by Lisa Olsen
“That doesn’t rule out vampire involvement,” he persisted, following behind me. “Any kind of violent death where considerable strength is required meets the parameters.”
Awesome. I managed to pour out a cup of the gloppy blood, but my hands shook too much to get it into the microwave. I set it down with a clatter, clutching the counter to get a hold of myself. “Does that mean you’ll be investigating it?”
“No, not unless the police start asking the wrong kinds of questions.” He seemed only mildly interested, if that. “I can take a brief look into their files for you if you like though,” Bishop offered, coming up behind me to wrap his arms around my waist, and I leaned back into the solid comfort of his chest.
“Thanks, I’d appreciate that.” It would be helpful to know if I was really a suspect or if Lucas was fishing for information. “I can’t keep these here anymore, can I?” My eyes fell to the packet of blood on the counter. “If I’m a murder suspect and they search my apartment, I’m pretty sure they’re going to ask some questions about the blood in the fridge.”
“Hey, it’ll be alright.” His voice was low and reassuring by my ear as his arms tightened around me. “You can keep them at my place if you want, or you could give hunting another shot. I promise I’ll be on hand this time to make sure no accidents happen.”
“I don’t know, maybe,” I shrugged, not ready to go down that path yet, even with a safety net. “Do you think Jakob did this?”
“Killed that girl?” He let go of me to pace the length of the kitchen and I could see he didn’t like me bringing up my Sire one bit. “It’s possible. He might have done it as a way of courting you if he thought it was something you wanted.”
“I so did not want any of this,” I murmured, trying again and successfully getting the mug into the microwave to heat up. “Speaking of things I’d rather forget, did you ever find out anything about that missing body?” I still wondered if he was alive and well by some miracle or possibly even undead and without a Sire thanks to me.
“Uh, yeah… I meant to tell you about that.” Bishop rubbed the back of his head uncomfortably, and I wondered how long he’d had something to tell. “It turned up in Petaluma, mangled in a car accident. The police didn’t question it.”
“What? How did he get to Petaluma?” I hadn’t even considered that option. I figured he’d either turn up locally or not at all.
“A more interesting question might be, how did he end up in the car accident at all? The vehicle was registered in his name on the date of the accident, more than three days after he died.” I blew over the top of my mug, considering the implications of that. Someone out there was bent on keeping my name out of it, which I could appreciate, but who? “Are you really gonna drink that?” he grimaced, and I made a special point of not wincing at all as I took a long drink.
“Breakfast of champions.” I even managed a smile. “You know my mother always taught me, if you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all. You don’t see me picking on your food choices.”
“I generally try to avoid following the life lessons my mother instilled upon me,” he said softly. “But I’ll try to keep my comments to a minimum.”
I bit my tongue against jumping at that opening, knowing he liked to keep his past to himself. Maybe if I didn’t push he’d keep volunteering tidbits like that? “Thanks, I appreciate it. What do you have planned for tonight?” I was supposed to go to rehearsal, but it sounded less and less appealing the more I thought about it. Even though we had the performance coming up, I couldn’t bear facing them all.
“I can’t stay long, I have to get back out there.”
“Wouldn’t want the vamps to get out of line,” I sighed, sliding onto a seat at the kitchen table, gratified when Bishop took the seat opposite me. Whatever his pressing business, he didn’t have to leave yet.
“I hate to say it, but a big part of my job is being seen around town, putting the fear of the Order into their hearts,” he admitted.
“Is that why your team gave me the death stare the other day?” I hoped I’d never run into them in a dark alley without Bishop by my side. “I’m pretty sure that woman hates me.”
“Corazon? Hey, she actually talked to you, that’s practically a warm hug coming from her,” Bishop grinned. “They can’t help it if they’re hardasses, it’s a job requirement. You spend a lot of time in the company of death, it affects you.”
“Then why is Mason so cheery?”
“I told you, he’s still green. Then again, I could easily see him in another hundred years cracking those lame jokes and being a general pain in my ass. It’s the way he’s made.”
