Jude Stephens (20 page)

I thought about telling him about the kiss Leeds and
I shared, but thought better of it. The kiss was strange and there
really was nothing between Leeds and myself. So instead I just
said, “Yeah…I’m trying to kill you with my wanton ways.”

He chuckled and tickled my ribs. “Mmmm give it your
best shot, Baby.”

“
I would, but we have a plane to
catch. I’m excited about going to the Bahamas and seeing Janel
again.”

Alex groaned, “I forgot about her.” At my sharp look
Alex said, “I mean I forgot about sweet Janel.”

I laughed. “I know she can be a little bit in your
face but she means well. She loves me and is only trying to protect
me.”

Alex got up in all his naked glory and began
dressing. “Well, I can certainly understand the love thing, but she
has a way of making a man nervous. Like she’s gonna devour
you.”

He wasn’t far off the mark with
that one. Janel was a woman who knew what she wanted and wasn’t
afraid to go after it.

We dressed and Alex went out to feed while I went
looking for somebody. The house was quiet. I entered the kitchen
just as Cheve, Mark and Leeds came through the kitchen door with a
plate of grilled hamburgers, steaks and ribs.

“
Oh my God guys, that smells so
good.” My mouth actually started watering.

Leeds had a huge smile on his face when he said,
“Sit down Sugar Lips. This is guaranteed to be the best barbecue
you’ve ever had. This meat is some of the finest I’ve ever
cooked.”

I piled my plate with some potato salad that was in
a large bowl and grabbed a hamburger. I was about to take a big
bite of my burger when a horrible thought popped into my head. I
leaned over to Cheve and Mark, “Ummm, guys? Have you seen Bullet
this evening?”

Cheve looked perplexed for a moment and then
horrified. “No,” he croaked.

Mark, looking ill, put his knife and fork down.

“
Okay let’s not jump to any
conclusions,” I whispered. I mean Leeds was a little strange but
there is no way he’d do something like that.

At that moment Alex came in looking all sexy and
refreshed. He looked at the three of us and asked, “Is something
wrong?”

At that Leeds looked up from his plate and said, “Is
the food okay?”

None of us said anything. Alex laughed and sat down
beside me and grabbed my hand. “Hey Babe, guess who came with me
while I fed? Bullet. It seems like the two of us are becoming real
buddies.”

I didn’t know how he knew of our suspicions, but
there was a collective sigh around the table. I squeezed his hand
tight “Oh that’s wonderful Alex. I’m so glad the two of you get
along so well”

Uh oh. I peeked over at Leeds who was sitting there
with a face made of stone. He knew what we were thinking. I felt
terrible. Leeds is my friend and here I was thinking the worst of
him. Getting up, I went over and took Leeds’ hand.

“
Take a walk with me Leeds. I want
to talk to you.”

He just sat there like stone. “Please, Leeds,” I
begged him.

Scraping his chair backwards, he shook his hand from
mine and went out the back door. I followed him out into the cool
evening air. He stood still in the yard looking up at the stars
that were beginning to appear.

Without turning around he said,
“Its okay, Sugar Lips. I’m used to everyone thinking the worst of
me. After all I’m a devil that carries off animals and
babies.”

I placed my hand on his arm, “I don’t believe those
stories about you.”

“
Oh yeah? Then why did you believe
that I killed and then barbecued your pet wolf? Huh?”

Feeling very ashamed I said, “Leeds, I’m so sorry. I
didn’t really believe it. It was more of a thought that crossed my
mind, and you sometimes act strange. You make it difficult for
people to get to know you. I count you as a friend and even I only
know a little about your past. So please forgive me?”

Leeds turned fully towards me and with some
difficulty opened his arms. Without either of us saying anything I
stepped in for a hug. Leeds held his body stiffly as if he wasn’t
used to being held.

“
There are reasons why I act the
way I do you know,” Leeds confessed.

“
I’m listening.”

Leeds looked like he was struggling with what he
wanted to say, then concluded, “Nah…now’s not the time. You have a
plane to catch, and I have to take care of a few things.” He gave
me a small smile.

