Chapter 13
Cori
Cori fought through the dredges of deep slumber. Something niggled at her senses, telling her she needed to wake up. She had tossed and turned for the most of the night and didn’t fall asleep until sometime after three in the morning. It didn’t feel like it had been more than a few hours since then. What was bothering her now?
She cracked open an eye, wincing at the bright light coming through her bedroom window. Didn’t she close those curtains the night before? Slowly, she scanned her gaze across the room, starting at the far corner and moving toward the doorway where a man hovered there. He leaned his shoulder against the frame with his arms crossed and amusement glinting in his amber eyes. Several strands of his light brown hair covered his face, obscuring the burn scars on one side. Cori jerked upright in bed.
“Bartol!” she yelled. “What are you doing here?”
“Waiting for you to wake up,” he said in a dry tone.
Cori glared at him. For the past few days, he’d avoided coming anywhere near her until the moment she needed “transportation.” How he knew exactly when she was ready, she had no idea, but she had her suspicions. Bartol could turn invisible if he wanted. All he had to do was wait until the right moment and then grab her before she knew what was happening. One moment she’d be in her cabin and the next at the shop. No chance to negotiate kissing or even get more than a few words of conversation before he disappeared again. To say she was getting frustrated would have been an understatement. Had her kiss been that bad? He’d been treating her like she had a contagious disease ever since.
“Knocking on my front door would have worked, too,” she said, scowling. He might have finally decided to show his face for more than a few seconds, but she was still angry with him.
Bartol straightened and took one step into the room before catching himself. He’d almost forgotten to keep his distance. Good. She was glad to see she was cracking the walls he’d put up around himself, but she still had a lot of work to do.
“I did knock—several times.” Bartol’s lips thinned. “When you didn’t answer, I got worried.”
“For me?” Perhaps he cared after all.
“No, for the cat.”
She pretended confusion since she didn’t have any pets. “What cat?”
“Exactly. Who else would I mean?”
Cori smiled, no longer disturbed to find him in her bedroom. “Admit it. You really are getting attached to me.”
His jaw hardened. “I owe it to Melena to keep you safe. That is all.”
“If that excuse helps you sleep at night.” She stretched, making a big show of it. With the thin camisole she wore, her nipples peaked right through the material. “But I know different, and you’re here for more reasons than you want to admit.”
Bartol’s gaze dipped for the briefest moment before lifting to meet her eyes, and his expression hardened. “Has anyone told you that you’re infuriating?”
She relaxed from stretching and ran a hand through her hair, horrified to find it a tangled mess. No wonder he’d appeared amused when she’d woken. She had to look horrible. Then again, he hadn’t fled, so that was a good sign.
“Yes, I’ve heard that before,” she replied, finger-combing her hair and wincing when she caught a knot. “You’re gonna have to try harder if your goal is to insult me.”
“It’s not.”
Cori lifted a brow. “Then why are you here?”
“I met your former husband’s parents yesterday. They haven’t seen him and neither has anyone else we’ve talked to.” Bartol went on to describe how his and Tormod’s previous day went.
Their first stop after visiting Martin and Ruth had been to take the picture they got of Griff over to Derrick. The alpha werewolf confirmed he had not seen that particular vampire, but he would copy the photo and send it out to the sups in the area so they could be on the lookout. After that, Bartol and Tormod had gone to visit a few of Griff’s former friends and co-workers. Every one of them, even under compulsion, swore they hadn’t seen him in years. If Cori’s ex was somewhere in the Fairbanks area, he was doing a damn good job of hiding his presence—except when he came around to harass her.
She sighed. Her life had a way of twisting and turning on her, especially whenever things became too good. She should have known something would put a wrench in the new life she’d built for herself after losing her daughter.
Griff had always been cunning and a master at manipulating circumstances to go his way. It didn’t help that he knew the area well from when he used to hunt and fish during his spare time. The man could be anywhere within a hundred-mile radius for all they knew, which was a lot of ground to cover. Alaska was a large place with difficult to reach areas where he could hide for months without them finding him.
“I’ll call Melena and see if she’s got any other suggestions for what to do,” Cori said, wondering if she could talk the sensor into doing an active search with her supernatural radar. It would be massively time-consuming, especially with Mel’s schedule already being rather busy, but even if she just spent an hour or two per day scanning areas with her senses, it might turn up something.
“No need. I already talked to her, and we came up with a simple solution.”
Cori lifted a brow. “What’s that?”
“Do you know the mystic, Yvonne?” he asked.