I thought about that for a moment, considering what I’d seen first hand they had to deal with. “I think it helps him. Like you said, you spend that much time surrounded by death, you either get dark on the inside, or you repel it and keep it outside. The humor is Mason’s shell of armor. That’s the only way he can keep being him.” Bishop fell silent then, and I got up to wash my cup and put it away. “Thanks for the gift by the way,” I changed the subject. “I’ll pay you back, I swear.”
“What gift?” he blinked.
“You know, Sneaky McSneakerson. The money,” I prompted, but he stared back at me blankly.
“You wouldn’t let me give you any money.”
“Hence the sneakage…”
“Anja, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“You really didn’t leave a wad of money for me under my pillow?”
“No,” he frowned, “but now I’m starting to understand why you startled awake like that. We’re going to have to do something about securing your apartment a little better.”
“Hey, people sneaking in and dropping off money is good in my books,” Bridget snorted, eavesdropping as usual as she came out of her room. “Don’t cut off her sugar daddy unless you’re ready to represent.”
“I offered her the money first,” Bishop muttered darkly and I felt like I had to speak up.
“I told you, I didn’t want to owe anybody anything.”
“God, I wish I had your problems,” Bridget sighed dramatically. “Sadly no one is fighting over the right to keep me in corsets and champagne.” There was a rap at the door and her face brightened. “But I’ll take my guy and some beer any day.”
“You bought a corset?” Bishop perked up a little at that. It occurred to me that the type of women he grew up with all probably wore corsets. No wonder he scowled at my bare legs sometimes…
“A lady never talks about her undergarments,” I fluttered my eyelashes at him playfully and he laughed.
“And I definitely prefer a lady,” he replied, eyes warm with admiration as he rose to his feet. “I’d better get out there though, unless you need anything?”
I thought about saying I needed his company, but I didn’t want to seem too clingy. “I’m good. I’m going to hang around home tonight, do girly things like paint my toenails and catch up on my reading.” I thought he might lean down and kiss me then, but Bishop straightened as Rob walked into the apartment.
“I’ll see you later,” he said softly, fingers brushing against my cheek in the ghost of a touch before he pulled away, nodding to Rob in passing.
“You’re not staying?” Rob asked, surprise coloring his features.
“Nope, duty calls.” With a final nod, Bishop left, leaving the two of us watching Bridget struggle to get her boots on.
“How’s about we stay in tonight, doll?” Rob asked, taking a seat beside her on the couch. “Order a pizza and catch a movie on the telly?”
“I thought we were going out,” Bridget froze, her boots halfway laced up.
“Be more cozy-like this way,” Rob gave her a half smile, hand brushing along her bare knee.
“Yeah, cozy works for me.” A silly grin broke out on her face, whatever plans they’d made forgotten.
“I’ll leave you guys to it then,” I smiled, prepared to hang out in my room until R
ob left or they adjourned to her bedroom.
“You don’t have to leave on our account, this is your home too,” Bridget shrugged.
“That’s okay, I’m not much for pizza these days, but you guys go ahead. I have some reading to do anyway.” The last thing I wanted to do was watch them get all touchy feely with each other. Bridget must have read my mind, because she gave me a long suffering roll of the eyes.
“Come on, An, it’s not like I’m gonna do him on the couch with you right there. Come and watch a movie with us. We’ll even let you pick.”
I must have presented a fairly pathetic picture for her to take pity on me like that, but I didn’t really want to spend the whole night cooped up in my room. “Alright, but Rob can pick the movie, he’s our guest.”
*
Bridget passed out somewhere around four a.m. and Rob put her to bed with gentle care, lifting her easily. Instead of leaving, he stayed up with me until I was ready to go to bed, not talking much, but making the occasional comment on whatever we watched on TV. In charge of the remote, Rob surprised me with a stint on the History Channel, and we watched a really interesting documentary on World War II. I wondered if he might be a bit of a history buff, as he seemed pretty knowledgeable about the time period, even going so far as to offer a spirited discussion on the black market that cropped up in the wake of rationing. It was the most I’d heard him talk, ever.
