Chapter 13

 

Liberty whistled—literally whistled, how lame was that?—as she drove to work. She was still on a cloud from last night's date. It had been the best time of her life. She and Ryan had a late dinner on the beach and, afterward, lay on the blanket watching the stars glint like diamonds in the black sky.

Ryan had been romantic, the night magical, and after an hour or so, she barely thought about Eli. He wasn't the man for her. In many ways. And now that she knew it was her responsibility to continue the Van Helsing line, that pretty much sealed it. Ryan was the one she should be with.

Not that she was ready to have babies with him—or anyone for that matter—but he was definitely worth pursuing a relationship with. He loved her, not only had he told her, but she could see it in his eyes. She cared about him a lot, but was it love? Maybe not yet, but it could be. She thought back to his warm kisses last night that sent electricity zinging to her toes. Yes, it definitely could be.

She parked at the Perfect Getaway, climbed out of her car and headed in. Tonight, she didn't even mind working. She actually looked forward to it. Ryan would be there.

She spotted him at his usual post as soon as she walked in. He wore a tight black t-shirt and jeans. His dark hair flipped over his forehead, making her fingers itch to brush it back.

She walked over to the bar and leaned against it, giving him a smile. "Hey there,"

He glanced back at her. "Yeah? What's up?" He poured a vodka soda.

"Uh, just wanted to say hi."

"Well, you said it." He glanced at her, then back to the drink he was making. "I'm kind of busy here, and don't you need to start your shift?"

She frowned, confusion warring with hurt. "What's wrong?"

"What do you mean, wrong?"

"You seem... cold. Did something happen?" Had he thought about coming up on her and Eli last night and decided there was more to it than he'd first thought? He hadn't questioned her about it last night, hadn't said a word.

He looked at her and gave a weary sigh. "Nothing happened, okay? I have work to do. And so do you."

She reached out and grabbed his hand where it rested on the bar. "Ryan, look at me. I know there's something wrong. You seem... upset with me."

He pulled his hand away. "Not upset. Not... anything. At all."

"What do you mean not anything at all?"

He narrowed his eyes and shook his head. "I can't explain it. Yesterday, I thought my world revolved around you. I loved you more than I've ever loved anyone." He laughed. Shrugged. "Today, it's all changed. You mean nothing to me."

She gasped and stepped back. Pain shafted through her heart and tears filled her eyes. "You don't mean that," she choked out.

He laughed again. "As crazy as it sounds, I actually do. I guess you were nothing more than a summer fling. Who knew, right?"

* * *

Melody walked down the sidewalk, digging in her purse for her cell. Her parents were going to kill her. Literally. They'd brought her to the island for her eighteenth birthday but expected her to spend all her time with them. What kind of birthday was that? She'd snuck out earlier, planning on partying for just a few hours. Now she was hammered. And had no idea how to get back to the hotel. She hadn't seen a cab. She had no choice but to call her parents.

She fished out her phone and was dialing her mother's number when footsteps sounded behind her.

Fear pierced her chest. She swallowed, not wanting to turn around, but afraid not to. Slowly, she glanced over her shoulder. A figure stood in the shadows. She couldn't make out any features, but it was a man, she was sure about that.

"Hello?" she said shakily. "Can I help you?"

Her fingers continued to tap the numbers but before she could push 'send,' he was on her, snatching the cell from her grip.

"You won't need that," he said. He gripped her shoulders. "Look at me. Look into my eyes and listen carefully to what I say."

She looked into his eyes—the most beautiful eyes she'd ever seen. "Please... please don't hurt me."

His mouth twisted in an evil smile. "Well, I can assure you I'm not going to kill you. I have other plans. I want you to describe me to the police. Tell them I had dark blond hair, grey eyes, and my name is Eli."

She felt funny. Like she was in some kind of trance. Was it the alcohol? She slowly nodded. "Your name is Eli."

"Now, brace yourself. I'm going to make this a very bad night for you."

His head dipped, and his mouth latched onto her neck. It felt like sharp, thick needles were biting into her flesh. Something wet—blood she realized—trickled down her neck. Agony ripped through her throat, into her chest. She couldn't scream. Couldn't speak, couldn't breathe. She grew weaker, feeling the life drain from her limbs as he drank. Drank her blood... dear God, what was happening?

Blackness swam in her vision. The ground rushed up to meet her as he released her shoulders. She hit the cement with a bone jarring thud. Something was pressed into her hand. A piece of paper...? That was the last thing she remembered before the darkness took her. That and the name... Eli...

* * *

The night moved in slow agony for Liberty. Her heart was breaking. Much worse than when Cam cheated. Did that mean she loved Ryan? What could have changed his mind so abruptly? Was he really just a player and she hadn't seen it?

