Craig's Heart (17 page)

In answer, Evie yanked off her jacket and then reached for the hem of her sweater.

Damek stood on the quiet sidewalk outside Haven with Craig’s family, outwardly showing no emotions. Inwardly, he was seething.

Craig had made no attempt to shelter his thoughts, had freely shared them. Damek knew exactly what had transpired inside Haven. He also knew his friend had neglected to mention a few pertinent details.

He studied the other four and raised one dark eyebrow. “Are you coming inside or leaving?”

Quinn motioned Damek forward. “Lead the way. I wouldn’t dare miss this.”

Damek flowed forward and the door slammed opened before he reached it. All heads turned toward the entrance, the male werewolves positioning themselves to defend the women. He ignored the growls and went straight to Meredith.

“A pleasure as always.” He took Meredith’s hand and brought it to his lips, knowing it would piss off her mate. Isaiah, predictable as always, growled louder and pulled his mate away.

“Why are you here?” Isaiah asked.

“That is not exactly welcoming. But it seems you’re not in a welcoming mood tonight.” He was angry for his friend and for himself. How many times did these wolves expect him or Craig to prove themselves? He was done. From now on, they would have to prove themselves worthy of his friendship.

“Damek,” Meredith began, but he raised his hand and she went silent. Isaiah quickly moved in front of her.

“What none of you seem to understand is that if I wanted to truly harm you there is nothing you could do to stop me.” He paced away, disappearing into the darkness, reappearing on the other side of the room.

Quinn and his small group settled in by the door but kept a close watch. Damek knew Craig could depend on them and that curbed his anger, not by much, but enough to ensure he wouldn’t do or say anything he’d regret. He missed Sonia at a time like this. She was the only voice of reason he listened to other than Craig.

“I’ve done nothing but help this pack over the years. Every time you’ve come to me with a request, I’ve done everything in my power to see it carried out. And how do you repay that? With suspicion and mistrust.”

No one spoke. The only sounds came from the hum of the coolers behind the bar, the traffic on the street, the buzz of the lights and the heavy sound of breathing.

All eyes were on Damek.

“And Craig. Puny human that he is. Excuse me, was. He’s helped track werewolf hunters, vampire hunters and accepted all of you without question. So glad you repaid him in kind.”

“He’s a newly made vampire, Damek.” Isaiah took an aggressive step forward. “And the girl is unknown. Young vampires are unstable. You can’t expect me to trust them with my pack.”

Damek shook his head, wondering why after all these long centuries he was still disappointed by people’s reaction to certain situations. Human nature—or rather werewolf nature—never seemed to change no matter the era or the place. “Not all vampires are the same. For example, the one that made Evie stalked her first. He fed on her fear. His name is Vladimir Drake and he’s moved into Chicago.”

“The string of bodies,” Michael spoke up, his words not a question but a statement of fact. They all knew what happened when an out-of-control vampire moved into a city.

“Yes. The police, of course, believe it is a cult.”

“That will bring the hunters.” There was concern in Meredith’s voice as she glanced at her family. Damek could easily read her concern for her pack.

“Yes. I’d say they’re probably already here.” Damek turned to Craig’s family. “Be on your guard. This vampire is dangerous and unstable. And the hunters are no better.”

“We will,” Quinn promised. Damek read his determination to protect his small pack from harm. Good.

“What are you going to do about it?” Isaiah asked.

“Me.” Damek lightly touched his chest. “You expect me to do something about it. Chicago isn’t as welcoming a city as it once was. I’ve been considering selling my club and moving on. Of course, Craig, Evie and their family are more than welcome to come with me.”

Meredith pulled away from her husband’s grasp and went to Damek, placing her hand on his arm. “I’m so sorry for what happened here tonight. We should have been more accepting of Craig and his friend. It was just such a shock. Craig was always special.”

Damek covered Meredith’s hand. “He still is. Both he and Evie are. Other than my Sonia, I’ve never seen such control in two so young. And Sonia had some paranormal blood in her. These two were totally human. I think they draw strength from one another.”

“Fuck!” Isaiah dropped into a chair and sighed. “How can we deal with this threat? We can’t have a crazed vampire running around the city. It’s bad enough with just you. And the hunters definitely have to go.”

Damek knew the werewolf meant the taunt affectionately. In spite of himself and the way they’d disappointed him, he liked this pack. “I’ll let you know. In the meantime, you might like to place a call to our mutual friend and pray he’s willing to listen.”

The door to Haven opened when Damek walked toward it. “I have some things to do before dawn, but I’ll be in touch.”

He became one with the darkness, moving faster than the human eye could see. There was one final property on the list Craig had given him. He’d check that out and head home.

Meredith set her phone down on the bar. “He’s not answering.”

Isaiah slipped his strong arms around her. “Give him time.”

She sighed and leaned her head against his strong shoulder. “Damek was right. After everything Craig’s done for all of us over the past five years, we should have trusted his judgment, asked questions and found out what he needed.” She spun around on the stool and wrapped her arms around her husband. “We failed him. All he needed was for us to accept him, even if we didn’t understand the situation.”

“We’ll do better,” he promised. He lifted her into his arms and started toward the back stairs that led to their apartment.

“I hope we get the chance.” She rested her head on his shoulder, all the while wondering how Craig was dealing with the outcome of the night.

Vladimir Drake was not pleased. He’d searched since the sun went down. He’d had his minions searching for Evie at all her regular haunts. Nothing. No one had seen her. How could she evade him? She, who was so newly made.

When he found her he would have to destroy her for her betrayal. But he could spend some time with her first. It would be fascinating to study her, to see how strong she was, what her weaknesses were.

