My familiars have left the room. Or maybe the house. I don’t even know. And right now, I don’t care. Because all I can think about, all I want, is Lucas.
And then my phone rings.
“Dammit,” I moan, knowing nothing good comes from a phone call at two AM. “I’ll silence that.” I extend my hand, bringing my phone to me. I go to silence the call, but then I see who’s calling.
“What’s wrong?” Lucas asks, hands landing on my hips.
I flip the phone around to show him. “It’s the hospital.”
CHAPTER 9
“Hi,” I say as soon I’m through the ER doors. “I’m here to see Betty Jones.” I blink and shake my head. “Elizabeth. Betty’s just a nickname.”
The attendant types something into her computer. “And you are?”
The only emergency contact you could fucking find. “Callie Martin.”
“Are you family?”
“No, I’m—”
“I’m sorry,” the attendant says, not sounding sorry at all. She pushes her glasses down on her nose and peers over top. “Only family is allowed back into the ER.”
“Yeah, but someone—”
“Callie,” Lucas says, cutting me off. He steps in front of me, looking the attendant right in the eye. “You will let us back to see Elizabeth Jones. We are her family.”
“Yes,” the attendant says, slowly nodding her head. Her eyes are completely glossed over. She turns back to her computer, types something, and then turns back to us. “She’s in room seven. You can go through that door.”
Lucas blinks and takes my hand, leading me through the doors and back into the ER. I swallow my pounding heart and look at the numbers above each door. The ER at Thorne Hill Memorial isn’t that large, and it looks like it’s been a slow night. Nurses are gathered around the central nurses’ station, talking about their weekend plans, not paying much attention to us as we rush past and into room seven.
“Shit,” I say when I see Betty lying on the bed. She’s hooked up to a heart monitor and an IV. Lucas gives my hand a squeeze before letting go. “Betty?” I ask quietly as I go to her bedside. “It’s Callie. Can you hear me?”
Her eyes flutter open and closed.
“She’s been drugged,” Lucas says. “I can smell it in her blood. I’ve seen this before.” He strides over, looking down at Betty. Her lip is split, and while she’s been cleaned up, there’s still blood on her face. It doesn’t seem to bother Lucas, though. “And it’s not from vampires.”
“What are you trying to say?” I ask, but before he can answer a nurse comes in.
“Oh,” she exclaims, not expecting to see anyone. “I didn’t know Ms. Jones had visitors. And you are?”
“Callie,” I say. “I was called as her emergency contact.”
“Yes.” The nurse sets her clipboard down and rubs hand sanitizer on her hands. “I was the one that spoke to you. She’s lucky someone found her and called an ambulance.”
“Is she okay?” I ask.
“She’s stable,” the nurse replies. “Once her blood screen comes back, we’ll know more.”
“She was drugged,” I say. “I mean, look at her.”
“It’s one possibility,” the nurse says as she puts on rubber gloves.
“Does the blood screen look for Rohypnol?” Lucas asks, looking down at Betty.
“It looks for a wide variety of things. It’s one we’re looking for,” the nurse says.
“Was she assaulted?” I ask as a wave of nausea goes over me.
“You were the only contact we were able to get off her,” the nurse starts, “but that doesn’t mean I can disclose all information with you.”
“Hey,” I say, and the lights flicker. I stride over and grab the nurse’s wrist. She pulls back, but as soon as I feel her pulse point, I gain control. She stills and looks up into my eyes. “What happened to her?”
“She was found in an alley behind Bob’s Bar and Grill. Unconscious but fully clothed. The cops think someone might have intended to harm her but got scared of getting caught and left. The people who found her thought they saw someone running away as they approached.”
I release her wrist and shift my gaze to Lucas. “Distract her, please.”
He smiles, showing his fangs. The nurse screams, but in just a second, Lucas has her spellbound, silencing her while I go to Betty. I don’t want to prick her finger or slice her arm, but I need some of her blood. Hoping this doesn’t hurt her, I take the tape off the IV in her arm. Very carefully, I slide the needle back just a little and press on the vein. A tiny bit of blood pools around the needle, I run my finger over it and then push the needle back into her skin, sticking the tape down into place again.
