“I don’t know,” Max admitted. “I didn’t wait
around to find out.”
“How did he find you?” I asked.
“He called me and said he had you at your
house. I sent you an email, but after a few
minutes you didn’t respond, so I just dropped
everything and hopped on a plane back to
Georgia.”
“Oh, Max! Why didn’t you contact Jamie?
That must have been after I sold my computer
and bought a plane ticket. I sent you an email
with the word ‘lake’. I thought you would meet
me there.”
“When I got to your house, he got my
computer. He said he had you in a secret
location, and he’d kill you if I didn’t tell him
what ‘lake’ meant. Not that he needed me to tell
him.”
“What do you mean? Why wouldn’t he need
you to tell him?”
“Because he can read minds.”
“He can… read minds… Oh, my God!”
“What?”
“I was thinking about Kai and the motel in
Chicago while I was in the clearing!”
“If he saw Kai in your thoughts or mine, he
can view him.”
“What?” I gasped. “I thought hunters had to
meet a vampire before they could view them?”
“Alexi is an Elder,” Max explained. “He has
multiple abilities. He can read minds, he can
view, and there are other abilities, but I can’t
remember them right now. That’s why I was
shocked you defeated him so easily.”
“Where’s your dad?” I asked. “You haven’t
mentioned him.”
“He’s dead.”
“Oh, Max,” I whispered, putting my hand on
his arm. “I’m so sorry. What happened?”
Max’s jaw clenched, and I saw his eyes turn
cloudy as tears threatened to spill.
“If you don’t want to talk about it, I
understand,” I said gently.
He took a deep breath. “No, it’s fine. I’m fine.
After a group of hunters confronted my dad, and
me I admitted I was in love with you. I told him I
loved you more than my own life, and that I’d die
to protect you. I guess he could see how much
you mean to me, so he stepped in front of me and
told me to run – to go find you. I hesitated, but
he attacked them, and I jumped in my car and got
away as fast as I could.”
“But you didn’t see him die?” I asked.
“No, but…”
“Max,” I said, looking deep into his eyes. “If
there’s even the slightest chance he’s still alive,
we’ll find him. I promise.”
He took my hand and placed it against his
cheek. His eyes closed, and he brushed his face
back and forth against my palm. The he kissed my
palm gently.
“Do you really think…”
I put my fingers against his lips. “I feel it.”
“I hope you’re right,” he whispered.
“I don’t know how, but I know he’s alive,” I
told him.
Somehow, I could feel his father. I couldn’t
explain it, and the feeling was very faint. But I
could feel a connection to him through Max.
When he placed my hand on his face, I could
suddenly feel this pull, and I knew without a
doubt he was well, and we would find him.
*****
Chapter Seven – Grace
We landed in Chicago, and hailed a taxi. We
went straight to the motel, and Jamie greeted us
outside. Streaks of tears stained her face, and her
eyes sagged with worry.
“Any word?” I asked.
“No, none,” she answered. “Will won’t
answer his phone, and I don’t know what’s going
on.”
“Alice!” called my mother, running over to
give me a hug.
“I have our bags in the taxi,” I said. “All of
them – the ones from the van. I picked them up
from the house.”
“You were in Georgia?” Jamie balked.
“Yeah,” I admitted. “No time to explain. Get
the bags in. I have to go to the bathroom.”
I went straight into the bathroom and closed
the door. I had felt a connection to Max’s father
when I touched him, though it was faint. I was
hoping desperately I could make a connection
with Will or Kai. I tried touching myself, but it
didn’t work. I felt nothing at all. Then I
remembered that my mother had said Jamie and
my brother might be falling in love.
“Jamie, I need you,” I called.
I sat down on the bed and pulled her down
beside me.
“Think about Will,” I told her.
“What? Why?” she asked.
“Please,” I begged. “Just do it.”
She closed her eyes, and within seconds, I
could feel a strange pulling sensation. It was
much stronger than my connection to Max’s
father. Perhaps it was because I knew Will
personally, or because he was my brother, or
even because he was nearby. I wasn’t sure.
“I feel him,” I whispered.
“You… feel him?” Jamie asked skeptically.
“It’s hard to explain,” I told her. “Come with
me. We’re going to find him.”
We got into the taxi just as Max was taking
the last of the bags out. “I’m coming with you,”
he said.
“Get in,” I told him.
“Be careful,” called my mother. “Bring your
brother back safely!”
“I will, Mother,” I promised her.
