As Twilight Falls (15 page)

“I don’t need them, Rylan. Let them leave. They have families. . . .”

“My mind’s made up, Kadie. Let it go.”

She clenched her teeth, horrified to think that Marti and the others would have to remain here because Saintcrow wanted her to have company. Suddenly, it was all too much. What kind of company would they be when they found out he was keeping them here because of her? They would probably never speak to her again, and she wouldn’t blame them.

“I’m going to bed,” she said abruptly. Avoiding his eyes, she rose from the sofa and hurried out of the room.

Saintcrow started after her. He flinched when he heard the slam of her door, the turn of the lock. As if a lock could keep him out.

Cursing under his breath, he left the house in search of prey. It was time to act like a vampire instead of a lovesick teenager.

In the morning, Kadie found the bag with the boxes of Godiva chocolates on the table in the kitchen. She removed hers, then looked around for her phone, hoping Saintcrow had returned it, but it was nowhere in sight. Had he changed his mind about giving it back to her? She had hoped to call her mom and dad and assure them she was all right.

She lingered over a cup of coffee, wondering if she should tell Marti and the others that the vampires might be leaving. Thirty minutes later, she was still trying to decide. Grabbing the bag of chocolates, she drove to Marti’s house for a little girl talk.

“Hi, come in,” Marti said, smiling brightly. “I just made some cinnamon rolls. Would you like one?”

“I’d love it.” Kadie followed her into the kitchen and sat at the table while Marti dished up cinnamon rolls still warm from the oven and poured two glasses of milk.

“So,” she said, sitting at the table, “what brings you here so early?”

“I brought you a present.” Kadie pulled one of the gaily wrapped boxes of candy from her tote bag and slid it toward Marti.

“A present? Why?”

“No reason.” Kadie took a bite of the cinnamon roll. “These are great.”

Marti quickly tore the paper off the box, her eyes widening with surprise. “Godiva chocolates!” she exclaimed. “My favorite. Where on earth did you get them?”

“I went shopping with Saintcrow last night. I bought some for everyone.” She took another bite of her roll, then licked the sugar from her lips.

“Well, bless you,” Marti said. She popped a truffle into her mouth, then closed her eyes, sighing with pleasure.

“You look like you’re having great sex,” Kadie remarked.

“Oh, chocolate is better than sex,” Marti replied with a grin. “Except that sex doesn’t go to your hips. So, where did you go? What was it like, to be outside?”

“We went to a mall. Rylan . . .”

Marti’s brows shot up. “Rylan?”

“That’s his name,” Kadie said defensively.

“You’re on a first name basis with him now?”

“Anyway, he bought me some new clothes. And he said I could have my phone back.”

“He did! Kadie, that’s great. Where is it? I can call Brad.”

“He still has it. And even if I had it with me, it wouldn’t be wise to call for help. Anyone who comes here would be trapped with us.”

Shoulders sagging, Marti rested her elbows on the table, her chin propped in her hands. “Then what good is it?”

“It’s a victory, of sorts. We can find out what’s going on in the world.”

“What difference does it make? We’re no longer part of it.”

“Saintcrow was attacked in the parking lot.” She hadn’t meant to share that, but the words slipped out.

“What? By who?”

“Vampire hunters. Four of the biggest men I’ve ever seen. He killed two of them. Tossed them around like they were matchsticks.”

“Why didn’t you run away?”

“I don’t know. I thought about it, but”—she shrugged—“I couldn’t leave him.”

Marti stared at her. “I don’t believe what I’m hearing. You had a chance to get away from this place and you didn’t take it?”

“Forget about that. I have something to tell you, but it’s a secret. You can’t tell anyone else, at least not yet.”

Marti leaned forward, her dark eyes alight. “What is it?”

Kadie hesitated. Should she tell? Saintcrow hadn’t told her not to. “The vampires might be leaving Morgan Creek.”

“Leaving?” All the color drained from Marti’s face.

“I thought you’d be happy.”

“Happy?” Marti shook her head. “They’ll kill us before they leave.”

“Why would they do that?”

“So we can’t tell anyone what happened here.”

“No! No, they won’t. You’ll all be fine. Saintcrow will still take care of you.”

“Why would he do that? If the vampires leave, there’s no reason to keep us alive.”

“Yes, there is, because I’ll still be here.”

“So?”

“So you’ll all be staying, too.” Kadie took a deep breath. “To keep me company.”

Marti plucked another chocolate from the box and nibbled on it. “Well,” she said, licking the chocolate from her lips. “I guess it’s a good thing I like you.”

