Page 63 of Girl Between

Dana’s face paled. “What happened?”

“Nothing, yet.”

To his credit, Flynn could still read a room. He stepped back, opening a pathway to his front door. “Do you two need some privacy to talk?”

“Not here. I’m at the Monteleone. I’m giving you a ride back,” Jake said to Dana. “We can talk there.”

Unwilling to wait for an answer, Jake turned and stalked back toward his vehicle.

He hated that he turned back when he didn’t immediately hearDana’s footsteps behind him. He hated it even more that it bothered him to see Dana exchanging hushed words with Flynn.

59

The dinaround me is nothing new. I drown out the parade revelries easily. Nothing can distract me when I’m hunting. How strange it is to think of myself in such a way. But as I follow her through the crowd, it’s the only word that fits.

Funny, seeing how I’ve always considered myself more of a farmer, cultivating my cull for the harvest. I tell myself that is still true. She is ripe for the picking and will yield a bountiful reward.

Her path is erratic, a meandering dance through the vibrant chaos of the parade. She moves with an air of careless grace, utterly unaware of the predator in her midst.

I follow, my gaze fixed on her, careful to remain within the shadows cast by the lanterns and gaudy floats. Each step she takes heightens my anticipation, a tantalizing prelude to the inevitable conclusion.

Her laughter rings out, a melody that blends with the cacophony around us, but it is the only sound I hear. She twirls, her dress a whirl of color, and for a moment, she is a beacon of light amidst the dark, a radiant target.

There were many to choose from today. But she called to me, all my senses zeroing in on everything she advertised. She was perfect,begging for me to find her, really. Some of my prey are younger than I like, some a bit too withered on the vine. But she is the prize. Absolute perfection. The apple of my eye.

The fact that I alone ensure she will nourish so many almost drives me into a frenzy, but that will not do. I will restrain myself, as I always have, as I was trained to do.

I ignore her barely-there outfit, though it is begging my savage side to take over. Instead, I lower my mask and slip into the crowd, blending in with the revelers. I stalk closer now, being less careful in disguise. I purposefully bump into her, orchestrating the moment and our eyes lock. I wait until I see excitement dancing behind her mask. Then I make my move.

She doesn’t even feel the prick of the needle.

Confusion flickers across her face for a brief moment. I slip her arms around my neck and wait to feel the precise moment the world begins to blur around her. I support her as she stumbles, reassuring her with a comforting smile and whispered promises that everything will be alright.

The crowd, oblivious to the drama unfolding, continues to celebrate with unbridled enthusiasm. Me, I smile, simply plucking my fruit for the taking.

I lift her into my arms with ease. A single stiletto slips from her foot. No matter. She doesn’t need it for what comes next.

60

Dana grippedthe door as Jake drove like the devil was nipping at his heels. The streetlights whizzed by, illuminating the storm brewing in his eyes. She watched them darken from worn denim to starless night. They were as turbulent as the sky he’d flown across to get here.

Now that Dana was sitting next to Jake, she didn’t know what to say.

Their time apart hadn’t been that long, but it’d opened a chasm between them that she didn’t know how to navigate.

She couldn’t help being pulled back to their very first encounter. Back to when she’d thought Jake Shepard was nothing more than an overbearing suit with no depth.

Dana knew better now, but that did nothing to help her bridge the simmering silence building between them as he drove back toward the heart of the French Quarter.

As she fretted about what to say, she reverted to old habits, anxiously biting her nails. It was Jake’s hand on hers that pulled her back to the present. Electricity zapped through her the way it always did when they touched. For a moment their eyes locked.

“Jake, why are you here?” she asked.

“I thought that was fairly obvious.”

“You know I prefer facts over conjecture.”

“I’m here for Claire.”