The Hunted (Blood Series Book 0)

by T. Lynne Tolles

Chapter 5

 

  It had been agreed that the best thing to do was to put all four heads together and make sure that they were all on the same page. Only then could they decide on a plan. Additionally, the brothers had their talk and both seemed completely amused by the whole thing. To Devon’s amazement, Blake had already told the family secret to Rowan. The beans would have been spilled today either way, so what did it matter at this point?

  Devon and Darby took Devon’s car, a silver Mercedes E-Class coupe. Not as flashy as the Audi, but very nice, just the same. Blake and Rowan took the Audi, of course. As they drove along the coast, Rowan caught a glimpse of Devon, smiling as if something was very funny.

  “What are you smirking over there about?” she asked.

  “I’m not smirking.”

  “Yes, you are.”

  “Okay, maybe you’re right. I’m smirking. I just would have loved to have been a fly on the wall last night during your conversation with my brother.”

  “Oh, you would have, huh?”

  “Yes, very much so. You have a very vivid imagination, and yet your logic is impeccable. But tell me, how did your logic lead you to ‘Software Engineer Slayers’? That is just classic – I would have liked to have seen that one evolve.”

  “Well, I needed vital information about these guys and he obviously was not going to tell me the truth without betraying your confidence; so, well, I came up with that, and it got me past the truth to what we needed to deal with.”

  “No, I understand. I just like how you think, and your humor is, well, it’s adorable. Such a package deal with you: beauty, brains, humor, and sweetness rolled into a perfect Darby package. I knew you were something amazing and wonderful when I saw you dancing on the front lawn - my little water nymph.”

  With that, his fingertips ever so tenderly brushed a tiny bit of hair away from her face and behind her ear. It was amazingly intimate. This slightest of touches made her body go all warm and tingly. She blushed like crazy. In order to hide her embarrassment, she ordered him to watch the road or he’d crash his sweet ride.

  He laughed heartily at this and it was a lovely sight. He was relaxed and happy, like the evening they had talked until the closing of the bar. It made her happy to know that she could make him laugh, smile, and hopefully be himself. That’s all you could ever ask for, she thought.

  Both cars pulled into the visitor’s beach parking area at Halfmoon Bay. The fog was just now burning off and it was going to be a glorious day on the beach.

  All four of them walked on the beach for a while until they were fairly clear of any other people. Sitting in a circle on some beach towels, the boys still had huge grins on their faces – Darby assumed this was because of the conversation she and Blake had the night before. When Darby looked at Rowan, it seemed that she was in on the joke.

  First looking at all the faces in the circle, meeting each of their gazes, Devon reached for Darby’s hand and placed it safely in both of his and then he spoke.

  “Darby, since you are the last to find out who and what we are, I’m going to throw this out there first.” Looking at Rowan, who nodded, and then at Blake who nodded too, then lastly to Darby. His face was serious, his eyes piercing, and he said, “My brother and I are vampires.” He waited to see her reaction. First she looked confused and then she smiled and looked at Rowan.

  “Okay, very funny guys. What is this? Make fun of Darby day?” Her eyes met her sister’s; Rowan smiled but shook her head. Darby turned back to Devon, who looked devastated by her reaction as if she herself had shot him with a crossbow. She saw it then, the shame, the embarrassment, and the hurt.

  “So you are not fugitives? You’re vampires? Real vampires? Bloodsucking vampires? But, I don’t understand. You’re in the sun? You’ve never bitten me. I’ve seen you eat food and drink beer. I don’t understand.”

  “Most of the things you are referring to were made up in Hollywood or in folklore. We do drink blood, and bite, but we don’t kill unless it’s in self-defense,” Blake said. He could see by her reaction that Devon was caught off guard.

  Devon added, “That is why I healed so fast. The arrow hadn’t pierced my heart. Just like any race, there are good vampires and there are bad vampires. Unlucky for us, most people only remember the bad.”

  “Well, I guess that explains the allergy to wood and the rapid healing, like you said. That also explains why Blake wouldn’t let me take you to the hospital. Hmmm…you said you and your brother have parents...were they vampires?”

  “Yes,” said Devon.

  “But I didn’t know that vampires could have children. I thought you got bit by a vampire and became a vampire through that.”

