Never Have A Vampire's Baby (9 page)

              Sonia nodded, still gazing at Dougie. “I already called him.” Her eyes were growing misty. Kim looked away; Luke had told her he and Dougie had known each other for decades, and Dougie had been Sonia’s lover at one point. All he’d ever done for her was break and then attempt to repair her car. Sharing their grief felt too intrusive.

              Sonia took a shaky breath. “Okay, Luke. I just wanted to know if you saw what I saw.”

              “I do,” he said solemnly. “We have a serial killer on our hands.”

              Sonia’s full lips disappeared into a line. “Son of a bitch. We finally get out into the open and it turns out someone’s been waiting for this all along.” She shook her head and looked at Luke, then at Kim for the first time in ten minutes. “Hey, you guys should go on back home. I’m okay.”

              “We still have to notify the human police,”  Luke protested.

              Sonia shrugged. “Yeah, but here comes Anton, anyway.”

              Kim looked over her shoulder to find the redheaded vampire she’d seen fighting Dougie barreling toward the shack. That fight seemed like it was years ago. It seemed impossible that someone she just met was dead, let alone a vampire whose body had destroyed her engine without harming himself at all. She turned back around and was alarmed to find Sonia openly weeping, her slim face covered in tears.

              Luke touched her back gently. “Come on. We have to give her some space.”

              They got back into the car and drove away in silence. Kim kept shooting Luke nervous glances, but he didn’t meet her eyes until they got back into the city proper. When they were nearly back at her apartment, he finally turned his body toward her.

              “Still don’t think you’re going to run?”

              Kim glared at him, then turned back to the road. “I’m not going to run, Luke. I love you.”

              He was silent for so long that when she pulled into her parking spot, she expected to turn and find him gone. He wasn’t of course – but he was looking at her with a mixture of awe and exuberance.

              “What?” Kim asked.

             
He smiled, then, a beautiful, genuine smile that broke apart the sheet of ice that had been covering her heart. “You said it before, but it was kind of knocked out of my head when you threw me. But you said it again just now. Do you mean it?”

              Kim stared at him, trying to work out what he was talking about. She ran through what she’d just said in her head, and a blush of color spread across her cheeks. “Oh.”

              Luke took her hand in his. “Do you mean it?”


              “Of course I mean it,” Kim said. “Can’t you tell? I’m crazy about you, Luke. Bond or no bond, this is real.” Her heart was hammering so hard it felt like it would leave an imprint on her ribcage. “What about you?”

              Luke brought her hand to his lips, and his grey eyes shimmered when he spoke. “Yes. I’m in love with you.”

              Kim grinned and dove across the armrest, smothering his face in kisses. Luke unbuckled her seat belt and pulled her to his lap, laughing as he returned her kisses.

              “I love you,” she said again breathlessly.

              Luke kissed her nose. “I love you, too.”

              It was the first time she’d said it to anyone. Of all the firsts she’d had that night, she decided, it was certainly her favorite.

Chapter Six

Kim hardly saw Luke over the next two weeks. He came by briefly most evenings to check in with her and see Evan, but there was no time to celebrate their first relationship hurdle, or even acknowledge it. Kim was having trouble dealing with both the enormity of her feelings for him and the alleged serial killer targeting vampires; all the areas of her life had started to overflow and spill into each other. She found herself venting to people she didn’t normally confide in – meaning she was seeing a lot more Daisy.

              Her sister-in-law was being far less judgmental than she had proven to be in the past. She listened patiently to Kim’s fretful questions about babies, boyfriends and stress, giving out surprisingly sober advice almost every time.

              “It’s normal to be scared,” Daisy said after dinner one evening, pushing a toothpick through the gap in her front teeth. “You’re not sure if you’re doing the right thing. Just listen to your heart, and remember to do what’s best for the baby.”


              Kim suspected much of the change in demeanor was due to Evan. She was somewhat disappointed that Daisy wasn’t that interested in keeping her company, but she could accept and appreciate that the baby was more important to her. She was also making an effort to be less chilly to Luke when he came by, though she always left as soon as he came by, and didn’t return until the next morning.

              “When this over, we won’t need her anymore,” Luke promised one night. They were lying in bed after making love; Evan was at Daisy’s house for his first sleepover.

              “I’ll watch him when you’re at work.” He paused, looking bashful as he continued.  “You know...you can move in with me if you want.”

              Kim smiled. “She will come around, Luke.”

              Luke snorted.

              Kim decided to let it go – partially because she was starting to doubt it herself. “You know what? Normally I’d freak out about being asked to move in after a month of dating. Right now, though, I just want to say yes.”

