AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He would come after her. And if he succeeded, she would end up either dead...or undead.
"Liv!" J.L. yelled on the phone. "Are you there?"
She jerked out of her stunned trance. "I'm here. I'm leaving. See you soon."
She ran into her bedroom to put on some socks and her athletic shoes. Then she strapped on her holster and sidearm over her blue jeans. Her heart pounded. Otis could be on his way to her apartment right now. If he was alive, he might be driving. If he was already a vampire, he might be able to teleport straight into her living room.
She threw on a jacket and stuffed an extra clip of bullets into the pocket. How fast could someone become a vampire? She had no idea. Could her bullets kill a vampire? She hoped she wouldn't have to find out.
She rushed into her living room just as a form suddenly appeared. Her heart lurched.
"Oh God, Robby!" She pressed a hand to her chest. "You scared me to death."
"Ye're in grave danger."
"Yeah, I know." She hurried past him to the console by the front door. "Otis Crump could be on his way here."
"I've come to take you to safety."
"No thanks." She collected her handbag and keys.
Robby strode toward her. "Ye must let me protect you."
"I don't think so." She opened the door and stepped onto the front porch.
"What are ye doing?" His eyes were wide with shock. "Ye canna leave on yer own."
"Watch me." She closed the door in his face and locked it. She hurried down the stairs, stifling a grin. That had felt surprisingly good.
As she strode toward her car, her stride hitched a bit when he appeared in the parking lot. He wasn't wearing a kilt tonight. His black cargo pants and black T-shirt hugged a muscular body. Leather straps across his chest probably meant his claymore was on his back. His brow was furrowed with fierce determination.
Damn, he was good looking. And as much as she chafed against his he-man tendencies, she had to admit there was a raw masculinity to him that made her bones melt. She forced herself to look away and headed for her car.
He followed her. "Perhaps ye doona understand the gravity of the situation. We know it was Casimir and his minions who helped the prisoners escape."
"I already figured that out." She pressed her keypad to unlock her car.
"Then ye should know the Malcontents could be transforming the prisoners into vampires right now, including the bastard who's obsessed with you."
"I know." She reached for the door handle.
He leaned against the car door, blocking her. "I can take you to a safe place where no vampire can get to you."
"Including you?"
His jaw shifted. "Ye have no reason to fear me. I would never harm you."
"Tell that to my breaking heart," she muttered.
His eyes glittered an intense green. "There is no reason for you to suffer. We could be together. Ye only have to accept me for what I am."
"I can't do that right now. Please move, so I can go."
"Bugger," he muttered, and stepped back. "Dammit, woman. If ye love me, ye will stay loyal to me. Ye willna stab me in the back with betrayal."
She flinched. He was accusing her of wrongdoing? How dare he? "If you loved me, you would have been honest with me!"
His face paled and a glint of pain flickered in his eyes. Her heart clenched in her chest. Damn, she hadn't realized he was hurting as much as she was. She usually knew exactly what other people were feeling.
With a trembling hand she opened the car door.
"Where are ye going?" Robby asked as she climbed inside.
"Work." She shut the door and turned on the engine.
She backed out of her parking space, then hit the brakes with a lurch when Robby suddenly materialized in the passenger seat. "My God, would you stop scaring me? What are you doing here?"
He removed the sheath from his back. "I have to protect you."
"I don't need your protection."
"No one can protect you from a vampire as well as another vampire." He settled back in the seat and put on his seat belt. "Where exactly are we going?"
"FBI building, and I didn't invite you."
"Och, I could teleport you there in a second. 'Twould save you time and gas."
She ignored him and stomped on the accelerator. Traffic was light at this time of night, so she was able to make good time.
"Whelan and his team are at Leavenworth," Robby said as she passed another car. "And Angus and Connor are there. If there are any clues to be found, they'll find them."
She sped up to catch a yellow light.
"The safest place for you is the silver room at Romatech," Robby continued. "'Tis completely lined in silver so no vampire can teleport in or out."
"You can't teleport through silver?" The minute the question left her lips, she slapped herself mentally. She'd meant to completely ignore him. It irked her that he assumed she would need saving. She wasn't a stupid weakling. She could save herself.
"That is how they were able to hold me prisoner last summer," Robby explained. "They tied me up with silver chains. We canna teleport through it. And if it touches our bare skin, it burns away the flesh."
She grimaced. Poor Robby. And he hadn't been able to save himself. Damn. His fear that she might need saving wasn't an insult. He was simply being realistic.
"I could teleport you to Romatech in a second," he continued. "Ye would be safe there."
"I'm not running away. I'm not hiding." She cast an annoyed look at him. "And I'm not allowing you to take over my decisions."
He crossed his arms, scowling. "I'm trying to keep you alive."
She snorted. "Are you sure about that? Don't you intend to change me over someday?"
He remained quiet a moment, then turned toward her. "Are ye saying ye intend to stay with me?"
She winced. "It was a hypothetical question. I haven't made any decisions yet."
"Och, well, becoming a Vamp would be yer decision as well. I would hope we could have children first, and ye need to be mortal for that."
She shot him an incredulous look. "Wouldn't you need to be mortal for that?"
He quickly explained a procedure that Roman Draganesti had invented to allow the Vamp men to father children.
Olivia drove in stunned silence. She could have children with Robby. He wanted to have children with her. He described Roman's children as mostly mortal. They were awake during the day and ate real food. They just possessed a few special gifts.
That didn't disturb her. She'd grown up with a special gift herself, and had always known her children could inherit it. Even so, she remained quiet until they reached the FBI building.
When they walked inside, she warned him, "They're not going to let you in here with that giant sword."
"We'll see." He slid the claymore off his back and plunked it down on the security officer's desk.
"What the hell?" The officer eyed him suspiciously, then his face suddenly cleared. "Go on through the metal detector, sir. I'll pass your umbrella to you on the other side."
"Thank you." Robby slanted her a smug look.
She glared back, then handed her sidearm to the officer. She walked through the metal detector, then he handed her gun back to her. As she snapped it back into the holster, Robby sauntered through the metal detector. It went off.
The officer calmly turned off the buzzer and handed the sword back to Robby. "Have a nice day."
"Thank you." Robby swung the claymore onto his back.
"I thought you only used mind control when you had a really good reason," she whispered.
"I had one. I'm no' leaving yer side." He strolled toward the elevator. "Ye're on the second floor, aye?"
She punched the up button. "How do you know?"
"I've been here before." The elevator doors opened, and he motioned for her to go first.
She pushed the button for the second floor. "What are you packing that made the metal detector go off?"
He shrugged one shoulder. "It could be the dagger strapped to my leg or the jackknife in my pants pocket. Or the silver chain in the other pocket."
"Wouldn't it burn you to take out the chain?"
"I have a pair of gloves in another pocket. If I get a chance to capture Casimir, I'm no' going to let him teleport away before I can kill him."
