chapter 34

"rhys!" megan pressed a hand to her heart. she hadn't anticipated finding him waiting for her in the garage. "what are you doing here? i didn't expect to see you until later."

"i thought i'd drive you to work tonight."

"oh?"

"we'll have to take your car. i left mine at home."

she looked at him curiously. he wore a black long-sleeved shirt over a white t-shirt, black jeans, and boots. his hair gleamed like dark gold in the glow of the overhead light. dark and dangerous, she thought, no doubt about it. "what aren't you telling me?"

"villagrande's on the rampage again. he killed one of my vampires earlier tonight. it isn't safe for you to be alone outside of your house." he paused a moment, then decided she needed to know it all. "and maybe not inside."

megan felt a cold chill at the mention of villagrande's name. she had told rhys she wasn't afraid of the other vampire, but it had been nothing but bravado.

rhys opened the passenger door for her, and she got into the car. she had once thought her life completely boring. and then she met rhys.

he slid behind the wheel, switched on the engine and the lights, hit the garage door opener, and backed out of the driveway. "have you heard from shirl?"

"no. do you think she knows what villagrande is planning?"

"probably." he pulled onto the street.

"maybe i should just stay home tonight," megan suggested, and hated how cowardly that sounded. and yet, she didn't have the physical strength to fight off a vampire, even if she knew how. she didn't have any super powers. and she was pretty sure a can of pepper spray wouldn't be much of a deterrent.

rhys slowed the car. "do you want to go back home?"

"yes. no. i don't know."

"it's up to you."

megan tapped her foot on the floorboard, then blew out a sigh. "mr. parker's expecting me."

"that's my brave girl," rhys murmured, and hoped neither of them would regret it.

things were quiet at the store that night. megan was ever aware that rhys was just outside, watching her every move. she assured herself she was perfectly safe, that rhys wouldn't let any harm come to her, and yet she felt herself tensing every time a man she didn't recognize entered the shop.

she was relieved when quitting time came.

"so," she asked when they were in the car on the way home, "what are you going to do about villagrande?"

"i've called in some outside help."

"really? who?"

"erik delacourt and his wife, daisy."

"are they vampires, too?"

"yeah. delacourt and i go back a long way. his wife's only been a vampire a short time." he grunted softly. "she used to steal vampire blood and sell it on the net. her brothers were hunters. the younger one was killed by a vampire."

"and she still wanted to be one?"

"not exactly. i destroyed the last vampire who wanted to take over the city. mariah wasn't nearly as strong as villagrande, or as up front about it. she offered a reward for my head. i took hers instead. delacourt, daisy, and her brother, alex, all had a hand in it. apparently mariah had a boyfriend. he went after daisy and almost killed her. delacourt brought her across to save her life."

"it isn't really life," megan murmured, then bit her tongue, hoping she hadn't hurt his feelings.

"maybe not, but she seems damn happy with the way things turned out. i think you'll like her."

megan shook her head. not long ago, she hadn't believed vampires existed. how times had changed. her former roommate was a vampire. she was in love with a vampire. and now she was going to meet two more, and possibly one that wanted to kill her.

suddenly, her old, boring life didn't seem half so bad.

and when rhys showed up at her door the next night with two vampires in tow, megan began to wonder if her life would ever be normal again.

erik delacourt was long-legged and broad-shouldered. he could have been the poster boy for vampires, she mused, with his thick black hair and striking black eyes. he appeared to be in his thirties, but with vampires, you never knew how old they really were. his wife, daisy, looked like she was in her midtwenties. she had heavily lashed green eyes and long, reddish-brown hair. megan thought she looked more like a country girl than a former blood thief turned vampire.

megan invited the newcomers into the house. after rhys made the introductions, erik and daisy sat on the love seat, holding hands, while megan and rhys shared the sofa.

one thing about vampire guests, megan thought as she tried to relax, she didn't have to worry about offering them refreshments. and then she grimaced because, among less friendly vampires, she would have been considered the snack.

