Out of the Night (Harlequin Nocturne)

by Trish Milburn

  The idea of a church secretary with a weapon struck Olivia as really out of place, but she guessed over the past two years lots of people had started taking precautions they’d have never considered before.

  “Yeah. Be right back.”

  She made quick work of running upstairs and slipping her Glock into the back waistband of her jeans and covering it with her shirt and wool peacoat since the temperature had taken a dip overnight.

  Olivia changed the sign on the door to show when she’d be back, then locked the door before hurrying outside and into the passenger seat of Chloe’s little blue SUV.

  “Where to?” Chloe asked.

  “Central Park.”

  As Chloe zipped out of the parking space, turned the corner and dodged a garbage truck, Olivia realized how cooped up she’d felt the past couple of days and how freeing it was to be outside of her building.

  “So have you done this for a long time?” Chloe asked.

  “About three years.”

  “Like I told Campbell, I think it’s awesome. There’s just not enough kindness and selflessness in the world anymore. People have let the fear replace them.”

  “You don’t seem afraid.”

  Chloe shrugged. “Don’t much see the point. As long as I don’t go out at night and don’t do something stupid, things are pretty normal.”

  “Until now.”

  “We just have to be cautious. Doesn’t mean we have to go around afraid all the time. That’s not the kind of life I want to lead, especially after it was spared during the Bokor outbreak.”

  Olivia decided she liked Chloe a lot, really admired her attitude and outlook on life. “So how did you start working with V Force?”

  “My brother was turned toward the tail end of the pandemic, and Campbell’s team found him and helped him through his transition. Now he’s sort of their unofficial doctor. Ethan told me about them and how they did their work. When he told me that their source for holy water at St. Patrick’s had died, I went the next day and made a very successful argument for the church to hire me so I could help V Force. Of course, I didn’t tell the church officials that last part.”

  “If you don’t mind my saying, you have a very different attitude toward vampires than I’d say pretty much everyone.”

  Chloe glanced toward her. “Except you.”

  “Oh, no, I held the prevailing attitude until a few days ago.”

  “Really? What changed then?”

  “Campbell showed up outside my building to apologize for almost killing me.”

  Chloe jerked her attention to Olivia, a wide-eyed look of surprise on her face. “What?”

  “He didn’t tell you how we met?” Olivia said.

  “Um, no. Wait, Ethan told me Campbell came into the blood bank recently in full-on bloodlust. Is that when it happened?”

  Olivia pushed down the remembered terror. “Yeah. I’ve never been so frightened in my life.”

  “And an apology changed that?”

  “Sounds insane, doesn’t it?”

  “Or fate.”

  “I think it’s more likely I’ve gone completely loony.”

  Chloe made another turn and headed along the edge of the park. “Maybe not. He’s attractive. A good guy.”

  “A vampire who shares my blood type.”

  “Okay, I’ll grant you it’s problematic.”

  “Try impossible.”

  Chloe didn’t have anything to say in response. Her inability to claim that there was a way Olivia and Campbell could maybe see where things would go caused a fresh sadness to wash through Olivia.

  When they reached the area of the park where Olivia normally distributed the meals, Olivia directed Chloe to a pull-off. With the box of food in hand, Olivia made her way toward the group of people sitting on the benches passing the time, Chloe beside her.

  “Olivia,” an older man said as he stood and toddled toward her.

  “Hey, Herbie. Your arthritis bothering you today?”

  “Oh, you know it. Weather changes and my old bones feel they have to protest. Where you been? We were worried.”

  “Have had a little trouble with my car.” No need to concern Herbie and his friends any more than they already were. They had enough to worry about surviving day to day.

  Attitudes toward the homeless hadn’t changed after the pandemic, so their lives certainly weren’t any easier. People in power were still more likely to hire and rent to the people coming to New York from other cities, states and countries than those who’d lived here their entire lives but who called the streets their home.

  Herbie gestured toward Chloe. “You have a mighty pretty chauffeur.”

  “Why, thank you,” Chloe said. “You’re a handsome devil yourself.”

  Herbie got a good laugh out of that, as did the rest of his buddies.

  The guys tried not to show it, but they were obviously glad to get a meal. Olivia couldn’t help wondering if they’d eaten since she’d seen them last, if the shelters that provided food had been full. Though it wasn’t her fault, guilt nevertheless swamped her at the thought that they’d been hungry all that time. Chloe endeared herself to her even more when she sat down next to Herbie’s best friend, Roscoe, who was trying in vain to get a splinter out of his finger. She pulled out her tweezers and made quick work of it.

  “I think I’m in love,” Roscoe said, earning himself a kiss on the cheek from Chloe.

  When they got ready to leave to head to another part of the park, Herbie grabbed her hand, then Chloe’s. “You girls be careful. We’ve been hearing awful stories about girls being stolen right off the street.”

  “We’re being careful,” Chloe assured him.

  Olivia squeezed his hand. “What have you heard?” Maybe he’d know something that could help Campbell and his team.

  “These girls get taken, and nobody sees them again. Get taken underground. Permanent blood supply for big-shot vampires, the ones with money.”

