Breathless (25 page)

She could not let this continue, could not take the chance of Rave getting hurt. Hunting vampires was what he did, but he had already given up his advantage and would be distracted by her presence as well. She remembered him saying how powerful Stefan was. No way could she let Rave fight him under these conditions. Nor did she want Stefan destroyed, for he might have the answers she needed. No, this was a fight she
had
to stop. But how was a mere girl supposed to keep these mortal enemies from doing what centuries of enmity was urging them to do?

She forced herself to her feet. Sucking in a deep breath, she stepped between them.

26.  CAUGHT IN THE MIDDLE

“
I
f I am out of my mind, so be it,” Leesa said, struggling to keep the fear out of her voice as she stood between Rave and Stefan. “But I’m not going to let you two hurt each other.”

Her eyes shifted back and forth from one to the other, trying to perform the impossible task of watching both at once. Rave and Stefan cocked their heads to the side, unwilling to break eye contact even with her in the way. She knew if she moved back a step or two she’d be better able to see them both, but then she wouldn’t be between them, and it was only her presence there that was keeping them apart. Now, if she could just figure out a way to keep them that way.

In the blink of an eye, Rave flashed to his left, trying to create an opening, but she countered by quickly moving closer to Stefan. With the tree behind Stefan, Rave couldn’t get to him without endangering her, and she knew he’d never risk that. And Stefan had sworn he’d never hurt her, and somehow she believed him, despite the sharp fangs now curving down from his mouth and the low growl rumbling from his throat. Still, it took every bit of courage she had to turn her back on the vampire and face Rave. She thought she could feel Stefan’s cold breath on the back of her neck and wondered if she was imagining it. Or was his breath as cold as Rave’s was warm?

“Get out of the way, Leesa,” Rave said. “Please.”

“Yes, Leesa, get out of the way,” Stefan echoed. “I don’t need you to protect me from this volkaane.”

Leesa folded her arms across her chest. “I’m not going anywhere,” she said determinedly. “I forbid you two to fight.” She thought how foolish she must sound—as if she could really stop these two supernatural creatures from doing what they wanted—but she tried not to let it show. Her only weapon was the concern they both felt for her, and she was determined to use it to the fullest.

Rave flashed back to his right, looking for some way to get past her. She felt Stefan’s hands clamp around her waist, barely noticing the cold that penetrated through her jacket as he lifted her as easily as he would a child and deposited her to the side. His growling grew louder, but she jumped back between them.

“Even if you two get past me, I’ll just throw myself into your fight. I know neither of you wants me to get hurt, so you may as well forget about fighting.” She took a deep breath. “Do I make myself clear?”

She watched Rave closely and saw his eyes begin to soften. The blue flames on his fingers began to glow less brightly and the tension in his limbs seemed to ease a bit. She stole a glance at Stefan and saw his fangs retract into his jaw. The growling ceased as well. She’d done it!

“It seems this is your lucky day, volkaane,” Stefan said. “You’ll not die tonight.”

“I could say the same to you,” Rave replied, “were you not already dead.”

Stefan began to edge away, and Leesa moved closer to Rave to make sure neither changed his mind about fighting.

“Another time, another place, volkaane,” Stefan promised, his eyes never leaving Rave’s as he backed away.

“I look forward to it, vampire.”

Leesa wrapped her arms around Rave’s arm as Stefan moved off. She could feel his heat through his sleeve, much warmer than usual.

“Leesa, I do know Edwina,” Stefan called back to her right before he disappeared into the blackness. “She’s one of us.”

Leesa gasped. Her grip tightened on Rave’s forearm as the full import of Stefan’s words hit home. Edwina
was
a vampire. Which meant Bradley was probably being held as a feeder—or worse. She shuddered and threw herself into Rave’s arms.

“Don’t ever try anything like that again,” Rave said softly, holding her tightly. “If the
Destiratu
gets much stronger, neither volkaane nor vampire will be able to hold back. You could be killed.”

