Whiteout (Aurora Sky (20 page)

“What do you mean?”
I asked.

Melcher plucked a file folder off his desk, using one arm to support it while he opened it. From the folder, he
withdrew
a single sheet of paper and handed it across the desk to me.

The second I looked at it, my eyes expanded. There she was. Auror
a Sky
in a black
-
and
-
white photo
.
I recognized the gray textured backdrop
fr
om Denali High's yearbook photo
sho
o
t at the beginning of senior year.

 Aurora looked directly into the camera, right at me. There was a spark in her eyes I'd never seen before, on
e that said,
“I am so out of here at the end of the school year. Been nice knowing you. Come graduation day, I'm never looking back.”

That photo did nasty things to my insides. That photo was not the Aurora Sky I knew. It was the human girl before the vamp
ire. The one who would have gone off to college and dated some dipshit then later married him or some other
douchebag
. She wouldn't have looked twice at me if her life hadn't been destroyed.
Even if I could go back and change the past, I wouldn't. I'd let
that car crash into her again and again if only because the aftermath led her to me.

I was a selfish bastard, I admit. Selfish in my pleasure of Aurora's brush with death and transition into the life of the undead. The life of the everlasting. An everlasti
ng life with me.

Most vampires I knew wanted human companions for biting. I used to be one of them. I'd met many lovely young women
in my time
, but I never let myself get too attached. Their lives flew by too quickly, like a beloved pet. Losing them was pa
inful every time. Eventually it was too much
,
and I switched to more callous women. Women who wouldn't leave holes in my
heart. Women like Valerie Ward.

That was until
Aurora Sky tripped into my life like a wounded siren, unaware of her own hypnotic appeal
. At first I only wanted to pester her the way a cat toys with a mouse. Somewhere along the way I got drawn in
,
and there'd been no going back. My feelings for her ha
d never wavered, never changed.

The paper shook in my hand. It was the first time I'd seen
Aurora's
face in weeks, which
was
why I glossed over
the words on first glance.

 

WANTED

 

But not the way I wanted her.

“What is this?” I demanded.

“We found the original on Jared's computer,” Melcher said. “Unfortunately, he's been circulating them around
the state. We don't know how many copies he made or how far the reach, but i
t was seen in enemy hands by
informant
s
in Kenai and Trapper Creek.”

Pearlman moved to my side and extended his arm. “May I?” he asked.

I handed him the paper. Hands now free, I h
ad the overwhelming temptation to hurtle across Melcher's desk and pummel the arrogant piece of shit with my fists.

“You let this
lunatic
do whatever he pleases?” I ground out between my teeth. “No protocols. No accountability. You just gave him free reign
without question.”

“No one is above censure,” Melcher said.

Although he spoke the words, I could tell Melcher believed the opposite
when it came to himself.

Pearlman looked up. “Where is Jared?” he asked.

“That is the problem,” Melcher answered. “After th
e first
flyer
was reported
,
we began digging around. Only someone within the agency would be aware of Agent Sky
's
and
Agent
Dante's identities or their status as deserters.”

I narrowed my eyes. This
creep
deserved
more than an ass
-
kicking, but I needed him
to play ball. Once Aurora was safe and sound, I called first shot at Melcher.

“Almost as soon as we began the investigation, Jared disappeared,” he continued. “There were no signs of foul play. After finding the
flyer
on his computer, we had to assume he'
d betrayed the agency and switched sides.” A deep frown curved down Melcher's face
,
like
parentheses
around his chin. “I am deeply disappointed by this turn of events. Jared has been with the agency as long as I
have
. I recruited him myself.”

“Touching,” I
said sarcastically. “Now what are you doing to find him before he and his new underlings manage to track down Aurora?”

“Or worse,” Pearlman said. “He could out every agent on this base. Why was I not apprised of this situation immediately?”

“As you are no
w aware, we've had our hands full,” Melcher answered.

“Precisely why I should have been informed as soon as you were aware of the situation,” Pearlman fired back.

“I am not accustomed to including outsiders in matters they do not fully comprehend.”

Pearlma
n took a last look at the paper before setting it on Melcher's desk. He took that moment to stare into the man's face.

“It is my intention to know everything that goes on in this agency, including all past transgressions.
Things
will go a lot smoother if y
ou cooperate willingly, Agent Melcher, but either way, you're no longer running these operations alone.”

Music to my ears. If only Aurora were there to hear it. She hadn't believed it was possible. This was the first of many victories to come. But this fir
st one felt pretty damn great.

 

    
     

 

“Well?” Alfonso asked when I stepped out of Melcher's office.

I wasn't surprised to see him
, Joss,
and Benito standing, rather than sitting in one of the poor excuses
for
waiting chair
s
.

