Wicked Sunset (Sunset Vampire Series, Book 4) (3 page)

Ethan cocked his head to one side. “I’ll check it out. Stay put. Got it?”

I scarcely had time to nod before he disappeared from view as air swirled around me.

“Hi, ladies,” his voice echoed a short distance away. “Listen; there’s been some trouble here in the parking garage tonight.”

“Oh, no,” a woman said. “What happened? I heard a crash just now…”

“Well, I think there were some gunshots nearby, and then there’s some sort of car accident that just happened a couple of levels down…”

The telltale sound of a heavy metal door opening echoed from somewhere nearby.

Maybe a stairwell door?

The waves of nausea abated as I crept back toward the elevator where I could find partial cover behind another pair of parked cars.

Seconds later, Paige and Kat reappeared. Kat carried a body over her shoulder while Paige held a large rifle.

“I’ll go get the other body,” she said, handing the rifle to Katrina.

In the time it took to blink my eyes, she had disappeared from view.

“Caleb? A little help here?” Kat asked, holding the rifle away from her body.

I grabbed the rifle by its stock and followed her in the direction of our car while glancing over my shoulder in Ethan’s direction.

I didn’t see anyone.

“We need to stow this guy in the trunk before someone sees,” Kat said.

I stared at the prone fellow that she hefted over her shoulder. He was Caucasian and appeared to be in his mid-to-late thirties, if I had to guess. His neck had ugly-looking black and purple bruises around it.

He looks human.

“What about surveillance cameras?” I asked.

“The ones along the main route in or out of here were all disabled,” she said. “Looks like our shooters took care of that before they set up.”

“Wouldn’t someone have noticed that by now?” I asked.

“Most surveillance systems are on autopilot,” she said as she placed the body in our trunk. “Actually, you’d be surprised how few of those cameras are actively monitored. They’re mainly forensic; helpful for looking back at what’s already happened.”

“That’s not particularly reassuring,” I said.

“Makes most people
feel
secure though, doesn’t it?" she asked.

The irony in her statement wasn’t lost on me. I had grown to feel secure surrounded by vampires, and yet, I’d nearly died tonight.

The entire situation felt surreal.

She snatched the rifle from my grip and stowed it atop the body in our trunk.

“Hey, you only had to ask,” I said.

She gave me a cold stare that could probably freeze open flames.

“Don’t even start,” she said.

I wanted to snap back with something sarcastic. However, given her demeanor, I chose the diplomatic high road of keeping my mouth shut.

“I hope I don’t have to torch my car after this,” she said while slamming the trunk closed.

I hadn’t considered the post-killing clean-up process. I fleetingly contemplated the merits of watching more TV crime dramas and forensic documentaries.

“Where’s Paige?” Ethan asked, startling me.

I jolted and my heart practically stopped.

“Crap,” I said. “You surprised me.”

Get a grip, Taylor.

“Funny,” Kat said sweetly, though with a smile that didn’t meet her eyes. “I noticed he was there.”

Oh, how I wanted to say something completely out of line.

Calm. Calm. Don’t encourage her. Just shut up.

Ethan must’ve sensed my irritation because he shook his head ever so slightly at me in silent caution.

“I directed those women away from the area,” he said. “But I heard more voices not far from here.”

I noticed something moving out of the corner of my eye and turned to see petite-looking Paige effortlessly balancing a tall man’s body over her shoulder.

“Get in the car, Caleb,” Kat said.

“Ethan! Let’s get this thug into our trunk,” Paige said.

“You got it,” he said, taking the body from her. “I parked over here.”

“Ever the gentleman,” she quipped.

The two of them quickly headed away just as a small group of people exited the elevator not far from us.

“Caleb,” Kat said. “The car. Now.”

I frowned at her, miffed that she was treating me like a child. I gave her a dirty look as I opened the passenger door.

She revved the engine at first, but then casually backed out and drove to the exit as if nothing unusual had just occurred.

