Kindred

  He led her slowly over to the bed. The blankets were pulled back from where she had laid before he arrived. He stared at the bed, wanting nothing more than to crawl in beside her and hold her tight. She sat down, her head bent, her golden hair tumbling forward in luxurious waves.

  Sliding her legs onto the bed, the t-shirt she wore pulled back slightly to reveal a mouth watering view of her creamy thigh. Devon tightened everywhere, stiffening as more than just bloodlust tore through him. Then she looked at him again, her face bright red, her innocence almost intolerable.

  Lifting her hand to him, she moved over. “Lie with me for a little bit.”

  For a moment he could almost feel his heart trip hammering, almost feel it turning over in his chest with a fierce slam that shook the place where it had once beat. She was testing the very limits of his control, nearly destroying the small thread he still had upon his self restraint. Then her gaze darted to the window, and he saw the fear that crossed her face, flashed swiftly through her eyes as she gazed at the dark night.

  He turned slowly, searching for any hint of danger with his far superior eyes, and with every ounce of his vast power. Though he knew that the monster was still out there, he could not sense it now. It was either far away, or it was strong enough to mask itself at a distance. His stomach turned slightly. Though he was more powerful than most vampires in existence, Cassie was not. The thought of something that strong out there pursuing her, made the decision for him. If he stayed with her tonight, he would know that she was safe, protected.

  Turning from the window, he kicked his sneakers off. She slipped further over as he climbed onto the bed beside her. Her eyes were wide as he laid back, wrapping his arm around her shoulders and pulling her gently down. She curled up like a sweet kitten against his side, nuzzling him gently as her hand rested lightly upon his chest. He grasped hold of her hand, keeping it away from the empty hollowness of where his heart should beat.

  Devon remained stiff, unable to relax due to the fire burning through him. He stared unseeingly at the pictures flickering across the TV, holding her tight as she eased against his side. Soon, her breathing evened out, her hand relaxed against his. He felt the moment when she fell asleep.

  Her trust in him was absolute as she gave herself over to him in her most vulnerable, helpless stage. He nuzzled her hair; his fingers gently stroked the nape of her delicate neck. He did not deserve her trust, for she did not know what he truly was. If she did, she would probably run screaming into the night. The thought terrified him.

  It was something that he would have to make sure never happened. He could not lose her, nor could he shatter her innocence by being the one to tell her that the world was truly cold, heartless, and filled with monsters. Though he knew that one day he would have to leave her in order to keep her protected, he could not bring himself to let her go now. Not yet anyway, he would leave soon, return to his post outside at a safe distance from the vast temptation that she was. And one day, no matter how much it might destroy him, he would leave for good.

  Maybe he could just tell her…

  He instantly squashed the thought. How could he shatter her innocence? How could he destroy the sweetness in her with the knowledge of the true horrors that walked their world? He couldn’t. He could never do that to her. And even if he did, what guarantee did he have that she would stay with him? He was a monster. Why would anyone want to stay with a monster?

  His grip on her tightened, self loathing washed through him. He was not strong enough to leave her, and he was too much of a coward to risk losing her. He had done many awful things in his life, but this was by far the worst. He couldn’t let her go, but even he realized that by keeping this from her, he was keeping the biggest part of himself hidden. The caring and trust she gave him was not complete.

  It couldn’t be complete without the truth he could never reveal. She would hate him if he did. And that would destroy him.

  CHAPTER 15

  Cassie woke slowly the next morning; her mind was still groggy from the deep, dreamless sleep that had claimed her. Memories of the night assailed her; she stiffened slightly as she realized that Devon was still beside her, his arm draped over her waist, his body melded against her back. Pleasure swept through her; heat warmed her body, causing her toes to curl against his jeans.

  His kiss had been everything she had known it would be. It had filled her entire being, warming and melting places she had long thought frozen and dead. He had healed all of the jagged and torn pieces of her soul; filled the holes with his soothing presence. He made her stronger than she had ever thought she could be, stronger than she had ever imagined being.

