Release Me When the Sun Goes Down

by Lisa Olsen

  The first thing I did was call to check my voicemail, hoping there was a message there from Jakob or even Hanna, but the only thing I found were multiple voicemails from my parents. Apparently I’d been identified as dead at the morgue and my parents had been notified before Marcus or whoever had gotten there to clean things up. And then when they’d driven down, the hospital hadn’t known anything about it and now they were freaking out. That wasn’t a phone call I looked forward to. How was I supposed to explain why I’d been dodging their calls all day?

  Only that’s exactly what I did, putting it off to call Marcus instead for an update. “Please tell me you have some good news for me,” I said as soon as he came onto the line.

  “That depends on your definition of good.”

  My heart sank. “You don’t have a single shred of good news for me?”

  “No, I didn’t say that,” he backpedaled quickly. “We managed to get your name scrubbed from the hospital records and any mention of Rob’s body as well.”

  “Just not before they notified my parents I was dead.”

  Marcus cleared his throat uncomfortably. “Oh, sorry about that. We got there as quickly as we could. Do you need me to see to it that things are smoothed over with your parents? I could arrange for it.”

  “No, don’t worry about it, I’ll take care of them.” I’d rather not have their brains scrambled too much and hopefully I could smooth it over as a clerical error. “What about Oliver, did you get his body out of there?”

  There was silence on the line for a half beat before he clued in to who I was talking about. “You mean the morgue guy? Yes, we got him all taken care of.”

  “How? What did you do with his body?”

  “Ah, I don’t know. I didn’t handle it personally.”

  “Find out for me, okay? And if they haven’t done anything final yet, can you please ask whoever is handling it to make it something not horrible? Like no suicide and no unexplained disappearance.”

  “I’ll try, but…”

  “It’s important, Marcus. I want his family to have some kind of closure. Did you find out anything about them yet?”

  “Yes, he was married to a Sylvia Bassett, and they have a ten year old son, Martin. They have a house in Sausalito, I have the address if you need it.”

  “Oh.” I wasn’t sure if I was happy or sad to find out he had a wife and kid. Was it better to have killed a man that no one would have missed, or better that he’d enjoyed family life even for a short time? “Do they um, know yet?”

  “I don’t know, boss. We’re still putting data together. It’s requiring a little more effort since we don’t have the resources of the Order’s facilities anymore. It used to be a simple call, and now it’s taking more of a personal touch.”

  “I understand.” The mention of the Order sent a flash of worry over what Bishop would think of my turning Rob, but I tucked that away for another time. “What about Hanna? Has she been spotted anywhere?”

  “No, not a peep from her or Lodinn, and Jakob is definitely missing. He hasn’t returned to his building since he left last night. I did get a report that the suite at Lodinn’s hotel was found thrashed and abandoned.”

  “What do you mean thrashed?”

  “We’re talking beyond rock star party thrashed. Broken furniture, windows, the granite slab in the kitchenette was found cracked in half. It sounds like they had a knock down drag out fight by all accounts.”

  “But there’s no sign of either one of them or my sister?”

  “Not at all.”

  I had to keep hoping that no news was good news. I couldn’t help but think that if Lodinn had managed to kill Jakob, we would’ve heard the gloating by now. And if Jakob had taken out Lodinn he would’ve returned home. They were probably both off laying low, licking their wounds for a while. “How about Mason? How’s he doing?”

  “He’s still out cold, but improving. I’m afraid it’ll be quite some time before the scars disappear completely though.”

  On the inside as well as out. I’d found out the hard way that there were some things blood couldn’t heal. “Thanks, Marcus. I can see what you mean about the good news being in short supply.”

  “I did get your purse back and all your identification, does that help?”

  “Actually, it helps quite a lot, thanks for that.” At least I wouldn’t have to keep borrowing Laveda’s phone.

  “Also, I was able to procure those documents you needed for Rob. I assume that’s still the case?”

  I looked down to where Rob lay unmoving on the bed. “Yes, he came though the change fine.”

  “Good, good. I’ll be sure to pass the news around, I know Gunnar and Maggie in particular were worried.”

