Matters of the Blood Read online

  "What are you doing with my sister?"

  My brother stood just above us on the edge of the quarry, all six foot four, shrieking Viking stature of him glistening nude in the increasing light.

  "Interesting choice of wardrobe,” Niko said with a bit of a leer.

  "No facetious comments from the bloodsuckers,” Tucker answered, a lascivious grin splitting his face as he eyed the attractive redhead. My brother dropped down into the pit. “Come on, Sis, help me with them."

  Tucker grabbed Niko under the arms and hoisted him up into a fireman's carry. Even with my wounds healing fast, I couldn't have managed that. I helped Adam stand, my arm around his waist. He threw his right arm around my shoulders. After his breakfast snack on my blood, he was strong enough to hold on and stumble with me to the far side of the quarry, out of the direct path of the sunlight.

  "The ranch?” Adam asked.

  "All safe and tucked into their coffins for the duration."

  "You did not have time to go all the way to the ranch,” I accused.

  Tucker shot me his trademark grin. “No, before I got too far I remembered this.” He tossed me his cell phone. “I'd been carrying it in my mouth, but dropped it when I smelled your blood.” He shrugged. “I should've thought of it before I went racing off, but hey, I remembered soon enough. Called the ranch, woke up a guy named John. They'd already found the fire starters. Someone named Andrea sniffed them out earlier in the evening."

  Adam gave a weak laugh. “I should have figured."

  "We can't stay here long,” I said. “They need to get into the dark.” I looked at the sky. “I think maybe an hour, no longer, bro. Then this whole pit will be in sunlight."

  "Not a problem, Sis. If you all can chill here for a few, I'll see what I can do to get you all out of here. My van's not far.” He shot a smile and looked back over to Niko. “I'll pick up my clothes along the way."

  "Pity.” Niko smiled back.

  This was certainly interesting. Tucker might have been playing with Bea most recently, but his tastes often ran to both sides of the sexual fence, and Niko was damned pretty. Whatever, not something I needed to be thinking about right now, especially since my brain was finally putting two and two together and getting a very interesting answer about the nature of Adam and Niko's partnership, at least in the past. I'm not saying that it bothered me, but it was something to consider. It certainly explained a few things.

  Tucker clambered up the side of the quarry and was gone before I could say anything else.

  Adam was beginning to look more like his usual self now that he was out of the sunlight. I sat across from him, my legs bent at the knee, my toes touching his side ever so lightly. I half expected him to move away, to not want to touch me. I'd broken his taboo, forced him to feed from a living person.

  He smiled at me, as if he could read my thought, then moved a little, scooting so he could lean against my shins, his arm wrapping around them, his chin leaning on my knees.

  "You're not mad?” I asked.

  "Angry at myself for falling into their trap, yes. But mad at you for doing everything you could to save us? No. I would have done the same in your place."

  "But—the blood?"

  He closed his eyes and sighed.

  "You felt it as much as I did, Keira,” he said. “I almost died, the real thing, the forever kind, like Evan. When you gave me the chance, I think part of me realized I might do almost anything to survive and I was happy doing it. I've spent the last several decades fighting my need for blood and winning. But this, this scared me. Scared me into thinking I needed to do more thinking. Re-evaluate things. It's been a long time since I had to think about—"

  "Survival?"

  "Not exactly on the modern vampire's menu,” he joked. “Mostly I worry about making payroll and making sure my guests are comfortable."

  He got serious. “Nearly dying changes things, even for us, for me.” His breath skittered across my legs as he sighed, eyes closed against whatever he was thinking.

  "Keira, I can't change how I feel about things, but today I risked losing my life, exposing my people because of my stubbornness.” He raised his head and looked me directly in the eye. “That's not a price I'm willing to pay. Not now, not ever."

  Niko just sat across from us, the small smile on his face widening to a grin. I could almost imagine what he was thinking. If Adam's viewpoint could be altered, maybe they'd get to start hunting. Can't say that I blamed him.

  "Don't jump to any conclusions, Nikolai,” Adam said, glancing over at him. “I'm not changing overnight. I'm just willing to re-examine my policies, not throw everything out the window."

  "As long as I get a fair shot,” Niko said. “This is progress."

  Adam shook his head and smiled, as if ignoring an indulged younger brother. I started to smile. Things were definitely looking up.

  "Maybe we should all have a long talk,” Adam said, shaking his head. “After we deal with—” He cocked his head in the direction of the store van and the bodies beyond it.

  "With Boris and Greta.” I interrupted him. In my delight at being rescued and not losing Adam, I'd almost forgotten the carnage across the pit.

  "No worries.” My brother, now clothed, dropped back down into the pit.

  "What do you mean?” I asked.

  "We can take care of them,” he said. “Bottlecap Curve?"

  I nodded, getting the gist of his suggestion.

  "And Evan?"

  Adam looked at me. “He's in the path of the sun. There won't be much left soon."

  "All in a day's work.” Tucker smiled. “Now, let's get you all out of here. My van's just beyond the curve of the path. No direct sunlight.” He bent down to offer Niko a hand. The redhead took it with a smile.

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  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  The news came the next day. Swiftly, on the wings of the fall breeze, as most news does in a small town. Whispers around a corner, behind doors, in the chairs at the beauty parlor. No one really knows who heard it first, but by the time Tucker and I hit Bea's for coffee and breakfast at three, the entire place was abuzz with excitement.

  "Well, that didn't take long,” I said, rocking back in my chair and taking a long sip of the hot coffee. I was sitting in Bea's office, watching her rearrange the work schedule one more time. Tucker had stayed out in the caf?, knowing I wanted to speak with Bea alone.

  "The news?"