  He completed her.

  He was everything that she needed, and she would willingly die to keep him safe from the evil within their town. His hand tightened upon her waist as she nestled closer to him, needing the strength of his body. “Don’t move.”

  The words were groaned in her ear through his teeth. She instantly stopped moving, holding her breath as he stiffened around her. She did not know what was wrong with him, but it had almost sounded as if he were in pain. He moved so suddenly, and swiftly, that she didn’t even have time to blink before he had rolled away from her, and was on his feet.

  Cassie gasped in surprise as she sat up, but he had his back turned to her. His gaze was focused upon the window, and the rising sun. His hands were clenched tightly at his sides, the muscles of his forearms bulged with the tension that coursed through him. He seemed to be waging a silent battle, over what she had no idea, but she was disturbed by the tension radiating from him.

  “Are you ok?” she asked softly.

  He turned his head toward her; his emerald eyes were dark in the early morning light. His hair was tussled from sleep, giving him a boyish appeal that melted her heart. Silhouetted against the morning sun he was the most splendid man she had ever seen. “Fine.”

  Some of the stress seemed to be easing out of him; his voice was not as tight. Music suddenly blasted into the room, Cassie jumped in surprise, her heart leapt wildly. It took her a few seconds to pinpoint the source of the racket. Turning swiftly over, she hit the off button on her alarm clock. Dismay filled her as she realized that the world was intruding upon them, crashing down on the blissful peace she had found in his arms throughout the night.

  “I need to go.” She turned back to him. He had turned fully around again, his stance wasn’t as rigid, his hands unclenched at his sides. He had taken a step closer to her. “I’ll see you at school.”

  She nodded, not knowing what to say. She didn’t want him to leave, didn’t want to be apart from him for even a moment, let alone an hour. He took a deep breath, seeming to brace himself before striding over to her. Bending down, he dropped a soft kiss upon the tip of her nose. Smiling brightly up at him, her hand lightly stroked over his forearm, taking note of the thick, corded muscles that flexed beneath her touch. She marveled at the feel of his skin and the dark hair sprinkled over it. She could have stayed in bed, touching and feeling him all day long.

  He hesitated for a moment, and then pulled quickly away. Slipping his sneakers back on, he moved with startling grace, and speed, to the window. Casting a quick glance over his shoulder, he smiled softly at her before disappearing swiftly outside. Cassie gaped for a moment before tossing her blankets aside and springing to her feet. She hurried to the window, surprised to find that he had already disappeared from view.

  Frowning, Cassie realized that she had not heard his car start. Had he walked over here last night? The sudden realization hit her that she didn’t even know where he lived. It was more than a little disturbing. She was falling helplessly in love with him, seemingly bound to him in a way that she had never wanted to be bound to anyone, and had never thought possible. Yet, she knew nothing about him. She felt that she knew what kind of man he was, but that was all she knew. Leaning her head against the window, Cassie took a deep breath in order to try and calm the disquieting thoughts racing through
her.

  Sliding the window shut, she threw the lock and hurried to the bathroom to get ready for the day. She tried not to dwell on her upsetting realization about Devon as she went through her morning ritual. But try as she might, she could not keep the endless questions from running through her mind. Brushing her hair out, she clipped it up to keep it off the nape of her neck.

  Hurrying downstairs, she braced herself for the conversation she was going to have to have now. Her grandmother was already at the stove, humming happily as she danced around the kitchen to Toby Keith singing about America. Her strawberry blonde hair had been pulled into a ponytail that bounced against her shoulders. She was a small woman, barely five foot, but she was slender with an athletic, fluid grace.

  She turned to Cassie, her beautiful face lit up as her sky blue eyes landed upon her. The lines around her eyes crinkled merrily as she slid a bowl of oatmeal to Cassie. “Brown sugar and crème, the way you like it.”