  “Tell them we’re both fine and we’ll see you soon.”

  “Shall I send Gunnar to come and pick you up? We’ve increased security around the house, and there’s no sign that Lodinn’s watching the place at all. I feel confident we can get you inside safely.”

  “No, not yet, Rob’s still asleep.”

  A light of amusement came into his voice. “I remember those days.”

  I hoped Rob and I both lived long enough to reminisce the same way. Ugh, I was bumming myself out and there wasn’t time for wallowing. “Hey, Marcus, thanks. It means a lot that I can count on you for this. Listen, I’d better go. If anything comes up good or bad, call me back at this number, okay?”

  “Of course,” he agreed. “Is there anything else you’d like me to do?”

  “Just take care of those things I already asked for and I’ll see you soon. Oh, and out of curiosity, what name did you use on Rob’s papers?”

  “Evans. Rob Evans.”

  At least I had something to smile about.

  *

  I couldn’t put off calling my parents any longer, no matter how overwhelmingly icky the idea made me inside. Jeez Louise, I realized I’d rather go toe to toe with Lodinn himself than have to listen to my father go on about the irresponsibility of allowing them to worry all day while I’d been out cold. The brief hope of getting the answering machine (yep, my parents still had one of those, but at least it was digital) was brutally shattered by my mother’s voice coming on the line.

  “Hi, Mom,” I started out cheerily enough, holding the phone away from the screech that assaulted my sensitive ears in reply. “Calm down, Mom. Mom, I’m fine. No, I’m sorry they called and worried you like that. No, I had no idea. Well, how should I know why they called you? I’m not dead, I’m not even hurt. Maybe it was someone else named Anja?” I winced over that one, but she didn’t dwell on it.

  “I’m sorry about that. No, I know, of course I never wanted you to worry, it’s just that I had no idea. Actually, no I didn’t. My phone was completely…” I paused to let her vent, clearly she felt the need to describe in great detail all I’d put them through. I couldn’t much blame her, I wouldn’t have wanted to be in her place – thinking my daughter was dead and then not dead but missing and have no idea how to reach her. But there were good reasons why I’d never given her my new address.

  “I’m sorry you had such a crappy day but I swear I wasn’t doing it on purpose. Crap is not a bad word, Mom. No, things are good. The new job is good. No, I’m not seeing Jakob anymore. No, I don’t think we will. I have to go now. Yes, I absolutely am fine. Give Daddy a hug for me. Okay, love you, bye.” Yep, definitely would’ve preferred a few rounds with Lodinn instead.

  My clothes were stiff but dry, and I donned them swiftly, feeling less vulnerable once dressed. I wasn’t quite sure how long Rob would sleep in for, but about an hour after sunset, I made a pot of tea and tried shaking him awake. It took some doing, but eventually he sat up enough to have a cup. He seemed out of it at first, and it took him a while to completely wake up enough to comprehend most of what I was saying as I went over Marcus’ update and my conversation with my parents.

  “Sorry, m’head feels like it’s stuffed with soggy parchment.”

  �
�It’s okay.” I waved off his apology. “You’ll feel better after you drink your tea. It’ll get better with time, I promise.”

  “Don’t much like this feeling,” he mumbled, taking a sip of the tea that had grown tepid.

  “What feeling is that?”

  “Like a liability. If someone was to bust in here right now I’d be slow as a regular human. I didn’t expect it to be like this is all.”

  I resisted the urge to say I told you so. Just because he’d spent sixty years or more in the company of vampires didn’t mean he’d know what it felt like to be one. “How did you think it would be?”

  “I dunno.” He sat silent for a moment, processing before he spoke again. “I’ve spent my life feeling like I was halfway to being a vampire already. Faster and stronger than the average bloke, with a bit of a taste for blood thanks to Jakob. But I reckon I feel worse now.”

  “That’s because you’re barely waking up. I always feel sluggish and clumsy when I first get up and when it’s getting close to dawn.” Not as bad as him from the look of it, but I could relate. “You’re still stronger and tougher than you used to be, I promise. There aren’t many things that will kill you now, and you’ll be much, much faster.”

