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just left and still you come into New Mayhem at sunset," Aubrey answered
dryly.
Jessica had to laugh at that. "My mother was killed yesterday beside a church
in broad daylight. If any of your kind was really trying to kill me, it
wouldn't matter where I was."
She decided that she could probably identify water if she saw it, so she
rounded the bar to search.
"Are you trying to poison yourself?" Aubrey inquired, watching her.
"Oh, bite me," she taunted automatically, before the irony of the remark
registered.
But Aubrey took her at her word. In a graceful movement, he wrapped a hand
around the back of her neck and pulled her toward him.
"A tempting offer." He gently brushed the hollow of her throat with the thumb
of his free hand as he spoke.
"You wouldn't."
He leaned down and she felt his lips at her neck. It would never occur to you
to be afraid, would it? he silently asked.
If you wanted to kill me, you would have done so long ago. She projected the
thought and knew that he could hear it.
Are you so sure?
No, she answered. But if you bite me I'm going to bite back, and do you really
want this crowd to see a human do that? She was well aware that they had an
attentive audience by now.
Is that what you want?
Jessica didn't quite understand Aubrey's question, but he must have sensed her
confusion, because he added, I did something similar to Ather, and we both
know how that turned out. Aubrey had been changed shortly after a fight with
Ather. He had slit her throat when she had tried to feed on him. Even Fala has
suggested that I change you.
You're right, you are an idiot, she commented in response. And yes, that is
what I want, which means you can't do it.
Jessica was referring to the fact that Aubrey's line retained its power
because every one of them fought. That struggle, as the blood was drained out,
was what gave them their strength.
Yes, Jessica was more than willing to become one of their kind. Her hatred of
Dominique had finally convinced her. But her readiness meant that she wouldn't
fight, and her strength as a vampire would suffer. She would certainly be
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weaker than Fala. In essence, if Aubrey changed her now, it would be the same
as his allowing Fala to kill her.
Aubrey knew all this as well, of course, so he released her and she stepped
back casually, smoothing her shirt as if the confrontation had been normal. He
reached past her, into the bar, and pulled out a bottle of water. She accepted
it calmly and took a drink.
CHAPTER 26
WHAT WAS HE TO DO about the human called Jessica? Aubrey had had that thought
before, and the answer was no more forthcoming than it had ever been.
Jessica had no idea how close she'd just come to having every drop of blood
drained from her body. The feel of her pulse beneath his lips had almost
broken even his self-control.
He needed to hunt, but he hesitated to leave her alone. Fala's threat was
still fresh in his mind.
The decision was made for him as he heard a faint cry coming from just outside
the building. It was a distressed voice he knew well: the voice of Kaei. That
girl could get herself into more scrapes in an hour than most humans could
accumulate in a year.
Nodding a silent goodbye to Jessica, he quickly made his way to Kaei's side.
She could be a nuisance and worse to those who treated her badly, and had
caused more than her fair share of trouble, but she was unwaveringly loyal to
those she considered her friends. Fala would probably not attack Jessica in a
crowd, and even if she did, Jessica was intelligent enough to fend her off for
a minute or two until he returned. Kaei did not have a talent for getting
herself out of trouble.
Almost the instant he appeared, he found himself on the defensive. A strike
meant for Kaei hit him hard, mostly because he was unprepared. The mental blow
had the distinct aura of a witch to it, so he quickly turned his attention to
the attacker.
He swore aloud as he recognized Dominique Vida. She had probably followed
Jessica here and run into Kaei on the way. Kaei had had more than her share of
arguments with witches.
Dominique fell back slightly into a stance of readiness, recognizing that she
suddenly had a new, far more powerful foe.
Dominique was one of two vampire hunters who had ever won a fight against
anyone in Aubrey's line. The other one he had dealt with accordingly. As for
Dominique, no one had managed to get inside her guard sufficiently to plant a
knife.
For a moment he was grateful Fala had taken his knife from him during their
fight earlier. Dominique could have used it against him; her ancestors' magic
had forged it.
Then Jessica returned to his thoughts. As much as he'd like to draw out this
confrontation with such a worthy foe, he didn't have time to dally here with
Dominique.
Instead, he did the only thing he could to get her out of the place.
He changed shape into the one he favored a black wolf and lunged, taking
Dominique to the ground. She didn't expect him to be so reckless, which was
the only reason her knife swiped across his stomach instead of plunging into
his heart.
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