On the Edge of Destiny (Book 3) (A Vampire SEAL Novel) (5 page)

My senses went on alert. Crazy one? Lady friends? Out of the two, the “crazy one” bothered me. “Who’s the crazy one?” I had to ask, even though Webb’s past wasn’t any of my business.

“Sorry, darling. Not my place to spill those beans,” he said. “Now, why don’t you join us?” He held out his hand.

“I’m comfortable right here.” There wasn’t anything for me to look at on the limo. Plus it was nice to sit and look out at the water. White caps broke along the surface as the wind picked up.

“Jo?” Webb waved his hand, motioning me to come down.

“You’ll be fine,” Stan said.

Reluctantly, I took his hand and made my way down with Stan’s guidance. Waves crashed against the rocks, splashing water towards us. The tide was coming in. I stepped onto a flat rock next to Webb. Stan jumped over two rocks to stand by George.

“So what’s so important?” I asked.

I wasn’t sure why he wanted me down here. I couldn’t tell a brake line from the gas line.

“I want to show you something.” He held my hand as he pointed to the front wheel. “You see that line there?”

“Yeah.” The wind whipped my ponytail around.

“That’s the brake line for that wheel. If you look at the others, all four of the lines were cut.”

“What? When? How?” I bent over to look at the one on the front wheel. As I righted myself, I lost my balance.

Webb’s arm snaked out, and he caught me.

“You just insist on getting hurt,” he said. “Let’s go. We’re not going to solve this by looking at it. And the tide is coming in. The car will be submerged in water soon.”

He didn’t have to tell me twice. I climbed with vampire speed, still pondering who would sabotage the limo and when they’d done it.

Chapter 3

W
ebb, George, and I drove back to the house. The sun crept downward as afternoon pressed in. George excused himself and went to take a nap. He’d complained he hadn’t slept at all last night. I knew how he felt.

Webb’s phone trilled in the quiet room. “Yes, Commander?”

Gee, my dad was phone-stalking us. Following George’s lead, I curled up on the couch while Webb talked with Dad.

“Yes, sir. We’ll head back tomorrow. I’ll borrow George’s car.” Webb chuckled at something Dad had said.

Why were we going back so soon? I didn’t have anything to do on base. Plus it was the weekend. I grabbed a pillow, burying myself underneath. I was about to scream in frustration when large hands lifted my legs. I peeked out.

Webb sat down, placing my legs on top of his thighs.

“Why do we have to leave?” I asked, pouting like a whiny toddler.

“Your father needs me back to work. A lot has happened since yesterday.”

I sat up. “Like what? Is Sam okay?”

Why I asked about my brother, I wasn’t sure. I hadn’t spoken to him since I’d left. This was the second time in our lives that Sam and I had been apart for this long. The first time had been when the Plutariums kidnapped him.

Webb ran a hand up and down my legs. “He’s fine. We’ve had a pesky intruder along the perimeter of the base. Plus everyone is working non-stop to clean up after the explosions, and…your father wants you back. We’re going to a fundraiser on Sunday evening.”

“Fundraiser?” My eyebrows had to be twisted in all sorts of directions.

“Victor Costner, a prominent figure in the community, is hosting a black-tie gala. Before you ask, yes, he’s a vampire.” He tapped the underside of my chin. “Close your mouth. It’s not a big deal.”

I could care less about Victor Costner. “He has a daughter named Alia Costner, right?”

“Yes. She was instrumental in helping design the library. One of her father’s businesses is a well-known design firm in Fall River.”

“She was my math teacher at Durfee High School. She’s the lady who Ms. Lawrence recommended to my dad to help me with my powers. Apparently, she has some magical abilities or something.” I’d learned recently she wasn’t even a full-fledged vampire. She hadn’t been interested in making the change for some reason.

“That I don’t know,” Webb said.

“So I’m going to this fundraiser?” I held the pillow to my chest. “Why?”

I’d never been to a black-tie event or a dance.

“Your father was invited by Ms. Costner. He’s been trying to get her as your tutor. Also, her father asked the sentinels to guard the event alongside the guardians.”

“Why?”

“Not sure. Your dad will fill me in when we get back tomorrow. Let’s take a walk down on the beach. I want to use the last of our time together to see if we can harness some of the energy you zapped me with today. This is the perfect area to practice, since I don’t have any neighbors.”

I could think of better things to do with our time together. Regardless, spending any time with Webb was perfect to me, even if it meant practicing my powers.

I swung my legs over him and rose with the help of his strong hand. He planted a long, wet kiss on my lips that had me almost falling backwards. “Not fair, vampire. How am I supposed to walk down to the beach after that?” I teased.

He turned and whisked me off my feet. “You don’t have to walk. I’ll carry you.”

