A Taste of Twilight (9 page)

“There have always been vampires?” She still couldn’t wrap her mind around the concept. “How have you kept it a secret from the vast majority of humans?”

“Humans believe what they want to believe. Every culture has recorded some form of vampirism since written history began. The Covenant requires that we be discreet and integrate with established societies as much as possible. Intentionally bringing attention to our kind is grounds for punishment, sometimes execution.”

“Who determines which, and who carries out the punishment?” She suddenly pictured Buffy the Vampire Slayer and smiled.

“Why are you smiling?” He cupped her breast and arched his brow. “Is this really what you want to talk about?”

“I’m just trying to understand your world.”

“My world?” He grinned. “As far as I know, we’re both indigenous to Earth.”

“You know what I mean.” His other hand grasped her bottom, pulling her groin snug against his. She ignored his growing erection and asked, “Can you go out in the sunlight?”

“Vampires are nocturnal by nature and we’re extremely allergic to ultraviolet light. The invention of sunscreen has given us some freedom, but it’s generally not worth the risk.” He traced her spine and nuzzled her neck. Each time his moist breath wafted across the puncture wound, heat curled into her chest.

“Can I read the Covenant?”

“Right now?” He teased her nipple with the pad of his thumb.

“Have you ever had a mate? How many people have you transformed?”

He sighed and moved both his hands to her hips. “Why did you leave the police force?”

It was his way of warning her away from any more questions. He expected her to retreat. Instead, she called his bluff. “Dalton and I were working an especially horrible case involving a serial rapist. Jeff, my fiancé, was part of the multi-jurisdictional task force. I had one of my—visions, which led the entire team into an ambush. Four people were killed because of my
gift
. Jeff and my brother were among them.”

He framed her face with his hands and pressed his lips to her forehead. “I’m sorry.” Easing back, he looked into her eyes. “You said ambush. Was there more than one rapist?”

“During the raid we took out someone with DNA linking him to most of the victims, but there were at least three others shooting at us. None of it makes sense. But there have been no more attacks, so the case is closed.”

“Did you and your fiancé often work the same cases?”

“No. This guy had every branch of law enforcement in three states ready to do anything to stop him. He had eighteen victims that we know of, seven whom didn’t survive his brutality.”

“And others were assisting him during the shootout?”

“I told you it didn’t make sense.”

He stroked her cheek with the backs of his fingers. “Where did you go when you left Baltimore?”

“Colorado. I’m a private investigator.”

“What do you investigate?”

She smiled. Her present occupation was worlds away from working homicide. “I take on a variety of cases, but most of my clients are suspicious of their soon-to-be-former lovers.”

“You catch people cheating on their significant others?”

“Yep. Where there’s smoke there’s usually fire. I guess that makes me a firefighter.” She tightened her legs around his hips and pressed her breasts against his chest. “Can we talk about something else now?”

“I have a better suggestion.”

“What did you have in mind?”

He met her gaze, his eyes taking on a faint golden glow. Vivid images rolled through her mind. She saw herself kneeling beside the bed, sucking his cock with greedy enthusiasm. Then, he stood beside the bed and she knelt upon it. He thrust fast and deep between her thighs.

“I see,” she whispered as his mouth covered hers.

* * * * *

Jessie awoke several hours later and carefully disentangled herself from Rafe’s warm embrace. Everything was happening so quickly. She felt off balance and overwhelmed. He would likely sleep until sunset and she welcomed a short period of solitude.

Tiptoeing into the bathroom, she found a stack of neatly folded towels and draped one over the warming rack as she waited for the shower to heat. The blood bonding had been unlike anything she’d experienced before. She’d had some pretty decent orgasms with Jeff. Still, nothing compared to the absolute intimacy of joining, body, mind and spirit.

Blood bonding… She’d allowed a vampire to drink her blood. She turned to the wide mirror above the double sinks and gathered her hair away from her neck. The wound was hardly noticeable, two small puncture marks, but the significance left her shaken. Vampires were real and she was caught in the middle of a centuries-old rivalry. Out of all the women in the world, Etoro had singled her out, led her to Rafe with a string of dead bodies scattered like breadcrumbs upon the ground. There had to be a reason. None of this was random. But what? She wasn’t the only human with psychic abilities and she hadn’t known Rafe before tonight.

“I can see he drank from you,” a female spoke from directly behind Jessie, “but did you drink from him?”

Jessie snatched the towel from the warming rack as she turned around. Before Jessie could do more than gasp, golden light flashed in the woman’s eyes. An invisible fist closed around Jessie’s throat. Her mouth gaped and she clutched her neck.

“Don’t make a sound.”

The pressure lessened, allowing her to breathe. Torn between shock and fury, Jessie searched for a weapon, a heavy object, a plunger, anything she could use to defend herself. Her throat ached, her larynx paralyzed. Her attacker had incapacitated her with a glance. How was a plunger going to help?

“Did he feed you his blood?” Her tone snapped with impatience.

Jessie studied the intruder, memorizing her features and the unique cadence of her voice. Petite, almost waiflike, vivid blue eyes dominated her heart-shaped face. “Who are you?” Her bruised throat burned with each word.

“Who I am is unimportant. Answer my question and I’ll leave.”

Rafe said the house was shielded. How had this person gotten past his security? Jessie clutched the towel to her chest, exasperated by her helplessness.

“Are you daft or just annoying? Did you drink his blood?”

Jessie shook her head.

“How much does your tall, blond friend mean to you?” She smiled, a cold, cruel bowing of her lips. “Don’t try to answer, just listen carefully. You must convince Rafe to transform you or Dalton dies.”

