A Hunt Among Vampires (The Angel Series) (17 page)

When the sun begins to lighten the sky, Christien carries me upstairs and dresses me for bed.

I may be independent, but it is nice to have someone take care of me for a change.

Chapter 13

I stay unavailable on the assassin’s website but log in to browse the current contracts for anything suspicious. Rarely do assassins communicate with each other in person, but online, we may communicate to gather information about a certain area or ask for information on someone we may be hunting, for a small fee, of course. There are not very many high-end mercenaries like Roman and me. We charge a large fee because we are masters in our field. With Roman and me unavailable, the assassin website is humming with activity. I use another website to look up unexplained activity in different areas, trying to get a lead on Hassan. So far, I haven’t had any luck. There are reports of savage attacks around the country, but nothing is local.

Over the next couple of weeks, Christien works with me on my blood thirst control and shifting. It amazes me how much he really understands what I am going through, even though he is not a shifter. I am even getting better at landing in bird form. At least I am not crash landing anymore. To help me understand animals better, Christien has bought me every episode of Wild Kingdom ever made on DVD. Every day he makes me watch an episode and mimic the animals’ behavior. I really hate to admit it, but watching the episodes really help. When I can see what the animal can do and how it moves, it is easier to shift into it. I learned the hard way not to shift into a prey animal outdoors while there is a predator near. Shifting from one animal to another is no longer a problem for me. I am still having problems swimming as a fish, but I find the need to turn into an aquatic animal very low priority right now. My angel powers are getting stronger and I tire more quickly everyday. My blood needs are becoming astronomical so I’ve had to accept Tyler’s friend from Clearwater Blood Bank as my supplier of blood in order to prevent me from draining Christien’s get.

I can feel Christien’s tension heighten the closer the time gets to his meeting with the Vampire Council. I know he is nervous, but he is hiding it well. With the search for Hassan demanding more of Christien’s time, Brig and Pantor have taken over my weapons and hand-to-hand combat training. Roman and I still talk as much as possible, but he is now neck deep in werewolf politics in Italy.

Soon, it will be time to travel to France. I have no idea what to expect, but at least I know I will be ready for what is to come.

There are few reports from Kayle and Roman regarding their discoveries about Hassan in the next couple of weeks as time draws nearer to when Christien has to leave for France to meet with the Vampire Council. Kayle mentions that there are rumors Hassan has teamed up with two powerful master vampires, Lenair and Devan. Lenair is an old, powerful master vampire and is a
tête de ligne
. She keeps a get of over a thousand vampires. Devan is also a
tête de ligne
with a large get. His reputation implies that he is a ruthless dictator that covets power. Christien is familiar with both vampires and requests that Kayle contact them and ask nicely for Hassan’s location in the hope they will cooperate. Kayle agrees to meet with the two vampires and he will report to Christien after the meeting.

I call Roman whenever I can, but I only receive his voicemail. I leave messages asking him for an update and for him to call me back. Lately, he has been busy with werewolf duties while visiting his father’s pack in Italy so I don’t expect to hear back from him for a while.

Christien and I are spending a lot of time together getting to know each other and we often talk about what we plan to do once we find Hassan.

The week before we are to leave for France, I pass out from exhaustion while working out. Christien is concerned but he believes me when I reassure him that I am okay.

Later that day, I can feel my energy depleting faster than normal and my stomach pitches like it is a ship in bad weather. I haven’t been feeling well lately, but I don’t want Roman or Christien to find out about it. Keeping my distance from Christien is proving to be harder than I originally thought.

A few hours later, I get ready for bed. I stretch out on the bed completely relaxed and think about my mother. I fall asleep immediately. The voice of my mother wakes me up with a smile on my face.

“I have not been feeling well lately. Last time I started feeling strangely, I was coming into new powers. Could something like that be happening to me again?”

“What seems to be wrong?” She asks curiously.

“I have passed out once. I am nauseous and tired all the time. I know you said angels don’t get sick, so I was wondering if you may know what is wrong with me.” I look up at her anxiously.

“It is true that angels normally do not get sick.” She answers with a smile on her face.

“You said angels don’t
normally
get sick. When do they get sick?”

Lilly chuckles and shakes her head. “Angels
do
get sick when they are pregnant.”

“Pregnant! You think I am pregnant?” I am NOT pregnant!” I shout at her in a panic tone as I sit up in bed, leaving my body behind. “I would know if I am pregnant.”

“Sweetheart, it is never planned when an angel gets pregnant by a vampire. I, too, was afraid when I found out I was pregnant with you. Even though we did not plan to get pregnant, it does not mean I wanted you any less. Your father and I loved you very much and I will be there for you as much as possible.” She reassures me.

Christien pulls me towards him. I resist at first, but eventually succumb to his comforting touch. Lying awake, thinking about what my mother told me, I wait until I think Christien falls asleep and crawl out of bed. It is early morning and the sun lightens the sky to a pale blue. I dress as quietly as possible. As I am walking out the bedroom door, Christien’s voice fills the room.

“Where are you going,
ma petite chatte
?”

Spinning around, I see Christien sitting up in bed looking at me. “I need to go home. I’ll call you later.” I run out the door, ignoring Christien’s calls.