Kadie spent the rest of the morning handing out boxes of candy. She was relieved when none of the women blamed her because Saintcrow refused to let them leave Morgan Creek.

She saved the men for last.

 

 

“Well, this is a first,” Jeremy remarked when she handed him one of the boxes. “I’ve never had a lady buy me candy before.”

Kadie went to Claude’s house last. Grouchy as always, he was scowling when he opened the door. “What do you want?”

Kadie thrust the last box at him. “I brought you a present.”

“Yeah? Why?”

Kadie shrugged. “Why not?”

He stared at the box for a moment, as if debating whether to give it back, then with a barely audible “thank you” he shut the door in her face.

 

 

Saintcrow laughed when she told him about Claude that night. “He always was a strange one.”

“Jeremy said none of the vampires like him.”

“That’s not my problem.”

“Were the vampires happy with the phones?”

“Yeah. They’re all at the tavern, exchanging phone numbers and catching up on supernatural affairs.”

“I don’t remember ever hearing anything on the news about vampire hunters. Or about vampires, for that matter.”

“The messages are relayed by encrypted e-mails.”

“Oh. Have any hunters ever stumbled into Morgan Creek?”

“Just once.”

She waited for him to elaborate. When he didn’t, she surmised that the hunter hadn’t lasted long. “Are there a lot of vampire hunters?”

He nodded. “And more every day. But it’s all under the radar. Most of the population has no idea that we exist, or that there’s a whole underground network hunting us.”

“It doesn’t make much sense to me for the vampires to leave here,” she remarked. “Considering what’s going on.”

He shrugged. “Except for Lonigan and Quinn, they’ve all been here forty years or more. I guess they need a change of scenery.” He didn’t see any need to tell her that the real reason they wanted out was to hunt again. He couldn’t blame them for that.

“I told Marti the vampires might be leaving, but that she and the others would have to stay.”

“How’d she take it?”

“Pretty well, I guess, all things considered. Can I have my phone? I want to call my parents and let them know I’m all right.”

She felt his mind brush hers, probing her thoughts, before he pulled her phone from his back pocket and handed it to her. “Be careful what you say,” he warned, and left the room to give her some privacy.

Kadie quickly dialed her mom’s number, blinking back her tears when she heard her mother’s voice.

“Kadie! Where are you? We haven’t heard from you in weeks. We’ve been so worried!”

“I’m fine, Mom. I got a little sidetracked.” She forced a laugh. “You know how I am when I’m working, but I’m fine.”

“Where are you?”

“Nowhere right now, sort of between ghost towns. I got lost.”

“But you’re all right?”

“I’m fine. I’ve . . . I’ve been getting some great shots. I’ll send you some when I can. I’m sorry I waited so long to call, but I . . . I didn’t have any cell service.” It was hard to lie to her mom. She wasn’t only her mother but her best friend.

“How’s Dad?”

“He’s fine, honey. He’s at work. There was a fire at the high school and he’s tied up at the emergency room. He’ll be sorry he missed your call.”

Kadie took a deep breath, afraid to ask the next question. “How’s Kathy?”

“Not well. The last infusion has worn off and there isn’t any more available at the moment. Your father has been out every night hoping to find a new source.”

“I guess she’s asleep.”

“Yes. You know how tired she gets.”

Kadie nodded, choking back her tears. “I’ll try to call tomorrow. And Mom? I love you.”

“I love you, too, dear. Be careful.”

“I will. Good night.” Kadie closed the phone, then hugged it to her chest, trying not to cry. She needed to get home, needed to be with Kathy.

She blinked back her tears when Saintcrow returned.

“Everything okay at home?” he asked.

“Same as always. Thank you for letting me call.”

“Tell me about your parents.”

“My father’s a surgeon. One of the best in the world. My mom’s a housewife.” She smiled wistfully. “One of the best in the world.”

“You love them very much.”

Kadie nodded. When she was a child, her parents had always come in at bedtime to hear her prayers and kiss her good night. They had shared bedtime stories and hot chocolate on cold winter evenings in front of the fire. Spent their summer vacations camping in the mountains. Her father had bought her her first camera when she was ten. She had quickly filled one scrapbook after another. Every few years, her father had bought her a new and better camera.

Saintcrow watched the play of emotions on her face as she thought about her childhood. He scarcely remembered his own parents. He had only been five or six when his father was killed in battle. His mother had remarried, only to pass away four years later, leaving Saintcrow with a stepfather he despised, and, eventually, a stepmother who tried to seduce him.

