by Lilly Gayle
Silence stretched between them as Gerard considered the best way to answer. He wanted to be honest, but truth was subjective and open for interpretation. Anything he said in defense of vampires could be twisted and used against him.
It was as if he were back in France, pretending allegiance to the Jacobins, knowing one misspoken word could send him to the guillotine.
“Tina knew about Weldon’s vampire research,” he said at last. “When she left Baldwin Industries, he smeared her professional reputation to prevent her from telling anyone who might have otherwise believed her. Colonel Timmons was still a threat, and Weldon had ruined her chances of future employment. So, we offered her protection and a position at Lifeblood. She accepted. She even helped Megan with the vaccine. But she didn’t want to expose her daughter to vampires. It didn’t matter how she felt about me. She wanted to protect her child.”
Not that it had done a damn bit of good. Tina was dead, and Emily no longer had a mother. But at least the child was safe.
Amber’s concentrated gaze studied every nuance of his face as if she were searching for signs of deceit. “Did that piss you off?”
His heart slammed against his ribs. “You think that was my motive for killing her?”
“No…” she hesitated. Her face flushed. “It’s a routine question. I’d appreciate an answer.”
Routine? Merde! She was treating him like a suspect. He ground his teeth, fighting a useless frustration. A cop would never trust a vampire. “I didn’t kill her.”
“Did you love her?”
The question jolted him. He straightened, his thoughts turning inward.
Was I in love with Tina? Or did I see a relationship with her as my one shot at having a family?
“I don’t know,” he said at last.
“Did you sleep with her?”
Anger returned, burning like acid in his gut. He’d taken a monumental risk telling Amber the truth—and she was using the knowledge to build a case against him.
“I said she kept me at arms’ length. Did you expect me to force myself on her because I’m a vampire?”
“No. But—”
“Did you expect I’d ignore her motherly concerns and use glamour to get her into bed?” Contempt tightened his jaw. “You might as well accuse me of rape.”
“I didn’t accuse you,” she shouted over his growl. She squared her shoulders and straightened her spine. Red splotches stained her cheeks but her voice was cool—professional—when she added, “I’m searching for a motive. Charles Peterson might not have known you weren’t sleeping with his ex-wife.”
It was his turn to flush. He opened his mouth to apologize for jumping to the wrong conclusions but snapped his jaw shut before uttering a word. Seconds ago, she’d practically accused him of killing Tina. Night before last, she’d wanted to believe drug dealers committed the crime. Now, she was just throwing spaghetti at the wall to see if it stuck.
Peterson was a trou du cul—an asshole in any language, but he wasn’t a murderer.
“Peterson wasn’t interested in Tina’s love life. If he’d suspected her of sleeping with me, he would have found a way to use it against her in the custody battle. Besides,” he said with a shrug, “Peterson’s remarried.”
“That doesn’t mean he wanted his ex-wife hooking up.”
“Hooking up?”
“Screwing. Having sex,” Amber said. “Even if he wasn’t jealous, he could have killed her to avoid a nasty custody battle. He could have convinced her to let him into the facility on the pretext of talking about their daughter. It’s as good a motive for murder as Reid’s drug connection theory. Maybe vampires had nothing to do with it.”
The hopeful expression in her eyes tempted him to lie. Amber didn’t want vampires to be responsible. She wanted mortal criminals committing mortal crimes. Gerard wished he could give it to her. But he needed her help. So did the Asheville PD. Without it, they’d likely charge an innocent mortal for the Lifeblood murders.
As much as Gerard didn’t like Charles Peterson, he didn’t want him arrested for a crime he didn’t commit.
“Have you forgotten about Richard? A trocar didn’t kill him. A vampire did.”
“I wish I could forget everything you told me and everything I remembered from my past,” she said with a resolute sigh. “I wish I could pretend vampires aren’t real and that this was a normal case committed by mortal criminals. But I can’t ignore the evidence—even if it leads to the brink of insanity.”
