Chapter 15

 

After Grace left, Eli insisted Liberty lay down. "You won't be any good to anyone if you don't rest. You should grab the opportunity now, while nothing is going on. Grace said you could use the guest room upstairs."

She gave in, but instead of going upstairs, she stretched out on the sofa in the front room. She didn't want to be too far away from whatever might happen in the next few hours.

Liberty tried to sleep, but every time she started to relax, she thought back to Ryan—how cold his voice had been when he told her he felt nothing for her. She should have known better than to fall for someone so quickly. Hadn't she learned anything from the Cam disaster? Not only was she starting to fall for Ryan, he was her best friend on the island. Someone she thought she could count on. Now, she felt more alone than ever.

Tears squeezed between her closed lids and spilled down her cheeks. She groaned and brushed them away, snuffling back a sob. Ridiculous. A vampire was out there stalking innocent girls and she was laying here feeling sorry for herself.

"Liberty? Are you okay?"

She hadn't head Eli come into the room. She rolled over, quickly wiping her face. The last thing she needed was him mocking her pain.

"Yeah, sure. I'm fine," she muffled in the depths of the sofa.

Eli took her arm and pulled her up. He cocked his head and studied her. "Have you been crying?"

"No," she said, turning away from him. "Just having trouble sleeping, that's all."

He hooked his fingers under her chin and tugged gently. "Look at me."

With a sigh, she complied.

He narrowed his eyes. "You have been crying. What's wrong?"

"It's nothing."

He settled on the sofa next to her, and she scrunched to the back to give him room.

"Come on. If you're upset about something, you should tell me. We need to work together to find this guy, and I need you to be focused. So tell me. Is it your mom? Ryan?"

She shrugged. "I feel funny talking about it with you."

"Come on, we're pals right?"

Her heart dipped in her chest. Pal wasn't exactly how she thought of Eli. But she wouldn't go there. "Sure, yeah. Pals."

"And we have time to kill. It might make you feel better."

She drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Yes, it's Ryan."

"What about him?"

She twisted her hands in her lap, hesitating before answering. "Something... happened. With us. He—just a few days ago, he said he loved me. And now..."

"Now what?" Eli's voice was soft, coaxing.

"Now he says we're—over. He doesn't feel anything for me." She swallowed back more building in her throat. She would not cry over Ryan again. Especially not in front of Eli. "I don't understand what happened. He's always treated me so... special, made me feel cherished. I've never felt that way before." She shook her head. "Dumb, right?"

He gave a small smile. "Yeah, all that sappy love stuff is pretty dumb."

"A lot of help you are," she muttered under her breath.

His mouth twisted in a sardonic grin. "I said I would listen, I didn't say I could help." He rested his hand over hers. "But I am sorry."

"Thanks. I'll be fine." Silence fell between them. She gave a nervous laugh and slipped her hand from beneath his. "I guess we'd better get to work... doing something. Grace isn't back yet, is she?"

He stood and shook his head. "No."

She swung her legs over the side of the sofa and rose. "Is there any more of that coffee?"

"Half a pot or so."

She walked over and poured a cup. It was tepid, but it would do. "Grace has been gone a while. Are you worried about her?"

He laughed. "Grace can take care of herself."

"And if she gets in trouble, she can turn into a bat and fly away, right? How does that work exactly? If vampires can turn into bats so easily, why don't they do that every time they're threatened?"

"It doesn't quite work that way. We can't turn into a bat that easily. The reverse is the easy part—morphing from a bat back into vampire. In order to transform, you have to totally clear your mind, your emotions. It's an instinct thing, which comes much easier in Chiroptera—that's the scientific name for bat—form."

"That makes no sense."

"When you think about it, it does. A bat's thought process is almost nonexistent so instinct takes over, and they just... morph. When we're in vampire form, it's harder to let go and allow the change to happen. A developed brain will overthink." He tossed out a wry smile. "Almost like our 'human' side. We won't rely as much on instinct and it's hard to focus enough, especially when your adrenaline is pumping, you're angry, scared, whatever."

