Chapter Sixteen
“Jilly? It’s Tessa. I need someone to talk to.”
“Is something wrong?”
“You could say that.”
“How about if we get together after church?” Jilly asked. “Or maybe you don’t want to wait that long?”
“The sooner, the better.”
“Well, why don’t you come over now? I’ll put the coffee on.”
“Thanks, girlfriend. You’re the best.”
“Right,” Jilly said, chuckling. “See you soon.”
“I’ll be there as soon as I get dressed.”
It was a bleary-eyed Jileen who opened the door twenty minutes later. “Let’s talk in the kitchen,” she said, stifling a yawn. “What’s this all about?”
“Just when you think things can’t get worse,” Tessa muttered, taking a chair at the table by the window.
“They do,” Jilly said, finishing her thought. “What happened?”
“He has a wife.”
Suddenly wide awake, Jilly blinked at her. “He’s married?” She shook her head. “A married vampire. Well, that takes the cake.”
“He hasn’t seen her in centuries.”
“Centuries? Good Lord. Don’t tell me, she’s a vampire too?”
Tessa nodded.
Jilly filled two cups with coffee, then dropped into the chair on the other side of the table. “So, why did she show up now?”
“She’s looking for me. But she doesn’t know it’s me she’s looking for.”
“For you? Why? Oh, the blood thing.” Jilly shook her head. “I can’t imagine why yours is different from anyone else’s.”
“Me either. But that’s only part of it.”
“There’s more?” Jilly sipped her coffee.
“Andrei said that, since she’s here, she wants to take up where they left off.”
“Oh, that’s not good, is it?” Jilly frowned. “Why doesn’t he just tell her to go to hell?”
“Apparently that’s not an option. She’s very old, older even than he is, and very powerful.”
“And?”
“He’s worried about what she might do to me.”
“Oh, crap.”
“That’s not the only troubling thing he said.”
“I don’t think I want to hear any more.” Jilly dropped two English muffins in the toaster. “Okay, tell me.”
“He said vampires aren’t the only supernatural creatures that are more than myth.”
“Oh, there’s good news,” Jilly said dryly. “Did he say what other scary creatures are running around?”
“He didn’t elaborate.”
“Well, I wouldn’t mind if one of them was Thor.” Rising, Jilly set butter, jelly, honey, and peanut butter on the table, along with a couple of knives and two plates. She spread peanut butter and jelly on her muffin.
Tessa opted for butter and honey. “You know, a couple of months ago my life was ordinary. Dull, even.”
“Did Andrei say how long his missus was staying?” Jilly asked, resuming her seat.
“No. But apparently she bores easily and he’s hoping she’ll soon tire of small-town life and go home.”
“Let’s hope.” Jilly refilled her coffee cup. “What are you going to do now?”
“I don’t know. I haven’t talked to Andrei since last night.”
“Well, I’m sure he’ll call you when he can.”
“I guess. One thing for sure, staying with him now is out of the question.”
“No kidding.”
Tessa sipped her coffee, thinking how glad she was to have a friend like Jilly, someone she could talk to, confide in.
Someone who could keep a secret.
* * *
Tessa was extraordinarily busy at work Monday morning, for which she was grateful, because it didn’t give her much time to think about Andrei or his centuries-old wife. Still, in those rare moments when she had a few minutes to spare, she found herself constantly wondering if she should stop seeing Andrei—at least until Katerina was no longer a threat.
When she wasn’t worrying about that, Tessa’s mind filled with images of Andrei and Katerina wrapped in each other’s arms. Andrei was a passionate man. Katerina was beautiful and she was his wife. He professed to hate her for what she had done to his family—to him. But he was a man, and men had been known to make love to women for whom they had no affection.
She was clearing her desk of the day’s work when her cell phone rang. “Hello?”
“How was your day, dragostea mea?” His voice was like liquid honey, warm and sweet.
“It was all right. I’m almost afraid to ask about yours.”
“It would be better if I was with you.”
“Are you and Katerina playing house?” She grimaced as soon as the words left her mouth. That was the last thing she wanted to know.
