“It’s probably not his real name,” Kylesaid.
“Then how do we find him?” Juliansnarled.
They all stared at each other, but it wasCassidy who replied. “We kill you off.”
“What do you mean?” Kyle asked.
Cassidy waved a hand at Julian’s computer.“Look at how this asshole was with her in the gallery. Do you thinkhe’s finished with her? Because it looks to me like he wants her.He’s willing to risk her dying tonight. He might hope for it asthat would mean Julian killed her, and this Gerald seems like areally twisted douchebag, but if she survives, he’ll come back forher.”
“I’m not putting her back in the gallery,”Julian said.
He glanced over at Aida as she hugged herselfand started rocking back and forth. “I can’t. I have to. I can’t,”she murmured a few times before he rested his hand on her knee, andshe settled beneath his touch.
“I don’t think we have a choice,” Cassidysaid. “How else are we going to find this guy? We know nothingabout him, and he knows somuchabout us.”
Unfortunately, he didn’t have an answer. IfGerald used a credit card for his purchase, he could trace it, butit probably didn’t lead anywhere. Julian had a couple of creditcards, but none of them went to a real address, and none of themwere under his real name. Gerald Addington probably wasn’t thisguy’s real name either.
Aida seized his wrist. “Hedid this tome.”
Her eyes held far more clarity than they hadbefore, and a lot more anger. He rubbed her hand as he sought tocomfort her. “Yes.”
“I can do this. I’m going back to the gallerytomorrow. Let him think I succeeded and let him come for me.”
Julian couldn’t stop his fangs fromlengthening at the idea of anyone coming for her. “You would haveto spend the entire day there, and you would have to act as if itwere any other day,” Julian said. “That means, when he walks in thedoor, you have to act as ifnothingunusual happened betweenthe two of you.”
Aida had no idea how she would manage that.Just the idea of seeing Gerald again made her knees knock together,but she would find a way to do this. He had to die, and this mightbe their only chance to find him.
They had to do something to stop him becausethe more she remembered, the more this monster scared her. And shewas beginning to recall more and more about what transpired in thehall.
“Youcould take control of her mindand make her forget all of this,” Kyle said and stepped away whenJulian spun on him. He threw up his hands as he edged toward thedoor. “You know you’re thinking about it too! And it’s only asuggestion; you don’thaveto do it.”
“I’m not—” Julian started as Aida lunged andgrabbed his hands.
“Yes! Do that!” she cried.
Julian glowered at his brother as he debatedkilling him. Their mom would bereallypissed if he did, butit still might be worth it. Cassidy stepped in front of Kyle andsmiled. “It’s not a bad idea,” she said.
As much as he wanted to, Julian couldn’t killthem both, but he hoped he never had twins. When he scowled atthem, Kyle poked his head over her shoulder and grinned beforegiving him the double thumbs-up. No, he couldn’t kill him, but whenthis was over, he would give him a massive wedgie like he used towhen they were kids.
Turning his attention back to Aida, he gulpedwhen he saw the hope in her eyes.
“Make me forget so I can go in there like Idon’t have a care in the world,” she said.
Julian clasped the sides of her face. “Idon’t want to control your mind again.”
“I don’t think you have a choice. I can holdit together until he comes into the gallery again, but I’m not sureI can keep my fear of him hidden. He’ll know something’s wrong thesecond he sees me, unless you do something to stop that.”
Everything in Julian rebelled against herwords. He’d taken control of her earlier, so she didn’t have aheart attack, but this was something entirely different. He wouldbe taking control of her mind to send her into danger, andeverything in him screamed against it.
“We don’t have a choice,” Aida said. “I’dprefer not to have any more vamps messing with my mind, but I canfeel what he put in their working against my love for you andit”—she rested her hand over her heart—“hurts. Everything isso confusing and wrong, and Ihateit. He has to die, or heisn’t going to stop until you orallof us are dead.”
His mind spun while he tried to figure outsome other way to hunt this fucker down. “I’ll go to the galleryand wait for him to show up.”
“If I don’t show up, then he’s going to knowsomething went wrong, and he’ll come at you from a different way.Maybe next time he’ll go after Kyle and Cassidy, but since he can’ttake control of their minds, he’ll kill them.”
Kyle snorted and folded his arms over hischest. “Not likely.”
This time it was Aida’s turn to glare atKyle; he wasn’t helping her by disagreeing with her. “You don’tknow what could happen,” she said. “Anything could go wrong, andare you willing to put Cassidy at risk? He’s a coward who usesother vamps to do his dirty work and goes after women instead offacing his victims himself.”
