“Yes,” she said.

“Why don’t you kill Canady?” he suggested.

“Because I have learned not to kill.”

“Not good enough, Maggie,” he whispered against her lips, moving the knife slightly. “Try another kiss.

Taste my lips. Taste what you are.”

“Let Daniel go. Get that knife away from him.”

“All right.” He let go of Daniel. In a split second, the knife was pressed hard against her throat, and she realized he had the strength to sever her head from her body with little effort if he chose to do so.

“Come on, Maggie, now,” he whispered softly, sensually.

With his free arm, he pulled her closer.

“If you kill me, others will kill you. Lucian—”

“Lucian’s reign is ending. Can’t you see that? Has your precious Lucian come here to intervene? Lucian has no blood lust, and no power. Don’t you understand yet? I’ve spent all this time, nearly a hundred years, Maggie, learning greater power, greater strength. I’m not afraid of Lucian judging me. If I kill you, I’ll kill Lucian as well, and my reign will begin. Don’t make me do it, Maggie.” She exhaled on a long breath, meeting his eyes. Then true terror filled her, for she suddenly heard a voice.

A mortal voice.

“Let her go, asshole!”

Sean had come.

CHAPTER 19

Despite being a cop, despite everything he’d witnessed in all his years on the force, tripping over the corpse had nearly caused him to scream. Who was it, Jesus Christ, who was it, who lay there dead?

He fell to his knees.

Examining the poor dead woman had nearly made him ill.

Then the fear had set in, colder than any he had ever known, deeper than any pit of hell. His father.

What if this had been done to his father? To Maggie. The house was so silent. Silent and dark, while outside, the storm clouds seemed to whirl in a strangely purple sky.

He staggered to his knees, inhaled deeply.

Prayed for courage, as he’d never prayed before.

He wanted to shout out, call his father, call Maggie. He didn’t dare. His only chance was the element of surprise.

Nearly blind in the dark shadows of the house, he used his memories of a lifetime to inch his way through the rooms. The dining room was empty; the kitchen ominously silent. He went to the parlor, and then ...

Then he heard the voices. Heard the husky depth of Carter’s voice, taunting Maggie. He paused, dead still, as he listened to Maggie.

Bargaining for his father’s life.

He moved closer. He was as prepared as he could be.

Yet, fear moved him, and he came to the library door, and he saw Aaron with his knife at Maggie’s throat.

And he shouted out, raising his .38 special.

“You heard me! Let her go.”

The killer pushed Maggie aside, holding her with one arm. He leaned his other arm upon Daniel Canady’s head. With his eerily glowing eyes strangely alive in the shadows, he laughed at Sean.

“Let her go ... or what, big boy? Look, Maggie, sweetie, the cop has come. Why don’t you tell him that his bullets can’t kill me.”

Maggie, staring at Sean, swallowed hard.

“Tell him, make him understand!” Aaron said angrily. “Or I’ll rip his throat out!”

“Sean, you’ve got to go. You’ve got to turn around and go, please—”

“You heard her, big boy. Get out of here. If you do, when I get my hands on you—I’ll just kill you.

Short and sweet and simple. Give me trouble, big boy, and you’ll just wish that you were dead.” Maggie was at Aaron’s side. So was his father. Sean had to do something.

He heard noise to the side of the room. He didn’t dare glance away, but with his peripheral vision, he saw Cissy and Angie huddled against the wall. Angie was barely moving.

But her hands were on Cissy’s wrists; she was untying her friend. Aaron Carter meant to have a field day here. A glut of murder.

He was a cop. A crack shot. He couldn’t kill Carter with a bullet, but he could sure as hell hurt him. Buy some time for the others. Sean raised his .38 and aimed at Aaron’s head.

The shot sounded like a cannon. His aim was true. The bullet plowed into Aaron’s forehead.

Maggie screamed; Aaron cursed as he floundered backward. Sean felt one moment’s wild elation.

Then he realized that Aaron Carter, white faced and snake-eyed, was coming forward.

Maggie moved like lightning, taking one of his father’s massive old historical volumes from the desk. She slammed it against Aaron with a savage force. Aaron doubled over, gasping. Sean started forward, firing his gun again and again.

But when he reached the spot where Aaron had stood, he was gone. “Maggie! God, Maggie!” he cried out, clasping her in his arms, trying to see to his father at the same time.

“Your father probably has a concussion,” Maggie said quickly, touching his cheek, her hazel eyes shining with unshed tears. “Oh, Sean, you shouldn’t be here—”

“The girls, my father. Help me!” he said simply. He lifted his father’s dead weight from the chair at the desk. Maggie ran to Cissy and Angie. Angie was free. Her fingers fumbled with the ties that held Cissy.

