“What are you doing here?” the vampire asked. His voice was mild, though his eyes blazed red.
“I know these two,” Erik said, gesturing at Daisy’s father and brother. “They’re not to be harmed.”
The other vampire lifted one brow. “Indeed?”
Erik nodded.
“They violated my lair. They tried to destroy me. I am within my rights to do with them as it pleases me. And it pleases me to kill them.”
“I’m afraid I can’t allow you to do that.”
“No? Who are you?”
“Erik Delacourt.”
“Ah.”
“You know me?” Erik asked.
“I have heard of you. It is said you are a close friend of Costain’s.”
Erik nodded, wondering if that was good or bad. “Who the hell are you?”
“Tomás Villagrande.”
Erik swore under his breath. Villagrande was the Master of the East Coast vampires, and was even older than Rhys. It was rumored among the ranks of the Undead that Villagrande was one of the first of their kind, that it was Villagrande who had bequeathed the Dark Gift to Dracula himself. Erik didn’t know if that was true, but Villagrande’s preternatural power was unmistakable.
Villagrande folded his arms over his chest. “Why do you care if these two live or die?”
“They’re related to someone I hold dear.”
“That does change things, does it not?” Villagrande mused aloud. “And yet the fact remains that they are mine.”
Tension thrummed through Erik as he summoned his power. If the other vampire wanted a fight, so be it, although pitting his strength against that of a much older vampire seemed like suicide.
“This someone you hold dear, is it a woman?”
“Yes.”
“Ah. And is she young and beautiful beyond compare?”
Erik nodded even as he wondered what game Villagrande was playing.
“You are in love with her?”
“Yes.”
“An overrated emotion to be sure,” Villagrande remarked, his voice melancholy. “Yet I confess that I, too, have been caught in that snare from time to time. Tell me, are you willing to challenge me in combat to save these two?”
Erik swore inwardly. He had hoped it wouldn’t come to that, but he couldn’t go back to Daisy and tell her he had failed. Better not to return at all. “If I have to.”
Villagrande stroked his chin as he contemplated Erik’s decision. “She means that much to you, this woman?”
“And more.”
Villagrande laughed softly. “I do not wish to kill you. You have trouble enough. Take them and go.”
“Just like that?”
“Just like that.” Villagrande smiled, showing a hint of fang. “Never let it be said that Tomás Villagrande stood in the way of true love. As for your inept friends here, I am surprised they have survived as long as they have. They should wake in half an hour or so. You might tell them to be more careful in the future,” he said, and with a wave of his hand, he vanished.
Erik stood there a moment, his senses searching for some trace of Villagrande. It was then that he realized he might have made a fatal mistake in giving Villagrande his name. A word from the East Coast Master of the City and Rhys would know where to find Erik, which would lead him to Alex. And Daisy.
Cursing his stupidity, Erik untied Daisy’s father and Alex. Hefting a man over each shoulder, he transported himself to the shore. A thought carried him to Daisy’s front porch.
She answered before he knocked, making him think she had been looking out the window, waiting for his return.
Her eyes widened when she saw her dad and brother. “Are they…?”
“No, just unconscious.”
“Thank the Lord!” She had been terrified that Erik had found them too late. And then she frowned. “What’s wrong with them?”
“Nothing. They’ll come around in a few minutes.”
“How do you know?”
“The vampire they found told me so.”
“Oh?” There was a wealth of curiosity in that single word.
Erik lowered Noah O’Donnell onto one end of the sofa and Alex onto the other. “I don’t know how we’re going to explain this,” he muttered.
“Alex has a GPS on his phone. I’ll say I called the police and they tracked it, and then I called you…. No, that won’t work. The police would have taken them to the hospital and doctors would have kept them there until they regained consciousness. What are we going to do? How are we going to explain how they got home?”
“Beats the hell out of me.”
Daisy frowned thoughtfully as she glanced at her dad and Alex. “Why didn’t the vampire kill them?”
“He was going to.” Erik had no doubt that, had he arrived a few minutes later, he would have found Villagrande dining on his captives.
“But he didn’t. Why?”
Erik shrugged. “I told him they were important to someone who’s important to me.” He grinned inwardly. Never in a thousand years would he have figured Tomás Villagrande for a romantic.
“And that made a difference?”
With a nod, Erik took her by the hand and led her out of the living room, through the kitchen door, and out into the backyard.
“What are we doing out here?” Daisy asked.
“Nothing. I just wanted to be alone with you.”
“Oh.” Anticipation spread through her as he drew her into his embrace. “Thank you for saving Alex and my dad.”
“You’re welcome.” Erik’s gaze moved over her face. He traced the outline of her lips with his finger, then lowered his head and kissed her.
Heat unfurled in the pit of Daisy’s stomach and spread outward as he deepened the kiss, his tongue stroking hers, his hands moving lightly up and down her spine, drawing her closer, closer, so that their bodies were pressed intimately together, leaving no doubt in her mind that he wanted her.