It was the closest I’d come to a normal evening in a while, and I found I needed it. Socializing at the Hart could be fun, but it got tiring to have to remember to be Anja Gudrun all the time. Hanging out with Bridget was great too, but there was always that fear I might accidentally eat her. With Rob I felt like he accepted me for who I was, no questions asked, and I tried my best to do the same for him.
I found myself telling him about my day and the police investigation, and he listened with polite interest. Never once did he ask me if I’d killed Melissa, or why I excused myself to fix another mug of blood instead of going hunting on my own. If he thought it weird that a vampire of my “age” chose to go to a college for the arts, he kept it to himself. By that same token, I didn’t ask him why he hung around with vampires, or why he smelled so different from regular humans.
“I agree with Bishop, you should do something to secure the apartment better,” he frowned when I finished my tale.
“Isn’t that a bit like closing the barn door after the horse is out?” I snickered. “Whoever was in here has already been invited, I can’t really uninvite them, can I?”
Rob made a noncommittal sound. “All the same, lock your doors and windows then, yeah? I should leave you to your rest now, it’s late.”
I could feel the rise of the sun despite the drawn blinds, making me more sluggish. “Okay, thanks for staying up with me, I enjoyed our talk.” I snuggled deeper beneath my blanket on the couch, more for the comfort than the need of warmth.
“So did I.” He looked almost a little surprised at his own admission. “Night then, lock this door behind me.” Rob wagged a finger at me and I pushed myself to my feet with a groan.
“Aye, Captain,” I grumbled, shuffling to the door. “Anything else?”
Rob paused in the doorway, but whatever he’d been about to say, he talked himself out of it. “Take care, miss.” He offered one of his almost smiles and left.
Being a good girl, I bolted the door after him, sticking a chair in front of it for good measure. I was still trying to figure out how best to secure the window in my bedroom, when I noticed the broken lock had been fixed. Had Bishop taken care of that earlier? Locking the window with a faint smile, I closed the blinds up tight. A tiny pang of guilt hit me for ditching classes again, but I pushed it out of my head, too tired to deal with it. Sooner or later I’d have to face them all, I opted for later.
Chapter Seven
I huddled in the shadows, arms wrapped tight around my legs, making myself as small as possible in the effort to avoid the sun’s heat. Heat that blazed all around me, blurring my vision and sending a bead of perspiration across my brow as I inched slowly backwards. The sun’s inexorable approach chased my shade away, and I looked around in desperation for another shadow to cling to. With a desperate lurch, I ran through the burning sand for the safety of the pier and the blessed coolness to be found beneath it. Lungs burning from the effort, I collapsed on the considerably cooler sand, looking back to see if anyone else had made it.
Instead of finding the mass exodus of friends following my good example, it stunned me to see them sitting on the beach, lounging at tables set up like an outdoor café. The vampires smoldered and blistered under the power of the sun, but they laughed and chatted as though nothing was wrong.
“Hey! Guys! Get out of the sun!” I shouted in warning, but no one paid me any mind. I could smell the burning flesh, why didn’t they move?
As I watched, Scotty delivered a round of drinks, his skin darkening and cracking with every passing second. “Scotty! Get out of there!” I tried again, but he ignored me entirely, even when he burst into flames.
My view of the blaze was blocked by a hulking figure; the sun behind his head transforming his flaxen hair to a golden mane, falling to his shoulders in a halo of sorts.
Jakob.
In bare feet, an open, threadbare button up shirt, and faded jeans, he looked more like a beach bum than a vampire elder. Well, if that beach bum had the body of a Greek god. Larger than life, he smiled down at me, unperturbed by the vampires burning behind him. “Come with me, älskling,” he offered a sun bronzed hand, but I slapped it away.
