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CHAPTER TWENTY

ZAND

T he shore of Lake Michigan laid shrouded in fog.

A ghostly veil that swallowed the beam of our headlights.

The violent sounds of the crashing waves lapped against the rocky harbor.

I stepped from the SUV. My hand automatically found the small of Chanel’s back as she emerged from the truck beside me.

Her warm body was a stark contrast to the chill that ravaged this isolated stretch of the shoreline.

This place held memories, violent ones. I was a pillar of nonviolence until Alonzo entered my life.

His body was buried beneath the dark waters that stretched into invisibility and beyond.

Somewhere out there, I had disposed of Lonzo Lopez.

I thought the lake kept my secret, but Layla’s loose lips made that a mistruth.

“Spread out.” I instructed in a voice barely above a murmur. I knew my vampires could hear me clearly. “Marco, take the north side of the cliffs. Donte, south. Natasha, find high ground.”

They moved with supernatural silence and disappeared into the fog like ghosts. Only Josh remained visible, positioning himself between our vehicles and the water. His large frame was a reassuring presence.

Harlen and Morgan took their positions closer to the shore. Three additional members of my security team were all vampires I befriended when I arrived in Chicago. These vampires established a perimeter that appeared hidden in plain sight.

“Stay close to me.” I muttered to Chanel and drew her against my side. She was dressed in black with her hair pulled back. We were all wearing dark colors.

“I’m not going anywhere.” She assured me.

My team and me, Chanel, plus three, moved toward the water’s edge. I thought having Morgan as one of my three people might rattle Teresa. She knew Harlen and Josh were my muscle. Teresa would probably see Morgan and Chanel and think I was at a disadvantage.

The fog swirled around our ankles, creating the illusion that we were walking through the clouds. Ahead, the lake stretched into utter darkness. The lake’s surface was visible only where our flashlights caught the fierce movement of waves.

I scanned the striking Chicago skyline, an oasis of tall buildings.

Then, in the direction of Canada, I scanned the horizon.

Beautiful. My vampire vision penetrated the fog.

I watched for vehicles that entered the harbor and there were none.

Nothing yet. Teresa wouldn’t arrive until the last possible moment.

She had to make a grand entrance. It was a power play.

It was a reminder that she thought she could force us to retreat simply by delaying.

“This is where you brought him?” Chanel asked while looking into the dark water.

I didn’t pretend to misunderstand. “Yes. Weighted down and taken out here where he wouldn’t be found.” The admission came easily. I’ve stopped hiding the darker aspects of my nature from her. “His body should have been unrecoverable.”

“Should have been?”

“Sometimes bodies raise to the surface in the springtime.”

My fingers tightened slightly on her waist. I had lied to her before.

The truth was simpler. It might be more brutal, but Chanel was tougher than I knew.

I would never apologize for keeping my future bride safe.

I eliminated the threat he posed permanently.

Lonzo asked for violence, and I was just better at my brand of violence.

The minutes ticked by slowly, but time waited for no one. The sky remained dark, and the stars and the moon gave us a bit of light. I could feel drama approaching like a pressure against my skin.

“There.” Harlen’s voice came from my right. He pointed toward the lake.

At first, I saw nothing. Then a shadow separated the darkness. A small motorboat cut through the fog. Its engine was muted to near silence. It approached slowly, deliberately, making no attempt at stealth now that we spotted it.

What the fuck? She showed up on water instead of land. If she isn’t careful, her little boat could crash into the rocks under the surface. I hoped to see her careen out of the vessel and into the cold lake.

“I count five figures.” Morgan reported, her new vampire vision serving her well. “Teresa at the front and three others I don’t recognize.”

Now Harlen was homed in and looking. “That’s the lady that drove the getaway car for Marisol. The other two are from Club Caliente Bailar.”

“Who?” I asked Harlen.

“The Mexican woman. I think the cousin. The other one was the tall male. Maybe an uncle?”

Morgan said. “I can’t believe the bitch only brought three people with her.”

“Don’t underestimate her.” I warned.

“Never. She’s the bitch that killed me.”

Chanel shifted beside me. She pressed closer into my side as the boat continued its approach. She squeezed my hand and then let my hand go.

“Hey.” I said, worried about her actions.

“You need both hands to shoot this bitch.” She said, and she didn’t back away. My queen stood her ground beside me.

