Caleb

by McCarty, Sarah

  Allie stopped at the edge of the roof, her toe on the edge of the gutter. A story up didn’t sound like so much until she was actually looking down from that height. It was a long way to the ground, and the moonlight did nothing to soften the image of her body making impact with the hard surface. Might be time to rethink the descent. Instead of just stepping off and hoping she could float, she decided to do a “dangle and drop.” With the backpack over her shoulder and the metal of the gutter cutting into her fingers, she closed her eyes and pictured herself floating down. When she had it solidly in her mind, she let go.

  She hit the ground with bone-jarring force. Her teeth snapped together and her shins screamed. She crouched, rubbing at the sharp pain until it became manageable, then ducked behind a leafless bush as she waited to see if anyone came to investigate the disturbance. No one did. Oh yeah, she was safe with these guards.

  She crept to the left, heading for the woods, unease flaring as the leaves rustled in the trees. To her overactive imagination they sounded like whispers tracing her path. Woman or vampire, she still didn’t like the dark.

  As soon as she reached the concealing brush at the edge of the woods, she tightened her right shoulder strap and settled into her pace, following the inner vibration she picked up from the invitation that drew her along the path of the moon. She didn’t know where the Johnson property ended, but she assumed there would be an illusion at the road, as there had been before. She just hoped there wasn’t another pack of killer D’Nally weres on the other side. The last two weeks had provided quite enough excitement in her life, thank you very much. She wasn’t in need of more.

  Nerves on edge, constantly scanning for wolves, goblins, or any other paranormal freakiness, she trudged on, grateful for at least one thing—vampirism had increased her endurance. A fox skidded out of the hedge to the left and she shrieked before she could contain it. Allie slapped her hands over her mouth, as if that would somehow take back the betraying noise. It was too late.

  “Going somewhere?”

  Caleb was beside her—no warning, no sensing him. Just there. Big, bad, and mad. It was enough to make her heart flutter. Stupid heart. She put her hands on her hips. “How do you do that?”

  He didn’t pretend to misunderstand. Just raised an eyebrow and folded his arms across his chest. “Practice.”

  He didn’t look happy. Just the opposite, but that was just tough. She’d talked herself blue in the face trying to get him to see reason. Extreme stubbornness called for an extreme wake-up call.

  “And for your information, I’m heading east.”

  “Then you’re heading in the wrong direction.”

  Allie rolled her eyes. “Okay, north.”

  “Try again.”

  She pointed to the deepest part of the forest, where the tingling told her to go. “That way then.”

  “West.”

  She hitched the pack on her shoulder. “West. I’m heading west. Any more questions?”

  He caught her arm before she could take a step. “Yes. Why?”

  “Because you don’t have the answers I need.”

  “And you think something out there does?”

  “Not something . . . someone.” She was sure of that.

  “That thing is out there.”

  “So are, apparently, a whole lot of other vampires with, hopefully, a lot more study on the syndrome.”

  “There’s nothing they can give you that I can’t.”

  Oh, that was such a load a crap. She ignored his hand on her arm and folded her arms across her chest. “How about an answer on whether I’m pregnant or not?”

  “Time will tell that.”

  “So would a pregnancy test if vampire bodies functioned like human ones.”

  “That’s not necessarily true, according to Slade.”

  “Uh-huh.” The pack dug into her shoulder. She moved it to a more comfortable position. “According to Slade, a lot of things are possible, but without the right equipment, he’s pretty much stuck with theory.”

  “I’m working on it.”

  “I don’t have time to wait.”

  His mouth set in that straight line that said she’d roused his stubborn side. “Time is about all we do have.”

  She wanted to kick him in the shins for that. They had the potential for a lot. A great relationship, a great future. Maybe even a family. “You know, if you keep looking for the negative, you’re always going to find it.”

  “I’m not negative, I’m practical.”

  “Well, I’m adventurous.”

  “You’re reckless.”

  “Get used to it.”

