Keepers of the Flame (Trilogy Bundle) - By Melissa F. Hart Page 0,29
idea how juvenile you just sounded?”
He shrugged with a smile. “We need to be on our way,” he said, swinging his feet off the bed.
“Where are we going?”
“First we'll head for HQ and from there, for London.”
I felt dread well up in me. Think about Katrina. I told myself. Katrina's what's important here.
I tried to smile at him but failed dismally. “I'll need a few minutes to get ready, then we can be on our way.”
He stretched out a hand, which I used to boost myself out of the bed. He pulled me up and as I stood, we were standing toe to toe. He wrapped an arm around my waist and pulled me closer till I was flush against him. I looked up just as he leaned down and kissed me. I lifted my arms and placed them on his shoulders, drawing comfort from his kisses and his touch.
He drew back slightly. “We're in this together, okay?” he said gazing deep into my eyes.
I nodded. “I know. Thanks.”
He kissed me again then stepped back. “All right then, five minutes and we need to report at HQ for briefing. Did you take those combat lessons I asked you to sign up for?”
During one of his monthly phone calls, he'd badgered me into signing up for vampire combat lessons with some pal of his. I'd been going religiously twice a week since then and told him as much.
He smiled at me and swatted my bum. “Good girl.”
“Hey, watch it!” I frowned at him as I walked to my ensuite to get ready. I had no idea what was waiting for us out there. If he thought I would need combat skills, it meant this was even more dangerous that I'd thought. I sprinkled a handful of water over my face and stared at the mirror above the sink. Was I ready for this? I was going to have to come face to face with my past. A past I'd resolutely refused to discuss or speak about in over four years. I fought down nausea. I didn't think I could do this. But for Katrina's sake, I had to. But dear heavens, I was so scared. I felt chilled to the bone and even the stone lying on my chest seemed to have taken in some of the chill.
“Lu, are you okay? We need to be on our way.”
I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. It didn't do anything about the tightness in the pit of my belly, but I figured until it was all over and Katrina was safely back home, I had to learn how to live with that tightness.
I walked out and almost bumped into Dylan leaning against the bathroom door. He looked at me with concern.
“Are you okay?”
I shook my head in a negative gesture. “I don't think I'll be okay until I know Katrina's fine.” I said, my voice hoarse even though I hadn't cried.
He gave me a quick hug. “Then let's go get her back home.”
Chapter Seven
The drama began as soon as we stepped out of the house. We were ambushed by a group of armed vampires, carrying various weapons from long swords to short scimitars. As soon as I saw them, something crazy happened. I got mad. I became so angry that I wanted to use my bare hands to tear each of them into a million different pieces. These were the monsters responsible for kidnapping Katrina and I wanted them to feel every kind of pain I'd felt since I lost my parents.
Dylan must have felt my anger because he moved close to me and wrapped an arm around my waist. I felt the pressure from his arm and knew it was a warning.
“Vampires, what's all this about?” he asked casually. “Can't a man enjoy an afternoon off with his girlfriend?”
They maintained a menacing silence, then one of them elected to speak up. His voice was guttural and harsh. “We're not here to talk to you. The girl comes with us or we kill you both.”
I tensed and Dylan's arm became a tighter band. He turned to look into my eyes. “Open your mind to me, Lu,” he commanded softly.
I knew what he was asking. He wanted to communicate through telepathy. I recoiled from that, the invasion of my mind.
“You're wasting time!” The self-appointed leader of the weapon carrying vampires spoke in his guttural voice. I wondered why when you needed them, humans were notoriously scarce. How could masked men carrying