  “What else?”

  Herbie shook his head. “That’s all I know.”

  As Chloe drove away from Herbie and his friends, something about what he’d said was tickling the back of Olivia’s brain.

  “You okay?” Chloe asked.

  “Yeah.”

  But she remained unsettled throughout the rest of their deliveries and all the way back to the diner. “You want to come in for some pie? I have fresh lemon meringue.”

  “That sounds wonderful, but I’ll take a rain check. Got to get back to work.”

  “Thank you for doing this. It means a lot. And thank Campbell for me, too.”

  Chloe smiled. “I think I’ll let you take care of that last part yourself.” She glanced at the diner. “I hope you and your friend patch things up.”

  “Me, too.”

  By the time Olivia got inside, she had to race to get ready for the midday rush.

  “Where’s Mindy?” asked Faye Jarvis, who worked down the street at a chiropractic clinic.

  “She had something she had to do today.” Like be furious at Olivia.

  When the last of the lunch customers left, Olivia collapsed into a chair, exhausted. The quiet began to weigh on her, making her realize how alone she was. Though he was the reason she was alone, she called Campbell since she knew he wouldn’t be asleep.

  “Raines,” he said, sounding distracted.

  “Hey. I called to thank you for sending Chloe over to help with the food deliveries.”

  “No problems?” He sounded less distracted but still not totally like himself.

  “No. We’re both back at work.”

  “Good.”

  “Campbell?”

  “Yes?”

  “Why are you helping me?” She felt as if she was treading into dangerous territory but that she had to know the answer to the questions uppermost in her mind—was he experiencing the same types of feelings she was? Was that kiss playing over and over in his mind? Did he think it was a mistake? Did he think about it at all?
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br />   He was quiet for several moments before saying, “Atonement. For what happened that first day.”

  “Oh.” Her heart sank, and she chided herself for caring so much when she knew nothing could come of it. What a fool she was.

  “Why did you want to know?”

  “Curiosity.” She tried to sound casual and hoped she’d pulled it off. How had she totally misread the look in his eyes the night before? The urgency of the kiss? Had she simply seen what she wanted to see? “By the way, I don’t know if this helps at all, but when I was talking to one of the guys in the park today, he said he’d heard that the girls who are being taken are being kept underground. For vampires who are wealthy enough to pay big bucks for them.”

  “That’s not a surprise.”

  Though he didn’t sound derogatory at all, his comment felt like a slap. Maybe it was just that she wanted to be able to help and had offered up nothing useful.

  “Okay, I...I don’t know what I thought. Listen, it’s busy, so I need to get back to work. Thanks again.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  She hung up as his last word still hung in the air, the only sound in the emptiness around her. She scolded herself for being such an idiot, but that still didn’t prevent tears from blurring her vision as she sliced a large piece of lemon pie. When she got through the rest of this day, she was taking what was left of this pie upstairs and eating every single bite. She’d eat her way back to sanity.

  Chapter 12

  For three days, Campbell stayed away from Olivia, didn’t even call her. They were the three longest days of his immortal existence.

  During the past seven years, he’d done nothing but work, keep his sexual encounters limited to vampires and remind himself of Bridget Jameson every time he was tempted by the human world. Then Olivia ran into his life and turned everything on its head.

  When Kaja stopped on the sidewalk in front of him and placed her hands on her hips, he realized she was waiting for a response from him.

  “Honestly, have you heard a word I’ve said?” she asked as she spun to face him.

  “No.”

  “Will you please just go see her?”

  “Who?” he said, looking past Kaja to the dark street beyond her.

  “Don’t play dim. I know you’re smarter than that, your attraction to a human notwithstanding. You have been half here at best since you last talked to Olivia. If it takes regular visits to her for you to keep your head in the game, then by all means, do it.”

  “I thought you believed it was a bad idea.”

  “I do. For her, at least.”

  “Thanks.”

  “You know what I mean.”

  He sighed. “I do. That’s why I’m staying away.”

  “So you don’t get any more attached?”

  He didn’t respond to that question. Rather, he walked past her down the street they were searching for any signs of the missing women or evidence of illegal vampire activities.

  “You know you just answered the question by not answering it, right?” Kaja asked as she fell into step beside him.

  “Why is everyone suddenly so interested in my love life or lack thereof?”

  “Vicarious thrill?”

  He glanced at her and laughed. “Sorry you’re not getting much of a thrill.”

  “Why her?”

  He stopped again and looked up at the top of the Empire State Building. “I can’t explain it. I never believed in this sort of thing, this kind of attraction, until it hit me square in the chest. It doesn’t make any sense.”

  “Once upon a time none of us believed in vampires either.”

  He glanced at her, shook his head and started walking again. “It doesn’t matter. You were right. I can’t be with her. It’s too dangerous.”

  Kaja was quiet for the space of a block. “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but you could make it work. You could wear blessed bracelets like Ethan.”

  “And be useless in my job. That’s unacceptable.”

  “You’d only have to wear them when you’re with her.”

