Worlds Apart (Worlds Apart Vampire Romance, Book One)

by Emily Knight

Peter sat in his cell with his eyes glued to the bars. It'd been a few minutes since Lysander had left, and each passing second his stomach sank lower and lower.

  A noise reached his ears. He jumped to his feet at the sound of the door opening. The footsteps walked down the hall and Mordecai. The young man's face fell and he dropped back on to the bench. "Oh. It's just you."

  Mordecai frowned. "Who were you expecting?"

  Peter straightened and stiffened. He shook his head rapidly and plastered a stiff smile onto his face. "Nobody."

  The detective's frowned deepened, but he dug into his pocket and pulled out the cell keys. The unlocked the door and stepped back. "Get out."

  Peter stood and raised an eyebrow. "Where am I going?"

  Mordecai sneered at him. "I don't care if you walk off the bridge, just get out of my station. Now."

  Peter smiled and slipped past him. "Sure. No problem." He hurried down the hall.

  A hand whipped out and grabbed his arm. The touch was as cold as an icy lake. He jerked back, but the hold was too strong to break. Peter's eyes fell on the drunk young man. He was deathly pale and there was a crooked grin on his bright-red lips.

  When he spoke, the smell of alcohol and rot wafted over Peter. "You better be careful out there, kid. There's a lot of weird stuff starting to happen."

  Peter nodded. "Y-yeah, sure."

  "What the hell are you doing?" Mordecai snapped.

  The drunk laughed and let him go. "Better get going, but remember what I told ya." He tapped the side of his nose. "Big rats flying out these nights." Peter nodded and hurried on his way. The drunk grasped the bars and laughed. "Run faster, rabbit! Run!"

  Mordecai followed Peter with narrowed eyes. "I'll get you yet, boy."

  Peter speed-walked through the station and out the front doors. The night greeted him with cold air and a clear sky. He walked down the steps and took a deep breath of fresh air.

  "What do you know of these attacks?"

  Peter choked on the fresh air and spun around to find Lysander standing a foot behind him. He clutched his fast-beating heart and glared at him. "Could you like clear your throat or something before you sneak up on me like that?"

  Lysander frowned. "No. The detective won't bother again you until another attack occurs. We must prevent that."

  Peter held up his hands. "Whoa, wait, so you're the one who got me out of there?"

  Lysander's eyes narrowed. "You suspected I was responsible for the attacks. Was your suspicion based on bias or did you have proof that pointed to me?"

  Peter straightened and stared Lysander in the eyes. "You could've left me in there. Why'd you have him let me go?"

  Lysander pursed his lips and stalked past Peter to stand near the deserted road. "That is unimportant." He glanced over his shoulder. "What are your suspicions based on?"

  Peter folded his arms over his chest and frowned. "I'm trying to thank you."

  Lysander frowned. "I care nothing for your thanks. Have you learned anything more than the police know?"

  Peter sighed and dropped his arms. "Ana and I found some blood and fur at the scene of the first attack. She said it smelled like your blood, so I took it to a friend of mine at the campus labs. He said the blood was strange and when he tried to apply light to it it went up in smoke."

  Lysander's eyes narrowed. "And the fur? What of that?"

  Peter shrugged. "He just said it was from some local rats that are in the park."

  Lysander's eyes widened. "Rats?"

  Peter arched an eyebrow. "Yeah, why? That mean something to you?"

  Lysander "Perhaps, but we shall see."

  The vampire transformed into a large black bat and grabbed Peter's collar. Peter yelped when his feet flew off the ground and they soared high into the sky, higher than Ana had ever taken him.

  He whipped his head up to the giant bat. "Where are you taking me?"

  Lysander's red eyes fell on the expansive canopy of trees in the far distance. "Home."