“Maybe it’s notyouthis vamp isafter; maybe she has a stalker,” Cassidy suggested.
“We’ll find out,” Julian muttered as hefinished going through the video of the storage room, but no oneother than Aida and Nicolette were back there all day.
He went through the camera in the back hallnext, but there was nothing unusual there either. He discoveredwhat he was searching for in the last hallway.
“Who is that?” Kyle asked as he leaned closerto the screen.
“I don’t know,” Julian grated through histeeth as the man fondled Aida’s hair.
A few more moments passed before Aida kickedhim in the knee and sprinted down the hall. She didn’t get farbefore the man caught her and bashed her into the wall. The soundJulian emitted caused Cassidy to lean away from him, and Kyle edgedprotectively closer to his sister. Julian fisted his hands to keephimself from smashing the computer as the vampire worked his wayinto Aida’s mind.
Julian’s shoulders heaved as the red andblack color returned to swirl up his fingers and across the backsof his hands. If he didn’t kill something soon, an innocent mightpay the price for his pent-up fury.
On the bed, Aida stirred and murmured hisname. Her hand twitched as if she were searching for him, and heclasped it. Touching her didn’t push away his rage, but he couldbreathe again without feeling as if every beat of his heart poundedshards of hate through him.
“She sensed you needed her,” Cassidy said. “Ithink you can wake her up.”
“And if her mind is still fractured?” heasked.
“Then put her back under.”
Julian brushed the hair away from her faceand examined the scratch marks. “Not yet. I’m not willing to takethe chance she’ll hurt herself again.”
Feeling a little bit more in control himself,he released Aida’s hand and turned back to the computer. Minutesticked by as he sat and stared at it. Finally, confident hewouldn’t smash it to pieces, he worked to bring up a better view ofthe man’s face. Though it was blurry, when the picture filled hiscomputer screen, he sensed something familiar about the man.
Memory niggled at the back of his mind, buthe couldn’t quite put his finger on it. “There is something abouthim…”
“Who is it?” Kyle asked.
“Not sure,” Julian said. “But he does lookfamiliar.”
He looked at Aida again. He didn’t have achoice anymore; he had to wake her up if they were going to learnanything more about this man.
CHAPTER 40
Aida held her head as her mind spun, and she triednot to vomit the bile in her stomach all over the floor. And itwould end up on the floor because she didn’t trust her legs enoughto get her to the bathroom.
She couldn't think straight as she was tornbetween needing to do something and striving to keep herselfgrounded. Julian’s soft words pierced through some of herconfusion. When he caressed her face, she seized his hand like shewas drowning in the ocean and he was her lifeline.
“It's okay,” he said. “Listen to me, and I'llhelp get you through this.”
She was supposed to kill him, but shecouldn’t; she loved him too much for that. Still, her brain feltlike somebody cracked an egg, tossed it into the frying pan, andscrambled it around. Everything was so foggy andwrong.
This wasJulian. She loved him morethan she’d ever believed possible, but he’d forsaken her.
She shook her head when that word popped intoit again. She’d never used it before in her life, but it loopedthrough her head like a destructive earworm screaming at her topick up a stake and plunge it through Julian’s heart.
NO!She couldn’t kill him!No! No!No!
Unable to get her brain to function as itshould, she slapped at it as she tried to get it to work rightagain. Hands clasped her wrists, and she bit her lip to keep fromscreaming as they pulled her hands away from her head.
“What is wrong with me?” she whimpered.
“Nothing is wrong with you,” Julian said in acalm voice so different than the riotous emotions pummeling him.“Someone took control of your mind, and I need you to help usfigure out who it was.”
Had someone taken control of her mind? Andthey’d turned it into this mess? Or had it always been this much ofa mess? Wasshethe mess?
“I don’t know what’s going on. Am I alwayslike this?” she whispered.