  “Not an option.” The tug on her arm punctuated his conviction. “We need to head back.”

  “No.”

  His weight shifted to his heels and his grip on her arm loosened, but for all his nonchalance, she couldn’t shake the feeling that he was just waiting to pounce. Her own big bad wolf.

  “I could just throw you over my shoulder and take you back.”

  She ignored the laziness of his drawl and looked beneath it. “That is so eighteen sixties.”

  “But so true.”

  His tone mocked her, but his eyes said he was going beyond the moment, considering his options. Allie adjusted her backpack. “You realize, of course, that this time I arranged it so you could find me.”

  The edge of his mouth kicked up in a smile. “You think there’d be a time when I couldn’t?”

  “I think I could arrange it in the future so you couldn’t find me in time.” She let the knowledge seep between them. Saw the flare of anger in his eyes before it faded behind a wall of assessment.

  “In time for what?”

  “For you to be a part of whatever I planned.”

  16

  “IF you say‘I told you so,’ I’m going to scream.”

  Caleb leaned against the wrought iron gate and folded his arms across his chest. “Can I at least mention that my deciding to wait until tonight rather than showing up in the wee hours of this morning was a much better plan after all?”

  “No.”

  Smug men were so annoying.

  “You do know how to take the fun out of a man’s day.”

  Who did he think he was kidding? Every three minutes the man found something about her that inspired a chuckle. If she didn’t think he needed the laughter so much, she’d work up to offense. Allie pushed the intercom button again. There was a low hum as the bell rang inside the structure.

  “You going with the philosophy that ten times is the charm?”

  “No.” She started punching the button in a funky rhythm. “I’m working on the theory that if you grate on someone’s nerves enough, eventually they’ll show up, if for no other reason than to tell you to knock it off.”

  “And once you get them here?”

  “I intend to keep them here until I get inside the gate.”

  “Based on that annoyance factor?”

  She cut him a glance. The amusement in his green eyes sliced through her frustration to tug an equally amused grin to her mouth. “I thought once I had them here, I’d go for the poor-pitiful-little-woman angle.”

  “You do look pretty pathetic bundled in those two coats.”

  “Gee, thanks.”

  “No need to get your feathers in a twist.” He glanced at the top of her head. “You’re also damn cute.”

  She was reaching for the top of her head before she realized there was no way the feathers could be back. Of course, Caleb noticed. She rolled her eyes. He chuckled.

  She kicked the beat on the buzzer up to three-quarter time. “I hope whoever comes to the door is as old-fashioned as you.”

  “Why?”

  “Because there’s no way they’ll be able to ignore a vampiress in distress. All that old-world chivalry will force him to comply with my wishes.”

  Caleb looked through the gates. “This would probably be a bad time to mention that old-world chivalry you keep harping on was more myth tha
n fact.”

  She followed his gaze. “A very bad time.”

  The man coming toward them was the epitome of a horror novel revelation. He was dressed in a flowing white robe that just looked bizarre in combination with his monster fangs and beady eyes.

  A soft whir and the gates, the only barrier between him and them, began to open. Caleb straightened. “Get behind me.”

  “Just because he looks—”

  She never got a chance to finish the sentence. Caleb grabbed her arm and practically threw her back. She caught her balance just as the beast-man cleared the gates. Flew through them was more like it. Straight at Caleb.

  “Stay down,” Caleb snapped.

  Did he think she was as nuts as him? The backpack with the gun was on the other side of beast-man. A glance around showed the well-manicured grounds clear of debris. Why on Earth was there never a stick around when she needed one?

  She closed her eyes as beast-man collided with Caleb. She immediately forced them back open, pushing away her instinctive fear and reaching for her courage. Caleb was going to need her help. No way could he win against something that big. That ugly.

