Page 8 of Twilight Destiny

“And you did something else, too. What was it?”

“A little vampire glamour to make you want me.”

Rosa stared at him. “I don’t believe you.” And yet, shehadfelt an unwanted rush of desire for him.

“It’s true. Vampires can mesmerize you and make you do whatever they want. You need to remember that. They can seduce you, drink from you, and wipe it all from your mind.”

“Is that what you did to Kadie? Make her fall in love with you?”

“No. I didn’t want a robot. She hated me for a long time, with good cause, and I let her.”

“And if she’d never fallen in love with you? What would you have done then?”

“I honestly don’t know. She was attracted to me even when she hated me.” Saintcrow lifted a hand to stay the question he read in her eyes. “I didn’t exert any influence on her, the way I did you. Although all vampires have a certain inherent allure. That’s something else you might want to remember.”

Rosa sat back in her chair, troubled by what Saintcrow had told her. Maybe looking for a vampire wasn’t such a good idea. Maybe Sofia and Holly had just been lucky that the vampires they had fallen in love with had basically been good, decent men who hadn’t been inclined to take advantage of them. She might not be so lucky.

Late that night, long after Rosa had turned in, Saintcrow wandered the town’s dark streets, his mind filled with thoughts of the past. And Kadie. Always Kadie. She had turned both the town and his life upside down. But for her, Morgan Creek would still be a haven for vampires, a prison without bars for the mortals who innocently wandered into town and found themselves trapped inside, preyed upon by the coven. In his defense, he had seen to it that the men and women had been treated well. The vampires hadn’t been allowed to mistreat them or kill them. He had built them comfortable homes to live in, provided food to eat, movies, a library, a tavern. He hadn’t felt guilty about keeping them or preying on them. He was a vampire, after all. He had been guilt-free until Kadie got under his skin. To please her, he had returned the men and women to their homes and sent the vampires away. He would have done anything to please her. Anything. Except let her go.

He had seen far worse cruelty in his time, Saintcrow mused, as he neared home. He had been turned during the Crusades. Fatally wounded in battle, with the stink of fear and death all around him, he had dragged himself away from the field of battle, determined to die alone. A vampire had found him there. She had given him a drink of water, sang him a song. Cradling his head in her lap, she had talked to him for what seemed a long time, though he had no clear recollection of what she’d said. He had felt himself slipping away into oblivion when she asked him if he wanted to die. He had thought it a foolish question under the circumstances, but by then, he had been past answering. He didn’t remember much of anything that happened after that. She had buried her fangs in this throat and he had felt himself drifting away on a crimson tide. He’d known he was dying, but it had no longer seemed important. All he had wanted to do was surrender to the darkness that beckoned him, but she hadn’t been finished with him yet. She had forced his mouth open and made him drink what he’d later realized was her blood.

He had never seen her again. Never knew her name, or why she had chosen to turn him instead of taking his life.

With a shake of his head, Saintcrow materialized inside his lair. Kadie had not only turned his life upside down, she had turned his cheerless lair into a home. Kadie. Damn, but he missed her. The house seemed lifeless without her. And then he grinned, thinking it was no longer lifeless as he listened to the slow, steady beat of Rosa’s heart.

He had a wanna-be vampire under his roof. Now, what was he going to do about it?

One thing for sure, he needed to talk to Jake Kincaid and find out what he was up to, and there was no time like the present.

Chapter Four

Kincaid strolled along a deserted street in Cheyenne, his thoughts on the pretty little mortal staying with Saintcrow. Rosa. She had wanted to meet a vampire and Saintcrow had arranged for the two of them to get together.

Kincaid snorted. Saintcrow had wanted him to scare the girl off, but once he met her, that had been the farthest thing from his mind. She was lovely, a little feisty, and untouched, a rarity in this day and age. He hadn’t known virgins still existed, which only proved how long it had been since he’d been intimate with a decent woman.

He found his prey waiting for a taxi. He mesmerized the woman with a glance, took what he needed, and sealed the twin punctures in her throat before sending her on her way. Blood. He never tired of it, never got enough. But Saintcrow didn’t condone needless killing in his territory, another testament to the power of a decent woman, he thought with a wry grin. He had known Rylan Saintcrow a hell of a long time. The master vampire had never been squeamish about taking a life until Kadie arrived on the scene. But Saintcrow was still a master vampire and one to be reckoned with if one wanted to continue his existence. And while Kincaid had considered ending his centuries-long existence from time to time, it was no longer an option.

Not until he got to know Saintcrow’s pretty little protégé better.

He was about to return to his lair when the master vampire fell into step beside him. Kincaid tensed as the other vampire’s power rolled over him.

“You were with Rosa today,” Saintcrow said. It wasn’t a question, but an accusation. “What the hell were you thinking?”

“You wanted me to scare her off, didn’t you?”

“Uh-huh. But that’s not what you were doing.”

There was no point in lying, not to Saintcrow. “I like her.”

“Leave her alone.”

“What if I don’t want to?” Kincaid flinched as the master vampire’s ancient power lashed out at him. It felt like knives slicing into his flesh. It took all the strength he possessed to stand against it. “She gave me her phone number.” He spoke through gritted teeth. “Are you going to destroy me if I call her?”

Saintcrow withdrew his power. “We’ve been friends a long time,” he said, his voice like ice over steel. “But if you lay a hand on her, I’ll take your head. If you make her one of us, I’ll take your head. Do we understand each other?”

Kincaid nodded curtly.

“I see you’re still wearing that talisman the witch gave you.”

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