He’d teetered on that brink himself—the night he woke up a vampire in the wine cellar of a French chateau after a Jacobin spy cut his throat and left him for dead. “You’re not crazy. A vampire killed Richard Baxter. Dr. Weldon killed Tina. I need your help finding him. I’ll worry about the vampire later.”
“Well, it’s not like I can investigate vampires anyway. But until I can prove Weldon committed murder, everyone’s a suspect.”
“Even me?” he said in a lighthearted tone, despite the hitch in his pulse.
She snorted. “It’s not like being undead clears you.”
He jerked his head to the side, meeting her gaze. Mischief danced in her eyes. Her lips quivered upward at the corners.
Relief sluiced over him. His stiff shoulders sagged. “Well,” he said with a smile. “One can hope.”
Amber was a lot like Tina. They didn’t look alike. Amber was athletically built with dark hair and light gray eyes while Tina had been petite, busty, and blonde with big baby blues. Both women had an inner strength and tough outer shell they used to hide their insecurities. But Amber found humor in life during the darkest of times. It was a quality he found irresistibly attractive.
“Relax,” she said with a real smile. “I’m dropping you from my suspect list. The credit card receipts prove you were in Alexandria that night.”
Unease settled in the pit of his stomach. He shifted, unwilling to perpetuate his lie, no matter the consequences. “About those receipts…”
Shapely brows snapped together. “Please tell me that wasn’t a lie.”
He didn’t need to confess for her to know the truth. What is it about my damn eyes? “I didn’t lie about being in Alexandria. That part was true.”
“What part isn’t true?” She clinched her teeth. Blood rushed through her veins, heating her skin. He smelled the iron metallic aroma. The antivirus prevented him from craving a taste.
“I was standing outside Charles Peterson’s house that night.”
She slid away from him. Dark blue leather creaked beneath her bare thighs. Her eyes flashed fire. “So, your alibi is a lie. A provable lie.”
The accusation stung, even if there was a ring of truth to it. “It’s not provable. Thanks to Sonia, Lifeblood’s credit card records verify what’s on the receipt. And if asked, the concierge at Morgan Suites will swear he remembers seeing me check in. And Dr. Guinness will swear we met in the lobby around nine o’clock that evening.”
“Vampire hocus pocus,” she countered.
“Glamour. And Sonia’s incredible talents with a computer.” He didn’t particularly like Sonia, but she would do anything for Vincent. And she had helped save his ass from Dr. Weldon’s lab.
“Maybe you’re the vampire who helped Weldon.” Her words cut like glass. She was once again the investigator, and he was the suspect.
Just to see what she’d do, or maybe because he was a bâtard and wanted to see if it would scare her or anger her, he flashed his fangs.
“Watch it Frenchie. I have a gun.” She nodded toward the far corner of the room. Her weapon was in a shoulder harness hanging on the back of her computer chair. “It might not kill, but I bet it’d hurt like hell if I spray-painted the walls brain matter gray.”
She had a point. A regular bullet could kill him if it lodged in his head. But her gun wasn’t close enough to do her a damn bit of good.
He smiled. “Woman, you have more balls than brains.”
“I also have a sterling silver letter
opener.” She tossed her head toward her desk again. “I’m well-armed for vampire slaying,” she added with a smile designed to cover her fear.
She had every right to be afraid. She might have served in Iraq, but she was naïve when it came to dealing with vampires. “Giving a mortal criminal the chance to surrender is commendable. Giving a murderous vampire fair warning is a death sentence. Don’t ever forget that.”
“We’re so screwed,” she said with a sigh, her head falling back against the sofa cushions. “I can’t kill in cold blood and you’re a vampire with integrity.”
“We’re not screwed,” he argued, not sure he believed it himself.
“Oh yeah?” She raised her head, “Then we’re going to have to do a bit more sharing in the future.”
He’d just shared his darkest secret with her. What more did she want? “Like what?”
“Like the truth, for a change. What were you doing outside Charles Peterson’s house the night Tina died? Who are you protecting?”
“No one!” He blew out a frustrated breath. “You know I didn’t kill her. And I wouldn’t protect the vampire who did.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Then tell me the truth.”
