“What are you going to do about it?” Kadie asked, troubled by the thought of strange vampires lurking outside the town.
“I don’t know.”
“You don’t think they want to turn Morgan Creek into what it was before, do you?”
“No. They’re all young, little more than fledglings. I doubt if most of them even know this was once a haven for our kind.”
“So, they’re just here hoping to get a little taste of the master’s blood?”
Saintcrow snorted. “It sounds silly, when you put it like that.”
“It doesn’t sound silly to me,” Kadie retorted. “It sounds dangerous.”
“The wards are holding. They can’t get inside the town.”
“But...”
He silenced her with a kiss. “Stop worrying. Whatever it is that’s been urging me toward violence seems to have stopped for the moment. Let’s hope it’s gone for good. What do you say we...dammit, there’s another one at the bridge. Well, to hell with him. Let’s go make love.”
She smiled up at him as he reached for her. And then frowned. “What’s wrong?”
“This one’s bleeding.”
“Bleeding?”
“Yeah.” He shook his head. “Come on, let’s go to bed.”
“You can’t just leave him out there bleeding in the dark,” Kadie exclaimed softly.
“Watch me.”
“Rylan!”
He huffed a sigh. He’d never known such a tender-hearted vampire as his Kadie. Even years as a predator hadn’t hardened her to the brutal side of life and death. She had never lost herfaith or her humanity, her sense of right and wrong, or her respect for mankind, traits rare in the world of vampires. “Fine,” he said curtly. “I’ll go.”
“I’m going with you.”
“No.”
“Yes.”
Sometimes he liked her better when she was afraid of him, he thought with a wry grin.
“All right, darlin’. Have it your way.”
Moments later, they materialized side-by-side at the end of the bridge. The vampire looked no more than nineteen and hadn’t been a vampire more than a year or two. Tall and thin, he had shaggy blond hair and a wary expression. Dried blood stained his shirt sleeve from shoulder to wrist.
“What the hell are you doing here?” Saintcrow asked gruffly.
“Seeking refuge.”
Saintcrow jerked his chin at the vampire’s bloody shirt. “What happened to you?”
“A wolf attacked me.”
Saintcrow shook his head. “You need a better story than that, Leonard. I can smell a lie a mile away.”
“All right,” Leonard said, his voice gruff. “I cut my arm with a knife.”