  Caleb’s answering growl rumbled as the two men’s shadows blended, a low, deadly, yet somehow sane counterpoint to the beast’s ferocious roar. She scrambled to the side, trying to see what was happening. She just needed an opportunity, an opening to help Caleb. Another thud and the sound of bones breaking snapped her gaze around. The men leapt into the air, spinning as they came together, falling as they pummeled each other. The ground shook as they hit again. The beast-man was on top. Anger surged, sending tingling darts of energy down her arms and out her fingers. If that thing hurt Caleb she was going to personally neuter it with a pair of rusty pliers. The men rolled and came to a stop. Caleb rose above the monster, his boot gouging into the monster’s groin and his talons digging into the man’s massive chest.

  “You picked the wrong day to get on my bad side.”

  Such an innocuous statement to carry so much lethal intent. From the way beast-man’s eyes were bugging, she got the impression he was too terrified to make a sound. She couldn’t blame him. Caleb in full vampire snit was scary. A little too scary. She came up behind Caleb, trying not to focus on the image of his hand knuckle deep in the creature’s rib cage. “I swear to God if you rip out his heart, I’m going to puke all over you.”

  That might just be a growl from his throat. “I told you to stay back.”

  “I thought you might need help with beast-man here.”

  The glance he cut her was disgusted. “You thought wrong.”

  Blood pooled around his fingertips. She quickly averted her eyes. There were some things about vampires she would never get used to. “So shoot me.”

  “I’d rather paddle your ass.”

  “You have a real thing about my ass.”

  He never took his eyes off beast-man, but he still managed to put a sexy rumble in his voice. “Can’t help it. It’s a damn attractive ass.”

  At least one of them thought so. “What are you going to do with him?”

  “I was thinking of ending his miserable life.”

  That’s what she was afraid of. “But since you know that would be really uncivilized of you . . .”

  Caleb lifted the man’s torso off the ground, keeping him earthbound with the boot in his groin. “My wife doesn’t think I should kill you.”

  Beast-man spit the blood from his mouth. “You’ll never get out of here if you do.”

  Caleb shook his head. “I’m thinking you were sent because you’re expendable, which would make ending your sorry life an agreeable option.”

  That was so wrong. “No one is expendable, Caleb.”

  “Too bad for this guy that I don’t share your philosophy.”

  He sounded so calm, so unphased by the prospect of taking a life, it made her uncomfortable. And the way the muscles in his wrist bulged like he was thinking about doing it any second worried her. He couldn’t just kill the man. Vampire. Whatever it was. “Violence doesn’t solve everything.”

  “It works for me.”

  “The lady has a point.”

  The very cultured voice slid across the violence like a balm. Allie turned to the speaker, taking a step backward as she did. Good God. It couldn’t be. But it was. “Vincent?”

  It wasn’t the Vincent she remembered—the one who wore polo shirts and jeans and talked spreadsheets until she’d wanted to fall over in a coma. This Vincent was still very handsome in a suave, urbane sort of way, but the blond hair she remembered was so pale it almost glowed the same white as his flowing robes. He also radiated an aura of power and control she didn’t remember, but at least he didn’t present a threat. Which was good. She’d about had her fill of uncivilized violence. She mustered a smile past her amazement at his change. “Hi.”

  Vincent inclined his head. “It’s good to see you again.”

  “You know this yahoo?” Caleb growled.

  “We dated once or twice.” Way back when in her unsuccessful straight-laced phase. She’d hired on as a temp at an investment firm. He’d been one of the boy wonders. The relationship had ended when she’d begun treating him like a human being rather than a god.

  Another growl from Caleb, followed quickly by an order. “Come here, Allie.”

  She ignored Caleb’s order and held out her hand to Vincent. “I didn’t know you were the one who sent the invitation.”

  His smile was benign. “I wasn’t sure how you’d take the revelation that I was a vampire.”

  “Well, at least it explains why you always insisted on late-night dinners.” He returned her smile, but there was something wrong with his gaze. Or maybe it was his energy. “This is my friend—”

  Beast-man hit the ground with a thud. Caleb stepped to her side and, with a bloody hand on her shoulder, put her none too gently behind him. “Husband.”