The taxi driver must have thought I was
insane, because I kept sending him in circles and
telling him to make quick turns out of the blue. It
was hard to tell exactly where to go, because all I
could feel was a pulling sensation that reached
out from my torso and led me faintly into a
specific direction. I had to hold Jamie’s hand to
keep the connection. She squeezed my hand
tightly, and I could almost feel her love for my
brother flowing through her skin.
“Wait! Turn right! Right there” I shouted at
the driver, pointing down a dark street.
“Are you sure?” he asked. “There’s nothing
down there but an old warehouse that’s been
closed for years.”
“Yes, I’m sure,” I said.
“Can I just stop here?” the driver pleaded. “I
think that’s private property.”
“How much?” I asked.
“Thirty-two dollars,” he said.
I tossed him a fifty-dollar bill – the last of my
money.
“Keep the change,” I said quickly.
Max, Jamie, and I got out of the taxi, and it
pulled away immediately. The driver was
obviously freaked out by our strange behavior
and just wanted to get away as quickly as
possible.
“This way,” I said, still clinging to Jamie’s
hand.
The alley was barely illuminated by the gray-
blue light of the moon. It passed behind the
&
nbsp; clouds every few seconds and made it difficult
for Jamie to see. I clutched her hand and helped
her stumble along.
At the end of the alley, which was situated
between two newer warehouses, a parking lot
opened up. At the opposite end of the lot, a high
chain link fence surrounded a dilapidated old
building. The front doors were chained and
padlocked, and most of the windows were
broken, but covered with bars.
At the far right end of the fence, it had been
cut and was partially pulled back. I led Jamie to
that spot and held the fence back while she went
through, and then Max and I followed her.
Since the front doors were padlocked, I
guessed there must be another way in. I shivered
in the chilly night air, and a sudden feeling of
dread washed over me. I froze.
“Something’s wrong,” I whispered.
“What?” Jamie and Max asked in unison.
“This warehouse… it’s kind of like the one
we were held at in Georgia,” I answered. “And I
get this feeling of… evil… lurking in the
shadows.”
“Evil?” Jamie breathed.
“I don’t know how to explain it. Not evil,
exactly, but… unfriendly, maybe,” I said. “I just
feel it. Max, I’d feel better if you got Jamie out
of here.”
“I’m not going anywhere without Will!”
Jamie hissed.
“And I’m not leaving you, Alice,” Max said.
I sighed. It was a good feeling to have people
who loved me so much, but both of them were
physically weaker than I. Of course, I had been
feeling extremely drained since the incident with
Alexi in the clearing.
“Problem,” I noted. “I haven’t fed in a while. I
might not be able to defend you both.”
“Use me,” Jamie offered.
“What… you mean… no, no!” I stammered. “I
don’t… well, I don’t do that to women,
especially friends.”
“Will’s already explained it to me,” she said.
“He said it doesn’t hurt, and I won’t even
remember it tomorrow. Just do it.”
“You’ll be paralyzed for up to several hours,”
I told her. “We can’t risk that. You’d be too
vulnerable.”
“Oh, that’s right,” Jamie agreed. “Maybe we
should leave and come back once you’ve fed?”
“I’m not leaving them in there!” I hissed.
“Something’s not right here, and I won’t abandon
them – not even for a few minutes.”
“I’m just as strong as you are,” Max pointed
out. “You’re not alone.”
“A hunter as strong as a vampire?” I asked
incredulously. “Not that I doubt you, but I’ve
never heard of that before.”
“Well, I may or may not be as strong as you
are when you’ve fed,” he said. “But I may even
be stronger than you when you’re weakened by
hunger.”
“That may very well be true,” I told him. “But
when I’m this weak, and we don’t know what
we’re facing, it’s a huge risk.”
“What other choice do we have?” Jamie
asked.
Just then, a fat rat scurried in front of us. I
heard its tiny fingernails clicking on the cement,
and its little black eyes shone brightly in the
moonlight.
“There’s one option,” I said, shuddering and
wrinkling my nose. “It’s disgusting.”
“Whatever it takes,” Jamie said.
I nodded. Within a few minutes, I’d rounded
up enough rats to make a meal and I fed. Rat
blood is truly disgusting. It’s bitter and gets cold
quickly. Other animal blood is tastier, but rats –
which often live off rancid garbage – taste
terrible. Animal blood doesn’t contain the right
makeup of minerals and other compounds, so it’s
also not as effective as human blood. But it’s
better than nothing.
