She leaned against the wall, her hand over her wildly beating heart. His eyes glowed. Glowing eyes. Carissa closed her own. That was not possible. She’d wanted to know more about him and who he was, but now she had a more important question:
What was Aden?
Chapter Nine
Daniel arrived about five minutes after Aden returned home. Talking quietly, they stood on the front porch and enjoyed the balmy night. Aden told his mentor it was because he wanted fresh air, but in truth he was hoping to catch a better glimpse of Carissa through one of her windows. However, after she ran inside, she’d closed all the drapes and wouldn’t even get close enough for him to see her shadow. If he’d known he would have that kind of reaction to a mortal, he’d never have talked to her in the first place.
“Why do you keep staring across the street?” Daniel asked
Aden smoothed his features and shrugged as he mentally sighed. “Curiosity.”
His mentor studied the house in question. “Why? A young couple lived there for a couple of years, but no one’s lived there since last January, at least.”
“Until now,” Aden muttered.
Daniel raised an eyebrow. “I can see that. I didn’t think the woman would come back, but stranger things have happened.”
“Why would it be strange for her to come back? She seems perfectly happy to be there.”
Daniel smirked. “So you’ve already met her?”
Aden nodded. “I’ve spoken to her a few times.” He looked down so his mentor couldn’t see his face redden, but he should have known Daniel would still notice something was amiss.
“Nothing is more important than our secret, Aden,” the older man said with a frown.
Aden sighed. “I suppose this means I’ll need to move again.”
“No, not this time, my friend.”
“No?”
“No.”
“Why not? I’ve had to move every other time you got worried. Well, except for the last place. It’s not like you started that fire.”
Daniel turned to him, his expression cautious. “This time, you might actually be safe here.”
“Safe? I didn’t think my safety was a big issue—just my identity.”
Daniel motioned for his friend to join him as he sat down on the front steps. As Aden took his seat, his mentor looked up at the sky.
“The two go hand-in-hand right now, I’m afraid. This may well be the last clear moon for a while,” he said solemnly.
A chill skittered up Aden’s back. “What do you mean?”
“There have been rumors, murmurs about a war, for more than two decennia.”
Aden couldn’t help but laugh. “What the hell is ‘two decennia?’”
Daniel gave him a stern look. “Twenty years. This is no laughing matter, boy.”
Fighting to sober up, Aden said, “Sorry. Rumors?”
Daniel said nothing, and the longer the silence stretched on, the more agitated Aden became. It reminded him of the night he arrived in Jaune. Daniel showed him his old house with such exuberance; he’d wondered why his mentor didn’t just live there himself. Sighing, he let the memory invade.
Aden sighed in frustration as he stared out across his new front porch and into the darkness. Night may have eased comfortably across the little town, but he couldn’t seem to settle at all; he was about as restless as a pack of wild dogs. He concentrated on remaining still, resisting the urge to pace the floor beneath his feet. He glared at the tall, lanky man standing beside him, noting his wavy brown hair and easy smile. It might have been true that behind those twinkling blue eyes, his friend belied a shrewd and cunning mind, but Aden was convinced that Daniel Blackwood had miscalculated when he decided Podunk, Northwest Louisiana was the perfect place for him to settle into his new life.
Aden opened his mouth to say so, but Daniel beat him to it.
“I know what you’re thinking.”
“This was your idea.”
Daniel placed his hand on the younger man’s shoulder. “And you’re wondering why I chose this place.”
“Of course I am! Why here?” Aden gestured with his arms to the encompassing night. “Why such a dead-end town? Why couldn’t I have gone to New York, or Chicago, some place where things are happening?”
Barely managing to hide his smile, Daniel moved to stand in front of him, blocking his scowling view of the uninteresting landscape.
“Because, Aden, here it will be easier to get acclimated to your new lifestyle. Here, no one knows who you are. Because here is where I am, and if you want to learn, here is where you will stay—for now.”