The boat emerged completely from the fog.

It was close enough now that even human eyes could make out its occupants.

Teresa stood at the bow, her platinum blonde hair whipping around her face in the breeze.

She wore black. Behind her stood three vampires I didn’t recognize until I did.

One of the women was familiar. She had helped Marisol attack Chanel back at the apartments.

The one with the jet-black hair was new to me.

The fifth figure that froze my blood, the man.

Lonzo Lopez stepped from behind Teresa and appeared at the center of the boat.

His familiar face now had the unmistakable pallor of vampirism.

His dark eyes, once merely cruel, now held the vacant glare of the undead.

He stared directly at me, his lips curled in a smirk that revealed the points of fangs.

Beside me, Chanel gasped, audibly. Her body went rigid with shock. Her fingers dug into my arm with enough force to bruise a human.

“Zand.” She choked out my name. “That’s, that’s?—”

“Impossible.” I muttered, though the evidence was headed toward me. Lonzo Lopez, the man I personally killed and disposed of in this very lake. He lived. He existed, reanimated in vampire form. How?

The boat scraped against the rocky shore and came to a halt. Teresa leaped out onto a rock, followed by Lonzo, who made a show of it. He jumped in the air and landed smoothly next to Teresa. The other three vampires joined them on the shore.

“Surprise! Surprise!” Teresa greeted us. Her voice carried easily across the short distance that separated us. Her smile was triumphant. “You should see your face, Alexander. It’s almost as shocked as it was when you found me in bed with your father.”

I didn’t respond to her taunt. My eyes remained fixed on Lonzo, cataloging the evidence of his transformation.

This bitch turned him and never gave anything away.

I should’ve never tossed him in the lake.

I should’ve burned him at the crematorium.

It was a vital mistake, a miscalculation that I couldn’t change.

“How?” I finally asked, but I knew exactly how.

Teresa’s laugh rang out over the rocks and echoed over the water.

“I saw you put Mr. Lopez in the truck of that old ugly Chevy. I followed you and fished him out when you left. Did you have to kill this man for that bitch?” She continued.

“I had more than enough time to resurrect the dead. “Humans are surprisingly resilient when they have the right motivation.” She stroked Lonzo’s cheek like he was a pet pitbull.

“And he had excellent motivation—revenge.”

The implications cascaded through my mind. She had been planning this betrayal longer than I realized. She was deranged and obsessed. I miscalculated her cunningness. I had to stay sharp in the moment and beat myself up later.

Lonzo came forward, his eyes fixed were not on me but on Chanel. “Hey, baby girl.” He said with a voice carrying the new timbre of vampirism. “Did you miss me?”

Chanel’s heartbeat spiked. “Fuck! You!”

“Whoa, Zand you kiss her potty mouth.” Teresa’s smile widened at the exchange.

She took a step closer, and her two female vampire guards and one male fanned out behind her and Lonzo.

They created a defensive formation that mirrored our own.

The air between us felt charged, like the moment before lightning struck. “Zand, did you lose your voice?”

“Never. We’ve talked too much.”

“Surprised to see your handiwork undone?” Teresa toyed with me and spread her arms as if presenting Lonzo as a gift. “You should be more thorough when disposing of bodies. Some things refuse to stay buried just like out past.”

I felt Chanel pressed against my side. I wanted to hold her and tell her she was safe, but I had to focus all my attention on my enemies.

“Zand, you had so much to say over the phone. Where’s that blonde bitch that’s always at your side?”

“I don’t need her.” I saw Harlen and Morgan to my right. They were ready to pounce. Then there was Natasha’s barely visible silhouette on higher ground to my left. The trap was set. The players were assembled.

“But you bring the baby vamp with you instead?” Teresa glanced over at Morgan. “Sorry babes, I really thought Harlen was too stupid to make a vampire. I wanted you dead.” Teresa waited for a response. “Hello, Mariah Carey. Are you mute?”

Morgan’s eyes stayed fixed on Teresa, but her mouth didn’t have any words. We rehearsed our plan. Morgan’s silence irritated Teresa. She wanted a reaction, and I was proud that our new vampire didn’t give her one.

“Well, okay.” Teresa signed. “I’m a little disappointed with your team of Avengers. You have a human nurse, a biracial newbie, your creepy brother and your WWE chauffeur. Husband, you know you brought a nail file to a knife fight?”