Kiss of Death (The Briar Creek Vampires, #1) by Jayme Morse & Jody Morse (25 page)

“I don’t get it,” Lexi said, lowering her window.
“Justin was always such a safe driver. They haven’t even said
anything about who he got into an accident with.”

Whipping around a curve, Gabe kept his eyes on the
road and reached over to grab her hand. “He didn’t get into an
accident with another car, Lexi. I heard the report earlier today.
He hit a tree. I came over tonight because I wanted to see if you
heard about the accident yet. That’s when I saw Dan through the
window, and I knew that something wasn’t right. I knew I had to
stop it.”

Trying to hold back the tears that were moistening
her eyes, Lexi tightened her grip around Gabe’s hand. She had
forgotten how cold his skin was. She couldn’t believe that she
hadn’t picked up on him being a vampire before now. His touch felt
almost ghostly against her warm skin.

Impulsively, Lexi reached over and put her hand
against Gabe’s chest, covering his heart. She waited for a few
seconds before realizing that he had no heartbeat. “It’s true,”
Lexi whispered. “You’re a vampire.”

“Duh,” Gabe said, with a smile. “We just went over
this.”

Lexi gulped. “So, what does this mean for us?”

“I’m still me, and you’re still you,” Gabe said. “Oh,
by the way, my name really is Gabriel, not Kevin. I just change my
name to something else to go under the radar every twenty years or
so.”

“Good,” Lexi answered. “I think that Gabe is a more
suiting name for you.”

Gabe slowed the car to a stop and leaned over to kiss
Lexi on the lips. She felt her heart stop, as the butterflies which
were resting in her stomach began to flap their wings.

“Are you going to drink from me?” Lexi whispered. She
half hoped that he would say yes.

“Not right now,” Gabe whispered back, pulling away
from her. “Maybe one day, though. With your permission, of
course.”

“You have my permission,” Lexi said. “Would you turn
me into a vampire if I want?”

“No,” Gabe replied. “It’s a lot more complex than
that. It’s not a decision to just make at the spur of the
moment…especially on the night you found out I’m a vampire. And I’m
also not going to drink from you right now, either. It will only
make things more complicated.”

“Then shouldn’t I be the one to decide whether I want
to share my blood with you or not?”

“You’re not thinking clearly right now, Lex. You’ve
just lost two people and that’s not even counting Austin. Just give
it time and maybe I’ll drink from you one day, when I think you’re
ready, okay?”

Lexi nodded.

“There’s still a lot I need to tell you, but now
isn’t the right time,” Gabe went on. “I don’t want to spring too
much on you at once. You don’t need to feel overwhelmed, what with
everything else going on.”

Unsure what to say, Lexi nodded again. “Okay,” she
replied. “Gabe, do you really love me?”

“Of course I do,” Gabe said.

Gabe turned the keys in the ignition and pressed down
on the gas pedal. The air from the open window blew Lexi’s hair
uncontrollably into her eyes, as the car picked up more speed. The
car whirled around a sharp corner, making her stomach drop.

Lexi watched in horror as the speedometer increased
to 90 mph. “Gabe, slow down!” she screamed at him, panic taking
over her body.

From his seat, Gabe titled his head to look at her
and smiled. “Relax, Lexi! I’m a safe driver.”

“Then keep your eyes on the road,” Lexi snapped at
him. If Gabe wasn’t the one driving, she would probably feel much
more threatened. Even when he was driving like a maniac, she still
felt safer with him than anyone else in Briar Creek.

“It’s hard to keep my eyes on the road when I just
want to look at you all day,” Gabe said, leaning over and kissing
her on the lips.

“Gabe, what the fuck are you doing? Keep your eyes on
the road!” Lexi screamed, pulling herself away from him. Leaning in
closer, he pressed his lips against hers.

Lexi watched out of the corner of her eye as the
trees became closer to the car.

Lexi’s head whipped against her headrest as the car
crashed into a tree. The air bags exploded and smoke seeped out.
The smell of gun powder filled her nostrils while the car finally
came to a halt on its side before everything went black.

*

With one final glance at Lexi, Gabe sighed with
relief. Pulling himself out of the car, he stumbled his way onto
the main road and straightened his shirt. Reaching in his pocket,
he pulled out his cell phone. He dialed the number of the one
person in Briar Creek he knew he could trust.

When he heard a voice on the other end of the line,
Gabe calmly told them, “It’s over. Meet me where we talked about. I
don’t know where we’re going, but we’re getting as far away from
Briar Creek as possible.”