Riley's Redemption (A Moon's Glow Novel) (24 page)

Sebastian only grinned,
not fazed at all by Adrian. “Let me guess, you’re Sadie’s mate?”

Adrian stared coldly
into the vampire’s eyes instead of answering.

In the blink of an eye
Sebastian was gone, no longer pressed against the wall, but behind Adrian and
he had his hand wrapped around Adrian’s throat. “I think you need a lesson,
wolf boy. I am a vampire!” His smooth features hardened. “I am faster, stronger
and I will kill you in a heartbeat.” His low menacing voice was just as
terrifying as the red eyes.

“Stop!”

At the sound of the
booming voice, everyone turned around to see Nate. He was standing at the other
end of the hall, wearing jeans and a V neck black shirt, his face was tense.

“I am Nate.” He nodded
in the vampire’s direction. “You must be Sebastian.”

Sebastian let go of
Adrian, whose eyes had turned back to their natural color. He rushed toward us
and stood in front of his mate, guarding her. His left foot stepped on a
chocolate croissant, the brown creamy liquid oozed out onto the floor.

Sebastian grinned.
“Nate, it’s nice to meet you.” He took a step forward, glancing at the rest of
us. “But I don’t like to be summoned,” he repeated his earlier words.

Nate’s eyes flicked to
me, his expression changing to worry. When he saw that I was fine, he focussed
back on the vampire. “I didn’t summon you. I just asked my friend if he knew
you. All I wanted was to talk.”

Sadie glared at Nate.
“You brought him here?” Her voice was shrill, edged with panic.

Nate had the decency to
look guilty. “Yes, I’m sorry. But I just have a question for him.”

Sebastian folded his
arms in front of him. “I have no interest in answering any questions.” He gazed
at Sadie hungrily. “But I will take what I came for.”

“Um...is everything
okay here?” A soft female voice stammered from the end of the hall.

All eyes swung around
and focused on Lori. She was a sixteen year old that had just moved into the
new wing. She was wearing a red scarf around her neck and a beret on her head,
very Paris.

“Mmm, lunch,” Sebastian
murmured as he rushed forward, about to grab the girl. Nate stepped in front of
her. “Please, do not feed on my guests, it’s very rude.”

Sebastian scowled at
Nate, obviously not accustomed to being told what to do.

“We can’t do this here.
I won’t risk these people’s lives. Meet us at Baycroft Park at sundown and we
can settle everything then.”

Sebastian narrowed his
eyes at Nate and then in a flash he was standing behind me. “I agree to your
terms. But I’m taking your mate for insurance that you will show up and bring
me Sadie.”

Nate’s eyes flashed
yellow, as he stepped forward.

Sebastian’s vise-grip
like hand wrapped around my neck, cutting off my airway. Instead of panicking
like I wanted to, I breathed through my nose, not wanting to give him the
satisfaction of showing fear. Vampire or not, he was a bully and that’s what
all bullies craved.

He smirked at me and
then at Nate, whose eyes were wide with horror. “Don’t worry, I won’t hurt her.
You will see her soon.” And with that he lifted me over his shoulder and rushed
me away so quickly I barely saw the floor move under me. Before I could even
contemplate what had happened, we were outside and standing under the shade of
a tree.

He let me go and held
out his hand. “We haven’t formally met. My name is Sebastian. And you are?”

I stared at him, dazed
by his words. He just threatened my friends, almost attacked a resident and
then ripped me from the shelter on a day that I had been planning for months.
Then he politely introduced himself? All I could do was extend my hand. I was
at a loss for words. “Megan,” I whispered.

He shook my hand softly
and gestured towards a black sports car with dark tinted windows that was
parked at the edge of the curb. The shade stretched to his vehicle.

As I stepped toward it,
he opened the passenger door for me. I got in, still feeling confused by his
polite behavior.

Once he was settled in
the driver’s seat and had started the car, he turned to me. “Is there a nice
restaurant around here, I’m starving.” His face lit with amusement.

I simply gaped
open-mouthed at him as he pulled away from the curb.

