Guilt squeezed Katie’s heart, knowing Joe would die because of she’d done. She moved to Jules and wrapped her arms around her. “I’m so sorry.”
Jules leaned her head on Katie’s shoulder and cried. Tears swelled in Katie’s eyes. She never wanted anything to happen to her best friend, or her boyfriend. The familiar pain was one she didn’t want anyone to suffer.
“I expect he’ll call before sunrise when his girlfriend doesn’t respond.”
“If he does, can we negotiate?” Katie asked, and Jules lifted her head.
“Did you not hear what I said a moment ago?”
Katie couldn’t resist the urge to snap at him. “You don’t have to be so heartless. Think outside your fucking boxed vampire world for a change.”
He leaped to his feet. “I’m here to protect you, not negotiate for a human’s life.”
“Then I will.”
“You will not!”
“Will,” Katie grunted through her clenched teeth. A fucking vampire wouldn’t control her decisions or actions, ever.
Riker’s eyes glowed and he took a step forward. A vibrating sound from the bathroom jerked his attention away from Katie. By the time she realized the noise came from her phone, it was too late. He’d raced past her and vanished into the small room.
Katie left Jules sitting on the bed and hurried toward the bathroom. Riker stepped out, holding her cell phone. He read off the digits to her.
“That’s Joe!” Jules rushed toward them.
“How did he get my number?” Katie looked at Jules for the answer.
She froze, staring at Katie.
Snaps, loud crackles and plastic crunching jarred their attention to Riker. Pieces of plastic thudded on the floor. The object in Riker’s hand no longer represented Katie’s phone.
“My phone! You fucking destroyed my phone.”
Her temper erupted hot and furious. Jules stepped out of the way as Katie twisted and reached toward the bed. She snatched one of the daggers, removed the sheath, then swung around to face the vampire. Jules gasped as Katie thrust the pointed blade at Riker.
The vampire caught her wrist and spun her around so her back faced him. He held one arm under her ribs, locking her to his frame, then forced her to hold her weapon too close to her chin. She fought him, holding the pointy tip inches away.
“Control yourself, Ms. Dillinger.” The blade inched closer.
“You’re a fucking asshole. I could’ve saved him.” She grunted, thrusting her strength against his hand to avoid nicking herself with her own weapon.
Jules grabbed her backpack and unzipped it. In two seconds, she claimed hold of a gun and pointed it at Riker’s head.
“Let her go.” A soft click sounded from the gun, an indication Jules had released the safety.
“I’d do what she says. Those bullets hurt and I trained Jules how to shoot.”
Riker responded by removing the dagger from Katie’s hand and shoving her toward Jules. The frightened queen of disco lowered the gun as Katie smacked into her. They crashed onto the bed.
Katie twisted as Riker yanked the gun from Jules’s hand. He removed the shell casing from the weapon and then tossed the gun on the bed.
“What is in the bullets?” he asked, holding the shells in his hand.
“Acid. Kyle invented them.”
“You need to learn control.”
“You need to leave me the hell alone and let me make my own decisions.” She jumped to her feet.
“So you can end up dead?”
“I won’t. I did damn well on my own tonight.”
He stepped closer and his gaze traveled down her body. “Luck.” Green eyes leaped to meet hers. “What would you have done if both vampires were there?”
She braced her hands on her hips. “I had a plan. Pretend I was human. Lure them out of the public eye. Catch one off guard, then fight the other.”
The corner of his lip twitched and he turned to try to hide it. “Very dangerous.”
“My plan would’ve worked and you know it.”
“The fact remains we have a vampire out there who will turn savage when he learns his lover is missing.”
Riker’s gaze lowered and Katie realized her robe had opened. She quickly covered herself by tugging the edges together.
“Brandon. His name is Brandon,” Katie said to change the subject.
Jules sat near the headboard, looking confused and stunned. One minute Katie had her own weapon pointed at her. In the next, Jules had a gun aimed at Riker. Now, they all sat calmly, except for Riker standing.
“Our assassin goes by the name of Brandon.” Riker said, tapping Katie’s blade to the outside of his leg.
“Yes, the Asian I fought said she’d slept with Kyle over a century ago and after she told Brandon, he wanted to destroy Kyle.”
“I highly doubt that was the reason for Kyle’s demise. I find it more likely Brandon received an offer he couldn’t refuse.”
Katie nodded in agreement. She believed the Order was behind Kyle’s demise. It seemed Riker did too.
“So…” Jules said, claiming her and Riker’s attention. “What about Joe?”
Katie lowered her gaze. Every bit of her wanted to fight for Joe, run out and find him, save his life for Jules. But there was little chance of that happening with her phone in pieces on the floor.
“Is there nothing you can do?” Jules’s voice quivered while tears filled her eyes.
Katie’s heart ached again. The pain of losing a loved one, especially a partner, was the worst kind. How could she tell her best friend the odds of Joe surviving were slim to none?
She crawled onto the bed and sat next to Jules. Together, they leaned against the headboard. Katie pulled her friend close as the floodgates opened. “I’m sorry.”
