Embrace The Dawning (The Covenant Series Book 1) (4 page)

An elbow jabbed into her side. She was relieved to see Elise.

“Elise! I wondered where you went. I’d like you to meet someone. This is Adrian.” Kayci gestured toward him.

Elise’s eyes widened. “
The
Adrian? Wow, what a pleasure to meet you. Thank you very much for saving my best friend’s life. She means the world to me. She’s a great person too. You’ll have to get to know her.”

Clearly, Elise was trying to schmooze Adrian and talk her up, but it only embarrassed Kayci. Thankfully, Elise caught the uncomfortable expression on her face.

“Kayci, I’m gonna head out, but I wanted to let you know before I do that I have a ride with my new friend, Greg.” Elise pointed to a guy of average height and average build, sporting tousled short brown hair and glasses.

Elise had found someone she was interested in and wanted to spend more one-on-one time with. “Oh, yeah, okay. Sounds good. Be careful, and call me tomorrow.”

Elise beamed a smile, then waved good-bye. “Nice to meet you, Adrian.”

Adrian nodded. “Likewise.”

Kayci touched Adrian’s arm.

It took him by surprise, especially when a rush of heat spread from the area she touched. He had forgotten how warm she was and what it had felt like last night to have her body against his. It ignited a spark that he didn’t want to admit was there.

“That guy isn’t a vampire, is he?” Kayci asked.

Adrian shook his head and smiled at her concern for her friend’s safety. It was another charming attribute—she was protective.

“No, he’s human. Nothing to worry about.”

“Good.”

Adrian could hear the relief in her voice.

He hoped to sway her into going home herself. He didn’t want her in the bar when Danika arrived. Kayci would only distract from his task, and he would be too concerned with her safety. Not to mention he didn’t like the thought of her going home with someone, like her friend Elise had. Not that it was his business to have feelings about it, but he still didn’t care for the idea.

“I would be happy to offer you a ride home, but I do have business I need to tend to. Do you mind if I call you a cab and walk you out?”

Kayci wasn’t sure if Adrian was trying to get rid of her or thought her night was over because her friend had left. Either way the offer was endearing.

Kayci shrugged. “Yeah, I suppose that’s fine.”

Adrian could hear a hint of disappointment in her tone.

“To be truthful with you, Kayci, I would like nothing more than to spend more time with you, but unfortunately, I have obligations this evening.”

Kayci couldn’t hold back a smile at the
would like nothing more than to spend more time with you
part. “Of course. I understand.” It was too easy to forget Adrian was a vampire.

Kayci didn’t know who moved first, but the two of them had naturally turned in step with one another toward the exit of the bar. As they walked through the door, Adrian gently placed his hand on Kayci’s back and guided her through the crowd. She enjoyed the gentle touch of his hand on her lower back, the gesture to stay close and not lose her among the crowd. Adrian never looked at another woman. His eyes stayed intently on her, which prompted that familiar flutter of butterflies.

Adrian removed his hand from her lower back as they moved into a more open space outside. He reached into his pocket and brought out a cell phone. Kayci was surprised to see that he did indeed have a cell phone, and it was even a modern smartphone. He quickly dialed a cab service and then placed his phone back in his pocket. A hint of disappointment crept through her when he didn’t offer his number or ask for hers. She watched as he reached into his other pocket and pulled out a pocketknife—
her
pocketknife.

“You dropped this. I thought you might like it back.”

Kayci’s face lit up. She took the knife from his hand.

“Thank you! I appreciate you returning it. I thought it was lost or taken by the other vampire.”

“No, not by the other vampire, whom I promise you’ll never see again.”

Though relieved, Kayci wondered how Adrian could be so sure.

“Did I kill him?” she asked apprehensively as she slid the knife into her jeans pocket.

Adrian shook his head. “No, you didn’t. It’s not that easy to kill us. I made sure though that he would never hurt you or anyone else again.”

Kayci understood. She hadn’t killed the vampire by stabbing him, but Adrian had killed him. She was right after all. He was capable of killing.
Why didn’t it scare her?

“I know that I probably don’t need to say this,” Adrian said. “Sharing my identity with you was not something I should have done, but I couldn’t let that vampire hurt you. I hope you won’t share this knowledge with anyone else. Keeping our identity hidden is what keeps us alive.”

Kayci stared up at Adrian’s striking green eyes. The way he looked at her ignited a spark inside her that she couldn’t remember having felt before, or at least not in a long time. As strange as he was, she wanted to know more about him.

“Needless to say, people would probably think I’m crazy, so yes, you have nothing to worry about.”

Adrian smiled in appreciation.

“I knew that was the case. I apologize for even having to say…”

Adrian stopped midsentence. He looked up at the rooftops of buildings and then to the crowd of people. She saw them clearly this time. His fangs protruded just below his upper lip. She could see his nostrils flare as if he smelled something in the air. Just as he turned his head toward the street, she thought his eyes transitioned to a golden color. Kayci glanced in the same places that Adrian searched. She saw nothing in the street but cars driving by, people walking to bars and restaurants, and a line of club-goers waiting to get into Blue Moon. She didn’t understand what had captured his interest.

Adrian turned toward her. Startled, she stepped back instinctively as she saw his transformation. His eyes were certainly a vibrant gold color, and his fangs were clearly visible.

“Kayci, you have to go now,” Adrian demanded. “Join the crowd of people waiting to get into the lounge, until your cab arrives. You’re not safe around me.”

Adrian’s sudden anxious demeanor shocked Kayci. She didn’t know what to say. She started to leave and head toward the crowd as he’d instructed, and was stopped by a tatted, burly, bald-headed man a few inches taller than her. She was sure he wasn’t there a moment ago. He grabbed her arm firmly, applying pressure, and held her in place.