  “I know, but this is a pretty big liability, me not being able to lift a finger during daylight hours. What if an attack should come then?”

  “Then the house would protect us from anyone coming in uninvited, and we have humans around during the day.”

  “It’s not the same.”

  “No, it’s not,” I agreed softly. “But you’ll be able to safeguard me all that much better when we’re together at night.”

  “Once I stop faffing around like a zombie.”

  “You’re feeling better now though, aren’t you?”

  “A bit,” he allowed, draining the rest of his cup. “Is there any more tea?”

  “You bet. Hold on a sec, I’ll get it.”

  “No need. It’ll be good for me to be up and around.”

  Only I didn’t let him get the tea himself. Instead I dashed around to block the doorway in the blink of an eye. “You’ll have to get by me first.”

  A single brow was raised as he got to his feet. “Is that a fact?”

  “More like a challenge,” I grinned, glad to see him smile in return.

  “Won’t be much of one, I know what your vulnerabilities are.”

  “I could say the same for you.”

  His other brow joined the first one. “What vulnerabilities do I have?”

  “You’ll never hurt me for one.”

  “I don’t need to hurt you to get past you,” he boasted.

  “Bring it then.” I waved him forward, snatching a hair elastic from the top of Laveda’s dresser to pull my hair up into a ponytail, out of the way. Rob stalked toward me, a gleam in his eye that sent a flutter through my belly, but before he got two steps away from me I zipped by, stopping by the kitchen entrance. “You’ll have to move faster than that,” I taunted.

  “Why should I? You’re going in the direction I want.” He had me there. All of a sudden he put on a quick burst of speed and I could see the pride in his eyes for having accomplished it without crashing into anything. His control was getting better as his body finished waking up. In one deft motion, he yanked the hair tie free and my hair came tumbling down around my shoulders. “I like your hair better this way. Soft… full of light.” His fingers sifted through my hair as if wholly absorbed by the golden strands.

  “So that’s how you plan to get past me, with flattery?” I teased, my head tilting to one side when he stroked the side of my neck with the back of his fingers.

  “Might have a few other tricks up my sleeve,” he promised, hands teasing lower, brushing over the slope of my breasts and down to my hips.

  “I like where you’re going with this, but I thought we were going to spar to get your heart pumping again.”

  “There’s better ways to set a man’s blood to boiling, luv. But if you’ve a mind to tussle…” His ankle hooked behind mine as he stepped forward, throwing me off balance in the same instant he pressed me up against the archway to the kitchen. The air left my lungs in a soft rush which he instantly swallowed with his sizzling kiss. The not breathing trick came in handy as the kiss deepened, his mouth hot and needy and… why was his mouth hot and needy now?

  I realized I hadn’t even noticed how much warmer he was to the touch, hardly used to his skin being as cold as mine. But now that I’d noticed it, Rob felt warm, almost feverish as he pressed up against me.

  “Rob, you’re crazy hot,” I managed to get out between kisses.

  “The things you say…” he rumbled, nibbling down to my neck and I felt the scrape of his fangs.

  “No, not…” I pulled back in exasperation, my thumb pushing back his upper lip for a brief glimpse of his exposed fangs before he sucked my finger into his mouth, his tongue swirling over the pad. “I mean you need to feed, don’t you?” How could I have forgotten that he’d need to eat every night? Especially with such a small taste of Laveda the night before.

  He let go of my thumb to pursue a course down the underside of my jaw, hell bent on devouring my ear. “Is that what this is? Alls I’m hungry for is you.”

  “Then why are your teeth all super pointy?” Rob went very still, presumably as he found the sharp fangs extended. “You know the signs, you’re the one who first pointed them out to me. Why didn’t you tell me?”

  A frown marred his brow as he understood I was right. “I didn’t recognize it for what it was. I only knew I felt a need to be close to you. Is the hunger always tied to feelings of…”

  “Lust? Not exactly, but you will feel very intimate with whoever you’re feeding from unless you take them by force.” But that was a whole other can of worms. “Now that you know what that feels like, you need to keep me in the loop next time. The last thing we want is your hunger getting out of control, that’s how accidents happen. In fact, maybe we should do something to take the edge off before I take you hunting.”