Sebastian

An alternative rock
band was playing through the speakers and as far as I could tell it was a CD,
not the radio. I gave Sebastian directions to the Orchid and then waited for
the sadistic side of him that I saw at the shelter to return. When it didn’t,
the stab of fear that had pierced through me earlier became a low hum. As silence
stretched between us I turned to gaze at him. He was staring straight ahead as
if concentrating on the road, his smooth, sharp features showing no emotion. I
had never tried to imagine what a vampire would look like, I had no reason to.

Now that I was trapped
in a small car with one and had the opportunity to study him, I had to admit he
wasn’t what I pictured. Not that I had ever imagined they were real. But in the
horror films Mandy, my former best friend, used to make me watch they were very
different. In those movies the villainous vampires had black eyes, white skin
and long black hair. And yes, the black cape that flowed like smooth,
liquid-ink behind the immortal monster just as he sucked the blood from the
beautiful victim’s neck.

However, as I studied
him, I didn’t see any of that. Sebastian’s hair was black sure, but it was
short and trim, as if he had just had it cut. His eyes were pale blue and his
skin was a lighter shade than most people with dark hair that I knew, but it
was actually darker than my own. I had always been cursed with fair skin,
having freckles and strawberry blond hair. And as for the cape, he was wearing
dark blue jeans and a burgundy button down shirt, hardly the scary apparel I
expected from a bloodsucking supernatural creature. He was wearing a spicy
cologne that helped hide the underlying scent of rotting corpse. Although, I’m
sure to a human, they would simply smell the cologne. Only someone with
heightened senses would know him for what he truly was, just as he had smelled
us werewolves at the shelter. Now that I was near him, I knew without asking
that it was him in the woods the night of the full moon and also him in the
parking lot two nights ago. Why did he wait to contact us? I was about to ask
that question when he spoke.

“Is there something you
wanted to say?” he asked suddenly.

“Um…no.”

He smiled, turning
those mesmerizing eyes on me. “Good, because we’re here.”

I looked out the window
and could see only faintly through the dark tinted windows. He had pulled up in
front of the restaurant, under the main entrance’s awning. Before I could
comment on how fast the drive was, he was out of the car and pulling my door
open for me, like a perfect gentleman. I climbed out and gaped open-mouthed at
my captor. He was smiling at me, as if he hadn’t just attacked me and my
friends.

He tossed the keys to
the valet and led me through the door of the restaurant.

A tall woman with sleek
brown hair wearing a black skirt and white blouse greeted us with a wide smile.
“Welcome to The Orchid, please follow me.” We did as she instructed and she led
us to a brightly lit table for two in front of the large bay window. The view
was spectacular. The lake spread out before us as the midday sun shone over the
dark blue water, creating a shimmering glow over the waves.

Sebastian stopped, his
hand grabbing my elbow. His skin wasn’t cold as I had expected, although it
wasn’t warm either. “Actually, that is a little too bright for me.” He called
out to the hostess who hadn’t realized we were no longer behind her. She turned
around and looked up at us, surprised. “Is there any available tables over
there?” he asked, gesturing to the wall farthest from the window. Despite it
being daytime, without the sun, those tables were seeped in shadow, lit only with
candles and wall sconces.

The hostess’s brow rose
in confusion before plastering the smile back on her face. “Of course. You can
have any table you want.” Well, almost any table. Since it was between lunch
and dinner, the restaurant wasn’t busy, but there were a few people occupying
other tables, mostly by the bar at the back.

Once we were seated she
handed us each a menu and said that our waitress Patty would be by any minute.

When we were alone, the
nerves returned. I was sitting in a restaurant with a vampire and despite his
recent polite behavior; his actions at the shelter were still fresh in my
memory. An image of his fangs and blood red eyes flashed in my mind and I
shivered with fear.

“You have nothing to
fear from me,” he assured me, as if reading my mind.
Could he? Did vampires
have that capability?
Although, his voice was smooth and almost comforting,
I wasn’t falling for this new act; he had threatened to kill Nate and Sadie.