I smear her blood onto my forehead and pick up Betty’s hand.
“Ostende mihi faciem praeterita,” I whisper. “Revelare faciem reus.” I close my eyes and see into Betty’s mind.
She’s at the store, closing up with us. Then she walks to her car…and someone comes and talks to her. I grip her hand tighter, feeling her blood growing hot on my forehead, and I strengthen the connection.
He takes her hand. I hear his voice echoing in my head. She’s walking into a coffee house with him, the one two blocks over from the bookstore. Finally, I get a view of his face, and I know exactly who he is. Mike Miller. He lives the floor above Betty in her downtown apartment and has been interested in her for a while. She’s too nice to tell him she only wants to be friends.
I wrap my other hand around Betty’s, seeing everything unfold. Mike asks her to go out for a drink. She tells him it’s too late and she wants to go home. He insists. He’s meeting friends there anyway.
She agrees, saying she’ll only stay for a bit and then head home. Things start to blur from there, and Mike gives her some sort of purple drink. And then everything starts to fade, and the last thing I see is Mike leading her to the back of the bar.
And then everything goes black.
I let go of Betty’s hand. “I know what happened.” I run my hand over her hair. “Don’t worry. He won’t get away with it.”
Stepping back, I look at Lucas. “Let’s go.”
“We were never here. You never saw us. No one came into this room,” he tells the nurse, who slowly nods. She blinks rapidly, and goes to Betty’s bedside, doing an assessment. I storm out of the ER room, and the lights in the hall flicker as I pass underneath them.
“I have to take care of something,” I tell Lucas once we’re outside in the parking lot. “If you don’t want to come, that’s fine. You can go.”
“The sun doesn’t rise until five-thirty. I have time.” He gets a devilish look in his eyes, and it’s mirroring the way I feel.
“Good. Then let’s go.”
I stand back, looking up at the door with doe eyes. There are two people right inside, shuffling about, and one doesn’t want the other to answer the door. He thinks it might be the cops.
The other looks out the peephole, and seeing me, undoes the chain on the door. Before he can open the door, I twist my wrist and open it for him. Shoving it open telekinetically, it hits the guy in the face.
“Mike Miller,” I say, stepping inside.
He’s sitting on the couch, looking guilty as fuck. And drunk. He reeks like a distillery. Two other guys are in the living room, holding PlayStation controllers. Some sort of shooting game is on the TV, and one of the guys flicks his eyes back and forth from the game to me.
“Sorry to interrupt the sausage fest, boys,” I say. “But I need to have a work with your boy Mike here.”
“Who the fuck are you?” he asks, springing up.
“I’m here on behalf of Betty Jones, and what you did is not okay.”
“Are you like a lawyer or something?”
I smile. “Or something.”
“Listen, lady,” Mike’s roommate says, rubbing his nose. “You better get the fuck out or I’m calling the cops.”
“Go ahead,” I reply sweetly. “Call the
cops. And them Mikey here can confess what he did.”
“That’s it,” the guy I hit with the door says. He’s drunk too and comes at me. I hold out two fingers and flick my wrist. The guy flies back against the wall. I hold him there and look at Mike. The other guys jump up, all going on the defense.
One of them, bloodshot eyes wide, takes a tentative step toward me.
“Ah-ah-ah,” I say, wagging a finger from my free hand at him. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”
“What do you want?” Mike asks, sounding on the verge of tears.
“First,” I start, stepping closer, “I want you to invite my friend in.”
“No fucking way,” one of the other guys cries out. “It’s a fucking vampire.”
I move my wrist, sliding Mike’s roommate up on the wall. He feverishly kicks his legs. Mike makes the mistake of looking at Lucas, who’s able to hold him spellbound just from that millisecond their eyes meet.
