by A. Vers
“No,” she breathed, stepped back, and shook her head. “I don’t know you.” She scowled sidelong at Stel and her lips pressed into a thin, grim line. “We taking kids in now?”
Stel gave her a cold once over as she tossed a brown paper sack at my feet. “That was their dinner. Pick it up,” she commanded.
The female crouched and Ryder mirrored her, his tall frame nearly collapsing in half as he rushed to help. Ryder scrambled to pick up an apple. The woman reached too. Their hands brushed and his heart thudded in my ears. The woman jerked away.
I took a step back, hands clasped tight before me, to keep from reaching for Ryder as his face blanked.
But with them so close, I couldn’t help but assess them both, noting the thickness of their hair, the smooth tan complexion they shared, and even the almond tilt to their eyes was similar.
Could she be his mother?
No. His mother was dead. He told me so.
She handed him the tray and rose slowly, her darker eyes scouring his face once before turning away. I waited for one of them to speak again, but no words fell into the space between them. The woman started to walk away, and Stel threw her hand out, barring her path with a tight hold of her bicep.
Ryder’s hands mottled around the tray, and I took a pace forward into his back.
Stel sneered at me. “Eat up, kiddies.” She shifted her gaze to Ryder. “Chris wants to see you when you’re done. Sparring room.”
His jaw worked, but he just nodded.
Horror washed across the dark-haired woman’s face and her eyes pinched. But all she said was, “Stel, let’s go.”
The blonde turned and started off. When the darker of the two remained rooted in place, Stel glowered. “Beth. Move.”
The sound that ripped from Ryder was all masculine anger. The woman, Beth, glanced at him. She gave an imperceptible shake of her head and he quieted. Slowly.
“After you, Stel,” she said, and her voice was cooler than it was before. But when Stel walked away, Beth followed without another word.
They left the door open on the hall and I knew better than to make a break for it.
Ryder stood rigidly in place, the tray balanced in his hands.
I moved around him and gingerly tugged on it. He released the burden into my hands and I set it on the bottom cot before slowly closing the door.
When I turned back around, Ryder’s eyes were dark, nearly panicked.
“Ryder?”
He peered at me, but I was sure he was not really seeing me. I grabbed his hands and led him over to the cot too. He sat down with little effort, almost collapsing onto the thin pad beneath him. His head hung and he seemed to shake.
I did not want to ask. But I had to. I needed to know.
“Ryder? Was she your mother?”
His head rose at that, finally locking his gaze with mine. “It looked like her.” His voice was rasping, breathless, like he could not get enough air. “I don’t …” He pushed his hair back from his face and gripped the heavy strands. “She looked the same. The same as the damn day she died. How? How can she be alive?”
I kneeled in front of him and braced my hands on his thighs. The touch seemed to center him. He raised his hand and cupped my face. “But she is dead. I know she is dead. I saw her,” he muttered, more to himself than to me. “It can’t be possible.” His lips quirked, but the motion was not happy.
“Is there any chance that she did not die?” I asked.
His eyes narrowed into a thoughtful scowl. “I saw her, Mor. I saw her.” His eyes grew shiny. As I watched, the first tear rolled down his tan cheek. My heart squeezed tight and I stood fast, taking him into my arms. His hands locked around me and he pressed his dark head into my chest as he quaked. “I saw her,” he gasped again.
Ryder sobbed silently into me, his heat blanketing my front. But I had no words.
If you had asked me last year if the dead could come back to life, I would tell you the answer was no. But I had been held prisoner in a coffin with my dead nanny since then. Though she was not alive, I knew there was magick to bring back the dead.
Had the hunters used magick to bring Ryder’s mother back from the grave? Or was a little boy’s perception of such a horrid instant wrong enough that his family had gone on a crusade over a living woman?
As Ryder quieted, I did the only thing I knew to do. I stroked his hair and whispered over and over that it would be okay.
Though I was no longer sure if it ever would be again.
Chapter 19
Ryder
“I guess I should go see what Airgid wants,” I finally said to Morgan. We had sat in silence for so long, the sound of my voice was almost too loud now.
She turned to me. Somehow we wound up back on the floor, side by side, and her coolness was the only thing keeping me from moving. Her face was carefully blank as she met my gaze. “You should eat,” she said.
But I wasn’t hungry. Actually, I wasn’t sure what I was.
Maybe it was shock. Maybe the stress of being on the run was finally getting to me, but the woman had looked just like my mother.
Annabeth Hanlon.
Beth.
I wanted to believe, to hope, but I wasn’t a little boy anymore. And I hadn’t been a little boy for a long time. If she was really my mother, she had walked away. Faked her own death to leave us.
But why?
I didn’t know.
The mother I remembered would never have done something like that.
But twelve years was a long—
No.
She wouldn’t just leave. I knew that. Deep down, I knew that. Whoever that woman was, she wasn’t my mother.
Sighing, I pushed to my feet and tugged out a shirt from the bag. I pulled it overhead and walked to the door. “I’m not hungry right now.” Morgan remained silent. “Eat and lay down for a while. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
Still, her unerring quiet was my only answer. I already knew her opinion on my working with the hunters. And I got it.
