midnight. Two men grabbed her. The last thing she remembers before getting stuck with a needle is a voice saying the name Belinda Burke.”
“Not very subtle, is she? But what does dumping her here accomplish?”
“Maybe she thought you’d lose it when you smelled the blood. We got an anonymous call that someone saw you carrying a bound and gagged woman into your house. Came in ten minutes before we got here. Before you got here, evidently.”
“How’d you catch the call? When I left you, you were still with Williams.”
Ortiz smiles. “Police scanner. When your address was broadcast, I beat it over here. Changed in the car. The uniforms assumed I was on duty.”
I sip at my coffee, processing what Burke could hope to accomplish with such a stunt. I let Ortiz accompany me as I sort possibilities. Did she hope I’d land in jail to be off her trail? Give her a clear shot at Culebra? Was it simply a way to harass me? Let me know she can fuck with me whenever she wants?
Ortiz shakes his head. “Any or all of the above. Maybe she hoped you’d kill that woman. That would be one way to get you off her trail.”
Now I shield my thoughts. The woman was never in danger from me—not of being killed. She did come close to becoming a late night snack, though.
I need to feed.
I look at Ortiz. “How much trouble am I in?”
He shrugs. “She admits you weren’t in on the abduction. She gave us good descriptions of the men who were and the van she was hauled off in. Unless we find hard evidence that you arranged it, you’ll be listed as a person of interest.” He laughs. “You didn’t arrange it, did you?”
“Very funny.”
He tips his cup toward me. “And you have the best alibi you could possibly have. At the time of her abduction you were hanging out with a cop and the former police chief.”
I rub my eyes. The hunger is beginning to cloud my head. It shouldn’t be this strong. Too much blood tonight. First the woman at the pier, then the woman in my bed. It has awakened the hunger. The vampire is close to the surface, demanding sustenance.
If Lance were here—
But he’s not.
And I can’t go to Culebra, either.
Ortiz is watching me. My thoughts are closed to him, but he’s vampire, too. He may recognize the signs. He doesn’t impose himself, though; he sits quietly and waits.
Maybe he can help. He’s got a live-in girlfriend to provide nourishment. Maybe he knows of others? If I’m going to be of any use to Culebra, I’ve got to have a clear head.
“Ortiz?”
He looks at me over the rim of the coffee cup.
“I need to ask you a favor.”
He nods at me to go on.
I still haven’t opened my thoughts to him. It might be easier but for some reason, I don’t want it to be.
“I need a host.”
He puts the cup on the table, his eyebrows rising in surprise. “I thought you had this deal in Mexico.”
“I did. I do.” Obviously Williams hasn’t filled him in on everything. I let him pick the story out of my head.
“Wow,” he says. “I had no idea.” He’s quiet for a minute. Then he says, “I’ll call my girlfriend. There’s a friend of hers that I’ve used. Before I hooked up with Brooke, naturally. She might be available.”
I feel embarrassed. I sit there while he calls his girlfriend and explains the situation. It’s like asking your little brother to get you a date. Humiliating.
This is the uncool part.
CHAPTER 20
I N AN HOUR, ORTIZ AND I ARE SITTING IN HIS LIVING room. His girlfriend, Brooke, is a petite brunette who is looking at me with open curiosity on her pert, co ed’s face. I guess she’s never met any female vamps.
She couldn’t be more than twenty. She’s barefoot, dressed in a hoodie and a pair of sweats. Her hair is pulled back in a ponytail. Isn’t she a little young? I ask Ortiz.
He puts an arm across her shoulders and she snuggles against his chest like a contented kitten. Not for me.
I’m seeing a side of Ortiz I wouldn’t have believed an
“Not very subtle, is she? But what does dumping her here accomplish?”
“Maybe she thought you’d lose it when you smelled the blood. We got an anonymous call that someone saw you carrying a bound and gagged woman into your house. Came in ten minutes before we got here. Before you got here, evidently.”
“How’d you catch the call? When I left you, you were still with Williams.”
Ortiz smiles. “Police scanner. When your address was broadcast, I beat it over here. Changed in the car. The uniforms assumed I was on duty.”
I sip at my coffee, processing what Burke could hope to accomplish with such a stunt. I let Ortiz accompany me as I sort possibilities. Did she hope I’d land in jail to be off her trail? Give her a clear shot at Culebra? Was it simply a way to harass me? Let me know she can fuck with me whenever she wants?
Ortiz shakes his head. “Any or all of the above. Maybe she hoped you’d kill that woman. That would be one way to get you off her trail.”
Now I shield my thoughts. The woman was never in danger from me—not of being killed. She did come close to becoming a late night snack, though.
I need to feed.
I look at Ortiz. “How much trouble am I in?”
He shrugs. “She admits you weren’t in on the abduction. She gave us good descriptions of the men who were and the van she was hauled off in. Unless we find hard evidence that you arranged it, you’ll be listed as a person of interest.” He laughs. “You didn’t arrange it, did you?”
“Very funny.”
He tips his cup toward me. “And you have the best alibi you could possibly have. At the time of her abduction you were hanging out with a cop and the former police chief.”
I rub my eyes. The hunger is beginning to cloud my head. It shouldn’t be this strong. Too much blood tonight. First the woman at the pier, then the woman in my bed. It has awakened the hunger. The vampire is close to the surface, demanding sustenance.
If Lance were here—
But he’s not.
And I can’t go to Culebra, either.
Ortiz is watching me. My thoughts are closed to him, but he’s vampire, too. He may recognize the signs. He doesn’t impose himself, though; he sits quietly and waits.
Maybe he can help. He’s got a live-in girlfriend to provide nourishment. Maybe he knows of others? If I’m going to be of any use to Culebra, I’ve got to have a clear head.
“Ortiz?”
He looks at me over the rim of the coffee cup.
“I need to ask you a favor.”
He nods at me to go on.
I still haven’t opened my thoughts to him. It might be easier but for some reason, I don’t want it to be.
“I need a host.”
He puts the cup on the table, his eyebrows rising in surprise. “I thought you had this deal in Mexico.”
“I did. I do.” Obviously Williams hasn’t filled him in on everything. I let him pick the story out of my head.
“Wow,” he says. “I had no idea.” He’s quiet for a minute. Then he says, “I’ll call my girlfriend. There’s a friend of hers that I’ve used. Before I hooked up with Brooke, naturally. She might be available.”
I feel embarrassed. I sit there while he calls his girlfriend and explains the situation. It’s like asking your little brother to get you a date. Humiliating.
This is the uncool part.
CHAPTER 20
I N AN HOUR, ORTIZ AND I ARE SITTING IN HIS LIVING room. His girlfriend, Brooke, is a petite brunette who is looking at me with open curiosity on her pert, co ed’s face. I guess she’s never met any female vamps.
She couldn’t be more than twenty. She’s barefoot, dressed in a hoodie and a pair of sweats. Her hair is pulled back in a ponytail. Isn’t she a little young? I ask Ortiz.
He puts an arm across her shoulders and she snuggles against his chest like a contented kitten. Not for me.
I’m seeing a side of Ortiz I wouldn’t have believed an
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