When he was sixteen, he’d run away from home and sought refuge in a neighboring castle where a knight took him on as a squire. He had spent the next four years in Sir Edward’s service, dressing him in the morning, serving his meals, caring for his horse, cleaning the knight’s armor, weapons, and shield. He had accompanied Sir Edward to tournaments and gone with him when he went to war. During this time, he had also learned to handle a sword and lance while wearing forty pounds of armor and riding a horse.

He had been just shy of his twenty-first year when Sir Edward deemed him worthy to become a knight. The day before the ceremony, Saintcrow donned a white tunic and red robes. He had spent the night in his room, meditating, praying for strength and courage, petitioning heaven for the purification of his immortal soul. Thanking heaven for Sir Edward’s kindness and patience with a rebellious youth. He had loved that man, respected him as he had no other before or since.

In the morning, the chaplain blessed his sword, and then heard his confession.

Later, attired in his finest clothing, Saintcrow had knelt in front of Sir Edward, his head bowed, as his lord tapped him lightly with his sword on each shoulder and proclaimed him a knight of the realm. It had been the proudest moment of Saintcrow’s life. It was one of the few memories he had clung to all these years.

“Rylan?”

“You’ll see your parents again, Kadie,” he said quietly.

“You mean it?”

The hope in her eyes went straight to his heart—a heart he had thought dead long ago. “I swear it,” he said, his voice thick. “I swear it on my honor as a knight.”

 

 

Later, Saintcrow stood beside Kadie’s bed, wondering why she had never told him about her sister. She tried not to think about Kathy too often. Perhaps it was too painful. Or perhaps, with his ability to read her mind, she figured he already knew.

Watching her sleep, he longed to hold her in his arms, to make love to her until the sun came up, but, given all that had happened at the mall, he thought it best to wait a few days. He had never meant for her to see him like that, his skin drawn tight, his eyes blazing like the fires of hell, his fangs dripping blood. She had covered the horror she felt remarkably well, better than he had expected, but he knew it wasn’t something she would soon forget.

Would she look at him now and see only a monster? If so, she wouldn’t be the first. Or likely the last.

He lifted a lock of her hair, let it sift through his fingers. Since becoming a vampire, he had refused to let himself fall in love, had refused to let anyone—vampire or mortal—get close to him. But Kadie, clothed in youthful beauty and innocence, had captured his heart.

He had thought to keep her with him for a long, long time, but now, loving her, he knew he couldn’t subject her to a life with him. He recalled, all too clearly, something Kadie had told him.

Only a monster keeps people enslaved,
she’d said, her voice ringing with righteous indignation. And she was right. He was a monster.

A monster in love for the first time in his long, long existence. And so he would let her go.

But not yet.

Surely even a monster deserved a little happiness.

Kadie woke feeling as if she hadn’t had more than an hour or two of sleep. Her dreams had been filled with red-eyed demons and faceless monsters clad in black. Sometimes they had chased her. Sometimes they had attacked each other. Once she had dreamed she was buried alive in Leslie’s grave. She had pounded on the lid of the coffin, screaming for help until her throat was raw, and all the while she could hear Saintcrow telling her she should have run while she had the chance. And always there had been blood, rivers of blood.

She banished her bad dreams with a hot shower and several cups of coffee. Sitting in the kitchen, staring out the window at a bright beautiful day, she found herself wondering what it would be like to never go out and about during the day. When the vampires slept, was it truly like death? Did they look like corpses, or merely like they were sleeping? What did Saintcrow look like? And why was she so obsessed with finding out? Was it because he didn’t want her to? Still, if she was going to spend the rest of her life with him, then she wanted to know everything about him, including what he looked like when the sun was up and he was dead to the world. No pun intended, she thought with a grin.

Tonight, she would remind him he had promised there would be no secrets between them, then ask him to leave the door to his lair open.

After breakfast, she drove to Marti’s to see if she’d like to go to lunch and a movie later that day. Marti suggested they ask Rosemary and the others and make a day of it.

“Why don’t you go invite the others?” Kadie suggested. “I’ll make some sandwiches and a cake and meet you all at the restaurant at noon.”

“Great idea,” Marti said. “After I invite everyone, I’ll see what I can do about decorations, and we will have an unofficial celebration.”

 

 

Kadie had just finished frosting a cake when the other women arrived. Marti had decorated the restaurant while Kadie fixed lunch. She had pushed two tables together and covered them with a bright yellow cloth. A vase held a bouquet of wildflowers. She had set the table with silverware instead of the plastic forks they sometimes used.

