Page 35 of Call of the Blood

I took a step back.

I could feel every single eye in the café on us now, staring through the front window just as I had been doing to people for hours. We just became the most interesting thing of the night.

“Henry,” I said, aiming to sound calm, reserved, or even cautious.

“How are you? By the gods, look at you. All grown up. Beautiful. And a vampire at that. Here in Los Angeles. Pretty far from Portland, Maine…” He looked at the café, then back at me, less excited and more confused. “What are you doing here?”

“What are you doing here?” I countered, not able to keep some venom out of my words as everything flooded back to me about how complicated things were with this man. So many things I had wanted to say to him. So many things I had wanted to scream and yell and cry.

He noticed. By the expression on his face, he very much noticed.

He didn’t call it out. He started patting his pockets until he found something and pulled out a notepad with a small attached pencil. He wrote quickly, then tore it off, holding it out to me.

“Here. Please take it. If you’d like to talk… we’ll talk.” He looked me in the eye as he held it out, his hand not shaking. No sign of nerves from him. No sign of anything except wanting to reconnect with me.

Have you been here the entire time? Did you ignore that I became a vampire and stayed away? Did you ignore what was happening in Jacob’s nest after he died? Where were you? You just left us. We needed you. I needed you.

I wasn’t in a good place to ask any of those questions.

“I’ll call tomorrow,” I said softly. “Maybe. If I do, we’ll… schedule something.” I turned on my heel with the note in hand, crushing it as emotions rocked me.

“Call anytime,” he called out, not quite a yell.

I got back to my car and took several deep breaths.

I was ready to go home. I started the car and drove fast. It couldn’t get me home, but it could get me somewhere.

By the time I was in the driveway of the loaned home, I felt better.

Los Angeles was proving to be exhausting, but it was nothing I couldn’t handle. It was a vacation for me. I could deal with all of this on my own time.

I looked at the note as I stood alone in the living room. Alexius wasn’t home yet. He’d written his name and number. That was all. Not even Uncle Henry, though that was probably because he was in a hurry. Or perhaps Uncle Henry was reserved for children, not grown adults who became vampires.

I didn’t need this tonight. Not after the drama with Declan and Lexi and how fucking awkward things are getting with Alexius. I didn’t need the long-lost uncle to be fucking here.

I rubbed my forehead, wondering if I really felt a headache coming on or if it was phantom pain, just the memory of a headache.

14

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

“What are your plans with Declan tonight?” Alexius asked me the next evening, shortly after sundown, blood ready for me. He slid it across the counter, and I made a face.

“Nothing. I think this was a bad idea,” I admitted to him. “He, uh…” I tried to find a way to put it. “I was telling him about things, and it really freaked him out. Said I seemed like I had been body snatched. I think he and I need a few days, maybe a week, to really come to terms with how much I’ve changed and… you know. Then we’ll try again.”

“I’m sorry,” he said gently. “I know you were looking forward to seeing your brother.”

“Can I help you instead? I actually went to Court of Coffee last night. Lexi had given me a pack list of places for supernaturals, and after I stormed out on Declan, I wanted to see somewhere new. Wren gave me a, uh, freebie and let me in to the office. You’d been there earlier?”

“What kind of freebie?” Alexius asked, half-growling.

“Just to read what sort of intel they collect on you and me. And I saw him add my visit.”

“Good. Wren deals secrets in sex acts sometimes, and you are beautiful enough for him to consider the currency.” Alexius looked like he’d deliver death to Wren if it had happened. “Though, he’s been known just to like beautiful people and to sleep with them.” Alexius sounded like he would murder Wren for even attempting.

“He’s really good looking, so if anyone can get away with it…” I said, shrugging.

“Are you saying you would be interested in that?” Alexius asked, staring at me like I had said something insane when I was pretty sure it was a perfectly normal thing to say.