              “Then say yes,” Luke murmured as he buried his face in her hair. “Where’s that impulsive streak I’ve come to love?”


              Kim laughed and shoved him playfully. “You’re not gonna love it when leads to me redecorating the entire place, or selling my car and buying a scooter.”

              Luke raised his eyebrows. “Would you do that?”

              “I’ve done it twice in my lifetime already,” she admitted. “But I don’t think Evan would like it much.”

              The now familiar warble of Luke’s cell phone shattered their lazy bliss. Luke stood up from the couch’s pull-out bed and slipped his shirt over his head before he answered.

             
He’s expecting bad news,
Kim realized.
That’s not healthy...but it’s come every night now, so I guess it’s the safe bet.

             
Luke closed his eyes and exhaled heavily. “Shit. Shit, shit shit.
Shit.”
He hung up and looked at the ground for a moment before meeting Kim’s eye.

              “What?”

              Luke opened his mouth, then closed it. He gulped and tried again, and his voice was hoarse. “It’s Anton.”

              Kim stood and walked over to him, gazing up at his sorrowful gray eyes as she cradled his face. She knew Anton was the third strongest member of their vampire pack, so this meant the killer was stronger than they thought.
There goes our night,
she thought, then immediately regretted being so selfish. “Luke, I’m so sorry.”

              He wrapped one of his arms around her waist and put his other hand on top of hers.

              “He was expecting a baby, too, did you know that? Natalie had just gotten pregnant.” His eyes were brimming with pain. “Ryan and his half-human wife Vicky had a six-month old. Leshaun had just found out Hilda was having twins. Dougie was on his second kid.”

              Kim nodded. “I remember you telling me. I’m sorry those babies will never know both of their parents.”

              “We checked with the other towns, too,” he continued. “Same story with all the deaths so far. Not all the towns have reported back, but I’d bet anything I know what we’ll hear.”

              Kim stared at him, unsure where he was going with his speech.

              Luke’s face had hardened. “Kim. You can’t come with me anymore.”

              She thought he was joking at first. “Uh, no. That’s not an option.”

              He pulled away from her, retreating so quickly she was still grasping at air when he stopped moving. “Kim, we have a pattern now. All the vampires killed were either parents or had babies on the way. Sonia wants me to come out to this site, because there’s something different about it, but this feels like a trap. I won’t have us
both
walk into a trap, Kim. Evans needs at least one parent.”

              In the back of her mind, she could tell he was making sense; as usual, however, being near him had driven her emotions into hyperdrive, and all she could feel was panic.

              “I’m coming with you, Luke,” she said angrily. “You can’t stop me.”

              Luke smiled, then, but it was strangely sad; he started to move toward her slowly, tenderly slipping his arms around her waist. Kim was bewildered, but she was never able to resist his touch. He kissed her then, parting her lips with his tongue while his hands slid to cup her backside and press her against his erection. It was a move she was especially vulnerable to for some reason; her legs weakened even as she strained to grind her vulva against him, her panties growing wet.

              He lifted her and laid her back on the bed, parting her thighs with one hand and moving her panties down just enough to slide a finger between her moist lips. Kim tilted her head back as his finger slid over her clit, rocking her hips against the delicious motion of his hand. She brought her head forward to see the golden freckles in his eyes; they were glowing with an intense heat that seemed to transfer from his gaze to hers, sending a slow shiver scurrying over her skin. A moment later, he slid one finger inside her, then another, curving them upward to massage her g-spot. He used his thumb to apply pressure to her clit, and her legs quivered in response.
God, this is heaven. I’m in heaven.

              Luke’s mouth started to plant kisses on the inside of her thighs, and Kim started to lose control of her body as ecstasy enveloped her senses. The pleasure was unreal – not just intense, but somehow deeper, more dimensional than anything she’d felt before. Each time his hand moved, her hips bucked passionately, and she was too enmeshed in the sensation to keep track of how loud she was calling his name. He gently nipped the skin of her inner thigh, and suddenly, she was careening toward her orgasm, body tightening around Luke’s fingers and convulsing against the motion of his thumb.

              For a second, she thought she’d won. He retreated from her after she came, kissing her on the lips softly as she closed her eyes, exhausted. Her breasts were heaving, and her nipples were cold, so she knew her shirt had come off again at some point. Kim was surprised she wasn’t sore from their vigorous sex from earlier; in fact, it was
really
strange that she wasn’t sore, because she nearly always was whenever they had sex more than once. She heard a door open and close in the distance.
Going to wash his hands, I bet.

              She opened her eyes wearily. “That was incredible,” she called. “Can that happen every time we argue?”

              When Luke didn’t answer, she sat up, and the room seemed to tilt around her.
Whoa. What the hell?
It felt like she’d been drugged, but she hadn’t drank anything in at least an hour. “Luke?”

