A Bite's Tale: A Furry Fable (10 page)

I nodded, astounded at what a great faker I’d become. “You can tell me all about the ball when you come home. I’ll wait up for you guys.” I slipped out of the room and down the stairs. In the foyer, I reached for the handle of the wide double door.

The damn vampire was there again. Not right outside, but he was close. What would happen when I didn’t show up at the ball? Would he come after me? Would he hurt my family?

Since the other day when Aunt Mina had reacted so strangely over not locking me in the basement at night, I hadn’t brought up the subject again. Instead, I’d slept every night with the door locked, as usual.

But it wasn’t just about leaving the door unlocked anymore. With the vampire and inevitable upcoming weirdness, I needed to be closer to my family. How could I protect them from the basement?

I’d sleep in the extra bedroom tonight. To avoid thrashing about my room and howling, I’d need to go for a run later. I couldn’t stay long at Pierre’s if I wanted to run and settle into the new room before everyone came home. At least moving my belongings would give me something to do while everyone was out all evening.

Abandoning the front door, I flew up the stairs to Beatrice’s room. Winnie was holding a curling iron with her sister’s hair wrapped around it. She looked up from her task. “If you’re looking for Mom, she went to her room to get something.”

Nodding, I resumed my quest to find Aunt Mina. We needed to finish the dreaded conversation I’d been putting off. I prayed it would go better than the other night.

She always left her door open. One of my favorite things about Aunt Mina — she was always so accessible.

My eyes widened when I spotted her standing in front of her full-length mirror in a sleeveless black dress that molded to her body. “Aunt Mina, you’re hot.”

“That’s still the plan. But I won’t be gone that long after all. I’ll be back before you leave.” Maybe knowing that I’d see them before they left would soften her up. “But I wanted to go over the sleeping arrangements. You know… what we talked about the other night?”

Her pulse quickened and I cursed my werewolf ears for picking up on it.

“Tonight, I’m taking the lavender room,” I said softly, hoping not to scare her. “So be sure to lock your bedroom doors before you fall asleep.”

Aunt Mina nodded as she uncapped her lip gloss, her gaze fixed on the tiny applicator.

My bravery deserted me. I’d be back before they left for the ball. Maybe after a couple cups of coffee, I’d work up the nerve to say the rest of it.

“I’ll see you in a little while.” I rocketed down the steps and flew out the door as fast as my legs would go. The vampire may or may not have been there — I’d passed too quickly to tell. I wasn’t worried. He’d likely be gone by the time I got home anyway. Being the king’s right-hand man, he’d have better things to do than stick around to coerce girls like me to the ball. I hoped.

As I neared Pierre’s, I tugged on my hood until it left my face in shadows. Inside the coffee shop, I waited in line to order my drink.

Two people were ahead of me and they were both twisted toward the store’s glass window to the commotion on the curb. I didn’t care enough to look.

“Is that the king?” someone whispered.

I told myself I didn’t care and that I had no reason to look behind me.

But I did care. And something drew me to the murmurs outside. I sensed an energy. Definitely vampire. But not my recent visitor. I didn’t know any other vamps, so why did this one feel so familiar?

I gave the barista my order, then glanced over my shoulder.

Two men in suits stepped out of an enormous white Hummer limo. The men wore ear pieces like secret service men.

The person they were protecting had to be the king or prince — or someone mighty important. I tried to ignore the pull I felt from whoever was inside that limo. Had the vampire enlisted one of his vamp buddies to spy on me?

Spinning, I faced the counter again. I gave a five-dollar bill to the barista and picked up the brown mug. The suits approached the café door and I scurried to a table in the back of the room. Between the dim lighting and my hoodie, I was as anonymous as anyone could be. I relaxed and took a sip from my cup, letting the warm liquid soothe me.

After several minutes, the suits left with their drinks and the limo cruised away. Muscle by muscle, I relaxed again.

When I’d emptied the mug, it was time to head home if I wanted to see the girls all dressed up. I kept up a brisk jog and as I turned into our long driveway, I spotted a white limo. It was smaller than the one I’d seen in front of Pierre’s and the driver was human. Aunt Mina must have ordered it.

My muscles unbunched and I headed through the front door. Rustling satin and lace greeted me. I grinned at my cousins who looked more gorgeous than ever. Gavin was pretty cute too in his tuxedo and bowtie.

“Not for another fifteen minutes. Beatrice doesn’t want to get there too early.” Aunt Mina frowned. “Something about a boy named Timmy and how looking too eager is the kiss of death, so we’re going to be fashionably late.”

Enough time to talk to Aunt Mina. I needed to reassure her that moving out of the basement was the best option for everyone. As long as they locked their doors, the only one who’d get hurt was an intruder. I couldn’t put the conversation off any longer. But the thought of upsetting my aunt or making her anymore uncomfortable filled me with dread.

I followed her into the sitting room where she plucked her small beaded purse from the settee.

