Crimson Groves (36 page)

“Where?” Trace asked, face blank.

“He’s in the bedroom back there.” I pointed to the hallway behind me.

Elliott looked at Jeffrey. Jeffrey nodded. Then he was gone. My senses told me that he’d gone to look for Bronx. I reached over, grabbed Lily’s hand, and squeezed. She flinched. Too tight. I eased up a little. I wasn’t ready to completely let go. Holding her hand brought comfort—a little anyways. And right now I needed all I could get. Almighty powerful vampire, hybrid thingy—yep that’s me.

“Will I be punished for killing him?” I asked.

Now Lily’s grip tightened. Nothing I couldn’t handle. “But you can’t punish Abby—” I elbowed her in the stomach (which thankfully shut her up) and she shot me a nasty look. The look I swung back at her dared her to say another word.

Then Jeffrey returned from the bedroom and confirmed Bronx’s death. The four vampires urgently spoke amongst themselves. I couldn’t hear a word. It sounded like the teacher on
Charlie Brown
. I concentrated on hearing them, trying to focus my weakened, but not expended, advanced senses. Nothing happened, but it should’ve. Let me guess. Someone had the ability to prevent others from hearing them, giving them the option to communicate privately anywhere they were. Oh, how handy that must come in. But not when you’re with a vampire that can block your powers!

Even though I was weak and desperately needed blood, it was still worth it to try. I needed to know what they were talking about. I closed my eyes and focused my energy on blocking their power, or whatever they were using to leave me deaf to their private discussion. Tingles shot through my body, prickly and painful. My head felt heavy, as if it had filled up with lead. I strained, kept pushing, forcing my power to the surface. Surprisingly, it worked. Bonus points for me!

I opened my eyes so I wouldn’t appear suspicious. Lily squeezed my hand again—encouraging, supportive. But she was clueless to what I was doing. Or was she? I felt tiny waves of energy flowing from her hand to mine. It tickled my fingers, brought warmth to my hands. I looked at her. She was looking at them, eyes wide with fear. Well, maybe I was taking some of her energy, but she definitely didn’t have any idea about anything. The voices of the Head Council were coming in clear as a cloudless sky. They were arguing...about me.

“But she’d be an asset to us!” mumbled Trace. He tugged at his tee shirt and ran his fingers through his dirty blond hair.

“You do not know if we can trust her!” hissed Miami Vice, face hard, resistant.

“We have no reason to condemn her. We wanted this fate for Bronx. She only made it that much easier for us.” Elliott’s words were eloquent, sincere.

“But she gave blood to that human, and if Tristan doesn’t capture him we may never know what he is and the extent of his involvement…” Jeffrey looked uneasy. Were they afraid of Tyler? Why would they be afraid of a human—unless, of course, Tyler had kept more information from me. Big surprise.

Elliott looked at Jeffrey, lips unmoving, voice soft but optimistic. “We can make that an issue or we can overlook it. Abigail is the most impressive our kind has ever seen. If we condemn her for something as trivial as giving a human our blood, how can we expect her to willingly work with us?”

“Jeffrey, Elliott’s right.” Trace stepped closer to the huddled group of vampires. “We need her with us, not against us. Remember what Madelaine told us?”

“Yes. We need to get that human!” Jeffrey scoffed.

“Enough of this! The decision is made!”
Miami Vice threw up his hands. Their minds silenced. I couldn’t hear another word. What decision? They hadn’t said! I felt like a sitting duck, with four hunters stalking me with loaded guns. One of them was bound to hit me. I hoped that wasn’t the favor they wanted.

They all turned to me. Miami Vice stepped forward, arms open, voice soft, saying, “Abigail, there will be no punishment for the death of Bronx Granger. We wanted this fate for him long ago, and we are grateful for your assistance with it.” His eyes dropped to the floor for a moment, then back to me. His hands folded together—like a dealer about to shuffle a deck of cards. “Also, there will be no punishment for giving vampire blood to a human”—there was an eerie silence like he was thinking what to say next—“because I am assuming that you do not have a problem helping us track him. Once you locate him, you will bring him to us.”

