by L. Danvers
I glanced around the room, not knowing what to say. “I’m sorry,” I said, shaking my head. “I don’t know who you are.”
I started to walk away, but he grabbed my wrist. “Very funny,” he said sternly. “Grace, we’ve been looking everywhere for you. If you’re mad at Xander, I can—”
I snatched my wrist out of his hold. I had to admit, there was some part of me that was curious to hear more. After all, I was missing out on years of my memories. But how could I trust that he wasn’t just some lunatic? “Look, buddy. I don’t know who you think you are, but you can’t just stroll in here and try messing with my head.”
“What happened to you?” he asked, his hushed voice filled with sadness. “Did the Albrights do something to you? What’s going on, Grace?”
“Who are the Albrights?”
“The Albrights,” he said, growing frustrated even though, to his credit, he was trying not to show it. “As in Sofia Albright. As in the woman who attacked you and Xander in New York.”
I frowned. “I’ve never been to New York,” I confessed. “And I don’t know what you’re talking about. You’ve got the wrong girl.”
Part of me wanted to walk away, but the other part of me was screaming for me to press him with questions. He sounded crazy. And yet, something deep in my gut, some primal part of me, told me I could trust him.
It didn’t make any sense.
What connection could I possibly have to this guy?
And why would he show up here out of the blue now?
And yet... what if he did know something about my past? Shouldn’t I hear him out?
“You really don’t remember, do you?” he asked under his breath. Something about the sincerity in his voice made me profoundly uncomfortable. “Your memories,” he said as if a lightbulb had gone off in his head. “I didn’t think it was possible, but... Sofia said she’d make sure you wouldn’t come back for Xander, but that you were fine.” He was standing now, piecing together this bizarre puzzle in his mind. “That’s because she altered your memories, didn’t she?” My breath caught at that. Yes, I had those memory gaps. But someone couldn’t alter my memories. Could they? “I knew it. I knew you wouldn’t have just left us.”
I scratched the back of my head. “How do you know about—?”
He cut me off before I had a chance to finish my sentence. Taking a step closer to me, he took me by the shoulders, and in the most serious tone possible said words that sent a surge of frost down my spine: “Everything you think you know is wrong.”
I shook my head, not wanting to believe him, yet somehow knowing every word he said was true.
“Come with me,” he said, motioning for me to follow him outside.
And, like a fool, I did.
Grace
I startled awake. I’d had a strange dream, but it was better than the nightmares I was used to. I stretched out my arms until they hit against something. My eyes popped open, and a surge of adrenaline coursed through my veins. Breathing rapidly now, I looked to my side and found the man from the dream sitting behind the steering wheel.
Then it dawned on me. That hadn’t been a dream.
A chilling scream tore from my lungs, ripping through the air.
He startled at that, but then flashed me an assuring smile. “Grace, everything’s going to be fine. I’m bringing you home.”
Acting on instinct, I scooted as far away from him as my seat would allow. I took a quick inventory of my surroundings. We were on the outskirts of Amber Falls on a narrow street in the middle of nowhere. There was no one else around.
Heart pounding, I reached for my phone, but it was gone.
Horrified, my gaze met my captor’s.
“Grace, I promise I’m not going to hurt you. I don’t know what the Albrights did to mess with your head, but Xander, Aiden and I are going to find a way to help you. Okay?”
“You... you kidnapped me,” I hissed. How did he even pull that off? I didn’t remember getting in the car with him. And I was getting really sick and tired of not remembering things.
He held up a finger in protest. “No, technically, I rescued you. I swear, it will make sense soon. For now, you’re going to have to trust me.”
I shook my head in defiance. “No. No. No way.” Ben started to say something, but I cut him off. “My coworkers will realize I’m missing. And my boyfriend will come looking for me.”
Ben offered me a pitying look. “Boyfriend, huh? Well, rest assured, I’ve already called Aiden, and he’s on it. Your coworkers will be none the wiser.”
