“I’ve got a lot on my mind right now, but you’ve been nothing but kind and understanding. Hell, I probably wouldn’t be standing here if you hadn’t come to my aid. I don’t doubt that Vladimir would have found us by now if we were still roaming the streets, trying to survive. I owe you my life. Our lives.”
Damek swore in a language Craig didn’t know, but there was no doubt what was coming out of his friend’s mouth was profanity. Some words didn’t need translating. “You owe me nothing.
Nothing. You are my one true friend.”
Craig pulled Damek into his arms and hugged him. “And you’re my friend.
Now and always.” Damek returned his embrace and then pulled back.
The older vampire stared at him for a long moment, both of them sharing their thoughts before retreating behind their separate walls once again. Damek nodded and Craig knew he’d been forgiven.
Damek glanced at Evie and then back at his wife. “We must plan our next move.”
Chapter Twelve
Evie’s head was still ringing with Damek’s instructions on how to defeat a vampire, especially one as old as Vladimir. Nobody said it was going to be easy, but from what Damek had told them it seemed almost impossible—at least for her.
But she wouldn’t accept defeat.
There was no doubt in her mind that Damek could destroy Vladimir Drake.
Whatever Vladimir’s skills, she couldn’t imagine him defeating Damek in a fight.
But then, fate didn’t always play fair.
She had to be prepared in case her opportunity arose or Damek failed.
Fresh from her shower, she dressed in a pair of new jeans and the sweater she’d borrowed from Craig’s closet. It might be juvenile, but she liked wearing his sweater. It made her feel closer to him.
Sonia had thoughtfully shopped for some new clothing for her and Evie now had several underwear sets, some new tops, a pair of jeans and a pair of leggings. She’d pay the other woman back as soon as she could.
She sat on the bed, pulled on her boots and laced them up. Craig walked out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his lean waist and another one around his neck. A bead of water rolled down his broad chest, making Evie lose her breath. The urge to step up to him and lick that small droplet of water away was almost overwhelming.
They hadn’t had sex last night before they’d fallen asleep or when they’d woken this evening. It was obvious he wanted to, but she’d put him off and then felt guilty when he’d immediately become concerned about her wellbeing.
They’d still slept together, and she’d spent the night with his arm draped across her. She’d lay awake in the daylight hours, soaking up the sensation of being tucked up next to his big body.
Safety. Craig represented safety to her on so many levels.
As much as she cared for him and wanted to be with him, she needed some perspective, and that only came with distance. Unfortunately or fortunately, she wasn’t sure which, they were stuck together until the trouble with Vladimir and the bounty hunters was dealt with.
Evie finished with the laces of her boots and leaned back against the headboard and watched Craig drop his towel and pull on a pair of boxer briefs.
She almost broke out in a sweat at the sight of his firm butt cheeks. Too soon, he was covered, pulling on a pair of jeans and a dark-brown wool pullover.
He picked up both towels and went back into the bathroom. She knew he was hanging them on the towel rod. He was good about things like that.
Evie closed her eyes and sighed, but the image that filled her imagination was the one of Damek and Craig sparring in the empty apartment beneath Damek’s home. As soon as the sun had set this evening, Damek pounded on their bedroom door, demanding their presence. They’d barely had time to swallow the glasses of blood he’d thrust at them before he was hustling them downstairs to what seemed to be a workout space. He’d handed each of them a sword and demanded they pay attention and learn.
And learn they had.
Damek was a tough task master, exacting and driven. He’d drilled them over and over on different positions and maneuvers. She’d found them difficult, but Craig had taken to them like a duck to water. Before long, she was watching the two men spar. And while it was obvious that Damek was far superior, Craig held his own.
Damek had explained about staking a vampire through the heart. Younger vampires it would probably kill. Older ones might be incapacitated, but not for long. The head needed to come off and the body had to be burned. A grizzly and bloody business.
“Are you okay?” Craig asked as he came toward her. She rose quickly from the bed, not needing the temptation of having him sit next to her on a nice firm mattress.
“Yeah, I’m fine. Just thinking about everything we learned.” They’d spent three hours drilling before Damek dismissed them for the night. She had a feeling they’d still be at it if Damek hadn’t needed to go to work. Thankfully, being a vampire meant no sore muscles.
She seemed to heal incredibly fast, her muscles strengthening as she’d gone through the various exercises.
She felt more capable of defending herself than she had been, but nowhere near ready enough to defeat another vampire, especially not one of Vladimir’s age.
Craig grinned. “That was one heck of a workout.”
“You enjoyed it,” she accused.
She’d sweat and struggled, while he’d seemed to have fun.
He nodded and chuckled. “I admit, I did. I used to practice fighting techniques with Quinn and Hank all the time, and I miss it. But we’ve never used weapons before.”
“Those swords were sharp.” A shiver trickled down Evie’s spine.
Those blades were sharp enough to remove a person’s head if enough force was used. And with his new strength, Craig could easily do it. But that meant Vladimir could too.
“Hey.” Craig caught her hands and held them against his chest. “Don’t worry. Everything will be fine.”
She snorted. “You keep your Pollyanna outlook on life if it makes you happy.”
He frowned and released her hands.
“It’s better than always looking on the dark side of things.” He raked his fingers through his damp hair. “Look, I’m not stupid. I know bad things happen to good people all the time. But I have to believe we can get through this, that we can come out the other side. What’s the alternative? To give up and throw in the towel?”
Angry at Vladimir, angry at the situation they both found themselves in, and angry at herself for what she’d done to him, Evie lashed out. “At least I’m being realistic about the situation.”
“What you’re being is a coward.
You want to pretend that what’s between us isn’t happening. You’re afraid of me getting close to you.”
“In your dreams.” She wanted to scoff at his words, to call him a liar, but she was very afraid he was right. She was afraid of him, of Vladimir, of what was to come. She started to stride past him, needing to get away from his masculine presence for even a short while. As she went by him, he caught her around the waist and pulled her back against him.
“Let me go,” she demanded through clenched teeth.
“Make me,” he taunted.
Fury erupted inside her and she began to fight. He countered her moves easily, pinning her arms by her sides and lifting her off the floor. She threw back her head and slammed it into his face.
He swore and she smelled blood. Her fangs exploded from her gums and her nails extended into claws. Animalistic growls spewed from deep inside her.
All her fear, all her pent-up frustration and rage poured out of her.
Like lancing a wound, now that the poison was escaping there was no way to stop it.