Eric glanced up at the treetops. The sky was starting to change, hinting at the coming dawn. He had better get back to the lair. He stashed the remnants of his meager meal, burying them so Barack wouldn't scent them, and took off in an easterly direction.
He arrived at the lair before the rest of them. That was good. This way he could get his sleeping place staked out and not have to deal with the females. They both liked to cuddle with him while they slept. Eric thought they were trying to make Barack jealous--a dangerous thing to do--but Barack showed no signs of being concerned with another male in the Clutch. Barack was confident, if nothing else.
The lair itself was a natural cave-like structure in the granite of an old rockslide. There weren't too many places where the Clutch could hole up and evade the sun, but the lair was perfect. Its natural shelter made it inconspicuous, except to any wild animals that dared to enter. If they weren't disposed of immediately by a dozing vampire, the animal itself would quickly exit the cave, knowing the scent of death filled the lair. Because that's what the vampires smelled like, even to Eric. Of course, Eric's sense of smell was much sharper than that of most people's. He doubted a normal person would be able to tell the difference between a human and a vampire. But Eric had a few special powers. All the Ravens did. That's what made them able to deal with the vampires and almost fit in with the vampire lifestyle.
In addition to a sharpened sense of smell, Eric had the ability to move silently, and the knack of touching a person's mind and making that person see and feel what he wanted.
Which was how he had accomplished the out-of-body sex with Lydia Cross. Of course, Eric had projected his image to Lydia. Also his touch. All she could do at the time was feel. Eric smiled, knowing Lydia had no idea she had actually experienced sex on the astral plane. Oh, he was sure she knew Eric had not really been there in body, but he also knew she'd felt every touch, every breath, as if he had been. Of all of Eric's special powers, self-projection was his strength.
Eric crawled through the entrance to the lair and made his way to the back wall. To enter the lair, he had to go to his knees, but once inside he could stand. The lair smelled of earth, pine and wild things, with the hint of vampire stench. Eric tried not to think about the odor. He started a small fire, just big enough to see by, then settled himself on a ledge that jutted from the back wall. The ledge was only large enough for himself and was usually occupied by one of the females. But today, Eric was going to take advantage so that he didn't have to deal with fending one of them off if she was feeling amorous.
As he lay down on the bed of pine needles lining the ledge, Alison crept into the lair. She was in her wolf form, sleek, coal-black fur covering her body. She shifted as she moved into the center of the lair, her body rippling, her legs elongating. By the time she reached the center of the lair, she was a woman. A very beautiful one. Eric sighed. Such a waste.
He watched Alison stretch, her naked skin glowing a rich coffee color in the flickering light of the fire. She looked at him and smiled, her fangs long and sharp.
"You're cold, Eric. Let me come warm you." Alison started toward him, her eyes flashing.
A low growl came from behind her. Alison turned.
Susanna had entered the lair, Barack directly behind her. Susanna was a reddish colored wolf and when she shifted, her long red hair became her best feature. Other than that, she was fairly plain. Eric didn't see what had drawn Barack to her. But then, Eric wasn't a vampire himself. Who knew why Barack would have wanted this plain-looking woman to spend eternity with him?
Barack shifted more quickly than the females. He shook his head, his thick black hair shot through with gray ruffling around his shoulders. "Alison, you will sleep with me this day," Barack ordered.
Eric watched as Alison moved gracefully to Barack's side while Susanna pouted.
As Barack settled into his sleeping position with Alison tucked at his side, he met Eric's gaze. "We have an intruder in our territory," he said.
Eric nodded, his gaze not wavering.
"I'll make it your task to be watchful. Can you do that?"
Again, Eric nodded.
"Good," Barack said, pulling Alison close. "Now we sleep." He closed his eyes and quieted.
Eric pretended to close his eyes, but peered under his lashes. Alison and Barack were quickly asleep, their breathing barely existent. Susanna lay against another wall, glaring jealously at the couple. The tension was thick in the lair, Susanna barely able to control her anger. Eric could feel it rolling off her in waves. He wouldn't be able to rest until Susanna finally fell asleep. A jealous vampire was a dangerous vampire. At least Barack had given the chore of keeping an eye on Lydia Cross to him. It wouldn't be good for one of the females to watch her. But then, Eric was troubled that Barack knew of Lydia's existence. Of course, Barack would know, he told himself. This was Barack's territory. And Lydia wasn't that far from the lair.
Eric glanced at Susanna. She was tiring, he could tell. He wished she would hurry up and give in to sleep. Either that, or it was going to be a very long day.
* * * *
Lydia finally awoke to greet a bright, sunny day. She stretched, arms above her head, toes pointed. The end of the sleeping bag hung off the foot of the cot, her heels balancing on the edge. "Get your butt up," she told herself.
Flinging back the top of the sleeping bag, Lydia shivered for a moment, then burst from her bed and started her day. Half an hour later, she was sipping a hot cup of coffee in front of her tent, listening to the morning birdsong.
Lydia smiled. This was pure heaven to her. She only had a few weeks to complete her study, then she would have to head back home to Indiana. But while she was here, she was going to revel in the atmosphere. She took a sip of coffee, the rich, deep flavor filling her mouth, reaching all the way to her toes.
