A foot or two from the front steps, she heard the motorcycle’s engine die. A wave of triumph bathed over her, but it was quickly washed away by the follow-up thoughts of what that really meant. What it could inevitably lead to. The one thing that Ava feared most.
It was the curse she’d been born with. Tainted blood. She could feel the dormant craving fighting to emerge. Especially now that she’d run into Stone. It was like he was the key and he’d turned on the ignition.
She stepped up onto the small landing and reached for the doorknob. Like a sneaky cat, Stone was suddenly at her side. Ava’s gaze traveled the length of his body and settled on his face. His presence drew her like a magnet. She wanted to pull her gaze away but it was nearly impossible. She was mesmerized by the smooth lines of his features, the way his jaw curved down to his neck—
Stop it!
She tried to choke the dizzying current racing through her. His presence was so confounding—or at least it should be. He would very likely be the reason she turned into the thing she avoided most.
“What exactly are you hoping to find in here?” he asked.
How did she explain that without giving herself away? Worse yet, she had no desire to hide her talents, both proven and unproven, from him.
“It’s a long story.” If she was going to give up her secrets, she’d better wait until they were in a secure location.
“What? You think your boyfriend left you a road map?” He chuckled at his own wit.
“Something like that.” Normally, she would’ve dropped it at that, but she was overwhelmed by the need to declare herself available. “And Lucien isn’t my boyfriend.” She hated hearing the blithering declaration coming out of her mouth, but she was powerless to stop the words.
Curiosity lit his eyes for just a second before it was overshadowed by a smirk. “Well, by all means...” He reached for the doorknob and swung the door open. “Let’s go check it out.” He waved before placing his hand against the small of her back and nudging her inside.
Ava laid a hand on the railing and made her way up the stairs. There was something comforting, albeit a little troubling too, knowing Stone was behind her. Halfway up she stopped and turned to face him. “Look, whatever happens up there...” She looked away. Ava hated asking anyone—least of all a vamp—for help. But if she drained all her energy trying to figure out where Lucien had taken Cole, Mickey was going to need help getting her out of there and into a safe place until she recovered. “What’s it going to cost to have your assurance that you won’t leave Mickey and me here?”
His face skewed with a look of curiosity, like he was trying to figure her out. “Darlin’, until I get my jewels back...I’m sticking to you like glue.” He gave her a nod. “So if you’ve got any plans of trying to ditch me before that happens...forget it.” He nudged her on up the stairs.
She looked back at him while taking careful steps upward. “You promise.” It wasn’t a question, but she waited for his reply.
“Glue, honey. Like glue.” He gave her another push and this time she didn’t stop until she was standing in front of Apartment G. She reached for the door and he moved in front of her. “Let me go first.”
“A chivalrous mercenary.” She let out a soft chuckle. “Watch out, Dexter Stone, you’re going to ruin your reputation.”
“Not if you don’t tell anybody.” He stepped through the doorway and surveyed the room. Ava wanted very much to push him aside. There was no one in there. She knew that. She also knew she needed to scan the apartment before it got too contaminated.
“There’s no one in there,” she said. “Let me in.”
Stone didn’t move aside, but glanced at her with an inquiring look. “And you know this how?”
Ava tried to choke back her frustration. There’d be plenty of time for explanations, just not now. “I know it just like I know what you are.”
“Maybe we’d better step inside.” He moved back and tugged her into the room. “What exactly do you think you know about me?”
Ava stepped across the threshold, met by a dark, murky haze swirling about the room. “Not now.” She stared into the mist, trying to separate the colors. She crept inside, letting her gaze infiltrate the vapor that seemed to be growing thicker as the seconds ticked away.
As Mickey and Skeet entered the apartment, Ava went to the far side of the room and dragged a barstool from the counter separating the living room from the small kitchen. She pulled the stool to the middle of the mostly bare area in the living room. “Sit down,” she said to Stone, pointing at the stool.
