Forbidden Touch

by K. S. Haigwood

  "Who is our?" he asked impatiently. He knew Lazarus couldn't do compulsion, but that didn't mean he couldn't read minds, or find a different way to get him to talk.

  She huffed. "I can't say, Mitch."

  "The hell you can't! I am a part of this, whether you like it or not. Tell me what the hell is going on!" he shouted at her.

  She looked back at Alice. "I'm sorry Alice. I will be in touch with you by phone." Alice nodded, then looked back to Mitch in disdain, and only shook her head.

  "Why? You wanted me to call you here so we could talk," he said.

  "No, I wanted you to call me here so I could hear what Alice had to say. We talked last night, and as of then, you didn't trust me," Ciera said.

  "I trust you, Ciera." Mitch pleaded with her. "What is the plan?"

  She pursed her lips. "Well, maybe I don't trust you anymore. A girl can only be told so many times that she is a liar, and that she is hated, and that she is better off dead before trust is destroyed. How do I know that you are telling me the truth now? How do I know that you aren't getting this information for your father so the two of you can turn the tables on us, so to speak? Send me back, Mitch, please."

  Dawning came over Mitch's face. "You slept with him, didn't you?" he asked calmly, but in his heart, he was hurting.

  She flinched. "If you want to help, don't try to stop us when we come. They won't hurt you if you stay out of the way. Send me back please."

  Mitch looked at her, and tears filled his eyes. Ciera's tears had already fallen. "Tell me that I have something to live for, and I will stay out of their way, whoever "they" are. I'm sorry, Ciera. I never meant to hurt you. I didn't mean any of the things that I said to you. My heart was broken because I thought you had betrayed me. I realize now that you didn't, and I am sorry I hurt you. I am sorry that I drove you into the arms of another man because I was a coward. I've never done this before, and it doesn't exactly come with an owner's manual, so I am entitled to one mistake. A mistake that I will never make again as long as I live. Please, tell me that it isn't too late."

  She shook her head and covered her mouth, as the tears flowed down her face. "It isn't, Mitch." She managed to get out, then she cleared her throat. "You have two choices. You can either B: Stay here as if nothing is going on. Act as if you want him to teach you everything and go along with anything he asks you to do. And get the hell out of the way when we get to you. Or A: Leave now, meet me half way, I will tell you everything, and you can join us when we take him down. If you choose 'Plan A' we may lose track of Lazarus. We can't track him, but we can track you."

  He really wanted to meet her half way. He really wanted to know what the hell was going to happen, but the main reason was that if he was there with her, there would be no way in hell that Dane would get within ten feet of her. But if he left, Lazarus would know something was up, and he would run. The guy had an excellent blocking system. When Mitch had taken him to the ground early this morning over that girl, he didn't get a damn thing from him. If he stayed here, he would be able to go wherever Lazarus went, and he could be tracked.

  "I understand why you can't tell me now. What would you have me do? What is best for the plan?" he asked.

  "Plan B," she said quietly.

  He nodded sadly. "I figured that," he said, then looked back at her. "I love you very much, Ciera. If something happens to me …"

  "Don't you dare tell me good-bye like this. Just stay alive, Mitch. Be careful, and stay alive. Promise me," she said, and she started crying again.

  He knew it was probably a lie, because if Lazarus even thought for a second that Mitch was helping someone trap him, father or not, he would kill Mitch, and wouldn't lose a minute's sleep over it. "I promise," to love you forever. He closed his eyes to will Alice and the woman of his dreams back to their bodies.

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  Chapter 54

  When Ciera opened her eyes, Dane was on the phone and pacing. She remained very quiet, and listened to his end of the conversation.

