Page 63 of Suck This

My eyes widened, and I turned to stare at the two men that were on the other side of my car.

Did they think that I couldn’t hear them?

They were only on the other side of the car from me. Not across the parking lot.

But as I waited for my brother to react to the officer’s words, I realized that the guy had spoken so softly that my brother hadn’t heard. I’d just gotten a boost from Con’s blood—something I’d been benefiting from for about a week now.

Constantine, though, had heard.

And he was staring at the man that’d said it with death in his eyes.

“I’m sorry,” Constantine said, moving away from me and allowing me more room. “But I don’t think the chief heard you. Would you like to repeat it, or shall I?”

The cop didn’t repeat it. At least not until Constantine made him.

With one look, Con’s eyes flared bright blue for a long second, and then returned to normal.

The cop who’d spoken the words, however, wasn’t back to normal.

He was staring blankly at Constantine.

“Try one more time,” Constantine ordered the cop.

“I said I’m not going to give that vamp fucker” —he pointed to me blankly— “a ride in my cop car. I don’t want to catch the disease.”

“And what disease would that be?” Constantine growled.

“The disease that makes you stupid.”

I winced.

My brother, however, did not.

“Go home, boy. And when you get to the station, go ahead and pack up your things. Turn your keys in to the front desk. You’re no longer an employee of Austin Police Department.”

The officer looked at my brother like he’d lost his mind.

My brother’s eyes, however, were so angry that it didn’t take long for the man to catch on.

Constantine was so still that I worried he was about to do something stupid, but surprisingly enough, he let the man go.

We all watched as the man got into the cruiser, looked angrily at me and Constantine, and left.

“You should have made him ride back in the back while your sister drove,” Constantine drawled. “I’ll be happy to call him back here and force him to comply.”

My brother snorted.

“I would’ve loved to do that, but my job would be on the line.” He growled. “Every step I take is scrutinized. They question my ability to lead a department of forty police officers. They question my reasoning for my sister being my top forensic specialist, even though she’s over-qualified for the position, and half of the police officers hate me because they think I go too easy on the vamps.”

Con didn’t say anything for so long that I thought it was a good idea to question my brother about my job, but Con was just waiting to get his thoughts together before he spoke.

“If you hate it there, I have a position for you that you can have right now.”

Corbin’s eyebrows rose in surprise.

“You’re shitting me,” he said.

Con shook his head.

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