I scrunched my eyebrows, not following at all.
That was it. I wasn’t going to just sit back and do nothing.
I was going to get away from this guy—or die trying.
I checked the dashboard. He was only going forty miles per hour. I could survive a jump at that speed, right?
I guessed I was about to find out...
Praying I wasn’t about to make the dumbest decision of my life, I unbuckled my seatbelt and threw the passenger door open. Not giving myself enough time to run through the mental checklist of all the ways this could go terribly wrong, I jumped from the moving vehicle and slammed into the hard earth before rolling across the grass and gravel.
The wheels of Ben’s car screeched as he skidded to the side and made an abrupt stop. My whole body was throbbing, and I thanked my lucky stars I hadn’t suffered serious damage. Just scrapes and bruises, if I had to guess. Terrified of what he’d do next, I scrambled to my feet. When I stood, I realized that I had a huge gash on my thigh. Warm blood was oozing down my leg. It wasn’t a deep cut, but man, it hurt. I wasn’t going to give up that easily, though.
I started hobbling, limping as I hurried to get away from the nutjob. I cupped my hands around my mouth and screamed for someone, anyone, to help me. But there was literally no one around. Other than Ben.
I picked up my pace, dragging my leg behind me as I let the adrenaline take over.
Every inch of me was throbbing, and I wanted to do nothing more than to collapse into a ball and sob uncontrollably, but there wasn’t time for that. I could let the tears fall later.
First, I had to survive.
“Grace,” Ben shouted, panting as he chased after me. I risked a glance over my shoulder and saw that he was pulling something out of his pocket. My heart skipped. Please don’t be a weapon. Please don’t be a weapon. “Just look at this,” he said, holding out his phone.
I knew I shouldn’t have looked back.
But I did.
He was only a couple of feet behind me now—thanks to my stupid leg—so I got a good look at the screen. It was me. And him. And some unthinkably attractive guy. We all had our arms wrapped around each other as we posed for the shot. We were smiling.
Against better judgment, I slowed to a stop. Ben brushed his graying ginger-brown hair away from his face, catching his breath, too. “I know this doesn’t make any sense to you right now. But you’re practically family, Grace.” He held out the phone for me to get a better look. “You can look through the pictures if you want. There are plenty of you in there.”
Warily, I took the phone from him. Sure enough, as I swiped through the album, I found picture after picture of me—usually posing next to the James Dean-esque dude. You’d think I’d remember a face like that...
Brow furrowed, I kept swiping, my eyes widening as I realized the photos went back for years.
I began to wonder if what he’d said about that Sofia woman wiping my memory was true... It sounded crazy, but just because I hadn’t met any before didn’t mean supernaturals didn’t exist. Whoever that Sofia was, what if she had the power of mind control or something? It wasn’t out of the realm of possibility.
Though I had absolutely no idea why she would have come after me. I was nobody.
“I imagine you have a few questions,” Ben said, his eyes turning into half-moons as he spoke in a fatherly tone. “I’ll tell you whatever you want to know. After that, if you
still want to return to Amber Falls, I’ll drive you back myself if you want. Just hear me out first, Grace. Okay?”
I swallowed down the lump in my throat. I couldn’t understand why I was believing the man who had just kidnapped me, and yet... I could see as clear as day that we had known each other at some point. It was feasible that the pictures could have been edited somehow. But there were videos, too. And that was definitely me in them.
Ben had promised he wouldn’t harm me. And if he intended to kill me, wouldn’t he have done so already? He’d had every opportunity.
I chewed the inside of my cheek, thinking. I desperately wanted to get to the bottom of my missing memories. And if there was a chance this guy had answers, then I owed it to myself to hear him out, didn’t I?
It wasn’t like I had much of another choice anyway. There was no way I was going to be able to hobble all the way back to Amber Falls. And there wasn’t another person, car or house in sight. No one was coming to swoop in and rescue me.