“Not so fast, little woman.” His voice was gruff, as if he was an avid smoker, and full of arrogance.

“If it isn’t the infamous vampire hunter,
Adrian Spade
.”

Kayci was taken aback by the label as well as hearing his entire name. She looked back toward Adrian, who still displayed the same startling appearance. His voice though had become much more demanding and frightening.

“Let her go, or I’ll rip you apart limb from limb, Conan.”

Conan’s grip tightened. Kayci’s irritation elevated.

“Not here you won’t, Adrian. There are too many humans, and you’re too domesticated by the Covenant. So who is she to you anyway? What would a vampire want with a cupcake like her other than to have your way with her and then dine on her sweet blood?”

The vampire leaned in and breathed in Kayci’s scent. His face grazed her hair, making her grimace and move away from him as far as she could while still locked in his grasp. She could smell him too, and it was an awful scent she couldn’t put words to.

“What she is to me is of no relevance to you. Now let her
go
.” Kayci saw the seriousness of Adrian’s threat. His golden eyes narrowed, and his stance showed he was ready to attack. Kayci had reached her own irritation level. She reached across her abdomen and grabbed the pocketknife from her jeans pocket with her left hand. Using the butt of the handle, she swung her left arm with as much force as she could, hitting the vampire in the back of the neck. The vampire leaned forward in surprise and discomfort, giving Kayci the chance to escape from his grasp and kick him in the back of the knee. The vampire’s leg gave out from under him. As he buckled, Adrian caught him.

“Kayci, go!” he demanded.

She rushed toward the small crowd, relieved to see a yellow cab coming down the street. Her heart beat heavily, and more than anything she wanted to get away. She glanced back toward Adrian and the vampire, Conan. They had disappeared. Her stomach knotted with worry for Adrian.

As the cab came nearer, she frantically watched for Adrian’s return. She finally saw him walk out from behind a building some distance away, alone. She could only imagine what had happened to the other vampire. She headed toward the cab so she didn’t lose it to someone else, while still watching Adrian closely.

An exotic, tall, thin woman with bronze skin and long, curly black hair crossed the street and headed toward Adrian. He seemed to recognize her and waited for her to approach him. Kayci slid into the cab, her gaze locked on to Adrian and the woman.

“Where to, miss?”

Kayci’s attention was drawn to the driver.

“Oh yes, sorry—1205 Orchid Avenue.”

As the cab moved forward, Kayci glanced toward Adrian and the woman. She had reached Adrian and now stood close to him, intimately running her hand along the side of his face and neck. As the cabbie drove past them, the woman gave Kayci an intense piercing stare with the same golden eyes as Adrian’s. Kayci shivered and turned her head away.

Adrian shoved Danika’s hand away, then gripped her wrist tightly enough to demonstrate his frustration.

“I’m not in the mood for your games, Danika. What we had in the past stays in the past.”

“So temperamental, Adrian. Must be from all the dipping and dashing. You never were one to turn down the supple flesh of an attractive woman.” Danika ran her hand across her breast, clearly pleased to see Adrian’s eyes follow.

Adrian turned his irritated gaze back to Danika’s golden eyes. She was trying to use the same seductive tricks she used to, only now he wasn’t the foolish young man he once was.

“Those days are gone.”

Danika leaned in closer and spoke seductively. “It’s a shame. We were quite the pair,
remember
?” She brought her hand up his leg toward his manhood.

Adrian stepped back, leaving her hand to drop and a scowl to form on her face.

“What are you doing here, Danika?” Adrian was less than pleased with her presence.

Danika pouted. “After all these years, you’re not happy to see me?”

“Still trying to figure out why you came back.”

“Oh, come to revisit my old hunting grounds. I was feeling a little
nostalgic
.” The words escaped from her lips like a snake’s tongue from its mouth.

“You, nostalgic? Funny, didn’t think you had a heart to be sentimental with.”

Danika’s golden eyes flashed her irritation.

“So you’re swooning over little brunette humans these days?”

A lump swelled in Adrian’s throat. Danika had seen Kayci.

“You mean my dinner date?” Adrian played down Kayci’s significance.

Danika studied Adrian. Her golden eyes narrowed. “Then why did you kill my bodyguard, Conan, over her? It looked to me like he was only playing with your food.”

“I don’t take challenges lightly. You know that. He was foolish enough to challenge me.”

Danika seemed to believe it. She shrugged carelessly. “Unfortunate. He
was
my favorite.
Well
, let’s get down to business then, since you refuse to have any fun. I have a proposition for you, Adrian.”

Adrian raised an eyebrow.

“I’d like you to join me in taking down the Covenant.”

He was taken aback by how nonchalantly she suggested the idea.

“Just like that? Let’s take down a group of very strong old vampires, each with sophisticated abilities that, when put together, is nearly undefeatable?”

“Yes, exactly—
nearly
undefeatable.”

“How do you plan to accomplish something as challenging as taking down the Covenant?” Adrian asked suspiciously.

Danika smirked. “The plans will be left up to me, but you, Adrian, are a very valuable piece of the equation. Your skills are unusual and extremely valuable, which is why the Covenant keeps you so tightly under their hold. Don’t you want to be rid of them, Adrian? To no longer be under their ruling thumb? No longer have to abide by their ridiculous laws or have to live in secret?”

Adrian refused to admit to Danika that these thoughts had crossed his mind.

“I know you, Adrian. I know your love of freedom. I know you want that way of life. I can give it to you if you help me. The Covenant’s way of life is belittling, demeaning, far too controlling, and getting us vampires nowhere. We have been living in secret for far too long. It’s time for new leaders—vampires like us.”

Adrian had to admit it was appealing.