  I nodded. “Funny how people see only what they want to see."

  "Yeah,” she mumbled and leaned forward to peer at the computer screen as if looking at it more closely would make it make more sense. She was cutting her hours again, only opening Thursday through Sunday, and then only for brunch on Sunday. Noe was still reluctantly working for her, as was one of his former school buddies who had lost his job in San Antonio. Tia Petra had bullied one other nephew to pitch in, but he was only able to work weekends, since he was attending school at UTSA full time.

  "Carjacking,” she said, finally leaning back and reaching for her own giant coffee cup. “Guess the Albrights were more desperate than we thought. Too bad they had to carjack Boris and Greta. Heard they went over the cliff at Bottlecap Curve. The bodies were so badly burned it was hard to ID them."

  "Yeah."

  "Hmmmm.” Bea took a long sip from her mug. “Good coffee, even if I do say so myself."

  "Yep."

  We sipped in silence for a few minutes.

  "So you going over to visit your bloodsucking boyfriend?"

  "After a while,” I said. “It won't be dark for another few hours."

  "Your brother still here?"

  I nodded. “Out front. He'll be staying for a while. Seems he's my penance."

  "For what?"

  "For starting to change too damned early and for not coming home."

  "You are home."

  "That's what I told Gigi. Good news is—she agreed to leave me alone if Tucker stayed."

  "A
ny chance of chick flicks and munchies anytime soon?"

  "You bet,” I said. “Next week maybe? If I can shake Tucker. Maybe he can go into Austin or San Antonio or something.” Or go hang out with Niko. Not that I was going to let Bea in on that particular development.

  "Let him stay,” Bea said. “He can make the popcorn.” She looked at me. “He can even invite Niko over if he wants."

  "Excuse me?” Was she saying what I thought she was saying?

  She grinned. “Yeah, you can't be the only sibling interested in creatures of the night."

  "You know?"

  "No worries, m'hija. Tucker and me—you know that was just flirting. He told me about Niko last night. I can deal. Besides, who knows what could happen?"

  I laughed. “I am so not going to go there, girlfriend. You're all adults. Your choice. No advice from this corner."

  She stood up suddenly. “Well, then, I guess I'd better go out front."

  "Why?"

  She nodded in the direction of the door. “You've got company."

  Carlton was walking through the kitchen, toward the office.

  "You can stay, you know,” I told her.

  "Yeah, but I won't.” She grinned and tossed her hair back. “Later, chica."

  I grimaced. “Hmmph."

  "I guess you've heard.” Carlton's tone was non-committal, just like his expression remained neutral.

  I nodded. “About a dozen little birdies told me. Dead on impact?"

  "DPS is running the accident investigation, but they're pretty sure it's cut and dried. A carjacking gone wrong.” He fiddled with his hat.

  "We found a bunch of money in that abandoned car out at the quarry. Walker says it was one of his employees.” Carlton turned to face me, his expression serious. “What was Marty doing, Keira? Not just poaching, was he?"

  "Trust me, you don't want to know. Someday...” I shook my head. Someday would never come. I couldn't tell him.

  "I'm taking a short leave of absence."

  "Oh?” I raised my eyebrows at him.

  He shrugged. “Family business."

  "Carol?” The little birdies had been very busy. At least three people had told me this juicy tale before I'd made it back to Bea's office.

  "She called last night. Wants to try again."

  "And this is good, right?"

  "Yes.” He looked down and began to shuffle his feet against the tile floor. “I guess this is goodbye, then."

  My smile was sad, echoing the emotion I felt inside. Even after everything, he still didn't get it. “It was goodbye twelve years ago, Carlton. Please, let it go.” I stood up. “Are you coming back?"

  "I'll be back,” he said. “With my family."

  "Good."

  He inclined his head toward the incongruous metal container on Bea's desk. It was ugly, but serviceable. I'd brought it inside because I hadn't actually been sure what to do with it. I needed to wait until sundown, but didn't feel comfortable just leaving it sitting around in my car. So here I was carting it around like a bad piece of luggage.

  "Marty?"

  "Yeah."

  Marty hadn't turned. He was just dead, not undead.

  Bexar County had completed the autopsy and ruled the cause of death to be an overdose of sedatives, a bottle of which they'd found in the Albrights’ car. They'd released my cousin's body to me, next of kin and all that. We found a willing funeral home that would cremate him right away. Tucker had gone over to pick him up.

  "What are you going to do with the ashes?"

  "Scatter them out by the lake."

  "Special meaning?"

  "Sort of."

  Carlton looked a little puzzled. As well he should be. The place did have meaning, but not to Marty.

  * * * *

  After the sun went down, when the last light of the sun had faded and the first light of the now waning moon illuminated the night sky, I stood with my lover, the local vampire king, and tossed the ashes of my poor dead cousin on the spot where the two Sitka deer had been killed and where these days of blood had begun. Seemed like weeks.

  "What are you going to do now, Adam?"

  "Keep trying, that's all we can do."

  "And the blood?"

  "I can't deny it. It was a rush, but I can't let myself..."

  I put my hand on his arm. “Adam, I can't say I understand it, but I accept it. It's what you want."

  "And us?"

  "There's an us?” I smiled, letting him know I was kidding.

  "You'll stay with me?"

  I nodded. “Yes, if you can stand it.” I stepped away from him, not wanting to feel the intimacy just now. “I'm still changing, Adam. There's no telling what's going to happen."

  "I can live with it."

  "Or not live,” I joked.

  He smiled and reached out for me. “Or not live."

  "One of these days, you're going to have to fill me in on all these convoluted vampire politics of yours."

  "One of these days, I will."

  -The End-

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