Darlings of Paranormal Romance (Anthology) (170 page)

So what
about her
worked
?
Jared liked her hair. So, white hair and white jeans? Black cami
shirt with a little white lace? Or would that be too much white and
black?

Once dressed, she realized it was too
much white. She quickly switched for black jeans and a white belt.
Groaning, Tessa flopped backwards onto the bed. Using her cell
phone, she clicked a picture and sent it to Catherine.

She'd better say this is
fine, because I'm out of time.

Her phone vibrated as a text message
came in.

"Perfect." Tessa read out loud. She
gave a fist pump in the year.

Yeah. Now shoes. It was summer and
hot – so sandals? She pulled out three pairs and frowned. Damn it,
why couldn't she just get dressed and be done with it? Her phone
rang again. Talk about being late. She slipping into the most
comfortable pair, grabbed her purse and raced
downstairs.

Her family had gathered in the
kitchen. David was getting ready to go out and Seth looked to be
sleeping on his chair. Cody had disappeared. Good thing. He made
her uncomfortable.

She grinned. She'd be ready for bed
in a few hours and they were just revving up. She didn't follow a
human schedule all the time, yet it was the best way to keep in
touch with her friends.

She bent down and dropped a kiss on
her mother's cheek. "Going to the movies. Yes, I'll be careful.
Yes, I'll be coming straight home." She neatly cut off all the
questions bubbling out of her mother's mouth. She continued on her
way through the kitchen and out the door. She sped to the movie
theater that was attached to the same strip mall she'd been at
earlier.

Catherine waited outside with Jared,
Billy and Zack.

"Hi, everyone. Sorry if I'm
late."

"Love your outfit." Linking arms with
her, Catherine dragged her to the ticket booth. "You're just in
time. We've already bought our tickets. Grab yours so we can go
in."

That took only minutes and then they
were inside. Tessa sighed at the cool darkness of the theater. The
girls chose their seats before the guys took off to buy popcorn and
pop.

Tessa sat down beside Catherine and
waited nervously to see which seat Jared would take. Next to her?
Next to Catherine? Or on the outside away from them
both?

She released a shuddering breath and
waited. And tried to ignore the smell of stale buttery popcorn that
lingered in the room.

"Relax," Catherine leaned over and
whispered in her ear, "he likes you. You'll see."

"I hope so," Tessa muttered into the
dark room. Switching from her human to vampire vision – another one
of those differences between her and her other family members – her
sight sharpened in the dark to diamond clarity. The guys returned
as the music started, so they immediately took their seats. Jared
sat down next to Tessa. His arm bumped hers on the narrow
rest.

"Sorry."

She tossed him a quick smile and
moved her arm slightly to give him more room.

His grin glowed in the
dark.

Sighing happily, she snuggled deeper
into her chair and settled down to watch the action
show.

An hour later, Tessa shifted in the
uncomfortable chairs and wondered for the hundredth time what would
happen when the movie ended.

Jared leaned toward her, a lone curl
shifting down across one eye. "Are you okay?"

She smiled. "Yes. It's just the
seats. They aren't the most comfortable."

Happy and content in her world, Tessa
never thought twice when something flashed across her vision. Her
vampire vision.

When it happened a second time, she
tuned in and straightened slowly. What was going on? Had those dark
flashes been vampires? In hunting mode? She didn't know of anything
else with the ability to move that fast, or move that far without
touching the ground. Definitely nothing could move that silently.
Not that it was unusual to see her people in town. It was
nighttime, after all. Except, in her experience, vampires did not
show up in a human hangout like a movie theater.

And never in hunting mode.

Her attention focused on her inner
senses. The movie didn't even register as she expanded her
awareness to sort through the conflicting information overwhelming
her.

Catherine nudged her shoulder. "Hey,
what's up? You aren't even watching the movie."

"Sorry," she whispered, "just
distracted."

Settling back, she couldn't stop the
frisson of worry that rippled down her spine. Something was
stirring. Something dark, unsettling. The peace treaty between
humans and vampires had been in effect for close to half a century,
but she’d heard it hadn't happened easily or convinced everyone on
both sides that harmony was the best way forward.

Instead,
small fringe groups on both sides continued to stir up trouble. She
remembered hearing her family discussing various groups' actions.
Moltere's exploits were legendary. And they had happened a long
time ago. Her father still hated him with a passion. It was one of
the few subjects that made her dad slide into vampire mode
instantly. He'd let something slip once, something about Moltere
farming humans? She shuddered. Good thing he'd been caught and
dealt with – whatever
that
meant. She had no idea what kind of punishment had
been meted out. She didn't want to know.

Vampires weren't known for their
compassion. On the other hand, banishment was a common penalty for
doing anything wrong.

The lights in the theater went on,
making her rear back in surprise. She’d been so lost in her own
thoughts Tessa hadn't realized the movie had ended.

"Awesome movie! Love that big bloody
scene at the end. What a wild finish!" Zack's enthusiasm was
contagious and all the guys erupted with comments on their favorite
parts of the movie while Tessa struggled to figure out which big
bloody scene they were talking about.

She
shook her head and joined the line to exit the movie theater. She
stumbled as she moved around the last seat in the row…and smiled as
Jared reached out to steady her. Tonight would go down as
the
special event in her
life.

The crowd milled in the lobby before
making their way slowly outside. Tessa joined in the raucous
laughter of her group and savored the experience. The moon hid
behind clouds and the sun had long gone, leaving everyone in the
twilight zone of half-light.

