Death's Excellent Vacation

Jeaniene Frost lives with her husband and their very spoiled dog in Florida. Although not a vampire herself, she confesses to having pale skin, wearing a lot of black, and sleeping in late whenever possible. And although she can’t see ghosts, she loves to walk through old cemeteries. Jeaniene also loves poetry and animals but fears children and hates to cook. She is currently at work on the next novel in her bestselling Night Huntress series.

One

I squinted in the morning sunlight. At this hour, I should have been in bed, but thanks to my uncle Don, I was traipsing across the NCSU campus instead. I strode up to Harrelson Hall, then climbed to the third floor to the class I was looking for. When I walked in, most of the students ignored me, either chatting with each other or rifling through their bags as they waited for class to start. The room had stadium-style seating, with the entrance down by the professor’s lectern. My lower vantage point gave me the same sweeping view of the students the professor would have. I scanned every face, seeking the one that matched the jpeg I’d been sent. No, no, no . . . ah. There you are.

A pretty blonde stared back at me with barely concealed suspicion. I smiled in a friendly way and threaded up the aisle toward her. My smile didn’t soothe her; she flicked her gaze around the room as if debating whether to make a run for it.

Tammy Winslow, I thought coolly. You should be scared, because you’re worth a lot of money dead.

The air felt charged with invisible currents moments before a ghost burst into the room. Of course, I was the only one who could see him.

“Trouble,” the ghost said.

Sounds of heavy footsteps came down the hall while the air thickened with greater supernatural energy.

So much for doing this the quiet way.

“Get Bones,” I told the ghost. “Tell him to be ready at the window.”

That turned a few heads, but I didn’t care about my college-student ruse anymore. I had to get those people out of here.

“I’ve got a bomb,” I called out loudly. “If you don’t want to die, get out now.”

Several kids gasped. A few snickered, not sure if I was kidding, but no one ran for the door. The footsteps coming down the hall got closer.

“Get out now,” I snarled, pulling my gun out of its hidden holster and waving it.

No one waited to see if I was kidding anymore. Scrambling ensued as the students ran for the door. I held on to my gun, shouting at everyone to stay away from me, relieved to see the room emptying. But when Tammy tried to dart away, I grabbed her.

A man barreled through the door, knocking the panicked deluge of students aside as if they were weightless. I shoved Tammy away and whipped out three of the silver knives that I had strapped to my legs under my skirt, waiting until no one was in front of him before flinging them at the charging figure.

He didn’t try to dodge my blades, and nothing happened when they landed in his chest. A ghoul, great. Silver through the heart did nothing to ghouls; I’d have to take his head off to kill him. Where was a big sword when I needed one?

I didn’t bother with more knives, but launched myself at the ghoul, bear-hugging him. He pounded at my sides, smashing my ribs as he tried to shake me off. Pain flared in me, but I didn’t let go. If I were human, the punishment from his fists would have killed me, but I was a full vampire now, so my broken bones healed almost instantly.

I managed to put the gun’s muzzle to the ghoul’s temple and pulled the trigger.

Screams erupted from the few kids still left in the room. I ignored them and kept pumping bullets into the ghoul’s head. The bullets wouldn’t kill him, but they did a lot of damage. His head was in oozing pieces when I let go.

Tammy tried to run past me, but I was faster, knocking over desks in my way as I grabbed her. Scraping sounds let me know the ghoul was crawling toward us, his head healing with every second. I hopped over the desks, yanking Tammy along with me, and pulled out my largest knife from under my sleeve. With a hard swipe, I skewered the ghoul’s neck.

The ghost appeared in the window, followed by another surge of energy coming from the same direction. Time to go.

Tammy screamed as she fought me, trying to break my hold on her. “I’m not going to hurt you,” I said. “Fabian.” I glanced at the ghost. “Hold on.”

He wrapped his spectral hands around my shoulders. Tammy wasn’t as trusting. She kept screaming and kicking.

I ignored that and ran right at the window. Tammy shrieked as we smashed through it with a hail of glass. Since her classroom had been on the third floor, we didn’t have a long hang time before something collided with us, propelling us straight upward. Tammy’s screams rose to a terrified crescendo as we rocketed up at an incredible speed.

“Somebody help me!” she shrieked.

The vampire who’d caught us adjusted his grip, flying me, Tammy, and the hitchhiking ghost toward our destination at the far edge of campus.

“Somebody has,” he replied, English accent discernible even above Tammy’s screams.

THE Hummer was equipped with bulletproof windows, a reinforced frame, and a backseat that couldn’t be opened from the inside. Tammy found that out when she tried to escape as soon as we’d thrown her in and sped off. Then she’d shrieked for another ten minutes, ignoring my repeated statements that we weren’t going to hurt her. Finally, she calmed down enough to ask questions.

“You shot that guy in the head.” Her eyes were wide. “But that didn’t kill him. How is that possible?”

I could lie. Or I could use the power in my gaze to make her believe she hadn’t seen anything unusual. But it was her life on the line, so she deserved the truth.

“He wasn’t human.”

Even after what she’d seen, her first reaction was denial. “What kind of bullshit is that? Did my cousin send you?”

“If he’d sent us, you’d be dead now,” Bones said, not taking his attention off the road. “We’re your protection.”

I knew the exact moment Tammy got a good look at the vampire who’d snatched us out of thin air, because she stared. Her scent changed, too. That former reek of terror became a more perfumed fragrance as she checked out his high cheekbones, dark hair, ripped physique, and sinfully gorgeous profile.

Young, old, alive, undead, doesn’t matter, I thought ruefully. When Bones is around, women go into heat.

But Tammy had just been through a very traumatic experience, so I ignored the vampire territorialism that made me want to grab Bones and snap, “Mine!” Instead, I handed her a pack of wet wipes.

She looked at them with an incredulous expression. “What do you expect me to do with these?”

“Nothing works better to wipe off blood, believe me,” I said, showing her my newly cleaned arms.

Tammy looked at them, at me, and at Bones. “What is going on?”

“She already told you,” Bones said, pulling over on the side of the road and putting the vehicle in park. “But you need more proof before you believe us, right?” He held up his hand. “Watch.”

Bones dragged a knife across his hand, cutting open a line of flesh. Tammy stared as it closed moments later as if it had an invisible zipper. Fabian didn’t even blink. The ghost was used to the healing abilities of the undead.

“I’m a vampire, that’s why I can do this. Name’s Bones, by the way.”

“And I’m Cat,” I added. “I’d introduce you to Fabian, but you can’t see him anyway. We’re your guardians until my uncle tracks down your cousin and arrests him.”

Tammy’s face was almost comical in its incredulity. “But it’s daylight,” she said at last. “Vampires can’t go out in the sun, everyone knows that!”

Bones chuckled. “Right. And we shrink back from crosses, can’t travel over water, can’t enter a home unless invited, and always get staked in the end by the righteous slayer. Really, who’d be afraid of a creature like that? All you’d need is a Bible, a tanning bed, and some holy water to send us shivering to our dooms.”