All the women were there, except Frankie.

“I invited her,” Marti said, “but she wouldn’t come.”

“I wish we could convince her to spend time with us.” Shirley shook her head. “She’s so alone.”

“I know,” Kadie said. “I never see her unless it’s in the tavern.”

“I think she feels at home with the vampires because she can communicate with them. They can talk to her and read her answers in her mind.”

“Maybe we should have invited the men,” Kadie remarked.

“Well, I’m glad you didn’t. We really can’t indulge in girl talk when they’re here. These sandwiches are delicious, Kadie.”

“Thanks, Chelsea. It’s just tuna with a little pickle and celery.”

Rosemary smiled at Kadie. “This was a wonderful idea.”

“We should party more often,” Pauline said. “Maybe it would make the days go by faster.”

“Sounds good to me,” Marti agreed. “Sometimes I get so bored, I could scream.”

“I’d like to drive a stake into the heart of every vampire here!” Rosemary said, her expression fierce. “I hate them all!”

“They’re not that bad,” Chelsea said. “I mean, they do take good care of us.”

Rosemary scowled at her.

“Well, it’s true. We each have a house of our own, and nice clothes, and food to eat, and . . .”

“We’re slaves!” Hands fisted on her hips, Rosemary glared at Chelsea. “I don’t care if they decked us out in furs and built us mansions and hired servants to wait on us, we’d still be slaves.” She looked at Kadie. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to spoil the mood.”

“It’s all right,” Kadie said. “I understand how you feel. We’d all like to go home.” But even as she spoke the words, she wondered if she really felt that way. If it meant never seeing Saintcrow again, would she leave Morgan Creek?

 

 

“So, how was lunch?” Saintcrow asked later that evening.

“It was fun, I guess. Rosemary is very bitter about . . . well, about everything. She’s been here a long time. Why don’t you let her go?”

“Would that please you?”

“Yes.”

He considered it a moment. He knew Kadie was attracted to him, but he wanted more than that. He wanted her love. All of it. Perhaps letting the woman Rosemary go would be a step in that direction. “Very well. I will take her away tonight, when the others are asleep. But you are not to tell them she’s been freed.”

“What should I say?”

“Nothing. Let them think what they will.”

“All right. Could I ask another favor?”

“You can ask.” Although it wasn’t necessary. He already knew what she wanted.

“I want to see you during the day.”

“Why?”

“You see me when I’m asleep.”

“It’s hardly the same thing,” he said dryly.

“Fair is fair. Besides, you promised there’d be no more secrets between us.”

“This isn’t a secret.”

“Please, Rylan?”

The use of his first name, so sweet on her lips, was his undoing. “Very well. I will leave the door to my lair open tomorrow. But there’s a price.”

“Oh?” She knew what it would be, felt her whole body come alive in anticipation.

“Yes,” he said. “Exactly that.”

She forgot everything when he drew her into his arms, everything but the wonder and the magic of his touch, the intoxication of his kisses, the sting of his fangs that should have been painful but filled her with sensual pleasure.

She wrapped her arms around his neck when he carried her to her bed, her hands clumsy in their haste as she undressed him. He was so beautiful, his body perfectly formed, his belly ridged with muscle, his limbs long and lean. He watched her, his eyes hot, as she removed her own clothing, then covered his body with hers.

They fit together well, she thought, her body somehow molding to his. She ran her hands over him, loving the play of emotions on his face as her hands caressed him.

He gave her free rein until, with a growl of impatience, he tucked her beneath him.

She felt the sweet sting of his fangs at her throat as he possessed her with a fierceness he had never shown before.

“Mine.” His voice whispered in her ear, echoed off the walls. “Mine!”

 

 

In the morning, she woke slowly, reluctant to leave the dream she’d been having. Even though she knew it was only her imagination, she could almost feel his hands stroking her skin, hear his voice whispering love words in her ear.

While showering, she could think of nothing but the exquisite feel of his skin against her own, the utter pleasure of their bodies becoming one, the fire in his eyes when he brought her to completion, the way he cried her name when he reached his own.

It wasn’t until later that morning that she remembered he had agreed to let her see him while he slept. How could she have forgotten that? But then, with her mind and body still caught up in memories of the night before, maybe it was understandable.

Filled with excitement, she ran up the stairs to the turret room. The door leading down to the tunnel stood open. She smiled, grateful that she wouldn’t be trapped down there until he woke. Turning on her flashlight, she hurried down the steps toward Saintcrow’s lair at the end of the corridor.