Just the way that strange experience had effected her last night. Damn, she hoped she'd run into Eric Raven again. She giggled. If she did run into him, she'd probably jump his bones. She stretched her legs out in front of her and leaned back. Could he possibly be as good as that dream-thing promised? Oh how she wanted to find out. She remembered his wavy dark hair and the way his eyes, so dark, seemed to sparkle with light. His smile, how disarming it was. Lydia frowned and cocked her head. His smile... there was something that wasn't quite right. Something to do with his teeth. She bit her lip. She couldn't quite place what was different.
"Oh what the hell," she said, getting up out of her chair. She drank the rest of her coffee and began gathering her things. She needed to do some tracking, find some moose trails so she could start to study them. She loaded her pack with camera and film, notebooks, compass and extra socks. She always packed extra socks, just in case. A throwback from her mother's teachings. Forget about the clean underwear, Lydia's mother focused on socks. Probably because Lydia had five brothers and they were always into something that required more socks.
Lydia shouldered her pack, checked to ensure everything was secure at the camp, and set off toward the north. She had a map of Maine Paper Land but it mostly followed the one and only road threading through the area. She'd have to be careful not to get lost. Getting lost up here would be a mistake. It could take days for her to make it out of the woods. But Lydia wasn't really worried about getting lost. She was better at hiking than that.
Lydia left the clearing and entered the woods. As she walked, she paid special attention to the ground, looking for signs of a large animal moving through the undergrowth. Her mind kept going back to Eric Raven.
Just the thought of him warmed her in certain places. She wondered where his camp was. If he was a logger, he would probably be working at this time of day. She didn't hear any sounds of logging nearby. What kind of camp did he have? Why wasn't he staying at some logging camp? He had made it sound like he was camping on his own.
The more she thought about it, the more Lydia wondered. Odd she would meet someone out here, where she was camping. Off the main road. The o
nly road that cut through the logging land. How had Eric gotten out here? When he had said his camp was nearby, he had waved his hand toward the east. That was in the opposite direction of where the road was. So he was camped further into the woods than Lydia herself.
Before she knew it, she was starting to veer off in an easterly direction. She still was watching for animal tracks but she really was more interested in where Eric Raven had set up camp. Maybe he wasn't a logger after all.
But if he wasn't, what the heck was he doing out here in the middle of nowhere? she wondered. And why would he lie?
Lydia moved through the woods, her mind on Eric Raven. What a good-looking man. It sure would be a shame to find out he's some kind of weirdo, she thought. But then again, he looked sane enough.
For some reason, Lydia was drawn to Eric Raven.
And she was determined to seek him out.
As the day wore on, she trekked through the woods first going north, then east. She hadn't seen any moose tracks but she had seen deer, fox and some wolf. Probably the ones she had heard calling. That worried her a bit. She knew she should be heading back to camp. The sun was starting to head for its bed and to be honest, Lydia's legs were getting tired.
So far she had yet to see a sign of moose or to find Eric Raven's camp.
Just as she decided to call it a day and turn around, she came upon a deer carcass.
Lydia unshouldered her pack and crouched down to get a better look.
Flies buzzed the carcass. It was a doe, she noted, trying to guess from the wounds what kind of animal had killed it. Its throat was ripped out and part of the belly had been torn, but otherwise whatever had brought the doe down must have been spooked off. Nothing on the doe's body had been eaten. Lydia dug into her pack and got out a pair of gloves. She slipped them on and began to examine the wounds.
Lydia frowned. The neck wound looked to be from a wolf bite. That made sense. She had heard them calling to each other very early this morning. But why hadn't they eaten more of the carcass? Then another strange thing struck her.
The doe seemed to have no blood left.
Lydia looked around the body, thinking the doe had bled onto the ground. But there was no blood staining the dirt and pine needles where it lay. It was as if the blood had just disappeared.
Lydia sat back on her heels and stared at the doe.
What could have done this? she asked herself.
Shaking her head, Lydia stood and opened her pack, searching for her camera. She wanted a picture of this. She walked completely around the doe, taking a shot from every angle. This would be something to show her director when she returned. It wasn't related to her research project, but it was interesting just the same.
When she finished, she packed back up and was surprised to see that it was almost dark.
"Christ, I'd better get a move on and get back to camp," she said, checking her compass. She didn't want to get caught out here with whatever had brought the doe down. It might consider her a threat and attack.
Lydia started heading west, toward her camp and the setting sun. Before long, it became hard to see. The sun dipped below the treetops and the woods took on a foggy green dimness that warned of the oncoming night. Lydia picked up the pace, wishing she hadn't wandered so far east in search of Eric's camp.
She figured she had about a mile, maybe a mile and a half to go when she heard something tracking her from behind. She slowed her pace a bit, trying to listen to how the animal moved. Trying to figure out what was tracking her. It sounded like the footfalls of a human.
Lydia began moving faster again, unsure of who would be out here in the woods. Her biggest threat would be another person. Remembering the doe's carcass, Lydia started to get the willies. Maybe it was some weirdo lumberjack, thinking he was an animal or something. People were known to go crazy after being so isolated in the wilderness.