Jules buried her face into Katie’s neck and released her emotions, shaking and moaning. Katie held her tight, grinding her teeth for her friend’s grief. If only she could do something to lesson the pain.
Katie met Riker’s gazed and mouthed, “Do something.”
He walked away to the dresser where he set the bullets and dagger. The vamp irritated Katie with his lack of compassion. His merciless attitude raised questions she’d pondered about earlier. Why did he continue to want to protect her? What motivation did he have?
When he returned his gaze to Katie, she mouthed, “Make her sleep.”
Although she disliked the notion of him toying with Jules’s mind, the poor girl needed to rest. If she continued in her state of despair, it would only worsen. The last two days had been enough for the disco queen to handle. Since there wasn’t a tall bottle of liquor around, Katie opted for the only other choice.
Riker stepped toward them. “Jules.” His voice sounded relaxed.
She kept her face down and pressed against Katie. The tears flowed fluently and her wails were full of agony. Katie slid her arm away and with a gentle nudge she tried to encourage Jules to sit up.
“Jules,” Riker said again, softly.
This time she lifted her head and wiped her cheek.
“Look at me,” he said, and Jules obeyed. His eyes illuminated. “You’re exhausted. You should sleep. You’ll feel better in the morning.”
Jules stared deep into his glowing green eyes. Her eyelids fluttered.
Riker grazed his fingers along the side of her face. “Sleep.”
His move toward Jules shocked Katie. She prepared to grab him by the wrist until she realized his intent was to sooth Jules.
“Sleep,” he whispered.
Jules closed her eyes and slowly eased against Katie. Within seconds, Jules became dead weight.
Katie held still since she didn’t know what to do. She hadn’t expected her friend to fall asleep on her. Given the condition her friend was in, Katie didn’t want to move her.
Riker returned to his regular seat at the desk. After a few minutes, Katie decided she couldn’t keep holding Jules. Slowly and carefully, Katie scooted away from J
ules and lowered her friend’s body.
Katie wanted answers from Riker and she wouldn’t wait any longer. She took a chair from the table and moved it next to the vampire. Riker watched with brows arched. She sat, crossed her legs and took a deep breath.
“I want to know why you are protecting me.”
13
“I made a vow–”
“Don’t give me that shit,” Katie snapped. “I know you don’t like me.”
“Why do you care how I feel?”
“I don’t, and that’s not my point. If you want to leave, go.” She pointed to the door. “No one is stopping you or going to come after you for not sticking around to guard me.”
Katie tested him to watch his response. While a promise to a centuries-old mate might hold great value, there had to be more that kept Riker at her side. She wanted to know the truth, and now was the perfect time for him to give it to her.
A ghostly presence crept into her brain. She lifted her mental shields and blocked him. “I know what you’re doing. It won’t work.”
The eerie feeling disappeared swiftly.
“You’re very strong.”
“I learned from the best.”
“Not quite. Kyle and I did.”
Confusion crawled into her thoughts. What did who trained who have anything to do with her? Was he attempting to change the subject?
“Why won’t you leave?” She crossed her legs and made sure her robe covered her bruised knee.
“I can’t.”
“Why?”
“You may not like, or accept, my answer.”
“Let me decide.”
He leaned back in his chair. “All right. I’ll start from the beginning.”
Katie threaded her fingers together and held them in her lap. She’d hope for a clear-cut answer, but with vampires, it seemed nothing was ever that way.
“You’re aware of the Order of the Legacy, correct?”
“Kyle told me bits and pieces, their original purpose and how they’ve changed. Since he was on their eradication list, I suspect they are the ones behind his demise.”
“I too believe that. I’m still trying to determine how they found him. He’s been off their radar for years.”
“He told me you worked with him.”
“We did.”
“For the Order.”
“Yes.”
“Do you still work for them?” She suspected he didn’t since was Kyle’s long-time partner. If they’d booted Kyle out of their club, wouldn’t they have treated Riker in kind? She would’ve assumed so, but wanted to confirm it.
“In a miniscule way, yes, I do.”
Her heart leaped. “Excuse me, did you just say you work them?” She had to have misunderstood. Why would he work for vampires that wanted to enslave humans and feast from them?
“I keep a very low profile. I contact them once every decade to see if they need my services. They haven’t in over five decades.”
Heat rushed to Katie’s face. Her muscles tightened as if she were prepared to attack. Riker belonged with the group behind Kyle’s demise. She wanted to rip his head off.
“Control, Ms. Dillinger. Your anger is quite obvious.”
Seeing his gaze lower, she looked down. Without realizing it or feeling the pain, her nails had dug into her flesh. She eased the pressure from her fingers.
“Kyle and I had different opinions. I believed the best way to keep my name off the list was to keep quiet and maintain a non-existent profile. By staying in touch with them, they assumed I still followed their ways. They didn’t question me and haven’t to this day.”
“Kyle challenged them,” Katie prompted.
“He did. Once he made his beliefs known, they blacklisted him. When he realized my way worked and his didn’t, he went into hiding.”
“How did you two meet? He never told me. He never talked about you much either.”