Eventually, I nodded, handing him his phone back as I started limping in the direction of his car. “Fine,” I said briskly. “Start talking.”
Xander
It turned out that Uncle Ben, Aiden and I weren’t the only ones looking for Grace.
It didn’t take much to overpower Ryan Tanner after he attacked me. He’d missed my heart. And I was a Blood Heir, an original vampire—made, not turned. Plus, I’d just fed. Which meant I was strong.
And as for Ryan, he was only human.
I saluted his effort. Pretty gutsy to assault a vampire in broad daylight in the middle of a well-to-do neighborhood. But also incredibly stupid.
Once I had him pinned, I grabbed him by his whiskered jaw and forced him to look into my eyes. Seething, I overpowered his mind, forcing him to succumb to me. To tell me everything.
“My name is Ryan Tanner,” he said again, features slackened now. “Grace was my high school girlfriend.”
“And you still care about her?” I asked, because I was curious—not threatened. “Seems kind of pathetic to me.”
“I was in love with her.” I snorted at that. I couldn’t help it. “I’ve never given up looking for her,” he continued, his beetle black eyes blazing. “I became a private detective. I’ve dedicated my life to uncovering the truth about what happened to her.”
I frowned at that. “Why did you attack me?”
“Because you’re a vampire.”
“Do you always go around attacking vampires?” I pressed.
“I heard you using compulsion on the Addingtons. I think you know what happened to Grace. I think you’re the one who kidnapped her.”
I pursed my lips. “Afraid not, buddy. And unfortunately, I have no idea where she is, either. You’re lucky that I care about Grace. Because if I didn’t, I’d have my fangs buried in your carotid artery right now.” I helped the lovesick detective up to his feet and wiped the dirt off of his shoulders for him. Patting him on the cheek, I added, “There. Much better. Now, be a good boy and forget this conversation ever happened. Go back about your business. And don’t you even think about following me. Got it?”
Ryan nodded.
“Oh, and lay off the cologne. You’re trying way too hard,” I pointed out. Hey—I was just helping the guy out.
“Okay.”
I flicked my hand, ushering him to return to the Addingtons.
After readjusting my T-shirt, I brushed my hands through my hair and started heading in the direction of my car. I hadn’t gotten any closer to figuring out where Grace had run off to, but I was certain she wasn’t here.
I reached into the glove box and grabbed myself a stick of wintergreen gum. I blew a massive bubble as I backed out of the Addington’s driveway, wondering if I should have gone farther with my compulsion of Grace’s ex. Maybe I should have made him give up the search for her, too.
I shook my head. One problem at a time.
Hours later, I was nearing Quarter Square when my cellphone buzzed. I answered it without bothering to check to see who it was. “Hello?”
“Xander,” Uncle Ben said, sounding like he was catching his breath.
“Hey. I was just about to call you. Portland was a bust. I’m heading back to Quarter Square now.”
“Good,” Uncle Ben said, his voice getting softer now. “Because I found Grace.”
My heart leaped. “Seriously? How?”
“Luck,” he answered honestly. “I stopped in a diner in Amber Falls, and she was my waitress.”
A deep wrinkled split my brow. “She’s waiting tables? Why?”
“Grace is... different than you remember her.”
Growing frustrated, I huffed as I took a left turn. “Can you stop talking around whatever is going on and just spit it out already? I just got staked, and my patience is wearing thin.”
“Staked? Are you okay?”
“Uncle Ben!”
“Right, right. Grace. I’m almost positive the Albrights wiped her memory.”
I glanced around at nothing in particular, processing that. “They can do that?”
“Apparently. Grace has no idea who she is. She has no idea who I am, who Aiden is... or who you are.”
My throat bobbed as his words sank in. “Does she know what I am?”
“As far as I can tell,” he said between hushing his dog in the background, “she doesn’t even know what she is.”
The car rolled to a stop as I came upon a red light. “Well, this should be fun.”