“
If it’s okay with you I’ll say my
goodbyes here. Tell the others they are welcome here anytime and
the same goes for you, Sugar Lips. Maybe one day we’ll be able to
have a heart to heart and I’ll tell you my whole sad
story.”

I wrapped my arms around him to give him a hug.
“Thank you, Leeds. I know it’s not easy to open yourself up to
someone, but you know you can trust me. I’m really sorry about the
thing with Bullet. Honestly I am.”

We broke apart and Leeds nodded at me. Thank God he
forgave me. I didn’t want to lose him as a friend. It wasn’t so
much him needing me, as it was me needing him. I was halfway back
to the house when I turned and called to him. “Oh Leeds, by the
way, I trust that you know what you’re doing with the woman you
have locked in your basement.”

Chapter 20

“
I still think you’re crazy,” Alex
said again. This was his reaction after I told him about the woman
that Leeds had in his basement. We finally boarded after some
discussion regarding letting Bullet onto the plane. Luckily after
paying the baggage handler a few hundred dollars, he decided Bullet
was really just a nice little puppy.

Now seated next to Alex, I thought
to myself,
maybe telling Alex wasn’t the
best idea
. He went on, “You have no way of
knowing what the hell he is capable of. You yourself thought that
he killed and grilled Bullet up on a silver platter.”

I sighed “It wasn’t silver, it was lovely pewter,
but that’s beside the point. The point is Leeds won’t harm the
girl. I’m not sure, but I swear that during the night I might have
heard them.”

Alex said, “Heard them what?”

“
You know…heard them.” I repeated
and wagged my eyebrows.

Alex laughed. “You’re too cute.
You’re a grown woman who’s had several lovers and was married and
you can’t say you heard sex sounds?”

“
Several lovers? You make me sound
like a floozy. So how many lovers have you had?”

“
Oh Baby, you don’t want to go
there. I’m a hundred and seventy five years old. There have been
many women I’ve slept with over the years.”

“
I think you’re right. I don’t
want to go there. Anyway, I really do trust Leeds. If he has a
woman tied up in his basement there must be a good
reason.”

“
Okay Babe, I don’t trust Leeds,
he just is too bizarre, but I do trust you so we’ll leave it
go.”

The rest of the three hour flight flew by. Alex and
I talked about anything and everything. This was what I remembered
best about Alex. He was very easy to talk to. I remembered him once
telling me that he was in both World Wars.

“
Alex, why would you fight in a
war when you clearly didn’t have to? I mean you’re a vampire. You
had the means to disappear.”

“
It’s hard to explain. First, when
you’re one of The Evolved, your lifespan is longer than that of a
human. You tend to feel boredom and a sense of disconnection quite
easily. I’m still rather young at a hundred and seventy five years
old, so it’s not a real issue. I still look forward to new
technologies and inventions, but for someone who has been around
for hundreds and hundreds of years, things, even new things, lose
their appeal.

It can and has driven some to destroy
themselves.”

I shivered at the thought. How terrible it must be
to have an existence such as that. A thought came to me, “Alex? Do
you have any idea if a Sensay has an extended life?”

Alex shrugged. “I really don’t know, Wren. You’re
the first Sensay I’ve ever met. You should ask your Mother.”

He looked as if he wanted to say more but
didn’t.

“
What?” I questioned.

“
Well, it’s just from what I
gathered from the legends; no Sensay has lived a long life because
they were all killed. Sensay’s have always been revered and feared.
Revered because of their abilities and feared because of their
abilities. The Evolved always felt that Sensays could have too much
power over the rest of them.”

I was stunned. I thought that only The Guardians
wanted me dead. Now it seems that the whole world wanted me dead.
Well freaking A. I looked across the aisle to where Cheve and Mark
sat. I could tell by the looks on their faces that they were aware
of this fact also.

“
You’re kidding me. You all knew
and never told me that everyone wants me dead?”

They had the decency to look ashamed, “The woman in
the cemetery that night. That wasn’t a Guardian was it?”