  "Yes … No, we are in Utah … He is in Decatur … This is Ciera's find, she has the right to be there when you take him down …" He dropped his voice in defeat. "Yes sir … There is a new vampire with him." He glanced at Ciera, and she nodded. He sighed. "He is on our side. We can track him if Lazarus runs." He looked up at the high ceiling and took a breath, then wrinkled his nose. She could tell that he was getting upset, but she couldn't hear the person on the other end of the line, and from where she was sitting, it didn't look good for them. "Yes," Dane said shortly. "No," he bit out, and looked at Ciera again with a blank face. "Yes, the new vampire is Detective Mitch Foley, the human that Ciera has been monitoring." Ciera gasped, and covered her mouth with her hand. Her eyes filled with tears. Had Dane just really sold her out? She kept very still and quiet, but her tears began to fall silently to the bed. Dane sat in the chair and ran his fingers through his hair. "No! The human wasn't completely human to begin with. Lazarus is his biological father. His whole goal in this was to get another vampire to turn Mitch. He thought that Mitch would be exceptionally skillful, with him being his true father and another skillful vampire turning him." He dropped his voice. "He was right. Mitch has five skills that we know of right now. Mitch isn't on Lazarus' side, he's on ours, but Lazarus doesn't know that." He wrinkled his nose again, and his face got red as he listened to the other person comment. "Father, are you kidding me! The guy used to be an Elder." He paused, and Ciera could see his jaw clench several times. "No, I wouldn't think that an Elder would sleep with a human either, but like I said earlier, he has gone rogue, and he is trying to use Mitch as a tool to take down all of the other Elders." He sighed. "Yes," he said, and sounded simply exhausted. "Please, just wait until we get there. If we leave now ..." Dane looked at his watch. "...we can be there in ten hours." He sighed and smiled, then looked up at Ciera. "Yes, we will be there before the sun sets Father … I will tell her … Thank you." Dane fell on his back on the bed, closed his eyes, and let out a big breath of air.

  "I thought you had sold me out there for a second," Ciera said.

  Dane's eyes flew open, and he looked at her in a very serious manner. "They had to know about Mitch, or they would have killed him the moment they saw him with Lazarus, Ciera."

  She nodded. "I know."

  He moved to her, then tilted her chin up so he could see her eyes. "I would never sell you out. I will take the fall for this before I let them touch you." He kissed her lightly, then took her hand. "Get dressed. They are going in without us if we aren't there before the sun sets."

  She let him help her out of the bed, and she quickly dressed in a dress that was definitely not something she would have been brave enough to purchase on her own. The short length indicated it was straight out of Lenya's closet.

  She stopped before they walked out of the bedroom.

  "What is it?" Dane asked.

  "What if we took a plane to Decatur?" she said.

  He rolled his eyes. "There are windows on a plane, Ciera. The sun is out. I can't get on a plane."

  She looked down at their joined hands and smiled. She made herself invisible, and in the process, made him disappear as well.

  He laughed, then she felt his hand on her face, then his lips brush hers. "You are amazing. I thought that I was going to be healing from burns for the next two hours from having to run from the house to the car. Yes, I think a plane would be a very good idea."

  Ciera opened the door to their guest bedroom, and Lenya was standing there before them. "Don't tell me that you were going to leave without me and have all the fun. That would just be plain rude."

  Ciera let go of Dane's hand, and they both became visible to Lenya. "We are catching a plane to Decatur. A close, uh … friend of mine is in trouble, and his real father is going to try to use him to take down Illinois' Elders."

  Lenya's face brightened. "Well, I'm glad I caught the two of you before you left. I would love to play."

  Ciera wasn't sure
about taking Lenya along. She still hadn't forgotten how the woman had tried to seduce her last night.

  "Can you keep your skill to yourself?" Dane asked as he caught the nervous vibe from Ciera. She was still broadcasting really loudly. That could be a bad thing when they got to Decatur. If Mitch was as powerful as they thought he was, Ciera wouldn't be able to hide a thing from the guy. Of course, Mitch already knew that she was no longer innocent. And he knew exactly who she had given her innocence to. He wasn't exactly looking forward to kicking Mitch's ass. Well he was, but he knew that it would hurt Ciera.

