He suppressed a smile. "Dumbass. "
"Dork. " She shoved him, just a little, and he let her do it. He even pretended to stagger, although she didn't imagine vampires got knocked off balance very often, except by other vampires. "Michael, she didn't give me any choice. Shane's dad -- even though he left, he did damage. Shane wasn't going to be trusted here, and you know what happens if -- "
"If they don't trust him, " Michael said somberly. "Yeah. I know. Look, don't worry about Shane. I'll protect him. I told you -- "
"You may not be able to. Look, no offense, but you're only been a vampire for a couple of weeks. I have library books that have been out longer. You can't promise -- "
Michael reached out and put one cool finger across her lips, stilling them instantly. His blue eyes were intense, narrow, and very focused.
"Shhhh, " he whispered, and turned out the light.
Claire heard the kitchen door thump, and then the hard-heeled clonk of Eve's shoes crossing the wood floor. "Hello? Helllloooooooo? Great. Why do all my housemates sulk like little girls or vanish when the dishes are dirty? If you can hear me, Michael Glass, I'm talking to you!"
Claire snorted, almost laughed. Michael's hand closed over her mouth, stifling her. He tugged on her arm, and she followed him, moving carefully so as not to knock anything off the shelf. She heard the scrape of the door opening at the rear of the pantry, the tiny little bolt-hole, and bent down to go through it. The other side was pitch black, not even the tiny crack of light that the pantry had enjoyed, and Claire felt a flutter of panic. Michael's hand pushed her onward, and she stepped hesitantly into the close, thick dark. Behind her, she heard him close the door with a very soft click, and bright electric light flooded over the floor.
"Here, " Michael said, and handed her the flashlight. "She might come looking for us here, but not for a while. "
It was a secret hidey-hole, one that Claire had been shoved into on her very first morning in the Glass House; no exits, only the one entrance. She'd thought from the beginning it looked like someplace a vampire might stash a couple of handy coffins, but it was empty. And as far as she knew, Michael slept on a Serta.
"I meant to ask you. What is this?"
"Root cellar, " he said. "This house was built before refrigerators, and ice deliveries were only so-so. This was where they kept most of their vegetables. "
"So ... Not a vampire hideout?"
span> It was a secret hidey-hole, one that Claire had been shoved into on her very first morning in the Glass House; no exits, only the one entrance. She'd thought from the beginning it looked like someplace a vampire might stash a couple of handy coffins, but it was empty. And as far as she knew, Michael slept on a Serta.
"I meant to ask you. What is this?"
"Root cellar, " he said. "This house was built before refrigerators, and ice deliveries were only so-so. This was where they kept most of their vegetables. "
"So ... Not a vampire hideout?"
the one entrance. She'd thought from the beginning it looked like someplace a vampire might stash a couple of handy coffins, but it was empty. And as far as she knew, Michael slept on a Serta.
"I meant to ask you. What is this?"
"Root cellar, " he said. "This house was built before refrigerators, and ice deliveries were only so-so. This was where they kept most of their vegetables. "