A Grave Hunger (17 page)

"I love you," he breathed.

I couldn't answer. The fire reached a boiling point, and burst through my body, making me cry out as a fiery explosion burst through my writhing form. Finlay unhooked our hands, and swept a stray strand of hair from my face before leaning down to kiss me tenderly. Those green eyes penetrated me once more. I saw so many emotions burning in his eyes: love, infatuation, lust, and grief hidden just below the surface.

"Now, that's how I pictured our first time to be." He grinned, obviously pleased with himself. Then, he frowned when I didn't respond. "Well, apart from you giving me the silent treatment. What's wrong?" he asked, alarmed.

I shook my head. "Sorry, I'm just . . . just wow," I responded incoherently.

"So, I've stunned you into silence with my male prowess," he stated arrogantly.

"Ok, Casanova, don't get too big-headed." I rolled my eyes.

That night, for the first time since Robert's death, I slept deeply through the night cradled in Finlay's arms, and was uninterrupted by nightmares.

Chapter 29

I awoke to strong arms wrapped around my waist, holding me close. I could feel Finlay's chest gently rising and falling in his sleep. His breath on the back of my neck. An involuntary smile crossed my face, as my memory brought a deluge of flashbacks from last night: the feel of his strong hands exploring my body, his tender kisses, and the look on his face when he said he loved me. I could have lain there wrapped in his arms forever, but a glance towards the alarm clock revealed it was 10:26 a.m. Luke and Ryan were expecting us in half an hour.

I untangled myself from his arms, careful not to wake him, and slipped out of bed. He stirred, stretched in his sleep, and then rolled over, turning his back to me. I would give him another ten more minutes to sleep. I quietly padded around the small room, bending to pick up my clothes that had been strewn around. I hurriedly pulled on my clothes and headed to the door, quietly pulling it closed behind me. Back in my room, I brushed my teeth, showered and changed into fresh clothes. A quick time check showed I had been gone fifteen minutes. Time to wake up Finlay. Entering his room, I noticed the bed was already empty. I could hear the sounds of water drumming from the bathroom. The thrumming abruptly stopped and he appeared a few moments later, towel wrapped around his waist. Beads of water dripped down the planes of his muscular chest, and a wave of desire rushed through me. He beamed when he saw me.

"Hey, I thought you did a runner." He crossed the room towards me and pulled me close against his damp body, wrapping his arms tightly around me. He leaned in and enveloped me in a passionate kiss, which sent the waves of desire blazing hotter.

"Hmm, you smell good," I breathed, breaking off from his delicious mouth and kissing gently down his neck to his chest. My hands ran over his chest, exploring his firm, well defined muscles. "Damn it, we need to go. Luke and Ryan are expecting us." I closed my eyes and rested my head on his chest. He responded by grumbling incoherently, and he leaned down and kissed me on the top of the head.

"Fine, we'll go, but when we get back we are not leaving that bed for at least twenty four hours."

"Deal, and if I remember correctly, it's my turn to have my wicked way with you." I flashed him my dirtiest grin.

"Woman, you'll be the death of me. Any more of that talk and we won't be going anywhere."

"Ok, I'll behave... for now." I could feel his eyes on me as I broke our embrace and sat down on the edge of the unmade bed. "Go and get ready."

The conversation that would pull me from my reverie and devastate the course of my life wouldn't come for another thirty minutes.

We found Luke and Ryan in Robert's basement. They were engaged in deep conversation and didn't notice us enter. They both looked up with concerned eyes as I greeted them.

"Hey, everything all right?" I asked, concerned. Their body language was tense and they had a guarded look in their eyes.

"Hey, guys. Glad to see you sorted out your issues." Ryan instantly noticed Finlay's protective hold on my waist.

"Yeah, we kissed and made up," Finlay not so subtly announced, a smirk playing at his lips. My cheeks reddened in response.

Ryan ignored his innuendo. Whatever he had found out must be serious not to merit a witty male retort.

"Under some gentle coxing, the vamp spilled his guts. Told us everything and It's not good." I tried not to think about what signified as gentle coxing.

"What are they up to?" Finlay asked. All joking ceased.

"They've been turning more vampires recently, increasing their numbers, purposely gaining the attention of hunters throughout the country by leaving bodies in their wake."

"What's their end game?" Finlay asked.

A cognitive eruption fired in my brain, as the clues my subconscious had offering over the last few weeks suddenly began to fall into place. "They are setting a trap for the hunters, aren't they?" I asked.

"Yeah, they want to be able to feed without hunters bothering them," Luke explained scornfully.

"That's why there's been such an escalation in murders in the area. All the vampires are here." A shiver ran up my spine as the severity of the situation hit.

"I knew something was going on. There hasn't been another vampire attack anywhere across the country except in Ithaca," Finlay added.

"Ok, well now we know we just contact as many hunters that we can and warn them. If we know it's a trap, we just avoid it like the plague." I stated simply.