It was science and she would be his project. If he was going to make more vampires in the future, it behooved him to learn from his mistakes. He didn’t want to make a creature stronger than him. What he wanted was loyalty, an army of vampires willing to do his bidding.

Yes, he would find her and then the fun would begin.

Smiling, Vlad flicked his long wool coat open and made his way down the alley. There was someone cowering behind a dumpster and he was in the mood to play hide and seek.

His fangs lengthened and he smiled.

Chapter Eleven

Craig stretched out on the bed with Evie in his arms. The ride home had passed in a blur of lust. Evie had twined her naked limbs around his. He’d buried his hot, hard cock deep within her. And blood, the giving and taking of the life-giving liquid.

At times he wondered how he could accept it all so easily. Maybe it was because he’d grown up with the paranormal. Maybe it was because he’d been friends with Damek for years. Or maybe it was simply his personality. He’d never spent much time complaining about what he didn’t have, instead making the best of what he did. Evie was much like him in that respect. At their core, they were both survivors.

They’d fallen into bed and made love until dawn sent them both to sleep. Or at least it sent him to sleep. His last memory was of Evie looking down on him and smiling. She hadn’t seemed the least bit tired. Not like him.

He should have waited in the living room for Damek to return home, but his need for Evie was too great. They’d barely remembered to drink the blood as Damek had instructed. It was strange to realize that his lust for Evie outweighed the bloodlust.

He’d known when both Sonia and Damek had returned and when they’re retired to their bedroom for the day. Having him and Evie there had to be cramping the other couple’s lifestyle, even though neither of them had done or said anything to suggest such a thing.

They should probably move out tonight or at least talk to Damek about the possibility. Craig didn’t want to do anything that might jeopardize Evie’s safety.

He ran his fingers over her bare arm, loving the smoothness of her skin. She was an enigma in many ways, even though he felt as though he knew her better than anyone else in her life ever had. He liked that about her. She had layers to peel back and explore.

“You seriously can’t be considering having sex again.” She pushed her dark hair out of her face, her voice sleepy and slightly disgruntled. “Because I may not walk for a week as it is.”

Craig grinned, knowing she was teasing him. Their new healing powers as vampires allowed them both to recover quickly. “That’s not what you were saying last night.”

She laughed and poked him in the stomach. “A gentleman wouldn’t remind me of that.”

“I never said I was a gentleman, now did I?”

Evie grinned. “I guess not.” She nestled against him. “What time is it?”

He didn’t even have to think about it. “Five minutes past sunset.”

“We should get up.”

“Soon.” Craig wanted to stay like this as long as possible. When it was just him and Evie, life somehow made sense. “Tell me more about yourself?” He felt her tense and modified his request. “About your art? How did you get started?”

The hand she’d rested on his stomach began to move, her fingers making circles on his skin. “I’ve always drawn, always doodled, ever since I was a kid. My favorite toy was crayons and paper. Maybe because they were cheap, I always seemed to have some.”

His heart ached as he imagined a much younger Evie quietly drawing. Alone.

“One of my foster mothers gave me some colored pencils when I was about twelve and I became obsessed. I was lucky enough to attend a school with a good art program for a couple of years. That really helped me develop. I discovered pastels, water colors, oils and acrylics. I scrounged supplies and worked whenever I could.”

Evie tilted her head back. “What about you? Tell me about your childhood? When did you discover your love of computers?”

Craig smiled down at her, captured her wayward hand and brought it to his mouth. He kissed her palm and held it over his heart. “I was always computer mad. We didn’t have much money when I was growing up. Mom worked two jobs constantly to put a roof over our heads.”

“You didn’t come from money?” Craig could hear the surprise in her tone and realized there was a lot they didn’t know about one another.

“Far from it.” He let the memories take him back. “But that didn’t matter. Mom was always smiling, always making the best out of things. She did janitorial work at several office buildings, and when she discovered some old computer equipment being thrown out she asked if she could have it. They said she could so she brought it home, figuring Quinn and Chrissten might be able to use it for school, but it was broken. I took everything apart and built one good system out of the parts.”

“That’s impressive.”

Craig shrugged. “Like you with art, it came naturally to me. She brought home more computer equipment and parts when she found them and I scoured the garbage bins in the richer neighborhoods for more. I enjoyed the challenge.”

“What happened to your mom?” Evie’s soft question made his heart ache. His mother had been still so young when she’d died.

“She got sick but didn’t go to the doctor. No time and crappy health insurance. By the time we figured out something was really wrong it was too late. The cancer had spread.”

“I’m so sorry.” Evie lifted herself up on one arm so she was looking down on him.

He shrugged. “Me too, but life isn’t always fair.” He touched her cheek, running the pad of his finger over it. “You’d know that better than most. I never doubted that my mother loved me. That’s more than a lot of people get. Plus, I had Quinn and Chrissten. We pulled together and made things work.”

Evie could only wonder at that kind of closeness. Most of the people she’d known would have looked out for themselves at a time of crisis. It made her respect Quinn and Chrissten even more knowing they’d automatically taken care of their younger brother when their mother died. She could only imagine the kinds of bonds that living through such an event would forge.

She’d only had the most superficial of personal connections. Sure, she’d lived in a few decent foster homes, but they were always temporary and lasted only as long as the families got paid and the foster kids weren’t too much trouble.

“Were you ever close to any of your foster parents?” Craig’s soft question pulled her out of her thoughts.

“There was one woman, the one who gave me the colored pencils.” She’d never spoken about this to anyone. “The home was in a decent neighborhood and the school was the best I’d ever attended. There was always enough food and I had clean clothes. They came from the thrift store, but it was good quality. She taught me how to look for labels and to shop at the thrift stores nearer the upscale neighborhoods.” Evie laughed. “She used to say that only rich people threw out good stuff.”