Kiss Me When the Sun Goes Down (33 page)

“How can you take care of it?” I blinked, shrugging off his grasp.  “Putting a protection duty on them won’t help.  I have to get my parents somewhere safe.”

“That’s what I meant, I can relocate them.  Give them new identities, new lives.  That way they won’t be able to give themselves away accidentally, and they won’t worry about you or Hanna.”

That was taking things quite a bit further than I had in mind, but I had to agree, Mom and Dad would be much safer if they themselves had no idea we were related.  It just seemed like such a drastic step to take.  Sure, they’d be alive, but for all intents and purposes, I’d be losing them too.  I wasn’t sure I could take that on top of everything else.  “But... then I’ll never see them again.”

“Sure you will, after this is over,” he replied with easy assurance.  “But it might not be the worst thing in the world to do this for them anyway, Anja.  You’re in a dangerous position, and that danger can easily spill over to them at any time.” 

“No, you’re right.  But where will you send them, what will they do?”

“I’ll take care of it.”  He patted my shoulder, and I caught his hand.

“No, I need to be a part of this.  I have enough money to set them up somewhere.  Someplace good.  Make them happy.”

“We’ll give them an early retirement,” he smiled.  “They can travel, or sit around and relax for the rest of their lives.” 

“My father will probably get another job anyway,” I mused aloud. 

“Good, then he can try something he’s always wanted to do.” 

It was a strange thought, deciding the course of their lives for them, even temporarily.  “You won’t change them too much, will you?”

“No, I’ll just change their names, and they won’t have any memory of you or Hanna.  Not until you want them to, then the compulsion can be undone.  It’s the best way.”

“I know, you’re right.”  I had to face the idea that I might’ve had to do the same thing eventually anyway.  Either that or fake my own death when I didn’t age beyond my twenty-first year.  There was one more horrible thing I had to do before I could even think of seeking my bed for the day.  Tell Hanna. 

Only I couldn’t.  I wouldn’t let her first day as a vampire be marred by this.  Her emotions were likely going to be all over the place without something like this to push her over the edge.  I decided to let her have this one first night with Mason without telling her.  The news about our parents would keep.  But then I started to worry that she wouldn’t be safe at Mason’s place.  After all, they’d somehow found her on the road, that meant they were probably following her. 

“What about Hanna?” I exclaimed when he pulled out his phone to get busy with extracting my parents. 

“I’ll call Mason next and give him a heads up.”

“You make him swear up and down that he won’t say anything to Hanna about what happened tonight.” 

Bishop’s brows drew together.  “She’ll have to be told.”

“Not yet, not like this.” 

“Alright, I’ll make sure he knows that mum’s the word.  Now try to relax, Anja.  It’s late.”

It
was
late.  Later than I’d stayed up in a while.  The sun coming through the cracks in the curtains made my eyes sting, but I had one last thing to do. 

No one tried to stop me when I went out to gather Gunnar’s ashes, Maggie busy taking care of Tucker, Carter out disposing of our shooter, and Bishop on the phone with someone, I had no idea who.  Who did you even call to arrange to disappear a couple of suburban teachers?

I placed his ashes in a pretty vase, green with enameled pink flowers.  It made me think of the garden, which made me think of Gunnar.  It wouldn’t do for a permanent home, of course, but it was the best I could do for his temporary resting place.  Setting them on the side table out of the way, I slumped at the table beside Lee’s body, studying the weathered lines of his face.  I missed him so much already.  Always there with a hug and a smile, and a colorful way of pointing out what I should’ve known all along.  He’d lived a full life.  Not long enough, but I hoped that some of his wisdom had rubbed off on me in the short time I’d known him. 

It was late, I could feel the sun rising higher, despite the drawn curtains.  Bishop’s soft baritone reached me from the other room as he made the arrangements.  Tucker had drifted off to sleep with Maggie beside him, her head pillowed against the sofa’s armrest.  Carter was still out there, but I trusted him to cover up or go to ground if he couldn’t make it home in time. 

I knew I could slip downstairs if I wanted to, there was nothing left for me to do.  Still, I fought against falling asleep, not ready to let it claim me until I knew what was left of my family had survived. 

“Your parents got out safely,” Bishop reported as he tucked his phone away.  “A friend of mine is taking care of it.”