Tammy shook her head slowly. I watched with sympathy. Denial was how I’d reacted at sixteen when I found out my absentee father had been a vampire, and that it wasn’t puberty causing my strangeness, but the growth of my inhuman traits.

“I know it’s hard to believe since vampires and ghouls look human most of the time,” I tried again, “but—”

“Let me get this straight,” Tammy interrupted. “I asked some of my father’s old government friends for help when ‘accidents’ kept happening to me, and someone sent a vampire to protect me?”

Fabian began to laugh. I gave the ghost a censuring look that silenced his chuckles, but even though he was partially transparent, it was clear his lips were still twitching.

“Actually, two vampires,” I corrected. “The ghost was a bonus.”

“I’m a dead woman,” Tammy muttered.

Bones snorted. “Told you this job wouldn’t be easy, luv.”

He was right, but I owed Don a favor. Even if I hadn’t, I would still be here. Last month, Tammy had almost been killed by a “freak” electrical surge. Two weeks ago, a drive-by shooting nearly took her life. Could’ve been unfortunate coincidences, except for the fact that if Tammy died before her twenty-first birthday, all her father’s millions would go to her cousin, Gables. Tammy’s late father had been an old friend of my uncle’s, and Don didn’t believe in coincidences. Then Don did some digging and heard that the next attempt on Tammy would involve an “exotic” kind of hit man who never failed.

Don knew what that meant. He ran a special Homeland Security division that dealt with the supernatural—not that taxpayers knew part of their money went toward policing things that supposedly didn’t exist. I was retired from the unit, but that made it even better for my uncle. Don didn’t need to use an active team member to look after his old friend’s daughter. No, he could call me, knowing I wouldn’t turn away a girl who had her head on a preternatural chopping block.

Tammy seemed to have gotten over her initial shock. She tossed her blond hair. “I offered to pay for protection, and if you’re the ones protecting me, that means you work for me. So I’m going to lay some ground rules, got it?”

My brows rose. Fabian whistled, but of course Tammy couldn’t hear the ghost. You better hurry up and arrest her cousin, Don, I thought.

Bones gave me a knowing look. “Told you not to answer your mobile whilst we were on vacation, Kitten.”

I sighed.

Tammy ordered, “Take me back to my house,” but Bones ignored her, pulling onto the road and continuing in the opposite direction of where she lived.

“It’s only for a few days,” I said.

Or so I hoped, anyway.

Two

MOST people who’d had three brushes with death—one involving a ghoul—would be scared into a very cooperative state. Tammy appeared to be channeling her inner Paris Hilton instead. Evidently she’d never heard the word no before. She was outraged that we didn’t let her go back to her house to pack, and then she was really upset once she saw the town we were hiding out in.

“You’ve got to be kidding.” Tammy gave a disparaging glance at the rustic countryside and overgrown cherry orchard bordering the property where I’d grown up.

“It’s in the middle of nowhere,” Tammy went on. “You probably have psychotic inbreds living in the woods!”

She’s suffered a traumatic experience, I reminded myself again, gritting my teeth. Cut her some slack.

Licking Falls was in the middle of rural nowhere, but that was the point. It might not look appealing to a young heiress, but for safety, it was ideal. No one would think to look for Tammy here.

We’d rounded the last turn and were heading down the long gravel road that led to my old house when Bones abruptly stopped.

“What’s wrong?” I asked, feeling his tenseness like invisible ants marching across my skin.

“Your house isn’t empty,” he stated low. “And the occupant isn’t human.”

“Let’s get out of here,” Tammy said, her voice rising. “Now!”

I had my hand over her mouth even as Bones slid soundlessly out of the car. All we needed was for Tammy to start screaming to really alert whoever the undead intruder was. How the hell had someone beaten us here? We’d told no one we were coming! Instinct made me want to follow Bones, but that would leave Tammy unprotected. I glared at Tammy and ordered her in a low tone to be silent. The power from my gaze rendered Tammy mute at once. Then I let go of her mouth and pulled out a few weapons, all my senses directed toward the house half a mile up the road.

Relief rolled across my subconscious moments later, causing me to lessen my grip on my knives. Bones must have killed the intruder. Being connected to Bones this way was like hitchhiking on his emotions. In situations like this, it also came in handy.

I began to drive up the road again, ignoring Tammy’s frantic pokes on my shoulders. I’d compelled her to be quiet, but not to be still, more’s the pity.

When I was halfway up the road, Bones appeared, a bemused expression on his face.

“Your mum’s here,” he said.

I’d slowed on seeing him, but at that, I slammed on the brakes. “She is?”

Bones nodded and got into the passenger seat. “In the undead flesh.”

“Catherine?” I heard my mother say, sounding as surprised as I felt. Of course. Even a hundred yards away, with her new hearing, she’d pick up my conversation with Bones as easily as if she’d been in the car.

A lump made its way into my throat. “Yeah, Mom. It’s me.”

I hadn’t seen my mother in months. Not since the night I killed the man who’d kidnapped her and forcibly changed her into a vampire. He’d done it just to hurt me, the bastard. It was a shame I couldn’t kill him twice.

My mother was framed in the front door, watching me as I pulled up. The highlights had grown out of her hair, and her skin was already paler than it had been the last time I’d seen her. Feeling the aura of supernatural energy coming from her was something I didn’t think I’d ever get used to.

“Hi,” I said as I got out. I wanted to hug her, but I was afraid she might push me away. My mother had always loathed vampires. Now she was stuck as one, and it was all because of me. To say that strained our relationship was putting it mildly.

Her hands fluttered, like she wasn’t sure what to do with them. “Catherine.” A small smile creased her face. “What are you doing here?”

“We were going to use the house to hide out, but since you’re here—”

“Someone’s after you again?” she cut me off, green tingeing her blue gaze.

“Not me,” I hastened to assure her. “Tammy, the girl in the backseat. Bones and I are, uh, guarding her for a few days until Don squares things away.”

“Hallo, Justina,” Bones said, getting out of the car. “Certainly didn’t expect to see you here.”

“I wanted somewhere quiet to go for a vacation,” she muttered.

He let out a sardonic laugh. “Seems we’re not the only ones to have our vacation interrupted, then.”

Bones took it for granted that we’d still be staying here. We’d decided this place was perfect to hide Tammy, and I’m the one who owned it, so to him it was settled. But after all my mother had been through, I didn’t want to subject her to my current predicament.

“We’ll go somewhere else,” I said with an apologetic shrug.

“Is something wrong with the girl?” my mother asked, pointing.

I glanced at the backseat. Tammy was smacking at the door while her eyes bugged and her mouth opened and closed like a fish.

“Oh shit, I forgot about muting her!”

I let Tammy out and returned her voice with a flash of my gaze. The first thing she did was howl loud enough to make me wince.

“Don’t ever do that to me again!”

“Then don’t give away our position if we think there’s danger, and we won’t have a reason to,” Bones replied with an arched brow.

“Mom, this is Tammy,” I said, waving the blonde forward.

My mother smiled at her. “Hello, Tammy. Nice to meet you.”

