5 Darkness Falls (22 page)

My hands began to shake
as I listened to
his words, prompting me to move them
.
“Thanks for your honesty.”

“Hey.” It was his turn to capture me; his hand cupped the back of my head as his thumb
brushed against
my cheek. “I’m not saying he doesn’t love you. I’m saying he doesn’t know how to handle himself. Your love is more mature than his. In time, that will change.”

Wanting to move away from th
e
subject of Kellan
– and
the fact that he hadn’t bothered to call me since he left
-
I focused
my
desserts
.
“I baked you and Sanders each a pie.” I smiled, leaving Drex’s warmth.

I handed each of them an ‘I’m sorry’ pie. They both chuckled. “I’m really sorry, guys.”

“All’s forgiven if you have vanilla ice cream.” Sanders
offered.

My smile widened. “Homemade.” I handed each of them a spoon from the silverware drawer as I retrieved the homemade ice cream from the special gadget. Grabbing a scoop from the drawer, I spooned two heaping
mounds
on top of each of their
p
lates
before packing away
pies for
Auggy and Aunt Claire
,
to
be
deliver
ed
later.

I
busied myself cleaning the
kitchen
- which was mostly clean already
–
as everyone else ate. I kept
trying to
reel in
my wondering thoughts of Kellan, as
everyone else
ate.

I was in the middle of wiping down the mixer, when all three guys yelled
out
simultaneous
ly
, “Done!”

My head shot up
,
and I was surprised to see three empty pie
pans.
I knew
the shock was evident on my face.
They all gave me a big,
crooked
grin. I narrowed my eyes suspiciously at them.

“You three are too in sync. It’s a tad creepy.”

That’s when their
faces changed.
Sanders turned serious, as usual,
appearing preoccupied.
Drexel’s grin
widened
as his eyes
flashed with enjoyment.
Kai lifted a single brow, his lips
full of
unspoken questions.

I
shook my head,
studying them. “I really do need more female friends.”

“Um, speaking of females…” Drex pulled out a piece of notebook paper from his pant
s
pocket and set it on the counter in front of me. “The note is different this time.”

I snatched
it
off the counter and flipped it open.

Look out, Lex.
-
C
R

***

Kellan

He leaned against the side of the building; his ankles were crossed out in front of him and his arms were folded
on
his chest. He was about my height with a similar frame.
His ash-blonde
hair spiked up in a stylish fade. He wore dark jeans and a white tee with a leather jacket
.
His body language oozed confidence, the leather combined with the
deep
glint of his brown eyes gave him a rough edge;
adding
unpredictability.

I came to a stop in front of him, stuffing my hands in my pockets.

He pushed off the wall, giving me a once over. I didn’t let him rattle me
.

“What’s the deal?” I decided direct was the best approach with him.

“Not here,” he clipped.

He took off at vamp speed down the street, around the corner and into a high-rise apartment building. He didn’t
look back
until he reached the elevators.

I
was quick to observe my surroundings.
There was nothing suspicious or out of the ordinary about th
is
place. It was just another fancy, overpriced building in my opinion.

The elevator dinged and we boarded. The moment the door closed, he pressed the number nine and held down the button. Instead of going up, I realized we were going down. My gums began to ache as anxiety
washed over
within me
like a tidal wave
.

When the elevator stopped, we walked out into a concrete basement of sorts. One end was visible from the other, illuminated by fluorescent lights scattered across the ceiling. Metal poles jutted up from the floor, dotting the room, acting as the only definition to the cold box.

In the far left corner of the space was a bed, a floor lamp and a few duffle bags. To the right, several yards from the bed
,
was a complete office set up. Dual monitors dominated the desk’s top while several towers fed into them.

“You live here?” I asked.

“This is just my work space.”

My
eyes
traveled the massive perimeter.

I watched as he sat down in the executive chair. I collapsed in the only other seat; a wood dining chair that looked like it’d been pulled from a dumpster or used as a weapon.

He started tapping on the keys in quick succession. He broke through several encryptions before he pull
ing
up a map. He clicked for a street view
,
enlarging the image. “This is where we’re going.”

“We?” That was a surprise.

“Before your pride is bruised, this is personal for me.
Although she’s
never met me,
I’m Lexi’s cousin. My father was her mother’s
brother
from, you guessed it, Cesar.” He hunched towards me, pressing his elbows against his knees. “I didn’t know my grandfather, but I’m familiar with hi
s
mission.”

“And you alone want to carry it out?” I scoffed.

He frowned, his brows
being dragged down.
“No. I want to fucking destroy it. I don’t give a shit about vampeens versus vampires. I do give a crap about big C fucking up my business deals and messing with the innocents in my family
, what few there are
.” His eyes glowed with rage. Apparently Cecilia wasn’t just messing with me.

