The Vampire SEAL Collection, page 69
I ran my fingers through his hair, the silky strands slipping between them.
He growled a husky growl.
I should have melted into him at the sound of his approval. Instead, I placed my palms on his chest and gently pushed. I didn’t want him to stop, but confusion and raw fear made me act. Maybe it was my inexperience that made me act or maybe it was his experience that did. After all, was he still in love with another woman as Kate had mentioned? If so, why would he kiss me with that much intensity and emotion if he were? I had to know for sure.
He lifted his head, his gaze locked with mine.
“Who’s…Nicki?” I asked, the words barely audible.
“No one you should worry about,” he breathed as his hand got tangled in my salt-knotted hair.
“Are you still in love with her?”
When he managed to free his hand, he whispered, “I’ve never been in love with anyone.” He dragged his fingers down my cheek.
How sad.
“Do I look like her?”
“Jo.” He dipped his head slowly, stopping when his nose touched mine. “You don’t look like anyone I’ve ever known. Now, why all the questions?”
I swallowed. “Kate said you liked me because I look like Nicki.”
“Kate was only right about one thing. I like you.” He brushed his lips against mine.
I had an inkling that there was more to that story. For now, though, my body couldn’t resist his touch. I stood between his muscular arms, taking in his masculine scent. I wanted to stay like this forever. However, life just didn’t play fair.
His cell phone rang, shattering any lasting moments we had and he pulled away.
“We’re almost there,” Webb said into his phone. “I’ll call him back as soon as I can. Good. Sweep the entire base for bugs.”
The last word triggered a memory of something Kate had said. As we began walking again, I organized my thoughts, filtering through my conversation with her.
The trail had widened as we drew closer to home, with a line of trees edging the path on my left.
Walking side by side, I said, “Um…you asked me earlier if I talked to Kate, and I did. She didn’t say a whole lot except something about a bug. She also confirmed that she was the one who’d helped the Plutariums break out, and she had stolen my father’s blood out of his safe. What I don’t understand is how she got the combination.”
“We did find a tiny camera in the ceiling in your father’s office. It was positioned so that if your father opened his safe they would be able to get the combination. We think that’s what happened. Afterwards your father changed the combination and had an alarmed installed in his office.”
“But what about tonight? How did she get into the safe if my dad changed the combination?”
It seemed impossible to me to break into any safe, but what did I know? Regardless, I was living on a government compound, and Sam had said that the government could do anything.
“That I’m not sure of. The safe has an electronic keypad lock. So my guess is they got in by reading your father’s fingerprints. It’s a sophisticated process, using an ultraviolet light.” Webb looked at me closely. “Anything else you want to tell me about Kate?”
Not really.
Though, I heard the pain in his voice and knew, there was no sense in delaying the inevitable. Whether I told him now or later it wouldn’t change anything.
Taking a deep breath, I twined my fingers in his. “She’s…um…with Edmund.”
We came to an abrupt stop near a large oak tree.
Webb growled and squeezed my hand at the same time.
At the strength of his grip, pain shot up my arm. Holding my breath, I tamped it down. I didn’t want him to go through this alone. I deserved some of the agony for the way I’d blurted the whole secret in the first place.
The color drained from his face. He let go of my hand and began pacing in long furious strides. After a few seconds he froze. Before I knew what was happening, he rammed his fist into the trunk of the oak tree.
I ran toward him, and then decided to stop. He probably needed some space. At least, if it were me I knew I would.
Sympathy and compassion made my chest ache for the gorgeous vampire. His anger and his pain radiated off him in waves. All his emotions ripped through me as though they were my own. If I could feel his emotions, I suddenly sympathized with my brother, the Empath. God, Sam had to have a heart of steel to deal with others’ emotions. No wonder Dad had said being an Empath was the worst of the special powers.
Webb growled low and loud.
Standing a few feet from him, I considered my options to calm the raging vampire. Would words soothe him? When I was sad or angry Sam had never used words to settle me. He always hugged me. Would a simple hug help him? I guess there was only one way to find out.