  “Yes and no...there are two types of vampires, those who are born of vampire parents and those who are made by vampires. Those who are made through a process of biting and then sharing blood tend to be wilder and affected by the blood. Vampires that are born from vampire parents tend to be more like humans.”

  “How so?”

  “Vampires who are made are more sensitive to sunlight. If exposed for too long they can die from it. Born vampires won’t die from sunlight; it doesn’t hurt them. Some don’t like it, but for most, it doesn’t affect them at all.

  “Vampires who are made crave blood more than born vampires. It makes them crazy, killing their victims in an animal-like frenzy. They also have to feed more often – at least once a day. Born vampires can eat food as well as blood. Born vampires do need blood, but they only need to feed once a week or less. If they feed on blood more than food, their powers get more acute. Most prefer not to feed on humans more than food so they can blend in with humans. Feeding all the time, would call attention to them,” said Blake.

  “So...how old are you both?” Darby asked.

  “Born vampires age slower than humans, by about 1 year for every 4, so I’m 28 in vampire years and 112 in human years. Blake is 25 in vampire years and 100 in human years.”

  “Hmmm...so in a few years, I’ll be looking old and you’ll still be looking like a god?”

  Blake laughed, “A god. Phffft. Him?” Devon glared at him.

  “Give me a break...but as for your question, not necessarily. We can age faster if we choose.”

  “But wouldn’t that cut your life shorter?”

  “No. Not really.”

  “In the movies vampires have to sleep in their coffins, they have no reflection in a mirror, they can’t be around garlic and stakes can kill them. Is all of that true?” Darby asked.

  “Well, obviously through your experience, a stake through the chest, but not in the heart, paralyzes a vampire and wounds him pretty badly, but not fatally. A stake in the heart, however, would kill a vampire. Crucifixes, holy water, garlic, sunlight or mirrors don’t have any effect. A stake anywhere else is painful but can be healed, as you’ve seen. Beheading, that can’t be fixed and fire is another thing that can kill us. Born vampires have nothing to do with coffins or dirt, but for some reason some of the made-vampires can become attached to a coffin.”

  There was a lull in the questioning, so Devon assumed maybe she was satisfied. “Are we good then?”

  “I, well, I just, well, it’s a lot of information.”

  That’s when Rowan stepped in.

  “Blake, could you and Devon go back to the car and grab the cooler? I’m thirsty and I think a little sister time may be called for here.”

  “Yeah, sure. Umm, Devon?” Blake said. Devon stood up looking hurt. He and Blake turned and headed back to the car.

  As soon as the guys were out of earshot, even for vampires, Rowan said, “Darby...I know this is overwhelming. I was shocked too when Blake told me.”

  “Aren’t you scared or worried?”

  “No. Not in the least. I was a little freaked, but I thought it was really cool. I’m dating a vampire. Not that I could go around saying that, but well, you know. I mean come on, Darby. You just risked your
life for this guy, so you must feel pretty strongly for him and it’s obvious he’s stuck hard on you. That’s obvious to everyone.”

  “You think? It’s not obvious to me. I mean, I adore him, but what kind of future can a vampire and a human have?”

  “Look, Darby. There are complications, yes, I will agree to that, but all relationships are complicated. You told me yourself once that’s what makes them exciting. I haven’t seen you so happy since, well, before…well, just in a long time and it’s because of Devon.”

  “Yeah, I know, he’s wonderful, but he’s a vampire, for crying out loud. Have they ever killed anyone?”

  “Oh, come on. Aren’t you always telling me that you wish you could be more spontaneous?”

  “Yes, but this isn’t like taking an unplanned road trip here; our lives could be at stake.”

  “Why? They’ve never killed anyone.”

  “How do you know that?”

  “I asked Blake.”

  “Really? You just asked him?”

  “Yeah. How else would I find out?”

  “But I want children, Rowan. You know that. I’ve always wanted children. I don’t want to get involved with anyone I might not be able to do that with.”

  “You can have children with him. I asked that too. Humans and born vampires can have children, usually with a very good success rate. A made-vampire and a born vampire tend to have a pretty good success rate too, but two made-vampires cannot have children. Oh, and just a note, two born vampires can have children, obviously, but for some reason they have a lot of difficulty conceiving. Having two children, as in Blake and Devon’s family, is very, very rare.”

  “But what about the child? Would it be a vampire or a human?”