Vampires loved it. Made for a perfect
stalking time. Except they weren't allowed to hunt
anymore.

The group meandered outside the
theater, talking aimlessly among themselves. Tessa walked at
Jared's side, close but not touching. "That was a great
movie."

Jared grinned. "Oh, yeah. Great
stuff." He glanced at her before adding, "Hey, do you
want––?"

Screams split the air.

People scattered. Tessa was shoved to
one side as panicked people overran her group.

Chaos ensued. No one knew what had
happened or who was after them, so everyone scrambled for
cover.

More screams split the air behind
them. Streetlights sparked, then went out. Her heart pounding in
her chest, Tessa huddled against a huge cement planter full of
summer blooms. Jared pressed up beside her. The other three
snuggled close behind them. Peering over the top of the cement,
Tessa tried to see what the commotion was all about.

They were only fifteen or
so feet from the front entrance of the building. The inside lights
shone outward, giving an eerie glow to the sidewalk area. People
continued to pour out of the movie theater to scatter throughout
the several parking lots.

The darkness deepened even as she
watched.

What had
happened? Oh right. In her panic she'd shifted to her human
eyesight. Now she shifted back. And watched in horror as a wave of
blackness raced beside them.
Shit.

She ducked.

"What the hell was that?" Jared
whispered against Tessa's ear.

"I'm not sure." But a horrible
knowing slipped inside her heart. Triggered by the silent movement,
the fear engendered by their presence, the darkness and the little
bit she'd seen. Vampires. She groaned silently.

Did she know them? What and why were
they doing this – besides to scare the crap out of everyone? Just
for fun? Because they could? Or was their motivation something more
sinister?

A penetrating scream ripped and then
shut off in mid-shriek.

She closed her eyes as she finally
understood.

They were hunting. For human
prey.

And she was here with four human
friends. Crap. "We need to get out of here."

Catherine whispered from behind her.
"Do you think it's safe to move?"

"No, but
we can't stay here. Everyone, follow me." Tessa took a cautious
look around for the best route. Using her vampire vision, she
searched for others of her kind. There off to the left. Then Tessa
needed to go right. Holding her hand up, she counted her fingers
down.
Three. Two. One.
She bolted in a straight line to the corner she'd picked out.
The panicked footsteps of her friends rushed behind her. They
continued moving forward until they were buried in the deepening
darkness. Her hand to her chest, Tessa gasped for breath until her
racing heart calmed down.

The others crowded around
her. She cast a quick glance over them. Everyone had made it. Their
white faces glowed in the dark. Fear showed in their eyes. "Okay.
Now let's head to the back and out onto Sparks Street."

She led the way. At the rear of the
building sat the largest of the mall parking lots. Vehicles tore
out of the lots. The night sky lit with headlights drilling through
the dark in every direction. Drivers panicked in their efforts to
escape. A slightly more controlled chaos reigned now, but not by
much.

Catherine slipped her arm through
Tessa's. "I want to go home." She looked round nervously. "Were
those vampires?"

Zach spat on the ground, his bravado
in full view now that the most immediate danger had passed. "Hell,
yeah. I saw one of them."

"Did you? I didn't see anything." Not
quite the truth, but she hadn't seen anyone closely enough to
identify. They just couldn't be anything else. "What did they look
like?"

"Black shadows. That's all I could
see. Big and black." Zach raised his hand over his head to
demonstrate size.

Jared spoke up for the first time. "I
saw one of them. I saw his face. God, he looked pretty freaky. He
also looked pissed."

"How did you see him and I didn't? We
were together the whole time." Tessa couldn't help feeling
disgruntled.

Jared reached out a gentle hand to
stroke her arm. "When we were running out of the theater. I caught
a glimpse of his face as he passed us."

"Would you recognize him?" Tessa
asked curiously. She hoped not.

"Oh yeah." Jared nodded confidently.
"His face would be easy to spot. Wide and heavyset, very
Neanderthal looking."

Shit. Her stomach bottomed out. If
the vampire in question understood that he could be identified,
then Jared wasn't safe. All vampires knew breaking the treaty was
bad business. The Vampire Council wouldn't take this lightly. The
Council was very aware of their responsibility to look after humans
– the weaker species. Considering how much these vampires were
risking, she could only imagine what they'd do to keep their
identities hidden.

She and her friends had to get away
from here. "Come on, let's move to a better-lit spot."

Staying under the halo of light from
street lamps, they passed phones around as everyone called for
rides. Except Tessa. She didn't want to talk to her
family.

"Tessa, do you want to use my
phone?"

"Don't need to. David should be here
soon anyway. I'll just wait." She smiled. "Is your mom on the
way?"

"Both my parents are coming,"
Catherine piped up. "Mom's pretty freaked out. They want me to stay
here." She spun around as if hoping they'd arrived in the fifteen
seconds since she ended the call. "Tessa, are you sure you don't
want a lift? My parents aren't going to be happy to leave you
here."

"No. If David can't find me when he
gets here, it could set off World War III. Don't worry. He's always
on time." Now that the immediate panic had died down, a burning
pissed-off sensation filled her. Her perfect evening had ended in a
disaster.

She almost wanted the attackers to
find her. Wouldn't they get a surprise? Not that she could say
anything if they had found her. None of her human friends knew
anything about her vampire heritage. If they had, they'd have run
screaming long before now.

They waited under the bright lights
as parents came to collect their kids. Each left in a flood of
tears and excitement as the story was repeated over and over again.
Finally, Jared and Tessa stood alone. She glanced around. "It's
getting late. Are you sure your parents are coming?"