My blood started boiling as if he’d just turned the burner to high. What did they want Tyler for? And better yet, why did it piss me off so bad? I shouldn’t have cared if or why they wanted him, and yet I did, very much so. As screwed up as it was, I was not over him, even though his lies continued to unravel before my eyes like a bow being untied one string at a time. I needed to know what they wanted. I had to know they wouldn’t hurt Tyler. “The human that I gave blood to helped me tonight. I wouldn’t have been successful without him. Why would you want me to bring him to you?” I stepped forward, voice challenging, defensive. Lily grabbed my hand, pulled me back, but I slipped away from her, using a small fraction of my vampire strength.

Elliott came toward me, placing his hand on Miami Vice’s shoulder, eyes alert, voice cautioning: “I apologize for Charles’ tone. Like you, we just have a few questions.” He shook his head slowly. “Don’t you want to know the truth about that man, if that’s what he even is?”

“What do you mean?” I demanded. My head was so hot, I thought it would explode. Lily didn’t move. She stayed quiet, obedient behind me. Probably scared out of her mind.

“He is gifted with abilities beyond what any human is capable of having.” Elliott’s face stiffened. “We have also linked him to a few rogue vampires.”

Tyler had mentioned helping a couple other vampires. But he’d never said anything about them being rogue. “What rogue vampires?”

Miami Vice’s lips curved into a slight smile. “That is not your concern. We have already dealt with them.”

I didn’t like the way he said that. His tone gave away how they dealt with those vampires. It was most likely something I didn’t want to know about. But what did that mean for Tyler? Would they “deal” with him the same way? And when he mentioned Tyler had gifts, was he referring to the visions he saw or did they think Tyler had more abilities? If that were true, why would Tyler keep that from me? Oh sure, right, that’s the stupidest question of them all. Whether or not I found Tyler wasn’t the question at this point. Actually, it was whether or not I’d turn him over to the Head Council once I did.

Elliott took a small step forward, eyes growing expectant. Miami Vice stopped smiling, his face stiff and cold. The other two vampires were watching me very steadily. They were waiting for my answer.

I swallowed hard. Feeling just a little bit of pressure here. A little bit? Don’t I wish! “I will help you look for the human under two conditions.” My voice was confident, steady. Thank God I didn’t sound as nervous and uncertain as I felt. “One. You will not kill him or hurt him or anything comparable. Two. You will tell me where I can find Conrad Tate.”

Elliott looked shocked, eyes widening as he looked back at the others. Then he quickly regained his composure, turned back to me, eyes normal and acting as though nothing had ever happened. He reached out his hand and said, “We have a deal.”

Even though I shook his hand, I wasn’t sure if I could trust him.

28

Reunited

LILY DECIDED TO STAY IN FLORIDA, for now anyway. Her multiple requests to come with me were denied. There was no way I was going to put her in danger as I tried to find both Tyler and my father. The Head Council mentioned a few places my father was known to spend time at; however, they also cautioned me that Conrad Tate was a very dangerous vampire. Yep, he’s not just a vampire, but also a very dangerous one. I was still trying to swallow all of that. And all that crap about my real mom being some powerful, dead, sorceress. Good to know.

Taking Lily back to Pulse had assured her safety and quenched my blood thirst. Saying good-bye to her proved more difficult than I’d thought it would be. Her parting words still floated about inside my mind like bubbles as I raced against the sun back to Hilton Head.

“But Abby, I don’t want you to go alone,” she argued through tears. “What if something happens to you? We’ve already seen how easy it is for someone to hurt you.”

“Don’t worry about me. The Head Council won’t be using any magic against me. They need my help. I think we can trust them for now.” I reached out and grabbed her, pulling her into an embrace. Her body was warm, inviting. “You’re my best friend, Lily, I promise to return to you.”

She squeezed into me, burying her face in my shoulder. “How can you trust them?”

