by Bree Younger
* * * *
After she left the den, Libby went to the kitchen to make herself a sandwich. She took it out onto the balcony and sat staring over the Gulf of Mexico as she slowly ate, determined to keep herself from speculating about the conversation that was taking place in the other room. Once she’d finished, she stood up and walked to the railing, lifting her face to the night breeze coming off the water and just relaxing. That was where Ty found her about thirty minutes later.
She knew he was there before he even spoke. Glancing over her shoulder, she met his gaze and smiled. He was such a beautiful man, his blond hair tousled as though he’d been running his hand through it. His face, which had been creased with a frown, lightened when his eyes met hers, and he walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her back so that she rested closely against him.
The silence flowed around them, and Libby couldn’t remember the last time she’d felt so content. She let out a deep sigh, and Ty’s arms tightened around her. “Penny for your thoughts?”
She smiled. “Oh, they’re worth more than that these days. Besides, a girl needs some secrets, don’t you think?”
He chuckled. “No.”
“Hmm. I see. You get yours but I don’t get mine?”
He turned her around in his arms and she looked up. “You know I’d tell you if I could, but you are really better off not knowing some of the things that we talked about. The more you know the more dangerous it is for you. You’re already involved more than I’m comfortable with. If anything happened to you because of me—”
“I know. It’s just…I’m worried about you, Ty.”
He smiled, a slow, engaging smile that set her heart to beating heavy in her chest. “That is just about the sweetest thing that anyone has ever said to me, Libby. But you do remember that I’m a vampire, right? Near-indestructible?”
“What I remember is finding you staked out like some turkey platter, working on extremely well-done.” She couldn’t resist reminding him.
He put his hand over his heart. “Ouch! You got me there.”
Shaking her head, she asked, “Can you at least tell me about the tattoo? I think I have the right to know why it made you all go so tight-lipped. I’m the one that told you about it, after all. You know my curiosity is going through the roof, right?”
She could see the indecision on his face, but he finally shrugged. “Let me go grab some wine and a couple of glasses, and I’ll tell you as much as I can.”
When he returned, he led her back over to the table. Once they were seated, he poured them each a glass.
As she watched him, she found herself curious. “I thought you guys didn’t eat human food. Just, you know, blood. So why are you drinking alcohol?”
His eyebrow rose. “Our bodies can’t digest food, but we are perfectly capable of handling liquids. It takes a lot more alcohol to get us drunk than it does humans, but eventually we can get there. If we try hard enough.”
“Ah, I see. So later, if I ply you with enough wine, I might have my way with you?” She waggled her eyebrows, trying to lighten the mood a bit.
“Maybe. If you play your cards right.” He winked, and those gorgeous blue eyes of his slid over her in a manner that had a shiver of anticipation running down her spine.
He sat back, and she prodded, “So, the tattoo?”
His smile faded from his face to be replaced by the same expression he’d worn when she’d first mentioned the tattoo. “Right. I told you that the tattoo was associated with a particular group of vampires. These vampires all follow the same leader, a vampiress named Simone d’Amboise.” If anything, as he said her name, Ty’s expression grew even colder and more forbidding. “She’s completely ruthless and lacking in any principles. If I could define her in one word, it would be evil. She doesn’t care who she hurts or what she has to do, so long as she gets what she wants.”
Libby digested what he was telling her. “She’s dangerous?”
“The most dangerous person I’ve ever met.”
“You and Quinn…you know her well, don’t you?”
He stared off, into the distance, and for a moment Libby didn’t think he was going to answer her. Then he spoke. “She’s our maker. The one who turned us. She believes we betrayed her. And she’d probably just as soon kill us as look at us.”
She reached out toward him, “Oh, Ty.”
“Yeah. Anyway, we were once her followers. We did things for her that I’m ashamed of now, Libby. I’m not gonna lie. Horrible things. We wore the same tattoo as the one you saw. That’s why, when you described it, Quinn and I knew exactly who we were dealing with.”
Libby thought about what he had said, sure she hadn’t seen any such tattoo on him before. “Did you have the tattoo removed? Because I know you don’t have it anymore.”
Ty explained, “It’s difficult for a vampire to be tattooed because of the way our skin heals. It takes a special kind of ink and several long and painful sessions. Once it’s on, it’s permanent. Quinn and I couldn’t have ours removed, so we had them tattooed over.”
She remembered the intricate tribal design that he had on his arm and understood what he meant. “And Quinn? He tattooed over his as well?”
He shook his head. “The same. We didn’t want any connection to her after we left, especially not something permanently stamped on our bodies. That marked us as hers.” He rubbed his shoulder over the spot where his tattoo was. “But sometimes…sometimes I can still feel it there, underneath, you know? Always there. Reminding us of the things we’ve done.”
She reached out and clasped his hand, weaving her fingers into his, offering what comfort she could to the dark thoughts she could see echoed on his grimly held features.
“Ty...it was a long time ago, right? When you did those things.”
