by K. R. Willis
If I had ever known anything in my entire life, in that moment I knew he spoke the truth. The truth of his words rang loud and clear.
Some of the anger that had been building, waiting to lash out, fizzled and died. I remembered how it felt to stand there, trapped before Loukas, unable to do a damn thing about it, and remembered the look on Leo’s face when Loukas mentioned the Lorum.
Damn…I deflated even more as I realized I could no more be angry with him than I could myself or Rya. He’d done everything he could, and then some.
“So how do I get rid of it?” I’d cut the damned thing off if I had to, though that would no doubt be excruciatingly painful.
“The Lorum is another of Loukas’ ‘special’ gifts,” Leo went on. “It allows him to find you wherever you are. If you fail to bring him the proof he requires, he will use the Lorum to track you down and kill you. No one knows where it came from, only that it has manifested itself over the centuries, and no other vampire is known to possess it.” He paused in his explanation, looking thoughtful for a moment, before continuing, “As for how you get rid of it…if Loukas does not remove it willingly, you must kill him.”
Leo remained quiet for a moment as his words sank in. I was stuck with a mark that allowed a master vampire to track me down and kill me whenever he chose. Either that or I had to kill him, which I might add, would be impossible. All he’d have to do would be to freeze me with his telekinesis ability and chop my head off.
There wasn’t really anything I could say to that, so I opted to file that little tidbit in the back of my brain with all the other things I’d learned recently that I didn’t know what to do about. Instead, I changed the subject and plowed straight ahead. I’d freak out later.
“What happened between you and Loukas back there? Why would he let me go? He claims they found some marker unique to my blood in the victims, which in their eyes proves I’m responsible, and he had me frozen with his powers. Why didn’t he end it?”
When Leo battled Jeremy by my side that night at the Blu Moon, fear never entered the equation, but I swear the emotion flashed through his eyes for a second before disappearing.
His face was perfectly neutral when he answered.
“When vampires are created, they receive the ability to heal as their initial gift. Without it, due to the circumstances in which most vampires are created, there would not be many of our kind. They also receive the ability to calm their prey so that they may feed for the same reasons.
“All other abilities are gained each century on the anniversary of our rebirth. Our kind believes it is a way for nature to maintain the balance. Survival of the fittest if you will. Your first century, you gain exceptional strength. Your second, amazing speed. Your third….” His words drifted off as he gazed out the window.
A light bulb went off somewhere in my brain and I knew what the third one was. During his fight with Dorian, Leo had not only been really damn fast, but he had flown in order to retrieve the sword. If my memory served me right, he was only a little over 200 years old. He shouldn’t have that ability yet. “What happens when a vampire gains an ability before he’s supposed to?”
Leo turned and faced me. “It has only happened one other time that I am aware of. Loukas cannot have another vampire become as powerful as he is. When he found out about Gregori, a young vampire who started gaining powers too soon, he locked him up and tortured him. It is not a fate I wish to share, so I have kept my secret hidden for many years…until tonight.”
He didn’t say it, but the way his hazel eyes bore into mine, I knew what he was thinking. He’d kept his secret hidden with no problem…until tonight, when he’d defended me. Now Loukas knew and had his sights set on Leo. I was merely cannon fodder. He believed me to be guilty, so I couldn’t possibly find any evidence to exonerate myself as far as he was concerned. In three days, he would have every reason to execute me and claim Leo. Well, we’d just see about that.
“I’m sorry,” I said. The words weren’t enough, but I meant them with all my heart. I hadn’t asked Leo to come to my rescue tonight, but he had, and look where that got him. My heart sank. Everyone who loved me or tried to help me always got hurt in some way.
Leo stared at me for a moment before saying, “I know.” He focused his attention on the landscape outside the window, away from me.
His dismissal hurt. I’m not sure what I expected, or wanted, goodness knows he’d already done enough, but I needed something. Some comfort from him other than the cold shoulder he gave me. Or maybe it was forgiveness for the trouble I’d caused him and so many others. I didn’t know. The hollowness inside my chest grew and expanded until it threatened to consume me. When my eyes moistened, I looked away, mirroring Leo as I watched what I could see of the landscape drift by.
Feeling lonely and afraid of what came next, I closed my eyes and prayed the rhythm of the limo would lull me to sleep.
CHAPTER 23
The next morning, I awakened to find myself in my apartment, my wounds cleaned, wearing my favorite pajamas with the ’68 Mustang on them, cuddled up to about half a dozen pillows. One of my dining room chairs was positioned next to the bed, as though Leo had sat and kept an eye on me while I slept. I wasn’t sure what bothered me more: the fact that Leo had obviously seen me naked when he cleaned and redressed me, or the fact that he had done it without me waking up.
I quickly dressed in a black tank top, a pair of blue jeans with the knees worn out, and my work boots. After stuffing my face with a ham and cheese omelet and tossing what was left of the ham to Rya, we climbed in Old Red and headed for the firehouse.
Rya sprawled across the bench seat, her head propped up against my thigh, when I pulled into the parking lot. The sun still hid somewhere over the horizon, but had begun to brighten the sky as I opened the driver’s side door. Rya bailed out, gracefully leaping over me to land on her feet, and trotted toward the line of trees at the back of the firehouse, leaving me in her wake.
