Nightshifters (8 page)

Alexandru strode through the French
Quarter, the street alive with the usual Friday night glitz. Bar hoppers,
prostitutes and tourists. Neon signs flashed their welcome on nearly every
corner. Jazz music wafted from inside various bars along the street. The sweet
scent of blood pulsed through the veins of the innocents that surrounded him.
Laughter and excitement exuded from their very souls. He thirsted for their
vibrant lifelines, thirsted for their carefree lifestyle.

Two young women chatted in a nearby alley. Alexandru’s mouth
watered. It had been a long time since he had fed the old-fashioned way. A very
long time indeed. He entered the alley. The women stopped their conversation
and stared in horror at the dark, looming figure blocking the entrance. One of
them screamed and ran the other way. The other — a petite blonde with heavy
makeup and a tight honey-colored mini-skirt — stood transfixed, unable to move.
With hypnotic eyes, Alexandru beckoned the woman to him. She came. With careful
control, he planted submissive thoughts in her mind until she tilted her head
and allowed him full access to her lifeline.

Alexandru lowered his head, fangs lengthening, and punctured
the pulse point throbbing at the nape of her neck. The woman sighed and sagged
against him. He drank hungrily. Greedily. The sweet, coppery liquid warmed his
throat. Still he thirsted. He took more and more, but nothing satiated his
hunger. He stopped just short of taking the woman’s life. His blood turned to
ice. He had only killed once before, and he had never forgiven himself for it.
He would not do it again. Alexandru hated killing. Now, he rarely took a victim
— and for those he did take he never took more from them than they could handle
— choosing, instead, to feed at The Voodoo Den and the occasional blood bank.
But seeing Rana last night had unleashed primal desires he no longer could
control. He wanted her. Always had and always would. Even if it meant his
death. Disgusted with himself, Alexandru lifted his head and set the woman
down. He wiped the back of his hand across his mouth and with a sweep of his
arm erased the woman’s memory. She would never know she had been his victim. He
turned on his heel and disappeared into the night, leaving the stunned woman
gasping for breath. Only one thing would satisfy him now.

Rana.

Something watched her. Rana could feel its presence inside
the small bookstore. There were no customers and she only had a few minutes
left until closing time. She shot a look toward the glass door.

Nothing.

The streetlight outside flickered on just as the moon rose
above the cypress tree alongside her building.

She straightened the display center and returned two books
to a shelf at the back of the store. The hairs on the back of her neck stood as
she rounded each corner. Rana’s heart slammed against her ribs. Her skin
prickled as an unseen shadowy presence settled over her. Though her eyes
couldn’t prove it, her sixth sense picked up on every labored breath and every
stealth movement.

She wasn’t alone.

Rana quickly checked each aisle before returning to the
front. Five more minutes. She stared at the clock on the wall willing the hands
to move faster. She usually didn’t worry about being alone in the store, but
tonight fear played tricks on her mind. She couldn’t wait to lock the door. She
opened the cash drawer and began placing the money into the bag. She punched a
button on the register to run the daily report. The noisy hum grated on her
nerves in the otherwise silent store. She glanced back at the clock. Two
minutes. The register spit out the report, and she placed it in the bag
alongside the money. She leaned down and opened the safe underneath the
counter.

The bell on the front door jingled. Rana’s head shot up. She
looked around the store. Nothing. A soft breeze brushed through her hair. She
swallowed. The fans were already off, yet something had rustled her hair —
something that felt like someone had just walked past her. Fear gripped her
heart. She shoved the bag in the safe and shut it. She gave the combination
lock a quick turn to secure it. Her nerves jittered.

Eight o’clock.

Finally.

Rana checked each aisle once more then hurried to the door
and locked it. She turned around and let out a bloodcurdling scream.

Alexandru stood behind her dressed in a black shirt and
snug-fitting black jeans. Jeans that emphasized his sexy, muscled form. Rana
swallowed. Despite her shock of finding him in her store, her body wasn’t
immune to the tsunami of sex appeal that rolled off him in tidal waves. “What
are you doing here? You scared the daylights out of me.”

“I wanted to see you.”

“Why? You made it perfectly clear last night you never
wanted to see me again.” Rana’s nerves were already on edge and he wasn’t helping
matters standing in her shop exuding a supernatural aura.

“You caught me off guard. I’ve had time to…” his gaze slid
over her … “re-evaluate the circumstances.”

Wonderful
.

He’d re-evaluated, and she didn’t even have her slay kit
with her. Since she lived an hour from the nocturnal playground, she didn’t
need it at work.

Until now
.

“Have dinner with me tonight.”

“Dinner? Do you — I mean can you…”

 Alexandru laughed softly. “No. I don’t eat, but I can
sit with you. It’ll give us time to get reacquainted. There’s a great little
Mexican place around the corner.”

“Mexican?” Rana bit the inside of her cheek.

“It’s your favorite isn’t it?” The corner of his mouth
lifted into a rueful smile.

“You remember?”

“I remember everything about you. About us.” His words
dripped with soft seduction. Rana blinked. Her heart fluttered. For a moment,
he almost appeared to be the man she had loved. The man whom she had planned to
spend the rest of her life with, until that one fateful night that changed them
forever.

