Morgana stifled a giggle. “I think you just offended her. I’m pretty sure she liked you a little bit.”
“Well, I don’t like the waitress, I like you,” Gareth said. Taking a deep breath to calm himself, he slid his hand across the table, placing it over Morgana’s hand. That was easy, and it felt nice.
Morgana took a large swig of her drink. “Do you? I like you, too, Gareth. But I get the strong sense you’re holding something back.”
The waitress came over with the salad.
Morgana leaned back in her seat, withdrawing her hand.
Gareth sighed with relief.
Morgana raised an eyebrow.
He rubbed the back of his head. How could he explain to her every time he felt compelled to get closer to her, he also needed to pull away.
“So, Gareth.” Morgana started pricking her salad onto her fork. “Tell me more about yourself.”
Gareth leaned forward, feeling uneasy. He didn’t blink. “What do you want to know?”
Morgana swallowed her food. Looking thoughtful, she eventually said, “What’s your favorite color?”
Gareth snorted. “Is that all?
“It’s the standard, getting-to-know-you kinda stuff. Why, what did you expect me to ask?”
“I don’t know.” He shrugged, “Maybe how I was turned and all that stuff.”
“Plenty of time to find out how you died and the rest of the blah, blah later.” She pointed her fork at him, “For now, I’m happy to start with the basics.”
“Is this so I won’t keep asking important questions about you?” Gareth asked.
“Just answer the question,” Morgana quipped.
“Which question?”
Morgana leaned forward, “What’s your favorite color?”
He threw his hands up in the air. “It’s blue.”
Morgana put another forkful of salad in her mouth. “Mine is purple. But I’m partial to blue as well.”
“Didn’t your mother ever tell you not to talk with your mouth full?”
Morgana swallowed and gave him a cheeky smile. “Eh, I’m only human.”
“Half-human.” Gareth lowered his voice.
Morgana nodded as she put more food in her mouth. “What’s your favorite movie?” she asked after swallowing.
He huffed before answering, “I’m not really into going to movies, sitting in the dark surrounded in salty human bodies with pulsing hearts pumping juicy blood through their veins. It’s far too tempting just to lean forward and quickly snap a neck, then feed before the body goes cold.”
Morgana nodded thoughtfully, putting another forkful in her mouth.
“Plus, I haven’t really adapted to the whole sitting around watching actors on a screen thing. I much prefer to read.”
“Well, I don’t mind a good movie every now and then.” Morgana had finished her salad and put her fork down on the plate. “I like the whole escaping-from-reality-with-minimal-effort-for-a-couple-of-hours thing.”
“What’s reality like for you that you need to escape?”
The waitress walked over to collect their empty dishes.
“May we have the bill, please?” Morgana asked.
Gareth shook his head. Morgana continued to avoid answering his questions about her life.
The waitress brought their bill.
Morgana smiled politely, but as the waitress walked away, Morgana stiffened—the smile frozen on her face. She glanced over her shoulder toward the café entrance. Then turned back, her smile forced.
Gareth also sensed a vampire had entered the café as well. Gareth looked in the direction of the vampire. He’d felt his presence before at the campaign rally and the other night at Ava’s apartment.
The vampire spotted them, sauntered past, and took a seat at a nearby table. It was not unusual to encounter other Daywalker vampires every so often. But this vampire’s energy was unusual, and his presence was making them both feel weary.
Gareth wondered if this could be one of the vampires killing people in the forest? Is Morgana lying about not knowing him?
“Do you know him?” Gareth asked Morgana under his breath. He peered back over to the vampire to see if he had heard. The strange vampire’s face remained indifferent.
“Not at all,” she replied softly, pretending to be reading the bill, but her eyes kept darting in the vampire’s direction.
Gareth turned. Now the vampire was watching them, his gaze intense. Gareth turned back around. He leaned forward in his chair, keeping his voice low, “You know I don’t think he’s going to try to attack or feed off you. Not here in public.”
