Chapter 7

Spending a Saturday afternoon teaching the apprentices the finer points of being a cashier was not my idea of fun, especially since it was a really nice day with temperatures approaching 70 degrees. But Aunt Gene had gone to deliver some specially commissioned items and Aunt Annie had been called to assist with a difficult birth; she was also a licensed midwife. So that left me to run both stores and manage the girls until one or the other of them returned.

Three days had passed since we'd all returned to Murdoc and it seemed that, thanks to Camilla and Hunter, the hunt had been successfully halted. Marcus and Talon were still behaving cautiously, like they didn't believe the ordeal was over with but whenever I'd ask them about it, they'd just shrugged it off as nothing.

Just because I could, I opened the mind link between me and Talon. It had become easier after Wednesday night, though I had to close my eyes and concentrate really hard. It was easier to do when I was tired and going to bed because my shields weren't quite as impenetrable, maybe because no one was around.

:Your timing is uncanny: Talon said and I could practically see him shaking his head. :I was just about to call you: he continued. :Are you busy?:

I gave a mental snort. :Would I be conversing like this if I were?:

:I guess not. Well, would you like to go to lunch?:

:I can't.: I made sure to project how sad that made me. :Both Aunts are gone and I'm babysitting both stores and the girls: I sighed. :This sucks:

:Don't be sad, my love: He sent a bundle of happiness to me, mixed with a little punch of desire which I was coming to call a "mind kiss". :How about a compromise? I can pick up something and stop by instead.:

:Really? You wouldn't mind?:

:Not at all. I'll see you in about twenty minutes.: We exchanged mind kisses and I dropped the link with a smile, opening my eyes.

And looking right into the eyes of a vampire.

"Is there any particular reason you're here, Andras?" I snapped, my heart beating quickly in surprise.

"Amazing," he said, his voice silky-smooth and light. "I do have to wonder what it is you were doing that allowed me to startle you." He lifted one dark brow in question, his darker eyes probing.

I didn't like Andras Spencer, to say the least, though loathing was probably a better description of my feelings; I wouldn't waste energy on hating him. A sly, manipulative bastard, he was very much a Vampire long accustomed to having people obey him. Six hundred years of servants fawning over his six-foot, almost tan, 200 pounds of shapely muscled frame with romantic, shoulder length dark hair and dark, mysterious eyes had given him a massive superiority complex. This just meant that I had no problem tearing him down.

Then again, since he was also a bounty hunter, an asshole and an ex-boyfriend, I had no qualms about being an insufferable bitch to begin with.

So I just stared at him coldly, not bothering to answer his question at all. Staring into a Vampire's eyes, especially one as old as he was, should have allowed him to influence my mind, should have let him manipulate me. It had never worked on me, which was another slap to his face and ego.

"It still won't work, Vampire," I quipped with a smirk which became a vicious grin when he looked away first, proving that I was more dominant. I saw Molly and Bethany sitting behind the counter casting nervous glances at me. I shook my head ever so slightly when Molly reached for the phone. "I seem to remember you leaving some time ago with your prey; why are you here again?" My voice was sharp and unhappy, my arms crossed and face a hard mask.

"Checking up on me?" His tone implied so much more than the words meant and I snorted derisively.

"Not hardly. I was told by a friend that my town was once again scumbag-free." Talon had kept tabs on him to make sure he hadn't tried to approach me again. It had been a very territorial move on his part that would have made me angry except that it had kept them from ever meeting and, inevitably, fighting.

"I'm hurt," Andras replied with false sincerity. "Here I came to pass on a piece of information I thought might interest you and you hurl insults."

"Tell me you didn't expect as much from me," I scoffed, shifting my weight and raising an eyebrow, all attitude. "I sure as hell wasn't going to smile and simper."

"Maybe not but you could at least try to be civil to me." He shook his head. "I guess it's a good thing you were nothing more than a play toy; your atrocious manners would cause me no end of grief." He'd kept his manner light and careless, but his eyes were watching me closely, waiting for me to react.

So I laughed. It was harsh and condescending, dark chuckles that suggested his efforts to antagonize me were so contemptuous that they weren't even considered at all. So I laughed until my eyes watered, my sides heaving as I watched him squirm and grow angry, laughed until I couldn't breathe and had to use the wall for support. When my horrid mirth died down to weak giggles, he spoke.

"I'm glad you enjoyed that because your attitude just cost you." His hands were fisted at his sides, slight tremors running up his arms. "Know this - you could have prevented this had you wished but what will come will be solely your burden to bear." He turned to leave and I couldn't help a parting shot.

"Well, thank you for your barely veiled threats and obscure pseudo-prophecy," I remarked. "Please, feel free to keep them to yourself from now on. Oh, and I hope the door hits you on the way out."

He'd taken a few steps towards the door but, at my remarks, came striding back angrily. "You are a half-breed mongrel cur," he snarled, "good for nothing but use as a whore or the lowest slave. I will show you your place." He pulled his hand back and I called my dagger to my hand, adrenaline coursing through me in a heady rush. I wanted this. I wanted to have an all-out fight with the creature who had caused me so much misery over the years. I wanted it so badly that it took me a moment to realize his attack wasn't coming, was, in fact, being held off. It took my brain a few more seconds to shake loose of my eagerness to see clearly what was happening before me.

Talon had Andras pinned to a nearby wall by the throat, their faces scant centimeters apart, both of them snarling. I could see that the Vampire's eyes had turned blood red with his fury, though he wasn't struggling to be free, locked in a battle of rage with the Demon. I knew it would take so little effort for Talon to snap Andras' neck and rip out his heart; I could feel his rage both in my head and as an oppressive cloud that inspired fear as it filled the room.

And I wasn't sure how I felt about that. On the one hand, I was sure many women would sleep better tonight if the Vampire died. But, on the other hand, I didn't think I'd be one of them. Yes, he'd hurt me bad. Yes, I'd suffered for many years as a result, but did that give me the right to take his life? I didn't think so.

As Talon bent his head to the side, I took two steps forward, ready to try and stop him. But he didn't snap his neck. Instead, he whispered something in his ear, something in another language that the Vampire obviously understood. He paled as much as a Vampire could pale, his eyes narrowing as he hissed. After another moment, Talon released him and stepped back. I put my dagger away with a small sigh of relief.

"I guess the rumors were true," Andras ground out, rubbing his abused throat. "You have turned Demon whore." I growled at the insult. "I'll lament the loss when you're corpse turns up in a river. Remember what I said." He turned and left, using Vampiric speed to move quickly away.

Talon turned to me, his face a mask of cold fury that made me want to run and hide. Instead, I held up a hand, requesting a moment, which he gave me.