Tammy grabbed my mother’s arms. “Finally, someone normal! Do you know what it’s like with these two? They’re worse than prison guards! They wouldn’t even stop to let me eat!”

Bones snorted. “We were a bit busy keeping you alive, if you recall.”

My mother glanced at Tammy and then back at me. “Poor girl, you must be starving. I’ll make you something for dinner. You don’t want Catherine to cook, believe me.”

Under normal circumstances, I might have bristled at the implication. But that statement, plus the look she’d given me, said we would be staying here after all. Safety concerns for Tammy aside, I was happy. I’d missed my mother. Maybe our mutually interrupted vacations were a blessing in disguise for our relationship.

“After you, Mom.”

MY warm and fuzzy feeling evaporated after dinner, however. The house only had two bedrooms. My mother kindly offered to share hers with Tammy, but just as I was about to thank her for it, Tammy spoke.

“Shouldn’t I sleep with him instead?” Tammy’s gaze swept over Bones with unmistakable lust. “After all, since I’m the one paying, I should choose who I bunk with.”

My mother gasped. I opened my mouth to deliver a scathing retort, but Bones laughed. “I’m a married man, but even if I weren’t, you wouldn’t stand a chance. Rotten manners you have.”

“Your loss,” Tammy said, with another toss of her hair. Then she looked around in frustration. “You can’t expect me to stay here more than a couple days. I’ll go crazy.”

“But you’ll be alive,” I pointed out, which should have been her top priority, in my opinion.

“You killed that thing, didn’t you?” Tammy asked. “Doesn’t that mean the danger’s over?”

Bones shrugged. “I doubt the ghoul was the person contracted to kill you. Sounds like outsourced, cheap local talent to me.”

Tammy gaped at him. “She had to cut his head off before he stayed down. That’s what you consider cheap local talent?”

“No self-respecting undead hit man would take a contract on a human,” Bones said dismissively. “Humans are too easy. Like getting paid to stomp on a goldfish. But in your case, probably a human hit man who knows about the undead got frustrated that his last two attempts didn’t work, and gave some quid to a young ghoul to finish you. It’s a practical solution; the ghoul gets money and a meal, the hitter still keeps the bulk of the contract payment, and the client’s happy that you’re dead.”

“You would know, wouldn’t you?” my mother muttered.

“How’s that?” Tammy asked.

Bones smiled at her, beautiful and cold at the same time. “Because I was a hit man for over two hundred years.”

Tammy gulped. I didn’t add what I knew: that Bones had been very particular about his contracts. He killed other killers, not innocent people, and most of those people were his own kind. That hadn’t won Bones any popularity contests in undead circles, but if Bones thought someone deserved to die, he took the contract, no matter the danger.

“In a few days, Don should have your greedy toad of a cousin arrested, and then it will be safe for you to go home,” Bones went on.

“If you’re a hit man, why can’t I just pay you to kill Gables?” she asked, recovering. “My birthday isn’t for another two months. Who knows if my cousin might try to kill me again, even if he is in jail?”

My eyes widened at how causally Tammy broached the subject. Pass the salt. Kill my cousin.

Bones shrugged. “He might, but you’ll have to look elsewhere for a hitter. I’m too busy for that now.”

Tammy glanced at my mother, me, and then Bones before her face tightened up. “This sucks,” she said, and ran up the stairs.

Considering I could have been spending the next two weeks on vacation with my husband instead of looking after a spoiled rich girl who was being targeted by killers, I agreed.

“It’ll be all right, Tammy,” I called out.

An expletive was her response. Bones arched a brow and tapped the side of his eye.

“Say the word, luv. I’ll glare a whole new attitude into her.”

Vampire mind control would be the easy way out, but when did I ever take the easy way?

“She’ll come around,” I muttered. Hurry up, Don.

“I’ll go talk to her,” my mother said.

Both my brows went up. “You think you can make her see reason?”

My mother gave me a jaded look as she ascended the stairs. “You forget, Catherine—I’ve had a lot of experience dealing with a difficult child.”

Bones laughed, with a knowing glance at me that made my mouth twitch despite myself. Okay. My mother had a point.

Three

I’D been in life-and-death situations since I was sixteen, but those could be handled with some bravery—or recklessness, depending on who you asked—and my knives. A cranky, demanding heiress required a different set of skills. Ones I didn’t seem to have.

Day two during a conversation with Tammy: “So you’re married to Bones, huh? How’d you manage to snag him? You know, with your red hair and white skin, you look like a big candy cane.”

Day three: “Boy, is Bones hot. If I were you, I’d be on him five times a day. If you two break up, send him my way, huh?”

Day four: “Let me out of this room! I’ll call the police, the FBI. Let me out!”

By day five, when Don still hadn’t located Gables, Bones and I were ready to take matters into our own hands. If my uncle, with all the resources of the military and the government behind him, couldn’t find Gables, then he wasn’t going to be found anytime soon. Putting our lives on hold for a few days was one thing, but Bones was Master of a large vampire line. We couldn’t hide with Tammy for much longer. Soon we’d have to get back to our usual routine, dealing with the intricacies and dangers of life in undead society.

Not to mention, staying in a tiny house with my mother had ground my sex life to a halt. These walls were paper thin anyway, and with my mother being a vampire, anything we did would be as clear to her as if she were in the same room. The idea of her overhearing every last detail of me getting it on with Bones wasn’t romantic, to say the least. Yeah, it was past time to be proactive about finding Gables.

We drove down a barely used road that dead-ended at a large industrial warehouse. Judging from its exterior, you’d never guess this was a nightclub filled with creatures the average person didn’t believe existed. It was called Bite. Bones had taken me here on our first date, but we weren’t taking a trip down memory lane. We were here for information.

Parking was around the back, surrounded by a thick line of trees that concealed the number of cars from anyone who happened to stumble across the lonely single road. For a secluded spot where immortals could let their hair down, Bite was perfect.

Of course, the heartbeats coming from many of the people waiting to get in proved that Bite didn’t cater only to undead partiers. They’re the menu, with legs, Bones had said of the humans the first time he brought me here. It was a willing arrangement. A skillfully executed vampire bite could feel better than foreplay. Plus, some humans hung around vampires hoping to be promoted to the next level in the food chain. Even the undead had groupies.

My mother declined to come with us, stating that she didn’t want to be around more vampires than necessary. Fabian stayed to keep her company, which seemed to make her happy. How far she’d come. I remembered when my mother would have run screaming away from a ghost, not looked forward to spending an evening with one.

So it was just Bones, Tammy, and I who walked past the people in line. Humans and new vampires might have to wait their turn, but a Master vampire—and anyone with him—could go straight to the door. As we approached, I felt Bones draw in his aura of power, suppressing it to a level far below the mega-Master that he was. It was a trick Bones had gotten better at during the past several months. Immediately, the connection I had with him was barely discernible. The last time he’d closed himself off like this, it was right before he’d almost died. Feeling that blank wall when I was used to tapping into his mood brought back bad memories.

“I hate it when you do that,” I whispered.

