The Soul's Mark: HUNTED (24 page)

A young woman cried out from the crowd, shoving against the vampires who were blocking the path to Mitchell, and, Amelia assumed, her daughter.

Then Mitchell glanced at the child.  Recognition swept over him, and he closed his eyes.  His chest rose as he inhaled a deep breath.  An engine rumbled to life from somewhere off to the side of them, and tires squealed on the pavement.  When Mitchell’s eyes opened, they were a breathtaking sea blue.

“Hi, sweetie,” he said in a gentle, velvety voice.  A warm smile curved his lips upwards.  He lowered himself to the ground, resting on one knee before the child, so they could be at eye level.

Without a moment’s hesitation, she climbed up onto his outstretched knee, flung her long pigtail braids over her shoulders, and then took his tie in her hands, playing with the end.  She wiggled around on his lap, swinging her legs back and forth, and Mitchell put an arm around her waist to keep her from falling.

“When’s Mabwel coming back?” she asked.  “She promised to make me an andy apple at the fair.”

A young woman, who Amelia vaguely recognized as a waitress at the local steak house, stepped forward, breaking through the crowd.  A guarded and slightly paranoid expression marred her face as she climbed the steps and bent down in front of the girl.  “Honey, we talked about this.  Mabel won’t be coming back,” she said softly, and then she looked at Mitchell, her cheeks flushing a soft pink with embarrassment.  “I’m sorry, Mitchell,” she said softly as the soft pink brightened to a candy apple red.  A small smile lit up her eyes.  If Amelia had to guess, she would swear that the woman had a thing for Mitchell.

“Don’t be,” Mitchell said.  The little girl started to cry, and she threw her arms around Mitchell’s neck as large tears dripped from her chin.  Mitchell hugged her, letting the girl cry, and he stroked her hair soothingly.  “I’m going to miss her andy apples, too, sweetie,” he said, tipping her chin up.  He brushed away some of the tears that had soaked her flushed cheeks.  Amelia felt the last bit of anger he was still harboring sizzle away as he attempted to comfort the child.

A tear slipped down Mitchell’s cheek, and the child’s brow furrowed as she watched it fall, and her tears began to dry up.  Then she looked up at her mother and said, “Mommy, can we make andy apples for Mr. Mitch, so he won’t be sad anymore?”  Her big brown eyes brightened at the idea.

“Sure, honey,” she replied, her voice cracking on the words.  She bent down and took her daughter’s hand.  “Now come along.  Mr. Mitch needs to talk to the other people.”

Grasping onto her mother’s hand, the child wiggled on Mitchell’s knee, swinging her little legs back and forth, preparing to jump to the ground, but then she stopped, and to everyone’s surprise, she looked back up at Mitchell, leaned in and kissed him on the cheek.

****

“I should have killed him,” Mitchell seethed.  It had been the only thing he had really said since they had gotten home, and no matter what she tried, Amelia couldn’t get him to stop his pointless ranting.

So instead, she tried to shut him out and focused on how the hell she’d be able to get away.  Because she knew that leaving was the only way to make the mindless killing stop.  Cole had made it clear.  Her family would be safe if Megan and Amelia went with him.

Amelia looked over at Megan, wishing she could see into her mind.  She knew for a fact that Megan had to come with her.  Cole had made it clear that he wanted both of them, but Amelia wasn’t sure if she would be able to convince Megan that leaving was for the best.

Right now, Megan was sitting on the terrace steps, her face in her hands.  Eric hadn’t spoken to her, at least not out loud, since Cole had insinuated that he had
been
with Megan.  And since then, Megan refused to speak to Amelia or anyone for that matter, at least not vocally or silently as far as she could tell.

“Come on, Mitch.  You expected him to show,” Luke said.  “You planned for it and you handled it.”

Luke was right, but then again, Luke was usually right.  Always so calm and calculating, looking at every angle of the problem.  The whole point of bringing the entire street of vampires was to prevent an attack.  Security in numbers.  And it had worked.  Cole may have showed, but no one got hurt.

“Handled it!”  Mitchell jumped up and began his restless pacing again.  “You call that handling it?  I let him walk away.”

With a loud and exaggerated sigh, Amelia got up and went to him.  She tried to rub his back, hoping to soothe him, but when her hand touched him, he flinched away and growled, “Don’t!”  And his furious glare chilled her to the bone.