“Webb, I was kidding. I can walk. Put me down,” I said weakly.

“Nope. Any chance I have to grab your butt, I’m going to take it.”

I slapped him on the arm. “Perv.”

He waggled his eyebrows. “As long as I get to touch you, you can call me anything you like.” He grinned, a glimmer in his eyes.

“Crazy vampire.”

He laughed.

I bounced in his arms as we made our way to the beach. “Webb, what about the brakes on the limo? If we’re leaving tomorrow, how are we going to find out who did it?”

“George and Stan will keep their ears open.”

“What about that lady, Lauren? Do you think she’s responsible?”

“Not sure. I’ll look into her background when I have a chance. While I’m quite suspicious of her, she didn’t seem capable of trying to kill someone. She was quite shaken up.”

“Yeah, but stranger things have happened,” I muttered, my voice vibrating in time with Webb’s feet digging into the sand.

We didn’t go as far out this time, since the tide pushed in. He eased me down in a spot where the sand met vegetation.

“Okay, I want to see what you can do,” he said, turning me to face the ocean.

He pressed his chest into my back, arranged my hips with his hands, and nibbled on my ear. My head went fuzzy, and a frisson of heat slid down my belly. An icy wind could’ve blown us over, and I was certain I wouldn’t have felt it.

I swallowed hard. “Um…a few pointers, maybe, on how to get started? The last time I used my powers, Sloan helped.”

“He didn’t help at the mansion.
You
manipulated air into little tornados, and
you
broke through the invisible wall Edmund erected.” His hot breath tickled my neck.

I laughed inwardly. The vampire wanted me to concentrate on practicing my powers when all I could think about was him.

“How? Was it elemental magic?” I asked.

“I think so,” Webb said against my ear. “You’ve shown some strong abilities, but usually vampires who have elemental magic are those who can manipulate all four elements. I know you have water and air, but what about earth and fire?”

“If you are asking if I could start a fire by using whatever it is that’s in me, you’re nuts. As far as earth, I haven’t noticed anything. I’m not even sure how a blue light came out of me to break through the invisible wall. Care to explain that one?” I asked.

“Let me start with the basics. In our world, alchemy is a precursor to our powers. The term has different meanings, but for vampires, it relates to the elements and transforming or altering the state of the element. Like you did with water into ice.”

“How?” I leaned into him.

“That’s harder to answer. Each vampire is different. Some don’t even have any elemental powers. Others, like the sentinels, have only two or three. Still, we’re able to change or manipulate air, water, earth, and fire by the energies we absorb from nature. For example, being out in the sun allows us to absorb energy. Some of us can absorb a lot of energy. Others only absorb a little. The reason for that depends on your DNA structure.”

“Is the blue light a result of the stored-up energy inside me then?” I shifted in his arms.

“More than likely.” His hand slid to my stomach. “Your father is one vampire who stores a ton of it, which allows him to manipulate all four elements. This is one of the reasons he is considered the most powerful of all vampires.”

Edmund had told me he dreamed of me being very powerful one day. After what Webb had just explained, I was beginning to believe I was following in my father’s footsteps. “I remembered you telling me my father was considered powerful because he was able to read minds.”

“I did. It was the easiest explanation at the time. He is the only one in our world who can read minds. Remember, you were human. If I told you every little detail, would you have believed me?”

I shook my head.

His hands slid under my shirt. “Sometimes learning as you go isn’t bad in our world. You would’ve never believed you could change any of the elements, right?”

“I guess so.” I shifted against him. I still had a hard time believing I was a vampire, let alone had the skill to alter nature.

I tensed against a horrible thought.

“What is it, Jo?”

“If Edmund could energize a wall of air, does he have all four elements?”

“Possibly.” He kissed my temple before releasing me.

I shivered, not only from his touch, but from the knowledge of how powerful our enemy might be.

“Let’s see what you got now that I’ve explained all this to you.” He knelt down. “First step is to learn how to use your powers when you’re not angry.” He lifted a handful of sand, letting it spill between his fingers. He did it again, and again…

It was like watching an hourglass being tipped, over and over again.

The sand in his hand grew into a ball and levitated an inch above his palm.

I blinked a few times to be sure I wasn’t hallucinating. Several seconds later, the ball of sand still hovered in the air.

I dropped to the sand beside him. “What the…” I squeaked out.

A smile played at the edges of those luscious lips.

“Remember what I said. It’s all about the energy within you.” The ball of sand glistened in the daylight as he held his hand still. “Now think back to when you absorbed the energy to get the dirt to spin into funnels.” He tossed the ball of sand, and it splattered against the ground.

“Yeah, but that was my telekinesis.” Wasn’t it? Come to think of it, that night I’d had my hands clenched into a fist and felt an odd sensation swirling inside me, as though electricity had been snaking through my body.