I respected Morgan. More than I had respected any other girl I had encountered in years. But I didn’t know of another way to get us out that didn’t involve fighting for our freedom.
Morgan was a lot of things, but she wasn’t a fighter. Not yet. And they would kill her if she so much as fanged out. Airgid wouldn’t hesitate. And though I didn’t trust him, I knew he wouldn’t kill her without reason. So it was up to me to make sure he didn’t have a reason.
“Be careful.”
Her voice was so soft behind me that I peered over my shoulder. She was sitting cross legged on the floor, her silk pajamas stained with dirt and her long, porcelain legs scratched from the woods.
If God had ever made a woman more beautiful than Morgan, I had yet to meet her. But it was more than her beauty. It was the resolution that now filled her features every time I looked at her. Morgan was changing. She was growing up in the school of hard-knock, not some ritzy academy for supes.
The real world would chew you up and spit you out if you let it. But judging by the indomitable spirit I saw staring back at me, Morgan was more likely to chew on life.
My lips curved, and I felt a spark of answering heat at the flush of color that stained her cheeks and chest. “I’ll be right back. We can shower together. Save water.” I wasn’t exactly joking, but I refused to press her. Especially not here.
Her lilac eyes widened, then pulsed with light as she lowered her lashes with a smile. “Then hurry.”
The heat in my gut spiraled lower and I almost turned back around. Almost said screw Airgid and his summons to see if she meant it.
But keeping Morgan safe was my top priority. So I gave her a real grin and walked from the room.
The halls were empty and I navigated my way by memory to the top floor. No one called out. Hell, no one was even in the hall.
To be hunters, they weren’t guarding Morgan too close.
Not that I was complaining.
; Light filtered in through the open doorway to one side of the sparring room, but the light was artificial. Mats had been lined up around the rim of the space, and Airgid was waiting inside, his back to me as I entered.
We were the only ones in the area.
“You wanted to see me?” I refused to call him ‘sir’. It just wasn’t in me.
He didn’t turn around. “We’re going to take a recon trip into town. I want you with us.”
Recon?
“Why?” I asked. “What do I need to be looking for?”
“There was a vampire spotted near downtown. Team said this one seems young, but Salem is a haven city.”
Meaning it was free of most supernaturals. The occasional witch still practiced within city limits, but most of them were wiccans or neo-pagans. For there to be another vampire in town besides Morgan was interesting. But not a cause for concern. At least not for us.
We were getting out as soon as possible.
“Is the vamp making trouble for the locals?” I wanted that to be very clear. I refused to hunt a vampire that wasn’t an immediate threat. Most of them were on their best behavior thanks to all the grandfathered laws. But occasionally one would go rogue. They would target humans like their ancestors and since there were no supe guardians, it made sense that the Horn had been mobilized in town.
He glanced at me with a small smile. The motion was tight and it still sent an odd shiver down my spine. “Not that we can surmise.” His answer was vague. A little too vague for my liking, but I couldn’t really call him on it. “We want to verify their intentions before we ask nicely for them to leave town,” he finished.
I nodded. “Understood.”
Chris turned to face me, his hands clasped behind his back. “Do you have military training, boy?”
“No.”
“Daddy in the military?”
“No.”
“But you follow directives like a soldier. Why is that?”
“My father liked order,” I told him. It wasn’t a lie either. “I made sure to never give him a reason, if you catch my meaning.”
His nod was slow, thoughtful. “Then get dressed, son. We leave in twenty.”
I didn’t bow, just turned on my heel and made for the door.
“And boy?”
I glanced back.
“Make sure your girl knows to stay in the room until you return.” His blue eyes grew colder than an iceberg. “I would hate to come back to a problem.”
Grinding my teeth, I muttered, “Of course,” and stalked out.
Chapter 20
Morgan
I glanced at the tray, but didn’t feel like eating. It had little to do with the food they were serving us and everything to do with the fact that Ryder was working for hunters again.
He had not made any promises that he wouldn’t hunt when we ran away from Lokworth. It was what he knew. So, to him, I was sure it seemed logical. But he was still hunting. How could I let that go?
And why did Airgid want him so much? What was it about Ryder that the older hunter seemed so interested in?
A dull scrape sounded on the door.
I lifted my head to find a pair of dark eyes watching me through the narrow window.
It was the hunter from the woods.
Mitch.
I suddenly felt underdressed despite my pajamas.
He made no move to enter, merely watched me through the thick glass, his greasy hair unkempt. I stared back. One long finger came up and he petted the glass, stroking it, as his gaze seemed to lose focus. It was an oddly sensual gesture. I shuddered.
Heart thundering, I balled my hands into fists. “Go away,” I called loud enough for him to hear.
He smirked and ducked out of the frame.
I waited. He did not reappear. Straining my ears, I tried to listen for the sound of a nearby heartbeat, but with every hour that passed, Ryder’s blood circulated more fully with my own. It lost its potency, leaving me near human again.
The only sound was my harsh breathing audible past the dull roar of my pulse. I swung my feet onto the floor and crept toward the door. The window remained empty.