He squeezed my hand. “Sorry, luv. I don’t want to announce myself to anyone who doesn’t already know me.”

I understood. Muting his power level was a better disguise for Bones than dyeing his hair or making other changes to his appearance.

The entrance was guarded by a brawny, blond vampire who had to be six feet tall. She barely looked at Tammy, smiled when she saw Bones, and then laughed when her gaze flicked to me.

“I knew it. Wait until I see Logan. I told him Bones brought the Red Reaper with him years ago, but Logan didn’t believe me.”

I’d recognized the bouncer from that night, but I was surprised she remembered me.

“Trixie, luv, been a long time,” Bones said, giving her a kiss on the cheek. She returned it before shaking my hand.

“Reaper. A pleasure.”

“Call me Cat.” Red Reaper might be my nickname among the undead, but I preferred to be called by the abbreviation of my real name.

Tammy gave Trixie a frank stare. “Is she dead, too?”

Trixie grinned, showing off the gold plating on her fangs. “Does that answer your question?”

“Ew,” Tammy said.

I rolled my eyes and mouthed Sorry to Trixie, but she didn’t seem to care about Tammy’s comment.

“No fireworks inside,” Trixie said, giving my hand a last, friendly squeeze.

I glanced at my hands and suppressed a shudder. One of my new tricks as a vampire was that when I got really pissed, flames shot from my hands. Guess word of that had spread. It shouldn’t surprise me. Nobody loved gossip as much as people who’d had centuries of experience spreading it.

“We’re not here for trouble,” Bones said.

Trixie laughed. “That’ll be the day when you don’t leave trouble in your wake, Bones. Just keep it away from here.”

“She knows you pretty well, huh?” I asked once we’d come inside.

Bones’s mouth quirked. “Not as well as you’re implying, Kitten.”

It was a valid guess. Bones looked like temptation incarnate, and he’d been around the block for hundreds of years before he met me. If I assumed he’d slept with every female vampire he introduced me to, I’d be right more than I was wrong.

I pushed that thought away with all the other things I didn’t like to dwell on. “Come on. I can smell the gin and tonic up ahead.”

It was true. I smelled the different alcohols as the bartenders poured them, the myriad of other people’s scents mixed with different perfumes, aftershaves, and the tang of blood. Add that to the pulsating music, the muted strobe lights, the crush of people, and the energy wafting from everyone without a heartbeat, and I felt almost drunk from sensory overload.

“You couldn’t feel it the last time, but you can now, can’t you?” Bones whispered. “How thin the line is here between the normal and the paranormal. I told you Ohio was a supernatural hotspot. This club was built on an even bigger one. Feels like a charge in your blood, doesn’t it?”

It did. No wonder the undead flocked to hotspots. Alcohol and drugs couldn’t affect me anymore, but being surrounded by all the inhuman occupants, where magic seemed to throb just below the surface, was sensual and exhilarating.

“Forget the drink. Let’s dance.”

My voice came out lower than I intended. Green appeared in the dark depths of Bones’s eyes.

“Are you guys going to let me dance and have a little fun for once?” Tammy grumbled.

Bones swept out his hand. “By all means. Only don’t leave the dance floor for any reason, or I’ll lock you in your closet for a week.”

Even if Tammy didn’t know from experience that Bones never bluffed, his expression must have convinced her, because she gulped.

“Stay on the dance floor. Got it.”

“Right, then. Off you go.”

Four

BONES was pressed to my back, his hips swaying against mine while his hands slid down my sides with a slow caress. Our recent celibacy combined with the brush of his lips on my neck, the coiled power pushing at his aura, plus all the mystic energy swirling around us, made me want to find the nearest corner and commit unspeakable acts on him.

But even the headiness of the atmosphere and the sensuality of dancing with Bones couldn’t make me endanger Tammy—or have sex in public, like some people did at these clubs.

“After this is over with Tammy, we’re coming back here,” I murmured. “I bet you know where the private spots are in this place, and I intend to molest you in every one of them.”

He laughed, sending tingles down my neck where his breath landed. “What a scandalous notion. I vow I’m blushing.”

I doubted Bones had blushed since the Declaration of Independence was signed. In 1776, Bones would have been ten, I thought hazily, shuddering as his fangs grazed my pulse in a tantalizing way. Close. At seventeen, he was prostituting himself to the women of the English ton in order to survive.

“Ready for that drink, luv?” Bones asked, turning me around to face him.

Yeah, I was ready for a drink, but not gin and tonic. I wanted to bury my fangs in Bones’s throat and drain him until there was only enough blood left in him to keep him hard.

Hunger swelled in me at the thought. Changing from a half-breed into a vampire had had unexpected side effects. I was only mostly dead, as my occasional heartbeat evidenced, and I drank vampire blood instead of human blood. Problem was, I absorbed more than nourishment from the blood I drank. I also absorbed power. Found that out after I fed from a pyrokinetic vampire and then my hands sprouted flames. I didn’t want to absorb more freaky abilities by feeding from vampires with unusual powers, so I stuck with drinking from Bones. So far, that had only made me stronger, not stranger.

Of course, Bones always looked good enough to eat. Whoever said Don’t play with your food sure hadn’t been a vampire.

Bones inhaled, his eyes changing to emerald green. I knew mine would have changed also, and I felt my fangs push at my lips. Give us flesh, they urged. His flesh. Now.

“Stay here. Keep an eye on Tammy,” Bones growled, surprising me by shouldering his way through the other dancers. Had he spotted a threat? I glanced around, looking for Tammy’s familiar blond head among the mass of living and undead gyrators. There. Dancing with two men, no less.

I made my way through until I reached Tammy, getting between her and one of the dancers. His scowl turned into a smile as his gaze swept over me.

“Hello, redhead,” he drawled.

“I’m just getting my friend,” I said.

Tammy didn’t budge. “Hell no. I’m just starting to have fun!”

“Tammy,” I gritted out, “don’t make me carry you.” If there was danger, I wanted our backs to a wall with me in front of her. Not where trouble could come from any angle.

Tammy glared at me but didn’t object again. I led her to the closest corner, as if we were having an intimate conversation, but I was braced for action. No one looked as if they were stalking us. Still, appearances were deceiving.

I felt a stab of relief when I saw Bones striding toward us. A large ghoul with black bushy hair and a blindingly white smile followed him.

“Verses, this is my wife, Cat,” Bones introduced me.

“Nice to meet you,” I said, shaking his hand. I was surprised when Bones tugged me away a moment later.

“Follow me,” he said, leading me past the DJ’s booth and to a door behind it. It opened to reveal a staircase, and it was a good thing I could see in the dark, because there were no lights once Bones shut the door.

I expected to see a weapons cache, but we were in a room cluttered with old speakers, musical equipment, boxes, and tables. I was about to ask what we were supposed to do with this stuff when Bones yanked me to him. He kissed me, pushing me back against the table and reaching under my dress.

Clearly we weren’t here to armor up against danger. “Bones,” I managed, pushing him back. “Tammy—”

“Is fine with Verses,” he cut me off. “Don’t fret about her. Think about me.”