“What?”
“Just do it. And be quiet.” She let her gaze travel to Stone and for a split-second she saw it. A dark, blood-red smoke with a brassy hue surrounding him. It wasn’t there long, but it was there long enough to tell her two things: Stone had a mysterious side—one he was hiding—and he was annoyed. Well, she knew all about what he was hiding. And as for him being annoyed, she couldn’t care less.
She held her hand up to him as a gesture of quiet while she took a slow turn around the room. The haze was growing thicker, the murkiness darker. As she feared, it was going to take a lot to figure this one out.
No matter what, she wouldn’t walk out of this one. Someone was going to have to carry her. Did she trust Stone that much? He had stepped between her and Lucien’s Tiki powder, not knowing what it was, and just now he’d insisted on entering the apartment first.
Ava kicked her Chakra energy into overdrive.
A sensitive blend of light and color separated the hues into muddy pink, murky gray and a mucky brown. Dark, unsettling thoughts of a dishonest nature had transpired in this room. Ava closed her eyes and attempted to fine-tune the picture of what had happened there earlier.
The image of the haze cleared in Ava’s mind into a daytime scene in the apartment’s living room.
Lucien, Cole and a couple of Lucien’s goons stood in a circle, much where Ava, Stone, Mickey and Skeet were now standing.
“You don’t have much choice, Cole,” Lucien said. “The guy who rented this place to you sold you out to a bounty hunter. He’s going to turn you over to her tonight.”
“Are you shittin’ me?” Fear fueled Cole’s tone. “What am I going to do?” His eyes shifted with a hopeful look. “Can you take me to another year?”
“No.” Lucien shook his head.
“Why not?” Desperation invaded his tone. “I can pay.”
Lucien laughed. “If I take you to another year, she’ll know it.” He broke the circle and moved toward the window, looking out over the city through his sunglasses. “I have to hide you here, in this time, until she leaves.”
“Where are we going?”
Lucien’s laughter turned devilish. “I’m going to hide you in the one place she’d never look.”
The scene turned grainy and started to fade.
Damn. Ava had pushed her luck. She felt her legs giving at the same time her mind drifted off toward unconsciousness.
* * *
Ava awoke to total darkness. As the languor faded the first thing she noticed was the soft sheets—definitely Egyptian cotton—beneath her nearly naked body.
Where was she and who’d undressed her?
She felt around the large king-size bed. It was empty, save her. Ava tried to survey her surroundings but saw nothing beyond the endless blackness. She called upon the extra-sensory sight tied to her Karellian blood. Objects began to appear in the darkness; it was much like wearing night vision gear. But the unique skill, just like her ability to read people, came with a price. It drained her Chakra energy.
She scanned the room quickly, settling her sights on the silhouetted figure of Stone sitting in a nearby chair. He was looking straight at her. More evidence that he was a vampire. Only vamps and Karellians could see in this abyss. One thing Ava was sure of—Dexter Stone was not Karellian.
She needed light or she’d pass out again.
As if he’d read her mind, Stone went to
the room’s far corner and switched on a small table lamp. It didn’t give off much illumination, but it did allow her to go back to normal vision and still see him and the room, albeit poorly.
“Where are we?” she asked.
“My place.” And again, as if he’d read her thoughts, he said, “You did ask me not to leave you back there.”
Ava scanned the dimly-lit room again. “Where’s Mickey?” Her heart leaped into her throat as the inquiry spilled from her mouth.
“He and Skeet are playing a video game.” Stone let out a muffled laugh.
Really? Ava hadn’t pegged Mickey for a retro video game fan. If the microchip inside Mickey’s head managed to communicate with the ancient CPU inside the video game, Skeet didn’t stand a chance.
“How long have I been asleep?” she asked.
“A few hours.”
She let out a soft sigh. That wasn’t nearly long enough. She had the image in her head of what had happened at Cole’s safe house, but it’d still be some time before the actual conversation was revealed to her.