"From what I've seen of Trey, his brain isn't much more developed than a bat. He can probably easily go either way."

Eli laughed. "Yeah, probably so. Why did you bring him up?"

"I had another confrontation with him."

Eli's expression darkened. "Did he hurt you?"

"No, but he hurt Hannah. He's... crazy. I keep wondering if he could be the one we're looking for. Whoever this person is, they don't seem to care about either vampire camp—or human life. That fits Trey perfectly."

"Why would he want to set me up?"

"I don't know. He wants me. Maybe he thinks you're in the way." She lifted her chin and looked into his eyes. "Are you?"

He gave a casual shrug. "I have no say in what happens to you. I'm neutral."

She snorted a bitter laugh. "Yeah, neutral toward me. That seems to be an epidemic."

"That's not what I—I'm sorry. I didn't mean—"

"No, don't. Just forget it. That makes me sound pathetic."

He seemed about to say more when his cell rang. He fished it from his pocket, looked at the display, and answered. "Hi Grace, I'm going to put you on speaker."

He pressed a button and Liberty heard Grace. "I didn't have any luck. The Skyler girl left the island, as did Paul. It appears he took off the day after he ran into Liberty."

"So he can't be our guy," Eli said.

"Right. Which we had already decided anyway. I haven't been able to—"

A small exploding sound came over the speaker, followed by a female cry.

Eli's face blanched. "Grace! Grace, are you okay?"

A moan, then a man's voice. "Grace, hey, is that you? What happened?"

"Blake," Eli said to Liberty. Into the speaker, he said, "Blake? Pick up the phone."

A fumbling sound, then Blake's voice. "Eli?"

"Yeah, is Grace okay?"

"She's been shot. But she's going to be okay. I have her now. She's safe."

A muscle ticked in Eli's jaw. "Who shot her?"

"I don't know. I don't see anyone around, but I'm getting her out of here in case they're still lurking."

"Are you sure she's okay?"

"I'm sure. I'm taking her to her house. She just needs time to heal. Where the hell are you, man? They're coming after you."

Liberty shook her head and mouthed, "Don't tell him. We'll get out of here."

Eli looked at her and said into the phone, "I'm at Grace's. I'll be waiting for you to bring her. And hurry."

"Yeah, sure. But you know what I gotta do when I get there." A sound like footsteps, then a car door opening and closing, came over the speaker. "I'm sure Liberty's there. I don't know how you convinced her to take off with you, but you gotta turn yourself in."

"We can talk about that when you get here."

Eli tapped End on the cell and scraped a hand through his hair. Worry had darkened his eyes to slate grey.

"You can't stay here," Liberty said. "He'll kill you. Or take you in."

"I'm not leaving. Grace is hurt."

"He said she was fine." Hysteria made her voice shrill. "Eli, you have to get out of here. I'll wait and make sure Grace is okay, but you have to leave."

He gripped her upper arms and looked down into her face. "I didn't want to run the first time. I'm damn sure not running now and leaving her—or you—behind."

Tears choked her throat, and she jerked away. "Then congratulations, you're about to die." She crossed her arms and stalked away from him.

"Liberty, listen to me—"

She whirled to him. "No! I won't listen to another word. I risked my ass to keep you safe, now you're throwing it all away. We're both going down."

"I won't let them hurt you."

She gave a laugh that felt like a sob. "What the hell do you think you can do about it? You'll be dead."

He shut his eyes and shook his head. "I'm sorry. I can't go."

"Screw you, then. I can."

She strode to the door and flung it open, then halted, gasping in surprise.

Blake stood on the porch, holding Grace in his arms. Her head lolled back and blood soaked her chest.

"Oh my God!" Liberty stepped back. "Is she okay?"

Blake's expression was grim. He brushed past Liberty and went into the living area, easing Grace down onto the sofa. "She will be. They missed her heart."

"Who's they?" Eli bit out.

Blake shook his head. "I have no idea. I didn't see anyone."

