Authors: Jennifer Knight
Tags: #Social Issues, #Love & Romance, #Vampires, #College Students, #Juvenile Fiction, #Paranormal, #General, #Romance, #Werewolves, #Dating & Sex, #Fiction, #Occult & Supernatural
Blood Crave 2 (30 page)
At first I began nodding, and then gradually realized what he’d said.
“What, you’re not coming with us?” I asked.
“No,” he said, clearing his throat. “Rolf’s concerned by the reduced number of murders lately. He thinks it means they’re planning something big. We’ve got a raid planned for tonight. Largest one we’ve ever done. I gotta stay and help.”
I searched his face as I decided how to react.
“Shouldn’t Derek stay and help?” I asked. “He might have clues to where the lair is.”
“He says he doesn’t know anything, and I believe him. The vampires wouldn’t be dumb enough to show an unregistered mutant where their lair is.”
“Viran,” I corrected.
He waved me away. “Besides, Derek isn’t a pack member. He’ll only get in the way.”
I bristled at that, but ignored it. “Can’t I help at all? Like I did when we caught that vampire together?”
He shook his head with one of those you’re-being-silly looks he often gave me.
“I appreciate it,” he said and cupped my cheek. “That’s really brave of you, babe, but you’re better off just letting us do our thing.”
I shook his hand away. “I want to
do
something. I hate being powerless. Do you understand what that feels like? To constantly be at the mercy of creatures stronger than you?” I curled my lip. “No, I guess you don’t, right?”
do
something. I hate being powerless. Do you understand what that feels like? To constantly be at the mercy of creatures stronger than you?” I curled my lip. “No, I guess you don’t, right?”
He looked up at the ceiling, dragging his hands down the sides of his face. “Why are you giving me a hard time? You know I have to stay and do this, and you know you can’t help.”
I whirled away from him, folding my arms across my chest.
“I don’t know,” I said. “It just ... kind of hit me yesterday that if we don’t stop the vampires, my entire future will be nonexistent. I mean, why am I even
in
college? To prepare for something that’s probably not even going to happen anymore? I should just face it: I’m going to be some vampire’s dinner and nothing else.”
in
college? To prepare for something that’s probably not even going to happen anymore? I should just face it: I’m going to be some vampire’s dinner and nothing else.”
An iron hand clasped my arm and spun me around. Lucas stood over me, shadows masking his face, but with eyes glowing bright silver. “Don’t you ever say that to me again. Don’t say it period. Don’t even think it.” He shook me slightly on the last word, and I jerked my arm away.
“I want to help stop this,” I whispered fiercely. “It’s my race they’re trying to eliminate. I have a right to help defend it.”
“
We
defend you,” he said, spreading his arms wide. “It’s our whole purpose. So just let us do our jobs, okay?”
We
defend you,” he said, spreading his arms wide. “It’s our whole purpose. So just let us do our jobs, okay?”
“And stand by idly while people are killed night after night.”
“It’s been slowing.”
“Only so they can plan some new form of terror against us.”
He swore and began pacing around the room. When he returned to me, he was calmer, but I could still see something twitching in his temple.
“I get it,” he said. “If it was me, I’d want to do something, too. But you gotta face the reality, Faith: you’re human. And these are vampires. They
will
kill you if they get the chance, and the only advantage you have over them is the fact that you know they exist. You can hide.”
will
kill you if they get the chance, and the only advantage you have over them is the fact that you know they exist. You can hide.”
“So that’s all I get to do, hide like a little child?”
“Unfortunately, yes.”
“I’m not some stupid damsel, Lucas. I don’t need you to save me all the time!” I knew this wasn’t true. And that was the frustrating part. I knew I needed him to save me, I just didn’t
want
to need him to save me. I wanted to save myself for once.
want
to need him to save me. I wanted to save myself for once.
To my surprise, Lucas’s face tightened into a small half-concealed smile. He held my face in two hands and said, “Three months ago, I never would have heard those words come out of your mouth. You would have been more than happy to let me save you.”