He propped me up on the table as he spoke, pulling my underwear down past my knees. I gasped when he kissed me again, because he unleashed his aura at the same time. The waves of power suddenly flooding over me, combined with the rub of his desire on my subconscious, felt just as tangible as his tongue raking inside my mouth.

My objection vanished. Music boomed all around us, its throbbing beat mimicking the pulse I no longer had. I kissed him back, pulling him closer. A last tug on my underwear had them off, and Bones spread my legs, positioning himself to stand between them. I opened his shirt, tonguing his flesh from his neck to his chest, awash in the heightened sensations of supernatural energy, lust, and power that came from Bones and the club above us.

He squeezed my breasts, his fingers teasing my nipples rigid even through my bra and dress. Hard, bare skin rubbed me below as he tugged down his pants. I arched against him, moaning into his mouth. Need throbbed within me. The table and walls vibrated from music pumping above us. To me, it seemed like everything was shuddering with passion.

“Now,” I gasped.

He pushed deeply into me, the merging of our flesh sending waves of pleasure through my nerve endings. The invisible currents of his power seemed to sink into me with each new stroke.

I sank my fangs into his neck, feeling him shudder with a different kind of enjoyment. Blood filled my mouth, bringing a rush of ecstasy that his strong, smooth thrusts only heightened. I sucked harder, feeling his pace increase as the tension inside me built. I bit him again, crying out when his grasp tightened and he ground himself against me.

A flood of emotions seared my subconscious. I could feel Bones’s control crumbling under the jagged slices of pleasure assaulting it. Felt the rapture shooting up his body when he abandoned that control and let lust have reign. Felt passion blasting through me as he yanked me even closer, thrusting with a sensual frenzy that would have hurt me if I were human, but only felt incredible now. Then I felt his fangs pierce my neck and my blood being pulled out. The music swallowed up our cries as we rocked together, faster and harder, drinking each other’s blood, until both of us trembled from orgasm.

“That was really inappropriate,” I said several minutes later while I straightened my clothes.

Bones laughed, low and sinful. “After being denied a week, I haven’t begun to get inappropriate with you, Kitten, but I will.”

“I’m serious.” I might have an excuse, since decreased control over urges, food or otherwise, was a side effect of being a new vampire, but Bones had been dead a long time. “We’re supposed to be guarding Tammy, not sneaking off for a quickie.”

“Who knows how many more days we’ll be holed up with your mum and Tammy? I wasn’t wasting this opportunity. Besides, Verses is the owner of this club and he’s a friend. Tammy’s safe. He’s probably twirling her around the dance floor as we speak.”

That made me feel less guilty. We were supposed to be on vacation, after all, and the past week of sleeping together without anything else happening had been taking its toll on me, too.

I brought my attention back to business. “Time to mingle with the local lowlifes and see if anyone’s heard about a hitter after a human?”

Bones grinned. “People do talk about all sorts of things when they’re out having a bit of fun. Let’s see if we can find out anything useful.”

Five

TRUE to Bones’s prediction, we found Tammy on the dance floor with Verses. The ghoul could dance like nobody’s business, too. Tammy looked happier than I’d seen her all week.

“It can’t be time to go yet,” she said once she saw us.

“Not yet,” Bones replied. “Verses, mate, point out one of your most gossipy regulars, but someone who can still be taken seriously.”

With his height, it was easy for Verses to see over the other people. After a few seconds, he gestured at a bar manned by a beautiful vampire covered only in dark blue body glitter.

“See the gray-haired vampire sitting on the end? Name’s Poppy. He tells too many stories to be trusted with a secret, but he doesn’t make up what he hasn’t heard.”

“Smashing. I’d appreciate it if you kept your staff from mentioning that I was here tonight—or my wife. Trixie recognized us. Maybe a few more of them, too.”

Verses gave Bones a look. “Bite is a haven for our kind. You’re not intending to break my rules, are you?”

Bones clapped him on the back. “I won’t do anything on your premises. After all, I intend to come back here with my wife. We still have some areas left to explore.”

If it were possible, I’d have blushed at the blatant innuendo. Verses just laughed. Tammy looked bored.

“Why don’t you do whatever it is you’re going to do while I stay with Verses and dance?” Tammy suggested.

I was glad to change the subject. “Verses might have other things to do, Tammy.”

“Keeping a pretty lady happy always takes priority,” Verses said, winking at her.

Bones tugged my hand. “This shouldn’t take too long, Kitten.”

We left Tammy on the dance floor with the ghoul to head toward the glittering blue bartender and the gray-haired undead gossip.

I sat a few seats away from Bones at the bar, dividing my attention between eavesdropping on him and keeping an eye on Tammy. So far, she seemed to be fine, and Verses had been right; the wrinkled vampire next to Bones didn’t need much prodding to start chattering. Bones let him pick the topics for the first half hour or so, then he turned the conversation.

“Bloody economy’s got us all buggered,” Bones declared, draining his whisky in one gulp. “Take me. Three years ago, I’m living the posh life off my investments. Today, I’m guarding a human to scrape by. Like to stake myself and save the embarrassment, I would.”

Poppy snickered. “What’re you guarding a human against? Tax evasion?”

They both laughed, and then Bones lowered his voice conspiratorially. “No, mate, against her relative. In truth, I wonder if I shouldn’t be on the other side of this coin.”

Even across the bar, I could see the gleam of interest in Poppy’s eyes. “What other side?”

Bones leaned in, lowering his voice even further until I could barely hear him. “The side that gets paid more if the whiny brat dies. Faith, if I knew how to contact the chit’s smarmy cousin, I’d take that job instead of the one I’ve got. Then I’d get a meal out of it to boot.”

Poppy chewed on his drink straw. “Can’t ya find out from the girl where this relative is?”

“She doesn’t know. Believe me, I asked with the brights on.” Bones tapped under his eye for emphasis. “I can’t take another month of this. I’ll eat her and then get no bloody money from anyone.”

Poppy glanced around. I looked away, pretending to study my drink. When I strained, I caught his reply.

“Had a fellow here last night. He’s in the population reduction business, if you know what I mean, and he was laughin’ about this job where hired meat tried to use a bone muncher to tidy things up on a contract that was runnin’ long. You’ll never guess what happened. Somehow, the bone muncher ends up dead. Dead! Then the mark disappears. The way I heard it, now the meat’s worried about his contract gettin’ canceled.”

Forty minutes later, this finally pays off, I thought.

“You hear the name of this meat?” Bones asked casually. “I might be interested in helping him out once I’m finished with this job.”

“Think I heard the fellow call him Serpentine. Isn’t that funny? The meat renamed himself just like he’s a vampire.”

Serpentine. I’d have Don burning up the computers on that alias as soon as we got home.

“Ah, mate, I owe you. Next round’s on me.”

Bones stayed another twenty minutes, letting Poppy ramble more until I fantasized about wrapping duct tape around the vampire’s mouth. Finally, Bones feigned regret over needing to leave, but told Poppy he’d be back next weekend. And complained about how he’d have the bratty heiress with him.