“I’m sorry,” Leesa sobbed, her cheek pressed against his warm chest. “But I just couldn’t let you two fight.”

Rave tenderly stroked her hair. “It’s okay,” he said. “It’s over.” He continued stroking her hair until he felt the tension begin to drain out of her.

“What was Stefan talking about there at the end?” he asked. “Who’s Edwina?”

Leesa realized she hadn’t told Rave anything about Bradley. “Edwina was my brother’s girlfriend,” she said sadly.

“Uh-oh,” Rave said. “This can’t be good. Tell me everything.”

Leesa eased out of his arms. “Can we go inside? I’ll tell you about it up in my room.”

Rave nodded. “Sure. Let’s go.”

She led him into the dorm, still shaken from everything that had transpired. Without thinking, she headed for the elevator, but Rave grabbed her wrist before she could press the call button.

“Not a good idea,” he said with a grin. “Remember your cell phone.”

Leesa smiled sheepishly. “Oh yeah. I forgot.” The last thing she needed was to get stuck in the elevator. She turned toward the stairwell instead. “The stairs it is.”

Once inside her room, she opted for the softer light of her desk lamp rather than the harsh brightness of the overhead light. She fluffed two pillows and leaned them against the wall atop her bed, then sat down and patted the mattress next to her.

“Sit here with me, please.”

Rave hopped onto the bed and put his arm around her shoulders.

Leesa snuggled close, enjoying his warmth. “Did you hear another woman is missing?” she asked. “Down in Old Saybrook. I saw it on the news. She just disappeared. No clues or anything.”

Destiratu
, Rave thought. His fears were coming true. The vampires were increasing their hunting. Was that why Stefan was on campus? And what was he doing with Leesa?

“Are you certain the vampire you destroyed is the one who killed the girls here?” Leesa asked.

Rave nodded. “Yeah, pretty sure. He’d fed recently—I could taste it. If the Saybrook woman was taken by a vampire, it’s a different one.”

“Just how many vampires
are
there around here, anyway?” Leesa asked.

“Scores, at least, just in this half of Connecticut.”

Leesa’s eyes widened. “That many? Wow. I never dreamed.” She realized how silly that sounded. A few months ago, she didn’t even believe vampires existed. Now she was accepting that there were scores of them here.

“And they’re becoming increasingly hungry.” Rave’s eyes locked onto hers. “Leesa, you and your friends need to be very careful, please.”

“We will, I promise.” She put her head on his shoulder and snuggled even tighter against him.

“Okay, now tell me about your brother,” Rave said.

Leesa told him everything, going all the way back to their walks to strengthen her leg, and how Bradley had protected her when the other kids teased her. She showed Rave Bradley’s final email, and told him the reason she came to Weston was to find Bradley. Tears were streaming down her cheeks by the time she finished.

“I’ve never been that close to anybody,” Rave said. “It must have been wonderful. And terrible when he disappeared.” He kissed the top of her head. “And now to learn that Edwina was a vampire. My poor sweetheart.” He kissed her hair again.

His soft voice and tender kisses helped Leesa regain her composure. “If Bradley did go away with Edwina, she’s either turned him into a vampire—and I refuse to allow myself to think about that—or she’s keeping him as a feeder.” She lifted her head from Rave’s shoulder. “Do you know anything about feeders?”

Rave nodded. “A captive kept as a blood source, yeah.” He was not about to tell her what a ghastly existence it was.

“Do you know if it can be reversed?”

“I don’t know. I’ve never heard that it can—but that doesn’t mean it can’t be.”

Leesa rubbed a tear from the corner of her eye. “I have to believe it can. I just have to.” She laid her head back on Rave’s shoulder. “Do you know where the vampires live?” she asked. She felt his body stiffen at the question.

“Not exactly, no,” he said after a moment. “They live underground, somewhere south of here and east of the river. By unspoken agreement, my people do not seek their lair, nor do they approach our settlement. The costs of such actions would be far too great to both.”