Lieutenant Pearlman
followed us only as far as the door before shutting himself inside with Me
lcher to go over the orders Melcher had disregarded.

“Melcher is about to have his ass handed to him,” I said in Italian.

“
Fantastico
!
” Alfonso said, slapping my back. “Then we can
go?”

“Yeah, let's get out of here
,” I said. “Pearlman is staying behind, but there's no reason for us to hang around this place any longer. I have what I came for.” I
placed my hand on Joss' shoulder and gave it a quick squeeze before stepping back.

“Come,
Josslyn,” Alfonso said, putting his arm around Joss as our group headed down the hall. “We will take you from this place at once. It must have been horrifying. I cannot imagine. We will get you a proper meal and clothes.”

“I was not harmed,” Joss said. “B
ut it is good to see all of you.”

“My assistant has already arranged for another suite in the penthouse of the Captain Cook,” Alfonso said. “Benito will drive us there now and we can all put this ordeal behind us.”

Joss' head turned sharply to look at me.
“We are not going home?” he asked.

“I put in our notice and had our things packed.”

Joss came to a dead stop in the middle of the hallway. “Who did the packing?” he asked.

“Friends
. A
nd before you say another word, yes, they were careful with your books. I
told them to think of each volume as though it were a priceless porcelain plate.”

“And where are they now?” Joss asked, not looking reassured in the least.

“Storage.”

He placed a hand on his heart, shook his head, and muttered under his breath. A moment l
ater he seemed to perk up.

“I take it we
're leaving Alaska?” Joss asked
.

“Not quite yet, but soon,” I said. “First I need to find Aurora before Jared does.”

 

 

 12

The Hunter And The Hound

 

{Aurora}

 

The bedsheet and cover slid to my waist when I sat up. Luckily, I still had on my T-shirt. Dante, however, did not. His muscular chest rose and fell gently. He lay on his side, snoozing away. For all I knew, he was naked under the covers.

The bed beside us was empty. Tommy wasn't around either. I nudg
ed the muscular arm resting inches from my thigh.

“Dante,” I whispered.

No answer.

“Dante,” I tried louder.

His breath deepened as though trying to drown out my voice.

I grabbed his shoulder. “Dante!”

In an instant, I was on my back. Dante had my wrists
pinned above my head. He stared down at me wide eyed
,
as though I were a stranger. His
torso
rose and fell rapidly, his ripped torso dipping into a tight pair of
navy
boxer briefs.
I sucked in a shuddering breath before yanking
my arms free.

“Get off of me
,
you big oaf!”

Dante's eyes cleared. “You startled me,” he said as he swung off me.

Once freed, I scooted to the edge of the bed and dropped my legs to the ground. I took in deep breaths through my nostrils. My heart seemed to be running a relay race insi
de my
rib cage
.

“What are you doing in my bed?” I asked once I got my breathing under control.

“There was room so I crawled
in,” Dante said as he stood up.
“Hey, where's
Tommy? And where's G?”

I walked around the bed. “That's what I was trying to tell you.
They're gone.”

Wordlessly, Dante bent over his duffel bag and pulled out a pair of jeans
, which he quickly pulled on and zipped up.

Before he
could get his shirt on, we heard a car pull up outside. Dante turned sideways, meeting my eye. A second later, we
sprinted for our weapons. I grabbed
my gun
. Dante snatched a hunti
ng knife off the nightstand.

Logically, it had to be Giselle, but seeing my mug on a wanted
flyer
had
cranked the paranoia level up several notches.

The deadbolt turned with the metal scrap
e of a key. Once the door opened, Tommy trotted in, tail swinging.

I released a breath and lowered my gun. Dante set his knife back on the nightstand.

Giselle walked in holding a white paper sack. The smell of bacon, eggs, and toasted bread followed her in
side. She set the bag on the small round table by the window.

What was with the room service? The food was obviously for Dante.

“Tommy's been fed and walked,” she said. “The weather's holding at the moment, but the sooner we go, the better.”

Dante snatched
the bag and pulled out a bloated
,
hockey puck
-
sized sandwich wrapped in paper. Once unwrapped, he scarfed it down without bothering to sit. That was probably Giselle's plan all along—rouse Dante from bed by waving fried food in front of his face. Smart wo
man.

Dante balled up the empty wrapper and dropped it into the bag before pulling out another identical item.

“Enjoying your McYuck breakfast sandwich?” I asked sarcastically.

Dante stopped chewing momentarily to ask. “Want one?”

“Pass,” I said.

“I guess t
he McYums are all mine.”