Cheve was the one to answer, “No, it was one of The
Evolved. A Jingwei.”

“
A what?” I asked.

“
A Jingwei. They are known for
their assassin skills.”

“
Great, but what the hell is
it?”

“
They’re one of The Evolved
species, most likely evolved from a human and a raptor. They are
known for their determination. That’s why they make good assassins.
I really was quite proud that you got the jump on her.”

My head was reeling. “I can’t believe that none of
you told me this. This is my life. Why didn’t you tell me?” I
asked, hurt.

Again Cheve answered, “Wren, it wasn’t the right
time. Onatah and I were planning on telling you when you were
finished with your training. We never thought that he would come
and ruin things.” Cheve nodded towards Alex.

Alex who was already bristling at Cheve calling me
Wren said, “She should have been told from the beginning. She has a
right to know.”

“
Oh yeah? Like you and the other
fucking vampire told her the truth?”

Alex started to stand up. I put my hand on his
chest. “Sit down Alex, you too Cheve. Stop acting like five year
old boys. What is done is done. The main thing is I know what I’m
up against now.” Another thought popped into my mind. “Mark? Have
you known about all of this too?”

Mark looked contrite. “Yeah. Roberto filled Andy and
me in the day you came to us.”

At my thunderous look he quickly added, “He had to
so that we could better protect you. He didn’t want you worried so
he swore us to secrecy, and then when we left I didn’t know how to
tell you. You were upset about Roberto and…” he trailed off.

I finished for him, “And the guy who tried to shoot
me with an arrow and who almost killed Bullet? Was he was one of
those Jingwei things too?”

Alex answered, “Probably not. From what Mark has
described to us he was more than likely a centaur.”

I couldn’t help but laugh. “A centaur? Like in a
half man half horse. Sorry but I saw the guy. He had two legs like
a normal man.”

Alex took my hand. “I know you don’t understand this
world, the world of The Evolved, but you will soon enough. The
Evolved have been around a long, long time. Many of the mythical
creatures that you’ve read about were indeed real at one time.

“
The centaur who tried to kill you
has evolved from that half human half beast creature that you know
from legend over thousands of years. Remember when Roberto and I
tried to tell you about The Evolved and we talked about Darwin and
natural selection? These beings have evolved in order to adapt to
the world around them. The centaur is the perfect
example.

“
At one point the DNA of a man and
horse intermingled somehow. The strongest traits in both fought for
dominancy until a new species was born, a centaur. Of course it
wouldn’t stop at that as everything is constantly evolving to adapt
to its environment. That is when it evolved into an
Ipotane.

“
The Ipotane began looking more
man than horse. He walked on two legs but kept many characteristics
of a horse. Today after many years of evolution you wouldn’t be
able to tell a centaur from a man unless you know what
characteristics they still carry from a horse.”

I looked over at Mark “You knew what to look
for?”

He cleared his throat “Um, yeah. Andy and I were
trained in The Evolved species. We had to be in order to do our
jobs. You can’t protect people unless you know what you’re up
against.”

“
Well, now I have to know. What
characteristics does a centaur carry over from a horse? Because I
can’t remember anything about that man that would remind me of a
horse.”

All three of them looked away and were focusing on
something else. “Oh come on guys. You have to tell me… Ohhhhh,” I
said as my face flamed and I finally realized what it was.

I looked over at Mark “Did you really check down
there?”

“
Hey, you don’t mess with what a
guy’s gotta do in the line of duty okay?” he snapped at
me.

I quickly apologized having never seen Mark show so
much emotion. “I’m sorry, Sweetie. I was just teasing you a little.
I for one am very thankful for everything you’ve done for me. You
are a good friend.”

He stopped bristling and was actually looking
pleased with himself. Cheve was rolling his eyes and Alex as usual
looked amused with all of us.

I mulled over everything they told me. So I was
hated. It felt strange to know that there were a lot of people in
the world who wanted me dead. I was never the type to make enemies.
Hell, I was never the type people even gave a second thought
to.