Forbidden Touch (22 page)

She had only hit him once before he'd suddenly come awake and pinned her to the bed. She should have set his ass on fire. She would have gladly burned the room up and died under the heat of the flames with him than allow him to walk this earth another night.

"Ciera, calm down!" he shouted at her as he held her to the bed with his hands. He smiled at her. "We are here, baby. This place is called Euphoria. It's paradise for our kind. We will be so happy here." He bent to kiss her and her knee came up between his legs. He groaned and fell on top of her. She pushed him off hard, then got out of bed to look for her clothes.

"What was in that needle you stabbed me with?" she said as she found her jeans and began putting them on.

He rolled over, laced his hands behind his head and stared at her. "It was the same tranquilizer they use on elephants. I wasn't sure if it would work but," he looked at his watch. "You have been out cold for a little over ten hours."

Her eyes grew wide. "How the hell did you drive here in the daylight?"

He smiled. "The vampires in Vegas are pretty smart. They come up with a special tint to put on the windows of their vehicles. It doesn't let in any UV rays. I was skeptical at first, but I really didn't have a choice. Lennard was eyeing you like a piece of candy, and he is boss there in Vegas. If I killed him, it would have only been a matter of seconds before his Family killed me and kept you for a sex toy." His grin broadened. "They were fascinated by the fact that you have managed to stay a virgin for over three centuries."

She found her socks and shoes and put them on as she said, "And I plan to stay a virgin until I find Mitch."

Dane was out of the bed and had her in his arms in the blink of an eye. His mouth was only a breath away from hers, but it wasn't intimacy she was feeling from him. "He hates you, Ciera. If you go anywhere near him Lazarus will kill you. Forget about him." He shook her hard. "I can give you anything you could ever want. Give me a chance!" he pleaded.

"I've been around you for over a century. I don't feel anything for you. I fell in love with Mitch the first time I laid eyes on him. He is my soulmate."

He took a step back from her, clenching his jaw a few times before he spoke. "I will see you dead before you will be with him."

She gave him a cold smile. "If you loved me, you would be able to let me go so I could be happy. But yet, here you are threatening to kill me because I refuse to make you happy. How selfish, but I can't say I expected more from you."

"If you loved him, you would be able to let him go as well," he said.

"After he knows the truth…I will let him go, if he still wants me to leave him alone. I won't have a choice. You can't make somebody love you."

"He will kill you!" Dane shouted at her.

"Because he believes a lie!" she shouted back, then shook her head. "I don't care. Maybe I'm better off dead. I certainly don't have anything to live for now."

"I can give you something to live for." He framed her face in his hands and kissed her tenderly. She didn't move, and her lips were unyielding to him. He pulled back from her an inch. "Kiss me, Ciera. I can show you so many great things. I can change for you."

"You shouldn't have to change for someone. You should already be who they need you to be for them."

"Let me be what you need," he whispered as he tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

She met his eyes. "I'm sorry, I can't. After what you've done, I wouldn't ever be able to trust you."

She backed away from him; he let her go, with a genuine hurt look on his face.

She turned for the door.

"Wait," he said quietly and she stopped. He sighed. "I can't let you go alone. Lazarus will kill you."

She turned and gave him a disbelieving look. "You're going to help me get Mitch back?"

He nodded slowly. "I guess I do love you enough to let you go."

She sighed, heavily. She didn't love him, but she did feel something for him, friendship maybe? Whatever it was, she didn't want to lose it, or him. He was annoying and conceited, but the traits fit him well, and they were growing on her. From what she had heard of Lazarus, she wouldn't have a chance in hell at getting Mitch back. Dane evidently knew more than she did on the subject of Mitch's daddy. Dane was valuable, and she would be a complete fool to refuse his help. "Thank you, Dane."

"Yeah…I'm not saying that he will even believe the truth now, but I will help you as much as I can." He shrugged. "I can still hope that he doesn't believe us. Maybe then you will give me a chance."

She thought about that for a moment, then said, "If that is the only reason you are helping me, then just stay here. I love Mitch, and if he truly hates me now, it will shatter my heart into a million pieces and I will hate you for causing it. There will be no other chance for me to love again. I'm sorry."

He walked to her and tilted her chin up to look at him. "I am doing this because I love you. It hurts that you don't love me back, but I only want you to be happy. If he doesn't want you after you talk to him, I will be happy just taking care of your shattered heart for the rest of eternity, and I will hate him for breaking it. I really only want you to be happy."

"What changed your mind?" she asked him.

"Seeing you almost walk out that door made me realize that you were walking out of my life forever; I don't want that." He brushed his hand across her cheek softly. "Just promise me that, no matter what happens, you will always be in my life."

She swallowed hard. She had never seen Dane so sincere before, and she actually wasn't lying when she said, "I promise."

He smiled. "Promises are usually sealed with a kiss."

She frowned. "Don't push it, Dane." She held out her hand and he shook it with a smile.