With me feeling slightly energized, we
continued making our way around the
warehouse, looking for an entrance. In the back,
one of the bay doors where trucks used to be
loaded was wide open.
“Something is definitely wrong,” Jamie said.
She didn’t need any special senses to know that a
wide-open door spelled trouble.
“It’s a trap,” I whispered.
“I don’t like this,” Max said anxiously. “I
can’t stand you being in harm’s way like this.”
“It can’t be helped,” I insisted. “Let’s just go.”
Max grabbed my arm. He wheeled me around
and peered deep into my eyes. “If anything
happens…”
“It won’t,” I assured him.
“But if it does… I need you to know how very
much I love you,” he said weakly. “If anything
happens to you…”
“I’ll be fine,” I promised.
“Just tell me you know how much I love
you,” he whispered.
“I know,” I said softly.
He embraced me, and he kissed me gently. He
caressed my cheek, and then reluctantly released
me. Suddenly, the ominous feeling inside my gut
increased. Something was definitely not right.
“Max?” I whispered. “I shouldn’t do this.
Every part of me is screaming that I shouldn’t.
But… just in case… I…”
“What?” he urged.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. “I
love you, too.”
His mouth fell open, and I heard him slowly
sucking in a deep breath. It shuddered slightly. I
had told him this once before, but I’d since made
sure to avoid it for Kai’s sake.
“But I need you to know.”
He nodded in acknowledgement. I wouldn’t
be leaving Kai for him anytime soon, and he
knew it.
“Let’s go,” I said, clutching Jamie’s hand.
We entered through the big bay door, and in
the dark, I could see nothing unusual. The
warehouse was cleared out except for a few rows
of industrial shelving – most empty aside from a
few cardboard boxes. Some paper littered the
floor. I noticed a small room in the far right
corner of the room. I assumed it was the office.
I squared my chin and stepped forward. Since I
saw nowhere else they could be, I headed toward
the office. As we got closer, I could see a faint
glow of light escaping underneath the office
door.
Just before we reached the door, I heard a low,
grating chuckle behind me. I whirled around,
scanning the warehouse quickly. I saw nothing.
Panicked, I stepped between Max and Jamie, and
the chuckling voice.
“Who’s there?” I demanded.
From behind one of the rows of shelves
stepped the dark, shrouded figure of Alexi. Once
again, I saw those pearly white teeth gleaming
inside the shadow
of the hood as he grinned.
“Alexi,” I snarled.
“So good to see you again, little one,” he
growled. “Pity we didn’t get to spend more time
together during our last encounter.”
“Look, if you want me, I’m here,” I spat. “Just
let them go.”
“By them, I’m assuming you mean your
brother and your beloved Kai. Am I correct?”
“I mean all of them,” I shot back at him.
“Hmm,” he said, eyeing me suspiciously.
“Your feelings for young Maksim seem to
have… evolved. I can feel it.”
“Stop trying to read me, Alexi!” I demanded.
“Oh, but it’s so much fun,” Alexi said. “You
are
quite…
interesting.
Perhaps
even
fascinating.”
“And yet you want me dead,” I mocked.
“Whoever said I wanted you dead?” he
rhymed. “You know what they say about those
who assume.”
“If you don’t want me dead,” I began. “What
exactly do you want with me?”
He chuckled again. “Dear Alice,” he said.
“You underestimate yourself and your value. Is it
true you only recently discovered you have…
abilities?”
“It is,” I replied. “I didn’t know until I met
you.”
“Do you wonder why that is?” he said, slowly
creeping toward me.
“I haven’t thought about it,” I confessed.
I stepped forward, widening the distance
between Max and Jamie and me. I wanted them
as far away from any confrontation as possible.
“You’re a brave little thing,” Alexi said. “I’ll
give you that.”
“I’m not afraid of you, Alexi,” I snapped.
“No, but there are things you are afraid of,”
he countered.
“Everyone is afraid of something,” I said. “I
bet even you are afraid of something.”
“I am indeed,” he agreed. “Not that I would
tell you what that is.”
“Of course,” I said. “Nor would I tell you.”
“You don’t have to tell me, Alice,” he
grinned. “It’s written all over your face, and
etched in your mind. I can hear you screaming it.
You fear losing the ones you love. Nothing else
frightens you more.”
I glared at him.
“If you harm any of them, I will kill you
myself!” I snarled.
“Now, now,” he chuckled. “There’s no need
for threats of violence.”
“Alexi, get to the point,” I demanded. “Just
tell me what you want with me. If you don’t want
me dead, what do you want?”