Fallen (7 page)

I took a deep breath, hating myself for lying to him. But I couldn't tell him the truth. He was a kind person and would be turned off to know that I was trying to lure Alexis to Vince so that he could kill her. He would certainly hate knowing that I had been bedmates with that same vampire for many decades. We had met when poodle skirts were popular.

"You don't have to tell me," he said. "I don't want to make you uncomfortable. I'm sure that telling me you're a…what you are…was hard enough."

He was so sweet. I just wanted to kiss him. I wanted to throw myself on top of him and….

Smiling, he reached for my hair and began pulling sand out. The thing with the sand around there was that it was big chunks rocks instead of the fine, soft sand found in most other places. "You don't have to tell me anything."

"Why don't you ask me questions and I'll answer them, rather than me telling you some long, boring story."

He brushed my cheek with the back of his hand. "I guarantee you the story wouldn't be boring to me. When were you turned?"

"About twenty years ago," I said, hating myself for the lie.

"How were you turned?" he asked, looking at me with care and concern.

"My family was traveling down south and I got separated from them. Then a gross redneck offered to help me find them, but he turned out to be a vampire. He said that he thought I was beautiful and he wanted to take me as his life partner. It was either that or he said he would kill me."

Tanner's eyes widened and he pulled me close, stroking my back. "You poor, poor thing. How long were you with him?"

I sighed, not wanting to tell him any more lies. "I just got away from him not too long ago. He was busy fixing the furnace with duct tape when I made the decision to run, even if it meant that he was going to hunt me down and kill me. I didn't want to be his toy any longer."

He looked at me with tears in his eyes. "I can't believe all that you've been through. Is that why you moved to Delphic Cove? To hide from him?"

I nodded. "I didn't think he would look for me there."

"What about that vampire who was just in the woods?"

"That was just some random vampire."

"You don't think he was sent to spy on you, do you?"

I froze. Tanner had no clue how close to the truth he actually was.

His eyes widened. "You do," he whispered, shaking his head. "Well at least that vampire found you here and not in Delphic Cove. It'll make it harder for your ex to find you."

I nodded, hating the lies.

He wrapped an arm around me and we sat in silence for a while, just watching the waves and the seagulls.

CHAPTER EIGHT

The following months went by in a happy blur as I enjoyed my time uninterrupted with Tanner. Vince had to have been so busy with his plans to overtake the throne that he didn't have time to worry about what I was doing.

Tanner and I laughed and played, and I enjoyed myself in a whole new way. I even found that by feeding on him a little each day, my appetite was curbed and I had no desire to run out and drain anyone. I spent my days trying to find someone who would be a good match for Alexis. Of course there was no one, as no guy ever even looked her way.

Even if a guy had glanced at her, I would have pretended not to see because I wanted to stay in Delphic Cove with Tanner as long as possible. I enjoyed my time with him and I also loved watching him become more confident. When I watched his games and practices, it was different than before. The other players gave him respect and space. Gone were the days of them picking on him and pushing him around.

It was much the same in school, when he walked down the hall, people moved out of his way. Nobody bothered him and I could see the relief in his eyes. He was so grateful to me for helping him out. I was just glad to be able to spend time with him.

I wasn't sure how long that would last. I knew that it was only a matter of time before Vince wanted me to come back and give him a report. I was purposefully taking too long to accomplish my mission and he wasn't stupid. He would figure that out, though I hoped that he wouldn't figure out that I had fallen completely in love with Tanner. I was head over heels and would have done anything for him.

Then the day came. Tanner and I were playing hooky, eating pizza and drinking shakes at the mall when my phone buzzed with a text. I sent Tanner for napkins and I looked at the text, seeing that Vince expected me to join him for dinner that night.

"You okay, Sammie?" Tanner asked, sitting down, his eyes full of concern.

"I think that the jerk redneck might be on my tail," I lied. "I can sense his presence and I—"

"How?"

"It's something I can feel. Remember how I felt that one vampire when we were at the beach?"

He nodded, looking upset.

"I need to leave town for a few days. I'll be back. I couldn't leave you for long. But I need to get myself, and my scent, out of here. I can't risk him sensing me."

His eyes widened. "Will you be safe?"

I put my hand on top of his. "Don't worry about me."

"How can I not? You're living in hiding from that creep!"

"Please don't worry about me. I promise that I'll return in a few days," I said, interlacing my fingers through his.

Tanner sighed and then nodded. "Okay. Maybe you can text me at least?"

I looked into his eyes and then kissed him. "You have my word. But now I should get going. I need to cover my trail. I don't want him figuring out that I was here and I really don't want him finding you with my scent."

He frowned. "I wish that you didn't have to go."

A lump formed in my throat and I felt a strange wet sensation in my eyes. I hadn't cried since I was a child, I wasn't even aware that I still could. A tear escaped and ran down my face, tickling my skin. I moved to wipe it away, but Tanner was faster, kissing the trail from my eye to the side of my mouth.

"I'll miss you too," he whispered.

I nodded, afraid to hear my voice if I spoke.

He stood up and we walked to his car in silence with his arm wrapped around me. He went to open the passenger door and I shook my head. "I need to leave now," I finally said. "You should shower and try to wash my scent off."

"You want to help?" he teased, grinning through tears of his own.

"That would defeat the purpose," I said, giving him a playful shove. I gave him a quick kiss and then I ran off, giving him the impression of me disappearing before his eyes. I stopped behind a building and peeked around the corner, too far for his human eyes to see me, and I watched as he got into his car looking like a defeated puppy. Then he drove off and was out of sight.

Sighing, I began running. After a while, I got into a rural area and decided that I had better fill myself with some fearful human blood to cover the scent of Tanner's love-soaked blood running through me. Vince would smell that from miles away.

