Flowers and Fangs (Stake and Dust series, Book II) (9 page)

"Why do that when I own a perfectly fine set
of tools that allows me access to pretty much wherever I want to
be?"

He shook his head. His sister did what she
pleased, but heck who was he to complain, so did he. His gaze slid
to the tall warrior-built man standing behind her. He'd given
permission for the vampire to enter his house when he spoke to his
sister over the phone. So he wasn't surprised a vampire stood in
his house as welcomed as any human visitor. "You must be Tremayne
Graystone." He offered his hand, wondering if the vampire would
accept it.

Tremayne smiled and gripped his hand in a
firm hello. "Cassandra speaks highly of you."

"She'd better." He chuckled. His gaze shifted
to Sloane, who was still hesitant to venture closer. "It's all
right. It's my sister and her…fiancé."

She took the steps to reach him and he pulled
her close, wrapping his arm around her waist. "This is Sloane
McBride."

Cassandra glanced at Sloane, but then her
gaze landed on where his hand rested. Her eyes sought his with a
curious glint. He let his arm fall away, wondering when he'd become
so possessive of Sloane. "Sloane, this is Cassandra, my sister and
Tremayne Graystone," he said, giving a more formal
introduction.

"Hello." She gave them a tentative smile.

Tremayne didn't say anything for a long
measured moment as his unnerving blue eyes assessed Sloane. "How
long ago were you bitten?" he asked her.

With the formalities out of the way, Derek
assumed it was back to business.

"Three days ago…I believe." Sloane licked her
lips nervously and she unconsciously stepped closer to Derek.

"It's all right, Sloane," he reassured her
and threw Tremayne a warning look that all but said:
You better
not prove me wrong.
Damn if the vampire's lips didn't
twitch.

"Sloane," Tremayne said her name like a
caress. "No harm will come to you here."

Sloane's grip on Derek's arm lessened. "No
harm will come to me here," she repeated in a singsong voice.

"That's right," Tremayne told her.

"What the hell are you doing?" Derek took a
step toward the vampire, but Cassandra placed a hand on his arm,
halting his advances. He didn't spare her his infamous glare.

She snorted, clearly not fazed. "Tremayne
will not harm her," she told him.

He hesitated. He may not trust vampires, but
his sister trusted
this
one. He could give Tremayne the
benefit of the doubt.

"Tell us, Sloane," Tremayne said in the same
calm tone. "What happened the night you were bitten? Remember no
harm will come to you. You'll feel no fear when you recount the
event. Do you understand?"

Sloane nodded. "Yes. Tim came over to the
house. I fixed dinner." Her lips curved as she remembered. "I made
chicken Parmesan, all fresh ingredients and with homemade tomato
sauce. I don't usually cook so this was special."

"I'm sure it was delicious, but tell me about
Tim. How was he that night?"

Her features darkened and she licked her lips
nervously. "It was supposed to be a special night, but Tim was
edgy. He wanted to skip dinner and move things to…the bedroom." She
chewed on her lower lip. "I really like Tim."

"I'm sure you do," Tremayne agreed.

"It's just that…he seemed different, really
pushy, and… he was so rough."

Derek harrumphed and Cassandra shot him a
look to be quiet.

Tremayne didn't miss a beat. "Did he bite
you?"

"Yes. It hurt and I tried to make him stop,
but he wouldn't. Tim, please..." She had slipped into the past and
was reliving the moment when Tim had bitten her. "Please, you're
hurting me. Stop it! Stop it!" She grabbed at her neck and her
breathing became labored.

Tremayne gripped her shoulders. "You're safe,
remember? You are just telling me the story. You aren't there.
You're seeing what unfolded from afar. Do you understand?"

Her hands fell to her side and she nodded. As
soon as her breathing slowed to normal, Tremayne continued his
questioning.

"Good, Sloane. You're doing well. Now, you're
standing in the room and you can see Tim and yourself. Is Tim
offering you his blood?"

Her brows furrowed.

"You'll answer me, Sloane." Tremayne's voice
was still even toned, but he left no room for her to disobey his
demand for the truth. "Did Tim offer his blood to you?" he
repeated.