“So far we’re just hunting companions. Listen, I can’t talk long. I asked Luke to drive you home. I’m not sure our seeing each other is a good idea as long as Katerina is here. But if she’s with me, she won’t be looking for you. And you shouldn’t be in any danger as long as you’re inside before dark. I’ll call you when I can.”
Tessa glanced around to make sure no one was in earshot before whispering, “Did you find out why she wants my blood?”
But he had already disconnected the call.
* * *
Tessa didn’t know who was more nervous on the drive home—Luke, Jilly, or herself. She found herself constantly looking out the windows, jumping every time the car hit a bump.
She didn’t argue when Luke insisted on walking her upstairs to her apartment. Not wanting to be left alone, Jilly went with them.
After unlocking the door, Tessa switched on the porch light. “I’ll be all right now.” Reaching inside, she flipped the switch that turned on the lamps in the living room. “You two be careful going home.”
“We’ll be fine,” Luke said. “Nobody’s after us.”
“I’ll call you tomorrow,” Jilly said.
Nodding, Tessa shut the door and shot the dead bolt home. It was, she thought, going to be a long, lonely night.
* * *
As Andrei expected, Katerina was ready to go hunting as soon as the sun went down. Tonight, she wasn’t in the mood to play. In less than an hour, she drained two men and a woman. When she chose a teenage girl for her fourth victim, Andrei had no choice but to intervene. Knowing he was risking his sire’s wrath, he pulled the girl from Katerina’s grasp and wrapped a protective arm around her.
“Not this one,” he said.
Fangs bared, eyes burning with rage, Katerina glared at him. “What do you think you’re doing?”
“I won’t let you kill her.”
Katerina loosed an unladylike snort. “You think you can stop me?”
“I don’t know.”
“You’re a fool if you try.”
“Maybe. But I’m not a killer. Not anymore.”
Katerina charged toward him in a blur of movement, so fast he barely had time to push the girl behind him before his sire’s fangs ripped into his throat.
The pain was excruciating.
With his strength rapidly draining out of him, Andrei grabbed the girl’s arm, focused all his energy on Tessa, and willed himself and the kid to her apartment.
* * *
Tessa was about to go to bed when she heard a faint knock at the door. Fear spiked through her. Andrei wouldn’t knock. Had Katerina found her? Walls, Tessa thought as panic speared through her. She had to build walls.
Hardly daring to breathe, she drew the curtain away from the window and peered outside.
A teenage girl stood on the landing, her face deathly pale in the glow of the porch light, her brown eyes wide with fright.
“Tessa?” The girl knocked on the door again, harder this time. “Tessa? Are you in there?”
“Who are you? What are you doing here?”
“A man brought me. He’s bleeding. He said you’d take us in.”
A man? Bleeding? Andrei?
With a stake clutched in one hand, Tessa unlocked the door, gasped when she saw Andrei slumped against the railing. “Help me get him inside.”
Between the two of them, they managed to drag him into the living room. Tessa immediately closed and bolted the door.
Kneeling on the floor beside Andrei, she grabbed the dish towel she had left on the coffee table and pressed it against the ugly wound in his throat. The cloth, once white, immediately turned dark red. “What happened?”
Face pale, voice trembling, the girl said, “You probably won’t believe this, I can’t believe it myself, but a vampire wanted to feed on me.” She jerked her chin toward Andrei. “When he tried to protect me, she attacked him.”
“She?”
The girl nodded. And then, as if she were a puppet and someone had suddenly cut the strings, she dropped to the floor. Arms wrapped around her waist, she rocked back and forth while tears streamed down her cheeks.
“You’re safe now,” Tessa said, sitting back on her heels. “What’s your name?”
“Bailey. Is he going to be all right?”
“I don’t know.” Tessa bit down on her lower lip, wondering what she should do. Vampires were supposed to heal quickly, but when she lifted the towel, the wound was still raw and red. Still bleeding profusely. “Andrei?” She stroked his cheek. “Andrei, wake up.”
He blinked once. Twice. “Tessa?”