  “Obviously, two born vampires would have a born vampire. A born vampire and a human would have a child that may or may not crave blood, and may or may not have vampire strength. A made-vampire and a born vampire would have a vampire that would crave blood but not as much as its made parent. A made-vampire and a human would have a milder version of the made-vampire parent. This can sometimes get tricky if the human is the female and she has to carry a vampire craving blood inside her, but it’s been done before, many, many times and for many centuries.

  “Darby, I know you are tentative, to say the least, but you just risked your life to save this guy. I think that should tell you something. You can’t always rationalize things, especially matters of the heart. Sometimes you have to go with what your heart tells you not your mind. My heart tells me I can trust Blake and I didn’t reveal magical powers to make sure I could have a future with him. I think your heart knows Devon is worth a leap of faith.”

  “I know he’s worth it. I’ve known since we first spoke. And you are right; all relationships are complicated in their own ways. Thank you, Rowan. You’ve really helped.” She leaned over and hugged her sister tightly and just as she was pulling away, Devon and Blake were back.

  Devon handed her the sweater that she had left in the car and sat back down where he had been seated before. She leaned over and raised both her hands to each side of his face with such gentleness, his heart leapt.

  “I’m sorry I freaked a little before. You kind of caught me off guard. I’m the one who’s always looking out for Rowan and everyone else around me, so sometimes I can be a bit pessimistic until I’ve had time to think things through. Rowan has helped me fast-forward through some of that but, Devon, I don’t care what you are, or even what you’ve done in the past. I do know that when you were hurt last night, something I can’t explain came over me like nothing ever before, and all I wanted was for you stay with me forever, smile, and be happy. The rest will work itself out.”

  Devon leaned in to her and kissed her. First, he grazed her lips with his, and then followed with an amazing and truly intimate kiss. They smiled at one another still in their own little world until Rowan and Blake clapped, cheered, and cat- called, “Woo Hoo!”

  “Wow. That was pretty spectacular,” Rowan said.

  “I think I saw fireworks and maybe even heard a little background music playing. Didn’t you hear it?” Blake asked Rowan.

  “I think I did,” she agreed. Devon and Darby blushed.

  “Okay! Okay! Well, I guess Darby is up to speed now.”

  “I’ll say, and then some,” Rowan said. Everyone laughed.

  Rowan continued, “So now that we’re all good with the vampire thing, we still need to deal the guys after you two. So what do we know?”

  “Well we know Terrence Paine has some kind of vendetta against your family. I think we should find out what that is and deal with him. If he goes away then the thugs go away,” Darby said.

  “Darby had suggested last night that maybe we should go through Mom and Dad’s things and see if there is anything that might be of use in finding what got Terrence Paine’s boxers in a twist,” Blake said.

  “Well, I don’t think I said that exactly, but yeah, that is the gist,” Darby said.

  Rowan asked, “Where are your Mom and Dad’s things?”

  “Everything is in Ireland in a storage locker. That’s where Mom and Dad had settled. At the time, there was no need in bringing the stuff here. Blake and I moved around so much and it was just one more thing to move. I figured we would keep it there until one of us settled down,” Devon answered.

  “I would have done the same if we hadn’t wanted to live here when our parents died. Our family has been here so long, Rowan and I just couldn’t see any reason for leaving. We did put some things up in the attic though, items that were too hard to see everyday; plus, in order for it to be our home, we needed to have something of our choosing in it. Otherwise it would be like living in someone else’s house,” Rowan responded.

  “So, do all four of us want to go to Ireland to look into this or do we want to have someone hang here as a look out?” Blake asked.

  “Well, doesn’t that depend on work for you guys? Blake, are you working? I know Devon said that he was working on a project in Mountain View,” Darby pointed out.

  “Good point,” Devon said. “Presently I’m ahead of schedule, so that gives us a little room to breathe and the project is due to end in three weeks, or at least my portion of it. I have about another week of testing and debugging, but I don’t see that there are any huge hurdles to jump. What about you, Blake? Darby? Rowan?”

  “I’m on summer break till September,” answered Rowan.

  “As long as I can do payroll twice a month and check in, Allison can do everything. She’s been begging me to take a vacation for months, so it’s doable for me,” Darby said.

  “I finished my project weeks ago and I haven’t had any nibbles on anything new for at least 2 months,” said Blake.