She dug into her pocket and pulled out the coin he'd given her—to help 'ground' her, he'd said. To give her something to hold onto so she wouldn't be afraid. He told her a story about how his father had given him one just like it when he was a child, one that helped him when he was frightened. But Bianca had told Liberty the coin wasn't just like the one his father had given him. It was the coin. And that had been when he'd just met her. Why would he do that if he was now able to toss her aside so easily?

She drew in a deep breath. No sense dwelling on it. Whatever they had was over. Ryan no longer wanted her. He'd made that clear.

Her phone rang as she was heading to the parking lot after her shift.

It was the captain. "I need you to get to the hospital right away."

"What is it?" Her heart thudded heavily in her chest.

"Another victim. Though this one is alive. She's talking. Rupert and Blake are here."

"What about Eli? I'll call him and—"

"No," he cut her off sharply. "Don't call Eli. Just get here and I'll explain."

She sped to the hospital, her already muddled mind trying to make sense of the cryptic phone call. Why not call Eli? Explain what?

She parked in the emergency parking lot and rushed through the doors. The captain was in the waiting room with Rupert and Blake.

"Follow me." The captain didn't wait for her to agree. He headed down the hallway. She, Rupert, and Blake followed.

They entered a room where a young blond girl lay with bandages around her neck and head. Her eyes were closed, her face pale. Blue shadows veined her lids and beneath her eyes.

"Melody?" The captain's tone was gentle. "Are you awake? Do you feel like talking?"

The girl's eyes slowly opened. Fear hovered in their hazel depths.

"This is Liberty Van Helsing. I'm going to tell her what happened. You don't have to talk any more. You can just confirm what I say is accurate."

She gave a slight nod.

"You were attacked this evening by a man. Tall, grey eyes, dark blond hair."

Another nod.

"He gave you this." The captain held up a piece of paper with an oak tree drawing. "And he told you his name was Eli."

Liberty drew in a sharp breath. Eli? Not possible. But the girl nodded.

The captain turned to Liberty. "All this time he's pretending to help. And it turns out he's our killer."

"No." She shook her head. "No way. He wouldn't do that. And if he did, he damn sure wouldn't tell her his name."

"Maybe he gets some perverse thrill out of them knowing who he is. Maybe he makes them call him by name. I'm sure he didn't expect her to live. It's a miracle she did. Her throat was nearly torn out."

Bile rose in Liberty's chest at the thought of Eli savagely attacking this fragile young girl. It couldn't be. "No," she whispered.

"There's more," Blake said.

The captain shot him a look. "Yes, there's more. Let's step into the hall."

They left the girl's room. Liberty's legs were so weak, they could barely carry her. First Ryan, now Eli? She couldn't accept that these two men—men she thought she knew—could be capable of something like this. Especially Eli. Brutally murdering young girls was so much worse than breaking her heart.

She crossed her arms and looked up at the captain. "What? What's this 'more'?"

Blake spoke for the captain. "In the revolutionary war, Eli was a prisoner. He was locked up in Connecticut for two years. This tree stood just outside his window." He pointed to the paper the captain held.

"This tree?" She gave an incredulous laugh. "It's an oak tree. Like billions of other oak trees."

"No, no it isn't at all." He gritted his jaw and met her gaze. "It's a Charter Oak. The symbol for freedom. The Connecticut state symbol. I don't know why I didn't recognize it initially, but after the girl told us Eli attacked her, it all clicked in place."

She shook her head. "But why? Why would he do that? It would make him an enemy of both camps. Not to mention, he's not that... evil."

"You didn't know him before," the captain said. "He's changed in the last year." He gave a humorless laugh. "But maybe not as much as we thought."

"Yes." Rupert sighed heavily, speaking for the first time. "Maybe he felt he didn't really belong in either world." His face was drawn and he seemed to have aged ten years, even though a vampire couldn't age. Why would he be so disturbed to find out Eli was the killer—the traitor? She'd seen glimpses of mild admiration from him toward Eli, but this went deeper than that.

Her mind rebelled against the indisputable evidence. But maybe he was right about Eli. Maybe they all were. "Does Eli know about any of this?"

The captain shook his head. "We weren't sure how to approach him. You need to be the one to take him down."

Takes him down... kill Eli?

Tears rose to her throat, but she didn't let them fall.

"I can send my men with you," Captain Jacquard said. "And Rupert and Blake will go. For back up. But it's up to you to finish him."

"I'll go alone."

"No, you can't—"

She jerked her gaze to the captain. "If you want my help, you do it my way. I go alone or not at all."

She wasn't sure why she was so set on this suicidal course, but it just felt like something between her and Eli. And only them.

What kind of masochistic fool was she?