“There’s no rush,” he said. “We’ll take as much time as you need before we go find my jewels.” He said it like he was on her side, but something in his voice told her it was all about recovering what Lucien had stolen from him.
“Thanks,” she said, hoping he wouldn’t question her further about what had happened, yet knowing that wasn’t likely. But a guy like Stone wouldn’t delve too deep into her background because he had his own secrets to hide. Right?
“So what’s your plan?”
“Plan?” She stalled, buying time.
“You owe me.”
“I paid you.”
“True.” There it was again, that hint of smirkish laughter. Was he amused? She couldn’t tell. He looked at her with that stoic face of his, and said, “But you’re also the reason it was stolen.”
Okay, so maybe Stone had a point. A moot one, but a point nonetheless.
He was awfully fixated on those jewels, but Ava understood why. They’d contribute nicely to his livelihood. Gems held much more value in this time period than hers. “I’ll make sure you’re reimbursed,” she assured him.
Dealing with him was too challenging, especially since she was already exhausted. Ava wanted to turn over and go back to sleep, but instead, she sat up and leaned against the headboard.
“For some reason...” He shook his head and leaned forward in the chair. “I believe that implicitly.”
Even in the softly-lit atmosphere, Ava could make out his puzzled expression. “So you’re distrusting by nature then?” Being a vamp tended to turn you in that direction.
“In my line of work you don’t run into too many trustworthy people.”
“Yeah, I get that.” Ava found herself laughing. After all, she chased criminals through time, and was dependent upon guys like Stone to help her find them. But he’d been gallant with her more than once. Perhaps Stone was worthy of her good opinion. A vampire with a heart. Who knew?
Ava shifted her eyes and snuck a peek at him. Even in the near-darkness she could see him clearly, every line, every curve of his body. Her heart beckoned him to come to her side.
No, no, no. Ava fidgeted in the bed. Getting mixed up with him was not a good idea.
Her first inclination was to toss the covers aside and depart from his bed and his life, but most of her clothes were gone. “How exactly did I wind up half-naked?” she asked, tossing him an accusatory glare that she was certain he saw when he laughed out loud.
“It’s a common known fact that a body rests better when it’s naked.”
“You’re so full of it,” Ava said, trying to tamp down her frustration. She didn’t want to be naked, half so or otherwise, around him. It was dangerous.
“You had your chance to be rid of me, but you chose differently.”
“I need a little more time,” she said in a troubled tone, “and then we’ll be on our way.”
“How do you plan to find your friend?” He was talking about Lucien, and Ava hadn’t overlooked the fact that Stone was no longer calling Lucien her boyfriend.
“I don’t need to find him.”
“Yes, you do.” Stone’s voice stiffened. “He has my jewels.”
“Once I find Cole, you’ll get your jewels.” Or another batch of equal or greater value—at least to him.
“And just how do you plan on finding Cole?” Stone’s tone still held a measure of distrust.
“It’s only a matter of time before I catch up with Cole.” Just as soon as her Chakra energy refilled completely, it’d reveal the conversation she’d witnessed back at the safe house. And when that happened, Ava already knew she’d learn where Lucien had taken her bounty.
Stone crooked his head toward her. Even in the near-darkness Ava could still see his questioning eyes. “Does that have anything to do with what happened back at the place?”
“Yes.”
“What did happen?”
“It’s a long story,” she said, buying time. She had to be careful what she told him. There could be serious consequences, unless her life was in danger, if she told Stone—a person outside her base year period—that she had the ability to travel through time.
But that didn’t mean she couldn’t tell him about her talent for reading people and their residual impressions from places they’d been within the last twenty-four hours—which is what had allowed her to see the conversation Lucien had had with Cole.
Maybe if she shared her secret, he’d tell her about his. She’d feel a lot better about things if he’d take her into his confidence. The act would represent a measure of trust. And she could use a little trust.