“No, it’s not that,” Morgana said in a hushed tone.
“I’ve seen you handle yourself against other vampires. Like you said back at the house, you’re the daughter of a Primus. You can beat him anytime.”
Morgana shook her head vigorously. She put her fingers to her ear, making it look like she was playing with her earring, but she was lightly tapping her ear to give Gareth the hint the vampire would be able to hear them. Gareth didn’t understand why this would be a problem, but he turned back around to face the vampire. The vampire had leaned forward as if he had indeed been listening to the conversation. Gareth raised an eyebrow. He didn’t understand why she was acting so weirdly.
She tried to feign indifference, but her actions seemed strained.
“What’s going on, Morgana?” Gareth asked under his breath, turning back to face her.
“I can’t talk about this right now.” Her eyes darted toward the vampire again. “I’ve got to go. I’ll call you about dinner.”
“Morgana.” He reached out to stop her, but she was already walking away, exiting the café. Gareth turned back around to look at the vampire who was leaning back now—a cruel, satisfied smile spread across his face.
Chapter Fifteen
Gareth sat brooding in his favorite armchair, a glass of bourbon in his hand, purely out of habit. He wasn’t even drinking the liquor. He should have gone with blood instead. He felt Alastor enter the room. He barely gave him a nod of acknowledgment. His eyes were focused on the ash in the fireplace.
“What’s up with ye?” Alastor asked, seating himself on the adjacent sofa.
“Bloody women, that’s what,” Gareth grumbled.
Alastor sighed. “What’s Morgana done this time?”
“She’s still keeping things from me.”
“Well, what do ye expect, she hardly knows ye.”
“I thought we were moving past keeping secrets.”
“How? Ye keep holding her out at arm’s length, and she keeps runnin’ off to do whatever it is she and her family are doin’ here.”
Gareth stood and began pacing. His frustration and anger felt ready to boil over. “That’s exactly what it is, Alastor. What are her and her family are doing here? I mean, are they the ones attacking all the humans in the forest? I’m not one to judge if they are, but pick someone else’s town to start picking off humans. They’re going to bring the heat down on all of us!” He waved his glass around. “We were here first.”
“So ye think it’s her parents feeding off the hunters?” Alastor’s eyes followed Gareth as he paced back and forth.
Gareth stopped and sighed. “No. I’m pretty sure they are here because of it, though.”
“What do ye mean?” Alastor raised his brow.
“We were having lunch at the café,” Gareth began.
“Ye actually ate a human lunch?”
“Ha ha, very funny.” He shot Alastor a look. “No, she ate, I choked down a cappuccino. At the end of the meal, this strange vampire, you know the one from the campaign rally, came into the café. He spooked Morgana, literally, right out of the café. She left soon after he arrived. But she wouldn’t tell me why.” Gareth growled in frustration. Pulling his arm back, he wanted to throw his glass of bourbon into the fireplace. But he gulped it down quickly instead, letting the fiery amber liquid burn down his throat. The stuff he liked wasn’t cheap.
“I think ye are going to need something a little stronger than that, lad.” Alastor took the empty glass out of Gareth’s hand, leaving the room, quickly returning with a glass of blood.
“Thanks, mate,” Gareth said quietly.
“Yer falling for her, aren’t ye?” Alastor asked.
Gareth sighed and stared into the fireplace. “Yes.” It was as much of an admission to Alastor as it was to himself.
Alastor nodded, looking thoughtful. “They aren’t easy to deal with, women.”
“How did you do it with Ava? How did you deal with her being human?”
Alastor turned his head to the side. “Well, it’s taken me at least a good part of five years to get to the comfortable stage we’re in now.”
Gareth sat back down, clasping his hands together in front of him, resting his elbows on his knees. He looked at his best friend. “Have you ever fed off Ava? Like not to kill her, of course, but like have a snack every now and then?”
“Honestly, I have been tempted. Why do ye think we went through so many blood bags when we first started dating each other?”
