Silverthorn (9 page)

I snapped the blinds shut and stepped back.

Concerned, Nolan stepped forward and reached for the string to control the blinds.

I attempted to divert his hand to prevent him from calling attention to us – that was, if the stranger looked our way.

But Nolan clutched my wrist.

Once again, I felt power leaving my body as though every time we touched, my thighs quivered and my heart palpitated. Surely, it had something to do with how attractive I found him. It made me feel like a lovelorn teenager. Since I had left little time for romance during my collegiate career, I presumed that my lack of a love life contributed to my awkwardness.

When I turned to Nolan, he stared at me with an unrecognizable expression, as though he noticed a current of energy passing between us, but he had a difficult time comprehending what it meant.

His uncertainty heightened my emotions, making my breath catch in my throat.

He released my wrist.

And just like that, our connection severed as if I’d cut off an essential lifeline to our continued existence.

Nolan straightened as though an electrical shock had energized him. For my part, I had the opposite reaction. I wavered for a moment, feeling like he’d sapped my strength. I looked at him with a curious expression.

“You felt that, right?” he asked.

I swallowed and nodded, startled to discover that I alone hadn’t felt the shock between us.

“At first,” he said, “I thought I was imagining things.” He looked at my hands. “I don’t know what happened, but I feel stronger, more powerful, whenever…we touch.”

That realization set my hopes on edge. It meant he’d felt a spark between us. I wasn’t just imagining things. But what did he mean? I didn’t know how to take his comment.

“It’s like putting a plug into a wall socket.”

I shook my head, puzzled.

“Like I was electrocuted.” He looked down, analyzing his feelings. “I’d never felt that before.” He stayed quiet for a moment. “Really strange!”

And that totally sent my hopes spiraling downwards…because, really, what woman wanted to hear that remark? “Yeah,” I said, trying to remain positive. “Exactly.” I had to do something to get off the subject or I’d no doubt acknowledge that I felt disheartened not to have shared a connection…in a more romantic sense. After all, I thought we’d led up to that point, but I guess I’d misread the signs. And since I didn’t have much experience in that department, I tried not to get down about the misunderstanding.

To avoid a clumsy attempt at sidestepping the topic, I leaned forward, stuck two fingers between the blinds, and peered out.

A man stood on the opposite side of the street, now about forty yards to my left. Wearing a dark suit against a sinewy frame, he didn’t expend any more energy than necessary as he looked on either side of the street.

Darius. He’d followed me.

CHAPTER EIGHT

Startled by his appearance, I stepped back from the window.

“What’s wrong?” Nolan asked, stepping toward me, concerned. He turned to the window again, ready to peer through the blinds.

I slapped his hand away from the window and instantly regretted it. He had all but clarified that he didn’t have feelings for me, and rather than subject myself to an unrequited love affair, I needed to move on. I didn’t want him to think I was upset that he wasn’t into me, and in all honesty, that was the truth. I was disappointed, but I’d only knocked his hand aside because I didn’t want Darius to pinpoint our location.

Since he had honed senses, I couldn’t determine if he might pinpoint movement at forty yards. Could he see us? Hear us? From behind a window? It’s not as if doctors analyzed him and wrote an article about their findings in an academic journal. I doubted he’d detect our motions or voices, but I didn’t want to risk it.

“Darius followed me,” I said. Then I realized that, because of his instincts, he may have singled out the sound of my engine or muffler, and remained far enough behind on the road to prevent me from noticing him.

“Did he see us?” Nolan asked.

“I don’t think so. I’m going to follow him.” I didn’t want to obey that piece of logic, but it felt right.

“Really? Because if he’s a vampire, won’t he hear you or see you?”

“Not if I’m careful…if I stay far enough away.” If I followed him home, and he let his guard down, while I had the Soul Sword, I might be able to sever his head. I turned to go. Half a second later, I felt a hand grasp my right forearm, swinging me back towards Nolan. “Once more, I felt a little woozy. “What gives?”

“I can’t let you do that,” he said, standing tall. “I won’t let you put yourself in jeopardy like that.”

I wouldn’t emasculate him by stating that I could take him in a fight. “I can handle myself.” I tried to shrug off his hand, but he wouldn’t release it. “If I don’t go now, I might lose him. So…” I glanced at his hand then met his gaze.

But the concern lining his eyes looked much more worried than that of a simple bandmate. Confused by his intentions, I said, “What’s wrong?”

“You can’t go alone. I’m coming with.”

I smiled at his naiveté. “I don’t want you to get hurt.” I swung my arm, unlocking his hold on it. The haze in my mind instantly cleared up. I felt a little weak, but not enough to track down Darius. After all, that sensation only lingered for a few moments before I regained my full energy. “Don’t wait up for me.” I headed for the door.

