It sounded like an order to stay in, not a suggestion that he’d join her. Like she didn’t go out after dark back home? “I won’t wander far. I’m sure it’s perfectly safe with so many tourists about.”
“It’s not that,” Lucas answered and glanced around. “I’ve had the feeling all evening that we’re being watched.”
Sara looked around too. As much as she didn’t want to admit it, she’d had the same feeling. That something sinister lurked in this peaceful place. “I don’t see anyone who looks suspicious. Maybe our nerves are on edge because of the murder.”
“So you feel it too.” It wasn’t a question, and she looked up at him. The candlelight reflected in his golden eyes like tiny bits of flame and she was reminded suddenly of the wolf who had chased the other away. Its eyes had looked like tiny bits of flame lit them too. Suddenly she shivered.
“You’re cold,” Lucas said, “and with the sun down, it’ll be colder outside. If you want your walk, wait until morning.”
She didn’t argue as he took her arm and led her toward the stairs. They stopped in front of her door and he took the key from her, unlocked it, and stepped inside. For a moment, the butterflies rallied for a flight from their perches in her stomach. Was he really thinking of staying with her? It was an odd way to go about it. And he hadn’t even asked her if she wanted him to stay. Really, a certain amount of etiquette did apply here. She wasn’t just going to jump into bed with him!Much as I’d like to…
He handed her the keys and stepped back into the hall. “Everything’s fine here. I’ll be next door if you need anything. Just call. I’ll wait until you bolt the door.”
He closed it and she slid the lock into place. She should have known he was just making sure there weren’t any bogeymen sitting in the corners. She really had to get a grip on her fantasies.
****
Lucas was stopped by a worried-looking waiter just as he was about to enter his room.
“Sir. I’m glad I found you. Your wife left her purse at the table.” He handed the leather bag to Lucas, who dug into his pocket for a tip that the young man accepted.
For a moment, he thought about knocking on her door and returning the purse, but it had been difficult enough making himself leave the first time after seeing the king bed turned down for the night. If she answered the door in lingerie, he wasn’t sure he’d be leaving again any time soon.Wife. He hadn’t even corrected the waiter.I don’t need to start thinking like that. Not with what I am.Decision made, he entered his own room and stashed the bag inside his suitcase and locked it. Then he sniffed the air.
Balor was close. He had felt the oppression all evening, just hovering on the edges of his senses. It was the reason he didn’t want Sara outside this night. But now he would find him.
He walked to the window and opened it. They were on the second floor of a small, private inn and below him was a terraced garden with a small gazebo, its canopy not far from the window. An easy leap for a powerful wolf.
The wolf alerted in anticipation as he stripped his clothes. His sense of smell was much keener when he was in the lobo’s body, even though the shape-shifting was exhausting. He closed his eyes and concentrated on becoming one with the wolf. He felt his face elongating, the muscles in his jaw and throat strengthening as he dropped to all fours and crouched, waiting for the powerful haunch muscles to fully form. His amplifiedhearing picked up no movement from next door. Sara would be safe until he got back.
He leapt through the window, landed on the canopy, and sprang to the ground. His enhanced night vision adjusted to the darkness immediately. His sensitive nose told him there were no humans in the garden, but he wasn’t seeking a human.
Staying in the shadows of buildings, he loped easily down the sidewalk, turning left into a side street and then right and right again until he came to an expensive hotel with a liveried doorman. Trust Balor to spare no expense. He sniffed cautiously at the sidewalk, sending the mental message to the doorman that he was merely a scoundrel dog. Balor had been here, but his scent was old.
Turning, he followed the scent back to the water near his hotel. And then it was gone. The wolf nearly howled in frustration. Balor had gone into the sea to avoid detection. But where was he now?
Lucas made the leap back to the window, his paws sinking into the thick carpet on the floor of his room. Before he made the transformation back, he scented once more. Nothing. No one had been here.
He put on his shorts and pants and lay down on the bed. Sleep would come swiftly as it always did after the change. The last thing he did was check to make sure hissgian dubhwas under the pillow.
Near dawn, he was awakened by a shrill scream piercing the air. Sara! Grabbing the knife, he bolted out the door, nearly knocking down a guest from across the hall who was sleepily rubbing his eyes.
The door to Sara’s room stood open, and as he entered, he saw her cowering in bed, a silver fork from the restaurant clutched in one hand. There was blood on the prongs.
He closed the door to onlookers, assuring them she had a nightmare. Then he quickly crossed over to the bed and sat down, gathering her into his arms.
“What happened?”
She sank into his embrace, the hand with the fork in it encircling his neck. Gingerly, he dislodged it and put it on the nightstand. Silver, even plate, was something he avoided. So did Balor.
“I woke to find someone in my room. He was searching for something, so I pretended to be asleep. I heard him curse.” She took a deep breath and Lucas could feel her shudder and he drew her closer. “Then he came to the bed. He said something like, ‘Bitch, you’ll pay for this,’ and then he reached for me.” Sara paused and tightened her hold around Lucas’s neck. “I stabbed him with the fork and he cursed again. That’s when I started screaming and he turned and ran.”
Lucas gently pushed her head down onto his shoulder and stroked her hair. If he hadn’t been so drained, he would have sensed Balor the moment he entered the room. Even now, the stench of evil clung to the door.
“You’re all right now. It’s over. He won’t be back.”
Her other arm had found its way around his waist and he tried to ignore the warmth that was spreading through him. Her hair smelled of roses and he could see the pale swell of her breasts beneath the blue silk nightgown she wore.
“How can you be so sure?”