Gareth smiled at the memory, scratching his chin. “Yeah, we did go through quite a bit.”
Alastor chuckled. “The poor lass must have thought I was a drug addict, ditching her all the time, then suddenly reappearing re-energized. I wanted to bite her so badly.”
“But you never did?”
Alastor shook his head.
“What stopped you?”
“I fell in love. The idea of not having Ava in my life, on her terms, was far worse than not drinking her blood. I just couldn’t bring myself to do it.”
“So, you controlled the cravings?”
“Eventually, the lust for blood waned the more time I spent with her. Make no mistake, though, it was extremely difficult. I remember the cravings would just take over my entire body. My mouth would salivate when I held her close. My gums would hurt while trying to keep my canines from extendin’. My hunger would build, creating this empty void I knew I had to fill. I could taste her scent in my mouth, knowin’ what her rich, sweet blood would taste like. I wanted it, yet at the same time, I wanted her. Just her. Alive.”
“I remember how frustrated you were about her not wanting to turn, at least not yet.”
“Aye, but ye were there for me. Just like I’ll be there for ye.” He put a hand on Gareth’s shoulder.
Gareth nodded.
“If ye love the girl, just be with her,” said Alastor.
Gareth snorted. “I wouldn’t start using the ‘L’ word yet.”
“But yer falling?”
“Big time. But you know I just can’t.”
“I understand ye have trust issues and her keeping secrets isn’t helpin’. Just go see her, get to know her more. When she feels she can trust ye, I’m sure she will tell ye.”
“Maybe you’re right.”
“Ye know I am.”
Gareth laughed. “Maybe I should go check on her… see how she’s doing. Something about the strange vampire really freaked her out.”
“If she knows yer there for her when she needs it, she’ll be more likely to trust ye. And then maybe ye can begin to trust her.”
Gareth nodded. Alastor was right. They needed to continue building whatever this was between them, but a big part of it was Gareth had to prove himself just as trustworthy to Morgana before she’d open up to him.
Chapter Sixteen
Morgana paced the living room. Every now and then she would shudder at the thought of the strange vampire in the café.
“He was one of the vilest vampires I have ever sensed,” she told her parents.
Vivienne reached out to her, trying to comfort her. “You know we have all encountered some very evil vampires in my time as well, and it never gets any easier.”
“What did he look like?” Oscar asked.
Morgana began to describe his eyes and gave another shudder.
Vivienne tried to stroke her hair.
“What was strange about his eyes, Morgana?” Oscar was mentally cataloging the details to discuss with Randalf later.
“They were evil-looking, just so dead.” She pulled away from her mother. “He had the palest gray eyes I have ever seen.”
Vivienne shushed her, bringing her back to her chest. She tried to hum a soothing melody, attempting to comfort her like a small child. Morgana was too old for her mother to be coddling her, but this vampire had really affected her. She would never admit to anyone, but she liked the comfort of her mother’s arms. She always felt safe with her mother around—ever since the attack on her as a small child.
“He sounds like the vampire from the campaign rally.”
Morgana nodded.
Vivienne rubbed her back.
Oscar shook his head. “For god sakes, woman, stop babying the child. She’s four hundred years old,” Oscar snapped.
Vivienne silenced Oscar with a single expression. “Can’t you see our daughter is shaken up from this encounter? In all the years she has been working for The Council, I have never seen her like this before.”
“It’s okay, Vivienne.” Morgana pulled away, sitting down in an armchair. “It’s time to be a grown-up. I just need something for my nerves. I shouldn’t be this shook up. I may be more shook up by not understanding why he rattles me so much than by his presence alone.”
Vivienne went to the kitchen and returned to the living room with a glass of blood in her hands. “Here, darling.” She offered the glass to Morgana who took it gratefully. “Drink up.”
Morgana felt herself calming down as she sipped on the blood. “Thank you.” Vivienne nodded.