Had he really gone?
Laying my palms flat on the cool metal, I leaned into the window, searching up and down the hall. The space was deserted. There were no hunters, no sign of Mitch. I let out a long breath.
A dark head popped into view. With a shout, I scrambled back and tripped in my haste, falling on my rear. The impact jarred into my very bones. Mitch stood on the other side of the glass, laughing broadly as my heart thumped with fear. With icy terror that was trying to choke me.
I scrambled to my feet and dashed to the wall beside the door, out of sight. He struck the door with a thud. The sound made me bite my lip to keep from crying out again. Silence echoed. Then a louder thump ripped through the quiet. A low whimper escaped before I could stop it. I clapped my hands over my mouth and slowly slid down the wall, drawing my legs tight to my chest.
He slapped the door again and again. Each blow made me jump, but I didn’t cry out. Warmth trickled over my chin and I knew I had bit my lip hard enough to make it bleed.
Pressed so close to the wall, Mitch growled and stalked off, his retreading steps fading into nothing.
Heavy silence followed his departure, and I huddled against the cool steel, rocking slowly. I needed to get up, to move before Ryder got back, but my legs shook and every inhale was ragged past my lips.
I was not stupid. I knew Mitch was trying to scare me. To bully me into attacking him. I would not give him or Airgid the satisfaction. Would not give them a reason to hate my kind more than they already did.
But fear still flavored my tongue.
Wrapping my trembling hands around my knees, I bent my head and forced myself to breathe. Slowly my heartbeat calmed and some of the shaking eased. I inhaled and the sound was almost normal.
I climbed to my feet, but the weakness in my legs had not completely depleted. It left me leaning against the wall for support.
My mind seemed to hum, whirring with residual adrenaline and relief.
I knew it would do no good for Ryder to know what Mitch had done. For him to know I had cowered instead of facing the hunter head on. But one day of training was not enough to fight off anyone.
And if Airgid had his way, it would never be enough.
I paced to the bathroom door and back to the wall.
We couldn’t stay here.
I couldn’t stay here. But I couldn’t go back to Lokworth or back to my colony. There was nothing left for me in either place. The haven they once reflected was decimated the day I learned the truth.
But staying with the Horn was not an option either. Mitch would not stop. What would happen if he tried to provoke me when my thirst was too high? Would I, out of self-preservation, attack him in kind?
Could I drain him to save my own life?
My throat scorched as my mouth went dry and my pulse raced.
There was no other way.
I couldn’t stay here long enough to find out.
But would Ryder come with me knowing the truth about my parents? Would he risk being alone with me as we were before?
Despite his teasing earlier, there was still distance between us.
My eyes darted to the closed door.
But I just did not have the answers anymore.
Chapter 21
Ryder
When I got back to the room, Morgan was sitting on the cot, her knees drawn up to her chest and her chin on her arms. The food sat untouched on the bed beside her, and her porcelain skin was paler than normal. But she was still in her pajamas, and I wondered if she was really waiting for me.
She didn’t say anything as I entered. Merely uncoiled her body from the bed and walked to me. I wanted badly to strip her bare and walk her into the bathroom. At least there I was mostly sure we weren’t being watched.
Though I had no proof that the room had cameras, I wouldn’t put it past Ai
rgid either.
“I need to get dressed to go,” I said as she neared.
She stopped walking. “Go?”
“There’s another vampire in town,” I said, hating every word. “But Airgid swears we are just trying to figure out their reason for being in town. Nothing more.”
Her arms crossed and her body closed off. “I see.” There was nothing in her tone that I understood.
My hands ached to reach for her, but I just went to the bed, pulled out my jeans from the bag and dug for socks. I stepped into the bathroom, but left the door cracked.
“Shouldn’t take long to track them and give them a verbal warning that Salem is a haven city,” I called to her as I shucked my shorts and tugged on the jeans.
No response.
I poked my head around the door to find her in the same space. “I know you’re not happy about this, Morgan. But look at it this way, I don’t have to harm them. I know that now. Because of you.” Her eyes flicked to mine. “We know I’m faster than Airgid’s people. Than him. I can tell the vamp to scram. To get out of town. They can leave before the Horn can get to them.”
Her lips mottled, then she sighed. “Do what you can,” she told me as I stepped out, zipping my fly. “But hurry back and don’t get hurt.”
I snorted. “I’m careful, woman. Always.”
She grabbed two handfuls of my shirt and pressed her body flush against mine. The motion was commanding, forceful, and a thrill went through me. “Be. Careful.” Each word held a thinly veiled threat of her anger as her eyes glittered up at me.
Morgan with a backbone was always a turn-on for me, and this was no different.
Shoving my hands into her silky hair, I backed her up until her spine hit the wall. She moaned as I dropped my mouth to hers, capturing her lips and feasting at them. When my head spun, I pulled back long enough to breathe, “Yes, ma’am.” I nipped her lower lip again, kissed her forehead and stepped back.
Her eyes were luminous as I bent to grab my boots. I shoved my feet inside and walked to the door.
“Hey, Mor?” I said, peering at her.