I opened the laminated
pages of my menu and flipped through them. I saw the words, but they meant
nothing to me. I couldn’t focus on anything but my unlikely companion. My
fingers trembled against my will. I hadn’t wanted to show fear, because as a vampire,
he most likely expected that.

“Alright,” he began.
His soft voice broke through the buzz in my ears that accompanied the anxiety
that was beginning to take over. I was alone with a vampire, who wouldn’t be
afraid? “How can I prove to you that I won’t hurt you?”

I stared at him,
completely floored by his complete change in attitude. “Don’t kill my husband
or friend.”

His lips twitched as he
stared at me, his face a blank mask. “Done,” he said, leaning back in his
chair, smirking at me. My eyes widened in surprise and my spirits soared. Had
he really just said he would no longer threaten Sadie or Nate? “I won’t kill
any of your friends while we have lunch.”

My heart dropped at his
words, dread plunged into my stomach like a brick falling to the bottom of an
abyss.

A grin spread across
his face. “I’m kidding.” His pale blue eyes brightened with mirth. “I won’t
harm your husband. I just need to convey to him that I don’t like people asking
about me.”

I stared at him
blankly, having no idea if anything he said was real. I wanted to trust his
words, but how could I? “I think you got your point across.” I twisted my
fingers nervously in my lap. “What about Sadie?”

A brow rose. “I have no
desire to kill her.” He shrugged. “How would she tell me where Miles is if she
was dead?”

I opened my mouth to
speak, but was interrupted when the waitress approached. “Are you ready to
order?” she asked. She was a blond, her hair was swept up in a twist and she
was wearing the standard black and white. But unlike the hostess, her skirt was
scantily short, coming just below her bottom.

Sebastian gestured for
me to go first. When the girl gazed at me, waiting, I picked the first thing
that grabbed my attention. “I’ll have the Beef Bourguignon.”

“And to drink?”

“Just water, thank
you.” I folded my menu and placed it in front of her.

The waitress turned to
Sebastian. “And you?”

He grinned. “I’ll have
you. If you don’t mind.”

My eyes grew wide and
I’m sure my mouth dropped open in shock. The fear that had been simmering now
spiked to a scorching burn.

The waitress smiled,
taking his words as harmless flirtation. “Oh, I don’t mind,’ she purred with a
wink.

Hunger flashed in
Sebastian’s eyes as he stood up and touched the girls elbow. “All right then.
Follow me.” He led her away and all I could do was gape wordlessly at him. He
turned and winked at me “I won’t be long,” he called over his shoulder.

I watched them head
down a corridor at the back of the restaurant where a sign above announced
‘Washrooms.’

He was going to hurt
her and I couldn’t let that happen. I waited a few minutes until I followed
them. Their scent trail led to the women’s room. I placed my hand on the knob
and twisted. It didn’t budge; it was locked. I gave it a hard turn, using my
heightened strength and with a
snap
, it turned. I pushed the metal door
open a crack and peered inside.

Bile rose up my throat
at the scene before me. Sebastian had the girl against the sink and as he gazed
into her eyes he asked her if he could taste her. When she nodded robotically,
he tilted her head, baring her neck. His eyes went red and his teeth extended as
he leaned down to latch onto her exposed skin. When I started to step forward
to stop him, he drew away, gazing at the blood that trickled down the girl’s
neck. The crimson liquid also dripped from his lips. “Don’t worry,” he began
softly, as if he were speaking lovingly to the waitress. “I don’t kill my food.
If I killed all the blood sacks living in this world, what would I eat?”

I was too stunned to
respond. He hadn’t acknowledged my presence, but I knew he was speaking to me.
He leaned down and began to drink from the girl’s neck once more. After several
seconds, he pulled away again. “And I don’t like an audience.”

Snapping out of my daze
I only nodded, not sure if he would see or not, since he wasn’t looking at me.
Then I stepped back into the hall, letting the door close with a soft click.

I shook my head, hoping
to clear the disturbing image, rushed back to the table and pulled my phone out
of my pocket.

“Megan, are you okay?”
Nate’s panicked voice came from the other end, after I dialed.