“I’d really like it if you’d invite me in,” Lucas says. Mike’s friends protest, and one makes a move to push Mike and break the hold. Using magic, I shove him back down onto the couch.
“You boys really need to learn to listen,” I tell them.
Mike’s head bobs up and down in response to Lucas’s words. “Come in,” he says to Lucas, who steps inside and comes up behind me. I inhale and release Mike’s roommate. He falls with a thud to the ground, panting for breath.
“This…this isn’t going to hold up in court,” Mike rambles. “I’ll tell my lawyer and he’ll get it thrown out.”
“Spoken like a true entitled white asshole,” I say with a cluck of my tongue. “But the thing is, I’m not a lawyer. You messed with one of my friends. So now I’m here to mess with you.” I step closer. “So, tell me. What exactly were you trying to accomplish when you slipped Betty Jones date-rape drugs? I want to hear you say it. To admit how pathetic you are.”
“I…I…I didn’t…” He holds out his hands. “Whatever you think happened. It…it didn’t. We’ve been here all night. And you…you’re trespassing. And assault. Yeah, you’re assaulting us!”
“Mm-hm.” I raise my eyebrows and look at Lucas. “Bite him. Tell me if he tastes like bullshit. Because that’s what he smells like.”
Lucas jerks forward, fangs bared. He doesn’t actually take a step, but it’s enough to scare the shit out of the guys. Mike lets out a yell and steps back, tripping over an empty pizza box.
“Fuck!” one of his friends screams.
“Get up,” I tell him. Mike scrambles to his feet.
“You can’t do this. My dad…my dad’s a lawyer…he’ll have you arrested.”
“No, he won’t,” I say simply and hold out my hand, palm up facing the ceiling. Slowly, I bring my fingers in, as if I was squeezing a stress ball. In a way, it’s like I am. Because this is some good therapy right here. Mike’s nose twitches and a strangled whimper of pain escapes his lips. He looks down at his crotch, not understanding what’s going on. I tighten the magical clamp a little more by bringing my fingers in closer to my palm.
“Now, give me one good reason I shouldn’t castrate you right here and right now.” I squeeze a little harder.
“I…I…I didn’t mean to hurt her.”
“Really? You didn’t mean to hurt her, but you drugged her and left her in an alley. She’s in the hospital right now with blood on her face. But that’s okay because you didn’t mean to hurt her?”
“That’s not what happened!”
“Bullshit.”
Lucas flinches forward, making the guys jump and scream again.
“I just wanted her to loosen up so I could get a little action.”
I’m seething, heart hammering in my chest. I wish I could get vengeance on every asshole with this mentality. Mike’s roommate makes a desperate run for the hall, but Lucas stops him, appearing at his side in just a second.
“She was all for it at first,” Mike goes on. He thinks he’s rationalizing his behavior, but really he’s digging himself deeper into the hole. “She wanted to go home with me. And then she just kind of passed out. I didn’t touch her after. But then a car pulled around back. I didn’t touch her, I swear! We left.”
“No shit, you left. You left her in an alley.” I tighten the clamp, bringing Mike to his knees with pain. “Now here’s what’s going to happen.” I drop my hand to my side, and he gasps for air. I crouch down next to him, grabbing his chin and turning his head up so I can look into his eyes. I move my fingers down on his neck until I can feel his pulse. I count out three beats.
“You’re going to call the police and tell them what you did. Do not spare a single detail. Tell them how your friends encouraged you to get a little action from an unconscious woman. Didn’t make any attempt to stop you. Helped you buy the drugs in the first place. Go ahead and turn in your stash of weed too.”
Mike moves his head up and down.
“And most importantly, you have no memory of me coming here tonight.” I let go and stand up, looking at Lucas. “Wipe their memories.”
“With pleasure.” He gives me a smile, purposely showing off his sharp fangs. I meant for him to only remove the memory of us coming in here, and I know he understands what I want. But it’s fun watching the other assholes squirm.
