by Dawn Kirby
Almost immediately, he geared down and pulled over. He had a confused look on his face. Then I realized I’d completely forgotten to tell anybody about Drew’s phone call. None of them knew the store was gone.
“What are you talking about? Kale didn’t say anything about the store being gone.” He turned around in his seat to face me. “Tell me what’s happened.”
“A little while ago, Drew called,” Raine’s body tensed. “She said the store burnt down. Something about a gas leak.” I saw Raine relax once I clarified Drew’s sex. “Her boyfriend’s dad told her Mom died of carbon monoxide poisoning due to the same leak.”
“So you were covered in blood for the hell of it?” he asked. “There’s no way anybody could know she died yet, much less how. David just made the id. Even if that had been the case, the police would have the gas shut off before they left the scene. Someone deliberately burned it down.”
“Drew wasn’t there,” I defended. “She called to check in on me before she went out. Mark’s dad is treating them to a night out. Frankly, I’d be careful if I were her.”
He narrowed his eyes a little. “What do you mean?”
“For a year now, his dad’s hated Drew’s guts. Thursday he offered her a lot of money to stop seeing him. Until tonight, I’ve never heard her use his name without a sarcastic tone in her voice. Heck, most of the time she avoids using his name at all. ‘That man’ or ‘his royal highness’, you know something like that. Tonight I heard her say Mr. Logan in a pleasant tone twice in less than five minutes.” Raine’s eyes started to glow. Not sure why, I kept going. “Now he’s concerned about me and I’ve never even met him. He’s offered me a room at his house and free legal services to help me settle Mom’s affairs. Mark asked Drew several times to find out where I’m staying while we were on the phone.”
“Leah, what’s this man’s name?” His voice was deadly serious. “Tell me his full name.”
“Howard Logan. He’s a real estate lawyer.”
“You’re sure?” I heard an undertone of dread when he spoke.
“I forgot the D- his middle initial- but yeah, I’m positive. What’s wrong?”
“The D stands for Dane. And he already knows about you.” He squeezed the steering wheel and took a deep breath before he spoke again. “Where is your friend now? I’m afraid she may be in trouble, especially if she can’t deliver you.”
“Mark took her to a place called Eclipse,” I said quickly. Fear spread through me like a disease. “I think she said it’s in Fort Worth.”
“Kale’s there now. I’m sure he and Brody won’t mind keeping an eye on her.”
“How will they know who to look for?”
“Dane’s pack leader, Leah, they’ve been running with Mark since puberty hit.”
He pulled his phone out of his pocket and flipped it open while I contemplated my situation. Vampires wanting to get their hands on me made sense. Werewolves didn’t. Sunlight wasn’t an issue for them. As far as I knew, they didn’t need anything from me.
“Why would a werewolf want me?” I asked not really sure I wanted an answer.
“Because Michael does,” he answered. He punched in a phone number and put it to his ear. “With you, he can get anything he wants.” I heard Kale’s voice pick up on the other end. “Are you still at Brody’s?”
“Why? Are you coming?” Kale snorted sarcastically.
“No, I’ve got Leah with me. Eclipse is the last place she needs to be,” he answered impatiently. “Listen, Dane already knows.”
There was silence on the line for a few seconds. Kale obviously wasn’t necessarily expecting us to do his job for him. “How do you know that?”
“Leah’s friend should be there with Mark,” he said, ignoring Kale’s question. “Have you seen them?”
“Mark’s here, but what makes you think Dane already knows,” he asked again. This time his voice was more forceful.
“He told her friend that Mia died of carbon monoxide poisoning she’d been exposed to at the store,” he answered. “The store’s gone by the way.”
“Gone? It was fine when I left,” he whispered. “Wait, you don’t think-?”
“It’s right up his alley. I think he did it to try to draw Leah out.” Raine’s fingers played gently my hand while he talked. “Dane’s never met her, but he’s decided to offer her a place to stay nonetheless.”