I blew out a breath, making my way over to the vampire. I touched him lightly on his bicep. His arm vibrated, or was it my hand shaking? Without another thought, I wrapped my arms around his waist and pressed my head into his chest as he leaned against the tree.
His hands fisted in my hair as he rested his chin on my head.
We didn’t move for the longest time. His heart slammed against his ribs. Holy cow. The reserved Webb London had emotions—intense ones. In a short time he’d shown me anger, frustration, and passion. The world seesawed again today.
After some time, his heart slowed. He leaned down and whispered, “Thank you.”
Then his hair fell forward, tickling my cheek. He placed a soft kiss on each of my eyelids, then he dragged his lips down the left side of my face, over my scar, before settling his satiny lips on mine.
Raising my hand to his cheek, I gently stroked. “I’m…sorry, Webb.”
“I know it was hard for you to tell me, and that you didn’t want to hurt me. It warms me to know that,” he whispered against my lips.
I hated that he was hurting, and my heart actually ached for him.
“Come on.” He pushed off the tree. “We need to get back.”
Just like that he seemed to be a lot calmer, at least on the outside. Maybe hitting a tree worked to shed his anger.
We walked the rest of way in silence. I imagined Webb was deep in thought over the news of Kate and Edmund. Before long we were standing in front of the doors to the main building.
“Good evening, Lieutenant,” the Sentinel on guard said.
Webb just nodded.
“I’ll be in the control room, Jo. I’m sure Sam is dying to see you,” Webb said.
“Sam? Where is he?” I couldn’t contain my excitement.
“Ms. Mason,” the Sentinel said. “Over there.” He pointed off to my left.
I hesitated, looking at Webb. “Go,” he said.
Suddenly, I was torn. I didn’t want to leave Webb’s side. I wanted to make sure he was okay.
As if Webb knew my inner struggle, he leaned down and whispered, “I’ll be fine as long as I know you’re here for me.”
Looking up at the gorgeous vampire, I said, “I am.”
“Thank you, beautiful.” Then he walked into the building.
I stood immobilized for a few seconds, trying to shed the drunken Webb state I was in.
Sam sauntered up the sidewalk. When he saw me, he stopped. I didn’t hesitate; I ran to my brother and jumped into his arms. He caught me and hugged me tightly before setting me down on two feet.
“Let me look at you.” He took a step back. “Christ, you look pale. What happened? No, wait.” He grabbed me, hugging me. “God, I thought I lost you, sis. I really thought I had. Don’t do that to me again. I can’t go through something like that, ever.” His breath hitched.
“I love you, Sam. I’m sorry.” I shuddered several breaths between sobs.
I made a mental note to get Dr. Vieira to examine my heart after things settled. It had been shattered, torn, and split into a zillion pieces; I doubted anything was even left in my chest, especially after my time in the woods with Webb.
“It’s not your fault.” He released a sigh. “Come on. Let’s go to the control room. The Coast Guard is waiting for Webb’s call. The captain wants to speak only with Webb. Let’s see what they have to say. Maybe it’s Ben.”
I pulled away. “You know?”
“Sure. I’ve been glued to the radios since I found out you were missing. Webb asked me to stay and help the team. Since I know he cares for you, I trust him. Otherwise, nothing could’ve kept me here when I knew you were missing.”
My mouth fell open. What should I process first? The fact that Sam said Webb cares for me. Or that Sam trusted Webb?
The universe just tilted on its axis again.
I decided I was more shocked that Sam trusted Webb. After the way he kissed me, I’d be crushed if Webb didn’t care for me.
I slanted my head to one side. “Okay, but are you sure you’re really my brother?”
“For eternity, Jo.” He tapped his heart twice. “Let’s see if we can get some good news from the Coast Guard.”
Good news would be fantastic. My theory of events happening in threes had been blown to pieces. Maybe that was just a human superstition. Maybe it worked differently for vampires. It seemed that bad things around me were happening in tens. If that were true, then maybe the good ones would happen in tens as well.