My brows rose. What are you up to, Bones?

Six

I pulled the clothes out of the dryer and stifled a curse. Bleach stains everywhere. Tammy was twenty; how could she not know how to do a load of laundry without ruining everything?

Still, at least Tammy was doing her own laundry now. Or trying to. That was the result of my mother’s influence. Twenty years of spoiled rich bitch didn’t stand a chance against forty-six years of farm-reared discipline. Even though I was much closer to Tammy’s age and my mother made Tammy do things that caused the blonde to wail, to my surprise, my mother was the person Tammy seemed to have bonded with.

Perhaps that was my fault. Maybe I was so used to being in search-and-destroy mode that I couldn’t tackle being in a nurturing one instead. The thought was oddly depressing. Check my ovaries, Doctor, because maybe I’m not really a woman.

After dinner—which my mother still insisted on cooking, not that I complained—we sat by the fireplace. It was time to fill Tammy in on what we’d found out.

“Tammy, here’s what’s going on: Don still hasn’t found your cousin, but Bones found out that the original hit man who took your contract is dead.”

Tammy bolted out of her chair. “That’s great! Does it mean I can go home now?”

“Not so fast. The hitter died under unusual circumstances.”

Tammy sat back down, her enthusiasm fading. “How?”

“His throat was ripped out,” Bones said bluntly. “And his computer and other effects were rummaged through, so someone else might have taken an interest in his unfinished jobs.”

Bones’s connections from his bounty hunter days turned out to be faster than Don’s computers, because he discovered Serpentine was dead before my uncle even found out his real name. Don did send a team over to examine the apartment where Serpentine—or James Daily, as the autopsy certificate read—was found. Even though the person was clever at covering their tracks, Don could tell someone had hacked into Serpentine’s computer. Maybe it was a coincidence that some of the files that were accessed were about Tammy, or that Serpentine had been killed by a vampire. We knew Serpentine had undead connections since he sent a ghoul after Tammy. But maybe it was more than coincidence.

“I told you vampires normally don’t bother with contracts on humans, but life never fails to surprise,” Bones said in a dry tone. “When we were at Bite, I told the gossipy bloke I spoke with that we’d be back tomorrow night. If we still go, it would allow me to dig for more information, but there’s a chance it could prove dangerous to you.”

Tammy scoffed. “How dangerous? I’ve almost been electrocuted, shot, and eaten by a ghoul, remember?”

“If another vampire did decide to get involved with the contract on you, he or she could follow us back here and try to take you out,” I said quietly.

Tammy gave us a shrewd look. “And then you could catch them. Find out where my cousin is, I’d bet. I saw you in action against that ghoul, Cat. How about you, Bones? You’re a tough guy, right? Because I want this over. I want my life back.”

Fabian floated in the room. “I could be the lookout. No other vampire or ghoul would notice me. I’d help keep Tammy safe.”

Poor Fabian, he was right. Vampires and ghouls were notoriously disrespectful of ghosts. They ignored them more than most humans ignored homeless people.

“Thanks, Fabian,” I said. “We could really use your help.”

“It’s so weird when you do that,” Tammy muttered.

I hid a smile. Some part of me thought Tammy didn’t believe Fabian existed and that we just pretended to speak with him to mess with her.

“I’ll help protect her,” my mother said. Her face was closed off, as if she were fighting back memories. Once again, I hated what had been done to her because of me.

Bones rose from his chair. “All right. If we’re going to Bite tomorrow, it’s time you learn to defend yourself, Tammy.”

She gave him a startled look. “Isn’t that what I’m paying you two for?”

I didn’t correct Tammy by saying my uncle and his department were getting her money, not Bones or me. I hoped Don wasn’t taking Tammy to the cleaners, but he was a government official.

“You should still know basic skills. After all, you’re a pretty girl, and predators can have heartbeats, too.”

Tammy brightened at the compliment. I hid a smile. Flattery would make her much more accommodating, as Bones would know.

Bones went into the kitchen and came out with a steak knife. He dangled it in front of Tammy, who looked at it doubtfully.

“What do you expect me to do with this?”

“Stab me with it,” Bones replied. “In the heart.”

Her mouth hung open. It was the first time I’d seen her speechless. “You’re kidding?” she finally got out.

“You need to learn how to protect yourself against a vampire. Granted, your odds would be dismal, but your advantage is that no vampire would see you as a threat.”

“That’s how I managed to kill so many of them when I was your age,” I chimed in. “The element of surprise can save your life.”

Tammy looked at the knife again. “I don’t know . . .”

Bones let out an exasperated noise. “Justina, come here and show her how it’s done.”

My mother looked more surprised than Tammy had when the whole conversation began. I was taken aback, too.

“You want me to stab you?” my mother asked in disbelief.

Bones gave her an impish grin. “Come on, Mum. How many times have you dreamed about that?”

My mother got up, took the knife, and then stuck it right in the middle of Bones’s chest. He never flinched or moved to block her.

“See, Tammy, this is how most people would think to do it,” Bones said calmly. “But Justina knows the blade isn’t in deep enough, nor is it in the right place. The heart’s a bit to the left, not exactly in the center. And she didn’t twist the knife, which is what you must always, always do to kill a vampire, unless you’ve stabbed the heart with more than one knife.”

Bones took the knife out and handed it back to my mother. “Now, Justina, show her how it’s really done.”

My mother looked even more startled, but she took the blade, aimed more carefully this time, and shoved it in with a small shudder.

“Twist,” Bones said, as if this didn’t hurt him, which it would, even if steel through the heart wasn’t fatal. Only silver was.

My mother gave the blade a turn to the right. Bones caught her hand and jerked it, hard, in a ragged circle. Tammy gasped at the blood that stained his shirt.

“That’s how you do it,” he said, voice as neutral as if pain weren’t searing through him. I felt it, though, and it was all I could do not to yelp and demand he stop. “Rough, quick, and thorough, else you won’t get a second chance.”

He let go of my mother’s hand and pulled out the knife, wiping it on his ruined shirt. “Let’s show Tammy how it’s done from the back now.”

Tears pricked my eyes. Not because of the pain from Bones’s wound; that was already healed. It was because I finally understood what he was doing. Bones wasn’t trying to train Tammy. He was showing my mother how to defend herself, something she never would have allowed him to do under normal circumstances. But thinking it was for Tammy’s benefit made her follow his instructions, learning how to jab a knife in the right place front and back, then how to deflect some standard defensive maneuvers.

Fabian caught my eye and winked. The ghost knew what Bones was doing, too.

By the time Bones announced it was Tammy’s turn, I’d fallen in love with him all over again. Flowers and jewelry worked for most girls as a romantic gesture, but here I was, misty-eyed at watching him show my mother how to stab the shit out of him.

Tammy was human, so it took her longer to get the gist of things. Still, after an hour, she was sweaty, bloody, and very proud of herself for successfully stabbing Bones several times in the heart.

“Just call me Buffy,” she said with a smirk.

“I’m tired,” I said, faking a yawn. “I’m heading to bed.”