“Yes and no. Your mind controlled the movement of the cabinet doors. The funnels, though, were your ability to use the air element.”

I bit my bottom lip.

He grabbed my left hand and flipped it so the palm faced the sky. He drew an imaginary circle in the middle with the tip of his forefinger. At first, it tickled, and then a bolt of electricity shot up my arm. I yanked my hand away, but he stopped me.

“Don’t. Feel the energy from me,” he said.

Yeah. I wanted to but not this type.

“Hold still.” He repeated the process, pressing harder against my palm, as though he were pushing all his excess energy into my skin.

My left arm vibrated before he removed his finger.

“Now. Dip your hand in the sand and pick up a handful. Then visualize and use the energy in you to form a ball. It takes practice and concentration at first. Once you master the process, it comes easy, like tying your shoe.”

While I thought manipulating the air and water belied all sense of what I knew about the universe, I was fascinated. I closed my eyes and ran my hands along the sand, dipping my fingertips into it, feeling the coolness underneath the top layer before lifting my hands at a slight angle. I repeated this step a couple of times then grabbed a handful as Webb had, allowing the sand to spill through my fingers. I tuned out all sound except the crashing of the waves against the shore.

A strong rumble-like feeling rolled through my body. As I picked up two handfuls of sand, I pictured a rotating sphere of glistening silica particles hovering over my palm.

The energy coursing through me went from the fingertips of my right hand, up my arm, then down my left one to my palm. Within seconds, the energy grew stronger. It seemed as if my body was vibrating.

I opened my eyes, and a ball of sand spun above each hand. I drew my arms in front of me, both hands touching. In one fluid motion, I lifted my arms, flicked my wrists, and pushed out, releasing the silica spheres. They soared into the ocean and crash-landed. Water fanned up and outward.

I slowly lowered my arms as I glanced at Webb. Several expressions flickered across his face—shock, surprise, envy, and excitement.

I wiped my hands on my jeans. I’d had no idea so much power flowed through my veins.

He gaped out at the water.

“Close your mouth, baby.” I tapped his chin.

His head jerked toward me as one edge of his mouth curled.

“What?”

“I don’t know whether to be more surprised at what you just displayed or the fact you called me ‘baby.’”

“Wait, what? I called you—”

He tackled me to the ground and stared down at me. I flushed, heat pinching my cheeks.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to call you that.” I grabbed onto his shoulders.

“Say it again.” His voice sounded giddy.

“Seriously? You’re excited about me calling you ‘baby’? What about my awesome feat of wielding those sand balls?”

“We’ll get to that. But first, say it like you did earlier.” He stared at me through hooded eyelids.

Oh, jeepers. The vampire was crazy.

He raised his eyebrows, waiting.

“Webb, baby, aren’t you going—”

His tongue plunged into my mouth. I’d never seen the vampire soldier so excited before. Over a pet name. Was he serious? It didn’t matter. The warmth of his tongue and his lips caused some serious fireworks to explode inside me.

After several minutes, he broke the kiss, and we headed back to the house. A deep orange colored the horizon as the sun set and the wind kicked up.

“I’m proud of you, Jo. Your powers are only going to get stronger.”

“You sure you’re impressed with my abilities? Maybe it’s just your new pet name.” I giggled and ran ahead of him.

He caught me and swooped me into his arms. We entered the house, and he froze, his hands tightening on me. Webb set me down slowly as he looked past me. I turned to see what had his interest. A pretty lady lounged against the counter.

A black miniskirt showed off a pair of tanned, toned legs. Her short black wispy hair accentuated her delicate face—small nose, wide gray eyes with long lashes, and perfectly manicured eyebrows. Her yellow scoop-neck blouse displayed a cleavage that was hard to miss. The heels made it hard to determine her height, but I was wearing flats, and her heels put her at my height.

“Jo, can you see if George is awake?” Webb’s tone bordered on a growl.

The woman stalked up to him, splayed her hands against his chest, reached up on her toes, and gave him a long lingering kiss on the lips.

I hissed, sounding like a disturbed and angry cat. I wasn’t about to hide my distaste for this woman or the jealousy coursing through me. Talk about possessive. Yep, I was beginning to understand that term.

After her lips were finally away from Webb, she looked my way.

“Jo, get George.” Webb’s voice was hard, cold.

Not happening.
I wasn’t leaving this room even if my life depended on it. I clenched my hands into a fist. I had no idea who she was, but the way she bared her fangs at me, like a snake that had been disturbed on the warm concrete, led me to make an educated guess. This had to be the crazy lady who Stan mentioned.

“You need to go,” Webb said to the black-haired woman. He hadn’t taken his eyes off her yet.