Immortals And Melodies (Blood And Guitars #2) (5 page)

That was all it took. With a startled look he hurried out of the pantry and took off running in the direction we’d come from. I sighed in content, happy to have my feeding out of the way. I took my time getting back to the other side of the mansion, enjoying the rush of power that I felt after ingesting the blood. Trey gave me a questioning look when I walked past him. He obviously noticed I’d been gone, but he didn’t ask why. He’d probably already figured it out. The director called for him and the other guys, and I followed as they made their way into the living room. They were instructed to gather near the fire place where the director took some shots of them hanging out.

Chapter 6

Aurora

EARLY THE NEXT EVENING, Trey, O’Shea and I took a trip to Pier 60. The director who would be shooting the video for “You Only Live Twice” a few days from now was sending someone over to meet with Trey and go over some details at the location of the shoot here at Pier 60. A seagull squawked overhead, gliding along the salty breeze and away from the end of the pier where we all stood. Vendors were set up all along the pier and tourists and locals wandered up and down, checking out the crafts and enjoying the street performers and live music from a band that had set up.

“It seems like it’s been forever since we shot a video,” Trey said, taking his sunglasses off and adjusting his ball cap. He was lounging against the rail and looking back along the entire pier and the hustle and bustle of the crowd.

“That’s because it has been,” O’Shea said.

“I’m excited to watch,” I said, adjusting my scarf. “Even if you are going to be eaten by zombies.”

“Be honest, that’s why you’re excited,” O’Shea added. “It’s the only way you could ever get rid of this guy.” He gestured to Trey with a nod of his head.

“I think that’s her,” Trey said, and I turned to look in the direction he was staring. A brunette woman who couldn’t have been more than a few years older than me was waiving as she approached us. She offered her hand to Trey when she reached us.

“I’m Ashlee.”

“Trey. Nice to meet you, Ashlee.” Trey shook her hand and then gestured to me. “This is my girlfriend, Aurora.” I shook her hand. “And this is O’Shea.”

Ashlee shook O’Shea’s hand and then glanced around the pier. “Should we get started?” she asked, looking at Trey expectantly.

“Absolutely,” Trey said. He turned to kiss me on the cheek and then put his sunglasses back on. “Be right back.” And with that, he and Ashlee started walking back down the pier. “I was thinking we should set up our instruments right here,” he began, pointing for her.

“You’re not going with them?” I asked O’Shea, who stood watching with me, his black hair shifting in the breeze.

“Nah,” he said with a grin, turning back around to stare at the ocean where the sun was sinking into the waves. I turned with him, enjoying the view of the waves and the horizon. “Trey has a mind for this sort of thing. He’s the creative one. Sometimes, I swear he’s writing up a treatment for a video while he’s writing the song. He’s crazy like that.” I smiled, catching the pride in O’Shea’s tone as he spoke about his best friend. “It’s not just music videos,” he continued. “He designs the stages we use on tour and everything. I imagine he’ll be figuring that out next. He’ll probably want to enlist your drawing skills for it.”

“O’Shea,” I said. “I want to thank you.”

He turned to look at me, his dark brown eyes curious. “For what?”

“For being so understanding about all the time Trey and I are spending together,” I said. “You’re his best friend. I know it can’t be easy having some girl come in and occupy his time.”

O’Shea smiled, brushing his fist against my shoulder playfully. “I should be the one thanking you,” he said. O’Shea was a nice guy, but this wasn’t the response I’d expected from him. I narrowed my eyes in question. “The truth is,” he continued. “Trey has been more himself since you came along than he has in a long time. I don’t know what it is you’re doing-” He looked me up and down once. “I mean, I can guess, but-” It was my turn to smack him on the arm. He snickered, gazing out over the water again. “Well, whatever it is you’re doing, keep it up. You’re good for him.”

When Trey and Ashlee had finished discussing the details for filming the music video, the moon was coming out. We all got in Trey’s Mazda and headed for O’Shea’s place. We hadn’t been on the road for more than five minutes when I felt the presence of other vampires nearby. A quick glance in the car’s side mirror revealed a big black SUV driving not far behind us. I didn’t want to alarm Trey if I was just being paranoid. There are lots of black SUV’s in the world, after all, and I couldn’t be certain the vampires I could sense were inside it. After the vehicle followed us through two turns, I started to worry. A quick glimpse into O’Shea’s mind told me he was preoccupied in the backseat with texting. He was texting
Kacie
of all people. How had I not realized they were staying in touch? I took a deep breath to clear my mind and touched Trey’s arm gently. He glanced at me as we pulled to a stop at a red light. I gestured behind us with a slight jerk of my head, and Trey furrowed his brow, checking the rearview mirror. He swore under his breath, and I heard his heartbeat quicken slightly.

It’s them, isn’t it?
he thought, knowing I’d hear him.
It’s the vamps who killed Wes ... and now they’re back to finish the job.
I met his gaze and responded silently in his mind, telling him not to panic. We’d figure out what to do.
We can’t take O’Shea home now. We’ll just lead them right to his house.
He had a legitimate point. The light turned green, and Trey pulled through it, continuing down the road, the black SUV on our tail.