“I’m here.”
He looked up at her, his body tense, hands clenched at his sides. “Take care of the girl. Don’t let Katerina have her.”
Tessa glanced at Bailey, who was perched on the edge of the sofa, watching everything through eyes wide with disbelief.
“Don’t worry, I’ll look after her,” Tessa assured him. “But . . . why aren’t you healing?”
“Katerina bit me.”
Tessa frowned. “I don’t understand.”
“The bite of a master vampire can be deadly to us.”
A chill ran down Tessa’s spine. “Deadly?”
He nodded.
“What can I do?”
“Nothing. I need her blood to heal.”
“Then call her.”
“No!”
“Then take my blood. It won’t hurt you. Maybe it’ll help.”
His tormented gaze searched hers. Only Katerina’s ancient blood could save him, but if he was going to die, what better way to go than with the taste of Tessa’s blood on his tongue, her scent surrounding him?
He reached for her hand. Kissed her palm. Then bit into her wrist.
Tessa moaned softly, surprised by the sting of his fangs. His bite had never hurt before.
Eyes closed, Andrei drank slowly. Each drop sang in his veins. Warm. Sweet. It moved through him, reviving him. Strengthening him. Healing him.
Tempting him to take it all.
When he dared take no more, he sealed the wound in her wrist, then released her hand.
Feeling a little light-headed, Tessa took a deep breath before lifting the towel from his neck. The bleeding slowed. Stopped. The ragged edges of the ugly bite knit together even as she watched.
Shaking her head, Tessa looked at the drops of dark crimson smeared across her wrist. What kind of blood did she have, that it could cure a vampire’s wound? A wound that should have been fatal? Was Madame Murga’s prediction true after all?
Meeting Andrei’s gaze, she read the same question in his eyes.
* * *
Tessa sat beside Andrei, his hand clasped in hers. For all that his wound appeared to be healed, he remained lying on the floor, unmoving, his face pale, eyes closed. Tiny lines of pain bracketed his mouth. Her blood might have healed his external injury, Tessa mused, but what if Katerina’s bite had affected him internally? Psychologically?
Tessa frowned. It seemed odd that Katerina’s bite would have such a devastating effect on him when she had been the one to turn him into a vampire in the first place.
Not knowing what else to do, Tessa covered Andrei with the afghan she kept over the back of the sofa, then went into the bathroom to wash the blood from her hands and arm.
When she returned to the living room, the girl stood shivering in front of the window, looking out.
“Bailey, would you like to take a hot shower? I have some pj’s you can wear.”
The girl turned to face her. “You want me to stay here?”
“Do you have anywhere else to go?”
“No, but . . .”
“Well, then,” Tessa said briskly, “while you’re showering, I’ll fix you something to eat. It’s a little late for dinner. Breakfast, maybe?”
“Thank you.”
“The bathroom’s in there,” Tessa said, pointing the way. “Take as long as you like.”
Brow furrowed, Tessa stared after the girl. Was Bailey a runaway? An orphan? She was wan and thin and obviously scared. But then, who could blame her for being frightened after what she had been through tonight?
With a last glance at Andrei, who appeared to be asleep—did vampires sleep?—Tessa went into the kitchen and rummaged around in the fridge.
She had several slices of bacon, scrambled eggs, and toast waiting by the time her houseguest finished showering.
Tessa looked up when Bailey padded into the kitchen, her long, brown hair wrapped in a towel.
“Sit down,” Tessa invited, smiling. “Would you like something to drink? Juice? Milk? Or maybe some coffee?”
“Milk, please.”
Tessa poured a glass for Bailey and a cup of coffee for herself before taking a seat.
Bailey ate ravenously.
Tessa sipped her coffee slowly, surreptitiously studying the girl. Her jeans and T-shirt were faded and worn. There was a dark bruise on her left arm, a faint scar on her cheek. A dozen questions about her guest chased themselves through Tessa’s mind. Finally, she settled on the most innocuous one. “Do you live near here?”
“No.”
“Is there anyone you want me to call?”
“No.”