His lips moved to her brow, the curve of her cheek, her chin, the pulse throbbing in the hollow of her throat. The beat of her heart was faster now, warming her blood. She smelled of musk and desire and woman, of flesh and blood, and he wanted her, needed her.
She stirred in his embrace, inflaming him still more. So easy to take her here, now. So easy…
Daisy pressed herself against him, her body trembling with desire as he kissed her again and again. He lowered his head to her breasts, kissing her through the fabric of her shirt while his hands held her body tightly to his. His kisses were like fire, melting her bones, incinerating all thought. There was only Erik, and her desire to please him, to give him whatever he asked. And he was asking. His voice in her ear, begging for a taste…
He wanted her, needed her. How could she refuse? With a sigh, she arched her neck, granting him access to her throat. His tongue was like a flame against her skin, the touch of his fangs both pain and pleasure as he drank. And then she was drifting, floating through a red haze of sensation where every touch, every caress, was heightened.
She cried out in protest when he lifted his head, not caring if he took it all if only she could bury herself in the crimson bliss that surrounded her.
Murmuring, “Don’t stop,” she pulled his head down to her neck once again.
Erik stroked her cheek. “I’m sorry, love, but I dare not take more.”
“Please…”
He swore softly, then tensed as the back door slammed open and Alex’s voice cut through the darkness.
“Daisy? Daisy, are you out here?”
“We’re over here,” Erik called. Pulling Daisy to him, he quickly licked the tiny wounds in her throat, sealing them, then draped his arm around her shoulders.
“What are you doing out here?” Alex asked, striding toward them.
“Just enjoying the evening air,” Erik replied.
“Uh-huh,” Alex remarked skeptically. “Daisy, are you all right?”
“I’m fine,” she murmured, though it was an effort to fo
cus her thoughts. “Where’s Dad?”
“He’s talking to Mom on the phone.”
“How are you feeling?” Erik asked.
“I feel fine.” Alex frowned at him, then looked at Daisy. “What did you tell him?”
“I…” Daisy looked up at Erik, wondering what she should say.
“She didn’t tell me anything. Why? Is something wrong?”
Alex narrowed his eyes as he gazed from his sister to Erik and back again. “Why should anything be wrong?”
“Alex, we’d like a little privacy, if you don’t mind,” Daisy said, forcing a smile. “I’ll talk to you later.”
“Yeah, later.” Alex held her gaze for a moment, his expression puzzled, and then he turned and made his way back toward the house.
“How am I going to explain how they got away from the vampire, and how they got home?” Daisy asked.
“I’m not sure you’ll have to.”
Daisy frowned. “Maybe you’re right. He didn’t seem very upset for a guy who’d been captured by a vampire, did he?”
“Exactly. I don’t think he remembers any of it.”
“Which means my father probably doesn’t, either.”
“Right. Let’s go back inside. I’ll hypnotize the two of them and see if they have any memory of what happened. If they do, I’ll erase it from their minds, then I’ll go get the truck and bring it back here. We’ll pretend today never happened. If they don’t remember anything…” Erik shrugged. “Problem solved either way.”
“But…” Daisy shook her head, uncertain how she felt about Erik messing with their minds.
“Have you got a better idea?”
“No.”
He kissed her lightly on the cheek. “They’ll be fine, trust me.”
She didn’t know why she was surprised by the realization that she did, indeed, trust him. She lifted a hand to her neck, thinking that she had put her life in his hands only moments ago.
“That’s my girl.” Erik smiled at her as he took her hand and led her into the house.
Chapter 25
Daisy slipped into bed and turned out the light, her mind still filled with images of Erik standing in the living room mesmerizing her father and her brother. She had known such things were possible. She had seen Nonnie put people into trances before. She had known vampires were capable of doing the same thing. The first lesson her father had taught her was never to look directly into a vampire’s eyes, something she had totally forgotten upon meeting Erik.
She had watched and listened as Erik had sorted through her father’s memories of the day, and then her brother’s. Neither her father nor Alex recalled finding Villagrande or anything else about their encounter with the vampire.
“Why would he erase their memories?” Daisy asked.
“I have a feeling he did it just before I took them away, perhaps as a gift to you.”
“Me? He doesn’t even know me.”
“But he knows I love you.”
“What? How could he know such a thing?”
“Probably because I told him.”
“You discussed me with him?” she exclaimed.
“I explained that you mean a lot to me, and that Alex and your father mean a lot to you.”
Thinking back on it now, warm in her bed in the safety of her own room, made her smile. A vampire with a heart of gold. Who’d have thought it?
Erik had left immediately after releasing Alex and her dad from his spell. Brandon had come home shortly thereafter. The four of them had stayed up chatting until well after midnight. Of course, all Brandon could talk about was Paula. She was beautiful. She was sweet and kind and caring, just an old-fashioned girl. She dreamed of going to Niagara Falls when she got married, and she wanted lots of children.
