“When did you turn her?”
Olivia stilled for a moment before looking up at him. She was worried she might see contempt or scorn, yet all she saw was curiosity.
“In 1980. I found her dying of a heroin overdose in the subway tunnels. She was heavily involved in the punk-music and drug scene here in the city, but her dreams of making it in the Big Apple didn’t quite pan out.”
“What about Sadie? You two seem closer than the others.” His inspecting gaze wandered over her. “She seems like more of an equal to you than the other girls.”
“Sadie’s been with me since the night I split with Vincent and just before I became a sentry. Her family lived in a remote cabin in what was then considered the frontier, and they fell victim to an Indian attack. Vincent and I smelled the blood and went to check it out. Sadie was barely alive, but her parents and five siblings were dead.” Olivia’s mind filled with the memories of that night, and she grimaced. “She looked so innocent and alone. I couldn’t leave her there.”
“It was a long time ago.” She shrugged and inspected her ammo. “I turned her, and Vincent was fucking furious. I guess he didn’t like the idea of the student becoming the teacher. He left us there, and I didn’t see him again for another fifty years.”
Doug said nothing but watched her through serious eyes.
“Maya was assaulted and dumped in the alley behind my club.” Her voice hardened as the memories of Maya’s rapist came roaring back in full color. “When I turned her, I got her blood memories.” Olivia’s body shook with rage, and her hands clenched and unclenched at her side. “Like I said, there are some memories you don’t want.”
Olivia’s eyes filled with tears, and her voice dropped to a whisper.
“I killed the man who hurt her. I let the monster out and took a human life, and you know what? I loved every minute.”
Doug reached out to comfort her, but she held up her hand and stepped back.
“There are no free rides, Doug. I got his blood memories. I felt the fear, pain, and degradation of the twenty other women he had brutalized. Monsters don’t go unpunished.”
Olivia swiped at her eyes and turned her back on Doug, unable to look at him, fearing what he might think of her now that he knew the truth. She grabbed some ammo and a silencer off the shelf and held it out to him without looking.
“Here.” She sniffled and bit back the tears, refusing to allow them to spill. “We’ll want to use the silencer because we may have to do this above ground. I’d like to keep the human involvement to a minimum. These aren’t UV rounds. They’re silver and wood, so make sure you hit them in the head or the heart.”
“Got it.” Doug took them from her and restocked his supply in a casual manner. Silence hung heavily between them for what felt like forever before he finally broke the silence. “The only monster in that story you told me was the sack of shit you killed, and if you ask me, you did society a favor,” Doug said.
Olivia turned slowly to face him but found him perusing the shelves, looking for more weapons to take. Relief washed over her. Doug wasn’t the least bit bothered by her dirty secret. Maybe everything would work out after all? So far, her fears of what might happen or what Doug might say were worse than reality.
“So we stick to the plan.” Doug snagged some silver stars and stuck them in the inner pockets of his coat. “We stake out the tunnel entrances under the hotel and get ’em as they’re coming in before sunrise. Right?”
“Actually, I think we should split up.” Olivia put the last clip of ammo in her belt and turned to face Doug. “If they come in early enough, then they won’t need to use the underground entrances, and they could waltz through the front door.”
“No fucking way, Liv.” His eyes flashed. “I’m not letting you out of my sight.”
“Doug.” Olivia tried not to be annoyed at his macho chauvinism, but it was no use. “I was a sentry for a hundred years. In case you’ve forgotten, I can handle myself.” Her voice rose as she spoke, and her body tensed. “I am not that scared, sniveling girl I was all those years ago.”
Doug swore loudly, put his hands on his hips, and stared at the fluorescent lights in the ceiling. Just when Olivia was about to start screaming her fangs off, he ran one hand over his short blond hair, and a smile cracked his handsome face.
“I sounded like a dick, didn’t I?” He glanced at her sideways.
“Yes.” She folded her arms over her chest. “A big, macho dick.”
“I’m sorry.” His expression softened as he placed both hands on her shoulders and looked her straight in the eye. “I know you’re capable and could probably kick my ass if you wanted to, but there’s one thing you need to understand.”
“What?” She braced herself for more male posturing and formulated her blistering response in her head.
“I love you, Liv.” His fingers gripped her shoulders tighter, and his throat worked as he swallowed. “I have been chasing you my entire life, and I kept every other woman at a distance because they couldn’t live up to you, or the idea of you. I never thought I was worthy of love or marriage or any of that shit. I thought I didn’t have what it takes to be a husband or a father.” He stopped, and his brow knit together. “Wait—can vampires even have children?”
“No,” she said through a laugh. Hell, the man wanted to have children with her?
“Really? Well, that’s too bad. I’d love to have a spirited little girl with your curly red hair and green eyes, not to mention your bad-ass fighting skills.” He kissed the tip of her nose. “Since she’d be as gorgeous as you, she’d have to be able to fight off all those rotten boys.”
“Doug,” she whispered in a shaky voice.
“No.” He shook his head. “Let me finish. There’s still a part of me that thinks I’m not lucky enough to feel this way, and I am fucking terrified of losing you. So,” he sucked in a breath and continued, “you’ll have to forgive me for being an overprotective dickhead. That’s not going to change. I feel more alive with you as a vampire than I did as a human, so you’re stuck with me. We stick together. No one hunts alone—that’s non-negotiable.”
He loved her. He said it and put his heart and everything else on the line. As her eyes searched his, she knew that no matter what happened, he would be there for her. Her eyes stung with tears, and a smile played at her lips. For the first time in centuries, she didn’t feel alone.
“Okay.” She nodded and looked at him warmly. “We stick together. We’ll check the West Village again and then go to the hotel before sunrise. We can glamour the clerk and find out if Moriarty checked in and what room he’s staying in, then ambush them when they come back to sleep for the day.”
“That’s my girl.”
He leaned down and captured her lips with his as he cradled her head in his hands, kissing her desperately, as though he might never get another chance. Olivia wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him back as if it was indeed their last kiss.
They walked the Village much of the night but didn’t catch the scent or any sign of the rogues. After hours of coming up empty-handed, and with sunrise only an hour away, they agreed that it was time to hit the hotel.
They stepped onto the sidewalk in front of the luxury hotel, and the doorman smiled tightly as he looked them up and down. Doug buttoned his coat and gave the man a friendly smile as they approached. Olivia scanned the human and sensed his nervousness but wasn’t sure what they did to make him uneasy.
As he opened the door for them, Doug leaned down and whispered in her ear. “The two of us look like we stepped out of the Matrix. Most of the clientele at this place are decked out in high-end designer duds, not black leather.”