Damien and his people were dead, Lilynn was gone…I heaved a sigh. It was finally over.
I still had a faint tingling of fear of the unknown Letalis Flora-wise. According to Lilynn, Thanatos was supposedly out there, convincing other vampires of my existence and gathering support to kill me. He had it in for me; I had burned down his house and killed his vampires. I knew that he was scared of me, though, ever since that incident when I burned his hand. I dreaded more attacks on my life, but I now had a reputation and Mr. Callum Knightley on my side.
Putting the cap on my eyeliner, I bit my lip. I didn't know where Callum and I stood. These past few weeks had been crazy and extraordinary, but what would happen when we resumed our normal lives and normal schedules, if that was even possible? I worked during the day and slept at night, and he worked during the night and slept during the day. I remember he had once offered to give me a job long-term, but I knew I couldn't do that. I had worked long and hard to be a good PI and I loved my job at Montgomery Investigations.
I shook myself. We didn't have to figure everything out now.
I shrugged on a light jacket, grabbed a small beaded clutch, and stuffed my keys, phone, and lipstick into it. My heart dropped for a moment when I realized I didn't have the Firestar anymore. I felt naked without it. I debated slipping a kitchen knife into the clutch, but decided against it. I wanted to feel normal tonight. Well, as normal as I could at a vampire's 300th birthday party.
* * *
My palms were sweating as I shut the door of Liam's BMW. I was late, so I had to park the car a good ways down the road from the house. Chatter and thuds of music from the party echoed down to me. Cars were lined along the street, all very flashy and expensive.
I didn't know why I was so nervous. I wrapped my jacket lightly around me and walked towards the house. It was enormous and modern with lots of windows and outside lights that washed it in a shade of yellow. There was someone standing at the front door and I saw people milling around inside, but I guessed that the real party was happening in the back yard.
My heels clicked on the stone path up to the door. A woman in a purple satin dress looked up at me, raising a clipboard and smiling pleasantly. Her eyes darted to the bruise on my cheekbone. I guess I hadn't put enough makeup on it.
"Your name, sweetheart?" she asked lightly, gazing down at her clipboard.
"Dahlia Simon," I said.
She flipped the page and frowned. "I'm sorry," she said, looking up. "I don't see you on here."
My brow furrowed slightly. "Oh," I said. "I should be."
She was now looking at me with less warmth. "Yes, well, I'm afraid you have to be on this list," she said.
"I –"
A man walked up to stand next to the woman. She looked at him, smiling, and said, "Ah, Mike, would you kindly –"
I met his eyes and smiled guiltily. "Hey, Mike," I said.
Mike didn't look happy to see me. I didn't blame him. I had snuck away from him when he was supposed to be guarding me, probably making him look inept. "Ma'am," he grunted.
"I told you to call me Dahlia," I said.
The woman looked between us, confused. "You two know each other?"
"Yes," he said, eyes boring holes into me.
Alarmed, she said, "Should – should we escort this young woman out? I –". Her eyes found my bruise again.
"No need, Carol," Mike said, resting a calming hand on her shoulder. "This young woman is actually Mr. Knightley's date."
Baffled and insultingly disbelieving, she let Mike pull me into the house. He led me to a large dining room that had a tower of stacked champagne glasses, sparkling in the dim lighting of the room. Clusters of people were chatting and sipping on their flutes. Mike took my jacket and folded it over his arm.
I turned to face him, the bottom of my dress tickling my feet. "So, I'm sorry about today," I said sheepishly.
Face set, he said, "I have to ask: how did you get out of the building?"
"I climbed out of the vent in the laundry room," I said, trying to judge his reaction.
He breathed a reluctant laugh and shook his head. "I didn't even know you were gone until Liam went to check on you."
"Sorry," I said again. "I didn't mean to get you in trouble. I'm sure Liam was a treat."
"I can handle Liam," he said.
I laughed, quite impressed with Mike.