He took heavy steps behind me. “I said, I’m coming with you.”

Irritated, I spun around. “Look, I don’t have time for this. I might not get another chance to get him one-on-one. I’m not going to blow it by arguing with you.”

“Then let me come.”

I couldn’t ignore the determination in his eyes. For whatever reason, he wouldn’t let me handle this alone. I considered knocking him unconscious, but even though I didn’t know him too well, I was certain that doing so would hurt his pride and result in him quitting the band. He was too integral, too valuable of a band member to allow him to leave.

I exhaled in surrender. “Fine.” I glanced toward the kitchen, where Brandon and Kendall were arguing about the integrity of the Rock ’n’ Roll Hall of Fame. Bringing Nolan might jeopardize my mission. If Darius somehow got hold of him, I might have to capitulate in order to let him to go free. But if I brought Brandon and Kendall…

Without further thought, I hurried to the kitchen, where I found Brandon placing a large, plastic bowl on the countertop. “I’ve got a lead on Darius. I plan to kill him.”

Brandon let loose with a giant grin. “I’m down for that!” He removed a bag of popcorn from the microwave, but the heat burned his fingers, and he immediately dropped the bag with a high-pitched howl. Cringing, he flicked his fingers and then hit me with a dubious expression. “That just destroyed my tough guy status, didn’t it?” He scooped up the bag and pretended that he held a telephone. ‘Thank you for calling Wusses R Us, how may I direct your call?’”

Kendall offered a shy smile, completely enamored by his self-deprecating humor. “Of course not!”

He met her gaze and shrugged. “I’m doomed to spinster-hood. Might as well get out my yarn right now. Hey, Nolan: do you have any cats? It’s probably a good idea if I start collecting them. He exhaled, dejected. “Guess I’ve got a new stage name: ‘Spinster Cat Man.’”

Nolan broke out laughing.

In every other instance, I thought I’d seen Nolan completely disarmed, but I now realized that he’d put up a false front. Only now did I see his shoulders slump and his easy smile truly relax. Until now, his charisma and quiet personality had always given the impression he could enter any conversation and fit in with ease. But I realized that he’d distanced himself from others. He’d used his personality to remain friendly but not intimate with others.

Did he have a girlfriend?
I hadn’t asked. Why would I have? We were band members. Besides, he didn’t have a wedding band on his finger, and since we hadn’t even gotten closer than an almost-kiss…a few days ago, I figured that he must have been single. The way he’d let his guard down and the way he’d looked so natural and carefree, while still maintaining his nonchalance made me gravitate toward him.

Kendall glanced from me to Brandon and Nolan…and back to me again. “No way. I’ve got vampire blood in me. Besides, everything about your family really creeps me out.”

“Even me?” I asked.

“Especially you,” she answered with zest. “Besides, what’s next? Ghosts? Angels? No way. I’m out.”

“Of the closet?” Brandon asked. “Because I could have sworn you were—”

“More woman than you could possibly handle.”

“Well, only because you’ve been sipping on vampire blood.”

“Witches? And now vampires?” She scoffed. “What’s next? Ghosts? Angels? I’d rather not.”

Brandon looked at her, disappointment souring the excitement on his face. But after a few seconds of deep contemplation, he slanted his head to the side while looking at Kendall. “Yeah, there’s not really much upside to dealing with a master vampire, is there?”

I had no doubt that Brandon could handle himself with a human, but a vampire? Never! He might be able to steal one power, but vampires had multiple abilities Brandon couldn’t elude.

“That makes sense,” I said, frightened by the uncertainties of allowing them to accompany me. Then I realized that I’d accepted Nolan’s help. “Let’s go.” I hurried to the door, cracked it open, and looked out.

Darius had vanished from the area he’d inhabited.

I searched the street…and saw him standing behind my vehicle, sliding his fingertips along my trunk.

My heart raced. My mind spun. And I wish I hadn’t been so dimwitted.

Darius hadn’t followed me to end my life, although if I became an obstacle to his plan, he would no doubt try to do just that. But at Alexis’s home, he’d seen me standing by the trunk moments before he recovered from his knee injury. Unless he thought I tossed some wooden stakes in my trunk, he’d assume that I’d gone to the trunk to retrieve the Soul Sword so I could decapitate him.

I shut the door. I only had a few seconds before he ripped the door of the trunk and recovered the Soul Sword. Sweat broke out on my brow. Nervous energy made my toes twitch.

“He’s out there, isn’t he?” asked Nolan.

I nodded. Then a perfect idea formed in my mind. I hurried over to the window, withdrew my car keys, and hit the alarm button on my key.

The alarm split through the silent night.