“They want Meg and Millie,” Eric said.  All eyes focused on him, and Amelia couldn’t stop the shudder that rushed up her spine when she noticed the toothy grin that had spread across his face.  “So why don’t we give them what they want?”

CHAPTER 24

Cole swung the front door open with a bit too much force.  The doorknob cracked against the wood, leaving a large ragged hole in the log walls. 
What the hell is Megan doing?
he asked himself again as he slammed the door shut behind him.  He couldn’t contain his white-hot rage.  Seeing her with that bloodsucking fanger, the way she held onto him…well, it was just wrong.  Utterly wrong.

He kicked off his shoes and tossed his keys onto the small table by the door.  He wasn’t sure how much more of this waiting crap he could take or how much longer he would be permitted to hold off the attack.  Surely, the others sensed the deaths in his group, and they would probably be here anytime now.  And once the elders showed, he would have no hope in hell of getting Megan, or Amelia, for that matter, out alive.  Foretelling or not, if the girls wouldn’t join them in this life, they would be executed.  They were too dangerous, especially now that they have figured out that the vamps could tap into their magic.  Cole shuddered at the thought.

“Cole, is that you?” Stephanie called from the living room.  She peeked around the corner.  “How’d it go?”

“Fine,” he snapped, annoyed.  Without even a sideways glance at her, he went straight for the stairs and bounded up them, taking them two at a time.  He knew she would follow, she always did, and he wasn’t surprised that she was right on his heels when he threw open the door to his bedroom.

He tried to ignore her, loosening his tie and tossing his jacket onto the bed.  He pretended not to notice when the little mouse of a girl hung his jacket in the closet, but then she stepped over to him and finished removing his tie, and he couldn’t ignore her any longer.

“Where is everyone?” he growled the question at her and instantly regretted it.  He knew that she had a crush on him.  It wasn’t as if she had ever tried to hide it even when Megan had been around.  And she hadn’t done anything but try to help since she was assigned to his team years ago back in the eighth grade.

“Watching the house like you told them to,” Stephanie replied timidly, and she scampered back, dropping her gray eyes to the ground.  She started to nervously wind her long mouse-brown hair around her finger.

“Right, good,” Cole said hastily and started unbuttoning his dress shirt.  He hated the stiff feel of the suit, constricting and confining, and he was dying to get out of his clothes.

“I’m guessing Megan didn’t willingly follow you?” Stephanie asked, her voice squeaking with nerves, and it made his heart twist.  He wasn’t supposed to be the one they feared, and he hated himself for letting Megan get under his skin this much.  His Dad had warned him not to get attached.  Megan was just a tool.  A means to an end.  But did he listen?  Of course not.

“I gave them two days to come to their senses.”  He closed the distance between them, and he reached out to caress her cheek.  Stephanie flinched at his touch, and it made him feel sick with disgust.  He dropped his hand and sighed.  “Megs will call.  She always comes back.”

“You still love her, don’t you?” she asked.  The heartbreak in her voice was unmistakable, splitting through the air like a warm knife through butter.  “That’s why we haven’t killed them yet, isn’t it?”

“I don’t love Megan,” Cole said, turning his back on her and pulled off his shirt.

Stephanie laid a warm and incredibly soft hand on his back, sending a tantalizing shiver over his skin.  “Cole, Megs is never going to feel that way about you,” she whispered.  “She’s tied to him now.”

“I don’t love her,” he shouted, and then, as if he had no control, as if his body was moving on its own, he grabbed Stephanie, pulled her to him, and pressed his lips to hers.

CHAPTER 25

Time stood still.  Mitchell stopped his pacing.  Angelle stopped fidgeting.  Luke and Lola looked as if they had stopped breathing.  Everyone was gawking at Eric, wide-eyed and open jawed.  Everyone but Amelia.

Amelia narrowed her eyes.  Eric was glaring at her, flashing his fangs in a toothy smile.  This version of Eric should have been terrifying, but it wasn’t, and she couldn’t figure out why.

Amelia scrutinized him.  Scanning his lax but deadly pose.  Taking in his rolling muscles, poised for attack.  It wasn’t until she met his eyes that she noticed it.  Even with the red tint, there was that familiar glint of mischief hovering around the edges.

He’s setting the stage,
Amelia realized with a start, and she almost let a nervous laugh burst out when she clued in.  She risked a quick peek over her shoulder at Megan, who gave her a tiny little nod, as she stood up and started towards her.