"I know you must have had your reasons," he continued.
Giving a half-shrug, I answered, "You know, the impending death of friends and family." The photo of my mother smiling in her garden flashed in front of my eyes.
"Of course," he replied. "Things work out?"
"Yeah." I smiled slowly, nodding. "Yeah, they did."
"I'm glad," he said. "Just don't do that to me again."
I hoped I never would have to. "I promise."
Giving me a nod, he pointed to the back of the house. "The party's out there," he said.
"Thanks," I said.
"Enjoy yourself. I'll see you around."
I gave him a salute and he walked back towards the front of the house. I saw him hang my jacket up on a coat rack and head over to Carol, who was darting glances in my direction and speaking to him in a low voice.
Taking a glass of champagne, I wiped my palms on my dress as I headed towards the back of the house. The sound of music got louder and once I cleared the dining room, I saw the backyard. I stepped through the big glass doors, and standing on top of the steps, took it all in.
A big open tent had been set up that extended to the right side of the house. Towards the back of it, there was a floor for dancing. A long table had a buffet of the most delicious food I had ever seen. Closer to me, there were round tables and wicker chairs. The seating seemed to continue around to the right. The table settings were stunning – a bouquet of flowers with small tea candles encircling them. I didn't fail to notice that each bouquet held a single dahlia.
I smiled to myself. "Nice touch," I said under my breath.
There were a lot of people under the tent, but it didn't look crowded. Some were milling about on the lawn, some were eating at the tables, some were dancing. A group near the base of the stairs erupted in laughter. I recognized quite a few people from their pictures in newspapers and magazines. I wasn't surprised that Callum knew famous people. Everyone was dressed ten times better than me, too.
There was a faint tingling in my veins, and I knew it was the Letalis Flora gently warning me about the presence of vampires. I scanned the faces of the people and quite a few stuck out to me. Something about their presence and the way their eyes glinted in the candlelight told me that they were vampires. I saw Ophelia, Lester, and Raven, who gave me a wave from where they sat. There were several vampires I didn't know, as well. Their eyes flicked to meet mine, sensing me, too. I didn't feel threatened though, and the Letalis Flora remained a calming hum beneath my skin. That confirmed the hypothesis that it only acted up when I felt threatened by them.
"I can't decide whether to rip your throat out or throw you into a burning pit of fire," a voice said behind me.
Without turning around, I smiled and took a sip of champagne. "I'd prefer neither," I replied.
Liam came to stand beside me. Looking slightly uncomfortable in his tux, his hair wasn't slicked back tonight, falling loose around his ears. The deep purple tie at his neck had been loosened and hung at a slight angle. A man brushed past him to walk down the stairs and Liam glared at his back. "I'm leaning towards the burning pit of fire," he said.
I laughed lightly and looked at my feet. "Okay," I said. "So, I guess you heard?"
"I heard," he said, voice hard.
We didn't say anything for a few moments. I looked back up and we watched a group of women get up to dance to a song.
"I'm glad you're alive," Liam said tersely. I was sort of touched until he added, "At least now I can kill you myself."
I laughed again. "In a burning pit of fire?"
"Yeah," he conf
irmed. His eyes flashed to meet mine. They were that almost-black colour, slightly narrowed, and seemed to be judging me.
"I'm sorry," I said. "I know it was reckless and I honestly didn't mean to make anyone worry, but Lilynn – she threatened to kill my mom, my dad, my friends, and I just got…well, I just got pissed off."
Surprised, he raised a single eyebrow. "Pissed off?"
"Yeah, and I didn't want to just wait around, waiting for her to come to me, and I knew she had something planned for tonight, so I…went there…" I finished weakly.
"I heard you hijacked a car," he said.
Grimacing a bit, I replied, "I did. It was the only way I could think of to find her."
"You do know that we've been trying to track her down for a while now?" he asked. "I guess we should have thought about hijacking a guard's car."
"I was just improvising," I admitted. "I didn't really have a plan at all."
