Page 55 of Mistletoe

Hal sighed. “Go ahead.”

“What does that mean? Your time? I’m probably older than you.” She based his estimated age on nothing substantial whatsoever, just a gut feeling.

“I’ve been his captive for two hundred years.”

Emma wobbled, tilting backward off the ledge. Hal grabbed her arm, steadying her.

“Two centuries? How is that possible?” Surprise made her voice squeak.

“Apparently, my kind age slowly.”

“Then…” She did the arithmetic. “Were you on the original ship? Are you from Earth?”

He nodded.

This was amazing. This was… trouble.

More than trouble.

“How did the vampire escape?” she asked, already certain she knew the answer.

“The lock on the cage was very impressive. Unfortunately, the iron bars left much to be desired.”

“You busted out the vampire who held you captive fortwo hundred years?”

“I needed answers more than I needed revenge,” he said simply. “When you found me, I had only just fled the Aerie. The gaps in my memory were substantial. I needed him to fill in those gaps.”

“Did he tell you what you needed?”

“Enough.”

“How could he justify holding you captive? For what he’s done to you?”

“He claimed I was unstable.”

She didn’t believe that for a minute. “And those soldiers looking for you?—”

“A distraction to allow his escape.”

Emma chewed over this information. On one hand, he had been held captive and clearly hurt—possibly repeatedly—for two centuries. “I still don’t understand why you’d let him go. Couldn’t you have lied and promised to free him if he talked and then, you know—” She drew a finger across her throat in a gesture she hoped was timeless.

Apparently, it was.

“You are bloodthirsty. I shall do my best not to cross you.”

“I’m serious, Hal.”

He sighed, his shoulders heaving up and down. “Someone showed me kindness. Killing Draven would upset that person. Draven lives because of the kindness of another.”

“Not to keep repeating the same question, but the soldiers…do they know about you?”

“They are aware of my existence. I believe that is the extent of it.”

If Ma’s cockamamie story about the military having a secret brigade of monsters was true, then they’d want to recruit a monster as unique as Hal. And the sheriff was already sniffing around. Monster hunting was in her blood. She’d never let a prize like Hal go without a fight.

Emma would fight for Hal. There were many unknowns but that wasn’t one.

“What are you going to do now?” she asked. “If you don’t want revenge, what do you want?”

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