"Trust me," Fury said. "I'll use your scent to lead the others far away from here. Hell, by the time I get through with Stefan, he'll be chasing his tail in circles."
Vane was impressed. It was a good thought. "Can I trust you not to lead him here?"
"Yeah, you can."
What an uncharacteristic response for Fury. Vane looked at him as he debated whether or not he could trust him.
In the end, he had no choice.
Fury went to scratch at the door.
"I'll let him out," Vane said, heading to the wolf.
"Thanks," Bride said as she pulled out the leftover angel hair pasta.
Vane followed the wolf into the back courtyard. He pulled off his shirt, then conjured up a fresh one while Fury flashed into human form to take it.
"Put some clothes on, Fury. I'm going blind here."
"Shut up," Fury snapped. "I'm not as talented as you are with my powers and I'm not staying human long enough to care. I just wanted to tell you to be careful.
She seems like a nice enough woman, for a human. Be a damned shame to see something happen to her."
"I know."
A car pulled up to the gate.
Fury stepped into the shadows and vanished. Vane didn't move as he watched the car pull in. It was the stripper who lived in one of the upstairs apartments. Relieved it was a friendly car, he went back inside to find Bride spooning the sauce into her pan.
He had to find some way to get her to agree to leave with him until they could safely part company.
Vane watched her and felt something very peculiar. In his world no one cooked for him. He either ate it raw or bought it in human form, then cooked it himself. No one had ever made food for him before except when he paid them to do it. This was almost homey. Not that he understood what homey was.
Maybe it was this strange feeling in his stomach. The pull inside that urged him to touch her even when he shouldn't.
"Bride?" he asked, moving closer to her. "Do you believe in the impossible?"
She pulled a bag of salad from her fridge. "Impossible how?"
"I don't know. Fairies? Leprechauns? Wolves who can turn into humans?"
She laughed. "Ahh, the loup-garou. You're not buying into local legends, are you?"
He shrugged as his heart shrank. It was too much to hope that she would be anything other than a typical human.
"Although," she said, making his heart lighten. "I do have a friend who chases vampires after dark. She's nuts, but we love her."
Damn.
"Yeah," he breathed. "Tabitha is a bit out there, isn't she?"
Bride stood stock-still. "How did you know she"
"Everyone in New Orleans knows the resident vampire slayer," he said quickly.
"Tabitha Devereaux has been around a long time."
Bride laughed. "I'll have to tell her she's a legend. It'll please her to no end."