“Yeah.” An image entered her mind of an older woman who used to run a tarot card reading place at Pioneer Park until her health forced her to stay closer to home. Yvonne could still do some powerful magic, but she tried to limit her activities these days since it took a heavy toll on her. “What about her?”
“If you have something meaningful that used to belong to your former husband, the mystic might be able to use it to track him,” Bartol said, then his expression soured. “But it would need to have strong emotional significance to him for the connection to work.”
Cori considered it. She hated to bother the older woman with her problems at all, but Griff would likely escalate his attacks from here on out. They needed to do something soon to stop him before things got any worse. “I still have our old wedding rings.”
“You kept them?” Bartol asked, surprised.
“Yeah. To remind myself why I should never get married again or emotionally involved with a man who could use my feelings against me.” She threw the blankets off of herself and hopped out of bed, letting Bartol see that all she wore was cream lace underwear with the matching camisole. Cori gave him a saucy look. “But fucking is still on the table.”
His face reddened, and he took a step back. “There are far more suitable men than me for you to slake your needs.”
Cori took a few steps closer, noting he practically strained to stand still and not run away. She stopped right in front of him and let him get a good look at her. The man was never going to get over his fear of being close to people if she didn’t do something to help him along. She spoke in a low, husky tone, “Don’t sell yourself short, Bartol. I have complete faith that you are worth ten regular men in bed.”
He worked his throat, and his gaze dipped to the swell of her breasts where they rose from her camisole. His attention lingered there for a long moment before he met her eyes again. “I’ll give you an hour—be ready when I return.”
“Sure,” she agreed, cocking her head to the side. “Clothes or no clothes?”
“Be fully dressed,” he growled.
Before she could respond, he flashed away. She checked the clock on her nightstand and realized it was barely eight in the morning. Couldn’t the man have come a little later? It wasn’t like they had to account for driving time, and she didn’t have to be at work until shortly before noon. Something told her he was a morning person, whereas she was a night owl. Thank God she wasn’t looking for a lasting relationship, or they’d never work out.
***
They arrived on the lawn in front of Yvonne’s house—a quaint place in the midst of a forest with no other homes nearby. Bartol’s arms were wrapped around Cori’s waist where he’d held her while flashing. In his usual fashion, he tried to jerk away once she stopped swaying from dizziness, but she gripped his wrists to stop him.
“It feels good when we’re close together like this,” she said, craning her neck around to bat her eyelashes at him. “Don’t you think?”
He leaped away from her like she’d just burst into fire. “No. It does not.”
It was too bad Melena wasn’t around to confirm whether he was lying or telling the truth. “If you say so.”
He narrowed his eyes. “You must cease with these flirtations. I’m not interested.”
“Not even a little?”
Bartol rubbed his face, taking a few seconds to answer. “Hardly.”
Cori chose to take that as an admission that there was at least something going on between them. She’d seen his expression when she’d climbed out of her bed and come toward him. The abuse he’d suffered in Purgatory might make him want to avoid physical contact, but the man still had needs.
While she wasn’t one to throw herself at just anyone, there was something about him that attracted her. Not enough to make a lifetime commitment, which would be impossible anyway with him being immortal, but she wanted to help him get past his trauma. Maybe if she did that, there would be hope for her as well. The primary difference between them being she hid her pain and fears better—most of the time, anyway. Griff resurfacing recently didn’t make things easier, but hopefully he’d be gone soon.
That thought reminded her why they were here. “Fine, pretend you don’t like me if that makes you feel better. Let’s just go talk to Yvonne.”
Bartol opened his mouth and shut it. Seeing he wasn’t going to refute her, she spun on her heels. He trailed behind her as they made their way up to the front door. Most houses in Alaska were built off the ground because of the heavy snow that lingered all winter. A lot of people had front steps of some sort, and this place was no exception. After reaching the top, she rang the doorbell. It took a full minute before anyone answered, and when they did, it was the mystic’s daughter rather than Yvonne.
“Hey, Diane.” Cori smiled at the middle-aged woman with long, dark brown hair that showed hints of gray. She was short and a little on the plump side, but she carried her weight well, and she had the sweetest heart-shaped face that instantly made you want to befriend her. “Sorry to bother you, but we need to talk to Yvonne.”
Diane looked at her with an exhausted expression. “My mother is in the hospital. She had a heart attack last night, and she’s been in and out of consciousness ever since. I just came home to pick up a few things before going back.”
