He shrugged. “There’s a reason for the gloves.”
It all clicked suddenly and drove the last embers of anger from her. She looked him over in wonder. He wasn’t a vampire with mind-reading abilities at all. He was a human with those talents. “You’re psychic.”
“Sort of,” he said, shrugging again.
She bit at her lip. “It’s probably ashes by now.”
“It stopped burning when you dropped it,” he told her. “The ground is damp.”
“Fine,” she said, motioning to the door. “Go get it. I’ll wait right here.”
He moved hesitantly. “Just, wait right there, okay?”
She nodded, curiosity piqued by his words.
The second he left, she pushed at the first door in the hallway. He’d told her to wait right there. He hadn’t told her not to peek into the other rooms.
The living room was red and black with a huge TV mounted onto the wall. And the bathroom was sparkling and white. The place was actually a home now. She looked at the picture on the wall; a family portrait. The kid in the middle was young, but he was undoubtedly Zack. He was wearing gloves, even in the photo. She had to smile.
He came back with the slightly scorched story in his gloved hand.
She folded her arms. “What took you so long?”
“This is really good,” he said, sounding mildly surprised. “Why did you think his comments were right?”
Her mind drew a blank as she stared at him, not sure how to react. Any guy she’d shown her work to before had been dismissive about it at best. She hadn’t expected him to actually read it.
He brushed the paper. “Can I keep this?”
She smiled. “Are you serious?”
“Uh, yeah.”
“You can keep it on one condition,” she told him. “I get to see your room.”
She noticed his mouth had opened and she put on a grin, stopping him with a glance. “Not today, killer. I don’t have anything to work out now.”
He smiled wryly. “And that would be my fault.”
“Try not to look a gift horse in the mouth next time,” she advised, walking past him and out of the old murder house.
“Hey,” he called after her. “Will you promise to come back sometime?”
She turned. “I promise. Sometime.”
***
Chloe awoke sweating at five a.m., tangled in her sheets and breathing heavily. The dream had started off innocuously enough. It had been the day she’d met Zack. The memory had played out exactly as things had happened and then it had turned into a blood-soaked nightmare. She couldn’t shake it off as she untangled herself and got up. The floor was cold, but the adrenaline that coursed through her kept her warm.
“I’m not psychic,” she whispered, knowing it as the truth but still unable to shake the nightmare.
Zack had been in his house. She’d just left and realised she had to go back. He was exactly the kind of guy she’d been waiting for, and she’d never even known until she’d met him.
She’d run up the steps just as it started to rain. The sound of thunder had followed her as she rushed inside. Zack wasn’t where she’d left him. She’d run up the stairs and found him on the landing, his expression slackened by shock. She’d thrown her arms around him and kissed him hard. He’d been too frozen to react. She’d pulled back and caught a blank look in his dark eyes. His face had been spattered with blood. The crimson liquid had stained the walls and his clothes, congealing in a puddle at his bared feet. His hands had been naked and red. A gash in his neck had drawn her attention. She’d gasped as he’d fallen to his knees, clutching at the wound.
That was when she’d woken up in her own warm bed. The image wouldn’t leave her.
She threw on her housecoat and rushed to the kitchen, stumbling over her own feet in the dark hallway. The banister saved her from a trip down the stairs, making her wince as she bumped against the wall. She made it to the kettle and sighed in relief.
Switching on the light was her second priority. She did it once the water was boiling. The sight of the pitch-black night through the window made her shiver. She shut the blinds and set about making her mug of tea. The opened notepad on the table drew her attention. She picked up the pen and got to scrawling.
She’d lost the Zack she knew. He’d reset to the guy she’d met at the path to the woods. She shook her head. That wasn’t true. The incident had further damaged his already fragile psyche. He’d had some strange episodes ever since it had happened. Not that she knew much about those, only what she’d overheard from eavesdropping on his vampire bodyguard.
She wrote down the things that might make him remember. The story she’d written all those years ago was in one of their bedside cabinets. It was a start.
She tapped the pen off the paper. Her doubts started to kick in. Triggering memories he’d forgotten was something she’d been warned against in the briefing after the incident. There was a lot at stake, not the least of which was Zack’s life.
She stared at the page as the kettle boiled. She didn’t trust Bridget, never had. The life Zack was living wasn’t much of a life anymore. She knew he needed protection, and she knew she could do that by herself.
“We might need to leave town,” she murmured as she picked up her tea and put down her pen.
It was something to sleep on. She sighed, knowing her plans would change in the next few hours. She’d be risking her life and his to make him remember. And she didn’t even know if he really wanted that. He had to want to remember. Didn’t he? Her Zack would have wanted to know. Whatever he’d lost, he was still that guy. Wasn’t he?
She sighed, knowing she couldn’t risk so much for something so selfish. She put the tea down and snapped the thin pen in her hand, ink staining her fingers. She closed the notebook and went back to bed.
Chapter Fifteen
Zack spent the morning debating over staying home. The thought of tip-toeing around Bridget and her newly revealed ‘feelings’ made him groan. But she’d wonder where he was. She’d come over to check on him. At least at the office, he could lock himself away from her.