I looked into the side mirror to see Ethan and Paige trailing us in their car.

I was beside myself with curiosity over what we intended to do with the bodies, but I simply felt too miffed at Kat to ask her anything. Instead, I silently fumed while staring out the passenger window.

Prior to our Slovenia trip, I’d have put up with such things. Now, I no longer appreciated people telling me what to do.

And I’ve killed two people since then.

Well, one person and one vampire, anyway.

And yet, that fact still hadn’t quite sunk in yet. It also felt unreal, like a bad dream.

And I was surprised by how little guilt I felt over that recollection.

Baldar Dubravko definitely deserved to die, though perhaps not the limousine driver.

Kat remained silent as she drove us back to the estate. The only sounds were road noise and classical music playing over our digital radio.

I had to admit that the cessation of conflict between us was refreshing.

We’d no sooner pulled up in front of our garage when Kat turned bossy again.

“Go inside and lock the doors,” she said. “Set the security system and don’t leave the house until I return.”

This is getting really old fast.

I folded my arms before me and stared back at her incredulously.

“Somebody’s acting awfully bitchy and tyrannical all of the sudden,” I said.

She stared at me with a wholly displeased expression.

“
Tyrannical?
Oh, don’t even go there right now,” she warned. “I’m not in the mood.”

“Hey, I didn’t choose for us to walk into an ambush, you know.”

Her eyes flared bright green. “Oh, so
I
did?”

“Look, I never said----”

She held up her hand. “Stop. Just go inside like I asked. Please.”

As I exited the car, I wondered, not for the first time, if female vampires could suffer from bouts of PMS.

Glancing toward the street, I noticed that Ethan’s car was stopped further down the driveway just inside the gates. Paige was standing near the open passenger door watching me.

She mouthed a question.
What?

I shrugged at her and threw my hands up in a questioning gesture.

Kat got out and promptly retrieved two shovels, an axe, and a container of lantern fuel from the garage. She glared at me on her return to the car.

“House. Now,” she said.

Not wanting to create a scene, I marched into the garage and hit the button to close the overhead door.

Later, as I sat on one of our kitchen barstools drinking a cold beer, I contemplated the night’s events.

Was tonight’s attack intended for me, or for Kat?

Or maybe both?

* * *

By the time Kat returned, it was well past one o’clock in the morning. I was in the back living room lying on the couch watching television when I heard her enter from the garage, disable the alarm, and walk into the kitchen.

Well, Ms. Snippy’s returned.

“That’s done,” she said, sounding quite a bit less sarcastic than earlier.

“Welcome back,” I said neutrally.

I switched off the TV and got up from the couch to go take a shower. Between the late hour and my growing sense of exhaustion from my abated adrenaline rush, I’d had more than enough drama for one night.

“Don’t you want to know what happened?” she asked.

I turned and looked into the kitchen where she was leaning against the island counter.

“I’m sure you handled everything just fine,” I said.

“You aren’t even curious?” she asked.

I inhaled a deep breath and let it out slowly.

“Honestly, it’s easier not to ask,” I said. “It’ll probably just lead to an argument, and I really dread fighting with you.”

I turned to walk down the hallway in the direction of our sublevel master bedroom. The air swished around me and she stood before me, regarding me with a gentle expression.

She grasped me by the shoulders. “I let my guard down tonight, and it might’ve cost me the man I love. That made me angry, and I apologize if I directed some of my frustration at you.”

“I suppose that makes sense,” I said, though I still felt somewhat annoyed by her earlier behavior.

She softly kissed me on the lips, and pulled me into an embrace.

Okay, this is nice.

She pulled away from me and gazed down into my eyes, all hints of her earlier aggravation gone.

“However, someone needs to be just a little less defensive,” she said. “I’m looking out for your best interests; particularly your safety.”

Okay, maybe not so nice, after all.

“And I appreciate that,” I said. “But it’s not healthy to order me around. It feels dismissive, as if I’m some kind of subordinate or something.”