“So, he’s using that little hottie as bait,” he said coyly. I could practically smell the mint coming through the phone. Clearly, he’d spotted Drew. “We can’t have that now, can we?”
I should have expected his reaction. Drew was gorgeous. Whether she meant to or not, she had no problem attracting men. I took the phone out of Raine’s hand, determined to make him take this seriously.
“Do me a favor. Think with your brain for one second please,” I said to Kale. Apparently Raine approved because he started laughing. “Drew is my best friend. I don’t want anything to happen to her.”
“What do you want me to do? I can’t very well go over and start up a conversation about you,” he said impatiently. “They’d be on us in a second.”
He had a point. It took a few minutes of careful thought, but I finally came up with something.
“If you can get her alone, tell her she looks like a girl in one of your classes,” I suggested. “She stays so focused, she never takes the time to notice who’s in them.”
“What’s she still doing in school?”
“Medical degree.”
“Wow, beauty and brains!”
“And she’s got an attitude to match,” I warned.
“Perfect!”
“You say that now,” I said sarcastically. “If you do get her attention, tell her I need to see her. Call Raine if she needs a little persuading. I think it’s time she knows exactly who she’s dating.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll get her,” Kale said confidently. “Between my devastatingly good looks and irresistible charm, she doesn’t stand a chance.”
I rolled my eyes and handed the phone back to Raine. Nothing bothered him. It was really hard to imagine Kale as a wolf. A dog maybe, but not a wolf.
“Keep an eye on her,” Raine told him. “I don’t think Mark would be stupid enough to involve the pack in this, but just in case, be careful.”
He hung up and crammed his phone back in his pocket.
“I am so sorry, Raine,” I said quietly. I felt horrible for dragging them all into this mess.
“For what? Kale?” he asked, shaking his head. “It didn’t sound like he minded watching her.”
“Pulling you guys in deeper.”
“We’re in it for the long haul. I’m not giving up until I know you’re safe.”
“Thank you,” I said gratefully. Until a tear fell on my hand, I didn’t realize I was crying again. After shedding so many, it was amazing I had any tears left.
“He’ll be fine, I promise.”
“It’s not that.” I knew Kale could take care of himself. “It’s Drew. She doesn’t have a clue what Mr. Logan is.”
“I know it won’t make you feel any better, but Mark is a werewolf too.”
“See, that’s what I mean. Drew was hoping for a normal relationship with him, but it was a game to him.” I turned around and stared out the windshield. “He’ll walk away and she’ll never know why. It’s possible he’ll take a page out of his dad’s book and just kill her. Logan’s already killed two wives and got away with it.”
For a second Raine’s scent evaporated. When I looked at him, I thought I saw tears in his eyes, but I wasn’t sure. The smell came back as quickly as it had disappeared when he looked back at me.
“You think his attitude towards her is your fault, right?” Raine asked. I nodded weakly. His big hand slid over my thigh. “How long have they been dating?”
“About a year.”
“How long has Judith been gone?” These were relevant questions and I started to see where he was going with them. “Not until
Tuesday at the latest. It sounds like a bad relationship to me.”
“You’re right about the ‘bad’ part,” I told him.
“Yes, you’re being hunted. Yes, it’s because you’re part vampire,” he said quickly. “Stop placing all of it on your shoulders. Put the blame where it belongs, on Judith.”
He turned back around in his seat and put the Jeep in gear. The silent ride towards town gave me time to mull over everything he said. As much as I wanted to take this all on myself, I couldn’t. No matter who I wanted to protect, I couldn’t do that either. Not against vampires and werewolves anyway.
Chapter Twelve
“You’ll have to tell me how to get there,” Raine said as he drove into Weatherford. “Declan told me, but I really don’t know these streets that well. On second thought,” he said pulling into a parking lot. “You drive.” He jumped out of the car and waved me over to the driver’s seat. I slid over, adjusted the driver’s seat and mirrors, as he settled into the passenger side. “I know you can drive a stick,” he said, strapping on his seat belt. “Take off.”