"I didn't want to drink blood." She shook her
head.

Derek cursed, which won him another glare
from his sister.

"I know you didn't want to drink," Tremayne
said patiently. "But I need to know: Did you drink Tim's
blood?"

"After he bit me, I passed out, but when I
awoke again, Tim was holding me. I felt weak and I couldn't fight
him."

"Go on."

"He bit his wrist then pressed it to my lips.
I…" she took a deep breath. "I drank." Her brows furrowed and her
tongue slid over her lips. "It didn't taste as bad as I thought it
would." She licked her lips again and her brows furrowed. "Why
doesn't it taste bad?"

"Remember, you are a bystander. You aren't
tasting the blood now."

She nodded. "Tim picked me up and laid me on
the bed. Then he left."

Derek rubbed a hand over his face and inhaled
deeply.

Tremayne glanced at him. "Do you want her to
remember? I can make her forget this conversation if it is your
wish."

"I won't lie to her. But— can you tell her
not to be afraid."

Tremayne nodded and looked at Sloane again.
"You will remember our conversation and what Tim did, but it will
not frighten you now. You will recall it like a dream."

"…a dream," she repeated.

"Aye. Now rest. Sleep."

"Sleep. Yes." Her eyes closed and her body
went limp, but Tremayne easily caught her and lifted her into his
arms. She rested her head against the vampire's chest with a
sigh.

For reasons Derek didn't wish to admit, it
irked him that she looked so comfortable in the vampire's arms.
"May I ask why you told her to sleep? He didn't bother to hide his
irritation.

"If you haven't realized, she's
exhausted."

He noticed, but it didn't make seeing Sloane
in the vampire's arms any less disturbing.

"Not that I don't mind holding her," Tremayne
said with amusement, "but do you have a place where she can rest
comfortably?

"I'll take her." He didn't want the vampire
to hold her another moment. Tremayne relinquished his bundle
without a fuss and stepped away, giving him room to pass by. He
cleared his throat and didn't glance at his sister or Tremayne as
he headed down the hall. "I'll be right back."

Derek held her close and her hand rested on
his chest. God, she felt good in his arms. Soft and feminine, and
her hair smelled like her shampoo, a pleasant aroma he was learning
to identify as
her
.

He placed Sloane on his bed and covered her
with a comforter his mother had made for him. She snuggled onto her
side with a sigh. He wished now he had placed her on the other side
of the bed. His pillow would smell like her. That's all he needed
to have: her scent teasing him when he needed a few hours of
shuteye.

He left the door slightly ajar and joined his
sister and Tremayne in the kitchen. His sister had made a pot of
coffee. "There's cream in the refrigerator," he told her.

"Already found it." She gestured toward the
creamer on the counter. She poured two cups and handed him one.

Derek eyed Tremayne over the rim as he took a
generous swallow. The vampire leaned against the countertop with
his arms crossed over his chest. He wore jeans and a T-shirt,
nothing that claimed he was a badass vampire, but the man was
rugged and built like a warrior—an original vamp. He'd seen battles
where the bards sung about the warriors' bravery.

"I know Sloane needed rest," Derek blurted
out, "but I also know you had another reason to send her to
bed."

Tremayne nodded. "Intuitive like your sister,
I see."

He harrumphed. "Let's get to the point
here."

"Sloane was infected by the blood of the
Nosferatu, a Romanian sept."

Derek lifted his shoulders in a shrug. "Yeah,
tell me something I don't know."

"Meaning there's no doubt in my mind: She
will turn. It's just a matter of when. The Nosferatu's bite is like
a poison that spreads through the bloodstream, mutating it."

Derek placed his coffee cup down and cursed
under his breath. "Again, tell me something I don't know."

"I know you care about the girl," Tremayne
said.

"I just met her," Derek barked. A total lie,
but he wasn't getting into that now. He cared about Sloane, cared
about what would become of her, and dammit he didn't want her to
become a being he'd be forced to hunt down and stake.

His sister rested her hand on his shoulder.
"It's all right to feel something for her. I understand what you're
going through."

