Page 135 of Evil Hearts

He couldn’t bear to look his brother in the eye, not when he knew that the expression he’d be rewarded with was the same condescending disbelief he was presently bludgeoning himself with. Much as he wanted to believe his own contrived shite—much as he ached for his outburst to be so simple and rational—he couldn’t bring himself to a single conclusion that justified it.

New York…

TheUnited States…

As though venturing from the safety of their cave and following the lass into the village hadn’t been a grand and terrifying enough endeavor already, now there were planes and oceansand entire new worlds. This girl—this seemingly simple little anapriek—was a part of a bustling existence that differed from their own like the day differed from the night.

But did he truly believe that she’d wanted that for him for herself?

Or had he just been grasping at the first opportunity to preserve his simple life?

“Better a prideful dick than a loose whore!”

How could he…

“What happened, brother?” Munro’s stare turned serious.

“She… she offered to pay for us and move us in New York with her,” he scoffed. “Probably to use us as pets and try to bleed us for more inspiration.”

“An’that’swhat ye believe?That’swhat’s got ye so pissy an’ lettin’ the best thing to ever happen in your life get away?” Munro growled. “Of course she offered to pay for us, Lachlan; we live in a bluidy cave! Were ye thinking ye’d live a life with her paying with ale-farts and the never-ending rivers of piss an’ vinegar runnin’ through yer veins?”

“I…” he frowned, not having any response to offer.

“You really bollixed this one, didn’t ye?” Munro sighed. “Lass is prolly shagging the first laddie she came across, assuming she actually—”

Lachlan’s eyes widened. “Assuming she actually made it back t’the village…”

Munro was already dragging himself to his feet. “Those leeches are still out there, brother! We canna let ‘er brave those woods on ‘er own!”

“Aye!” Lachlan nodded, “Are ye feeling up t’joining me, brother?”

“An’ risk letting ye bollix up the lass’ offer all o’er again,” he shook his head. “No thank ye! I wan’ t’see the city lights, an’ I’m not lettin’ yer foolish pride muck it up!”

Katarina never made it back to the inn…

Lachlan froze, staring at the innkeeper who had just given them the troubling news. The innkeeper tried to pass it off as a foreigner getting caught up in the nightly activities of the deprived and Lachlan narrowed his gaze at her.

“Ye best not say anymore,” with that, he turned and left the inn, heading back towards the mountains.

Something about that old woman rubbed him the wrong way; something about her certainty and sudden casualness towards one of her tenants going missing.

“So much fer the bleeding heart we saw earlier,aye?” Munro guffawed beside him. “An’ the ol’ boot stinks like boogered panties!”

As the brothers put the lantern lights of the village behind them, Lachlan shot his brother a confused glance. “What are ye going on about?”

“Tha’ innkeeper wench! She’s twofaced! Rantin’ earlier ‘bout how nervous she was for Kat when she di’n’t come back last night, but shruggin’ off her absence t’night; it doona seem right?”

“An’ what was that about ‘boogered panties?’”

“Oh,aye!” Munro chuckled, “Ye dinna notice? Ol’ hen reeked of crusty blood! Almos’ like a…”

“Like a vampire?” a husky feminine voice rang out from behind them.

The brothers spun to face the redheaded vampire. Though they’d encountered her several times before, circumstances had never allowed for them to see her with much clarity. Now, however, without her hissing or lunging or chasing them through the hills, she seemed peaceful; almost regal.

“She’s actually in league with us—well,themat least,” she went on about the innkeeper. “Offers over tourists and low-key locals to save her own gizzard. Can’t say I’m flattered by all this ‘panty booger’-talk, but you’ve certainly hit the nail on the head.”

Lachlan bared his teeth. “What do ye want,vampire?”

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