  “Thanks grandma.” Cassie took the bowl, but she did not sit, or grab hold of the spoon. This was a conversation she was certain would turn into a battle, but it was inevitable; she had to warn her grandma, she could not leave her unprepared, and vulnerable. She returned to singing merrily as Montgomery Gentry came over the radio. “Grandma, we need to talk.”

  Her grandmother turned back to her, the merry smile slipped from her face. Her light eyebrows drew sharply together over the bridge of her delicate nose. Her eyes darkened, going from sky blue to deep brown in an instant. Cassie was not unnerved; she was used to this trait of her grandma’s. Though some people thought it was a genetic flaw, it was in fact what happened when her grandmother reached out to her spirit friends, communing amongst them.

  Cassie sighed and plopped onto the stool. Sometimes her grandma would talk to her spirits for long periods of time, even forgetting that other people were present. Cassie played with her oatmeal as she waited. Though the three spirits that visited her grandma had become her grandma’s friends over the years, her grandma had never known them in life, and she had never been visited by someone that she had known. Sometimes through her three “friends”, her grandma was able to communicate with other people’s loved ones, but never her own.

  Cassie found it a cruel twist of fate for her grandmother to have her husband, and her daughter ripped away from her, but never be able to speak with them again. Cassie’s grandfather had been killed three years before her mother; he had lost a battle to a vampire. Just like they all would. Her grandmother did not think it was cruel. She had once told Cassie that it would have been more painful if she had been able to speak with her loved ones.

  “Something has come to town,” she said softly.

  Cassie dropped the spoon; she focused on her grandma’s once more blue eyes. This time however there was no humor in them, but a grave sadness. Though she spoke often with her “friends” they were never able to tell her anything that might impact the course of her fate, or Cassie’s. Telling her grandmother that something had come to town was their vague, roundabout way of trying to warn her of the danger that had arrived.

  “Yes,” Cassie answered. Sliding off her stool, she rested her hand on the countertop. “Luther believes that there is an Elder here.”

  Terror flashed across her grandmother’s delicate features. She took a small step forward before leaning back against the counter. Cassie reached for her, afraid that her grandmother was going to collapse. Then, she straightened her delicate shoulders and stepped away from the counter. “Does it know that you are here?”

  “I don’t know, but it looks that way,” Cassie answered honestly.

  “You cannot stay here. You must leave. All three of you must get somewhere safe.”

  Cassie had known that this was coming, and she had been dreading it, but she had not changed her mind. In fact, after last night, she was more convinced than ever that she could not leave. She would not let the town go unprotected, and she could never leave Devon unprotected. Taking a deep breath, Cassie braced herself for the battle that was about to ensue.

  “No grandma, we aren’t going anywhere.”

  Her grandmother’s mouth dropped. “What do you mean you aren’t going anywhere?” she demanded fiercely.

  “We can’t abandon this town, we cannot leave everyone to face this danger alone, and unprotected. The Hunter’s were made to protect innocent people; it’s what we were created for. We have been prepped for our shortened life spans, for the threat of death that constantly overhangs us. We cannot simply run because this may be a difficult time.”

  Her grandmother stared at her in startled disbelief. “May be difficult? May be difficult?” Cassie winced at her grandma’s hysterical tone and the raw panic in her voice. “Cassie, if this thing finds you, if it figures out what you are, it will kill you! There is no difficulty in that!”

  “Grandma…”

  “Don’t you grandma me! You get up those stairs and get your bags packed, now! I have lost my husband, my daughter, and my son-in-law to these monsters! I will not lose my granddaughter!”

  Cassie’s heart ached for her, and the losses that she had experienced, but she couldn’t back down. No matter how much she hated the anguish in her grandmother’s eyes, she could not leave this town. “You wouldn’t leave if it were you grandma. Think of all of the innocent people that will lose their lives if we do.”

