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“Yep. And I waited until the sun was under the horizon. So it’s all good. ” Eduardo scrutinized the apartment, taking in the brick walls, cement floors, and modern furniture. “Boring place. ”

“I had nothing to do with it. This is all Cian’s Ikea fetish. ”

“Speaking of the devil. . . ” Eduardo gave Cian a slight salute as the vampire strode toward them.

Amaliya felt her nipples harden and her sex tingle at the sight of her lover. He was dressed all in black from his jeans to his western style shirt. The tips of his black cowboy boots were edged in silver and he wore a silver buckle that could be used as a weapon. His hair was longer and shaggier and his beard made him look a little dangerous.

“We’re set up I take it?” Cian asked.

“Cameras are in the park. The whole thing will be under surveillance, and your fearless vampire hunters are armed to the teeth,” Eduardo replied. “And you have me. ”

Cian regarded Eduardo thoughtfully. “Don’t start shit just to have a fight. ”

“Would I do that?” Eduardo feigned hurt.

“You’re a coyote. ”

Eduardo flared a grin.

“I’m going to get ready,” Amaliya said. “The male posturing and testosterone is just a little too much. Isn’t it enough we have a vicious vampire and a necro-vamp to deal with?” She strode past them, rolling her eyes.

“Just keeping it interesting,” Eduardo called after her. “Because life is too short to be boring. ”

“Or too long to be too exciting,” Amaliya said over her shoulder, then slipped upstairs to change.

Part Five

Sunday Night

Chapter 21

The sun had set in a blaze of glory that had given way to deep and darkest night. It was a new moon and the blackness of the evening was absolute. Only the stars glittering above and the headlights of the Jeep issued any light in the darkness.

Samantha sighed, twisting one of her silver rings around her index finger nervously. She had loaded her digits and limbs with silver jewelry at the last moment before leaving the house when she remembered the pain it caused vampires. While with Cian, she had stopped wearing it. Now she felt a little safer with the silver bands glittering on her fingers and around her wrists.

“It’s so dark,” she muttered.

“There should be a flashlight in the glove compartment. Alexia is always well prepared,” Jeff answered, his fingers flexing on the steering wheel.

The drive had been uncomfortable since they left Austin. Listening to music had only set their nerves on edge and conversation had drifted off into silence. Samantha sighed. She didn’t really want to talk about how her intestines were cramping uncomfortably anyway. She had already thrown up when they made a restroom stop at a small convenience store. Every instinct, supernatural and otherwise, was screaming inside her head that something was terribly wrong. The further the Jeep traveled down the empty country road, the more unnerved she became.

It wasn’t that long ago that she had nearly died after traveling this exact same road to rescue Cian from The Summoner. She had been fearless in her determination, but after nearly dying and all that had ensued, she had a healthy appreciation for the supernatural world and all the dangers it contained.

Continuing to spin the ring around her finger, she pressed her lips tightly together as the edge of the ghost town was caught in the headlights of the vehicle. A familiar faded and rotting sign that read “Fenton, TX. Best Homemade Peach Cobbler in Texas!” flashed past her window, then the rotting facades of long abandoned buildings loomed in dark shapes near the narrow road. Ahead was the “Y” in the road that cradled the dilapidated hotel where The Summoner had taken refuge and the gas station where Amaliya had fought constructs made out of her victims’ bodies. Samantha was grateful she hadn’t seen those things. Amaliya’s description alone had grossed her out.

The Jeep slowed. A big black truck attached to a camper was parked in front of the hotel. Jeff tapped his fingers on the steering wheel nervously. “They’re definitely here. ” Jeff snagged his cellphone off the dashboard and checked for

bars. “And we have no service. ”

A hard lump formed in Samantha’s throat and threatened to choke her as a familiar figure stepped into the headlights and waved them down.

“So we’re in the same boat they are. No service. Out in the middle of no-”

“Stop!” Samantha screamed, finding her voice.

Jeff pounded down on the brakes and they were both pitched forward as the tires squealed. The seatbelt snapped taunt against Samantha’s torso in a painful vise. She gasped, clutching the buckle tightly.

Roberto stood in the headlights, arms folded across his chest, his head tilted to one side. His raven black hair and dark fringed green eyes were exactly as she remembered him. So was the condescending smile on his face.