"That's just stupid," he said starkly.
"This coming from one of the most impulsive people I know," I said, trying to be light.
Voice low, he said, "Well, I'm a vampire." He looked pointedly at my bandaged arm. "You're just a human."
I touched my arm absently. "Well, it was worth it," I said. "She's in the mental ward now, you know?"
He pursed his lips into a thin line. "Why didn't you kill her?"
Two women swept past us, talking loudly about getting another glass of champagne. I let them pass before looking up at Liam and saying, "I could have. I had the knife to her throat. I won't say that I didn't want to kill her after everything she's done, but…I don't know." I took a swig out of my glass. "I'm not a killer. I knew the police were there and if I had killed her, it wouldn't have been self-defense. And I'm – I'm not sure I could handle killing someone like that. A human being."
"That's because you're a good person," he said, unexpectedly serious. The statement actually warmed me. I was glad someone thought I was; I didn't always feel like it. He didn't say anything else for a long moment. He eventually said, "I wish I could've seen that fight."
"Well, I don't know," I grinned. "Lilynn was winning the majority of the time."
"Regardless," he said, shrugging, hair blowing back as a breeze swept past us and into the house. "I like a good cat fight."
I laughed despite myself. There was a glint in his eye that was reassuring. Running a hand down my braid, I gestured at the party in front of us. "Sorry I'm late, by the way."
"I guess you had more important things to do," he replied grudgingly. "Thanks for taking care of the sniper."
"No problem," I said, taking another sip of champagne.
A group of four men dressed in suits came around the corner into the main tent. They stopped near a table, absorbed in conversation. One of them was the mayor of San Francisco. He was shaking his head and laughing, slapping the back of a tall man. I immediately recognized the man's back with its broad shoulders and slightly unruly hair. As if he could feel my eyes, he slowly turned around.
"Oh, Jesus bloody Christ," Liam muttered from beside me.
He had been able to hear my heart skip a beat. I held Callum's gaze and fought the urge to run over there and wrap myself around him. We were in a public setting and he was talking to the mayor, for Christ's sake. I'm not sure I could even touch him without people talking about it. His face was smooth and blank as he said something to the mayor but looked at me.
Liam stuck his hand out in front of me, palm up. "Give me the keys to the BMW," he ordered. "I want to check for damages. Besides, I can't stand here and watch this."
I fumbled to get the keys out of my small clutch. As I looked back up, Liam was standing in front of me, palm still extended, blocking my view of Callum. I dropped the keys in his hands and his long, pale fingers curled around them.
He used his other hand to put a finger under my chin, gently lifting my head to look up at him. He flashed a wicked grin and said, "Save a dance for me, sunshine?"
A bit startled, I managed to recover quickly and narrowed my eyes. "Fine," I replied.
His grin spread, flashing fang. Satisfied, he stepped to the side and disappeared into the house. The moment he moved, I saw Callum excuse himself from the group and weave his way towards me. Several people stopped him, obviously wishing him happy birthday and trying to make conversation. He smiled politely at all of them, charming and sophisticated in his tuxedo. It fit him perfectly through the shoulders, moving with him as he shook hands. The black tie was impeccably placed and I even saw the flash of an expensive-looking watch. He looked like James Bond.
Gripping my clutch tight, I thought that I had never seen him more handsome. His thick dark hair accentuated the high cheekbones and brought out those eyes. As he came closer, my heart beat even harder. I don't know what it was about this man, but I wondered if I would ever stop responding to him like a 12 year-old girl.
When he reached the bottom of the stairs, he just slipped his hands into the pockets of his pants and held my gaze from there. I couldn't judge the expression on his face. I walked down the steps slowly, careful not to trip on the hem of my dress. I stopped a step above him so that I was about two inches higher than him.
"Hi," I breathed more than said.
Those eyes swept over my cheek and the bandage on my arm. His jaw tensed before he replied, "Hi." It was too polite.