“What friend?  Somebody from the Order?”  The only person I completely trusted besides him, was Mason.

“No, I thought it best to keep them out of this.  We’ll want someone discreet, so they can’t be traced back to you.”

That made sense.  “And Hanna?”

“Hanna’s fine.  She’s already passed out, but Mason will make sure she’s safe.” 

“We can’t know that for sure.  Anyone can get to them while they sleep during the day.”

“He’s taking them out of there.”

“Can he do that?  It’s already past dawn.”

“He’ll manage, he’s got protection and stims.  You know he won’t rest until they’re safe.  Anja, it’ll be okay.”

“That’s what you said before.” 

“Come here.”  Bishop gathered me close.  “You’re right, it won’t be okay, but eventually it won’t hurt this much.  That I know.”

So many people dead and gone.  But I had Bishop there beside me, and for the moment, it was enough to chase the blackness away from my heart as I let it envelop me.

I
didn’t want to get up the next night, but I didn’t want to lie alone in my bedroom either.  I heard Bishop up and around upstairs, talking to Maggie, and I forced myself to get up and take a shower as hot as I could stand it, Buffy’s
Going Through the Motions
running through my mind.  As I got to the top of the stairs, I ran into Tucker coming out of the hall bathroom. 

“Hey, how are you feeling?”

“F-fine as a frog’s hair split f-four ways,” he said with a sad smile, using one of Lee’s favorite old sayings.  Though I did notice that he walked with a hint of a limp. 

“Good.  I’m glad you’re on the mend, but boy howdy does that stuff stink!”

“Tell me something I don’t know,” he grimaced, shuffling his way back to the couch. 

“You’re up early,” Maggie smiled, greeting me in the living room. 

Was I?  I had no idea what time it was, only that the sun was already down.  “There’s just so much to do,” I shrugged, stopping stock still when I spotted the empty dining room table.  “Where’s Lee?”

“We had him collected and taken to the funeral parlor.  Was that wrong?”

It wasn’t wrong in the technical sense, it was Maggie being efficient as always, but it still bothered me.  “I didn’t get to say goodbye,” I murmured, sinking into the nearest available chair.  I wasn’t ready to, not yet. 

“You’ll have time for that,” she said, laying a hand on my shoulder with a comforting squeeze.  “I made all the arrangements after discussing it with Tucker.  There will be a graveside service where we can all say goodbye, but we couldn’t leave him here on the table all day.” 

“I know, I get it,” I smiled up at her, patting her hand.  “I’m sorry I freaked out.  Did you have any luck tracking down his family?”

“Not yet, but there are still some ends I haven’t reached yet.”

“I should probably try to contact Nell. I’m sure she’ll want to know about the memorial service.”  Other than that, I wasn’t sure who else to call, except maybe Kane.  “I feel like we should tell someone about Gunnar too.  I don’t know who his Sire was though.”

Maggie cleared her throat delicately.  “I took the liberty of calling Rob, since he engaged Gunnar and Isak.  I figured he’d know the best way to reach his people.”

“Oh,” I nodded.  “That was smart thinking.  And did he know?”

“He said he’d send the word on.”

“Is that all he said?”

“He said to pass along his condolences.”

It was weird to think that Rob wasn’t comfortable enough with me to call me himself, but I supposed that was what our relationship had become.  “I think I’ll try and reach Jakob, unless you have a number for Nelleke?”  Maggie shook her head, and I dug out my cell, waving to Bishop, who paced in the kitchen, looking none too pleased about the phone call he was on. 

Deciding to put off whatever bad news that happened to be, I went into my study to make the call, only Jakob didn’t pick up.  I left him a voicemail, explaining what’d happened to Lee and Gunnar as briefly as I could, or I would’ve ended up in tears again.  After I’d stared at the computer screen for about five minutes with none of the words sinking in, I got up to go get a mug of O positive.  My brain was too fuzzy to try and adult without it. 

Bishop was off the phone, and still looking just as thunderous as I entered the kitchen.  “What’s the matter?” I asked, making a beeline for the fridge.

“Nothing, Order business.”

It clearly wasn’t nothing, from the look on his face.  I appreciated him trying to protect me, but being kept in the dark wasn’t an option for me.  “Is something going down?  I sort of have to keep on top of that stuff, personal problems or not.”