Aden snorted. He moved around Daniel closer to the edge of the porch. “But what is there to do around here? Where do I go for food? Man, I’m not even sure what happened to me!”
Daniel walked down the front steps, stopping briefly to look up at him. “Stroll through the night with me, Aden, and I will show you.”
And now Daniel was telling him the night was changing.
The older man sighed, shaking Aden from his thoughts with grim words, “Yes, rumors. What began as a possibility is now all too true.”
Aden stood up. “Wait. Are you saying there is going to be a war?”
Daniel stood as well and began pacing around the room. “Regretfully, yes.”
“Okay. Who’s fighting?”
His mentor stopped and pinned him with a steely look. “Vampires…and slayers.”
Aden’s jaw dropped. “Slayers? Are you serious? I thought you said they didn’t exist. You told me my new life wouldn’t be in danger. If I’d known this fifty years ago, I would have walked into the sun. I told you then, and it’s the same now; I have no desire to fight.”
Daniel started to pace again. “I know, Aden, and if I had another option, I’d tell you. This was nothing more than a rumor when you were changed. That’s why I wanted you to come here. I thought Jaune was safe, but I was wrong.
Aden crossed his arms over his chest and glowered at his friend. “What’s so special about these slayers, anyway? If they’re just mortals, shouldn’t we be able to get rid of them with ease?”
Either it was his imagination, or Daniel was beginning to look uncomfortable. “Slayers aren’t your typical humans,” he said slowly.
“How so?” Aden asked, standing up to join his mentor.
Daniel turned away and walked to the edge of the porch. “They’re immune to our trances, and although they aren’t immune to the vampire virus, they can resist it for an indeterminate amount of time.”
“That’s not possible.”
“I assure you, it is.”
Aden sighed and sat back down. “Okay, so, what does this have to do with me? With us?”
Daniel walked over and took up the spot beside him once again. “Well, you are a bit different, and the Vampire Council doesn’t like different.”
“Different how?”
“Aden, you have slayer blood. As a vampire, you’re powerful, but safe. If your slayer side comes out, however, you become a threat to the Council.”
Aden stared at him, aghast at the thought. “Well. Shit.”
“Exactly.”
The younger man was silent for a moment. When he spoke, his voice was low and carried a tremble he couldn’t suppress. “You told me no one knew I existed.”
Daniel frowned. “They didn’t—until the little girl went missing. Do you remember that?”
“Of course, I remember. I’m the one who found her.”
“Precisely. One of the reporters managed to catch you on tape before you disappeared.”
“You’re kidding me!”
“Unfortunately, no. That journalist figured out your identity, and now the Vampire Council knows.”
“Well. Shit,” Aden said again.
The sorcerer paced back and forth across his study, anger boiling in the depths of his mind. They’d left clues. The stupid vampire and his bumbling werewolf friends. The morons. He clasped his hands in front of his body, cr
acking his knuckles. There was no spell to cure their stupidity, and now there was no way to erase the email correspondence between the two. It was only a matter of time before the link as discovered, and then the façade he’d so carefully constructed would begin to crumble.
He glanced back at the crystal ball, at the beautiful young woman with strawberry blond hair, wearing a blood-stained dress. Then again… He tapped a thoughtful finger against his chin. If he was discovered, that would force Annixia to reveal herself. She couldn’t hide from his curse forever, and that could be used to his advantage. The sorcerer stepped closer to the all-Seeing orb. Yes, those fool’s mistakes could become his greatest advantage.
All he needed to do was wait.
Daniel left Aden pacing around his living room with a glass of warm blood in his hand. As a mild-mannered human turned creature of the night, he never could wrap his mind around the thought of taking sustenance from a living person. His friend teased him for ten years before putting Aden in contact with a local blood bank, and now he had plenty of food without the guilty conscience. He took a sip, his eyes unerringly finding his neighbor’s window through the glass of his own. Something like that should have made him feel more comfortable about interacting with mortals, but with Daniel’s latest warnings ringing in his ears, he thought it best to avoid Carissa from now on.