“Some things seem like they happened yesterday, Libby, and they leave a scar on your soul. When you were running from me in the woods, you remember how scared you were of me? You would have been ten—a hundred—hell, a thousand times more afraid if you’d known me back then. Because I was more than capable of doing all of the terrible things you must have been imagining I might do to you. And worse. Much, much worse.”
She tried to imagine the man she’d come to know doing the things he was implying. Killing and torturing humans. But it was impossible. Ty was too honest. Too gentle. Too caring. He’d been nothing but good to her. Oh, she didn’t doubt that he could be dangerous himself if the occasion called for it. But not without cause. She looked at him closely and realized that he still felt deep guilt over his past actions. And she knew that wasn’t all that bothered him. In the depths of his eyes she also saw a hint of fear. But what could he be afraid of?
“I don’t think you could do those things now, Ty.”
His eyes pierced her. “But you don’t really know that, Libby. I mean, you’ve known me for, what—a few days? How could you possibly know what I might be capable of? Hell, I don’t even know. You judge a man by his actions. Right?”
Wanting to make him understand, she searched for the right words. “Do you believe that people can change?”
He laughed, but it was a chilling sound. “That’s a little cliché, isn’t it, Lib?”
“I do believe that people can change, Ty. People who live one single lifetime can and do change all the time. You’ve lived three lifetimes. Why would you not be able to redefine yourself? What were you like before you were turned?”
He looked surprised at the question, but answered, “Pretty normal, I guess. I wasn’t perfect or anything.”
“So you don’t think you were evil then?”
“No.”
“You loved your family? Treated people respectfully? Didn’t run around rampaging and killing indiscriminately for no reason?”
He shook his head no. “Of course not. But that doesn’t excuse my actions once I became a vampire, Libby.”
“I’m not trying to excuse them. Just trying to understand. To
make you see…You’ve lived almost 240 years and out of all that time, how long were you with her?”
She could see he knew where she was going with her questions. “Libby…”
“No, answer me. How long were you with her?”
He shrugged. “About sixty years, I guess.”
“And how long before you realized something was wrong with what you were doing? How long before you stopped blindly following what she told you?”
“Maybe twenty, thirty years or so.”
“Which means that for 200 years, you’ve lived life as a good person. Not an evil monster. Right?”
A slight grin crooked his mouth and she could see his eyes weren’t quite as bleak as they had been before. “Right.”
“I know you’re not evil, Ty.” She reached out and put her arms around him. “You scared me when you chased me in the woods because I didn’t know you. But I know you now. And I know that you could never hurt me. Could never hurt anyone unless they threatened you or someone you loved. Or unless you had to because of your job.”
His arms tightened around her and she could feel his cheek resting against the top of her head. “I want to believe that, Lib. I need to believe that. But there are times when I am very tempted to do things I know I shouldn’t. Sometimes it’s hard, really hard, to do the right thing.”
She could tell from the way he held his body that he thought she would reject him for that confession, but she just moved closer to him. “Aren’t we all, Ty? Aren’t we all tempted to do things we shouldn’t? But we don’t. I think you’re a good person. I’m not worried that you might hurt me.”
“I’m no saint. I still kill, Libby.”
“You said you’re like a cop, right? Or a soldier?”
“Yeah.”
“You protect. And like them, sometimes you have to kill in order to do that. I don’t condemn them or you. I don’t fear them. I admire them. I admire you. You do a hard, hard thing. Where would people like me be without people like you?” She gave him a squeeze and then stood up, realizing that he needed to be alone to think about the things she had said. “Now, I’m feeling tired and a little achy. I’ll be glad when I’m over this cold or flu or whatever. It’s kicking my butt. I think I’ll take some medicine and crawl back into that bed.”
He stood with her and then reached out to stop her when she turned to leave.
“You don’t have the flu, Lib.” His face was hard again.
“Or virus or whatever.” She shrugged, not wanting to get into a debate about why she was sick right then.
“You think I’m such a good person, Libby. But I’m not. You’re not sick from any human disease. I injected you with my venom when I bit you. Your body is having a reaction to it. That’s why you’re feeling so bad.” His eyes narrowed as she took an involuntary step back. “It’s not enough to turn you, don’t worry. So, Libby, tell me again what a good person you think I am.”
Her hand went up to rub her neck over the spot where Ty had bitten her, and she swallowed against the dart of fear that hit her at his words. Then she saw the expression on his face. Like he knew she was going to reject him, to take back all she’d said before. Firming her shoulders, she stepped forward again, unwilling to have him believe that she was disgusted with his actions.
“You forget, Ty. I know how out of it you were when you bit me that first time. That’s when you injected me, isn’t it?” She saw his nod of confirmation. “When people are out of their heads with pain, they act without thinking. You didn’t intend to do it, did you? Weren’t trying to turn me?”
“No. I didn’t even know I had until Doc examined you.” She saw the guilt in his eyes.
She smiled as he confirmed what she’d instinctively known. “I still think you’re a good person, Ty.”
“But am I a person you could ever care about, Libby?” His eyes sought hers, seeking the truth in her answer.
“Ahh, Ty. I already do.” She smiled at the stunned expression on his face. Then she turned and left him.