  “How do you mean?”

  “I’ll give you some of my blood and then I’ll take you hunting before we go home.”

  His brows twitched closer together. “I don’t like you thinking you have to feed me like that. I can fend for myself.”

  “Of course you can, but until you learn control, I think this might be a good idea. Trust me, the best time to feed is when you’re not overwhelmed with the thirst.”

  “I’ve never had a problem with control before,” he grumbled.

  “Uh huh, you’ve never been a vampire before either. Now will you take my stupid blood?” I held my wrist up to his lips.

  “I don’t want to hurt you.”

  “Ah, hello, I’m a vampire, remember? There is a little something in it for me too, you know. And it’s not like we haven’t done this before, only you won’t need a knife this time. Besides, I have blood to spare, I fed twice last night.” I kept out the part where I’d needed that blood and more to heal the damage caused by Lodinn and giving Rob my very last drop.

  His gaze fell to the bluish veins at my wrist, his tongue darting out to moisten his lips. “You’re sure.”

  I raised a single brow. “Do you want me to beg?”

  “Could be fun.” His lips curved against my wrist, followed by a lave of the tongue that left tingles in its wake. His fangs pierced my skin without warning, my gasp of surprise giving way to a murmur of delight as he pulled against my flesh, his answering groan of satisfaction singing along my veins.

  Was this what Bishop had felt that first time I drank from him? Almost as soon as the thought popped in there I shooed it away. I did not want to be thinking about Bishop at a time like this! Though I probably owed Bishop a few words to let him know that I’d chosen to be with Rob over him, I had nothing to feel guilty about this time. Rob was mine and I was his, at least, in private moments like this.

  I didn’t even try to stop from touching him, unlike that
time in his London apartment when I’d had no business getting so close. Rob for his part didn’t shy away either, the bulge in his pants grinding at my hip as he drank. His free hand worked my jeans open to slip inside, the heel of his palm rubbing against me with exquisite pressure.

  He had better control than I gave him credit for, pulling away well before I thought he needed to stop to capture my mouth in a heated kiss. I tasted my own blood on his tongue, and it only sharpened my desire for more.

  “Don’t stop yet. Take what you need.”

  “As you wish.” His teeth sank back into me, not at my wrist but at my sensitive throat. There was no sign of the animalistic savagery he showed when he tore into Laveda, there was only the single puncture and then the rapture of his mouth drawing against my flesh, coaxing paradise from the length of my body.

  I found my wrists pinned up over my head in an echo of the dream we shared, held there by his free hand while his other teased and stroked. Wanting to reciprocate, I tugged one arm free, his growl at my neck sending a shudder to the base of my spine.

  “Let me…” I murmured. My hand snaked between us to the hard ridge that strained against his jeans, but he pulled my wrist firmly over my head again, effectively trapping it against the other one in a show of dominance.

  He stopped drinking long enough to offer me a wicked grin. “Hush now, I’m taking what I need.” His teeth plunged back into me the same instant a rough finger parted my slick folds, and my head fell back with a ragged moan. The urge to sink my fangs into the strong cords of his neck became almost unbearable, but that would negate the entire reason for doing this.

  My arms shook with the effort to keep from touching him but he kept me pinned to the wall. I probably could’ve torn myself free, I was still stronger than he was when it came to brute strength, but I sensed he had something to prove, as he had in the dream. Only this time I wasn’t torn away just as it started to get good.

  This time his talented hands wove a spell over me in a pulsing counterpart to the ecstasy of his mouth until my body quaked and shuddered again and again. The tremors went on and on as he relentlessly stroked and teased and pinched until I begged him to stop, unable to take the keen pleasure anymore without unraveling altogether. Still, he didn’t withdraw, his touch only growing lazier and lazier, guiding me gently back to my senses, leaving me shaken and drained as his tongue rasped against the twin wounds at my throat.