“Don’t wait for me to get out of the truck or anything,” I called to her as she disappeared from sight. She probably needed to burn off some energy, and knowing her, would be on the lookout for some poor, hapless rabbit.
I shook my head at her as I walked past Sam’s Cougar and Kit’s abomination on my way to the front doors. The little Celica was a foreign hunk of metal with ridiculous neon lights and a wing on the trunk that looked like the handle on a shopping cart. Having it parked in front of the shop amidst Ellie—Sam’s Cougar—and Old Red was almost shameful.
The shop hummed with the sound of the air compressor Kit used to power his paint sprayer. He had the portable painter’s booth inflated in the back corner with the Ford inside. I didn’t do a lot of full restorations where Kit had to come and repaint the exterior, so I’d opted to purchase the portable booth instead of installing a permanent one to save on cost and space. He was covered from head to toe in his white Tyvek coveralls, rubber gloves, and mask with the paint sprayer thrown over his shoulder as he inspected his work on the front fender. Kit gave me two thumbs up when he spotted me on my way to the office. I gave him a quick wave as I passed.
“Keira!”
I froze just as my hand grabbed the doorknob. Sam’s boots thudded as he dropped to the floor off the fireman’s pole, angry steps echoing as he strode toward me. Damn, I’d hoped to at least have a cup of coffee before he started in on me.
I pasted on a smile and turned to face him. “Hi, Sam. How’s business been?”
Sam scooped me up in his arms and squeezed me hard enough to make my eyes bulge in their sockets before he dropped me to my feet and gave me a thorough once over. “Are you hurt? What happened?” I snatched my hand away when he tried to examine a scar Khalid had given me. He narrowed his eyes.
“I’m fine, Sam, really. It’s just a scratch.” I resisted the urge to rub the Lorum, which seemed to itch in response to Sam’s questioning, as if it had a crappy sense of humor. “Nothing happened. The Vampire Council and I had
a disagreement. That’s all.” I tried not to let how scared I was leak into my voice, but Sam heard it. We’d been best friends for far too long.
“The Vampire Council? Does this have anything to do with the dead vampires I told you about?”
“Yes, but it’s fine. We worked it out,” I lied. We hadn’t come anywhere close to working it out.
“Bullshit. I know you better than that,” he chided. “The world could be coming to an end right on top of your head and you’d say there’s nothing wrong. You’re always trying to protect everyone else.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “When will you ever learn we’re family? We’re in this together.”
I blew out a frustrated breath and deflated. How could I get him and Sally to understand I was trying to protect them? That I would never forgive myself if something happened to either of them because of me? I’d already lost my mother. I couldn’t lose them, too.
I didn’t want to start the day off crying or blubbering like an idiot so I went for bravado instead. “I’m a big girl, Sam. Everything’s fine. See?” I held my arms out and rotated them from side to side, being careful not to let him get a good look at the cut he’d spotted earlier. The Lorum pinched when I spun in a circle. “I’m in one piece, nothing’s broken.” Which was true now, but only because Rya had healed me.
Sam eyed me skeptically. He knew I wasn’t telling him the truth. At least not all of it. We’d been around each other most of our lives; you can’t spend that much time with someone and not have a pretty good idea when they’re lying to you.
Just when I thought he was going to call me on it he said, “Fine. When you decide to stop being Wonder Woman and trying to do everything on your own, you know where to find me.” His shoulders slumped and the look on his face told me I’d hurt him, that I’d chipped away at something special between us. He turned his back to me and walked away, boots thumping as he returned to his half of the firehouse.
My heart broke. I wanted so much to tell him about Loukas, the Lorum, and everything Father had told me about the Evil One, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. I couldn’t put him in the line of fire just so I would feel better. Because of her relationship with Tom, Sally was already in way deeper than she should’ve been. If I could go back and change things, I would have kept her out of everything that had happened since we found Tom dead. It was too late to keep Sally out, but I could protect Sam. I just hoped it didn’t destroy our friendship in the meantime.
Dismayed, I opened the office door and stepped inside. It looked the same as it always did, but today it just felt cramped, unwelcoming. The flashing clock on the coffeemaker drew my attention, so I walked over and checked that it had fresh coffee in the filter—which it did, thankfully—before turning it on.
The alluring aroma of hazelnut had just started to work its magic when my phone rang. I pulled it out of my back pocket and glanced at the screen. Sally. I sucked in a deep breath and answered on the second ring.
“Hey, chicky, what’s up?” I hoped my chipper attitude would divert whatever ass chewing she was about to dole out.
“Where are you?” Sally barked into my ear.
Damn, no such luck. “I’m at work, Sally, where are you?”
I could almost hear her rolling her eyes at me on the other end of the line.
“Don’t be a smart aleck, Keira. You nearly died last night, again I might add. You should be at home resting.” She must have called Leo when she realized I hadn’t come home like I was supposed to and chewed his ass until he told her. “Oh, and let’s not forget we still haven’t found Janelle Williams…she could be anywhere.” Like I needed help remembering that little tidbit.