Pulling open the door to the main building, the Sentinel nodded and waved us in.
The lobby hadn’t changed a bit—still cold as the North Pole in the dead of winter. My damp, salty clothes and hair only added to the shivers wracking my body.
I closed my eyes and inhaled—sterility. Nothing but clean, fresh air had my nostrils flaring, and my body relaxing. In all of my new eternal life, I never thought that I’d be ecstatic to be standing in this lobby. As cold as it was, warmth spread through me—I was home. I dropped to the floor and kissed the cold tile.
When I stood up, Dr. Vieira was leaning against the receptionist’s desk. Ruth wasn’t in yet, since it was the dead of night.
Dr. Vieira had his arms crossed over his chest, one ankle over the other and an I’m-going-to-kill-you look on his face. Before I moved, he smothered me with a hug.
“Don’t ever s-scare us like that again,” he stuttered.
Yes, the doc actually stuttered.
He ran his hands down both my arms. He turned my face to the right and left, much like Webb had. Then he tapped my chin a couple of times. I guess that was his way of telling me to tilt back my head. Before I could protest, he had a penlight shining in my eyes.
“You need more blood,” he said as he placed the instrument in the pocket of his lab coat.
“I feel fine. And by the way, it wasn’t my fault I disappeared.”
“You’re going to give your father heart attack,” Dr. Vieira said.
“You sure you’re not going to have one?” I held back a smile.
I believed the doc had some feelings he was holding in.
He smiled and my heart warmed. Maybe my heart was still in there after all.
“And what blood do you propose I drink if my father’s blood is gone?” I asked.
“Jo, your father is the most organized individual I’ve ever met. He always has an emergency back-up plan.” His eyebrows practically met in the middle, as though I should know this important detail.
I cocked my head to one side. “Where is it?”
“The walls may still have ears. Until Webb has the place scrubbed for bugs, I can’t say any more. But you do need to feed. Your skin is still very pale and the whites of your eyes have black spider veins and specks. This is a sign of blood deprivation.” He turned to go. “I’ll meet you and Sam in the control room,” Dr. Vieira added.
“Wait. You said I needed more blood, as though you knew I already had some,” I said.
“Jo, I may be an old vampire, but I’m not dead.”
“Huh?”
“I smell him on you,” Dr. Vieira said.
Geez. I had to get with the program. I knew I could smell Webb, Sam and all the others. Everyone had their own distinct scent. However, I guessed I never thought about my scent and how others could rub off on me. Or for that matter, not only smell my scent, but the pheromones that my body would emit. Yikes!
“It was an emergency,” I blurted out. My cheeks warmed as I thought of Webb.
“I know,” Dr. Vieira said.
I glanced at Sam, waiting for his reaction.
“What? I knew too. But before the doc. When we found out Dad’s blood was gone, and Tripp called in to tell us you took off, Webb wanted to go find you. If you needed blood, he wanted to be the one to give it to you.”
I didn’t know what to make of that statement. Or maybe I did. Still, Sam was taking all this very well.
The three of us piled into the elevator. Sam punched two and four on the panel. I guessed Dad’s blood was in the lab.
The elevator stopped on the second floor. Sam jumped out first. As I did, Dr. Vieira took hold of my hand.
“It’s nice to have you home, Jo.” He let go, then jammed his finger on a button.
“It’s nice to be home,” I said as the elevator doors clanged together.
Sam smiled, grabbing my hand. An electrical charge zinged up my arm. A sign that one half of my life was solid. Now I just needed Dad to complete the other half. Only then would I be truly home.
22
Sam walked in as if he owned the place or he’d been working with these vamps forever.
“Mason, get your ass over here. I didn’t say you could leave,” a vamp shouted from a desk that had four computer screens on it.