“I was spying on Tina’s ex.”
She raised her head, meeting his gaze with interest. “Why?”
“She was afraid of losing the custody hearing. I wanted to help. Charles is a lobbyist for the Wireless Association. A few months back, he took a bribe from Quasar Cable. Quasar wanted to stop the merger between TriCast Mobile and Horizons Wireless. The cable company wanted to ensure the merger never happened. Charles made sure it didn’t. It was more than just a conflict of interest. It was illegal. I wanted to get the evidence Tina needed to use against him. But I knew she wouldn’t like my methods. So, I stood outside his house, watching.”
“Why didn’t you get Sonia to manufacture the proof you needed?”
Another bullet couldn’t have hurt more. His pulse tapped against his throat. “We utilize Sonia’s talents to protect ourselves from mortals who would hunt us down and destroy us if they knew we existed. Or to put away mortals who would experiment on us the way Colonel Timmons and Dr. Weldon did. We don’t frame the innocent, and we don’t manufacture evidence against the guilty.”
“But you have manufactured evidence,” she insisted. “You provided the police with false documentation. And you lied about the missing vaccine.”
He snorted. “Would the police believe Weldon stole a serum used to create a vampire vaccine?”
“No, but—”
“Of course not. Most vampires live in the shadows on the fringes of society, and most mortals are oblivious to our existence. For our own protection, we’d like to keep it that way. So, when Tina was murdered, Sonia created a credit card trail to protect me from suspicion. Since I’m innocent, no one was harmed. And Vincent manipulated the head of the Senate Oversight Committee so Colonel Timmons would lose funding for his black ops military project.”
Amber’s gray eyes widened. “A couple of years ago, Stars and Stripes ran an article about Colonel Timmons’ involvement in government research to improve a soldier’s endurance in the field. The army was against the project and after he was granted funding, nothing else was mentioned until his court-martial. Another article reported he was serving a fifteen-year sentence at Fort Lewis for misappropriation of funds and defrauding the government. There was no mention of vampires.”
“Even if army officials knew the truth, they’d keep it quiet. If the public knew vampires existed, it would be worse than the Salem witch-hunts. In that respect, vampires can rely on the military for protection.”
“That’s what the army does,” she said with a quirky smile. “It protects the public from all enemies, foreign and domestic. Andrew gave his life for the cause. And no one but me knows how he really died.”
Sympathy tightened his chest. He understood her dilemma all too well. He’d lived with secrets for centuries.
He blew out his breath on a tired sigh. He felt—ancient. Too many years of living. Too damn much drama. “I’m sorry for your loss.”
“You’ve lost more than me—everyone you’ve ever loved is dead. Everyone you will ever love will die before you.” Her voice hitched. Leaning closer, she whispered. “I’m so sorry.”
He leaned in. Their hands touched on the cool leather. Her skin was soft, the pads of her fingers slightly rough. She didn’t lock herself in the lab for hours on end the way Tina had. Amber’s job was physically demanding.
Remorse filled him. If Tina had stayed in Alexandria instead of accepting the job at Lifeblood Labs, she might still be alive. Then again, she knew vampires existed. And so did Amber.
I failed Tina. I won’t fail Amber.
“Tina is dead because of me,” he said, silently vowing to protect Amber with his life. “And there are some vampires who’ll do anything to prevent humans from knowing we exist.”
Amber stared at their joined hands. “I don’t imagine they’d want us mortals knowing we’re not at the top of the food chain like we thought.”
“Not all vampires kill for their survival. I don’t.”
“What did you do before Lifeblood? I don’t think you’d kill to survive, but you needed to—eat.” Her gaze met his, not in challenge or righteous indignation, but with curiosity.
He was no angel. He’d suffered greatly over the years, trying to live with what he was and not take the blood of innocents. And he had killed. Just as she had.
“You were a soldier. You know what it’s like on a battlefield. Now imagine the Second World War. Or earlier. The dead. The dying. That’s a lot of blood, and a regular feeding frenzy for vampires.”