"perhaps we should have had this meeting somewhere else," daisy said quietly. "i don't think megan's very comfortable, having us here."

at daisy's remark, rhys ran his knuckles lightly over megan's cheek. "do you want us to leave?"

"no, of course not," she said quickly.

"you've nothing to fear from us," erik assured her.

"i'm not worried," megan said, surprised to find that it was true.

"rhys has asked me to come here and use my witchcraft to add a protective spell to your house."

"you're a witch, too?" megan asked, unable to hide her astonishment. mortals and vampires and witches. oh, my.

erik nodded, his eyes twinkling with amusement.

"what kind of spell?" megan asked.

"nothing too complicated. it will repel any unwelcome visitors from entering your house. and since i don't know how powerful villagrande is, it will also keep him from materializing inside, uninvited."

"you're sure it will work?" she asked.

"guaranteed. of course, i won't do it without your permission."

"you've got it."

erik smiled at her. "i'll take care of it later tonight."

megan nodded. at this point, she would take all the protection she could get. since vampires were real, who knew what other mythological creatures might be stalking the shadows?

"so," erik said to rhys, "do you have any plans for besting this interloper?"

"not really. you've met him. do you think i've got a chance against him?"

"i don't know. i've felt his power, and it's stronger than anything i've ever come up against. i guess it all depends on how badly you want to remain master of the city."

"yeah," rhys muttered. "that's the real question, isn't it?"

"why don't you just leave?" daisy asked. "what's so special about la?"

erik and rhys exchanged glances.

"it's more than that," rhys said. "if i leave, it's like admitting i'm afraid."

"what's wrong with being afraid?" megan asked.

erik and rhys exchanged glances again.

megan looked at daisy. "men," she said. "they're all the same."

"tell me about it," daisy said, grinning. "man or vampire, it doesn't matter. you should meet my brother, alex. he's mr. macho personified."

"it's not just about male pride," rhys said irritably. "in the human world, it doesn't make much of a difference if you're a coward. in my world, it's a sign of weakness, and like the song says, only the strong survive."

"i guess that settles it, then," erik said. "if he wants a fight, we'll give it to him."

"there is no 'we,'" rhys said emphatically. "i only asked you here to help fortify megan's house." he took megan's hand in his. "and to look after her, if anything happens to me."

"don't say that!" megan exclaimed. "nothing's going to happen to you."

rhys squeezed her hand. "i hope not, but i have to know you'll be okay, just in case."

"i've got a spell that might protect her," erik remarked.

"are you talking about the same one you used against me?" rhys asked. it had been the first time since he'd become a vampire that his powers had failed him. he didn't know what kind of spell erik had concocted, but it had seemed as if an invisible barrier had surrounded him, trapping him inside. if erik had wanted to take his life, rhys wouldn't have been able to stop him.

"it's the same type of spell, but instead of rendering megan helpless and immobile, it would repel villagrande's power."

"if it will protect me, you should use it on rhys, too," megan said.

"probably wouldn't hurt," erik said. "of course, i'd have to beef it up for it to work against villagrande."

rhys shook his head. "you're not using it on me."

"why not?" megan asked.

"the odds of beating villagrande in a fair fight are pretty slim," erik remarked. "but you know that."

"of course i know it! dammit!" rhys raked his fingers through his hair.

"honor among vampires? is that it?" megan asked in disbelief. "villagrande wants to kill you. you said yourself he's stronger than you are. what have you got against leveling the playing field, so to speak?"

"because it's cheating. no one on the council is going to respect me if they find out i used black magick to immobilize my enemy so i could destroy him." he shook his head. "it's like shooting him in the back."

"sounds like a good idea to me," daisy muttered.

"i guess it would, to a former hunter," erik said good-naturedly.

"hold on a minute!" megan said. "i don't mind your working your hocus pocus on my house, but i don't think i want anybody working black magick on me."