Invincible (A Centennial City Novel) - By Fionn Jameson Page 0,74

do some blood tests. Maybe run a few tests. That’s all. Think of it like humans getting a physical.”

I eyed him. “And what would you know about humans getting a physical?”

His smile was lascivious. “I’ve dated humans before.”

I had the feeling that his idea of “dating” varied wildly from mine, but declined to make any other comments about that. “They will not harm him?”

He put a hand over his heart, and under the moonlight, he looked innocent, untouched from all the evil and blood that seemed to taint every vampire I had ever hunted. It was surprising, no, strangely encouraging. “Scout’s honor. I promise,” he said and then winked broadly. “I’m telling you. We’re not all bad as you think.”

We’re not all bad as you think.

For some reason, his words felt like a bucket of ice water thrown over my head.

“Before Jason, I used to hunt things like you,” I said, the memory even now making me feel vaguely uneasy, ill. “About three years ago, there was a vampire. Not that old. Maybe twenty, thirty years old. He seemed to have a liking for little boys. He was responsible for six missing boys all from Centennial City before I was given orders to dispatch him. The human police couldn’t do anything. They came to the Fellowship and the Elders came to me.”

Ryder’s mouth tightened and he took a step away from me, hands behind his back. “Sounds like Pike.”

Even now, I could smell the thick blood splashed across the bedsheets, see the open eyes that would see no more, and I felt my gorge rise. Back then, I was still fairly young, fairly innocent and made a mess in the bathroom before Adrian found me and slapped me back together, literally.

“He was going to hit another house, something he’s never done before, and I practically ran into him when he jumped a fence,” I said, watching Ryder’s emotionless face, wondering what was going on behind those clear blue eyes. “I thought I’d lost him. I really thought I’d lost him, but he almost knocked me over and he saw the sword in my hand. You know what I did?”

The vampire shook his head wordlessly and I saw a tiny gem, the same color as his eyes, glint in one lobe.

“I laughed. I laughed because I was so relieved. I thought another child would die before we could get the chance to kill the son of a bitch, but there he was, right in front of me, covered in blood, the blood already drying in his hands.” I drew in a deep breath and shoved my hands into my pockets. For some reason, I couldn’t continue looking at Ryder. “I killed him. It doesn’t happen that frequently, but I took the head right off his skinny little shoulders. Everything happened so quickly. When the cops came, they found me with his head, my fingers tangled in his hair.”

He nodded slowly, carefully. “He went rogue. We did what we could, but in the end, we heard a hunter found him. I heard Vincent sent the mayor Pike’s master’s head in a box as an apology.”

I snorted. “Yes. Because I can see how that would make up for the seven families without their sons.”

His eyes grew shuttered. “You think I don’t feel bad, Ran? You think we’re all monsters, don’t you?”

“You’re all dead,” I said baldly, without any fear. Hard to feel fear for someone who looked like the next teenybopper idol. Hard to feel fear for someone I felt strangely attracted to.

“Really?” he said and sauntered towards me, a small smile on those crimson lips. He ran a hand through his silky blond hair and I knew what he was trying to do. “That’s funny. I don’t feel…what’s the word you used? Oh, yeah. Dead. I don’t feel very dead, Ran.”

Had I been anyone else, I think I might have started to weep tears of joy at this beauty coming closer and closer, but I had seen the horror behind the loveliness. I had seen the violence and blood. “I said you’re dead. I didn’t say you were ugly.”

The smile widened. “So you don’t think I’m ugly?”

Two could play at this game. “You’re beautiful. I’m not blind, Ryder.”

He sucked in a breath, biting his lower lip and for a moment, one strange, utterly exhilarating moment, I thought he was going to strip right there, in the middle of all this snow and shadows. “You think I’m beautiful? Do you really think I’m