A shiver wracked her trim body. She released his hand and wrapped her arms around her elbows. “I guess that’s why Nicolas stays in Germany. It’s close to so many war-torn countries.”
Apprehension filled him. “Isn’t Germany his homeland?”
Darkness shadowed her eyes. “I doubt it. He sounded American.”
Tension radiated down his spine. There was more to Nicolas than Amber knew. “Tell me what happened in Germany. There are pieces missing to this puzzle. Pieces a vampire has made you forget. Parts of it are coming back, but if you don’t remember everything, it could get you killed.”
She pushed to her feet and stepped away from the sofa, taking staggering steps to lean against a small wooden mantel over a gas log fireplace. “I don’t know anything about vampires that you haven’t told me. I suffered a mental collapse in Germany. Combat fatigue. Post-traumatic stress. Whatever you want to call it. I did not see vampires.”
He rose to his feet and was beside her in a blink. She backed away, stumbling until she bumped into the sofa and dropped back to the cushions.
He stalked her slowly. “Then explain the attack, Amber. You know what you know. You knew it then. Your anxiety and stress were caused by denial. Not the truth.”
She closed her eyes and fisted her hands in her lap. He eased down beside her and captured her hands in his. His fingers brushed her bare thighs. She shivered. So did he. She was in pain and so very vulnerable. And he wanted so much to help. She needed him. And it wasn’t a betrayal to Tina. He was only offering comfort and support.
Sliding his hands up her bare arms, he cupped her shoulders and pulled her to his chest. She laid her head on his shoulder, her momentary stiffness giving way to surrender. Her sigh tugged at something deep inside. If he’d had a heart, he would have lost it.
“Nicolas saved me,” she whispered, her words muffled against his shirt.
Pulling back, he dipped his chin and cupped her cheek in his palm, raising her face to meet his gaze. “I know. So, it’s important you tell me everything, chérie.”
The endearment slipped unexpectedly past his lips. Amber didn’t seem to notice. She swallowed her tears and stiffened her spine. Sitting up straight, she leaned away from him. She was strong, independent, and stubborn as hell. The woman did not like to ackn
owledge weakness.
“Germany wasn’t the first time he saved my life,” she said, a catch in her voice. “I think he saved me when I was a child too.”
“You think?” Childhood memories were seldom reliable, but if Nicolas saved her when she was a child, she should have remembered—unless the incident was so traumatic she’d blocked it from her mind. Or Nicolas had made her forget.
She twisted her fingers together, averting her gaze. “I was only five. But it was my birthday. My father was stationed in Beirut, and that same day, he was injured in a terrorist attack on the barracks. I remember him being in a hospital in Germany and getting to talk to him on the phone. I didn’t know what was going on, but I knew my mother was afraid. We didn’t live far from Emerald Isle, so, a day or two later, she took me to the beach. It was unseasonably warm. We stayed late. And the sun set early.”
Terror filled her eyes. “On the way home, our car broke down. It was near the cut off where we turned to go home. So, Mom picked me up and we started walking.”
Her voice cracked. Her body quaked. Gerard wanted to take her in his arms but he was afraid to touch her. Afraid she’d come apart if he did. Afraid he’d give into unwanted, smoldering desire.
Guilt niggled deeper. Memories of Tina hovered at the back of his mind. He took a deep breath and forced himself to stay unmoved by Amber’s pain.
“I thought it was the boogieman,” she whispered, her voice raw. “He just appeared on the road, ripped me from my mother’s arms, and tossed me like a rag doll into a ditch. I remember being wet. And cold. I crawled from the ditch and saw the monster lower his head to my mother’s throat. She went limp in his arms. I cried. Then this beautiful man rescued me. He said his name was Nicolas. He picked me up and we soared over the salt marshes. And my nightmare turned into a beautiful dream about flying. Then I woke up in my own bed the next morning and learned my mother was dead.”
Chapter 7
“Still pissed?” Reid stared at Amber through dark sunglasses from the passenger side of her car.