“What’s that for?” Roland asked with a scowl.
She knelt beside him. “If he’s immortal, Seth won’t respond well to him being damaged.” Dropping the bedding, she leaned forward and tentatively touched one of his wings.
So soft. Like the delicate strands of hair on a newborn baby’s head.
Her heart began to pound as she gently took both wings and folded them in close to his back. Holding them in place with one hand, she wrapped the sheet and blanket around him.
“What’s wrong?” Roland asked with a scowl. “Your heart is beating faster.”
That part of being an Immortal Guardian sucked. There really were very few secrets among their ranks because of their damned heightened senses. “Are you sure he’s an immortal? I can’t smell the virus on him.”
“Can you smell it on me?”
“Barely.”
“What about David and Seth?”
“No.”
“Then there’s your answer. He’s an immortal. He just must be old as hell.” Once she finished and sat back, he started wrapping the chains around and around the stranger.
“If he’s that old,” Sarah murmured, “wouldn’t you know him, honey?”
Lisette snorted. “As antisocial as Roland is, he wouldn’t even know me if I hadn’t made myself a nuisance.”
The dour immortal’s face actually lightened with a smile. “You weren’t the nuisance. Your brothers were.”
She grinned. He may be curt and surly with the others, but he had always been kind to her.
Soon the winged mystery immortal was swathed tightly in chains from his neck to his feet. Why did seeing him like that bother her so? She didn’t know him. Had never met him. And had good reason to dislike him.
“What now?” she asked as the three of them stood in a semicircle and stared down at him.
“We wait until he wakes up, then extract information.”
She glanced at the window. “Dawn is approaching.”
Roland followed her gaze. “Go home. We’ll take first watch.”
“I want to be here when you question him.”
“If he wakes before sunset, we’ll await your return.”
She nodded, strangely reluctant to leave. Giving their prisoner one last look, she said her good-byes, then headed out into the night.
Étienne paced outside Krysta’s home, listening to her shoot the breeze with her brother while they prepared for the night’s hunt.
This was ridiculous. He had awoken this afternoon, full of anticipation, eager to see Krysta again, and hadn’t wasted a second getting here once the sun had set. Even Cameron, his Second, had noticed something was amiss. He hadn’t said anything, but Étienne had caught the What’s up with you? looks Cam had shot him while doling out weapons.
A slender shadow crossed the curtains. Étienne glimpsed Krysta in the living room. She was arming herself with more weapons than he had realized she carried. Damned near as many as he carried.
Why did that turn him on?
He sighed.
Was this what he had come to? Stalking her like one of those freaks on the Internet you heard about on the news?
Yes, he imagined Cam telling him.
Had he really sunk so low?
He had even been tempted to circle around to the other side of the house, peer through her bedroom window, and watch her dress, but that had just seemed too sleazy. Besides, if he ever saw Krysta naked, he wanted it to be on her terms with—
Wait. What the hell was he thinking? He wasn’t going to see Krysta naked. He couldn’t see Krysta naked. She bore what was obviously a deep-seated hatred for vampires, from which she didn’t differentiate him, and would destroy him in an instant if given the opportunity.
Even if he managed to lessen her desire to decapitate him, there was still the whole mortal-immortal thing. He wasn’t sure she was a gifted one. If her brother was her half brother, she may not possess the advanced DNA needed to transform without becoming vampire. Not that she would want to anyway because of the whole I hate vampires roadblock.
Étienne straightened.
Was he really trying to think his way into a relationship with a woman who wanted him dead? Was he that lonely?
Or was she just that irresistible?
Don’t answer that, he warned himself and blamed all of the happy pappy lovestruck crap that had surrounded him of late for his current confusion. First Roland had fallen in love with Sarah, who clearly was delusional for thinking him sweet.
Then Marcus had found Ami. The jury was still out on whether or not their relationship was going to have a happy ending because Ami had not yet asked Marcus to transform her.
Richart had fallen hard for Jenna, who—Étienne was very pleased to note—made his brother very happy.
Even that bastard Bastien had fallen in love with and married Dr. Lipton.
The jangling of keys shook Étienne from his musings. He ducked out of sight as the front door swung open.
Krysta exited first, her shoto swords clutched in one hand, her coat in the other.
Étienne silently cursed as his pulse picked up its pace.
Sean exited next, carrying a pile of heavy books, and tromped down the stairs.
Étienne had learned from his shameless eavesdropping sessions (there had been more of those than he cared to admit in the two weeks he had been following her) that Sean was in medical school and usually studied in the car while she hunted.
Krysta’s eyes scanned the area as they crossed the yard to their crappy car.
Both doors groaned when pried open. And the damned engine barely turned over.
Though Krysta worked days and Sean weekends, freeing up the nights for hunting, they barely made ends meet.
Étienne had been tempted to call in the network to make all the repairs the car needed, but that would bring the sibling vampire hunters to Chris Reordon’s attention.
Not a good idea.
Étienne raced through the countryside, following the shabby vehicle and making sure forest, field, or structures always hid him from view.
Looked like they were heading for Duke tonight.
The hunt was on.
That’s right, dullards, Krysta thought, mentally smiling as she used Étienne’s term, come along, follow the poor, unsuspecting undergrad who doesn’t know you’re there because she’s busy drunk dialing her ex.
That one was always popular. There were times, in fact, when she could actually hear some of the vampires laugh over the crazy-ass things she said or shouted into the phone while staggering up the path. Perhaps, in another life, she could have been an actress.
There had been no vamp action around the frat houses tonight. Rather she had found them lingering in Research Park, waiting for an egghead to stumble out after working on whatever it was he or she researched until the wee hours.
Along the sidewalk, Krysta led them between two buildings, and into a darker area near the loading dock. She thought there had been lights back here the last time she had passed by. The vamps must have broken them, intending to feed on their victim where none would see.
Perfect.
Her heart began to pound, not with fear as she prepared to spin around and fight, but with anticipation. Étienne was nearby. She knew it. She could feel it. And she wasn’t going to let him snatch away her prize this time. She was going to confront the vamps before he had the chance.
Drawing her shoto swords, she spun around at the same moment Étienne appeared behind the vamps.
Ooh. Six vampires. Good thing he had come.