“I’m not surprised. We had many disagreements over the years.” He paused and blinked. “We met in Europe. He was young and very much in need of guidance. I’d spent a couple decades at the Order, so I brought him in to join. He wanted to learn how to fight. For many years, I trained Kyle until our mentor showed up. Does the name Hector sound familiar?”
“No, not all.”
“Kyle never mentioned him?” His brows rose.
“No, and I’d remember the name.”
Riker lowered his gaze briefly, and Katie wondered what the vamp was thinking. How was this Hector person important? It seemed he had to hold purpose for Riker to mention him. But then, why hadn’t Kyle? And why did Riker act surprised by the fact she’d never heard the name?
“Hector was our instructor for over a century. He originated from Egypt and because he claimed no one could pronounce his name, he insisted everyone call him Hector.”
“He sounds old.”
“He was very old and one of the founding members of the Order.”
“Oh,” Katie said solemnly. Since Riker referred to him in past tense, she gathered Hector no longer roamed the earth.
“Hector was a great teacher and philosopher. He trained us on many things, such as how to improve our fighting skills, to control our feelings and be open-minded.”
A light chuckle escaped Katie. Riker was far from open-minded in her opinion. “Sorry. Go on.”
“Kyle and I spent a century in training with him. As you can imagine, Hector was well versed in combat techniques. We drank in every move and word he taught us. We looked up to him as one would revere their father.”
Riker’s prior statement about learning from the best made sense to Katie. He’d learned from Hector, a fierce Egyptian warrior by the way of his description. Kyle trained her, which meant she gained Hector’s teachings too, just not directly from the ancient.
“He shared his knowledge with us with the intentions we would share it with others.”
“The student becomes the teacher.”
“At the time, the Order’s mission consisted of reforming the elder vampires ways of thinking and educating others to keep peace and stability.”
“I like it.” Peace and stability meant humans weren’t meals.
“Hector and others also knew some would refuse. That’s why we were trained to fight.”
“To handle the rebellious ones.”
“Essentially.”
“Hector didn’t like the idea, but understood it. Out of the original members, he was more of the philosopher. Kyle took to his ways of thinking much quicker than I did. I understood them and followed along, but–”
“You had your own way of thinking.” She grinned.
“I’m sure you can relate.”
The playful yet critical gleam in his eyes roused a chuckle within her, but she pressed her lips together and held a straight face.
“I left and spent three decades trying to convince older vampires to stop killing. Kyle continued his education with Hector. My efforts and those of my peers with the same task were not fruitful enough. In fact, many did not return to the Order, but their heads did. The Order decided the goal of reforming the ancient ones was failing. Hector persuaded the members to change the mission to educating. Kyle and I agreed to work together, and the rest is history.” He gave a nonchalant wave of his hand as if the rest were unimportant.
“At least you kept your head.” Katie smirked.
He glared at her. “For many years, Hector had a powerful influence on the Order. He was wise and a great teacher to everyone. When he predicted events that came to pass, some members applauded him. But over time others felt intimidated and feared him.”
“He could predict the future?”
A snort from behind Katie distracted her. She turned to face the bed. Jules rubbed her face and then twisted to her other side.
“He gave many predictions,” Riker said, and Katie twisted back around. “There was one that hummed in the ears and minds of the members for many years. It startled and warned them of the future. Word spr
ead around the globe and many feared his prediction might come true. Centuries passed and when nothing changed, many forgot about it. But the ones who feared it the most never stopped thinking about it.”
“What kind of prediction did he make?”
Riker bent forward and leaned on his knees. “He said war would come between humans and vampires.”
Katie stared deep into his eyes. “I can see how that would rattle a few people.”
“Many lives would be lost and we would suffer numbers as well. The war would last many years and cause great anguish. He said one person would lead the way. A human. This human would teach others, and vampires. The war would shift. Humans and vampires would take up arms together to fight for mankind. Our world would change forever.”
Riker’s stern gaze and strong words sent a chill through her. A war. Was it possible? The idea seemed preposterous. Humans didn’t believe vampires existed. They didn’t believe in aliens, yet proof existed we weren’t alone in the universe. Too much would have to change. Given that vampires went to great lengths to ensure their existence remained hidden, she doubted such a prediction could come to fruition.
He slowly straightened. “While everyone waited for this war to happen, some of his other predictions fell short over the years. Kyle and I were off educating other vampires, but we’d heard stories of members berating Hector for his failure to provide accurate events. Rumors spread Hector gave false statements on purpose. Eventually, Hector stepped down and left the Order. Kyle told me he kept in touch with him.”
“But you didn’t?”
“No. I respected Hector greatly, but I never held a kinship with him the way Kyle did.”
“Huh…” She scratched the back of her head.
“What?”
“I’m just a little stunned. Kyle never mentioned him to me.”
Kyle had spoke of many people, one’s he’d helped and a few he’d destroyed and wished he hadn’t. He’d mentioned names of members of the Order, but not Hector. Why would Kyle keep such a dear friend a secret, especially one who had trained him? It didn’t make sense, unless he’d thought his great instructor had lost his marbles. That was a possibility.
“Maybe he was waiting until the right time.”
Immortal Revenge Page 13