If only she wasn’t so interesting.
He shook his head. Daniel knew who Carissa was, but only told Aden she was dangerous, and that he should stay away. Aden took another sip of blood. From his perspective, the only danger she posed was to his nose—he was liable to have it broken if she kept slamming doors in his face. His mentor swore they were in a safe place, but Aden wasn’t convinced. He knew the swamp was massive, and even the most seasoned Swamp Men could get lost and never be found. It was a short walk to the bayou banks, and an even shorter step into the waiting jaws of a hungry alligator.
Aden rubbed his chin, a new idea forming. Maybe that wasn’t such a bad thing. If the slayers made their way to Jaune, Daniel and Aden could always lure them into the swamp. Tangling oneself up in the moss was easy, rendering the person helpless and turning them into a veritable feast for whatever lurked in the shadows. He drank the last of his blood and sat the cup on his coffee table. He began to pace, his restlessness bubbling to the surface. He wasn’t a violent person, and the prospect of fighting in a war had him on edge.
With a curse, he crossed the room toward the door, but was brought up short when he slammed his foot into the end of his couch. His boots protected his toes, but not his balance. He windmilled his arms, trying to catch himself before he fell, but his extremities acted as muscled propellers. He flew forward, slamming his head into the door with a resounding CRACK of noise.
“Son of a bitch!” he swore, pressing a hand to his throbbing head as he righted himself.
As a vampire, cracking his skull wouldn’t kill him, but it still hurt like hell. He stepped back, deciding to play it safe and sit down instead of trying to walk. He wouldn’t make it another fifty years at this rate. Turning, he retreated to the safety of the couch. A movie would eat up an hour or two, and give him time to think about what he should do next, as well as time for his head to stop pounding. However, just as he got comfortable, a knock echoed through his still-silent living room. Frowning, he carefully stood up and went to look through the peephole.
The little old woman on the other side made him smile. She was the only mortal that knew who and what he was. He didn’t know her name, and she always subtly altered her appearance, so pegging her age was next to impossible. Tonight she looked to be about sixty. Her brown hair was waist length and streaked with gray. Her face was lined and unpainted, but she looked fresh and happy. Her blue eyes sparkled when smiled.
Aden swung the door wide and opened his arms. “I wasn’t expecting to see you this month,” he said as they hugged. She pulled back, still smiling, and allowed him to lead her inside to the couch.
They sat down, and she took his hand in hers. “Something told me it would be a good idea to speak with you.” She studied him with raised eyebrows. “You hit your head again, didn’t you?”
Aden laughed weakly. “How could you tell?”
She gently smoothed his hair back from his forehead. “You have a goose egg on your forehead as big as the swamp. It’s a little difficult to miss.”
Aden felt heat invade his face. “Oh. I tripped,” he muttered, “It’s no big deal.”
The old woman smiled briefly before turning her attention to his living room window, suddenly seeming distant. “The swamp is unnaturally silent and dark tonight.”
He studied her profile. The smile was gone, her lips slightly pursed. The lines on her forehead were furrowed with worry. Aden placed his hand over hers. “I know. We’re facing a war, and the Council wants me dead.”
“And you’re too curious. Curiosity killed the cat, you know.”
“And satisfaction brought it back.” He squeezed her hand gently. “What are you not telling me?”
“It’s not the slayers you need to be worried about,” she whispered, and Aden pulled his hand away in surprise.
He gawked at her, “Wait. What? How do you—what do you mean by that?”
The old woman shook her head and shuffled to her feet. “I’m sorry, Aden. I need to go. Take care of yourself, but be wary of who you trust.”
Aden stared after her as she sped out of his house faster than his brain could catch up. If he was dealt any more news, it wouldn’t be his clumsiness that killed him, but the shock.