“What’s going on?” O’Shea asked. He must have noticed Trey’s incessant glancing in the rearview mirror. “Are the
photogs
trailing us or something?” O’Shea said, moving to turn in his seat to get a better look behind us.

“O’Shea,” I said, getting his attention before he could look. He paused for the space of a heartbeat but that was all I needed to reach into his mind and project an image of him shopping at the mall. His eyes went unfocussed as he processed the image. It felt wrong to manipulate O’Shea like that, but I pushed harder with my power, wanting to be sure the image stuck. It had to for his sake.

When O’Shea’s eyes snapped back into focus, he leaned forward and tapped Trey on the shoulder. “Hey, why don’t you drop me off at the mall instead?” he asked, sounding a little surprised by his comment.

“Good idea,” Trey said a little too quickly, taking a turn to put us on course for Clearwater Mall. Trey’s blue eyes were focused on the road as he tried to hide his anxiety about being followed by murderous vampires. The situation would have been bad enough if O’Shea hadn’t been with us. Leaving him at a crowded public place was the best thing I could think of to keep him safe. Even being ambushed by crazed teenage fans at the mall was a better alternative than anything these vamps had in mind for us.

“Do you guys
wanna
come with me to the mall?” O’Shea asked.

“I think we’ll pass, buddy,” Trey said to him, making his voice light. “Aurora and I have something we need to take care of. Maybe next time.”

“Why don’t you have
Kacie
meet you there?” I suggested. “She could give you a ride home when you’re done.”

“Yeah, okay.” O’Shea said, and I heard him texting again.

Nice call,
Trey thought, glancing at me. I tried to relax in my seat for the rest of the ten-minute drive to the mall, but the black SUV leering in view behind us made it difficult. First things first, we needed to get O’Shea out of here. Then I’d have to figure out how to deal with the vamps.

Trey finally turned into the mall. He pulled up to the main entrance, and I kept an eye on the SUV, which stayed toward the back of the parking lot, watching. O’Shea climbed out of the car, and Trey pulled the ball cap off his head and tossed it to O’Shea.

“Put this on,” he told him. “It might help if there are a ton of fans around.” O’Shea obeyed, putting the hat on.

“You should probably wait for
Kacie
inside,” I suggested.

“I’ll call you later,” Trey added. “Have fun shopping, don’t talk to strangers, and buy
Kacie
dinner or something.”

O’Shea furrowed his brow at Trey and snorted. “I’m not twelve,
Dad
.” He gave us a cocky grin and turned to walk inside. Trey sighed, but his heart rate leveled out slightly as he put the car in gear and headed for the nearest exit from the parking lot.

“At least O’Shea is safe,” he said as the black SUV fell in line behind us again. “Now what? I don’t suppose we can lose them?”

“Doubtful,” I said. “I’ve got my mind fortified, but they can read you like a book.”

“Do you have a better idea?”

I bit my lip, desperately hoping for a stroke of genius. “Take a left, two blocks up,” I said to him.

“Where are we going?” he asked.

“It’s better if I don’t tell you yet,” I said. “That way they won’t figure it out until I want them to.”

Trey gave a slight nod and kept his eyes on the road ahead. I’d direct him to Antonio’s place. It wasn’t much of a plan, but heading in the direction of a full-grown vampire I knew I could trust was the best idea I had. Trey took a left, and the SUV followed us easily, turning right behind us. I realized as we kept driving that whenever the traffic was scarce, the vampires in the SUV became more daring. They drove closer behind us, tailgating Trey’s Mazda. There was no way to win with these guys. If I directed Trey down busier streets, we were putting more humans at risk with our chase. If I took the back roads, we might not make it to our destination at all.

Before I could work out which of the two options was best, Trey got my attention by slamming his fist down onto the steering wheel in anger.

“What is it?” I asked, glancing over my shoulder at the tailgaters.

“It’s me,” he said in frustration. I just figured out where we’re going. I was thinking about it before I could stop myself. Now they’ll figure us out for sure.”

“That was going to happen anyway,” I told him. “It doesn’t change anything. Keep driving.”

“Then what happens?”

“I don’t know exactly, but these guys will be getting more than they bargained for if we can reach him. We’re almost there.”

“That’s good enough for me,” Trey said, making a quick lane change.

We were on a secluded street now without much traffic. The black SUV trailed behind us not more than two car lengths back. It was constant and menacing like a shadow. I wondered if they’d read our destination in Trey’s thoughts and back off. That would have been too easy. The closer we got to Antonio’s, the more desperate they seemed to stay on top of us. The SUV veered into the lane next to us and sped up, pulling up beside us. Trey glanced at them and then back at the road. I knew he was worried about oncoming traffic. The road ahead was clear for now. I leaned toward Trey and got my first look at one of them. I didn’t recognize him as he met my gaze and then gave a nod to the driver.