  “Then it’s wide open; if we all want to go, we can, but we can easily opt out too. Well, let’s leave that one open for now and figure out who goes later,” Devon concluded.

  “Darby told Blake about our family cabin in Clear Lake too, so if for any reason we need to make a quick get away, that is there as an option,” Rowan announced.

  “That is a nice bonus if things get too heated at home,” Blake said.

  “What if we just went to Terrence Paine and asked him what the problem was? I mean sometimes the simplest route is the best,” Rowan asked.

  “It’s a good point, but our parents have died, Devon was shot last night and almost died, and Max is dead. Once Paine finds out Max is dead he’ll be wanting revenge,” Blake answered.

  “But it might be smart to snoop around in his hometown to see if there is more to this threat than we think. As far as you know, there is only Paine and his two thugs. What if Paine has combined forces with some other slayer? Or maybe there is more to the vendetta than we think? I say a trip to Maine may be in order. The last thing Paine would expect is our going to him,” Darby argued.

  “So Darby, why don’t you go to Maine, and just blast Paine and his cronies with that trick you used l
ast night?” Blake asked.

  Rowan looked surprised and Darby, disappointed. “I wish it were that easy, Blake. You know I would if I could, especially if it would keep you and your brother from harm, but like I said last night, I don’t know how I did it,” she said.

  “What did you do to him, Darby?” asked Rowan.

  “I killed him,” she said rather ashamed.

  “Now that is not entirely true. You blew him backwards 30 feet or so, but you didn’t aim for the tree. You merely were defending Devon, who couldn’t defend himself,” Blake added.

  “Either way, he’s dead because I threw him. But if the same thing happened again, I probably would react the same. I just wanted him to stop hurting Devon. Going back to your question, Rowan, I don’t know how it happened. I was standing there, Devon wounded at my feet. Shock, I think, put everything into slow motion. Then the sadness was overwhelming. The thought of losing Devon was unbearable, and then pure anger washed over me. Everything that had ever made me mad seemed to form some kind of force and I put up my hand to stop him from coming any closer and he went flying. That’s all I know,” Darby said to her sister.

  “Wow, I would have liked to have seen that,” Rowan said.

  Devon interjected, “Speaking of what happened, maybe you two have something you should tell us! Like this power you were talking about, and this little pouch of goodies in my pocket. Darby, you had told me that you came from a line of witches, but you didn’t say that you practiced or had any powers.” He pulled out the velvet pouch of healing stones and herbs she had placed under his pillow last night.

  Rowan started, “Well, like Darby said, we come from a long line of pretty powerful witches. The O’Riellys have all had powers of some sort over the centuries. Our family fled to Oljone, back in the very late 1700’s, to escape prejudices and persecution. Once our ancestors came out here, they utilized their powers less and less as they didn’t want to go through the persecution again along with moving. Darby and I are the last of the line. Our father didn’t even know of the ancestors and their powers. He may not have even been aware of his power. He sensed things, but because he never realized it was a power, he never really used it. He knew, though, when we were in trouble.”

  Darby added, “Rowan and I share that power with each other too, although we don’t know how to use or control it. When we were little girls, Rowan fell out of a tree in the Duartes’ old orchard. Nobody knew it had happened, but I felt it. I could see where she was, I could feel her pain and I knew right where to go. The same thing happened last night with you, Devon. The warmth, then a glow, and I could see into your mind except for this sheer gossamer-like area. That must be where you hid the vampire thing, otherwise, I guess I would have known last night – that might have come in handy. As for the velvet pouch in your pocket, well, last night I went through our ancestral book of shadows and found some herbs and some stones that were good at accelerating the healing process and to help you sleep peacefully.”

  “Well, that’s good to know. We have more assets than we thought, Blake!” Devon said. Blake nodded in agreement and the girls smiled. “So with a little practice and a little research, we might be able to use this to our advantage. With your book and our speed and strength, we may just be able to work this out – together,” Devon winked at Darby.

  “Together,” they all said.

  Devon turned to Rowan and Blake and said, “Why don’t you guys head up to San Francisco, or down to the boardwalk in Santa Cruz? Get out of here. Go have some fun.” He turned to Darby and said, “We are going to go on that first date we were deprived of last night.”

  They all laughed. The girls hugged and the guys jabbed each other in the arm. The couples headed back to their cars, waved, and went their separate ways for the evening.