imprisoned, and your children out of your reach.
“Let me show you how to get to the attic,” said Eva. “Lorcan is already at the archives trying to find more information about the town. We’ll widen the search, and maybe we’ll find some outside sources.”
“You’re still doing that mind-meld thing?”
“Same as breathing,” said Eva, smiling, “if I breathed.”
Ah. At least that explained why Lorcan had not returned. It appeared he didn’t doubt Gabriel’s identity, or he trusted that his wife was safe enough. Eva was obviously eager to reunite with her husband.
“I remember where the stairs are,” I said. Even though I had only visited the place once as a human, as a vampire, I’d been in the mansion many times. “You go on.”
Eva gave me a quick hug, waved at Tez, and then hurried out the front door. Tez looked at me, frowning. “How is she going to get there?”
“Probably steal your car.”
“Seriously?”
I laughed as we headed down the wide hallway to the kitchen. “I guess you’ll find out when we try to leave.”
“Very funny.” He pinched my bottom.
I stopped and shot a look of annoyance over my shoulder. “I find such actions inappropriate.”
One brown eyebrow rose. “I expect you to try a little harder with vocab,” he said. “Especially if you want me to kiss you.”
“I wasn’t trying—”
“Exactly.”
“You’re infuriating.”
He grinned, unapologetic as usual. “It’s one of my better qualities.”
I sniffed and turned back around, mostly to hide my smile. I really shouldn’t encourage such behavior.
In the large pantry, I walked to the back shelf and pressed on the end. It swung forward and we squeezed into the gap.
“The house has several hidden hallways and secret rooms,” I said as we walked down the very narrow space. “Jessica and Patrick lived here for a while, and their kids became quite adept at finding all the nooks and crannies.”
“You gave this whole place up?” he asked in amazement.
“It was never really mine.” I explained to Tez about my great-uncle’s will, the reason I had come to town, and how I met my end. “I woke up a vampire and very happy to be alive. Or rather, undead.”
“Lorcan’s okay? He hasn’t turned back into that thing?”
“Completely cured. However, he can shift into a wolf. The ability appears to be a side effect of the cure. And since Eva mated with him and started sharing his blood, she has the ability now, too.”
“Interesting.”
“How so?”
“That vampires can become shifters.”
“Oh, but they can’t,” I said. “It worked the opposite way—Lorcan was a vampire first who gained the ability to shift from a full transfusion. Eva doesn’t drink from donors anymore, so she gets the full effect of the transfused blood.”
“How’s that any different from a vampire sucking on the neck of a shifter?”
“Vampire to vampire,” I said, although I was beginning to doubt my own logic. “Not vampire to shifter. See the difference?”
“Nope.”
At the end of the teeny hallway was a wrought iron spiral staircase. When I stepped onto the first stair, it squealed ominously. I hurried upward and Tez followed closely, the iron steps protesting the whole way.
We entered the huge open space and I hit the light switch on the wall nearest to me. Lights flickered on and revealed the vastness of the attic.
“Wow. I think you can fit an ocean liner in here,” said Tez.
“Maybe half of one.” Gabriel and Patsy had managed to clear out much of the moldering furniture and collapsing boxes. I pointed to the right. “There.”
We approached the mysterious hidden room. I felt trepidation creep through me. Maybe no one had been able to sense magic or demon energy, but even a nonpsychic had mentioned the “dark” feeling. It was like a suffocating blanket. The air felt wrong—and we hadn’t even entered the room yet. Debris littered the sides of the doorway. And once, there had been
“Let me show you how to get to the attic,” said Eva. “Lorcan is already at the archives trying to find more information about the town. We’ll widen the search, and maybe we’ll find some outside sources.”
“You’re still doing that mind-meld thing?”
“Same as breathing,” said Eva, smiling, “if I breathed.”
Ah. At least that explained why Lorcan had not returned. It appeared he didn’t doubt Gabriel’s identity, or he trusted that his wife was safe enough. Eva was obviously eager to reunite with her husband.
“I remember where the stairs are,” I said. Even though I had only visited the place once as a human, as a vampire, I’d been in the mansion many times. “You go on.”
Eva gave me a quick hug, waved at Tez, and then hurried out the front door. Tez looked at me, frowning. “How is she going to get there?”
“Probably steal your car.”
“Seriously?”
I laughed as we headed down the wide hallway to the kitchen. “I guess you’ll find out when we try to leave.”
“Very funny.” He pinched my bottom.
I stopped and shot a look of annoyance over my shoulder. “I find such actions inappropriate.”
One brown eyebrow rose. “I expect you to try a little harder with vocab,” he said. “Especially if you want me to kiss you.”
“I wasn’t trying—”
“Exactly.”
“You’re infuriating.”
He grinned, unapologetic as usual. “It’s one of my better qualities.”
I sniffed and turned back around, mostly to hide my smile. I really shouldn’t encourage such behavior.
In the large pantry, I walked to the back shelf and pressed on the end. It swung forward and we squeezed into the gap.
“The house has several hidden hallways and secret rooms,” I said as we walked down the very narrow space. “Jessica and Patrick lived here for a while, and their kids became quite adept at finding all the nooks and crannies.”
“You gave this whole place up?” he asked in amazement.
“It was never really mine.” I explained to Tez about my great-uncle’s will, the reason I had come to town, and how I met my end. “I woke up a vampire and very happy to be alive. Or rather, undead.”
“Lorcan’s okay? He hasn’t turned back into that thing?”
“Completely cured. However, he can shift into a wolf. The ability appears to be a side effect of the cure. And since Eva mated with him and started sharing his blood, she has the ability now, too.”
“Interesting.”
“How so?”
“That vampires can become shifters.”
“Oh, but they can’t,” I said. “It worked the opposite way—Lorcan was a vampire first who gained the ability to shift from a full transfusion. Eva doesn’t drink from donors anymore, so she gets the full effect of the transfused blood.”
“How’s that any different from a vampire sucking on the neck of a shifter?”
“Vampire to vampire,” I said, although I was beginning to doubt my own logic. “Not vampire to shifter. See the difference?”
“Nope.”
At the end of the teeny hallway was a wrought iron spiral staircase. When I stepped onto the first stair, it squealed ominously. I hurried upward and Tez followed closely, the iron steps protesting the whole way.
We entered the huge open space and I hit the light switch on the wall nearest to me. Lights flickered on and revealed the vastness of the attic.
“Wow. I think you can fit an ocean liner in here,” said Tez.
“Maybe half of one.” Gabriel and Patsy had managed to clear out much of the moldering furniture and collapsing boxes. I pointed to the right. “There.”
We approached the mysterious hidden room. I felt trepidation creep through me. Maybe no one had been able to sense magic or demon energy, but even a nonpsychic had mentioned the “dark” feeling. It was like a suffocating blanket. The air felt wrong—and we hadn’t even entered the room yet. Debris littered the sides of the doorway. And once, there had been
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