He got up and got ready. Discovering a new hole in his gloves made him cringe. He’d need them repaired soon or else he’d need a new pair. He put on the sunglasses he’d bought from Chloe’s shop before he left the house. He could cope with their boredom better than he could handle the thought of walking around with his eyes unprotected now. Bridget had freaked him out with her tales of what vampires did to psychics they turned. The thought of her fangs biting into her hand made him shiver. She was one of them. Maybe she wasn’t like them, but she was one of them. He wasn’t sure what it meant yet—he only knew he didn’t like it.
He posted his lunch order through Cassandra’s door as he went past. He saw Chloe going into her store and he smiled. She seemed nice. And she’d been in the arcade a long time; eight years, she’d said. Had he known her before the incident? Blinking, he shook his head. Of course not. What was he thinking? He’d been moved. Witness protection was a serious business. Still, he knew virtually nothing about his past. For the first time since he’d woken up without his memories, it bothered him. Who had he been before?
That was the big question, and it was one he wished he knew the answer to.
***
Bridget had pulled out all the stops with her body-con dress and sultry eye-makeup. She had a plan, and Zack’s shy-guy act wasn’t going to ruin it. She knew men. They didn’t turn down sex, no matter how shy or weird or dull they were. Serve it up hot on a platter and they all chowed down.
She pressed her lips together as Zack entered the office. He avoided meeting her eyes as he dashed into his office. She heard the lock click into place. If he thought that would stop her, he really didn’t know what a vampire was.
Rick had been pissed that she’d been forced back to Plan B. She’d assured him that she could handle seduction. He’d laughed and told her he knew she could, but that there was a big difference
between controlling a guy’s dick and controlling his heart. She’d rolled her eyes at the thought. She wasn’t worried about Zack’s heart. The shortcut to making a guy crazy for a girl was always through his trousers. She didn’t have time to make him fall in love with her, but she knew she could make him think he was. And it was all going to take just one bold move.
She got up, scraping the chair back as she stood. The hardest part had been getting into the right mindset. There was nothing attractive about a broken man. She was an alpha’s bitch, one hundred percent. She just had to keep thinking about Kenny. The thought of his touch would get her through one stupid little tryst with the shy psychic.
“Zack,” she called through the door, tapping it lightly. “Can we talk?”
“Later,” he called out, not bothering to follow up with an excuse.
She picked the lock with a hairpin. Getting inside, she smiled at the look of shock on the guy’s pale face. “We need to talk, Zack.”
“Um, I’m busy…” he tried, shuffling papers on his desk.
“There’s something that’s been killing me. I had to tell you. I know it’s no good for your condition, but I’m sick of pretending you mean nothing to me.” She locked the door behind her and moved around to block his escape. “I’m not just a bodyguard, Zack.”
She unzipped her dress and wriggled out of it. Naked underneath, she stood before him. “Please, tell me you remember? It’s been so long since we made love.”
Zack’s jaw dropped. He spun in his chair.
“Shit, the vampire’s being sexy! Steve, tell me what to do.”
“Did you take your pills, Zack? It doesn’t sound like you’ve been taking your pills.”
“I don’t want her anywhere near me. I don’t know what to do.”
Bridget sighed.
“Enough of this shit,” she muttered, moving around to face Zack during his ‘therapy session’. She smiled tightly. “Fuck the vampire, Zack. That’s what you need to do.”
Zack blinked slowly, his frown telling her he was coming back to himself. His dark eyes met hers when he snapped back into focus.
“We can’t do this, Bridget.”
She tried to move, to slide her fangs into place with the intention of biting into his thigh through his trouser leg. Chloe’s commands stopped her. She couldn’t hurt him no matter how badly she wanted to. So she was screwed if she couldn’t get Zack to fall for her. She tried a sweet smile instead. “Why not?”
“I don’t… I don’t like you like that.” He shrugged apologetically.
She backed off quickly, throwing her dress back on and leaving the room. She couldn’t even force fake tears to guilt him into at least a show of sympathy. Her irritation was too close to the surface. This was mission impossible, and she only had one more day to pull it off. She sat at her desk, straightening her clothes and trying to think.
“Shit,” she cursed, tapping her nails off the desk as she tried to come up with her next plot. She couldn’t turn Zack herself. Chloe had closed down that option. She needed another way. Another vampire. A smile started to form on her face. Chloe hadn’t told her not to bite anyone else…
***
Chloe attempted to check her stock to place a new order to her supplier. Every time she started to count, her mind drifted. Maybe it was time to start planning a new life. The old one was gone. She should use it as a chance to start over. Move away or plan an extended trip to someplace exciting, exotic.
None of her ideas sparked any semblance of passion. She sighed and tried to keep her head on her job.
Amira came hopping into the shop at lunchtime, a latte in one hand and a tea in the other. She placed the tea on Chloe’s counter and grinned, her whole face lighting up. “Hey.”
“Hey,” Chloe said with a smile. “How’s—”
“Larry keeps asking me out,” she blurted. She waved her phone under Chloe’s nose. “I don’t know what to do.”