              There was no answer.

              “Luke!”

              Her heart started to race, and her sluggish brain finally caught up with reality.

              He used magic on me. He drugged me up when I came and ran out the fucking door.

              The anger inside her inflated to fill her lungs, spreading through her body with each breath she took. Miraculously, the rage seemed to be driving back the fog; after nearly a minute of heavy breathing, Kim was able to stand and begin to dress.

              Luke had gone through a lot of trouble to stop her from following her, it seemed. He had never used his magic on her before, even accidentally, and Kim wasn’t sure she ever wanted to experience it again.

              All that trouble, and it was for nothing. Nothing! You can’t run from me, Luke, just like I couldn’t run from you.

              She was angry and confused as she picked up her car keys, and she didn’t even stop to consider forming a plan; her body and brain were finally on the same page, and that was all that mattered. Finding out what the page said would just be a bonus.

***

              Kim had been driving for an hour outside of the city when it occurred to her that she should try and tap into the bond instead of wandering around, hoping her internal compass would lead her to the right place. Her anger had cooled, and now she was flooded with worry.
How can I do this?
She pictured Luke’s face in her mind, trying to call up the feeling she got when he was near her, but the anger started to mount again, and the picture faded.

              Shit. What if he’s right? What if it’s a trap? What if I don’t find him in time?

              She thought back to the first body she’d seen. It seemed longer than two weeks ago, probably because she’d seen a body nearly every day after that. Ryan had been one of the worst, because he looked so young – he was nineteen when he’d turned, so the 60-year-old vampire looked smaller and more frail than any of the others she’d seen. Ryan had been one of the vampires that hadn’t been present when she stumbled upon their training, but it hit her just as hard. Kim wondered if it had to do with the bond. The next second, she realized she was tired of asking that question.

              Kim turned down a side street, her headlights shooting up the blacktop and lighting up every twig and pebble scattered there. Her eyesight was still getting sharper, it seemed, and it was one of the things she was most grateful for. She could read the lettering on a plastic bag from three hundred feet away, and she could see a possum’s beady black eyes from roughly the same distance.
Maybe it’ll keep me out of trouble tonight.
Kim groaned.
Why did he have to scamper off after dark? Maybe we should see if the serial killer can switch to a daytime schedule.

              If Luke had been around, her aura might have seemed cynical, but Kim defaulted to cruel humor as a defense mechanism these days. After years of stewing in anger over her pain, the only thing she was left with was a barely healed ulcer and sharp wit, but those weren’t filling any voids in her life. With a surge of warmth, she realized she
did
have something filling the void now--two things, in fact. Two things she wouldn’t trade for all the Pepcid and wisecracks in the world. Her heart started to defrost.
I guess I am changing a little,
she thought.
I never used to get this mushy. Thanks, Evan and Luke.
She drove in silence for a while, trying not to get any deeper in her thoughts.

              Unbidden, and image of an ashen-faced Luke lying with limbs akimbo filled her head, and her heart felt like it was wrenching itself out of her body.
Please don’t let me be too late,
she thought.
Please.
She had no idea who she was begging, or even if she believed it would work.

              Her arms turned the wheel automatically, and she slowed the car as it plowed through a tall field of twisted weeds. She turned on her brights and was relieved to find another flimsy shack standing a hundred yards away, slightly bigger than the first shack Luke had taken her to.
Does this outpost have weapons?
It didn’t matter to her, really, as long as it helped her find Luke.

              Her skin started to buzz like there were bees just under her subcutaneous tissue, and she knew she was close. Her teeth were vibrating as the car drew closer. Something in the back of her mind told her to stop, and she stomped on the brakes and threw the car in park, throwing up a mushroom cloud of dust behind her little green Fiat.

              Kim got out of the car slowly, rotating her head on her neck like an oscillating fan. There was no way to take in everything, because her eyes could still only see so far in the dark, but she felt reasonably sure she wasn’t going to be attacked at that moment. She took a step forward and pulled her hoodie closer to her, cursing herself for not bringing a real coat.
The desert is cold as death at night. How did you forget that?

              The icy wind whipped her ponytail into her face, and she held it back with one hand, staring around the perimeter of the shack for some sign of Luke – broken branches, footprints, anything. She looked fruitlessly for a full minute, her heart in her throat at first; as she searched, it slid back down into her chest and started to dip toward her stomach. Finally, just as she was reaching the limit of her frustration, she spotted some bent weeds leading up to the area behind the shack. She suppressed a cheer and crept as quietly as she could along the makeshift path. (
Why am I creeping?
she thought. Then:
Why not?)