Leesa eased herself out of his grasp and turned to face him. “That’s why I can’t let you kill Stefan. He’s my best chance to find Bradley.”

Rave didn’t like where this was heading. “Leesa, you can’t go hunting vampires in their lair. Promise me, if you learn anything, you’ll come to me first.”

She grabbed both his hands. “I can’t promise that, Rave. I don’t know what might happen.” She squeezed his hands as another tear ran down her cheek. “But I’ll come to you if I can, I promise.”

Rave wondered if the best thing he could do for Leesa would be to hunt Stefan down and slay him, before the vampire could tell her anything that might lead her into trouble. He knew destroying Stefan would probably cost him Leesa forever, but at least she’d be safe. “Please do that,” he said. “You can’t help your brother by getting killed…or worse.”

Leesa shuddered. She knew exactly what he meant by “or worse.”

27. 
GRAFHYM

M
other died today—she just didn’t know it yet. Leesa hoped she’d soon be reborn into an easier, happier, more normal life. At least that was the plan.
If
Professor Clerval’s manuscript was correct about the
grafhym
blood’s reversing the effects of the one-fang’s bite. And
if
Rave could find the
grafhym
again and capture it alive. And
if
the injection did not produce any unexpected side effects. Then everything would be perfect.
If
…

Getting her mom to Connecticut had been easier than Leesa expected. Not easy, mind you, not by a long shot, but easier nonetheless. It started with a two-hour phone call, followed by an early-morning cross-country flight with Aunt Janet, then a red-eye return flight to New York City the same night. Uncle Roger picked them up at the airport and drove them back to Meriden, where they arrived well before dawn. It had been an exhausting twenty-four hours, but at least her mom was here, ensconced in the spare bedroom. The room had one window, and Uncle Roger had installed thick black curtains to keep it dark, which made her mom very happy. She had scarcely left the room since her arrival yesterday morning.

But she would be leaving it soon. They were waiting for Dr. Clerval, and then they would be off to Sleeping Giant Park, where Rave had promised to meet them at sunset. Not that there would be an actual sunset today, Leesa thought as she watched the rain stream down the front window. It had been raining all day, which was fine with her, and the afternoon was getting darker by the minute. Already, she could barely see the street through the gloom and the rain. The chill rain might cause them some discomfort, but was much preferable to sunshine as far as her mom was concerned. Leesa didn’t think they’d have any trouble getting her into the car when it was time to leave. And that was all that counted.

A wide swath of yellow light knifed across the front yard as a VW van made a U-turn in front of the house and pulled to a stop. Leesa watched as the driver’s side door swung open and a dark umbrella ballooned through the opening, followed by the white-haired figure of Professor Clerval, clad in a yellow rain slicker. He kept the umbrella low over his head as he trudged up the driveway.

Leesa opened the door before the professor could ring the bell. He stepped inside, holding the umbrella out the door and shaking the water off before pulling it closed and depositing it in a black and gold ceramic umbrella holder. Another thing most people didn’t have in San Diego, Leesa thought—umbrella holders. They were pretty handy here in New England, though.

She introduced Professor Clerval to her aunt and uncle, and they all shook hands.

“Beautiful night to take in the park, eh, Professor?” Uncle Roger said, smiling.

“Just the kind they’d use in a horror movie,” the professor agreed. “Though I bet the director would want to mix in some fog as well.”

“Let’s hope we can keep any horror to a minimum tonight,” Aunt Janet said.

Leesa moved toward the bedrooms. “I’ll go get Mom.”

She knocked softly on her mom’s door, entering without waiting for a reply. Her mom was sitting on the bed, waiting. She was wearing black pants and a heavy black and white knit sweater borrowed from Aunt Janet. The clothes were slightly big, giving her a disheveled look, but they would keep her warm. One of Aunt Janet’s old raincoats lay on the bed next to her.