  Lenya raised an eyebrow, but frowned. "Why do you get to have all the fun with her?" She sniffed the air around Ciera. "Would I be guessing right if I said that you have been touched now?"

  Ciera couldn't help it. Her face turned red, but she couldn't stop the smile that spread across her face. She shrugged. "I don't kiss and tell."

  "Uh-huh, well what is your boyfriend going to think about all of this? I don't know a single vampire that shares - blood or women."

  Ciera's face turned grim. "I don't think that it is any of your business. What he thinks or what I do, for that matter."

  Lenya shrugged. "I guess you are right. And I promise to keep my skill in check, at least where you are concerned."

  Dane cleared his throat, and Lenya rolled her eyes. "All right, I will leave you alone as well. You take the fun out of everything Dane, I swear." She smiled. "That is a nifty little skill you have there, Ciera. Will it work on all three of us?"

  She sighed. "Well, it can't hurt to try." She took Dane's hand, and he took Lenya's. Ciera and Dane went invisible, but Lenya did not.

  "Oh, rats. I want to go," Lenya whined, and her bottom lip actually poked out a little.

  "Let her hand go, Dane." He did, and she reached out and took Lenya's hand in her own. Lenya disappeared.

  Lenya let go of Ciera's hand to clap vigorously. She became visible again, and began walking away from them.

  "Where are you going, Lenya?" Dane asked.

  She stopped and turned around with a blank look on her face. "Well, I am going to pack. Where do you think I am going?"

  "You can't take anything with you Lenya. This isn't a vacation. We are going to kill a vampire," Dane said.

  "Well that sounds like a vacation to me," she said.

  "Well it isn't. Either leave everything here, or don't come at all." Dane said.

  "May I take one little bag? Only one, I promise."

  "A small one, yes, and hurry. If we aren't there by sunset, they are going in without us," Ciera said.

  Lenya's face lit up, and she clapped excitedly again. "Oh goody, I will be right back."

  Dane closed his eyes and sighed. "I'm sorry."

  "It is all right. I don't mind her coming with us." She thought for a moment, then finally got up the nerve to ask, "Have you and Lenya ever …" She didn't want to pry, but she was curious if he and Lenya had ever been intimate with each other.

  He squinted and rubbed his forehead. "It was a long time ago, and it wasn't anything serious. I figured that you would ask sooner or later, and I had already made up my mind not to lie to you about it. Lord knows that she can't keep a secret," he whispered at the end.

  Ciera nodded nervously and looked away from him. He moved in front of her, then moved his head directly in her eyesight so she didn't have a choice but to look at him. "I have never, in all the years that I have lived, had a woman make me feel the way you made me feel when we made love. No woman even comes close, Ciera. I have a past, and there are a lot of things that I regret about that past. But I will never regret being with you. I wish you had been my first, too. Then there would be absolutely nothing in my life to regret." He lifted her hand and placed a soft kiss on her knuckles without taking his eyes away from hers.

  She wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tight to her. "I don't know if I can let you go. My heart is already breaking, just thinking about not being with you always," she cried, and he pulled her tighter to him.

  Dane's eyes watered. He wanted to tell her to forget about Mitch, and that she could be with him always. But he would not make her choose. He knew that it wouldn't be him that she chose. No matter how much she loved him, she would always love Mitch more. He inhaled deeply, and forced a smile to his face, then pulled her back from him and looked at her. "I will never be too far away, Ciera. If you ever need me, for anything, all you have to do is call me."

  "It won't be the same. I need you with me, Dane. I will need you always." He hugged her again, and managed to wipe the treacherous tear that fell from his eye, without her knowing.

  "I told you that you were in love with him. But what surprises me the most is that he is in love with you, too. Even I couldn't manage that." Lenya huffed. "I never thought I would live to see the day that happened."

  Ciera and Dane watched Lenya walk up to them, and they realized that Lenya's idea of a "small bag" was a large suitcase on wheels.