Oscar leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “Did the vampire say or do anything to you?”
Morgana shook her head. “No. He just stared at Gareth and me.”
“You were there with Gareth at the café?”
“What were you both doing there?” Vivienne interjected, leaning forward.
“Now isn’t the time.” Morgana waved it off. “He was just watching us. I think I’ll drink more blood to strengthen myself.” She lifted her empty glass. “Especially if I’m to try to scout out the Forest Clan again.”
“Do you think he was one of the Forest Clan?” Oscar rubbed his chin.
“I have sensed him many times before. At the campaign rally and the night the two teenagers were attacked.”
“The night you and Gareth went on your first date?” Vivienne asked.
“It wasn’t a date, Vivienne, it was a recon mission.” Morgana rolled her eyes.
“As you keep saying, dear, but I think there’s something going on between the two of you.”
Morgana shook her head. “No. There isn’t.” She thought back on Gareth stopping himself from kissing her earlier in the day. “I don’t think he likes me romantically.”
“There was a strange energy near the bodies that night,” Oscar continued. “He could have been the one to attack the teenage girl. Such a clean kill. It was obviously a more skilled attacker than whoever tore open the boy.”
“Well, whoever he is, we should probably inform The Council.”
***
Oscar hung up the phone after reporting the recent sighting of the strange vampire to Randalf. “Well, you heard what he said.” Oscar turned to Vivienne and Morgana. “He wants us to go into the forest to see if we can track down this strange vampire. When he presents this to The Council, he wants as much information as possible to aid in their decision on how to press forward.”
“Time for everybody to gear up, I suppose,” Morgana said.
“Don’t sound so glum, Morgana,” Vivienne said. “It will be nice spending some quality time together. I also look forward to hearing more about this Gareth fellow.”
“What’s there to tell? He keeps prodding me for information, and I keep refusing to say anything. The end.”
“No, dear. This one is different.”
“More preparation, less chatting
,” Oscar called from the weapons room in the basement.
“I’m changing my clothes,” Morgana called back then headed upstairs. She welcomed the reprieve. She really didn’t know what to say to her mother. Morgana knew she was falling for Gareth. But his constant barrage of questions about her and her parents was starting to hit a nerve. She really wanted to tell Gareth everything, but he was on the verge of needing answers to questions she wasn’t allowed to give. Whether doing her duty as an agent or not, she doubted he’d understand the sanctity of The Council.
Oscar called upstairs again for her to step up the pace.
At the last minute, she decided to put on her black leather corset. It exposed her neck and shoulders, but this often lured vampires to her, thinking she was easy prey. She raced down to the weapons room. Her parents were already there. They had also changed into black. Vivienne wore the same leather jacket as hers, but over black slacks, Morgana remembering they had gone shopping together to purchase them. Vivienne’s jacket had two rows of buttons securing it around her neck. Her blonde hair was pulled back into a bun. Oscar’s black jacket was fashioned out of thick wool and was buttoned up to his neck as well.
Oscar handed Morgana her stake holster. Judging by the lack of remaining stakes on the wall, Oscar and Vivienne were already stocked.
“We’ll separate and spread out again like we did the other night,” Oscar said. “Our area covered would be greater if we stick to this plan. We’ll start at the area where the young teenagers were attacked again, though, and re-trace those trails to see if you can pick up those vampire trails again. As we suspected, they may have jumped up into the trees to throw us off but would have returned to the ground at some point. It’s always faster to move that way. If you can’t pick up the scent, use your tracking skills and look for any broken twigs and crushed leaves on the ground. If they are traveling through the trees, it’s most likely they will have left some destruction behind. Also, keep your phones handy, so we can stay in contact as we travel. The vampires we are tracking will be able to hear us, so talk in code.”
“How about we use the word ‘hunted’ if we find any human remains and ‘nocturnal’ when we come across any signs of vampires?” Vivienne suggested.
The Van Wilden Chronicles Box Set Books 1-3 Page 11