Chloe took a breath. She should have known this would come up. Larry had only been the object of Amira’s infatuation a few crushes ago. She’d hoped he was out of her system now, but it really didn’t look like it. “I thought you liked that guy from class?”
She screwed up her face. “He had like, three other girls lined up on Tinder. I checked his phone on our date.”
“Well, then…” She wasn’t sure what to say. Larry was a good guy, but he was also a creature of the night now. Amira had no idea those things existed, let alone how to protect herself against them.
“I know he has bad skin, but he’s cute, right?” Amira’s hopeful eyes met hers and she broke. “And I did have that crush on him like, all of last summer. He got all flustered when I told him he looked good at that night out, remember?”
She was gushing on, and Chloe knew she’d have to say something to get her to stop.
“He’s a sweet guy. He’s… a little bit older than you, though. Are you sure about why he’s asking you out?”
Chloe wasn’t so sure she wanted to encourage her. As much as she liked them both, she didn’t want Amira to get hurt. Larry hadn’t seen how his improved body was going to affect women yet. And he didn’t have control of his thirst. That would take time.
“Are you saying he’s only after me for my hot body?” Amira raised an eyebrow. “He’s only two years older. That’s my minimum dating age for a guy, anyway. I’m not sure what my maximum is, but maybe I won’t need to worry about that if things work out with Larry.”
Chloe cringed. She couldn’t imagine Amira being okay with a boyfriend who would stay young and sexy while she aged. Never mind one who could kill her by accident if he wasn’t being careful. She tried to think of something negative to say that might get through. There was nothing that wouldn’t be a blatant lie, and Chloe wasn’t great at making those sound believable.
She sighed. “Just don’t go rushing into anything, okay?”
Amira snorted.
“It’s just a night out. I wonder what I’m going to wear.” She sipped on her hot drink and gazed out of the shop window.
Chloe wondered what Larry had told her. She’d already told him he needed to stay in for the next few weeks. Apparently, he wasn’t listening to her advice. She wasn’t all that surprised. She’d just have to make him listen before he went out on his ‘date’.
She chatted to the girl for twenty minutes until Amira had to get back to work. A couple of high school girls browsed after that, eventually buying matching skull charm bracelets. She smiled as she rung them up. The rest of the day passed without too much dwelling. She didn’t even think about Zack until she bumped into him outside the arcade.
***
Zack shuddered as he left the office. He wasn’t going in to work the next day. Bridget was acting insane, and he didn’t want to witness another clothes-shedding incident. It was too messed up.
He left the arcade and sighed at the onslaught of rain. The sky was overcast and miserable. Hesitating to step out into it, he was nudged forward as someone else came out of the arcade.
“Oh, hey,” Chloe said, sounding surprised.
“Hi,” he said, looking her outfit over and thinking about offering her his coat. The short skirt and thin sweater didn’t look very warm.
She put up an umbrella. “Will this rain never end?” She looked at him. “You want under?”
He smiled. “We might be going in different directions.”
“I live close to where you do,” she said, shrugging.
He nodded and took the umbrella. She took his arm as they walked, keeping close and under shelter from the rain. It wasn’t a typical woman’s umbrella but a golf umbrella. He wondered if it was hers.
“You can have my coat,” he offered, wishing he’d said it before she’d put the umbrella up.
She smiled. “I don’t mind the cold. It’s kind of refreshing.”
He didn’t mind it for different reasons. He liked having her close, clinging to him like she needed him. “This is going to seem like
a weird question…”
She stopped walking, and he looked at her. Making eye contact was going to make it even weirder. What was he doing? He shouldn’t even be thinking about asking. He took a breath, determined to get it out.
“Did we know each other, before? I don’t remember anything. I just… I’m really starting to wish I did.”
She looked away, biting at her lip. When she looked back, she sighed softly. “It’s dangerous for you to remember anything, Zack. It might be better if you don’t ask those kinds of questions.”
He nodded slowly. She was probably right. They walked on in silence, just a few more feet when she stopped walking again. His hopes lit up until he realised she wasn’t stopping to answer his question or elaborate on what she’d already said.
She moved back, letting go of his arm. “This is my stop.”
He looked at the house, wishing it rang some sort of bells for him. Wishing something did—anything. Even if it meant he had to remember Bridget had been his girlfriend. He didn’t care if it meant he would remember who he’d been. “Your umbrella…”
Chloe turned and shook her head. “Keep it.”
***
Chloe got inside and closed the door, her heart pounding. She was already kicking herself for the answer she’d given to Zack’s question. She’d wanted to know if he felt like that, if he wanted to remember. Well, apparently, he did, and what did she do with that?
“Damn it,” she snapped. It had happened. She’d had her moment. It had passed quickly, and all she’d done was remind Zack that it was dangerous to think about wanting to remember his past.
Chapter Sixteen
The cloudy sky fit Bridget’s mood as she walked home, her clingy dress soaked through by the time she got to her flat. She tore it off in a fury. Men didn’t turn her down, they never could.
Amnesia Bites (Shady Arcade Book 1) Page 11