“You want to just give Megan over to the hunters?” Erin asked incredulously.  “That’s your big idea?”

“Yeah,” Eric said.  He was leaning against the doorframe with his arms folded over his chest, and his eyes were slowly changing from slightly tinted to a muddy red.  “Megan doesn’t want to be here.  She made that pretty clear last night when she was talking in her sleep about that damn hunter, and we all know Millie has been trying to find a reason to leave since she found out what we are.”  His lips turned into a terrifying, snarling kind of grin, and he shot a look of pure hatred at Amelia.

Eric pushed himself off the wall and began to stalk towards her.  At the same moment, Megan stepped beside Amelia, taking her hand, and instantly, a steamy heat simmered in her belly.

Amelia’s gut twisted, and beads of sweat began to drip down the back of her neck.  Maybe she had read the glint wrong.  Maybe he was serious.  Because the way Eric was staring at her was starting to make her feel as if she was a juicy steak.

Lola tossed her hands up in annoyance and leaped up from the couch.  She stepped in between Eric and Amelia as if she was going to keep them from lashing out at each other.  “Hold up,” she said, looking at Eric as if he had lost his mind.  “Are you suggesting that we give them the girls because they want to leave?”

“Yup,” Eric said, never breaking his burning gaze from Amelia, but thankfully, he stopped moving.

“Mitchell, do something,” Luke said, exasperated.  “We don’t have time for this crap.”

Amelia glanced at Mitchell, and the icy look he gave her confirmed everything she needed to know.  She sucked a noisy deep breath and said, “Glad you think it’s a good idea, Eric.  ‘Cause Meg and I, well, we were planning on going anyways.”

“You want to go?” Angelle asked.  She gave her head a shake as if she was sure she hadn’t heard it right, and she was trying to loosen whatever it was that had clogged up her hearing.  She looked lost and confused, and she began fidgeting again, crossing her right leg over the left and then uncrossing them, just to do it all over again.

“Want to?” Amelia said, and she fought not to cringe when she heard the tremor in her voice.  Megan squeezed a little tighter, and a soft glow began to surround them.  Amelia soaked up the energy, cleared her throat, and summoned up her best Fiona impression.  “You seriously have to ask that?”

Amelia’s flippant attitude must have been believable, because Angelle blanched and began stuttering, “But…but…you guys…”

“Don’t look so surprised, Angelle.  You knew better than anyone else how much I hate it here.  How much I hate him.”  Amelia narrowed her eyes to little slits and turned up her nose in Mitchell’s direction.  “Did you really think I’d just let this chance pass by?”

Amelia held her breath as she waited for a remark, a grunt, a laugh, anything.  Except it never came.  To her amazement and her distress, Angelle was rendered speechless by her cold and callous words.

“You bitch,” Erin breathed.  “You selfish little bitch.”

That hurt and Amelia’s nerve faltered for about half a second until Mitchell spoke up.  “I’ve got a better idea,” he said with a freakishly terrifying—but damn was it sexy—grin.  He looked over to Eric.  “I think we should just get rid of them ourselves.  Why let the hunters have all the fun?”  He let his fangs slide down lazily as he spoke.

“You’re right,” Eric said.  “The blood supply is getting low again, and I figure it’s their fault Mabel’s dead.  No point in wasting any easy food.”  He locked Megan into his sights and slowly started to stalk towards them.

Amelia didn’t have time to think.  Mitchell was moving in on her, and her family looked so stunned and disbelieving that none of them seemed even able to move.  She jerked Megan’s hand and started backing away.

When she backed herself into a corner, Mitchell chuckled.  “Amelia, I’m not letting you join them.”

That sound, his deep voice mixed with the smooth chuckle, made her heart jump erratically, and her knees turned into jelly.  It called to her, smothered her thoughts with warmth, filled her soul, and in that moment, she hardly noticed his blazing eyes or his razor-sharp teeth.  A gentle buzz drifted around her, softly pushing against her limbs, manipulating her body, and as if she had lost all command over her limbs, she released her death grip on Megan’s hand and took a wobbly step towards him.

Someone tugged at her dress.  She heard the tear of the fabric, and a frantic scream bounced around her mind begging her to stop, but she couldn’t.  The buzzing softened to a sweet musical hum.  A tune she had never heard before but yet, it spoke to her, called to her, as if it was a part of her.  His song lilted around her, sugary and alluring.