“I’m used to my car,” I warned.
“You’ll be fine,” he assured me. “I know your car shifts a lot smoother than mine, but I trust you.”
“You might regret this,” I said, easing the jeep into first.
The gears of my car shift fluidly. Gliding through them has become second nature to me. His Jeep was a little rougher, but after a few minutes it was fine. I never saw one white knuckle the ride over. Fifteen minutes later we pulled safely into my driveway. The house a black shadow against the night sky.
“That was great,” I said, handing him the keys. “I owe you a drive in mine now.”
“I’ve already had one. David had me take it to Donovan’s,” he said grinning. “The dealership’s not open at night.”
“Did you have a nice drive?” I asked, already knowing the answer.
“Unbelievable,” he told me. “You might need these by the way.”
He opened up his glove box and pulled out my keys. I couldn’t for the life of me figure out why they were in there. I assumed he must have picked them up before he came to Donovan’s office.
“Declan called Kale four or five times when he took it home. He really enjoyed giving him updates on the handling and speed.” He rubbed the back of his neck nervously after he dropped the keys into my hand. “Kale was dying to take it out, so I hid the keys.”
“Thanks, I appreciate that,” I laughed.
“Kale replaced the front door for you earlier,” he said watching me play with a shiny new key on my key ring. I’d almost managed to forget the door had been kicked in.
I shut the jeep’s door and glanced around my neighborhood, an eerie feeling creeping up my spine. Something’s wrong. The hair-raising sensation was the same one I’d experienced outside the store Thursday night. This time I knew what to focus on.
“Tell me its always this quiet,” Raine whispered.
He hurried around the front end of the Jeep and put his back directly to mine. We looked at the houses and yards around us as we worked our way to the front door. I couldn’t see or hear anything, and I put my nose into overdrive. If someone was there, surely I’d be able to smell them.
“She’s here,” I whispered.
The stomach-churning odor of sulfur hung in the air. I couldn’t see my mother’s killer, but I knew she was here somewhere. The smell gradually grew stronger. One thing was certain; I did not want us to be outside when she finally decided to show herself. I grabbed Raine’s arm and ran for the door. He stayed right in front of me while I fumbled with my keys. I could smell her moving closer. I got the door open.
“Get in the house now, Leah,” Raine ordered, his voice low and menacing, as he all but shoved me across the threshold.
The rumble was so out of character for Raine that it surprised me. I turned around to look at him.
Judith stood not three feet away from him. Her face was completely calm except for the fire burning in her brown eyes. The wild look reminded me of David’s when Kale told him she had killed Mom. With that image still fresh in my mind, I backed farther into the house.
“Why don’t you save us both some trouble and hand the little half breed over, Raine?” Judith said menacingly.
For the first time, I saw his haze change colors. It had faded to black the second she opened her mouth. Overwhelming heat followed. Raine was furious.
“It’s not gonna work that way, Judith,” he said firmly. “You need to leave. Now.”
He took a couple of small steps back, but stopped when she moved closer. I got the impression he was trying to keep me in the house, get himself in and keep her out at the same time. In the process, he was left in a very vulnerable position.
“I’d hate to have to kill you,” she said sweetly. The tips of her fangs were exposed just below her blood red lips. “But I will if it gets me what I want.”
She stepped close to Raine and ran her hand suggestively across his chest. Her eyes locked onto his. She stared deep into his eyes as if was she trying to get inside his head the way Donovan had gotten in mine. Maybe she could do it, too. I prayed it didn’t work on werewolves.
He threw her hand off his chest like it was a piece of trash. Then he took another step back. I moved to the side so he could ease back without falling over me.
“You know head-diving doesn’t work on me,” he growled at her. “It never has.”
“I thought, with so many emotions flowing through that gorgeous body of yours, I’d at least give it try.”
“How I feel is my business,” he said coldly.
“You’re as bad as David,” she spat, “protecting a weak woman. What can she offer you, the others couldn’t?”