“I’m fine. I’m at the
Orchid. He took me out for dinner.”

“He eats food?” he
asked, shock clear in his voice.

“I don’t think so. He’s
dining on the waitress right now.”

“Eww, is he killing
her?”

“No.” Out of the corner
of my eye I noticed the waitress step out of the corridor with Sebastian
following her.

“Nate I have to go. I
just wanted you to know I’m fine. He hasn’t hurt me.”

“And I won’t,”
Sebastian assured me, from right next to me. The smell of rot entered my senses
too late.

I froze with the phone
in my hand.

He slid into his seat
and waved his hand. “Continue.” The air of superiority in his voice was
audible. I remembered the way Nate described Henry and realized it might not
just be because Henry had been a royal, it was more likely that most or all vampires
considered themselves above the rest of us.

“He says he won’t hurt
me. I have to go.”

“Wait,” Nate called out
in a panic.

I interrupted him,
uncomfortable talking to him in front of my captor. “I’ll see you at the park.
I promise, I’ll be fine.”

“I love you.” He
sounded defeated.

“I love you too.” I hit
the end button on my phone and slipped it back into the pocket of my pants.

The waitress was
smiling at us and then she nodded. “Okay, I’ll be right back with your orders.”

As she walked away and
headed into the kitchen I furrowed my brow at the man across from me. “What
just happened?” It was as if the last few minutes hadn’t occurred. Like we had
ordered and then she left.

He smiled, his pale
eyes bright with secrets. “She went to get your order.”

Again, I found myself
shaking my head, confused and utterly out of my element with this vampire.

Deciding to let that
go, I asked, “So is it true?”

“Is what true?”

“The sun. Will it kill
you?”

He rolled his eyes.
“No.”

I looked around us to
the section we were seated in, holding my hands up. “Then why the dark cave?”

“The sun won’t kill me,
but I burn easy.” He grinned mischievously.

“Can you be any more
vague?”

“I could, but I like
you.”

His comment threw me
and I forgot what I was going to ask next.

The waitress appeared
right at that moment and placed our waters in front of us. I surveyed her neck
looking for teeth marks, but found none. She looked fine and didn’t seem to
know what had happened. She walked away and headed to another table where an
older woman, that looked vaguely familiar, was seated across from a much
younger man. She was rubbing the guy’s leg with her foot from under-the-table.

The candle between us
flickered. “Did you do something to her? She doesn’t seem to remember you
gnawing on her neck.”

He chuckled softly.
“No, she doesn’t.”

“How?”

He shrugged again,
rubbing his finger along the edge of the table. “I told you, I appreciate my
privacy. I don’t like people to know my business.”

I opened my mouth to
ask another question, but the hard look that crossed his face had me changing
my mind. So I decided to change the subject. “Why did you take me?”

The corner of his lip
turned up slightly. “Why did you come?”

“I didn’t have a
choice. You forced me.”

He wagged his finger at
me and shook his head. “No, I forced you out of the shelter, but you got in my
car willingly.” He leaned his elbow up on the top of his chair. “And, when I
left you alone to have my meal.” He smirked at the word he used to describe
drinking blood from the waitress. “You followed me instead of trying to escape.
I would say you are more of a guest than my prisoner.”

As much as I hated to
admit it, he was right. For some reason I was intrigued with Sebastian. Not
that I didn’t fear him, but he was such a contradiction and I found that
interesting in anyone. When someone was easy to understand and a complete open
book, it was a little boring. And I couldn’t help feel that his sadistic side
might be for show. Although it didn’t matter why I hadn’t tried to get away,
the point was that I was here now and I had to make the best of it. “Fine, I
didn’t try and get away, but why did you take me in the first place? I thought
you wanted Sadie.” My eyes widened. “Not that I want you to harm my friend. I’m
just curious.”

“Don’t worry, I will
have my chance with her. But I took you to tick off your mate. He has been
asking around about me and I don’t like that.”

“Why?”

“Vampires don’t like
people to even know we exist, much less asking about us. We don’t want to be
found.”