  Good God, Caleb was almost a caveman. She glanced over her shoulder. Beast-man was lying unnaturally still. Had Caleb killed him? “This is Caleb Johnson.”

  “Allie . . .”

  The growl in Caleb’s voice raised Vincent’s eyebrows. The gesture was at least familiar.

  “I’ve heard of the Johnson brothers. They’re rather a local legend.”

  He didn’t make it sound like a good thing. Even though she knew how irritating the brothers could be, it irritated her that Vincent felt so free to point it out to her with Caleb standing there.

  “They’re a bit eccentric, but they grow on you.”

  Caleb looked toward them, from whatever he was doing with beast-man. “You’re pushing me, Allie.”

  She ignored his command to come to his side. She was not going to heel like a puppy. Especially in front of an acquaintance. “That’s only fair. You’re annoying me.”

  “I’ve heard it’s not a good idea,” Vincent offered.

  Allie shrugged. “I’ve gotten used to his bite.”

  Vincent’s gaze sharpened. “He’s bitten you?”

  “Why sound so shocked? It is a vampire thing after all.”

  “True. And one to which you seem to be adapting well.” The dip of his head was a charming affectation she didn’t remember. It was almost like he was two men. The one in her memory and the one before her. Of course, the man she’d met the year she’d lived in California might not have been who she thought he was, which bore remembering.

  “Were you a vampire when I met you before?”

  “Yes,” Caleb said, coming up beside her. “He’s a very old vampire.”

  She glanced up. “How do you know?”

  Caleb caught her hand in his, keeping her put. “You can feel it in his energy. Which only begs the question, why was he sniffing around you?”

  “Well, gee. Thanks for the vote of confidence.”

  Vincent’s expression went haughty in the blink of an eye. That she did remember. “I was probably attracted to her for the same reason you were. Allie is a very attractive woman.”<
br />
  To vampires at least. Not a comforting thought. “Thank you, Vincent.”

  Caleb snorted. She ignored him. Vincent nodded to the beast-man moaning on the ground. “I’m sorry about your welcome. We’ve had some trouble lately, and a few of the members have become very protective of our privacy.”

  “Which would explain your kill-and-don’t-tell policy,” Caleb drawled.

  “It’s not our policy, but I’m afraid Daniel had a bad experience with humans before.”

  Caleb bared his fangs. “I’m not human.”

  “I’m aware of that and can’t apologize enough.” A graceful wave of his hand indicated Allie’s coat. “Are you well?”

  “I’m fine, why do you ask?”

  “Most vampires don’t feel the cold.”

  Caleb tucked her into his side.

  “My wife’s not like most.” There was a world of possession in the word “wife.”

  “I’m sure.” Vincent motioned to the gate. “Won’t you come in?”

  Allie hugged her arms to her chest and eyed Caleb for any sudden moves. “We would love to.”

  Beast-man grunted and propped himself up on his elbows. Caleb lifted his lip. Beast-man dropped back down.

  “Behave,” she whispered under her breath.

  “I am.”

  “Well, do me a favor and try not to be so eighteen sixties once we get inside. We need answers, and we’re not going to get them if you rip out the hearts of everyone we meet.”

  He shrugged, the golden swirls very prevalent in his eyes. “It’s a habit.”

  “Oh for goodness sake.” He was determined to be difficult.

  Vincent took a step toward the gate. “Shall we go in where you can be warm while we talk?”

  Her instinct wobbled between staying outside and going in. Caleb was no help. He just raised an eyebrow at her. Now he had to go all egalitarian?

  She studied the gate and the compound beyond. Neither looked particularly impressive. She bet Caleb could clear the fence with the aid of that floaty thing he did, and beyond were just the dark shapes of normal-looking structures. There was nothing to cause the unease creeping under her skin. Forcing a smile she nodded to Vincent. “Absolutely.”