With a sigh, Daisy turned onto her side, thinking she was just a little envious of her brother. Not that she wasn’t happy for him. It was just that his future seemed set, while hers seemed to get more complicated every day. Not that she would change her life for Brandon’s. Her life might not be perfect, but at the moment, she wouldn’t change a thing, not if it meant giving up Erik. Just thinking of him, with his soul-deep eyes, sexy smile, and kissable lips, made her heart skip a beat.
She glanced at the darkness beyond her window. Where was he now? Was he thinking of her, wishing they were together? If only he were there, beside her.
The thought had no sooner crossed her mind than he was lying on top of the covers next to her.
“Oh!” She pressed a hand to her wildly beating heart. “You just scared me half to death.”
“Sorry, my little flower,” he said, and then grinned. “Any chance I could have the other half?”
“What are you talking about…?” She frowned at him, then recoiled as she realized what he was asking. “No way!”
He ran his knuckles lightly up and down her cheek. “You might like it.”
“I doubt it.”
“Wouldn’t you like to see the world as it is?” He lifted his hand in a gesture that encompassed her bedroom. “Look around you. I can see each stitch in your curtains, hear the ant crawling across the floor, the bird settling in its nest outside your window. When I touch your quilt, I can feel the weave and the texture of the threads. When I touch you…” He smiled into her eyes. “Perhaps I’d better not go there.”
Daisy stared at him, caught up in the magic of his voice, the wonder of what he was saying. What would it be like, to view the world through vampire eyes? To be able to think yourself across the street or across the country? To hear sounds that others never heard? She recalled watching him carry her father and brother into the house as if they weighed nothing at all. What would it be like to have the strength of twenty men? To drink blood…
The thought brought her swiftly back to cold reality. True, Erik had powers far beyond hers, but there was a price to pay for those incredible powers. There was always a price to pay. And the price was far too dear.
“Daisy?”
She closed her eyes, afraid to look at him. He was too beautiful, too tempting. For a moment, she let herself imagine what it would be like to be his equal, a vampire who could share his whole life. Sometimes, when they kissed, she had a taste of what it would be like. With his mouth on hers, she felt strong, invincible, as if she could climb rainbows and touch the stars. But it wasn’t real. In a way, he wasn’t real.
“Daisy, look at me.”
“No.”
“What are you afraid of?”
“I’m afraid of you, afraid I’m not strong enough to resist. You make it sound so tempting, but I don’t want to be a vampire.” She blinked against the burn of tears in the backs of her eyes. “I don’t want to give up my family or my life. I like being me.”
“It’s all right, love.” He kissed the tears from her cheeks. “Don’t ever let me change your mind.”
“But you could, couldn’t you?”
He hesitated a moment, pondering the truth versus a lie.
“I know you could,” she said. “If that vampire could erase a whole day from Alex’s mind, then he could just as easily plant thoughts in his head that weren’t his, couldn’t he? Couldn’t you?”
“I would never do that to you,” Erik said quietly.
“But you could?”
“If I wished.”
“Promise me. Promise me you’ll never do it.”
“Very well. I swear it by the love I held for my wife and my children. And by my love for you.”
Emotion clogged her throat, making words impossible.
“Sleep now,” he said, wrapping her in his arms. “Nothing will hurt you while I’m here.”
Yawning, she closed her eyes and snuggled against him. Moments later, she was asleep. Her trust in him was a rare gift, one he wasn’t sure he deserved. Like all vampires, he tended to think only of himself, partly out of necessity to ensure his safety in a world that saw him only as evil, partly because it was so easy to forget that he had once been a frail human h
imself.
Erik brushed a kiss across Daisy’s brow. Which of them was the more foolish, he mused.
The woman, for believing he would keep his word?
Or the vampire, for giving it?
Tomás Villagrande sat atop the city’s highest hill. It afforded him a panoramic view of Boston Harbor and Dorchester Bay. He had always loved the ocean. Not surprising, he thought, since he had been a pirate in his youth. In life or undeath, he had lived near the water and owned a ship whenever possible. Boats made unique lairs. He could be ready to move at a moment’s notice. No packing involved. Just weigh anchor and be gone.
He had lived in Boston off and on since the early 1850s, back when Fort Warren was being built out on Georges Island. So many years ago, he mused, and yet it seemed like yesterday. But then, time moved differently for his kind.
He had seen much in the course of his long existence. The rise and fall of kings and countries, the decline of nations, devastating plagues and wars without end. Fashions changed. Language changed. Customs changed. But his view of the world remained colored by the era in which he had been born. He had grown up in a time of war and conquest, when men ruled the world and women were little more than pawns, good for providing heirs or cementing alliances with foreign powers. Ah, how times had changed.
He gazed at the moonlight playing over the water and thought about the events of the day. He had been surprised when the hunters showed up. The fact that they had found him made him think it was time to move on, maybe go down to Florida for a while, though the idea held little appeal. There were far too many retired people in the area. Too much old blood. Perhaps New York City, then. The streets were always crowded with tourists, wealthy young men and women eagerly looking for adventure and excitement. Tomás grinned inwardly. He could give them that and more.
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