Checking my car as usual before getting in, I drive home after stopping at the drug store on the way to buy an over-the-counter pregnancy test. Distracted by my inner turmoil, I don’t perform a thorough check of my house before entering. The alarm has not been set off and I don’t hear anyone inside so I close the door and lock up. I go upstairs and head straight into the bathroom. Nervously, I remove the box from the bag and slowly read the instructions. Following the instructions precisely, I take the pregnancy test. The stop clock is set on my watch for three minutes as directed. The alarm goes off and I pick up the stick, taking a deep breath.
Two pink lines
. I compare the stick to the box to decipher the results.

“No! That can’t be right. I must have done something wrong.” Tossing the test, box and instructions into the wastebasket, I go back downstairs consumed by my thoughts.

I grab the bread, put a couple of slices into the toaster, and turn on the coffee pot. I have just grabbed a plate from the cupboard overhead when I hear Christien’s voice from behind me.

“Are you ready to talk now?”

Dropping the plate, it shatters on the floor. I turn around and see Christien sitting at the kitchen table. “What are you doing here? How did you get inside?”

Christien looks around the room and settles on me. “Is this a bad time? Are you expecting someone?” A hint of jealousy creeps into his voice.

“Yes, this is a bad time. I really need to be alone right now. I told you I would call you later.” I wring my hands while shuffling my feet, stepping on pieces of the broken plate on the floor.

“Why are you so anxious?” He asks suspiciously.

“I’m not. I just have things to do. I still have a job.” I stop moving and place my hands on my hips in a defensive manner.

“You left so suddenly after your bad dream. I just wanted to check on you and make sure you are okay. I care about you
chatte
. You are mine as I am yours. If you thought something was wrong with me, would you not do whatever you felt necessary to help? I know you can take care of yourself. I only thought you might want to talk to me about what is bothering you since Roman is unavailable. Apparently, I am mistaken.” He sulks.

“Christien, this is something I need to work out myself. I will talk to you when I am ready. Don’t be jealous of Roman. He is my best friend and we have known each other for years. Plus, you know I’m not his type.” I walk over to him and sit on his lap. “I just need to work this out on my own. If or when I need to talk about it, I promise I will talk to you, okay?”

“Thank you.” Christien kisses my shoulder.

“I need to work so I’ll see you back at your place.” I hint to him, standing up and moving out of the kitchen.

“I want you to know that if you decide you do not want to do what you do anymore, I will take care of you.” He stands up and follows me to the front door.

“Thank you for stopping by and checking on me. I really do appreciate it. And, I’ll think about your offer.” I say genuinely.

He kisses me gently. “I care for you like no other,
ma petite chatte
. Anything you need or want, all you need to do is ask and it is yours.”

“Thank you. I know you mean that.”

He reluctantly leaves and I lock up and reset the alarm. Taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly to calm down, I return to the kitchen for coffee and toast. I shuffle into the living area to my laptop after I clean up the broken plate. The toast settles my stomach a little, but I am still queasy. I check my emails to find that I don’t have any jobs to do before leaving for France because I’m still on unavailable, so I set an away message on my email account to let people know that I will not be available for a while. Shutting down my laptop, I go upstairs to pack.

My mind wanders while I am packing and I allow myself to think about what my life would be like if I had a child.

Something inside me softens when I think about a son or daughter running around the house.

I would most likely have to quit my dangerous career if I choose to have a baby. I do not want to be in the same situation as my parents. I would like a normal life for any children of mine. What exactly does that mean? Do I need to have a 9 to 5 job? Could I be a stay-at-home mother? I enjoy the hunt and challenge I receive from being a mercenary. I am not sure I can give it up. What am I thinking? It really does not matter because I am not pregnant!

The suitcase on the bed is full of clothes that I don’t remember packing. Dumping the suitcase on the bed, I start over. After packing enough clothes, shoes and lingerie to last a week or so, I take an empty suitcase downstairs to my basement vault. I let myself inside and fill the suitcase with my blood I have currently stacked in totes. After thinking about it for a few moments, I decide to pack another suitcase with some of my weapons. Retrieving a long duffle bag from the drawer below my weapons, I pack it with my katana, baby desert eagles, sawed off shotgun, and my custom-made short sword, along with plenty of extra ammo and holsters for everything. When I finish packing, I have two suitcases and a large duffle bag in all. Lugging the suitcases back upstairs, I stack them near the front door. After loading the suitcases into my car, I lock up tight and head back to Christien’s place.

Quickly stopping at another drug store on the way, I pick up a few more pregnancy tests. I arrive at Christien’s and his 60-year-old human butler retrieves my bags from the car as I go inside. I find Christien working in his home office. In all these weeks, I’ve only seen his office once before in passing. This time, I take a good look around, taking in all the paintings on the walls and books on the shelves. Christien looks up from his computer and smiles at me.

Christien leans back in his chair and looks at me, clearly amused. “I have an elite security company. I also own a shipping company and trucking business. All of my businesses run 24 hours a day to allow my human servants and vampires to find a good paying job. I own a few buildings too. Some I rent out, others I use for my own purpose.”

“Wow! Really? Do you make good money with your businesses?” I ask, excited about learning more about him.