She paused for a moment, suddenly unsure now that the moment was at hand. What if he looked like he was dead? He had been a vampire for more than nine hundred years. What if there was nothing but a skeleton in the coffin? Did she really want to see that?

Holding fast to her courage, she put her hand on the door. It was now or never.

A slight push, and the door opened into a large room. The walls were French blue, the carpet a shade darker. An antique mahogany wardrobe stood against the wall to the left. An old-fashioned four-poster bed with velvet hangings stood against the wall across from the door. There was nothing else in the room.

Was he in the bed? Weren’t vampires supposed to sleep in coffins?

Taking a deep breath, she approached the bed and drew the velvet aside.

Saintcrow slept on his back, one arm at his side, the other across his waist. A sheet covered him from the waist down, his chest was bare. His skin looked paler than usual. As far as she could tell, he wasn’t breathing. In repose, his face was still beautiful.

Did she dare touch him? Unable to resist, she laid her hand ever so lightly on his chest. His skin was cool, as were his lips when she traced them with her fingertips.

Was he naked beneath the sheet?

A little voice in the back of her mind urged her to peek, but she shook it off. It seemed a huge violation of his privacy.

She stayed a moment more, her curiosity urging her to peek into the wardrobe. After a brief battle with her conscience, she tiptoed out of the room. The door closed behind her.

Heart pounding, she ran up the stairs to the turret room, then made her way to the living room.

Sitting on the sofa, she tried to absorb what had just happened. It occurred to her that he must trust her a great deal to let her see him when he was helpless. What if she had brought the others with her? They could have killed him while he slept. She had no doubt that Claude Cooper would take Saintcrow’s head without a second thought.

Suddenly restless, she went into the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. It was past time for lunch. And there was nothing to eat.

She grabbed the keys to the Corvette, making a mental grocery list as she unlocked the front door. She frowned when it wouldn’t open. Was the lock jammed? She turned it this way and that. Nothing happened.

The back door wouldn’t open, either. Neither would any of the windows.

So much for trust, she thought darkly. Did he really think she would betray him?

That she would tell the others where he slept? That she would invite them inside so they could destroy him?

He didn’t trust her.

The idea hurt more than she would have thought possible.

 

 

She was waiting for him in the living room when the sun went down. One look at her face, at the way her arms were crossed over her chest, and he knew she was upset. He didn’t have to read her mind to know why.

“It isn’t a matter of trust, exactly,” he said.

“Then what is it, exactly?”

“I haven’t existed for over nine hundred years by being careless. None of the other humans in this town know where my lair is located. You wanted to see me at rest, and I let you. But to leave the door to my lair open during the day . . . ?” He shook his head. “I’m not that trusting.”

“You trusted me. Why? I could have stabbed you while you slept, just like anyone else.”

“I was willing to take my chances with you, but not with any of the others.”

Somewhat mollified, she asked, “Can I go with you when you take Rosemary away?”

“If you like.”

“Will you take her home?”

“If that’s where she wants to go, although I’m sure she’ll find it and everything else greatly changed after so many years.”

Kadie nodded. Rosemary’s husband had probably declared her dead after all this time. Her children would be grown now, probably married with kids of their own. Her husband could have remarried and had another family. How would Rosemary handle something like that? Kadie frowned. What would she do in a similar situation? How would she feel? How would she pick up her life on the outside after such an extended absence? The world had changed a lot in the twenty years Rosemary had been here.

“Maybe we should give her a choice,” Kadie suggested. “Maybe, after all this time, she’d rather stay.”

“And if she chooses to stay, then what?”

Kadie considered his question a moment. Of all the women in Morgan Creek, Marti had been there the shortest amount of time and had the youngest child. But of all the people in town, Marti was her favorite.

Shaking off her selfishness, Kadie said, “I think instead of Rosemary, you should let Marti go. She has a six-year-old daughter.”

“You’re sure?”

“Yes.”

At midnight, Kadie and Saintcrow drove to Marti’s house in Kadie’s Durango. “Wait in the car,” Saintcrow said. “I’ll be right back.”

He returned moments later, carrying a pajama-clad Marti in his arms. She was sound asleep, and remained asleep when he laid her on the backseat and shut the door.

“Remember,” he said, sliding behind the wheel and putting the car in gear, “you can’t tell anyone about this.” His gaze met hers. “I’ll know if you do.”

Kadie nodded.

They reached the bridge a short time later. She felt a sudden apprehension as he drove across, but the Durango emerged onto the road without the slightest hesitation.

“How do you know where she lives?” Kadie asked.