My stomach churned as I opened my mouth to speak. “I’ll make sure I go out every night and work off my excess energy. When I have run of the house during the night, it’s less likely I’ll disturb everyone if I’ve been out.”

Aunt Mina stared at me, her eyes wide.

I’d barely started and already she looked freaked out. I took a deep breath and forged on. “I’m leaving in a couple minutes. I’ll morph and patrol the grounds, make sure nothing bigger than a raccoon is out there. When I come back, you’ll be gone.” I slowly lifted my gaze to hers, then verbalized my greatest fear. “When I try to get in, will I be locked out?”

She made a small whimper. “Oh, honey, of course not. Why would you ask such a thing?” She closed the distance and grasped my shoulders. “How could you even think I’d ever do that to you?”

I blinked away the tears that had pooled. “Because you act like you’re afraid of what I’ll do next. Like you think I’d bite Winnie or Beatrice.” My chest felt heavy.

“You left out Gavin. He’s mine now, too.” She rubbed a runaway tear from my cheek with her thumb. “And so are you.”

I’m hers, too? I choked back a sob. “But you’re scared of me.”

She exhaled softly and gently coaxed me to sit on the edge of the settee before lowering to the spot beside me. “Sometimes, yes. But I
know
you. And the Cydney I love would rather die than hurt anyone.” Her eyes glistened. “Oh, sweetheart. I believe, with every part of my being, that you won’t ever lose control again. But it’s easy to doubt my own instinct, doubt
you,
when you don’t even trust yourself.”

“I don’t know how to trust myself.” I couldn’t seem to stop my voice from shaking. “What if I try and fail? I couldn’t live with myself if...”

Aunt Mina brushed a tear-soaked lock of curly hair off my cheek. “Nothing’s going to happen. And if you never try, you’ll never know how much control you have. Can you live this way forever?”

I just shrugged, because I didn’t have an answer. “You don’t talk to me anymore. This is the first time in weeks you’ve said more than a few words to me.” My chin quivered and I lowered my head.

“You’re right.” She blew out a breath. “It’s been hard for me, too. Celeste was my sister. Every time I look at you, I see her and I’m reminded all over again that she’s gone.”

I swallowed and uttered the painful question hanging on my lips. “Do you want me to leave?”

Her mouth dropped open, then she pulled me against her, burying her face in my hair. “Oh, heavens no! I couldn’t bear to lose you, too.”

“I’m so sorry you thought, even for a moment, that you weren’t wanted.” She gave me another squeeze, then released me. “I’d really like you to go to the ball. You’ll have a nice time. I just know it.”

I shook my head and stood. “A part of me wouldn’t mind dressing up and getting out, even if I did have a gown to wear. But the scared part is still winning. I’ll be fine here.”

“Yes, you will.” She rose from the sofa to stroke my cheek. “But if you change your mind, let me know. I can always have the driver bring me back for you.”

Winnie appeared behind her. They looked like shimmering angels. Gavin emerged from behind them looking like a mini James Bond in his black tuxedo.

I followed them outside and waved as gravel crunched under the rolling tires. The limo disappeared into the dark. I leaned against the front door and stared up at the stars. So many of them.

The ball would’ve been nice. Not that I wanted to mingle with royalty — especially since the prince was a vampire. But it would have been nice to dress up and forget all about my mental scars for a while.

The low hum of an engine reached my ears again. At the end of the driveway, a long white car passed through our gate. The limo had returned. I wondered if Beatrice or Winnie had forgotten something. I descended the steps for a better view of the driveway.

Wait. This limo was too long. And it was a Hummer.

Crap. It wasn’t my family returning. It was the vamp. Darting inside my house and locking the door behind me seemed like a great idea, but a door wouldn’t stop an ancient vampire. If he wanted to get to me, he would.

“Hm.” He studied me a moment, then signaled toward the limo. A tall slender blond woman climbed out of the car, dressed in a glittery gown. Human. She sidled up next to him.

“What do you think?” he asked her.

She inspected me, from my dirty sneakers and jeans to my unzipped forest-green hoodie. “Good bones. She’ll be stunning once I’m finished with her.”

“You don’t have a choice, little girl. I’ve gone through considerable effort to get you a dress and you’re very lucky I was able to convince Annalise to help.” He lowered his voice to a hiss. “You will not defy me.”

He had to be kidding. “What’s the plan? Gonna drag me into the ballroom, kicking and screaming, so no one else can enjoy themselves? Or were you going to drug me into cooperation? My family will know there’s something wrong as soon as they see me.”

He laughed softly. “No, none of the above. You’re going to come with me of your own free will. You’ll behave like a nice young lady and stay until midnight.”

“Is that so?” He lifted one brow. “You might be surprised what I know. For instance, all those days in the woods spent with a boy you knew as Jack.”

My stomach pinched and I tried again to shrink back against the door, but I’d run out of room.