I sat back, crossing my arms as I mulled over his words.
Family.
Damn. Lexi had mentioned a
whole
page of names a while back, but she hadn’t
brought it up
since. And, to be honest, I didn’t bother asking either. I was too damn busy focusing on a female vampire who I was on the verge of believing was merely a myth.

He turned back to the computer, motioning to the screen. “This is where we’re going tomorrow.”

I stared at the two
-
story colonial home. I
t
was on a
n expansive plot
of land. I couldn’t accurately ga
u
ge the distance between the home and the forest
that encircled
the property, but
I knew
it was at least half a mile. No trees or bushes cluttered the lawn. It was wide open space.

Damn it. She can see anyone who approaches.
“Looks like there’ll be no surprise attacks here.”

“Nope. We’ll have to go in with our guns blazing.” The sneer on his face curdled my blood. There was something sinister about this guy.

“What’s your name?”

He glanced over at me. “Derek.”

Chapter 19

Lexi

I walked into the conference room with a stack of new properties in my arms. I stopped short at the women sitting around the
circular
table. Mel, Gabi, Aunt Claire and Beth
all
sat
, staring at me.

“Um, can I help you, ladies?” I
set
the stack on the tabletop.

“Yes, you can.” Gabi stood, shut the door and
gently
shoved me into a chair.

“We’ve been
brainstorming,
honey.” Aunt Claire searched me.

Absent
minded
ly, I rubbed my belly. “Okay. What does that mean for me?”

“You can’t do all of this while you’re carrying a baby, sweetie.” Beth tried to be gentle in her approach, but it still ruffled my feathers.

I sighed.

“Uh
-huh.
You are so not going to get all depressed and dejected over this, Lex. We’re your friends. We’re looking out for you even when you don’t seem to
care.”
Mel crossed her arms
,
narrowing her blue eyes at me. “Beth told us what she went through to have Kellan.”

I met Beth’s gaze. Her eyes were soft, full of
compassion and
understanding
.
She gave me a small, hollow smile that told me she wasn’t trying to bulldoze me, but
rather,
was looking out for me based o
n
her own experience.

“Listen, y’all, I appreciate your concern. I have been taking it easier lately. I do more office work than fieldwork. Drexel and Auggy make sure I eat regularly.”

“Finally that man is using his brain,” Aunt Claire stated.

“I’m good, I promise. But I can’t stop or slow it down any more than I already have. My baking fills my mornings and working behind the scenes to locate Cecilia and Kalia
has been
my central focus.”

“Fine, then put us to work.” Gabi mashed her lips together, challenging
me.

I studied each of them. Mel was the most casual of the bunch, dressed in skinny jeans that were tucked into her Uggs and a slim-fit tee. Her blonde hair was pulled tight
on top of
her head, not a loose hair in sight. She gave me an amused smile. She knew I
was
mulling it over. She knew me well enough to know I was
already
considering every angle and how I would
best
use them if I agreed.

Gabi was dressed in black skinny jeans, killer grey heels,
and
a lacy black tank with a cropped cream sweater over it. Her dark brown hair fell in waves around her smooth face. Her brown eyes met mine. Her lips were
working, she
was biting her tongue.

Aunt Claire adjusted her jacket. She wor
e
a sharp
,
navy blue
,
women’s business suit with a pencil skirt that hugged her curves. A plum camisole peeked through beneath her overcoat. Shiny neutral heels gave her a polished, yet stylish
,
look. Her hair tucked into a
loose
bun just above her neck.

Beth sat primly in a dark teal, A-line dress that touched just below her knees. It had a fifties-housewife flare to it, a classic detail in the fit and design that reminded me of Lucille Ball’s fashion during her ‘I Love Lucy’ years. Her dark auburn
curls
cascaded
around her heart
-
shaped face
; although, it
was her eyes that stole me
.
There was so much knowledge in their depths. She
…

Suddenly, my
stomach twisted
-
tight. The baby flipped, sending me on overload. I swallowed the rush of serum that hit my mouth. I gazed down at my stack of papers, trying to collect myself before I faced her again. “You know where he is.”

***

Kellan

The home looked just as it had on the computer screen. The red brick structure
consisted of
four walls
made
of windows framed in white. A blue front door was the only pop of color. Two brick steps led to the front door. Cecilia had a view in every direction.

“You ready for this, Dad?” I asked, glancing at him.

“Let’s do it.”

“We should go one by one. Three vamps running towards her would be a hell of a lot more obvious. We should split up. Each of us runs from a different side of the house.” Derek stopped, eyeing us. “The only thing is we don’t know which one of us she’ll see
first
and focus her efforts on. You guys willing to take that chance?”

Something about him rubbed me the wrong way. He was conniving. I knew there was probably a story
to explain
it, but I didn’t care. I was focused on the mission.