I saw some guy walking a dog. I could see the dog's hair stand up as it sensed my presence. It started growling and the guy looked around and picked up his speed. I followed, with my eyes on the dog, knowing that it would sense me watching it. His fur stood up even further and it let out a lower growl and started barking. I could smell the fear of his owner.

The dog was helping me out by getting the human fearful before he even saw me. I approached slowly as the dog started barking even louder. The man turned around and saw me. His shoulders lowered and he smiled, telling the dog to shut up.

"Sorry about my dog. Apparently he doesn't get around people enough."

I looked at the dog, who was growling and snapping now.

The guy pulled on the leash and yelled at the dog. He apologized to me again.

"He's just trying to protect his owner," I said, narrowing my eyes.

His eyes widened and the scent of fear rose up again. I showed him my now-sharp teeth and he dropped the leash, his heart pounding. The dog ran at me and I picked it up, biting into its back. I spit out the foul tasting blood and threw the dog to the side. It yelped and licked a leg that was clearly broken.

"What are you?"

"The thing that nightmares are made of," I said as I watched the vein in his neck pulse up and down. I looked deep into his eyes and watched as the reality of the situation washed over his face.

"No…please," he begged. "I have a family—people that love me. I'll do anything, please."

I stopped. Tanner's face flashed in my mind when he said that people loved him. If anyone loved this guy even close to the way that I felt about Tanner, I couldn't do it. I felt my fangs retract. I grabbed his shirt and pulled him close, staring into his eyes until they shrank. "You never saw me. Your dog was hit by a car.
Capisce
?"

He nodded. "I never saw you and my dog was hit by a car."

"Good," I said, shoving him away from me. "Leave my sight."

He took one more look at me, picked up his dog and then ran off. I was about to start running myself when I heard laughing. I turned toward the forest and saw Danny watching me, nearly doubled over in laughter.

I folded my arms. "Enjoying yourself?"

Standing up, he said, "Immensely. Looks like that human boy is making you weak. Who would have thought you would ever let a human go? That's not like the Samantha that everyone knows and fears."

"Shut it."

He took a deep breath. "It smells like you really like that school boy too. You'd best find someone to snack on to get rid of that scent. Vince isn't going like that."

"I said shut it, Danny. What's it going to take to keep you quiet about this?"

"Forget about that indiscretion that you've been hanging over my head for the last decade."

He had killed one of Vince's relatives and I'd been using it to get anything I needed from him ever since.

I thought about it. "Deal. I was getting bored with that anyway," I lied.

"Finally," he said, looking relieved. "Vince was afraid that you didn't get his message so he sent me to make sure that you go it."

"You can see that I got it. I'm on my way back."

"Want some company?"

"Not if you're referring to yourself. You can run along ahead and report that I'll be meeting Vince for dinner as requested."

He smirked and then ran off without a word. Next time I would have to remember to text Vince back so that I wouldn't have to deal with one of his annoying sidekicks.

I took my time getting back, managing to find someone to feed on without feeling guilty. I drank just enough to cover Tanner's scent and then made her forget about our encounter. When I did finally arrive at Vince's mansion, I didn't spend all that much time getting ready. Usually I went all out getting ready to see Vince, but I just didn't have it in me. My mind was back in Delphic Cove with Tanner.

When I got to Vince's room, he opened the door before I could knock. He looked me over as though I looked as good as usual. "You're a sight for sore eyes, as always. I like the toned down look. You have a natural beauty that you don't let anyone see often enough."

I leaned against the doorway. "So did you have fun sending your spies?"

"Spies? I only sent Danny a few times."

A few times? He must have avoided my detection at least once. Anyone who was smart feared me as much as they feared Vince.

"Are you ready for dinner? I had the staff cook your favorite."

I raised an eyebrow. I didn't think that he even knew what my favorite was.

Vince laughed. "Don't worry—we didn't cook up the human boy. It's that Italian dish that you like so much."

"That sounds nice," I said, careful not to react when he brought up Tanner.

He held out his arm and I linked mine through his and we walked to his favorite dining room where the long table was set for two. He held the chair out for me and I sat. He sat next to me and smiled, but it wasn't a sweet, innocent smile like Tanner. "I've missed you, Samantha. The place just isn't the same without your beauty or your fire. I didn't expect your mission to take so long. I'm not used to going months without seeing you."

"Yeah, well, it is taking a long time. That girl is as boring as paint and finding a guy who will pay attention to her is no small task. Nor is finding one who is open enough to actually believe in vampires."

"It sounds like you've found one who believes," he said, resting his chin in his palm.

"One in the entire school, and he doesn't even know who Marguerite is. Did I tell you that she goes by Alexis? They hid her and she goes by her middle name. You'd think they could have been a little more creative."

"They didn't need creativity. She stayed off our radar for years, almost a dozen years, and then it took us a year to find her at that. Has she begun her transformation?"

"Not that I can tell. Growing up with humans must have really slowed the process down. That's all I can figure. She should already be fully transformed by now."

"That's to our benefit. She'll be a lot easier to kill before she comes into her full power. If she hasn't even begun to transform, it'll be a snap."

I nodded, tired of talking about a boring girl.

"You need to get that boy thinking about her. You've got him addicted to our venom from what I hear. Use that to your advantage. Point him in her direction so that he goes after her when you leave."

Holding a poker face, I tried not to react. The thought of leaving Tanner broke me inside. I hated being apart from him for this dinner, what would a permanent separation do to me? He already brought out all kinds of emotions that I didn't know I was even capable of experiencing. "Right," I said.

"I have something that will help."

"What?"

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a men's ring. "I had this blessed by a witch. It will cause a transforming vampire to fall in love with the human who's wearing it when she drinks his blood."

My insides froze. "You're saying that if he wears this, Alexis will fall in love with him?"