“Cool your jets, Sawyer. I’ll be there in a minute,” Sam retorted. “Sis, Webb should be in that office over there.” He pointed to a doorway right next to Sawyer. “Can you sit in there while I help the dude? You need to be with Webb or me from now on.”
“What? You’re babysitting me?” Now my tone lost the nice sister luster.
“Sorry. After what happened, we’re not convinced this is over. Webb suspects someone else here was working with Kate.”
I gasped. “You knew about Kate?”
“No. I didn’t know until I ran back to the apartment to get blood for you and found that Kate had been in the apartment.”
“How?”
“Her scent. When I mentioned it to Webb after the explosions, he wasn’t surprised. That’s when he told me what you’d said.”
“You two have become awful chummy.” My mouth was catching flies.
“Trauma can bring people together. Where you’re involved, Webb and I are on the same page. Plus, we do have a lot in common.”
I wasn’t ready to touch the last statement. I had to process that he and Webb were even on the same page about anything, let alone me.
I breezed past Sam. I made it to the cubicle where Sam’s new best friend, Sawyer, sat. Like the majority of the Sentinels that worked for my dad, Sawyer appeared to be tall, although it was hard to tell since he was sitting down. He looked to be in great physical shape and he had shoulder-length light brown hair with blond streaks throughout. His fingers were flying across the computer keys and the four screens shifted viewpoints several times before stopping on a dark and blurry satellite picture of something.
As I looked, Webb’s voice filtered through my mind.
Come in to the office, and have a seat.
I ignored him for the moment. Sam had me enthralled as he asked Sawyer question after question about this and that on the screen. Curiosity and concern had Sam’s eyebrows twisted in an odd fashion as his green eyes reflected the computer monitor. As Sawyer answered, Sam’s eyebrows loosened.
Jo, are you ignoring me?
I hadn’t seen my brother for what seemed like an eternity, and Blue-Eyes thought I was ignoring him?
Never.
Leaving my brother for the moment, I turned and took three steps before leaning against the doorjamb. I was watching Webb listen to the caller on the end of the phone when a door in the control room behind me opened. Suddenly the voices in the room ceased, as did the tapping on keyboards. Curious, I turned around, and lost my breath.
All thought whooshed out of my head as I ran and jumped into Dad’s waiting arms. He planted his feet and caught me.
“Oh my God! Dad?” I buried my head in the crook of his neck.
He ran his hand over my back. “I missed you too, pumpkin.”
I began to cry.
“Hey, I’m okay. I’m right here.”
Relief zipped through me.
“I’m sorry, Dad. I’m so sorry.”
“Shh. Please breathe. You’re scaring me. Your heart is racing so fast.”
I hiccupped. “I’ve missed you. I…love…you, Dad. I really do.”
“God.” He squeezed me tighter, and whispered in my ear. “I know this life hasn’t been good on you. For that I’m sorry. I do love you too. More than you know. I haven’t said it before because I thought it would’ve been too soon and you wouldn’t have believed me. I couldn’t have taken your rejection, even though I deserve it. Jo, I love you more than life itself.” He let out a breath. “You’re my little girl. You always have been since, the day you were born.”
I sobbed like a child who had just found her lost daddy. I didn’t care that the entire control room was watching us. Thousands of emotions rolled over me, under me and through me. My heart stopped when he told me he loved me. His words weaved my shattered heart back together. My body, mind and soul knitted into one as I relaxed against the most powerful vampire, my dad, my family—home.
“Carry on, folks,” Dad commanded.
At his words, the noise resumed.
“Pops,” Sam said behind me.
I lifted my head, still wrapped in Dad’s arms. He extended his free arm, pulling in Sam for a hug.
“I love you both. I don’t ever want you to think otherwise. I know I have a funny way of showing it sometimes, but you’re my family,” he said, hugging both Sam and me.
“Pops? You’re hurting me.” Sam’s voice was muffled.
“Sorry.” He released Sam. “Jo, you okay?” he asked, setting me down, wiping the tears from my face. “Hey, I’m here. I’m not going anywhere.”