“Sally, don’t start. Sam’s already upset with me. I don’t need it from you, too.” One friend ticked at me at a time was more than enough.
“Did you tell him? I tried to call him last night after I talked to Leo, but he didn’t answer. I think he had a late class or something.”
“No, I didn’t,” I said, the guilt plain as day in my voice. “He knows something is up, but not the details. And Sally…I don’t want him to know. You guys are in this too deep as it is.” She started to protest, but I cut her off. “Come on, Sally. You’re in this because of Tom. Sam doesn’t have to be. Help me protect him.”
She quieted on the other end of the line, the only sound that of the overhead intercom system they used at the hospital—apparently, there was a code blue on the ICU floor. I knew she was weighing what I said against the urge to tell Sam everything. We didn’t normally keep secrets from him.
After only a few short moments she sighed into the receiver. “You have to promise me after all this is sorted out, you’ll tell him everything.”
“Done,” I blurted, before she could change her mind. “So no luck on Janelle Williams yet, huh?” I asked, changing the subject.
“No,” she said sadly. “I’m on the hunt, but nothing yet. I’ll look some more tonight after I get off work.”
“As much as I hate having you involved in all this, Sally, I just want to say thanks for your help. I’m not sure I’d stand a chance of tracking down Janelle Williams on my own.”
“You’re welcome,” she said, just as another code blared over the intercom system. It must have been on her floor because she half yelled into the phone, “I gotta go. I’ll call you if I find something.”
“’Kay,” I yelled back. The line went dead.
Well that went better than I’d thought. The coffee pot gurgled and belched as it finished filling the carafe with liquid gold, so I grabbed my favorite mug and poured myself a cup.
I stole a moment to just kick back and enjoy the peace and quiet. With everything going on, I knew it wouldn’t last long. I didn’t have the first clue how to prove my innocence, if I even was. This new revelation about my blood carrying a unique marker, and that marker being found in the victims, made even me question my innocence. All I knew was that I hadn’t done it on purpose. I just needed to figure out what happened. Janelle Williams seemed to be my closest lead, and Sally was hot on the trail, but otherwise I was at a loss. I wasn’t an investigator in any sense of the word, so I just had to hope like hell Sally found something.
“Customer!” Kit yelled from somewhere in the shop, shattering my thoughts and bringing me back to the present.
I had a job to do.
In all honesty, I probably shouldn’t have come in to work, but the shop was my baby, and I needed something that still felt normal in the mess my life had become. I downed the last of my coffee, and went to work.
***
The day went off without a hitch, which was great for a change. Kit finished the paint job on the Ford and left it in the booth to finish drying overnight. It hadn’t taken long for me to fall into the rhythm and routine of the shop, and forget about my troubles—even if only for a little while.
Sam didn’t speak to me the rest of the day, he just closed up his dojo and left. I wouldn’t have even known he’d gone except for the Cougar’s loud engine as he pulled out of the parking lot. It hurt like hell, but I’d rather him be mad at me and alive than dead.
The last customer left and I was closing up shop when the hairs on the back of my neck stood up. I looked around, but didn’t see anything. Probably just nerves. There had been people around me all day; this was the first time I’d been alone since what happened with Loukas and the Council.
I went back to collecting my tools and placing them in the tool chest, but stopped when I heard Rya hiss. She’d come into the shop after Miss Saunders—my last customer—left and was lying on top of the old ’Cuda that hadn’t been picked up yet.
“What is it?” I reached for my dagger, but then remembered I’d never gotten it back from Khalid. Then my heart sank as I realized the last place I’d seen my sword was stuck in the wall at Dottie’s Café, no doubt collected by Khalid before he left with my unconscious form. After a quick survey of my immediate area, I grabbed a long-handled screwdriver on a nearby tool c
hest. It was nowhere as big as I wanted it to be, but I’d rather have a weapon too small than nothing at all.
Sabin, Rya growled. I smell him.
As if she summoned him with her words, Sabin appeared from behind the workbench that ran along the east wall. He was fully visible now, all pretense of magic that kept him hidden gone. His ears pricked forward as he realized I could see him, his demeanor—which had been watchful, but nonthreatening—changed to aggressive. Sabin lowered his massive head and hissed. All the hairs down his back stood on end, as though soldiers rallied for a cause.
Rya’s claws dug into the ‘Cuda as she got to her feet, dropped her head and hissed a return challenge. I cringed at the thought of what her nails were doing to the car’s paint job, but decided to worry about that later. I had two very pissed off cats to deal with—one of them the hell-spawn of the demon I would have to face someday.
Now that I knew what the danger was, I looked around for something a little more substantial than my measly screwdriver and spotted a crowbar about six feet to my left on the floor. It had a curved neck on one end, but the rest of it was straight, tapering to a flattened point on the other. It wasn’t my sword, but it’d make a great weapon in a pinch.
Rya, can you keep him busy long enough for me to grab that crowbar by the rear tire of the ’Cuda? I tried not to look at it directly so as not to give away my plan.
Absolutely, Rya proclaimed, sounding way too pleased with the prospect of doing battle. She hopped off the hood of the car and inched toward Sabin, teeth bared.