I didn’t dare glance out the window. Darius would surely scan each house, looking for the person who set off the alarm. I couldn't risk him seeing me. While he couldn’t enter Nolan’s house without an invitation, he might set it on fire. Therefore, I waited about seven or eight seconds before looking out the blinds.

Lights lit five other houses on the block, where various homeowners looked out their windows, checking on the disturbance, all eyes directed at my vehicle.

Few would have noticed Darius race back to his car anyway: his speed would have made each individual think their mind hadn’t really seen someone move that fast. By the time they glanced in that area, he would have disappeared.

Now that Darius hunched low behind the driver’s seat and couldn’t scan the street for the person who had set off the alarm, I disarmed the alarm. He would surely wait until each homeowner left their window and shut off their lights before starting the car and driving off, so I stood off to the side of the window, which allowed me to see if Nolan’s neighbors flicked off their lights. When the last one did so, I remained in place until I saw Darius drive down the street with the headlights off.

I waited until he passed four houses. Then I opened the door and rushed down the stairs, sensing Nolan at my heels, and unlocked the car doors for us, before we jumped in. I pulled away from the curb just in time to see Darius halt his vehicle at the sign.

“Okay,” Nolan said, “I get that he has no problem killing you, but he stops at a stop sign? In the middle of the night?” He gave me a sidelong glance. “Yeah, he’s a real badass vampire!”

“He has values, however misguided,” I said, knowing that Darius acted by a code that only he understood, which included killing people the moment they got in his way.

“Like he might pet a dog in the afternoon…and munch on a toddler’s neck for dinner?”

“Ruffle a dog’s ears? Maybe. Clench his teeth on a toddler? Doubtful. Darius considers himself a gentleman above reproach. Turning those musclebound humans we dealt with tonight into vampires doesn’t add up.”

“He wants you dead, right? So why wouldn’t he turn every person he saw into a soldier to go after you?”

I shook my head. “
He
wants to kill me. Darius hates my line because we forced him into indentured servitude…for over three centuries.”

“But wasn’t Zephora the one who enforced that spell?”

“Yes. But they’re soul mates. So he obviously has a soft spot for her.”

“Vampires are evil though, right? So what makes Darius different?”

“He’s the only vampire I’ve spoken with, so I don’t know. The difference is that once they turn, they maintain the frame of mind they had before they died…at least until their vampire blood rectifies that situation. After that, I’m guessing they’re just like you and me: happy, sad, angry, bad.”

I looked through the windshield, following Darius at a distance, trying not to let on that I trailed him. But that would be hard to accomplish. How many cars were on the road in the middle of the night? Sure, we were on the outskirts of a metropolis, but if I clung to his bumper, it would be a dead giveaway.

“A little while ago,” Nolan said in a soothing voice. “When I made that comment about being electrocuted?”

My nerves tramped down on me, and I instinctively clenched the steering wheel. “Yeah,” I said nonchalantly, even though my breath caught in my throat.

“It came out wrong.”

My peripheral vision picked up his conflicted expression. I felt it best to remain quiet and let him speak.

“When we touch…I feel alive.
Truly
alive.”

My heartbeat pounded double-time at the idea. I almost broke out in a smile, but I didn’t want to jinx anything, so I clenched my lips together.

“Until you, the only time I felt that way is when I’ve got my guitar against my hip. I feel that anything can happen. And when we touch…it’s like coming up with the perfect melody. Or what I imagine constructing the perfect melody sounds like, anyway.” He turned my way.

I felt the heat of his stare, but as much as I wanted to acknowledge him, I knew that doing so would end his confession. But I couldn’t deny that his stare felt glorious, as though having been chained up in a dungeon for years, only to have someone remove the shackles around my wrists and ankles and unlock the jail cell door.

He set his gaze through the windshield. “I guess you just know it when you feel it.”

I let silence intrude for a few seconds in case he planned to continue speaking. He didn’t, so I looked at him. “I feel the same way.” Then I turned my sights on the road again.

“Yellow light,” Nolan said. “Run it or we’ll lose him.”

Even if he hadn’t spoken up, I would have done just that. “Where is he taking us?” I glanced at the clock, shocked that over fifteen minutes had passed since Darius had begun his journey. Time passed when you were having fun…or at least hanging out with a guy you had a major crush on, all the while tailing a vampire with a superiority complex. So far, he’d led us out of Streeterville and to the Northwest Side.

Darius pulled to the curb of St. John Cantius Church, which was founded by Polish immigrants in the late nineteenth century. He killed the engine, got out of the Focus, and started up the steps toward the parish doors.

“Isn’t that a vamp transgression?”

Darius opened one of the three heavy wooden entrance doors and stepped inside.

“Well,” I said, unsure what to think of this unexpected development. “Let’s see what’s what.” I got out of the car, popped the trunk, and removed the Soul Sword from its case.