Though I felt her arms tighten around me, to her credit it seemed as if she was considering what I’d just said.

“Why do I end up feeling like the bad guy at times like this?” she asked.

“Listen, you’re not the bad guy,” I said. “I love you and I’m grateful for what you’ve done for me, including protecting me.”

She frowned. “Where did this independent, self-sufficient streak come from all of the sudden?”

I shrugged.

“I dunno,” I said. “Maybe I’m actually starting to feel a little less helpless for the first time in my life.”

Slovenia changed a number of things for me, including my self-image.

Her eyebrows arched. “Oh, really?”

“Yeah, I think so,” I said. “I realize I’m stronger than I thought I was. I’m not helpless anymore. You taught me how to defend myself, and helped me realize that, despite my past, maybe I’m not destined to be a victim.”

She kissed me on the tip of the nose. “I won’t let you be a victim.”

“I know,” I said. “Only now it’s time for me to show you that you don’t have to fight all my battles for me anymore.”

“Caleb, I---”

“No,” I said. “You have to let me prove it to you. If I finally believe in myself then why can’t you?”

She sighed, shaking her head.

“I do believe in you,” she said. “But I worry your self-confidence will overreach your good judgment, and I can’t stand by and let that happen.”

“Every bird falters when they first learn to fly,” I said.

“Birds with concussions risk more than faltering,” she said.

“Fair enough,” I said.

She kissed me on the lips this time.

“But I’ll consider being more lenient with you, moving forward,” she said.

I resisted the strong inclination to roll my eyes.

“Gee, thanks,” I said dryly.

“
Be nice
,” she cautioned with a frown.

I bit my tongue and forced a conciliatory smile.

Geez, alpha vampires sometimes…

* * *

In the week following the parking garage event, the only mention on the local news was about the car accident that was brought upon by a ‘man brandishing a rifle’ who scared the drivers, thereby leading to a collision of vehicles.

Fortunately, there were only minor injuries reported. The news indicated that the local police were still investigating, though something told me that, given Kat’s thorough nature, they wouldn’t find either of the gunmen’s bodies.

A shiver coursed through my body as I realized how close we’d come to being shot. For that reason alone, I pleasantly endured Kat’s more protective nature since the event.

That’s not to say I’d become a shut-in again as I had when Chimalma had pursued us. Instead, I merely had to accept that if I left the estate, Kat was coming with me.

While bearable, it was still like having a clingy girlfriend with fangs. I quickly gained an appreciation for shopping, if only to spend time away from the estate.

Admittedly, the new athletic shoes I purchased were working out nicely.

However, even the most patient person could only endure so much for so long, and I had no intentions of letting recent events rule my life.

I refuse to be ruled by either fear or fate.

An idea struck, and I immediately went into research mode.

Later, I peered into Kat’s office at the back wing of the estate’s first floor and found her rapidly typing on her notebook keyboard, which sounded like a small indoor hailstorm.

“Let me guess, you’ve hit upon the next great American novel,” I said, casually leaning against the door jamb.

She paused and looked up with a curious expression.

“Got a minute?” I asked.

Her brow arched suspiciously.

“I was thinking about our parking garage event. I researched the topic of concealed carry firearms permits in the state of Georgia, and I---”

“No,” she said flatly and returned to typing.

“Why the hell not?”

“You haven’t mastered knife combat yet.”

“I’m pretty good as it is. And just what do knives have to do with it?” I asked. “Come on, a gun is easy to use and doesn’t require a lot of training. Instant protection.”

She stopped typing and looked up at me. “Yes, and that’s the problem. They’re too easy; so easy that they give you a false sense of security. And if someone takes one from you, they can be used against you.”

“But then, so can a knife,” I said, feeling quite satisfied with myself for thinking fast.

“If someone takes a knife from you, there’s still a good chance you can defend yourself. You might even be able to evade your attacker. Not so true with a firearm.”

After pausing a few seconds to gloat, her gaze shifted smoothly back to her notebook screen.