  “I’d still be a danger to her with nothing more than my strength. And the bracelets wouldn’t control the hunger, just my ability to act on it. I don’t want her to see me like that again. Damn it, I already almost ripped her throat out once.”

  This time Kaja didn’t have any response. They fell back into their search on their way to a designated meeting spot with Rico, who’d texted with a short message earlier that he had some information.

  It was almost 1:00 a.m. when they entered the warehouse district that was well away from the hotbeds of nighttime activity and thus prying eyes. As they rounded a corner, they both stopped abruptly, having both caught the scent of death. With a glance at each other, they pulled out stakes and edged forward as quietly as they could.

  When they rounded the front of a big box-style delivery truck, they found Rico, a stake in his heart and way too far gone to save. He was stone-still, his eyes now totally devoid of color, and his body was as white as chalk. No matter how many times he saw staked vampires, it always sent a shock through him. It was so final, even more so than human death.

  Campbell cursed, then stood still and slowly did a sensory check in every direction. There was nothing more than a stray dog three buildings closer to the river.

  He stared down at Rico. The guy might have been on the sketchy end of the Souled spectrum, but he’d been basically a decent sort and a good informant. He didn’t deserve to go this way. Hating that he had to do it, Campbell lowered himself to his knees and searched Rico’s clothing for any evidence, any indication of what he might have been going to share with them. When he found nothing, he sat back. To be so close to maybe cracking open this case, only to have the answers ripped away along with Rico’s life caused his anger to flare like roaring flames.

  “Call Travis. Have him see if he can figure out where Rico was when he sent that message,” he said. “I’ll call for the disposal team.”

  Kaja walked away while dialing Travis. Campbell hit the number on his phone that always caused his stomach to heave.

  “Blake, it’s Campbell. We need a pickup in the warehouse area off of Water.”

  “The dead human male or female?” Blake always contacted the human authorities about where to find bodies when there was a vampire kill.

  “None. Just one of our own this time, a Souled vamp.”

  Blake cursed. “We’ll be there in ten.”

  It actually took only nine minutes for the disposal team to arrive. When Blake Sands stepped out of the black van, it struck Campbell as it always did how big the man was. Campbell wasn’t small by any stretch, but Blake had been a professional wrestler once upon a time. Add vampire strength to that, and Campbell doubted anyone dared to mess with him. He’d actually tried to recruit Blake for V Force, but the guy had said he’d rather work in a job where people didn’t talk back and he wasn’t tempted to break their necks.

  “A friend of yours?” Blake asked as he and Vaughn Styles made quick work of covering and loading up Rico’s body.

  “An informant.”

  “Think that’s what got him killed?”

  Campbell stared at the sheet-covered body on the stretcher. “Probably.”

  Blake cursed again. He was actually quite fond of colorful words. “As if we don’t have enough problems. We have to go around killing each other.”

  As Blake and Vaughn got in the van and drove away, Kaja came back. “Travis said he’d have to go back to the cave to do that kind of search. He’ll call when he’s got something.”

  Campbell was struck with the oddest sense of not knowing what to do next.

  “I’m going to head over to a friend’s place, see if she’s heard anything in the wind,” Kaja said.

  “Vampire model gossip?”

  “None better. See if you can find something to do with the rest of the night.” She gave him a significant look, and he knew exactly what she was thinking.

>   He had every intention of spending the rest of the night making his way through known Nefari hangouts, and he did for a couple of hours before he found himself patrolling Olivia’s neighborhood. Everything appeared quiet, so he took time to pause outside her apartment. He kept to the shadows so she wouldn’t see him if she happened to look outside, but she didn’t seem to be awake. His senses told him that she was sleeping and no one else was in her building. That relieved the anxiety he hadn’t realized he’d been carrying around like a heavy weight since he’d last talked to her.

  He hated the idea that he might have hurt her feelings by disappearing, but maybe he was assigning more caring on her part than was really there. But he kept coming back to the night he’d spent on her balcony, how easily they’d been able to talk to each other, how she’d felt so right in his arms.

  He sat on the hood of a car and watched her window, lit only by what was probably a single bulb, maybe a lamp or light in the kitchen. He wondered if that was new, her leaving on a light at night. How ironic that she was probably safer at night now than in the daytime. Vampires couldn’t get to her, and even the humans working for vamps weren’t stupid enough to venture forth after nightfall.

  The night passed as he watched, silent and still. He could sense the rotation of the planet, knew exactly where the sun was and how much time he had to sit here wishing things were different, that he couldn’t easily imagine how lifeless Olivia would look in his arms if he killed her. Part of him wished he’d never met Olivia DaCosta, but a bigger part didn’t want to imagine his life without her in it. He had given himself headache after headache trying to figure out why he felt so drawn to her. He couldn’t explain it away simply because she was beautiful. It was something deeper, something he wasn’t equipped to understand.

  His phone buzzed in his pocket, drawing his attention away from Olivia’s window and his never-ending search for answers.

  “Hello,” he said after noting it was Travis calling.

  “Hey, I ran the phone trace and I can only narrow it down to about a six-block area in Tribeca.”