Ana wanted to believe the former, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that had started to grow ever since she’d first seen Gloria again, the feeling that maybe she’d never truly known her sister after all.
Gloria continued to lead the way on their tour. Ana suddenly realized something. There were plenty of women and children milling around, but there were very few men. Where were they? And was their absence one more way in which Gloria had assured her own safety?
Ty gulped down a large glass of blood and wiped his mouth. It was animal blood, thankfully. Not that Miguel had told him so, but he recognized the taste now. Human blood had a smoother and saltier taste. Far more addictive.
He placed the glass back on the mahogany desk in the inner office and met Miguel’s curious stare.
The other man spoke first. “I’ve stayed away from Ana all this time because I feared she’d never be able to handle the fact that vampires exist or that Gloria and I have been turned. Guess I misjudged her. She’s stronger than I gave her credit for.”
“She’s the strongest woman I’ve ever met,” Ty said, deliberately letting his admiration for Ana come through.
“She knows what our mission is?”
“I’ve told her your goal is to strengthen the Hispanic population by turning them into vampires. I wasn’t sure how you … select … who is to be turned.”
Miguel laughed. “Everyone who is turned volunteers. They do it so they can better the lives of their families. In exchange, they get something even more wonderful in return. Purpose. Wholeness. Power.”
“Sounds almost too good to be true. But then you and I know what being a vampire is like, right?”
Next, they went over the financials for Salvation’s Crossing. They discussed how the “nonprofit,” as Miguel insisted it be called, had been formed when the Devil’s Crew and Primos Sangre joined forces. He showed Ty spreadsheets and income/expenses documentation from countless files on his computer, all of which looked legitimate. It wasn’t so much numbers Miguel was concerned with, however, as it was the land upon which Salvation’s Crossing sat.
Salvation’s Crossing had bought out the farmer who was the last in his family to run it. The fruit and nut orchards were mature and well tended, bearing heavy crops. The fields were rotated to maximize yields and conserve the soil. It was water that seemed to be the problem.
They went over blueprints of the existing irrigation system. Fortunately, Miguel didn’t seem to know much more about the subject than Ty did. But then Ty, as a philanthropist, was mostly expected to hand out money.
Ty had a sneaking feeling that Miguel understood that the compound’s need for a new irrigation system was merely a pretext, a way of getting Ana inside the compound. And the reason Miguel understood this was because he didn’t give a shit about Ty’s money or what it could do for the land, but because he’d cared a great deal about seeing Ana again. Because he actually thought, despite Ty’s and Gloria’s presence, that something was going to happen between them?
Only over Ty’s dead vampire body.
Still, they played the game and talked shop. When they’d covered the business at hand in detail, Miguel offered him more blood.
Ty politely declined.
“I’ve made sure the fridge in your suite is well stocked. But if you’re in need of more, please let me know.” He tilted his head. “I wasn’t sure … do you drink from Ana?”
Ty looked away as memories of his night with Ana flashed before him. “Yes. But it would be easy to deplete her. She can’t fulfill all my feeding needs. I believe you have connections to human donors?” In other words, tell me if you’re dealing in illegal blood slaves, you asshole.
Miguel looked slightly envious before his expression evened out. “If you don’t mind me asking, are you born, or turned?” Miguel asked.
“Turned,” Ty said automatically. “Why?”
“You made a face when you swigged the blood. I thought maybe, hombre, you find animal blood disgusting. Most natural-born vampires have an aversion to nonhuman blood.”
No, he simply had an aversion to drinking blood, in any form. He gave Miguel a sly smile and said, “Nothing like that, believe me. The bottled blood was fine. I’ve just been spoiled by drinking Ana’s blood. Now about those donors …”
“I can only imagine how wonderful Ana’s blood tastes,” Miguel said. “You are a lucky man.” His gaze drifted away and his angular features seemed younger.
Memories, Ty figured. The man was lost in memories. And the way his pupils had dilated, those memories were pleasant ones, at least for him. Fucker. How dare he remember raping Ana as something that gave him pleasure?
Then Miguel’s expression shifted. He turned to Ty. “You didn’t know the connection between the sisters before you met Eliana?”
“Her name’s Ana,” Ty said. “And I—” He choked and fell silent. The question made sense, because if he’d known about the connection between the two females when he’d first contacted Salvation’s Crossing, before he’d actually met Ana, it would of course make his current relationship with Ana suspect. Unfortunately, the question had also been too direct. He had no time to deflect, to work around an answer.
Miguel’s expression hardened as he shifted position.
Fuck. Ty racked his brains.
“I only wish I’d known earlier. I could have brought them together sooner.” There. Not a lie. A sidestep. Maybe Miguel wouldn’t notice.
Miguel’s gaze was shadowed. Ty couldn’t read him at all.
“Speaking of those two, I guess we should get back to them,” Ty added.
“Fine with me.”
As they rose, Ty couldn’t help wondering—had he succeeded in maintaining their cover, or had he blown it somehow? Had he inadvertently put Ana in danger?
They spent the rest of the afternoon touring the compound with Gloria and Ana. Miguel explained that most of the men were serving as migrant laborers, and were traveling up and down California and Oregon, picking fruit. In the fall, after harvest, they’d return to their families, having saved enough by then to start a life of their own, off the compound. By then, the women and children would know basic English, enough to get by.
Ty and Ana had also met more of the staff. Besides Mrs. Tobia, the housekeeper who’d opened the door for them earlier in the day, there were the brothers Esteban and Gustav Gutierez, both hulking ranch hands, and some of the teachers, Tessie Fuentes among them.
Ramona Montes and her daughter, Becky, their original reason for visiting Salvation’s Crossing, were nowhere to be found. Even so, Gloria had mentioned the woman, saying she taught the preteen kids and teenagers. He knew Ana would keep her eyes open for the teacher. See if she could pull her aside and talk to her.
Gloria eventually brought them back to the main house and took them to their suite. The bed was the first thing they noticed. It was gigantic, heaped with pure white comforters against the chill of California nights, snowy pillows mounded against the antique headboard. A vase of heavy red roses had been placed on each nightstand, their natural fragrance filling the room. The simple decor was utterly romantic and sensual—and a marked contrast to the cinder-block practicality of the rest of the compound.
Their luggage was already there, the suitcases unlocked and left open on a long, low table.
“Oh, someone brought in your things,” she said absently.
Ty and Ana exchanged a look.
“No need to dress for dinner,” Gloria added. “It’s communal and come as you are. Hope that’s okay with you.”