Bones’s eyes lit up. Fabian disappeared out the door, saying he wanted to double-check the grounds. My mother gave me a look. Only Tammy didn’t seem to realize that no vampire ever yawned for real.

“See you tomorrow,” Tammy said. “I’ve got to shower anyway.”

I went up the stairs. Bones stayed below, waiting. By the time I heard Tammy’s shower turn on, I also heard light, quick footsteps coming up the stairs.

When Bones entered the bedroom, I’d convinced myself that the noise from Tammy’s shower would be sufficient to muffle my mother’s hearing. Or that my mom had suddenly gone deaf. And when Bones took me in his arms, I stopped thinking about anything else.

Seven

THIS could be the beginning of a bad joke, I thought as we bypassed the line and strode into Bite. Three vampires and a human walk into a bar . . .

If a rogue undead hit man was after Tammy, we were hoping he took the bait and followed us home, because we had a hell of a surprise waiting for him. And here was also hoping that Poppy, the vampire Bones chatted up last weekend, had repeated Bones’s tale about the snotty rich human he was guarding. And how he’d be back tonight with her.

My mother refused to dance. She sat at the bar, shutting down every man who approached her, human or otherwise. She really cared for Rodney, I thought, my heart squeezing at the memory of the murdered friend my mother had briefly dated. I hope she finds someone special again.

We went through the motions of having a good time, dancing, drinking—no alcohol for Tammy, even though she begged—and then dancing again while Bones renewed his acquaintance with Poppy. It didn’t escape my notice that Verses stared at us. From his expression, he sensed something was up and didn’t want it at his club. Well, neither did we. That’s why we had booby traps waiting back at our house and Fabian there on sentry duty. Come on over, would-be killer. We have treats ready.

After two A.M., we headed out to the parking lot. Out of habit, I had my hand near my sleeves, where several throwing knives lined my arms. We were three rows away from our Hummer when the air became electrified. Bones and I whirled at the same time, each of us pulling out a knife. My mother grabbed Tammy. Several vampires dropped from the sky to land in a wide circle around us.

Oh fuck, was my thought. We’d left Bite only a few seconds ago. Not nearly enough time to coordinate this kind of attack. I counted, noting the vibe wafting off each of them. Twelve vampires, several of them Masters. Too many of them to be just about killing a human heiress. This wasn’t about Tammy.

Bones knew it, too. He gave an almost languid look around, but I could feel his tenseness grating across my subconscious. “X, what an unpleasant surprise. This clearly isn’t coincidence, so tell me, who betrayed me?”

The black-haired vampire addressed as X stepped forward. “A human hires a hit man to kill his cousin for money, boring. That same hit man botches the job twice, funny. Then the desperate hit man sends a ghoul after the girl to finish things up, my curiosity’s piqued. That same ghoul ends up with his head cut off by a mysterious redhead . . . ah. Now I’m interested.”

“Who’s your friend, honey?” I asked Bones, not taking my eyes off X.

“Former coworker, you could say. An overly competitive one who got brassed off when I killed several of his best clients.”

Former coworker. X must not have been a small-time hit man for Bones to refer to him that way, which meant the vampires with him had to be badasses, too. Our chances just got downgraded from slim to screwed.

“Could my old friend Bones be involved, I wondered?” X went on. “The young heiress has government connections, it turns out, and so does the Reaper. And the Reaper’s supposed to be such a bleeding heart when it comes to humans. When another rumor spread that the human heiress would be here tonight, I took precautions in case I was right about who was protecting her. And lucky me, I was.”

Precautions? That was one way to describe the dozen vampires surrounding us, all of whom were armed to the teeth. I glanced back at the nightclub. Would anyone come to our aid? Or would they stick to the whole “no violence on the premises” thing and stay the hell away?

“You’re here for me, leave her out of it,” Bones said, with a barely perceptible nod at Tammy. “Let her go back inside, and we’ll settle this ourselves.”

“She may not be why I’m here, but I’ll be sure to kill her, too, so I don’t risk war.”

Clever bastard. If X killed us while we were defending Tammy, he could call it business. Tammy had a contract out on her; otherwise, Bones’s people could consider it personal and retaliate for our slaughter. X was covering his bases well.

Tammy began to whimper. X gave her a genial smile. “If it makes you feel better, your cousin’s dead. I killed him after I learned what I needed to know about you.”

So that’s why Don couldn’t find Gables, not that it did us any good now.

Bones glanced at me. “Kitten, are you getting angry yet?”

I knew what he meant. Since I found out I’d absorbed fire-starting power from the pyrokinetic vampire I drank from, I’d fought to keep that borrowed ability under control. But now, I let all the repressed anger, determination, fear, and sadness from the past few months roar to the surface. My hands became engulfed in blue flames, sparks shooting onto the ground.

“Kill her!” X shouted.

Knives flew at me in a blur. I rolled to avoid them, concentrating on X. Two months ago, I’d burned an entire property and exploded a Master vampire’s head right off his shoulders. Burn, I thought, glaring at X. Burn.

Except . . . he didn’t catch fire. Sparks still shot from my flame-covered hands, but nothing more lethal came out of them. I shook my hands in frustration. Work, damn you! Flame on, fingers!

But the previous deadly streams of fire that had scared me with their ferocity seemed to have vanished. The most dangerous thing I could do with my hands now was light someone’s cigarette.

“Oh, shit,” my mother whispered.

I couldn’t agree more.

“Protect Tammy,” I yelled, then grabbed for my knives, cursing as I tried to dodge another hail of blades aimed at me. Some of them found their mark, but none in my chest, thank God. Still, that silver burned where it landed, making me fight the urge to yank it out. I flung some of my weapons instead, adding more silver to the barrage Bones had just sent. Then I rolled behind one of the cars for cover, finally getting the chance to snatch out the silver embedded in my shoulders and legs.

Tammy screamed as some of the vampires took to the air. I took two of the knives I’d pulled from my body and sent them winging at the vampire closest to where she was crouched. The blades found their mark, and he crashed into a car instead of Tammy and my mother, who was crouched over her.

The rest of the vampires seemed more concerned with taking on Bones than dealing with Tammy or my mother. I rolled under a truck to get to Bones—and then screamed as my shirt went up in flames.

Goddammit! There must have been oil drops pooled underneath the truck I’d rolled under, and the useless sparks from my hands ignited it.

“Kitten, you all right?” Bones called out.

“Fine!” I yelled back, afraid he’d get killed rushing to check on me.

Stupid, stupid, stupid, I lashed myself. Oil plus sparks equals fire, dumbass!

I’d just ripped my burning shirt off when a car slammed into me, pinning me to the vehicle behind me. I gasped at the unbelievable pain, paralyzing in its intensity. Tammy screamed. Over that, I heard Bones hoarsely call my name.

Something thudded on the mangled car pinning me. The redheaded vampire. He smiled as he pulled out a silver blade, knowing as I did that I couldn’t shove the car off in time to save myself.

But there was something I could do. Oil plus sparks equals fire, I thought savagely, and I rammed my fist through the car’s fuel tank.