Trust? Who was she kidding? Since when was it a good idea to try to build trust with a vampire?
~~~~
Chapter Three
Ava exited Stone’s cave-like bedroom. She lumbered down the dark hallway until it opened up into a living room-kitchen area that wasn’t much brighter than the chamber she’d just come from.
Mickey was sitting on the couch, watching TV, and he was alone.
“Where’s Batman and Robin?” Ava asked, dropping next to him on the couch.
“They went...out,” Mickey said with a half-snort, putting a notable emphasis on the word out. He picked up the television’s remote control off the coffee table and waved it in the air at her. “I still can’t get over the fact that you need this to change the channel.”
“Yeah. It was kind of fun at first.” She shrugged. “But it quickly lost its appeal. The few times I’ve had an extended stay in this era, I kept laying the damn thing down and forgetting where I’d put it.”
Layovers in a period that wasn’t her base year didn’t happen often, but sometimes it took a little longer than anticipated to find her fugitive. It only happened when Lucien stole her bounty and she’d end up having to track him. And tracking, like time travel and reading people and places, burned her Chakra energy. When it was all used up, nothing but rest and time would replenish it.
So far as Ava knew, the ability to time travel had something to do with her Karellian blood. The precise dynamics of it, she wasn’t particularly schooled on. What she did know was that after her Karellian ancestors had arrived on Earth during the 27th Century, they later discovered they had the ability to travel through time, but it came with an inconvenience. Pain.
Like many Karellians, Ava’s father had married a human. Typically, mix-blood offspring did not inherit the ability to travel through time. Ava was the exception. She was the one and only “half Karellian” who’d ever been able to achieve time travel.
She knew it had something to do with her mother. She’d ask her—if she wasn’t dead.
Ava had heard the tall family tales. She also knew the legends were real because she felt it—something waking from deep within her—every time she got near a vampire. Especially Stone.
“Hey...” Mickey said, shaking her. “Are we going to wait here for them to return?”
/> Ava sucked in a deep breath and scanned the room. “I did promise to see that he got reimbursed.” But what she really wanted to do was leave, before Stone returned. It was the smart thing to do. So why couldn’t she?
“You can always go get him some more jewels and bring them back here,” Mickey said.
True. She could do that. But that’d mean lots of down time for Mickey. And down time meant wasted time. No, it was better to wait here until Stone returned. She couldn’t see him being gone for too long. He wanted his jewels. She’d get him to take her to Cole—she knew where he was now that she’d been able to recall the conversation between Lucien and her bounty. She’d get Cole and, if Lucien wasn’t around, she’d take her bounty back to the 29th century and return soon thereafter with a new batch of jewels for Stone. And all would be well. Wouldn’t it?
That eerie feeling, the same one Ava had felt seconds before Stone walked into the pub, swirled around her again. She stopped, listened and crooked her head toward the front door. It opened. Stone and Skeet’s laughter entered before they did.
Stone moved across the room toward Ava and offered her a pizza box. “Here. Thought you’d like something to eat.”
Taking the box, Ava scrutinized him, wishing she could figure him out. She’d give reading him another shot but she knew it was useless, and wasting her energy wasn’t smart.
He sat in the chair kitty-cornered from her, and she opened the box to a full pie topped with pepperoni, sausage and pineapple. Two things bothered her: the fact that he knew her favorite pizza toppings and the sight of a full pie. Why hadn’t Stone or Skeet eaten any?
That was disturbing on more than one account. More confirmation—when what she was hoping for was nullification—that Stone was one of the damned. But it was starting to look like Skeet might be, too. She’d been trying to convince herself that Skeet was just a mortal in Stone’s employ.
Ava claimed a slice and passed the box to Mickey. She held the pizza near her mouth and looked at Stone. “You guys want some?” She already knew the answer but asked the question anyway, more for clarification than anything else.
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