“I believe what Trace told me. His gift of discerning is genuine. He showed it to me. I felt it.” I stroked her soft brown hair slowly, comforting her. It reminded me of glossy satin.

We stood there for several minutes, not speaking, our cheeks moist from tears. I stepped back and looked into her big, beautiful, round eyes, as she smiled fondly, reassuring me. My throat choked up, tears returning to my eyes. I kissed her cheek. It was warm, soft, and alive. Then, in a flash of movement, I was gone, never looking back.

Rayver’s Pub was a block away, sunrise just minutes away. Streetlamps spewed faint light like hazy round balls. The sidewalks were empty of people, the streets barren of cars and bikes. The air was damp. There was dew on my skin, clothes, and hair. It felt cool, sticky. I hurried to the pub’s entrance, the daylight clock ticking in my head as if it were a time bomb, which, in a way, it was.

Quinn and Britney were on their way out. Leaving the vampires behind for a restful day full of sunshine, I was sure. “Hey, Anna.” Britney waved as they passed me, then crossed her arms around her chest. A jean jacket was draped over her green shirtdress, all the buttons done, her body shivering in the bone-chilling air. Quinn smiled shyly, charmed. He wrapped his arm around his daughter, huddled closer to her, and then they disappeared out of the pub. I was going to have to tell them my real name the next time I saw them. Or maybe they could just keep calling me Anna. Sounded close enough.

Stone sat at the bar alone, his back slumped over, elbows on the countertop, his head resting on the backs of his hands. I sat down beside him. His hair was a mess and his black shirt was unbuttoned, exposing his perfectly sculpted chest—stunning. He stared at a glass filled with ice, a golden thin puddle hovering at the bottom. “I wondered if you’d return.” He didn’t look at me, his focus heavy on the empty drink.

“Please don’t tell me you’re that pissed off?” My voice sounded shocked, cocky. I nervously ran my fingers through my hair. It was still damp and sticky. Maybe a shower would be good. It would be my first shower since becoming a vampire. Yippy!

“You think it’s funny that you just vanished without a trace? I tracked you to North Florida and then, just like you, your scent disappeared.” He still wouldn’t look at me.

I grabbed his arm, tugging gently. His head bobbed side to side, then rose. After resisting a short while, he finally, very slowly, turned to me. He was frowning. “I’m sorry,” I said. “I didn’t want you, or anyone else to get hurt. It’s over now. I’m okay. Bronx is dead.”

“You killed Bronx?” His frown vanished, eyebrows dipping, his lips slightly open.

I nodded, smiling.

“With your pyrokinesis?”

I nodded again, bigger smile, flashing teeth and fangs.

“I don’t believe it!” He grinned—dazzling, incredible.

“Well, it’s true.” My head tilted to the side, hair rushing over my shoulder, draping slightly over my face. The bangs felt stuck to my forehead.

Stone swept his fingers across my face, moving some of my hair out of the way. “You’re blond.”

“It’s my natural color.”

“I like it,” he said.

“Me too.” I stared down at the countertop and then told him everything that happened. How Bronx captured me and held me prisoner, along with the vampire from 7, and how it was all Tyler’s fault. Then Tyler ended up changing sides and trying to help me. Stone’s face lit up like Christmas morning when we got to the part about Bronx’s death, so I made sure to tell him all the details. It was still hard to believe that I’d actually killed him. Even though Bronx deserved it, something didn’t sit right with me about it. I was a murderer now—no matter what my reasons were. But at least I wouldn’t be punished for it. There’s always a silver lining on every cloud. Right? Sure.

I told him all about the Head Council, my real mother, my vampire father, and how I’m some kind of hybrid species. He laughed when I said that. “What’s so funny?” I asked.

“The hybrid thing sounds kind of funny.”

Yeah it kind of did. “Did you know about the sorceress?”

Stone nodded. “I’ve heard about her. But she died a long time ago. No one really mentions her anymore. I would’ve never dreamed that you were her daughter.”

I smiled. “Well, that’s what Trace told me.”

“Did he use his gift on you?”