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Chapter
34

Mitch walked alongside Lazarus down a long, damp hallway. Noises no longer bothered him. It was as if he had turned down the volume, but he knew exactly how to turn it back up when he needed to. He knew this hallway would be dark to a human, but with his new eyes it was as if he had night vision. Everything seemed bright to him, and that may have been why Lazarus kept it this dark. He was almost positive bright lights would hurt his eyes. But maybe he could adjust his sight like he could his hearing.

Lazarus stopped in front of a door and flipped a switch on the wall beside it. There was a loud noise that sounded like metal creaking, and then Lazarus opened the metal door. It was another cylinder shaped stone room, and yet again, there was a table with chains attached to it in the center. The only thing different, Mitch thought, was that the table was illuminated. He walked in and looked up. The metal shutters, like in the other room, were open, and sunlight was streaming through in a single beam of bright white fire. Mitch realized that it wasn't really fire; it was just that his eyesight was so sensitive to the beam of sunlight coming through the shutters.

It hurt his eyes to look at it, but other than that he wasn't bothered by it. He didn't look away from the light, he only squinted, but the longer he gazed at it, the irradiation seemed to get dimmer and more bearable for him to look at.

Maybe I can control my eyes as well as my ears, he thought, amused. He looked to Lazarus. "What do you want me to do?" he asked.

Lazarus walked into the room, then went over to the illumination. He ran his hand through it; nothing happened. "Do ... that."

Mitch raised an eyebrow and looked at his…hell, he couldn't seem to even think that this guy was his father. Lazarus didn't look much older than he did. Anyway, he looked at Lazarus like he was crazy. "I won't fry?"

Lazarus shook his head. "No, if sunlight affects you, your skin will burn almost instantly. After you get away from the light, your skin will begin to heal immediately. It shouldn't take more than a few minutes for you to be as good as new."

Mitch took in a deep breath, then let it out. He walked up to the table, and before he could back out, he ran his hand through the brightness. He did it quickly, but nothing happened. He glanced up at Lazarus, who only nodded. Mitch, slowly this time, put his hand into the beam of light and left it there. He could feel the warmth of the sun, but nothing even remotely uncomfortable.

Mitch laughed as he looked at his hand, then he hopped up on the table and put his whole body in direct sunlight. He spread his arms out and turned around in a slow circle. When he looked back at Lazarus, the guy had a perfect smile painted on his face. Mitch didn't think he'd ever seen the guy smile so big.

"What is this place?" Mitch asked, after he jumped down from the table.

"My home."

He shot Lazarus a questioning look. "I have been to your house. It doesn't look anything like this."

Lazarus chuckled. "I picked you up in Las Vegas in my private jet, then flew you back here to Illinois. This is my home, Mitch, but this is only the basement. I don't show people the basement when I give them a tour," he said with a mischievous smirk.

Mitch looked astounded at him. He mentioned that they were back in Illinois. "Everyone thinks that I committed those murders. I'll never be able to stick my nose out of here."

Lazarus seemed to think about that for a moment, then he said, "We will just have to figure out a way to clear your name."

"And how do you suppose we do that? Frame someone else?" Mitch said, with a short laugh.

Lazarus grinned at Mitch. "Exactly." Then he winked.

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Chapter
35

Ciera followed Dane through what appeared to be a super nice hotel. It didn't seem to have any windows though, so maybe it had been built with vampires in mind. Or maybe a vampire was the one who built it. She didn't know, but whoever designed it, they had done a wonderful job. It was beautiful. Everything screamed expensive and original.

The floors were real marble, not the fake linoleum at Home Depot that looks, but really doesn't look, like marble. The light fixtures were beautiful, but again she didn't think they had been bought at any hardware store. They looked handmade, but whoever made them knew what they were doing.

Dane stopped in front of an elevator and pushed the button. She looked at him and prayed that he didn't have something else up his sleeve. He could lie better than anyone she knew, but something about him seemed different.

He caught her looking at him. "What?" he said, and smiled a genuine smile that she had never seen before on his face. The only time she had ever seen him smile was when he was torturing Rogue vampires. He had a really nice smile.

The gesture made her smile back at him, and gave her the confidence to say what she had been thinking. "This isn't a trick, is it?"

He lost his smile and framed her face with his hands. "No, Ciera. I'm sorry I tricked you before. I see now that it hurt me more than it helped me. I wish I had never told the Elders that you should work Mitch's case. Maybe you never would've met him. I'm truly sorry that I hurt you. I hope someday you can find it in your heart to forgive me."

She walked into the elevator when the doors opened, then crossed her arms as he walked in and stood beside her. "And are you sorry for telling the Elders that I was the one who committed the murders?"

His eyes narrowed as he sucked air in through his teeth. He looked at her like she would be mad if he told her the truth.

"Tell me, Dane! Are you sorry?"

"Well…I didn't exactly tell the Elders that I saw you committing the murders," he said, then let out his breath.

She turned her head to the side, trying to figure out what was going on in that handsome little head of his. "Well, what exactly did you tell the Elders?"

He shrugged his shoulders as his eyebrows went up. He wouldn't look at her.