“Let this be a lesson for you boys,” I say, stepping over Mike. “In how to be a fucking decent human being. Treat everyone with respect. Or else I’ll be back, and I might not be in as cheerful of a mood as I’m in right now.”
Once Lucas is done with the roommate’s memory, he goes to the other two friends and is able to hold both spellbound at the same time. He’s the strongest vampire I’ve ever encountered, but he might be stronger than any I’ve read about as well. Because I didn’t know vampires could hold two people spellbound at the same time.
We leave the apartment, and I telekinetically shut the door behind me. I let out a breath, heart settling back into my chest, and walk back to Lucas’s Range Rover. As soon as we get to it, Lucas grabs me and kisses me, picking me up and pinning me against the door of his SUV. I wrap my legs around him, holding him as tight as I can.
“Come back,” I say between kisses. “To my.” More kisses. “My place. We still have like…like…” He moves his mouth to my neck, kissing and sucking my skin. Tingles shoot through me, awakening every nerve in my body. “A while until sunrise.”
Suddenly he breaks away and looks into my eyes. “When I do make love to you, Callie—and trust me, I will—I’m going to take my time.” He puts his mouth to my neck again, grazing his fangs over my flesh. “I’ll make it well worth your wait.”
He sets me down and gathers my hair into his hand, moving it over my shoulder. “You are unlike anyone I’ve ever met before.”
“You’ve met a lot of people.”
“Yes, I have. But you…you are exquisite.”
“No one has ever described me like that before.”
“Then they are fools,” he says, cupping my face with his large hands. And then it hits me, that for the first time I can be myself, powers and all, because my true self is exactly what Lucas wants.
CHAPTER 10
Yawning, I reach for my coffee only to remember it’s empty. Blinking to try to focus my hazy vision, I stand, pacing back and forth behind the counter in order to keep myself awake. Betty was on the schedule to open this morning, with Kristy coming in a bit later. I haven’t filled Kristy in on what happened last night, not wanting to wake her up and worry her. One of us needed to get a decent amount of sleep last night.
I sit back down, mind drifting to Lucas. He was in my dreams, however fleeting they were with the two hours of sleep I’m running on. And in my dreams, he fulfilled his promise of making it worth the wait. Multiple times, actually.
Thunder crackles from the clouds above, adding to the pittering of rain that’s been hitting the window all morning. I really wish I was back in my bed right now. Thunderstorms lull me to sleep like a baby.
; And will make the next hour or two go by slower than usual. I ring up two customers, and then the store is empty. The storm picks up in intensity, and I go to the window, watching the clouds swirl above.
Going back to the counter, I get out a map of northwest Indiana, spreading it out on the counter. I fill a black bowl with water and hold up a quartz crystal, invoking the powers before dropping it in the water.
I suck at any sort of divination, but if I can get even the smallest bit of insight to this Gatekeeper thing, I’ll give it a try. Clearing my mind, I look into the bowl, knowing the next person to come through the door will break my concentration.
“Where are you, motherfucker?” I mutter, looking into the water. My vision gets fuzzy, but it’s from being tired, not from channeling something. With a sigh, I sit up, stretching out the muscles in my back. Kristy comes through the front door, shaking off her umbrella and holding two coffees, thank the stars.
“Are you scrying at work?” she asks, coming over to the counter.
“More like falling asleep at work.”
She sets the coffees down and starts to head to the back to take off her raincoat. “Wait, you’re not supposed to be here today. Is Betty sick?”
“In a sense. She was drugged last night at a bar.”
“What?” Kristy’s blue eyes widen. “Is she okay? Oh my God.”
“She’ll be fine. And I tracked down the asshole who drugged her, taught him a little lesson, and then had him turn himself in to the police.”
Kristy gapes at me for a moment. “Why didn’t you call me?”
“One of us needs to be well-rested. You know…in case Zuul shows up in my fridge or something.”
“Good point. You’re sure Betty’s going to be okay?”
“Yeah. I checked on her at the hospital after we took care of—”