* * * *
Several hours later, Libby awakened to the feel of a body sliding into the bed next to her. She smiled sleepily and rolled over to curl against Ty’s warmth, feeling his arms closing around her, before easing back into sleep.
Chapter Fifteen
Ty spent the next two nights following up leads on information he’d received from some of his private sources, trying to find a connection between Simone and McElroy, with little luck. Finally, on Thursday, he and RJ decided to hit the waterfront, checking on shipping information to see if they could figure out how they were getting the bloodslaves into the States.
He called frequently to check in on Libby, but she spent most of the time in bed, finally telling him to quit calling her because it was waking her up. The venom reaction had finally reached its peak, and it had really knocked her on her ass. He felt bad about leaving her alone when she felt so miserable but knew there was little he could do even if he were there. The venom had to work its way out of her system. Doc had planned to stop by and check on her, so Ty knew that he wasn’t really needed back at the casino. He still felt a little uneasy about leaving Libby alone, but he knew he was being over-protective. She was in one of the safest places she could possibly be.
After another dead end at the docks, he and RJ were just heading back to their car when his phone rang. It was Hawk.
“Hawk? You got something?”
Hawk’s usual steady tone came through the phone. “Some werewolves just called in. Said they’d spotted Cumbest at a were-dive off of Highway 49 in North Gulfport called Fuzzy’s. You know it?”
Ty grinned evilly. “Yeah. I know where it is. We’re heading that way now.”
“Okay. I’m sending you boys some backup. They’ll be right behind you. Wait for them. The weres said Cumbest had a couple of buddies with him, so don’t go barreling in half-cocked. And be careful. He’s not going to be easy to take. Remember, we need him alive.”
“I know, Hawk. Believe me, I understand that we have to do this right. I’m not going to fuck it up.”
“There’s some weres inside who’ll help you out, too. They’re Diaz’s men.”
“All right.”
“When you get him, take him to the safe house in D’Iberville.”
“Right.” Ty ended the call and told RJ what he’d learned. They quickly jumped in the car and headed out. Twenty minutes later, they had pulled in to the bar. It was definitely a hole in the wall. Several beat-up pickups and a cluster of motorcycles were scattered around the unpaved parking lot. Ty had been in a couple of times before and knew that the crowd inside would be pretty rough. Mostly weres, a few vamps maybe. Possibly a stray human or two looking for trouble.
He was itching to head in, wanting to get his hands on the son of a bitch who had left him to die, but he knew Hawk was right. He needed to wait for backup. This was their best shot at getting the information they needed about McElroy and the bloodslaves. If they missed Cumbest tonight, he’d go to ground. Who knew how long it would be before they found him again.
A car pulled in beside them, and Ty glanced over and saw two of Hawk’s best men, Chris Taite and Brady Campbell. Ty got out and he heard RJ’s door slam as he joined him. After a quick discussion, he sent Hawk’s men around back while he and RJ headed to the front door. As soon as they entered, all conversation stopped and eyes turned their direction. Once they’d checked out the newcomers, though, most of the customers returned to what they had been doing, though they kept a wary eye on Ty and RJ. Two of the weres who sat at the bar turned and nodded toward Ty, and he knew these were the two who had notified Quinn about Cumbest’s presence. Alpha Antonio Diaz’s werewolves were known to be good fighters. Hopefully they wouldn’t need them, but it was nice to know they were there should it become necessary.
One of the two jerked his head toward the back room, where a few pool tables were set up. Ty nodded and looked at RJ, indicating that he would in go first. Moving forward, Ty reac
hed the back room with RJ just one step behind him. His gaze easily pierced the gloomy haze of the dimly lit room, immediately zooming in on his quarry. Cumbest stood with his back to the door, lining up a shot. A couple of his buddies stood around, drinking beer and offering advice on the best way to sink the ball.
A few other men and a couple of girls were playing at another table, but as soon as they looked up and saw Ty and RJ, they abandoned their game. The two vampires stepped to the side to let them pass, ignoring the wide-eyed stares they were receiving. The rest of the bar had gotten very quiet, the only noise the blare of the jukebox playing in the corner and the laughter from Cumbest’s buddies as he missed his shot. The back door opened and Taite and Campbell stepped inside, closing the door behind them and locking it. The song on the jukebox ended, and Ty could see the moment the vampires at the pool table finally realized that something wasn’t right, because they all looked up at the same instant.
The three vamps were facing the back, so the first people they saw were Taite and Campbell. Immediately, they turned and saw Ty and RJ blocking the only other exit. As soon as Cumbest recognized Ty, his eyes narrowed. Ty smiled slowly and took a step forward.
“Long time no see, Cumbest,” Ty drawled. “How’s everything?”
“Well now, things was going pretty damn good until some trash walked in the door.”
Ty forced himself to remain unaffected by the insult. “You’re a hard vampire to find. Anyone would think you were scared of being found. Are you? Chicken, that is?” He grinned evilly.
Cumbest took his cue stick and broke it over his knee, holding each half in a different hand. “Oh, I ain’t no chicken. You looking for me, boy, you’d better be prepared to fight.”