I rolled my eyes. “Anyone need to use the bathroom before I shower?” When no one answered, I grabbed my backpack
and beelined it for the bathroom.

While Dante enjoyed breakfast, I basked in the water's warm spray. It felt like a wa
rm caress I wanted to hold
on to
for as long as possible. Who knew when I'd get another shower?

Once washed and rinsed, I dried myself off before the cool air set into my damp skin. I dressed inside the bathroom. Once clothed, I stepped out to comb my hair
, trading places with Dante
,
who'd had his fill of breakfast.

I plopped down onto the bed and turned on the TV. Rather than watch the screen like a normal person, Giselle stared at me. It felt like five minutes went by before she spoke.

“This isn't a vacat
ion,” she said.

My jaw clenched. No kidding this wasn't a vacation. My idea of a vacation was a sandy beach, not snowy mountains. Vacation would be a road trip to the Grand Canyon or
Disneyland
. Not a road
kill
trip—as in killing vampires along our route.

Anger flared in me, squeezing at my vocal cords. I sucked air between my teeth. Did she think hunting down vampires was sport to me?

“You don't say,” I answered, tearing my eyes away from the TV. “We're running for our lives, not hanging out in hammocks.
No one invited you. You chose to tag along. Who secures locations and takes down hostiles while you kick back in the car? Must be nice.”

Giselle's frown deepened. “I don't kill anymore.”

My fists tightened. She was missing the point.

My raised voice roused
Tommy from his spot curled on the floor. He stood and went up to Giselle and nudged her leg. She ran her fingers over his head in slow
,
even strokes the same way she brushed her hair. Now that was just wrong. Dogs should sense evil. Then again, Giselle ha
d fed him last.

Dante stepped out of the bathroom, towel wrapped around his waist. Several stray droplets of water ran down his abs. Never mind the morning news. Dante's chest drew my attention more than the current weather map of the state. He wasn't alwa
ys good on the nerves, but he
wasn't bad on the eyes.

Fane had great abs too… at least as far as I could tell through his tee. He wasn't the all-American stud muffin with messy brown hair and a cleft chin
, w
hich made me love him more. He was one of a kind.

And yet here I was ogling Dante like he was man candy… man candy I'd sucked on. I had no right to think about Fane after kissing Dante.
There was no turning back. Unfortunately, I also had an infinite amount of time, and not thinking about Fane was like t
elling my lungs to stop breathing. Or my heart to stop beating.

Dante pulled clothes out of his duffel bag and headed back to the bathroom, but not before flashing me a dimpled smile.

I went back to watching TV, turning the volume up in case Giselle had th
e bad idea of addressing me again.

Dante soon re
-
emerged from the bathroom. He zipped his duffel and slung it over his shoulder. “All set?”

Sure, why not step into the frigid cold with wet hair?

With a jab of my thumb, I turned the TV off and set the remot
e on the nightstand. I put my coat on and grabbed my pack.

“Ready,” I said.

Goodbye
,
shower. Goodbye
,
bed
, I thought as I moved away.

Tommy stretched and followed Giselle and me outside.

The temperature seemed as though it had plunged since we first
checked in, or maybe I was becoming accustomed to heating.

Once Dante unlocked the doors, I chucked my pack into the
backseat
and Dante threw his duffel into the truck's bed. Tommy lifted his leg against the curb. Afterward, he jumped in, eager to hit the
road. As soon as the furball was in back panting happily, I settled into the middle seat.

Giselle got in on the other side.

The truck rumbled to life.

“And away we go,” Dante said, his voice lifting. He sounded cheerful, as excited as Tommy for the next a
dventure.

Oh
,
to be a dude or a dog. They seemed way more like the “go with the flow,” “why worry when you can be having fun” sort. Not a couple of grumbly girls like Giselle and me. She might be the queen of cool, but if her expression was anything to go
by, she was also seriously put out.

“Everyone all rested? All showered?” Dante asked cheerfully as he pulled onto the highway heading north.

“I've had more than enough rest. We have an entire lodge full of rooms. I didn't need to spend funds on a motel,” G
iselle stated.

“Are you on a budget or something?” I asked.

She turned her head sideways to look at me. “I'm always on a budget.”

Yeah, I guess. She had to make
the
money last as long as she did. Giselle hadn't come from money, not like Fane, not if she ha
d to rob graves to get by.

Speaking of budgets, I couldn't believe the agency printed black
-
and
-
white wanted
flyer
s rather than color copies. Hell,
high-gloss eighteen-by-twenty-four
posters for that matter. Giselle might need to pinch pennies, but Melcher
didn't.

I glanced sideways at Scrooge McVamp. “What did you and your family do to earn a living after you retired from the grave
-
robbing business?”