The vampire looked at the redhead. She’d moved back into view, holding her cheek. The shadow pushed her hand away, and ignored the shudder that went through her. “My apologies,” he murmured, healing the reddened flesh with a touch.
“I won’t do it,” she told him, her voice shaking. “I can’t—”
“Shh.” He dragged a finger down the side of her face. From a human, it would have been an affectionate or possibly sensual gesture. In this case . . . it reminded Mircea of nothing so much as a horseman soothing a startled filly. It reeked of possession.
But it seemed to work.
The redhead’s eyelids fluttered, and she sank down beside the wall, her head already lolling.
“Sleep.” He told her. “Forget.”
And then she was out.
Chapter Thirty-eight
“Hey. Hey, wake up.”
I grumbled and turned over. Or I tried. But my knee hit something, and a loud horn blasted my eardrum, and I sat up abruptly.
And hit my head.
“Take it easy!”
My eyes focused on Fin, who was peering in the car door down by my feet.
“So, you want the cherry slushie or—” He stopped, and squinted at something neon blue in an oversized cup. “Whatever the hell this is?”
I blinked at him, slowly realizing that I’d been sleeping in my car.
He pushed the cups at me again.
“They didn’t have cola?” I croaked.
“Like I know. I don’t got a charm with me, so whaddya think’s gonna happen if I go in the store like this?”
I took a cup from him. It was cold. “Then who did?”
He looked at something over my shoulder, and I twisted around. To see a massive silhouette against a glittering skyline, a bunch of dark water, and a half-sunk boat. And a little wild-haired woman standing on a rock dabbing at a hulk’s shoulder.
“Wha’ happened?” I asked blearily.
“We started to take on water. Don’t you remember?”
Vaguely.
“Ah, you were high as a kite, on all those disorienting charms. Whaddya do? Take one full in the face?”
“A crate full.” And now I had the hangover from hell.
“Yeah, and who knows what else was in there. Why didn’t you just run out the door, like the rest of us?”
I glared at him around the side of the ICEE I was holding to my throbbing head. “Gee. Why didn’t I think of that?”
“Ah, sarcasm. Good. Means you’re okay.”
“Wait.” I’d slumped down and now I sat up. And hit my head again. Son of a bitch! “How’d I get the car?” I called after Fin, who had started walking back toward the gas station we were parked beside.
And was almost hit by a truck barreling into bay number two.