Finally, a thought came to me. Donovan needed to know where she’s been. With the neighbor’s house now clearly out of the question, I decided to go straight to the source. It could buy Raine enough time to get in the house. Then we could figure out how to keep her outside it.
“It was you out there that night wasn’t it? You were using JD to find me,” I said, keeping my voice soft and as innocent as I could.
I wanted her to keep seeing me as weak. It would take her attention off him. I reached for the back of his shirt and began to pull. The fact that my hand was outside the door didn’t even seem to register with her.
“Yes, it was,” she answered proudly. “If you didn’t have the protection of this house, I would have had you then.”
“David would have stopped you,” I said with all the confidence I could muster. Raine still wasn’t inside.
“No, child, he would have never heard me,” she sneered.
“Why did you kill JD and Deana?”
This time my questions were real. Raine stopped right outside the door, keeping his huge body in front of mine.
“Michael asked me too,” she answered. “He didn’t want anyone else to find out about you. JD screwed up and told Logan.”
“So you just killed them?” The weak tone in my voice wasn’t forced anymore.
“I enjoy killing,” she said innocently. “I have to admit, Mia put up a hell of a fight. It took me and the wolf to bring her down.” Pride lit up her pale face.
“You set all this in motion, why? To get back at David, or was it to get back at Mom?”
“Both. If I couldn’t have him, I could at least destroy him. Imagine my surprise when I found my door unlocked and Donovan gone. I tried to find David. I wanted to give him one more chance, but he was gone too,” she explained. “I thought about waiting for him to come back home, but then I decided it would be much more fun to watch him lose everything he’s tried to protect all these years. Raif was nice enough to take me to Michael, who was very interested to learn about you. Don’t you worry though; he’ll give you what’s coming to you.”
“What if I’m not interested in being a part of his plans?”
“It doesn’t really matter. He always gets what he wants.
With Raif by his side, you don’t stand a chance. Michael will find your strengths, use them to his advantage and exploit your weaknesses. I’m certain he will love the taste your blood. I’m willing to bet it’s as pure and innocent as you are. Your mind and body will be put to every test imaginable. He will use you and he won’t give a damn how you feel about it.” Her rant ended with a triumphant laugh.
The shrill sound was enough to set Raine off. He shoved me further into the house and then lunged at her. Judith’s nails clawed at whatever part of him she could get her hands on, desperately trying to get free of his vice like grip. He tried hard to get a good hold on her neck, but she kept slipping through his hands. I ran to my mom’s room in search of her handgun. I knew it wouldn’t kill
Judith, but if I could get a good shot off, Raine might be able to get inside.
After searching for what felt like an eternity, I found it buried beneath the remains of the nightstand. Thank God Deana never saw it during her rampage. I made sure the gun was loaded, took the safety off, and sprinted back to the front door.
By the time I got back to the front door, Raine had managed to wrap his arm around her neck. He was squeezing so hard the veins in his forearm swelled under his skin. In the blink of an eye, her fangs sank deep into the crook of his right arm. Her body shivered as his blood filled her mouth. His grip on her neck loosened, but she didn’t let go of his arm. I couldn’t take a shot without possibly hitting him.
She looked me right in the eye and raked her fangs all the way down the length of his arm. Those fangs left a wound I’d already seen twice before. She’d killed Mom and JD using the same method. Raine’s arm had been ripped open from the inside of his elbow all the way down to his wrist. Blood dripped from Raine’s arm and onto her chest, staining her white t-shirt crimson red.
As soon as she pulled her dagger-like fangs from his arm, I took aim and put a bullet in her chest. She fell back in shock, gasping for air. I reached out for Raine’s arm and jerked him inside. He tripped over the threshold. The force of his weight against mine knocked me off my feet and into the wall. He fell on top of me. I wrapped my arms around his chest, pulling him in as much as possible. The only part of his body left outside was his leg, which he quickly yanked inside.