"Happy birthday," I said, even though I had already wished him happy birthday when it had turned midnight about twenty-three hours ago. We had been lying naked on the floor, my head on his chest, looking at his watch. I had counted down the seconds until he turned 300 and when I hit zero, he had lifted me up and kissed me, long and hard. Now, he didn't look like he wanted to kiss me at all.
"Thank you," he replied, his English accent quite strong. The civility of it nearly broke my heart. I knew he wouldn't be happy about the recklessness of what I had done. He always seemed to feel responsible or guilty if I got hurt.
I inhaled deeply. "Did I miss the cake?" I asked. My stomach was tied in knots. I hated this feeling.
Hands still in his pockets, he was the picture of composure. "No," he replied.
Not bothering with any more small talk, I stated, "You want to throw me into a burning pit of fire."
An older man came up to Callum and wished him a happy birthday. Callum thanked him and met my eyes once the man continued up the steps. "Liam and I did discuss it," he said seriously.
I closed my eyes for a moment. "I'm sorry," I said softly.
"Are you?" he asked, his tone more curious than accusing.
My eyes flew open and I replied, "Yes." I shifted my stance. "I'm sorry for worrying you and I'm sorry for tricking Mike –which, by the way, please don't blame him for that."
"Oh, don't worry, I won't," Callum said lightly, but it sounded like a threat towards me.
"And I'm sorry for not calling to check in," I said. "And I'm sorry for being late."
He didn't say anything and just looked at me. It was unnerving. I knew he wanted more.
"But Callum—" I was forced to cut off because two girls coming down the stairs had thrown me a sharp look at the use of his first name. "But Mr. Knightley," I emphasized, meeting his eyes and ignoring the girls, "I'm not sorry for going after Lilynn, for confronting her, or for trying to end it. I know it was risky and probably really stupid to go alone, but I had to finish it. I didn't want anyone else to get hurt. And I wasn't about to wait for her to come to me. I know – I know you might not agree with that…well, I know you don't…but—" I frowned slightly and finished, "—But that's just the way I am. You're going to have to deal with it."
Something flickered across his face. "Oh?" he questioned.
"Yeah," I said, feeling the colour rising in my cheeks. "I don't know what you were expecting, but – but I'm not a damsel in distress."
"I am well aware," he said. I couldn't figure out his tone.
I added earnestly, "But please don't get me wrong. I appreciate everything you've d
one for me and all the times you've saved my life and for choosing not to kill me or turn me and well…just everything." I tucked some hair that had escaped the braid behind my ear. "But I am just not the type to sit around and wait if I have the chance to solve the problem."
The song changed and a light wind brushed past us. He slid his hands out of his pockets and absently touched the middle button of his tuxedo jacket. I was beginning to get frustrated at his lack of emotion.
"Well?" I prodded. He blinked twice and I tried to launch into another explanation, "You don't understand, Lilynn left these threatening—"
"You know how I feel about you, correct?" he interrupted, face still impassive but his eyes belying the emotion that was underneath.
Taken aback, I answered hesitantly, "I think so."
He stiffened for a moment. "Follow me," he ordered suddenly, turning his back on me and walking to the left.
Hesitating for a second, I had to walk quickly to catch up with him. I paused to leave the champagne flute on one of the tables. He walked out from underneath the tent and onto the lawn, continuing until he reached the curve of the house. Testing the grass cautiously, I was proud of myself for not letting my heels sink into it.
The wind was colder out here, away from the heat of the house and the candles. Goosebumps spread across my exposed arms. The house was set far enough from the city that the stars blanketed the sky, twinkling beside the waning moon. I followed Callum as he disappeared into the shadows of the side of the house. I rounded the corner, squinting slightly because my eyes hadn't adjusted to the darkness yet. I made out his form waiting for me.
"Well, since you are so unsure, let me clarify for you," he said gruffly. His eyes flashed in the reflection of the moon's light.
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