Hilde raised an eyebrow. “It’s about time.”
Hair wet from the shower, Amber padded into the spacious living room of Hilde’s new underground quarters dressed in a fresh pair of borrowed jeans and a snug sweater. The jeans were from Sarah Pringle, Max’s mate, while the sweater had been the queen’s. A huge television took up one wall, while a comfortable-looking sofa and two captain chairs faced it. A thick Western rug covered the rock floor and pretty watercolors adorned the walls. A stocked kitchen and two bedrooms made up the unit.
The door opened, and Grandma Hilde swept inside. She turned and thanked Oscar for escorting her.
The massive vampire nodded, his eyes sparkling.
Shutting the door, Hilde hurried over to sit on the sofa. She’d also borrowed clean clothing. The king had requested her presence for a debriefing that had lasted about an hour. Finally, she’d returned. She smiled, her dark eyes lighting up. “Is that Oscar a handsome one, or what?”
Amber frowned and dropped to the faux-leather couch.
Hilde cleared her throat and stretched her legs across the matching ottoman. “I mean, I’m already mated, so it’s not like I can touch the guy. You know if any male touches a mated woman, he ends up in agony from a rare allergy, right?”
“Yeah, I’ve heard that.” Amber didn’t return the smile.
“Well, I can at least look at the handsome vampire.” Hilde squirmed into a different position. “So, how about those demons?”
Biting back a sharp retort, Amber glared at her grandmother. The glare turned to wide-eyed disbelief. “You look different.”
Hilde shrugged. “Yes. I look forty-five, which I am. The last several years I’ve had to add a bunch of gray to my hair and use makeup to look older. It’s nice to be me again.” She rubbed her clean skin with both hands. “I’m not sorry I kept this part of your life from you.”
Amber sighed. “I know—and I had a wonderful childhood. But right now, at this time, it’d be nice to be able to lay a demon out like you did.” God. She was discussing the very real existence of demons with her grandmother. Where had reality gone? “But you said you didn’t have any power.”
“I didn’t. But I did mate a vampire years ago, and when you mate, you get their skills. He was psychic, and maybe I gained enough skill from him that I have some power now. Who knows.” Hilde stretched her neck. “I guess all you do with the demons is shove their power back at them.” She held out her hand, which was smooth and missing the dark age spots Amber had gotten accustomed to seeing.
“I did. I tried to shove one demon’s power back, and he nearly blinded me.” Maybe Amber didn’t have the power she’d thought. “So, I slid the pain and images away and at least shielded myself. Oh, and I shielded Kane a little bit when we held hands, I think.”
Hilde stiffened, gaze cutting to Amber. “You shielded Kane?”
Squirming on the couch for no logical reason, Amber cleared her throat. “Um, yeah. I mean, I think I did.”
“Did he mate you?” Hilde’s eyes widened.
“Mate? No.”
“Hmmm.” Hilde frowned. “You shouldn’t be able to shield anyone you haven’t mated, sweetie. That isn’t done, I don’t think.”
“I haven’t mated Kane.” Sure, they’d had sex several times. But if there was no marking, there was no mating. “Maybe the ability to shield other people is my gift and not being able to attack the demons is my curse.”
“No. I don’t think the ability works that way.” Hilde shook out her curly hair.
“Why not? I mean, you have curly hair, and I have straight hair, yet it’s the same color and I obviously inherited the color from you. Maybe the gift is used different ways, too.” Amber had promised Kane she’d help save Jase, and she would. But the sooner she figured out how to use her gift, the better.
“Perhaps.” Hilde’s dark eyes turned shrewd. “You slept with him more than once?”
Heat climbed into Amber’s face. “Grandma—we already talked about that.”
Her grandma reached out and patted her hand. “I’m asking because I’ve heard the marking is just one part of a Kayrs’ mating. Along with a good bite . . . and sex. Maybe you’ve started to mate him and don’t even know it.”
Now that was ridiculous. “Speaking of mating, I’m so sorry you lost your mate.” She couldn’t help it. “You know, Grandpa Dracula.”
“Oh, for goodness’ sake.” Hilde chuckled. “He wasn’t that old. And that chapter of my life is long closed. The second you were born, your mama wanted to give you a normal childhood absent any mind torture or knowledge of war. When she and Elliot both died, I followed her wishes.”
Love for her grandmother welled up so fast Amber’s breath caught. Her childhood at the eco-village was wonderful but hardly normal. “Did you really believe? I mean, in the village and what we’ve stood for, or was it all a ruse?”
“Yes. The eco-village was off the map and a very safe place for us, I’ll admit. But our way of life was a good one there, and I truly believe in saving the environment and living off the land.”
Relief relaxed Amber’s shoulders. “Even so, thank you for giving up your life to make sure I had a good childhood.”
“Sure.” Hilde patted her hand. “So, I’d like to teach you how to use your skill, but we need a demon to attack first. I mean, our gifts only come into play when there’s demon energy at work. Well, or a very gifted vampire.”
Like Kane. His mind had to be truly amazing to be able to attack, even briefly. Or maybe it was his empathic abilities—the ones he hated. Amber frowned. There was an idea somewhere muddled in that thought, but it escaped her. Her jaw almost cracked when she yawned.
Hilde nodded. “Yes, I’m tired as well. Maybe we should get some sleep and work hard to figure out our lives tomorrow. I mean, where we should go next.”
“I’m not leaving.” Amber steeled herself.
Hilde sat back. “You’re not leaving?” She frowned. “Are you staying with Kane? I mean, is he the one?”
“No. But I promised I’d help save his brother from the demons if he helped me find you. I gave him my word.” Hilde had taught her honor from day one, so surely she’d understand how important a promise Amber had made.
“Too freakin’ bad. You’re not fighting more demons—you said yourself you can’t turn their powers back on them.” Fear slid the color from Hilde’s face. “Not a chance.”
“Yes, I am,” Amber said gently. “I can learn to use this gift—in time.”
A gentle knock echoed through the door. “Come in,” Hilde called.
Oscar poked his head inside and rubbed a hand over his crew-cut. “Ah, Hilde? I found somebody to cover the shifter training tonight. Did you, ah, want to see the new movie the king got for the kids?”
Hilde blushed a pretty pink. “Of course. Amber is tired and is going to bed, but I’m wide awake.” She bounded off the sofa and headed for the vampire at the door. Once there, she turned and winked at Amber. “Don’t wait up, sweetie.”
The door shut.
Amber sat on the couch, blinking rapidly. Where in the world had reality disappeared to?
CHAPTER 19
The next morning Amber shifted on the protective paper covering of the lone examination table, throwing off unease at being in the underground lab. Dark rock covered the floor and matching counters held tons of machines she couldn’t identify. A couple of pretty watercolors depicting forest scenes had been attached to the rough walls. They failed to calm her down. She eyed the door. “A mating is forever, right?”