“No, nothing like that,” he sighed, sinking into one of the chairs at the kitchen table.  “Just trying to clear a few days off on my schedule, and it’s harder than I thought it would be.  There’s a reason why so few of us in the Order have a life other than the job.” 

Was that all?  “You don’t have to sit here and babysit me, I’ll be fine.”

“I’m not trying to babysit you, I’m trying to be here for you.  There’s a difference.”  Now he cracked a smile.  “Keeping you safe is just a bonus.”

I waggled a blood bag at him, but he shook his head with a wince, so I nuked a single mug for myself in the microwave.  “You should think about keeping yourself safe,” I pointed out.  “Maybe it is for the best if you don’t go into work for a while?  And I’m not saying that in an
I’m selfishly keeping you by my side for a Lord of the Rings marathon on TV
kind of thing, it’s purely a selfish
keeping you alive
kind of thing.” 

“Either way, I’m sticking by your side for the moment.  Hobbits are optional.” 

I smiled for the first time without feeling like my heart might break.  “I love you, you know.”

He met my smile with a soft one of his own.  “I love you too.” 

“I’m sorry last night wasn’t quite what you had in mind for your first night spent sleeping over.”

“I’m just glad I got to hold you in my arms for another night.”

“How come you weren’t there when I woke up then?”

“Sorry, I’ve been busy.”  He had the grace to look contrite, so I didn’t hold a grudge over it.  “I’ve already checked in with Mason and confirmed that they slipped out of town unseen.”

“Wait, you didn’t say anything about them going out of town.”

“I said he’d take her somewhere safe.”

“Yes, but I didn’t think that meant
leaving
, leaving.  I wanted to be there for her.”  First my parents, and now my sister?  Who was he going to send away next?

“Mason will take care of her.”

“I know he will, but it’s not the same.  Hanna was just turned last night, she’ll have so many questions.”

“And he’ll be there to answer them.”

He didn’t get it.  Mason was more connected to his emotions than Bishop had been right after I’d become a vampire, but it’d still been years since he was turned.  It was still fresh for me; I knew exactly what she’d be feeling.  How screwed up and exciting and scary it could be.  I really wanted to be there for her, and now everything was messed up. 

“Couldn’t we keep them here in the house?”

“Let me ask you this.”  Bishop got up and walked around the kitchen island, turning me so that I faced him.  “How would you feel if you invited them to stay here and something bad happened to either Hanna or Mason?”

“Like I wanted to slit my own wrists.”

“Then let me officially say that’s not an option we can explore right now.  Trust me, Mason’s the only one she’s got time for right now anyway.  I might be old, but I remember those first days.  You tend to have eyes for your Sire and no one else.”

“I wouldn’t know,” I bit out, feeling a little green around the edges as images of him and Carys flooded my brain.  “My Sire abandoned me, remember?”

“And I’m glad he did, or we never would’ve met that night.”  He reached up to stroke my cheek.  “I have to think there’s a bit of destiny at work there.”

My heart turned over at that, the jealousy fading quicker than the Millennium Falcon on the Kessel Run. “Can’t you get kicked out of the Order for spouting mushy stuff like that?” I teased.

“Then maybe that’s what I’ll have to do.  Keep spouting mushy stuff to you until they bounce me right out of the Order and into your arms.”

I put off asking him if he was serious about that crack, too distracted by the next kiss to keep my train of thought.  Restored by the blood and the power of his kisses, I felt stronger, more able to tackle the day.  “It’s not going to be a very exciting day around here, you know.  I’ve got office hours set that I can’t put off.”

Bishop stiffened, and not in a good way.  “You’re not working outside the house today.”

I begged to differ.  “Ah... yes, I am.  Maggie has me booked all night.” 

“You’re not going out there while this maniac’s at large.  This is the only place that offers you protection.  I’ve already talked to Kane about daytime patrols of the property by his security force.  If you do go out, we’ll make sure you have a suitable security escort again.”

I knew he meant it because he loved me, but it still chafed to be told what to do like a little girl.  “Look, I’m trying really hard not to curl up in a ball and block out everything right now.  I can’t sit around and do nothing all day, I’ll go kazoo.  I need to keep busy.”