Chapter One
Mike pushed openthe door to the small, smoky, dimly lit bar and stepped inside with Doug and Jack following him. The scents of stale alcohol and cigarettes choked the air, but beneath it he scented the nearby ocean and lemon polish. The door closed on the howling wind. It might be early June, but this far north in Canada, the storm rolling off the sea brought colder air with it.
Stomping his feet, Mike clasped his hands and blew into them as he surveyed the vampire bar they’d entered. The small town on the coast of Labrador had a population of only a couple thousand, but it had attracted a fair number of vampires.
Whether that was due to the shorter daylight hours, which attracted Savages, or the fact vampires were fleeing the growing Savage problem in the States, Mike didn’t know. Unfortunately, the three of them couldn't detect a Savage by their scent like a pureblood vamp could, so he didn’t know if they’d just walked into a room full of killers or not.
He did know most of the patrons were vampires, as like knew like.
“Guess we won’t be settling into this area,” Jack muttered.
“I don’t think they’re killers,” Doug murmured.
“What makes you say that?” Jack asked.
“The humans are still alive,” Mike answered as he surveyed the fifteen vampires and the handful of humans seated amongst the scarred wood tables.
Jack’s hazel eyes narrowed on him in annoyance; strands of his light brown hair had fallen into one of his eyes, but he didn’t push it away before he huffed out a breath and stalked over to the bar. Doug chuckled while he ran a hand through his short, dark blond hair. His ocean-blue eyes twinkled with amusement as he watched Jack slide onto a barstool and order a beer.
“I take it we’re staying for a drink,” Doug said.
“I guess we are,” Mike replied.
Their boots thudded on the wood floor, and the planks bowed beneath Mike’s weight as they strolled over to join Jack. Like Jack, they settled onto stools where they could watch the patrons behind them in the mirror lining the wall behind the bar. Liquor bottles filled the shelves and reflected in the glass, but Mike still had a clear view of the patrons.
The bartender placed a beer in front of Jack before turning wary eyes on them. Mike nodded to her, but her blue eyes revealed no warmth and a smile didn’t curve her mouth. Glancing around the bar again, Mike realized most of the occupants had stopped talking and focused on them. He didn’t sense hostility from them, but more distrust. Mike didn’t blame them for being uneasy; he didn’t trust them either.
“What can I get you?” the bartender asked. Her clipped New York accent was out of place in this northern land.
“I’ll take a Crown and ginger and an ashtray,” Mike said.
“Scotch on the rocks,” Doug said.
“You got it.” The woman pushed an ashtray toward Mike and turned to fill their order.
Mike pulled out the pack of cigarettes he’d tucked into the inner pocket of his coat. He undid the packaging and tapped one free. It had been a few months since he last smoked, but he’d purchased the pack at the border last week.
Now seemed as good a time as any to light one as most of the patrons held a cigarette or had a pack before them, and he knew well how smokers congregated to talk.When in Rome.He removed his silver Zippo from the pocket of his jeans, flipped the top open, and lit the cigarette. He inhaled a drag as the bartender returned with their drinks.
“What brings you to these parts?” she asked, her gaze on Mike.
“We’re doing some traveling,” he replied, “and exploring the area.”
“Planning to move north?”
“Maybe, if we find something we like.”
Mike didn’t want to move, but with the growing Savage problem, he and his friends weren’t taking any chances. After some careful consideration, they’d all decided it would be best if they had a safe place to retreat to if it became necessary.
The past two times they’d moved, they had to search out a property before leaving, but this time they would have one ready and waiting. There were too many children to protect now for them not to have a backup place.
And they sought a property more remote than their compound in Maine. They could have searched online or hired a realtor to help them, but they wanted to keep their trail as small as possible should something go wrong and they were forced to flee. Mike also preferred to see the land, surrounding towns, and the residents instead of relying on Internet searches and real estate agent phone calls.
So far, the three of them had found numerous tracts of land for sale, but they were hoping to find something with houses, or at the very least one home, already on it. Building new houses would take more time than they were willing to spend to get their emergency retreat ready.
Unfortunately, they hadn’t found anything that would work yet. Mike wasn’t ready to give up. They’d all prefer to stay near the coast, but they might have to forego that or perhaps find a lake or pond. David wouldn’t be happy about boating around a pond, but he would have to suck it up.
The bartender leaned closer in such a way that she revealed more of her breasts in her low-cut, black top. He didn’t know if she was trying to distract him with her cleavage or if her interest in him had taken a turn toward the sexual.