Why? Why? Why?
She wanted to scream. Why did he have
to be in the wrong place at the wrong time? Her thoughts drifted to that night.
She couldn’t remember exactly what had happened, but she did remember the man
she had thought was a mugger. Instead, he had been Vladmir Gustovez, Master of
New Orleans Nocturne Society. One of the oldest, most powerful vampires in the
Crescent City. A man she had hated and hunted all her life, and that night he
had turned Alexandru into one of his kind. She should have killed Alexandru
then and there to put him out of his misery, but she had loved him too much.
Instead, she blacked out. When she came to, Vladmir and Alexandru were both
gone. Rana never went back to find the man she loved. She left the city and
started a new life for herself by opening the small bookstore. And guilt over
leaving Alexandru to deal with his own horrors alone nearly ate her alive. But
her guilt did not outweigh how much she despised vampires.

Even Alexandru.

“You’re right. You should have killed me then.”

Rana gasped. She had been careless, and he was now in her
thoughts. Again. “I couldn’t. I just couldn’t.”

“I’ve adapted.” His smile held a hint of sadness. “Why
didn’t you come back to me? I searched for you for years.”

Shame heated her cheeks. “I—I wasn’t ready. You’re a—”

“A vampire. I’m well aware of that. Do you still hunt? Is
that why you’ve come back to me? To kill me?”

Rana’s eyes widened. His blunt question startled her. “I—I …
No, I came to find you. I missed you.” That much was true. She did miss him.
Terribly. But that didn’t change what he was. Or what she had to do. Alexandru
stared at her. His eyes glittered in the moonlight streaming through the front
glass.

“We have the same goal, you know.”

“I don’t understand.”

“You are a Dhampir. Your job is to rid the world of vamps. I
may be an unwilling vampire, but I also try to keep the city safe. I won’t
tolerate unnecessary killing.”

“You don’t kill?”

Alexandru’s eyes shuttered for a moment. “No.”

“But don’t you feed?”

“Sometimes. Only when the urge is too great to overcome, but
I never take too much. Not anymore.”

“But…” She swallowed hard. “You have killed?”

Alexandru hissed sharply. Torment flickered in his eyes.
“Once.”

The word tore from him in a guttural growl.

“What happened?” Despite the horror of it all, Rana realized
that somewhere underneath the creature lay the man she had loved and trusted.

“I was new. Had only just been turned for a few days. I
didn’t understand the hunger.” Self-loathing laced his words. “Didn’t know how
to handle it. I waited as long as I could before feeding. When I finally took a
victim, I took too much. The police found her the next morning nearly drained
of blood. Her name was Angie Fields. She had two young children at home.”

“Oh, Alexandru.” Rana touched his arm.

He flinched. “Don’t pity me. I’m a monster. I destroyed
someone’s family. Thanks to me those children will never know their mother.”

“It wasn’t your fault. You didn’t know,” Rana whispered. “It
was an accident.” It had never occurred to her until now that vampires might
have emotions. She had always been taught that they were all horrible,
abominable creatures that needed to be destroyed.

“It doesn’t matter. It won’t bring Angie back. It won’t give
those children their mother back.”

“No, it won’t,” she agreed gently. “But, you could use
your…” Rana hesitated. “…Your gifts for good by making sure no one else gets
hurt or worse.”

“I’m trying to.”

Rana straightened a book on the shelf. Did he mean it? Was
he really using his dark gift for good? Was it even possible for a vampire to
do that? Everything she had ever been told about them pointed to pure evil, yet
Alexandru didn’t seem evil. But she still had to kill him. She didn’t have a
choice. She shuddered. Damien was her world, but how could she possibly kill
Alexandru now? If only there were another way. If only…

“I don’t want you going back to vampire territory again.
It’s too dangerous,” Alexandru said. “I won’t allow it.”

Rana’s head snapped up.

Won’t allow it?

Old feelings resurfaced. She couldn’t count the times
Alexandru’s arrogance and commanding nature had collided with her fiercely
independent one. A smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. He had always won a
few of their battles, but never the war. It had been the fuel that kept things
interesting.

A wave of melancholy swamped her. It wasn’t the first time
she had wished things could be different. But fate had dealt them a losing
hand. And she knew when to fold.

“You can’t stop me, Alexandru. It’s what I do.” His eyes
glittered like frost on a winter morning.

“I can and I will.”

Rana exhaled. She knew better than to argue the point.
Alexandru was still a stubborn, stubborn man — or rather, immortal. However,
she had no intention of heeding his command. He just didn’t need to know it
yet.

“Let’s check out that Mexican place.” Rana grabbed her purse
from behind the counter and followed him to the door. With a wave of his hand,
the door unlocked and opened.

Alexandru watched Rana dip a chip into the spicy salsa. He
swallowed a grin. There was once a time when he could have given her run for
her money on eating chips and salsa. Their love of rich, flavorful foods had
been one of the many things they’d had in common. They had met in college and
fallen in love almost instantly. Within a few months, he had learned everything
there was to know about her, including the fact she was a Dhampir. He also knew
how much she despised her father and how she had trained to hunt and kill the
vampires running amuck on the streets of New Orleans. He had even helped her
track them on several occasions. Now, he realized sadly, they had very little
in common. Except their aversion to vampires. He wondered how much of that
night she remembered. He hoped nothing, for if she ever knew what else had
happened the night he had crossed over she couldn’t live with herself. And she
would hate him even more for not protecting her.