“Come on, come on, up, are you all right?” Maggie asked anxiously. Cissy nodded, swallowing hard.

“Maggie, for the love of God, what is he? His strength ... we were helpless. We—”

“You’ve got to get out of here, fast, and send help, please, while Carter is weakened. Go! Can you drive, can one of you drive?”

“Yes!” Angie exclaimed. “Cissy, let’s go. Maggie, you’ve got to come with us—”

“No, we need to stay with Sean’s dad! Go, please, go, get to the police station, quickly!”

“Go!” Sean thundered, and the pair fled.

Sean had his father in his arms. He carried Daniel to a sofa, laid him down. He looked at Maggie.

“Where has Aaron gone?”

“I don’t know.”

“Will he die yet?” Sean demanded. No. He thought back to his encounters with the vampire. He hadn’t died in the morgue, and he hadn’t died in the cemetery.

She shook her head. “No,” she said softly.

Deep, eerie laughter seemed to fill the whole of the house.

Maggie’s beautiful gold eyes were on his. His features were taut. She was afraid. Not for herself. For him. He wanted to stroke her cheek. Assure her. How in God’s name could he do that?

“He’s not gone at all!” Maggie breathed. “Barely hurt!”

From outside, Sean heard the gunning of a motor. The girls, at least, had escaped.

Then he felt Carter.

Though he was crouched down by the sofa, Sean was suddenly picked up by what seemed to be a gust of black wind.

He struggled, trying to strike the force that held him in a death grip. Arms were around him, arms so tight he couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t see at all. He could only smell something foul, something like decay. He was stifling.

“Dead man, you’re a dead man!” Carter roared. “But I’m going to take you apart piece by piece!” He was thrown then, thrown hard. He landed with a cracking thud against the wall. Desperately, he tried to clear his head, to rise.

He saw Aaron then. Form and mass rather than shadow.

“Aaron! I’m the one you want to hurt!” Maggie cried. She was backing away from Aaron, trying to lead him away from Sean.

Then she changed tactics. She cried out suddenly, throwing herself against Aaron. But he started laughing again, the sound rising to mingle with an explosion of thunder from outside. “Do you think you’ll destroy me again, my love? Do you think I went away to heal for all that time without making sure I was stronger than you could ever hope to be? I’ve gorged on blood, Maggie, bathed in blood, swum in blood. I have a power you’ll never take, never in a thousand years ...” He was lifting her. Her fingers were around his throat and she was screaming and tearing into him. But her cries were fading away, and all her fury seemed fruitless.

Sean managed to get to his feet, took aim, and fired again. Rapidly. Careful not to hit Maggie. Damn, but he couldn’t get a clear shot at the head or heart ...

Maggie screamed again, clawing at Aaron as the bullets jerked their way into him.

He dropped her.

And suddenly, once again, he was gone.

A rush of foul, evil darkness swept around Sean. Arms encompassed him, bony fingers tore at his flesh, icy, cold, they lifted him ... threw him again.

He thudded to the floor. In pain. Arms wrenched, back, head, shoulders ...

He lay in darkness. He saw Maggie trying to stagger up. With tremendous force, he crawled his way to her.

“Where is he?”

“I don’t know. But he’ll be back.”

He dragged her into his arms. Met her eyes.

“Maggie, you have to do it. Make me one of you.”

She shook her head wildly. “No, Sean, let him take me, let him take me out of here. Maybe you’ll be safe then!”

“No, Maggie. Don’t you see? Nothing you do will change him. If he beats us, he’ll just be stronger.”

“Please, Sean, I couldn’t bear it if I brought about your death ... again. I love you, Sean, please—”

“Do it, Maggie.”

“You can’t kill him as a vampire, Sean. You’ll have lost your soul, and when you die that way... there is no forgiveness, no escape from eternal damnation.”

They heard the laughter again. Soft at first, growing louder. Looking beyond Maggie’s shoulder, he could see a huge shadow beginning to form on the wall.

“Do it, Maggie! I beg of you!”

“No, Sean—” she pleaded, kneeling before him.

“Damn you, do it, or we’re dead, and dozens more will pay, as well. Maggie, for the love of God!” He drew her against him, hard. He felt her tears fall on his flesh.

“Now, Maggie!”

“No!”

“Maggie! Don’t drain me, just taint me. I’ll have the strength, but I won’t be a true vampire.”