Page 25 of Love Bleeds

Chapter Nine

Ifound it impossible to sleep that night. Around 2 AM, I gave up and made my way downstairs to the kitchen for a drink of water. The thing about living with vampires, though? No matter how late you stay up, there's always someone up with you.

Talon sat at the kitchen table, Nix sleeping in his arms and today's paper spread out before him. He glanced at me when I came in. "Trouble sleeping?"

I nodded and proceeded to the cupboard to get myself a glass.

"Nix too," he said. "Gets up every time I try to put him down."

"Maybe he's trying to get on a more vampiric schedule," I suggested as I filled my glass with water from the fridge. "Anything in the news?" I asked as if I cared, which I didn't.

Talon gave me a half-hearted shrug. I could tell his attention wasn't really on the conversation either. He looked at me as if there was something else on his mind and he was trying to piece together the words to tell me. "When we were at your old house earlier," he started.

"You really didn't have to come get me," I cut in. "I wasn't going to panic or anything."

"Perhaps not, but there was someone else there."

My thoughts ground to a halt. "What do you mean?"

"I sensed a presence."

"Vampires?" I set my glass on the counter. Suddenly, my throat felt too tight for any liquid to pass it.

Talon remained quiet for a moment, then, "I can't say with absolute certainty. But in light of recent news..."

"What news?" I demanded.

The vampire gave me an assessing look. "Your brother wouldn't want me to--"

"I don't care what Collin wants." I wasn't going to be left in the dark because my brother thought I couldn't handle the truth. I'd already seen so much shit it was too late to try to coddle me now.

"Aldrich called an hour ago," Talon said after a minute of choosing his words.

"Weren't you together just earlier this evening?"

"He went to a bar after we parted. One that a lot of vampires like to go to."

"Is that a good idea?" I asked. "After you two betrayed your coven?"

"Aldrich can change his appearance," Talon waved my concern off. "It lets him listen in on all the gossip without giving himself away. He claims it's useful for us to know what's going on. He might have a point, but I also think he simply enjoys it."

"So he knows who was at our house earlier?" Had there been someone watching me as I tossed the Millennium Falcon out the window? A shiver crawled down my spine like hundreds of little needles.

Talon studied my face again as if he was still trying to make up his mind about how much he could tell me.

"It was vampires, wasn't it?"

He nodded. "We have to assume that you're being targeted."

"Why me?" Without even thinking about it, I grabbed the sweatband covering my wrist. "Are my siblings being targeted too? What about Elena and Jared and Remy? They don't even live here. Their houses aren't being protected by witches. We should--"

"They'll be fine as long as they don't approach any vampires," Talon said as if that was supposed to make me feel better.

"I wouldn't approach any vampires either."

"What about a vampire who looks like Damian?"

My breath caught in my throat as shock tore the air from my lungs. "What?" I stared at Talon.