A terrific boom went off, combined with the agonizing sensation of being thrown backward, burning, across the parking lot. For a stunned second, I didn’t know if I was still alive. Then I realized I wouldn’t hurt this much if I were dead.

Move, I told myself, fighting back the lethargy that made me want to curl up wherever I’d landed. Keep blinking, your vision will come back.

After a few more blinks, the parking lot was in a double outline, but I could see. Check for incoming. Do you have any knives left? Two, right, make them count.

“I’m okay,” I called out, my voice almost unrecognizable. I hated giving away my position, but I was more worried about Bones losing it if he was too distracted to feel our connection and thought I’d been blown to bits.

“Christ almighty, Kitten,” I heard him mutter, and smiled even though it felt like it cracked my face. I was afraid to look at my skin. Burnt bacon could pass for my twin right now. You’ll heal, I reminded myself. Quit worrying about your looks and get back to worrying about your ass.

I flexed my fingers, relieved that the horrible splitting sensation was gone. Now I could grasp my knives with purpose, and my vision was clearing by the moment. Through the dirty car window in front of me, I saw Bones fighting off four vampires. He whirled and struck in a dizzying display of violence, slicing and hacking whenever they came too close. Now, where were Tammy and my mother?

I’d sneaked around a few dead vampires—one of them crispy, I noticed with satisfaction—and was tiptoeing around a Benz when X sprang out of nowhere. He shoved me, slamming me into yet another car—God, I was so sick of feeling my bones crunch against metal!—but instead of springing forward, I let myself slump as if dazed. X was on me in the next second, knees pinning my torso to the concrete, glowing green gaze victorious as he raised his knife.

My hand shot out, the silver knife clenched in it going straight into his chest. I smiled as I gave it a hard twist. That’s it for you, X.

But he didn’t slump forward like he should have. Instead, the knife he’d raised slammed into my chest without an instant’s hesitation.

Pain erupted in me, so hot and fierce it rivaled what I’d felt when the car exploded on me. That pain grew until I wanted to scream, but I didn’t have the energy. Everything seemed to fade out of view except his bright emerald gaze.

“How?” I managed, barely able to croak out the word.

X leaned forward. “Situs inversus,” he whispered. His hand tightened on the blade, twisting—

Blue filled my vision. I didn’t understand why, and for a second, I wondered if it was even real. Then the blue tilted to the side, X’s severed arm still holding the knife in my chest, but the rest of him elsewhere. Sheet metal, I thought dazedly. Bones must have ripped it off a car and wielded it like a huge saw.

X was on his back, the stump from his right arm slowly extending out into a new limb as he fought Bones. I wanted to help, but I couldn’t get up. The pain had me pinned, gasping and twitching as I tried to escape from it.

“Don’t move, Kitten!” Bones shouted. A brutal rip from his knife sliced open X’s chest, oddly to the right of X’s sternum. Bones twisted the blade so hard it broke off, and then he was next to me, his hand pinning my wrists above my head.

“Kitten.”

As soon as I saw his face, I knew how bad it was. That should’ve occurred to me before, considering I had a silver knife with shriveling hand still attached to it in my chest, but somehow, the pain had blinded me to reality. Now, however, I realized these were my last moments on earth.

I tried to smile. “Love you,” I whispered.

A single pink tear rolled down Bones’s cheek, but his voice was steady. “Don’t move,” he repeated, and slowly began to tug on the knife.

My chest felt like it was on fire. I tried not to look at the knife. Tried to focus on Bones’s face, but my own gaze was blurred pink, too. I’ll miss you so much.

The blade shivered a fraction, and a spasm of pain ripped through me. Bones compressed his lips, letting my wrists go to press on my chest with his free hand.

“Don’t move . . .”

I couldn’t stand it. That burning from my chest felt like it had spread all through me. A scream built in my throat, but I choked it back. Please, don’t let him see me die screaming . . .

The agony stopped just as abruptly as it started. Bones let out a harsh sound that was followed by a clatter of metal on the ground. I looked down, seeing a slash in my chest that began to close, the skin seaming back together as it healed.

And then Bones spun around. A vampire stood behind him, holding a big knife and wearing the weirdest expression on his face. He dropped to his knees and pitched forward, a silver handle sticking out of his back. My mother was behind the vampire. Her hands were bloody.

“Rough, quick, and thorough, or you won’t get a second chance,” she mumbled, almost to herself.

Bones stared. “That’s right, Justina.” Then he began to laugh. “Well done.”

I was stunned. Bones swept me up, kissing me so hard I tasted blood when his fangs pierced my lips.

“Don’t you ever frighten me like that again.”

“He didn’t die,” I said, still stunned by the recent events. “I twisted a blade in his heart, but he didn’t die.”

“Like he said, situs inversus.” At my confused expression, Bones went on. “Means he was born with his organs backward, so his heart was on the right. That’s what saved his life before, but he shouldn’t have admitted it while I could hear him.”

I hadn’t known such a condition existed. Note to self: Learn more about anatomical oddities.

Bones scanned the parking lot, but the only vampires out here were the ones gathered around the side of the nightclub. Onlookers, I thought in amazement. Had they stood there the whole time and just watched?

Fear leapt in me. “Where’s Tammy?”

“I ran her inside after the car blew up,” my mother said. “She’d be safe in there, you said.”

And then she’d come back outside to face a pack of hit men. Tears pricked my eyes even as Bones smiled at her.

“You saved my life, Justina.”

She looked embarrassed, and then scowled. “I didn’t know if you were finished getting that knife out of Catherine. I couldn’t let him sneak up on you and stab you until my daughter was okay.”

Bones laughed. “Of course.”

I shook my head. She’d never change, but that was okay. I loved her anyway.

Verses walked out of Bite with Tammy at his side. From her red-rimmed eyes, she’d been crying.

“It’s over,” I told her.

Tammy ran and hugged me. I wanted to say something profound and comforting, but all I could do was repeat, “It’s over.”

At least Tammy wouldn’t remember any of this. No, her memories would be replaced with one where she’d been sequestered by boring bodyguards provided by her father’s former friends. Tammy would go into adulthood without the burden of knowing there were things in the night no average human could stand against. She’d be normal. It was the best birthday present I could give her.

“You fought on the premises,” Verses stated.

Bones let out a snort. “You noticed that, did you, mate?”

“Maybe if you hadn’t stood there and done nothing while we were am-bushed, your precious premises would still be in one piece!” my mother snapped at Verses. “Don’t you have any loyalty? Bones said you were a friend!”

Verses raised his brows at her withering tone, then cast a glance around at the parking lot. Vampire bodies littered the area, one of the cars was still on fire, and various others were smashed, ripped, or dented.

“I am his friend,” Verses replied. “Which is why I’ll let all of you leave without paying for the damages.”

“He doesn’t sound like we’ll be welcomed back,” I murmured to Bones. “So much for coming here during the rest of our vacation to explore all those private areas.”

Bones’s lips brushed my forehead. “Don’t fret, luv. I know another club in Brooklyn I think you’ll really fancy . . .”