"I didn't want you to feel any obligation. I wanted it to be your own free will as much aspossible."
I hand the picture back to him and I feel so sad now, grief just under the surface. He touches my hand when he takes the pictureback.
"This upsets you," he says. "I'm sorry. I told you that Julien would stir thingsup."
I go back to the other bed and slip under the covers, staring at theceiling.
He comes over and sits beside me on the bed, leaning down to kiss me, but nothing more. Then he goes back to the other bed, turning back to thetelevision.
I turn over and face him, wondering why he's not going to sleep with me, wishing he would, but I try to be obedient, letting him decide what happens andwhen.
"Good night," I sayquietly.
"Good night, Eve." He clicks off the bedside light and there's just the flicker of blue light from thetelevision.
* * *
Sometime later whenthe sky is still pitch-black, I wake to find Michel in bed with me, spooned against me, his arms are wrapped around me, and he's kissing my neck. My body responds immediately to his touch, and I gasp when he turns me over and his mouth findsmine.
"I thought he'd take you from me," he whispers, his voice so fearful even now. "I can't loseyou."
Then I feel his teeth on the skin of my neck and I know he's in hunter mode for I can feel his fangs. They don't break my skin, just remind me that he's a vampire and that he could take me if he wanted. I want him to but hedoesn't.
Then he rises up and it's not Michel. It's Soren. I gasp and try to push him away, but he's toostrong…
My eyes fly open and I'm alone on the bed. It was just a dream. After a few moments of deep breathing to calm my racing heart, I get up and open the curtains to look at the airport. It's still dark out. Michel isn't on the other bed beside me and so I assume he's gone back to his own room. It's 4:00 a.m., and if I'm going on the early flight, we have to leave in half an hour. I need to getup.
I dress quickly and decide to go down to the restaurant, get a cup of coffee at the coffee shop. I slip on my jacket and boots, then leave the room. I go down the elevator but the hotel coffee shop is closed. I'll have to go to the one next to the hotel and out through a side door to the coffee shop. Before I get to the door of the well-lit parking lot, I stand for a moment and face the airport. A lone plane takes off directly overhead and for a while I just stand and stare up at the sky. The stars are bright enough despite the city lights that I can make out Cassiopeia and the BigDipper.
I walk with my head up, not paying attention to my surroundings, letting the feelings of relief at leaving Helena fill me, when I bump into a person walking in the opposite direction who grabs myarm.
"Oh, hell," I say, when I realized it's Julien. He's barely visible, wearing his long black trench coat and blackfedora.
"What in God's name are you doing walking around alone while it's still dark?" he says, his voice almost a hiss. "Have you nosense?"
"I was just gettingcoffee."
"At four in themorning?"
"Julien, Michel and Ed have agreed that we're flying back with Soren. I want to go on the first flight. I don't want to go back withSoren."
"Soren's not going to hurtyou."
I shake my head. He must have gotten to Julien aswell.
"Soren's compelled you,too."
"Quiet," he says, his voice low. He pulls me over between two parked semi-trailer trucks and pushes me against one. He presses his hand over my mouth and shakes his headquickly.
A lone man walks through the parking lot towards us. Julien pulls his coat around me as if to hide me from sight. I glance up at his face. He speaks in a quiet voice, his tone flat. "Don't say aword."
I try to get hold of myself, realizing that I'm in danger from whoever might be following me. I stand with Julien's arms around me until the man has gone to one of the other semi-trailers and then I try to pullaway.
"No. Just keep quiet for aminute."
I just stand there, waiting and Julien buries his nose in my hair and neck, inhalingdeeply.
"Christ, Eve," he says. "Why in hell would you think of going out alone? Have you learned nothing about the danger you'rein?"