“Oh, I’m so sorry,” Cori apologized, feeling awful that they’d disturbed the woman during such a horrible time. If not for the fact that traveling with Bartol was so quick and easy, she might have at least called before coming. “Is Yvonne going to be okay?”
Diane rubbed her face. “The doctors are hopeful, but it’s too early to tell yet.”
“Is your son with her?” Cori hadn’t seen any sign of the teenager.
“Yes.” She nodded. “He volunteered to stay while I came home. I think he’s even more worried than me about Mom, but I think she’s still got a few years left in her—if she takes it easy.”
Something told Cori that the woman wasn’t guessing and may have “known” that to be true. Diane was a mystic as well with her own special powers. Too bad this wasn’t a good time to ask her for help instead.
“Okay, well, we’ll just go. Sorry again to have disturbed you, and please tell your mother that I hope she gets better soon.” Cori started to turn away.
“Wait,” Diane said.
She turned back and gave the mystic an inquiring look.
“Give me your hand.” She reached out hers. “I feel there’s something I need to tell you, but I just can’t quite…” she trailed off.
A chill ran down Cori’s spine. Even though she’d been around supernaturals and magic for well over a year, some things still gave her the creeps. A woman with the power to “see” into a person’s future was one of those things. Diane was known for making dire predictions, which was why she rarely used her abilities and preferred to work a normal job instead.
After a moment more of hesitating, Cori gave the mystic her hand. They stood staring into each other’s gazes for more than a minute before breaking apart. Diane let out a long breath that she’d apparently been holding. “You’re in danger, though I suspect you know that. There are many difficult paths that lie ahead, and I can’t say which is the one you will take because that remains unclear, but none of them will be easy. Some will even lead to your death. The one thing you must know above all else is that you cannot survive the transition into becoming a vampire, so do not even attempt it.” The woman turned her gaze to Bartol. “If you protect her, she might stand a chance.”
Cori gulped. She hadn’t ever considered turning into a vampire—primarily because it was too dangerous. Only half of the people who tried it survived, and those that didn’t suffered horrific pain before succumbing to death. Except for those who didn’t care about the odds, most humans didn’t consider it unless they were already at death’s door. That would be the only reason Cori might make the choice, at least until now. It troubled her that Diane saw that decision might come soon, especially with all the measures they were already taking to stop Griff.
“Thank you for the warning,” Cori said.
Diane nodded. “You and Melena saved my family and me once. As I recall, you hit several DHS agents over the heads with shovels to stop them from taking us.” A hint of humor took over the sadness that had been in her eyes. “Not many people—particularly humans—would have stepped into that fight. I figure I owe you this much.”
Cori remembered that day very well. She had a slight authority problem, so when she and Melena caught the DHS agents at Yvonne and Diane’s house trying to take them away, it had been the perfect excuse to take out her frustrations on the government. That was back when the Department of Homeland Security had just discovered supernaturals and were kidnapping them for study. She and Mel had worked together to stop them. It was ironic that the sensor went on to work for the agency, but the position allowed her to make sure they didn’t try something like that again.
“Are you kidding?” Cori grinned, relieved to discuss a lighter topic. “I should have paid you for the opportunity.”
Diane smiled and shook her head, then addressed Bartol. “Keep a very close eye on this one. If she’s left to her own devices, who knows what trouble she might get into.”
“Truer words have never been spoken,” the nephilim said.
“Hey.” Cori slapped him in the chest, and he jolted in surprise. “Life isn’t worth living if you always play it safe.”
He gave her a look that said he’d learned otherwise. “I forget how young you are.”
“No.” She lifted her chin. “You forget that my time is finite, so I have to make the most of it.”
Diane cleared her throat. “If you two don’t mind, I need to finish up here.”
“Oh, right.” Cori gave her an apologetic look. “Sorry.”
The mystic’s expression warmed. “It was nice to have my mind taken off of my own problems for a few minutes. I hope things work out for you two.”
“For us?” Bartol asked, lifting a brow.
“I think you know what I mean,” she said sagely.
While he stuttered, she shut the door.
Cori gave him a moment before asking, “So what do we do now, boss?”
“Good question.” He gave her a tired look. “But I’ll think of something.”
“I’ve got some ideas.” She ran a finger down his chest, testing him.
“I’m certain you do,” he said, and before she knew it, he’d grabbed hold of her and transported them back to her cabin. Cori barely had the chance to blink at her spinning surroundings before he disappeared.
“Damn him.” She pressed a hand to the nearest wall to keep from falling. “He’s not going to run from me forever.”