“Are you nuts? I’m not going out there. Look at them, you have to do something!” Scotty lay smoldering on the ground, little more than a pile of ash, the serving tray clutched in what was left of his hand. Similar mounds of ash were all that remained at the tables set up on the sand save for Jarrod and Leander, burned and blistered but still alive, chatting amiably with Rob who sat untouched by the sun, nursing a beer.
“You are precious to me, not that rabble.” He made no move to help and I considered how badly I’d be burned if I dashed out there to grab them. In the back of my mind I contemplated that I’d spent more time in the sun at school without burning to a crisp, but the beach seemed to magnify the sun’s rays and I lacked my usual cover-ups.
“Then go and help them or I will, and then I’ll be the one burning to a crisp.” I stuck my leg out in the sun, wincing when the skin instantly turned painfully red.
“Such dramatics,” Jakob shook his head in puzzlement. “Rob.” The single word command was given, and Rob rose like a puppet on a string, tossing the brothers over his shoulders to fireman carry them to the safety under the pier. The three continued their conversation in the shade, without so much as a thank you. “Will you come with me now, petal?” Jakob extended his hand again, an almost hopeful look on his face.
“I can’t go out there, I’ll burn up.”
“My love will protect you, always,” he smiled, moving a step closer. “You need never fear the light when you’re with me.” His hand closed around mine, enveloping it in warmth and I was reminded that he wasn’t undead like I was, Jakob was life itself. “Come with me now, I promise delights to make you swoon.”
“I’m feeling swoony enough right now, thanks,” I replied, overwhelmed by the physicality of him. He seemed to take up all the space, all the air, until there was nothing but him. Desperate for a little mental clarity, I took a step backwards, and then another. “I’m not really the type who likes to be swept off her feet, maybe we could start with something simpler like a cup of coffee?”
“All women desire to be swept off their feet,” he chuckled, blue eyes crinkling around the edges. “Even now, you long for my touch, I can feel it. Do you deny it?” Raising my wrist to his lips, he pressed an open mouthed kiss to the bare skin there and my body tensed in response. Would he bite me? Did I want him to? My eyes slid shut as I trembled on the edge of anticipation, but instead of the sting of teeth, I felt
a light tug as he pulled me forward.
My body made the decision for me, bypassing my doubts and fears as I followed him into the light, instinctively chasing after more contact with him despite my best intentions. Eyes popping open, I was stunned to find myself standing in the sun warmed sand, completely unharmed by the rays. His thumb feathered over my cheekbone, tracing the contours of my face and I leaned into it like a cat seeking a scratch under its chin.
“I’ve delivered you from the sun, I’ll take my boon now.” His lips descended towards mine and I barely had the strength of purpose to turn away. I wasn’t the type of girl to play kissy games with virtual strangers, but then again, he wasn’t a stranger, was he? My body reacted to Jakob as if it already knew him; intimately. “Bishop…” I used his name like a shield, but Jakob tore through my weak objection like tissue paper.
“Is a boy. You need a man, älskling. I burn for you, can’t you feel it?” He pressed my hand over his heart which thumped madly.
I felt it alright… but my stubborn logic insisted it wasn’t real, more chemistry than feeling on both of our parts due to our blood connection. “He’s not a boy, he…” Jakob’s lips crashed over mine, silencing my feeble protests. Awash in a sea of sensation as he pulled me close, I felt bathed in light, nearly drunk on his kiss. It was completely disorienting, but not in a bad way, and I desperately wanted to let go and drift wherever he took me. Instead I fought that instinct. It wasn’t right; he wasn’t the right one. My head knew it even if my traitorous body wanted to wrap itself around him and beg for more. With a desperate lurch, I tore my lips from his, pressing my forehead to his chest while I sucked in a wholly unnecessary but comforting breath.
Jakob gently reached under my chin and tipped my face back up to his. “I’ve been as patient as I can with you, petal. I won’t wait much longer.” Instead of trying to kiss me again, he wrapped his arms around me in a big bear hug, and I let myself relax into it, giving up on pushing him away for the moment.