“Three months ago, I was powerless.”
“But your power is useless against the vampires.”
I ground my teeth and looked away.
“It’s okay to have weaknesses,” Lucas said softly. “You taught me that.”
I looked up at him again.
“It’s okay to need people,” he whispered. “If you need me, it doesn’t mean you’re powerless. It just means you need help.” He shrugged and smiled. “And it’s okay. Because there’s gonna come a time when I’ll need your help, too. And I can promise you this, Faith: I won’t be too proud to accept it.”
I swallowed hard to keep the tears back and nodded. “Okay,” I whispered.
He relaxed. “Now will you please go back to CSU where it’s safe?”
I sighed heavily and shrugged. “I have no choice.”
D
erek and Katie returned an hour later, both flushed and windblown, and looking too happy to be allowed. By that time, the pack had already left for the raid, leaving only me and a scattering of human guards and children in the mansion. It was getting close to nine p.m., which meant we’d never make it back to CSU before the curfew. Meaning we’d have to either sneak in or get a pass from one of the many policemen standing by at the entrances to the campus.
erek and Katie returned an hour later, both flushed and windblown, and looking too happy to be allowed. By that time, the pack had already left for the raid, leaving only me and a scattering of human guards and children in the mansion. It was getting close to nine p.m., which meant we’d never make it back to CSU before the curfew. Meaning we’d have to either sneak in or get a pass from one of the many policemen standing by at the entrances to the campus.
I was in no rush to get back to school and deal with that. Katie and Derek seemed content to stay a while, too, since neither of them had come in from the back porch yet. I debated on joining them, but they both looked a little too hyper for my taste. I was in the mood to be angry, not make doggie bathroom jokes.
I shoved off from the sofa and began making my way into the kitchen. With the werewolves gone, everyone else had scattered into their private quarters, leaving me alone on the bottom floor, which effectively creeped me out; the mansion was spooky at night without the rowdy werewolves to fill the silence.
I went into the kitchen, hoping to find some leftover brownies or something. The lights were off, but I couldn’t find the switch in the darkness, so I rushed to the fridge to light the room. I rooted around inside it, finding nothing appetizing. Glass bottles clinked together, tinfoil crinkled as I pushed it out of the way and—
I straightened, ears pricked. I couldn’t bring myself to turn around, but I stood stock still, listening for the sound I was sure I’d heard.
There it was again. I stepped away from the fridge, and it closed behind me with a small thud, plunging me into total darkness. I swallowed hard, trying to be brave. I’d heard someone moving around in the back hall. It was a distinctive kind of scraping sound, like bare feet on hardwood. It had started then stopped. Waited. Then started again.
Now whoever it was had stopped, probably realizing I’d heard.
I edged around the counter toward the knife block. Why would someone be sneaking around in the mansion? Spying on me? No, that was too narcissistic. Maybe they wanted to get to Derek? To kill him for last night’s disaster?
Slowly, I pulled a chef’s knife from its sheath and held it by my side. It had only made a soft whooshing sound, but if the person sneaking around in the hall was a werewolf, he’d have heard it and known I was armed.
I waited in the corner between the island and the back counter, trying to become invisible. Part of me tried to play this off as paranoia, but there was this irrepressible feeling inside me that insisted whoever was in the hallway was there with malicious intent. Cautiously, I reached out with my power to try and find the being in the hall.
It was a faint vibe, but it was there—
I frowned. It wasn’t a werewolf. That made me relax my hold on the knife somewhat. He or she was human. And he or she was hiding. From me. I strained to hear the person’s exact thoughts, but I must have been too nervous. All I got was a name.
A name that froze my heart to solid ice.
Calvin.