“I wanted to warn you, too,” Uncle Ben continued, “that she’s scared. She thinks I kidnapped her. I mean, technically, I did use some sleeping powder on her—I had a stash in my collection. When she woke up, she thought I was going to hurt her and jumped out of the car.”
“Please tell me she didn’t—”
“She’s fine. A little banged up, but fine.”
I released a pent-up breath. Great. This was just great. “How’d you get her back in the car? More sleeping powder? Is she asleep now?”
“No, she’s downstairs. She decided to come with me after I showed her pictures of her on my phone. She could tell it was her in the photos, but she has no memories of taking them. I need to get back to her, but I wanted to give you a heads up. She’s... different, somehow. You’ll need to tread lightly with her for now. At least until we get her memories back.”
“And how do you propose we do that?”
Grace
While Ben was upstairs making a phone call, I snooped around his living room. And I didn’t feel bad about it. I wanted to know what kind of guy this Ben was.
First things first—I needed to think ahead in case things went south. Unfortunately, he didn’t have a landline, so making phone calls was out of the question unless I could get my hands on his cell. But I didn’t know Bellamy’s number by heart. Or anyone else’s for that matter...
I could always call the police. I hoped it wouldn’t come to that.
I also took note of where the doors and windows were so that I could make a quick escape if needed.
Weirdly, though, I didn’t think I’d have to.
Other than having a ridiculous number of family albums lining the shelves that bookended his fireplace, the guy’s place seemed pretty normal. Hearing his heavy footsteps skipping down the stairs, I plopped myself on his couch, tossing my blonde hair over my shoulder, trying to act casual. He had promised to tell me everything once we got to his place, and I was ready to hear what he had to say.
“Find anything interesting?” he joked.
My eyes widened. I thought I’d been quiet while snooping, but maybe I hadn’t been as sneaky as I’d thought. “How’d you—?”
“Because I know you, Grace. You’re smart. And you’ve been brought to the house of someone you don’t remember who says he knows all about your past. Of course you were going to go through my stuff.” He gave an innocent wink. “I’d expect nothing less.”
I cleared my throat, unsure of how to respond to that.
He shrugged. “The good stuff’s all upstairs anyway.” He headed toward the kitchen to pour himself a glass of water. “Want anything?”
“No, thanks.” I wanted to keep a clear head. I needed my wits about me in case anything went wrong.
“No problem,” he said. “Something tells me you’ll change your mind, though.”
Carrying his glass back into the living room, he eased into his La-Z-Boy recliner. He was about to start talking when a bark came from one of the back rooms. He set the glass down. “Oh, I almost forgot...” He got back up and disappeared into the hall, returning moments later with a fluffy cream-colored dog. The Goldendoodle jumped onto the couch the second she saw me, squealing uncontrollably like she had missed me. I glanced at Ben warily, but all he did was nod. The dog kept pawing for me to pet her.
“She recognizes you,” Ben explained.
I couldn’t argue with him. The dog sure did seem to know who I was... “What’s her name?” I asked, petting the massive pup as she licked my arm up and down.
“Fangs.”
I giggled at that. “She doesn’t seem very aggressive,” I pointed out.
“She’s not. Her bark sounds impressive, but she’s just a big old lovebug. The worst she would do is lick you to death.”
I smiled at that, still petting the dog. “Good to know.”
Ben downed his water and then rubbed his forehead, deep in thought. He let out a sigh like something was weighing heavily on him. “Where to start?” he said, mostly to himself.
I lifted my chin so that I could look him dead-on. “Start with the beginning. The last thing I remember is being with my family in Portland.”
He nodded. “Grace, how much do you know about the supernatural world?”
Caught off-guard, I straightened at that. “I know there was a war.”
He frowned. “That’s all?”
“Pretty much. Why? Is there something else I should know?”
He hesitated. “There’s no other way to break this to you other than just saying it outright.” He looked me in the eye, unblinking. “Seven years ago, you were taken from your family and brought to Crescent Cape.”