Grace's eyes fluttered. Her face was as white as bone. "Not—not my heart. Missed. I'll be fine, just need a-a minute." She drew in a labored breath. "But-he's... out there. He's coming."

"Who?" Eli squatted at her side. "Who's coming?"

She shook her head. "Didn't... see him." She panted between words. "Ambushed..."

"I'll find out who did this," Eli said gently, rubbing a thumb along her forehead. "I'll make them pay."

"Don't think so," Blake said. "You need to turn yourself in, man. You can't keep running." He looked at Liberty. "You helped him, didn't you? We wondered if you had, or if he'd forced you."

"We?" Liberty asked. "Are the police coming?"

Blake shook his head. "I separated from them, hoping to find Eli and talk some sense into him." His mouth turned down at the corners. "The police won't be in the mood to talk when they find him."

"He's innocent," Liberty said. "We're just trying to buy some time until we can prove it."

Blake chuckled. "Come on, you really believe that? How can you, with all the evidence?"

"Someone's setting me up." Eli said. "I don't know who, but they're trying to pin this on me. I didn't do it."

"Eli, be realistic here. Who would want to frame you?"

"That's what I'm trying to find out," Eli snapped.

Blake narrowed his eyes. "I don't believe it. Let me take you in and you can stand trial."

"Trial?" Eli crooked a sardonic grin. "What happened to the order to take me out on sight?"

"I'll fix it," Blake said. "We'll give you a fair shake, but you have to come in. You don't have a choice. If you resist, not only will you be in danger, Liberty will too. They'll punish her right alongside you."

Eli's shoulders slumped. "Fine. I'll go in with you. But not until Grace is recovered."

Blake nodded. "Fair enough." He looked at Liberty. "You'll have some questions to answer too."

She glared at Eli and brushed angrily at the tears on her face. Why did she give a damn what happened to Eli? He had a chance to get away, and he hadn't taken it.

"She had nothing to do with this," Eli said to Blake.

Blake harrumphed. "She was supposed to bring you in. Instead, she fled with you. I doubt they'll take that lightly."

"She didn't come willingly. I forced her."

Blake narrowed his eyes and looked from Eli to Liberty. "Is that true?"

"It's true," Eli said before she could answer.

Liberty compressed her lips and didn't speak. She was tempted to deny it, to admit her part in Eli's escape, but if she wanted to find the culprit before something happened to Eli, she needed to remain free.

She bent over Grace and eased the edges of her blouse apart. A pink square of material lay on her chest just above her cleavage. Liberty gasped. A pink handkerchief? She glanced at Eli and saw that he'd noticed too.

"You stopped the bleeding?" Eli asked Blake casually.

"I did. She'll heal soon, but I didn't want her losing any more blood."

"So this is yours?" Eli lifted the handkerchief from Grace's wound.

"Yeah." Blake chuckled. "Not very manly, right?"

"Where did you get it?"

Blake frowned. "Why are you so interested?"

Eli shrugged. "It's just sort of unusual... for a man. And looks pretty expensive."

"Yeah, and familiar," Liberty said. "I ran into Paul Blackwell. He had a handkerchief just like this."

"Oh right. Blackwell is the one who told me about them. They come from an exclusive boutique in Switzerland. They're a special blend of Swiss Cotton and Linen. They only come in pink... so... well, you know. I got the pink."

"I didn't know you and Paul were tight," Eli said.

"We're not. We were both on holiday in Switzerland. I admired his handkerchief..." He scowled. "What's with the third degree?"

Liberty met Eli's eyes. She read his expression. He'd realized the same thing she had. It was Blake. The vampire they'd been after all this time was Blake.

Liberty eased her hand to the small of her back, reaching for her gun. The air around them shifted. Before Liberty's fingers touched the weapon, Blake snatched her by the hair and yanked her against his chest. Pain exploded in her head.

"Not so fast, little hunter." His maniacal laugh sent fear slithering up her spine. "I see the jig is up. Ah well, it was fun while it lasted. Now, someone's got to die."