21
FAIR WARNING
I
couldn’t stifle a gasp. But I immediately regretted doing it. I barely got a second’s warning in the vibe before he was exploding out of the hall at top speed—a mammoth of a man with agility that shouldn’t have been possible. He darted around the countertop and was almost on top of me before I could scream. I dashed out of his grip and rounded the island, throwing a stool down behind me. He tripped over it, and I sprinted for the back door—the only place I could think to go.
couldn’t stifle a gasp. But I immediately regretted doing it. I barely got a second’s warning in the vibe before he was exploding out of the hall at top speed—a mammoth of a man with agility that shouldn’t have been possible. He darted around the countertop and was almost on top of me before I could scream. I dashed out of his grip and rounded the island, throwing a stool down behind me. He tripped over it, and I sprinted for the back door—the only place I could think to go.
It was locked. I tugged on it, crying out, but it didn’t budge. I spun to see the man crawling toward me as he got up. Panicking, I chucked the knife at him and tried to squirm away past his bulky body. He dodged the knife as though this was just a game of dodgeball and then lunged for me. He caught my foot as I made to jump around the island again, and we both hit the tiled floor. My head slammed into the tile, dazing me, as the man got a good tight hold on my shoulders. He straddled me, weighing about as much as a full-grown horse might and pressed the knife I’d thrown at him against my throat.
“Shut up, shut up,” he whispered.
When your attacker says to shut up, that’s usually a good time to scream.
I inhaled deeply to do just that when he took the knife and slashed my cheek.
I gasped and he replaced the knife to my throat.
“Next time I’ll make it scar,” he said.
“Fuck you,” I snarled, half crying.
“Not interested.”
I squirmed beneath him, but that did pretty much nothing. This guy was a tank. He was probably one of the men who’d taken Lucas down to the silver room, but I couldn’t catch a clear glimpse of his face to be sure.
“What do you want?” I demanded.
“I want to tell you something.”
“And you need a knife to do that?”
“I need a knife so you won’t scream. I was going to try and do this telepathically, but you’re still too new.”
“What?” I asked. “What do you mean? Did you talk to Yvette?”
“No. My brother.”
“Kevin,” I whispered. By now all I could
do
was whisper, since he was sitting on my chest.
do
was whisper, since he was sitting on my chest.
I saw his silhouette nod in the darkness.
“I had suspected you were one of them for a while,” he said. “But when Lucas came out of that room with his sanity, I was certain. Listen, Faith, you must know something. It’s about the uprising.”
“What?” I asked breathlessly.
“Rolf will not listen to me because I am human, and nobody here trusts me, so I need you, Faith.”
“Why doesn’t anyone trust you?” I could make a few guesses based on my current situation, but I wanted to know more.
“That is a story for another time. What you need to hear, you must hear quickly and then convince Lucas to take action.”
“Okay . . . so tell me.”
“The vampires want Derek. They want him badly, and they will do anything to have him.”
My stomach plummeted. “Why?” I croaked.
“I know not. But they want him. Faith, there is talk of kidnapping him, or keeping him hostage. Of keeping
you
hostage so he will comply with their wishes. My insiders can keep their plans at bay for now, but it will not last forever. You have to leave here. Go someplace where the vampires cannot find you.”
you
hostage so he will comply with their wishes. My insiders can keep their plans at bay for now, but it will not last forever. You have to leave here. Go someplace where the vampires cannot find you.”
I gasped for breath. “I can’t leave. My whole life is here. Lucas is here.”
“Do you not think Lucas will follow you anywhere?”
“He needs the pack to stay sane, I can’t ask him to—”
“So you would rather your best friend die? Or yourself?”
I struggled again to get away, furious. “Who are you? What do you even care about us?”
“I am closer to you than you think,” he rumbled. “Please, Faith, heed my words.”
Heed his words? What a loser. “What am I supposed to do with this information? I can’t leave. I won’t.”
“Then for Heaven’s sake, at least take precautions. You cannot run amok through the night and not expect evil to find you.”
“I don’t run amok anywhere; I have protection. And I’ll tell Lucas and Derek what you said about them wanting him for something, but beyond that there’s nothing I can do. In case you haven’t noticed, I’m just a human.”
He slid the knife slowly away from my throat and said softly, “Some of the bravest people I’ve ever known have been human. Your mother among them.”
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