Threats never sat well with Jessie. She lunged forward, abandoning modesty in favor of action. The woman disappeared before Jessie could touch her. Laughter echoed in the room.

“Is that the best you can do?” Jessie spun around and found the woman behind her. “I thought you were a bad-ass ex-cop.”

This had to be Natalie, unless Rafe had more skeletons in his closet. “What do you want?” She mouthed the words more than spoke them, little sound escaped her throat.

“I told you. Convince Rafe to transform you.” Her eyes glowed menacingly. “If you tell him about our conversation, I’ll torture your friend before I kill him. Do you understand?”

Livid, Jessie bent down and picked up the towel.
How does she benefit if Rafe transforms me?

“Just see that it’s done,” she snapped.

Was she transmitting her thoughts, or did the blood bond make her mind accessible to any vampire? “How do I know you won’t kill Dalton anyway?”

Natalie smirked. “You don’t.”

She faded from sight and Jessie flew for the door, wrapping the towel around her as she went. She made it to the bed before Natalie’s threat stopped her. If Natalie could appear inside the house it was likely she could see and hear what went on.

Fuck! What the hell am I supposed to do?

Rafe stirred, rolling onto his back. “What’s wrong?” He rubbed his face and blinked repeatedly. “Why are you shouting?”

Tormented by indecision, Jessie paced beside the bed. One wrong move and Dalton died.
If
Natalie was telling the truth! Jessie hurried around the bed and grabbed the phone off the nightstand, frantically punching in the number for Dalton’s cell phone.

Rafe sat and reached for her hand. She kept her eyes averted.

“Who are you calling?”

The call went straight to voice mail.
Shit!
She tossed the cordless receiver in the general direction of the nightstand and turned to Rafe.

“What’s going on? You’re white as a sheet.”

If Natalie knew what went on inside the house, she would have known whether or not Rafe transformed her.
That lying bitch!
“She said they have Dalton.” Her throat protested every word.

He pulled her between his legs and gently touched her neck. “What happened?” She opened her mouth to explain and he laid his fingers across her lips. “Send your thoughts to me. How did you get these bruises on your throat?”

Natalie. I thought you said she couldn’t get past your shield.

“Natalie tried to strangle you?” He circled her neck with his hands and soothing heat sank deep into the bruised tissue. “Did she actually touch you?” Jessie shook her head. “She projected an illusion. She was never really there.” He reinforced the reassurance with another wave of healing warmth.

“The illusion was real enough to strangle me.” Her tone was tentative and thin. He moved his hands to her shoulders and she blew out a shuddering breath. It still stung to speak, but at least she could form words. “She threatened to kill Dalton if I don’t convince you to transform me. Italy will have to wait. We need to find out if she really has him.”

He nodded. “Go take your shower. I’ll make some calls.”

Jessie hesitated. During the course of her life, Jessie had faced criminals armed with a variety of weapons. She had no defense against a person who could kill with a thought.

“Do you want me to come with you?”

She shook her head. If Natalie wanted her dead, she’d be dead already. Their only weapon was information. They had to unravel the enemy’s motivation then outmaneuver them. “Go find Dalton.”

Chapter Five

After a perfunctory knock, Rafe entered his bedroom. Jessie stood at the French doors, staring out into the twilight. “I found you something else to wear.” Tossing the bundle onto the bed, he waited for her to turn around. She didn’t. “I think you look charming in my bathrobe, but—”

“Does she have him or not?” She still didn’t turn around.

“All indications support her claim. Dalton wasn’t in his hotel room and the rental car is still in the parking lot where we left it. Phillip has some friends who’ve agreed to help us. No one can track like the
Unseleighe Sidhe
.”

“The unseely what?” She met his gaze in the glass.

“Dark Elves.” He put his hands on her shoulders and pressed in close against her back. “Phillip spent most of the sixteenth century in the
Unseleighe
realm. Several of the elves have remained friends with him even though it makes them unpopular back home.”

“Phillip is a vampire.” It wasn’t a question. She finally turned around, dislodging his hands in the process. “Of course he is. They all are, aren’t they? How long has Pyrite really been together?”

“We’ve known each other for centuries.”

She folded her arms under her breasts, her shoulders squared, her expression determined. “What’s our next move? Do you have any idea where they took Dalton? Why is Natalie so interested in my transformation?”

“Phillip and the elves are searching for Dalton. There isn’t much we can do to help them.” He paused. She had accepted so much already. Any option he could offer her now would draw her deeper into the vampire realm.

“I want you to transform me.”

The statement caught him like a sucker punch in the jaw. “What?”

“I refuse to be helpless.” Her tone brooked no argument. She had apparently made up her mind. “Natalie could have killed me and we weren’t even in the same room. I have no resources, no way to defend myself. All that changes if you transform me.”

She had no idea what she was suggesting. He’d only mentioned the advantages of being a vampire, not the dangers and challenges. A year-long waiting period was part of the guidelines for transformation detailed in the Covenant.

“Natalie has had centuries to amass her skills and build her power. Transforming you wouldn’t—”

“Would I be less helpless than I am now?”

“I can protect you.”

“No.” She stepped beyond him, defiance flashing through her gaze. “I welcome your assistance, but I won’t be left powerless.”

“We need to know why she wants you transformed. This isn’t something you can turn off and on.”

“You said we’re protected within the shields. How will you get me to Italy without exposing me to risk?”

Jessie was right. As soon as they passed beyond the shield, Natalie would link with Jessie’s mind. Faelon was strong enough to sever the link once they reached Italy, but Natalie would know everything Jessie knew in the blink of an eye.