Ryan frowned, a sadness washing over his face. "I take it you haven't seen the news this morning?"

"No, what's happened?" I asked alarmed.

"The story has been repeating all morning on News 24." Luke clicked on the television and a hush swept through the room as we listened to the news report. I sat on the sofa and listened as a pretty blonde news reporter was finishing reporting on a story about the economy. My heart raced as she started her next story.

"...Our top story today. A bus of school children was abducted today in Ithaca. The bus of children aged five to twelve was on its way to St. Mary's Elementary School when it was hijacked.  It is feared that the attack could be terrorist related. However, no organisation has taken responsibility for the attack at this time. The body of bus driver Thomas Jones, 53, was found brutally murdered, ten miles outside the city. Police have confirmed that his body had been drained of blood, yet are unable to comment at this time as to whether this is an connection to the recent slayings which have devastated the local area as of late. All thirty five school children are still unaccounted for. Police are appealing for any witnesses that may have seen the bus on or near Vincent Street today, around 8:15 am to come forward. The FBI has taken over the case from the local police, and are urging anyone with information to contact them at (607) 274-1887.”

We sat in silence, processing what we had just heard. An icy fear ripped through my chest and I struggled against the bile that was filling my throat.

"They knew hunters from all over the country would be watching the news and would be powerless to resist hunting them down,” Finlay said, his voice filled with disgust and loathing. “Hundreds of hunters will be on their way. They will be sitting ducks."

"How many vamps do you think we are talking about?" I asked.

"Going by the death rate in the area, I'd guess at least one hundred," Ryan said.

"When is it going down?"

"Tomorrow night."

“Where?”

“Sapsucker woods on the outskirts of town.” Luke answered.

We sat in silence. All of us lost in thought, we knew that this mission meant certain death. There was no way that we could fight that many vamps and win, even if there were other hunters on the way to help. It was Ryan that broke the silence, confirming what everyone else was thinking. "If this is my last day on Earth, I'm sure as hell going to enjoy it." He stood from his seat. Luke followed suit. "Meet 7pm tomorrow night at the woods?"

"Yeah, tomorrow night," Finlay answered sombrely.

“We'll phone around, let the other hunter's know the plans for tomorrow,” Ryan added.

I walked Luke and Ryan to the door. Returning to the living room, I saw Finlay sitting on the couch. He was curled forward, elbows on knees, head hanging forward. I knew how he felt - hopeless. He looked up when he heard me enter, eyes full of anguish, mirroring the deep despair I was feeling. I joined him on the couch and laid my head on his shoulder.

"You know that this is a suicide mission. There's no coming back from this one." His voice a strangled whisper.

"We don't know that, not for sure," I lied, trying to console him, trying to put on a brave face. His expression showed me he didn't buy it. He looked away, a troubled look crossing his face. When he spoke, his voice was tense.

"If I asked you, would you stay away from the fight tomorrow?" He unleashed the full power of his emeralds on me.

"I will if you will."  He smiled, but his eyes held a sorrow. When he spoke, his voice held such emotion that it left me speechless for a moment.

"You have no idea how much I want to be able to do that. For us to run away together and have a life together, maybe get married and have kids. The white picket fence - the whole nine yards." He reached over and took my face in his hands. "You know why I can't do that." I did know. It was the same reason why I had to go into this suicide mission too. The children. I had to at least try and save them. I could never live with myself if I didn't try.

"Well, we're in it together. Regardless of what happens tomorrow, at least we will go out together." My voice demonstrated more confidence than I felt. A frown crossed his brows and he shook his head.

"Please, Leah. I'm begging you. Stay behind. We can handle it without you," he pleaded.

I answered straight away, no need to think through my response. "No, I'm not letting you do this without me. We do this together." He started to object, but must have seen the resolve on my face. His lips pressed into a thin line and his eyes narrowed.

"You are so stubborn, you know that?" he grumbled. I could hear the desperation burning under the casual tone of his voice, and as I looked into his eyes I could see it flashing there, despite the effort he took to keep it hidden. My heart lurched. I knew how he felt. Why did this have to happen now? I felt as though my life was just starting to get back on track. I was happy for the first time since my family had been killed. Finlay made me happy, I loved him and the thought that he would probably die tomorrow was more than I could bear. I pushed aside the despair threatening to take over. I had to stay strong for him. I couldn't --
wouldn't
-- let him see how hopeless I felt. And if this was our last night together, I was determined not to let fear and despair spoil it.

I forced a smile, twisted my head around and kissed his hand that still held my face. "We're in this together," I repeated. He pulled me towards him and kissed me. His kiss felt strained, and the way he moved his lips with mine demonstrated his fear. He broke off the kiss, buried his head in my neck and kissed me gently. I could feel the tension in his back and his worry seeping through with every touch. I pulled his face up so I could look in his eyes, working to keep my expression neutral. He looked at me through thick black lashes. The emeralds looked defeated.