She shook her head, chiding herself. There was no reason to be scared. She was a big girl. She could take care of herself.
Then someone grabbed her arm.
Lydia whirled around, fists up, a scream bursting from her throat. It echoed off the trees as she swung both fists, connecting with something or someone.
Arms wrapped around her, pinning her arms to her sides. "Hey!" a man's voice said. "Calm down."
Lydia wriggled, trying to free her arms. "Let go of me!"
"Only if you calm down."
"Okay. Just let go." She held her breath.
The arms that held her dropped away. Lydia brought her fists back up. But he was out of reach.
"Stop it," he warned. "I don't want to have to wrestle you to the ground."
The light was dim. Lydia could barely make him out in the falling darkness. "Eric?" she said, squinting at the dark shape that stood just out of reach.
"Yeah. It's me. You gonna be nice now?" he asked, moving a couple of steps closer.
Lydia let out her breath and relaxed a bit. "Damn, you scared me. What are you doing, grabbing me from behind like that?"
"I'm sorry. I just didn't want to get shot or something." He came up beside her. "Truce?"
Lydia nodded. "Okay. But no more grabbing from behind." She pointed a finger at him for emphasis.
Eric raised his hands in supplication. "No more grabbing." Then he winked. "At least not from behind."
Lydia bit her lip to keep from smiling. She remembered that was exactly what he had done in her fantasy last night. "You're pretty fresh, aren't you?" she asked, beginning to walk in the direction of her camp. She could use a cup of coffee and she'd also like to sit and talk to Eric for a while. See what came of it. She felt a little shiver of anticipation. Lydia ducked her head and smiled so Eric didn't see it. She was no angel. But she also didn't just want to come right out and jump him.
"Mind if I walk along with you?" Eric asked, falling in step beside her.
"Of course not. Matter of fact, I was going to ask you if you'd like to come back to camp with me for a bit to eat or something."
"Well, I'm not really hungry, but I will come back to camp with you. Just to make sure you get back safely."
Lydia stiffened a little. "I don't need a bodyguard." She stepped over a fallen limb.
"I didn't say you did."
"That's what you meant."
"Hey," Eric said, taking her arm. "I thought we had a truce."
Lydia turned to him. "I thought we did too but then you had to go and act like a man and insinuate that I'm some helpless little girl out here in the big old woods and..."
His mouth closing over hers shut her up. Lydia's knees went watery with the force of his kiss. She leaned into him, deepening the kiss, sliding her arms around his neck. He tasted spicy, his mouth hot.
Eric groaned in his throat and slid his arms around her waist. He tucked his hands underneath her pack, splaying his fingers across her back.
Lydia's insides began to tremble as her tongue worked its way inside his mouth. She wanted to drop her clothes right then and there. She wove her fingers through his hair, wanting to touch, to feel. Her tongue brushed something sharp inside his mouth.
Suddenly, Eric pulled away. "I'm sorry," he said, his voice a low growl. "I don't know what came over me."
Lydia put a hand to her kiss-ravaged lips and tried to catch her breath. "That was ... amazing."
"I don't usually..." Eric started to walk.
Lydia shrugged, readjusting her pack. "Um ... don't worry about it okay?" she said, coming up beside him. "I enjoyed it immensely."
Eric glanced at her, his eyes flashing.
Lydia decided to be quiet about the kiss. Maybe he was embarrassed by his own behavior. Or that "something sharp" inside his mouth had been a bridge he was ashamed of. But she hoped he'd do it again. She began to wonder just when she had turned into a sex-crazed hussy who wanted to rear her head whenever Eric Raven was around.
They arrived at her camp a few minutes later. Lydia was glad to drop her pack on the ground. Carrying it all day had pre
tty much wasted her shoulders. She shrugged and stretched as she set about making some coffee.
She watched Eric out of the corner of her eye. He moved about her camp as if looking for something. That puzzled her. But she did like watching him. He moved with an animal grace, his muscles tightly controlled. Coffee on, Lydia plopped down in a chair. "Did you happen to see that doe lying in the forest?" she asked.
Eric stopped his pacing and sat on the ground beside her. "The one that was attacked? Yes."
Lydia cocked her head. He had the strangest expression on his face. He looked angry. "What's wrong?"
"I don't like to see things go to waste." He turned to meet her gaze. The firelight flickered in his dark eyes, making Lydia feel a hot moisture pool down low. "If something felt the need to slaughter that deer, why didn't it finish the meal?" he continued.
"Animals are like that sometimes. It could have been spooked off by another animal, or something like that." Lydia placed a hand on his arm. "Don't let it bother you so much. That's nature's way of controlling populations. Some animals have to die."
Eric shook his head. "Such a waste."
Lydia watched his face as he stared at the fire. It was surprising to see someone so concerned over a deer. Especially a man. There's more to this guy than meets the eye, she thought, getting up to pour some coffee.
She got herself a cup then offered a cup to Eric. "No thanks," he said, stretching a leg out in front of him. "Did you happen to hear the wolves this morning?" he asked.
Eric The Guardian - Book 2 of the Raven Series Page 3