“You don’t have to tell me if you’d rather not, but are you in some kind of trouble?”
Bailey looked up, her expression bleak. “I ran away from my foster parents.”
There was a wealth of information in those few words and in the fear lurking in Bailey’s eyes.
“How old are you?”
“Sixteen.” Bailey swallowed the last of her breakfast, then drained the glass.
“Would you like something else? I have some cookies. They’re store-bought, but not too bad.”
“Yes, please.”
Tessa smiled as she carried the cookie jar to the table. “You’ll need more milk to wash those down.” As she refilled Bailey’s glass, the look of gratitude in the girl’s eyes nearly brought tears to Tessa’s own.
Bailey quickly put away half a dozen cookies, then sat back in her chair, her expression troubled. “He really is a vampire, isn’t he?”
“Yes.”
“I’ve heard about them on the news, but . . .” She shook her head. “It’s just so hard to believe they’re real. That he’s one of them.”
Tell me about it, Tessa thought. Aloud, she said, “You don’t have to be afraid of Andrei. He won’t hurt you.”
“I’m not afraid of him. But the other one . . .” Bailey shuddered. “She was going to kill me.”
“You’re safe now.”
“I don’t think I’ll ever feel safe again.”
“I know the feeling,” Tessa muttered. “But she can’t come in here uninvited. You must be tired. Why don’t you go to bed?”
“You won’t tell anyone I’m here? You won’t call the police?”
“No, I promise.”
“Do you want me to help you with the dishes?”
“No, thank you. Go get some rest. We’ll talk more in the morning.”
With a nod, Bailey left the room.
Tessa sat there for several minutes. Deciding the dishes could wait, she stacked them in the sink, then went into the living room to check on Andrei.
Only he wasn’t there.
* * *
Bailey sat on the edge of the bed, her hands clasped in her lap, trying to process everything that had happened that night.
She had been attacked by a vampire.
Another vampire had been injured saving her. Was he Tessa’s boyfriend? Her husband? She grimaced at the thought of anyone marrying a vampire, even one that was totally hot.
Did he live here?
Every instinct she possessed told her she should wait until Tessa went to bed and then run away just as fast as she could. And yet, where would she go? She couldn’t go back to the foster home. If Mr. Fischer touched her one more time, she was afraid she might kill him.
She didn’t want to live on the streets, begging for handouts. Or worse, sell her body for food and a place to stay. She had no real friends. The Fischers had insisted she come straight home from school to do her chores. Chores, she thought glumly. She did everything her foster mother should have done except sleep with her foster father. And she would rather starve to death in the gutter than let him put his fat, dirty hands on her again.
Maybe the best thing to do for now was stay here. She was clean and warm. No one would molest her here. No one knew what she was. The bed was soft. Her stomach was full for the first time in days.
Suddenly overcome with weariness, she crawled under the covers and closed her eyes.
* * *
Tessa wandered aimlessly through her apartment, too keyed up to sleep. Where had Andrei gone? Would he come back tonight? Where was Katerina? Who was Bailey?
Padding quietly down the hallway, Tessa peered into the guest bedroom. The girl had left the bedside lamp burning. Asleep, she looked even younger and more vulnerable than she had first appeared. Tessa started to turn the light off, then thought better of it. Maybe the girl was afraid of the dark.
Well, who could blame her? She’d had quite a fright tonight. And who knew what she had endured with her foster parents? Not all of them were kind to the kids they took in, she thought, recalling the ugly bruise on Bailey’s arm. Tessa shook her head. She had heard far too many stories about foster kids being abused, locked in cellars or closets for days at a time, molested, beaten. Killed.
Tessa knew she should call the authorities. Just because Bailey had run away didn’t mean her foster parents mistreated her. Teenagers were often rebellious. But Tessa couldn’t forget the fear and mistrust she had seen shadowing the girl’s eyes.
With a sigh, Tessa closed the door and tiptoed down the hall to her own room. Pets weren’t allowed in her complex, she thought as she slipped into her nightgown. But, for now, she was harboring a lost lamb.