He glanced at Cassandra. Of course she
understood. She fell in love with a vampire. Not that he was saying
he was in love with Sloane, but he felt responsible for her and he
liked her. He really liked her. "What the heck is wrong with us,
Cass? We're hunters for Christ's sake. We rid the world of beings
that would sooner see the humans vanquished than learn to live
among them in peace. This has been the Hayes Family's motto for
centuries."

She nodded. "But not all preternatural beings
are evil. You know I'm right. Why else would you have called
me?"

He squeezed his eyes closed and hoped the
throbbing behind them wouldn't develop into a full on migraine.
"What am I doing?" He somehow lost his way. He'd let a pair of
beautiful blue eyes hamper his decision to do what he'd been
trained to do. Sloane was infected by the most evil of septs. Their
bloodlust was unmatched. No matter how kind Sloane was now, she'd
lose that compassion in the end.

He knew what he had to do. He opened his eyes
and turned, jerking open the top drawer where his utensils were
kept. Behind the organizer, a dagger lay in waiting. He gripped the
hilt and withdrew it. He stared at the sharp blade, the light
overhead glinting off the shiny surface.

"Are you sure that's what you want to do?"
Cassandra asked him.

He frowned with indecision. His sister
wouldn't stop him if he headed down the hall and ended Sloane's
life. He glanced at Tremayne who stood there with his arms folded
against his chest and eyeing him with curiosity. He supposed
Tremayne could spring to life and restrain him, but he had a hunch
the vampire would not make a move. They were letting him make the
final decision. It was easy to kill a fiend, but not so simple when
the vampire had a name and a sweet smile to go with it.

He lowered the weapon and leveled his gaze on
Tremayne. "Can you help her?" He couldn't believe he just asked a
vampire to help another through the change.

"Aye, but you may not like the process."

"I already don't like it. So go on, tell me
your grand plan."

"It would require her drinking blood from my
vein for a few days in hopes of counteracting the Nosferatu's
effects. Then I would have to complete the process of changing her
completely."

Which meant Tremayne would drain her dry so
she could awaken as a vampire. If he allowed this he was aiding and
abetting. It stood against everything he'd been brought up to
believe. "There's no other way? There's no cure?"

He shook his head. "But changing her and
hoping she doesn't reject my blood is the least of our problems.
The Nosferatu are possessive creatures. Her boyfriend will be back
to finish the job he started. Three bites before she will be under
his control. He's already completed the first and she drank from
him. With the second bite, she will be his minion, and the final
bite, she will be just like him. They'll be the Bonny and Clyde of
the vampire world, and I assure you their rampage will be long and
bloody. A mated Nosferatu is a binding ritual. They'll be able to
read each other's thoughts immediately. In other vampire septs it
takes training and even then it is sketchy at best."

"You're saying Tim will keep coming after her
unless we stop him?"

"Aye, it is a guarantee," Tremayne said
without hesitation.

"Maybe we could use this to our advantage,"
Cassandra spoke up and both Tremayne and Derek stared at her.

"We need to put an end to Tim, but we need to
find him. We have what he wants. All we have to do is—"

Derek knew where his sister was going with
this and he didn't like it. "No. We aren't using Sloane as bait."
The demand flew from his lips before he could recall it.

His sister's brows lifted. "Why not? It's a
good plan."

"Because…" He looked to Tremayne then to his
sister again. Cassandra was right. It was a solid plan, one that
was sure to work, but… "It's too risky."

"Too risky?" Cassandra's voice rose. "Just a
moment ago you were ready to march down the hall and dust her."

"I…" He stared at the dagger he still held in
his hand. "What the hell am I doing?"

Tremayne smirked. "I guess falling for a
vampire runs in the family."

"Shut up!" Both Derek and Cassandra said at
the same time.

Cassandra rolled her eyes at Derek and he
shook his head. "I haven't fallen for her," he voiced, but even to
him his claim fell short. If his parents hadn't dragged him out of
high school to hunt a pack of werewolves in Oregon who knew where
Sloane and his relationship would have gone. He'd been halfway in
love with her then. Maybe this was the attraction. The
what
if
… "It just… We shouldn't make the decision for Sloane. Let me
speak—" Footfalls in the hall caught his attention and a second
later, Sloane stood in the archway between the living room and the
kitchen.