Chapter Ten
When her alarm went off, the first thing Carissa saw was the vase full of flowers on her nightstand. The sight of them made her smile before logic took over, and she shook her head, the memory of Aden’s unnatural blue eyes springing to the forefront of her mind. A million times after she came inside, she tried to explain away the glowing, but she was left with nothing. It shouldn’t have been possible, yet it happened. And he still looked magnificent.
But...glowing eyes. She prayed her blind date the following night would be normal—even if the chances were slim that Devin would even halfway as good looking as Aden. Smacking her hand against her forehead at her wayward thoughts, Carissa threw back her covers and got out of bed, reaching out to flick a finger over the soft petal of a pretty pink wildflower. Strange or not, it was incredibly sweet of Aden to pick her flowers. She snorted. It was a sweet gesture—from a man whom, for all she knew, was an alien from Planet Studmuffin. And he’d been about to kiss her…
“For heaven’s sake,” she said to herself, “What would you have done if he had and you’d seen his eyes after?” She shook her head. “If he can kiss as good as he looks, it wouldn’t matter,” she mumbled.
She stopped mid-step on her way to her bathroom. What the hell am I thinking? There was something seriously not right about that man, and here she was damn near fantasizing about his kiss. If you would have let him, you wouldn’t have to fantasize. Carissa pressed her hand to the side of her head. She was losing it. That was the only logical explanation for her thoughts. She snorted. Logical? There was nothing logical about glowing eyes, sexy mystery men, or a chemical attraction so strong it made a woman want to forget about the fact that said hot guy was probably an extraterrestrial.
Think about your date. Think about Devin—the man with no face, because your best friend couldn’t be bothered to tell you anything more than he was tall and muscular. Her mind’s eye filled with dark blond hair and piercing, luminescent eyes, and she smiled before shaking her head, suppressing the expression with a scowl. Stop that. There’s no way that man is human. An escaped medical experiment, maybe, but definitely not human. Think. About. Your. Date. But when Carissa looked over her shoulder at her nightstand, she couldn’t.
If Aden was an alien, or even an experiment, he was an incredibly considerate one. She wondered if there might be a medical explanation for the anomaly. She was sure stranger things had happened. Sh
e lowered her hand and shook her head again. Unless Aden was radioactive--that could be a huge tick in the “no way he was human” category--if it was true. Considering, her mind drifted back to a conversation she’d had with Ryan a few weeks prior to his last assignment. He’d met Carissa, per her request, at a small coffee shop after she got off work.
He’d sat across from her, his eyes dark and serious, at a little outside table, his gaze constantly scanning the area. He’d taken her hand, and she remembered that his had been clammy, even though the evening was remarkably mild.
“Rissa, you shouldn’t be outside after dark. It’s not safe. We shouldn’t even be here,” he’d said, his eyes darting around like a wild animal in a trap.
She’d pulled her hand from his grasp with a laugh. “Are you feeling alright? It’s not like you to be jumping at shadows.”
He’d looked at her, then, his stormy eyes intense in the glow of the coffee shop’s outdoor lights. “Curiosity killed the cat,” he murmured, making her laugh. “This is no laughing matter,” he’d sputtered, stopping her chuckle in its tracks, “If they find you—” he broke off with a shudder. “I need to show you some things when you get to the house.” He stood up. “Rissa, come home quick, and guard your neck from anyone with glowing eyes.”
At the time, she’d thought Ryan was going crazy—she’d even called the mental hospital in Shreveport once, although she’d backed out at the last minute and hadn’t given them any pertinent information—but now, having seen those eyes for herself, she wasn’t so sure Ryan was as unstable as she once believed. Only one thing came to mind, and it certainly wasn’t an alien. Could my neighbor really be a vampire? A chill skittered up her spine, and she snorted. Sure, let’s throw all logic out the window. What next? Werewolves? Fairies? Dragons? And, hell, humanoid science experiments, too. Chuckling at her absurd thoughts, she shook her head. Her neighbor was peculiar, but this wasn’t some bayou version of Supernatural. Aden was simply a nice man, with an interesting quirk, and she was probably jumping at shadows, like usual.
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