dark and… roguish. She shivered. “Boys were men at
sixteen. And Caedmon and I liked to prove we were the biggest men
of our peer group.”
    “ What
happened?”
    Brennus exhaled. “His
father died, leaving them with debts. His mother prostituted
herself and Caedmon couldn’t find work. They were ostracised and I
was afraid if I remained friends with Caedmon I would lose my own
good standing. So I deserted him.”
    “ Brennus,”
she whispered sympathetically, seeing the guilt he still carried
after all these years.
    “ Caedmon
joined auxilia ,
the corp of the Imperial Roman Army open to imperial subjects who
weren’t Roman citizens. They were heavy infantry, did as much as a
legionnaire. He left. I never saw him again. But when I became
Ankou it was easy to discover truths. He died in action… only a
year into his career as a soldier.” Brennus shook his head slowly.
“He should have died a wealthy tradesman with a beautiful wife and
ten children.”
    Avery reached forward and
touched his arm gently. “If he stayed he could have died in the
plague. Or took a fever. Or drowned. Or-”
    He held up
his hand cutting her off, a cynical smile curving his lips.
“ You’re really
going to try to rationalise for me?”
    Remembering
he hadn’t pushed her , she grimaced and pulled back. “You’re right. Sorry. You
feel bad for abandoning your friend. I get it.”
    He nodded solemnly.
“Mayhap I would have grown into a better man… my father was a
decent man. Instead I became an immortal and death changed me. I
grew up fast.”
    Avery nodded,
understanding perfectly. “It has a tendency to do that to a
person.”
    Their gazes caught and
her heart sped up. She felt that flush of heat all over.
    Worse… she didn’t feel
alone anymore.
     
    It’s Gonna Cost
You but
    You Might Hurt
Less
     
    I feel like
I’m fighting what I want because of what my world expects from me.
My friends would call him creepy stalker guy; Aunt Caroline would
say he was too old for me guy; pop culture would say he’s the devil
guy; and the person I was five days ago would call him a
blackmailing, ruthless son-of-a-bitch guy. And I guess that last
part is still kind of true. But I’m not so sure about the other
stuff. If he really is that guy that my world describes, shouldn’t
I be deterred? Shouldn’t I want to run in the opposite direction?
Shouldn’t I be terrified of him? Because I’m not. I’ve never felt
safer. I’ve never felt more like a person who isn’t scared to make
my own choices… and that in itself scares the crap out of – if that
even makes sense.
    Last night we
took a walk around the