  Her grandmother’s eyes flashed brown for a brief moment before she focused her full attention on Cassie again. “I left with you. I left innocent’s behind then.”

  A knife twisted in Cassie’s chest. She could not argue with that. She had given up everything for Cassie, and now, when her grandmother desperately wanted her to, Cassie could not return the favor. That fact was killing her, but she couldn’t back down, she simply couldn’t.

  “I’m only telling you about this so that you are aware of the danger, and you can stay safe.”

  “Cassandra…”

  Before she could finish the sentence, Cassie stepped forward and hugged her tightly. Tears slid silently down her face as she clung to her grandmother’s slight frame. “I’m sorry grandma, you know I would do anything for you, but I can’t do this. You know that this is right; you know that we cannot leave them. I know that you are scared for me, I am scared, but we must stay.”

  Her grandmother shuddered, her head dropped to Cassie’s shoulder. “You will be safer, more aware out there.”

  “Always,” Cassie vowed.

  Her grandmother squeezed her tight and pulled quickly away. Her bright eyes shimmered with tears, but her cheeks remained dry as she met Cassie’s gaze again. “My brave girl, just like your mom.”

  A cold chill went through Cassie. She had been told she was just like her mother her whole life. She looked like her mother, she moved like her mother, and she acted like her mother. The only difference was that Cassie was not gifted and her mother had possessed the powerful ability to move objects with her mind. Cassie didn’t mind looking and acting like her mother. She did not, however, want to die young like her mother. Yet, right now, her life seemed to be heading along that same path. Only she would be seven years younger than her mother’s twenty four when she died.

  Cassie fought the bone wracking shudder that tore though her, she desperately wanted those seven years. They may not seem like much, but they would be precious, and she had a very bad feeling that she was going to be cheated of them. “There are times I wish that Luther had never found you.”

  Cassie tried to push aside the cold terror, and aching hurt, that was firmly embedded in her belly. “There are times I wish that too,” she admitted softly.

  If Luther had never found her that day, then she and Chris never would have known that they were Hunter’s. Chris’s mother, and her grandmother, had decided to keep the truth hidden from them. They had been determined to keep them safe, and to raise them as normally as possible. Until Luther arrived, Chris’s power had been passed off as a psychic ability that some normal people may ha
ve possessed. At the time, Cassie’s grandmother believed that they were the last of The Hunter line, and that no one would come looking for them.

  They had been wrong.

  “You will be safe, right?” Cassie asked worriedly.

  Her grandmother smiled, but it did not reach her eyes. “Don’t worry about me dear, don’t you ever worry about me. You don’t get to be my ripe old age without knowing how to take care of yourself.”

  Cassie nodded, but she was not completely soothed. She knew her grandmother; she was not one to sit idly by, especially if she thought she would be keeping Cassie safe. She could only hope that she didn’t do something crazy.

  “Eat your breakfast dear, Chris is on his way over.”

  Cassie glanced back at her bowl of oatmeal, but she had no appetite. “I’ll see you tonight grandma, I love you.”

  She dropped a quick kiss on her soft cheek as she grabbed hold of her bag and slung it over her shoulder. “Love you too dear. Have a good day.”

  Cassie glanced back at her, but she was still staring out the window, a distant look on her pretty features. A chill of apprehension slid down Cassie’s spine.

  CHAPTER 16

  Cassie played with the applesauce on her plate, twirling it over on her spoon; her thoughts were distant and distracted. She could not get the lonely image of her grandmother out of her head, or shake the foreboding that had seized hold of her. Devon took hold of her hand, his touch soothing some of her tension.

  Looking up at him, she managed a wan smile as she met his troubled gaze. “What is wrong?”

  Shaking her head, she dropped her spoon; seizing hold of his hand she once again noted that it was abnormally cold. She frowned as she ran her finger over his skin, savoring in the feel of him. His circulation had to be poor for him to be this chilled. Either that, or he had just come from outside as it was a little brisk for September.