  "What the hell is that?" Dane asked her, and she looked down at the piece of luggage.

  "It's a small bag," she said like she actually believed that.

  Ciera laughed lightly. "I would hate to see what you call a large bag. Try not to bump into anybody on the plane. We will be invisible, remember? Oh, and people will be able to hear you talk, so … don't."

  "Going two hours without talking is not a problem for me," she said as she picked the suitcase up effortlessly, and carried it down the stairs.

  Dane rolled his eyes. "I have never heard you go ten minutes without talking." He wanted to tack on that she had been asleep during that time, but he already knew that Ciera was a little uneasy about him having slept with Lenya before, so he didn't say it.

  "May I whisper?" Lenya asked.

  "Have you ever been on a plane, Lenya?" Dane asked. "The damn pilot could hear a person whisper at the other end of it."

  "Maybe we need to ride where they put the luggage. There are no windows in the cargo area, so we wouldn't have to touch the whole time. And we wouldn't have to worry about being quiet. We actually do need to talk about how we are going to subdue and kill a vampire as strong as Lazarus."

  "I'm not riding in the cargo area with the animals. I'm riding first class," Lenya said matter-of-factly.

  "You can stay here, you know. It isn't like you are going to be of any help to us anyway," Dane said.

  "Fine, I will ride in the cargo area, but we are taking a night flight back. I will be sitting in first class then."

  "You will be coming back alone, Lenya," Ciera said, but didn't miss the look that Lenya gave Dane. He gave her an angry look, then looked away from both her and Lenya. "What?" She looked at Dane. "You are staying in Decatur. You promised me that you would stay."

  He sighed and dropped his head. "I am going to need to get away for a little while, Ciera. I can't stay there and watch him look at you the same way that I look at you. It would only be a matter of days before either me or Mitch ended up dead."

  Ciera's eyes filled with tears as she looked at him. "And you are staying here?"

  He nodded, but still wouldn't look at her.

  She swallowed loudly. There was a lump the size of Texas in her throat. "How long will you stay here?" she asked, and he didn't respond. "Damn it, Dane, look at me! How long are you staying here with her?" she shouted and pointed at Lenya.

  He met her stare. "I'm putting in for a transfer of Families as soon as we speak with our parents."

  She took a step back, and he reached for her. She jerked her arm away from him, lost her visibility, then turned and ran out the door.

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  Chapter 55

  Ciera thought about stealing one of the vehicles parked in the front circle drive, but she decided to steal the Lexus that Dane had borrowed from the vampires in Vegas. If she left it here, he would just cover himself to get to the car, then come after her.

  She opened the door, and he shouted at her. "Ciera! No!" She looked back at the h
ouse, and he had a blanket thrown over his head, and was running toward her.

  She quickly got in the vehicle and locked the doors. Through her tears, she found the wires that she needed to hotwire the car. He was beating on the window and pulling on the door handle frantically. "Just leave me alone, Dane! That is what you plan to do anyway." She went back to concentrating on her wires.

  "You are going to be with Mitch, Ciera. How much torture do you think I can take? Please, let me in the car. I don't want our good-bye to be like this," he said, and Ciera could tell that he was crying through his rage. She found the wires that she needed, and the engine turned over.

  She looked back to the window, to him. The blanket was covering the whole top half of his body, but she could almost see the hurt look on his face. "I'm sorry, Dane. You were right. This would have happened sooner or later. I will love you forever." She put the car in gear, and left him standing in the drive.

  "Damn it!" Dane shouted, and punched at air. He swore again when the sun burned his exposed skin.

  "Come back in the house, Dane." Lenya said calmly from the door. She too, had covered herself so the sun couldn't reach her.

  "Leave me alone, Lenya," Dane said through a clenched jaw.

  She sighed. "Okay, but I just thought that you might want to go and get her, that's all."

  His head shot in her direction. "How?"

  She giggled. "You aren't the only one with fancy tint on your windows. All of my vehicles are sun proof."