Unspoken (Shadow Falls: After Dark #3)(86)

What had her father really seen? She tried to imagine what her father must have thought seeing his twin brother, who he thought was dead.

She tried to envision what Bao Yu must have thought, facing a vampire. Had Bao Yu seen Feng at all? Was it the shock that made her want to blame Della’s father?

A piece of the puzzle was missing. A cold breeze brushed past. “Is that you, Bao Yu?”

Della recalled Holiday’s concerns that the ghost could somehow hurt her. She didn’t believe it, but neither could she deny the prickle of fear that tiptoed down her spine.

Della was so caught up in thinking about her aunt that she didn’t hear the person approaching until a shadow fell on the porch.





Chapter Thirty-six

Chase parked his car in front of Kirk’s two-story cabin that was built on stilts. Its balcony actually hung over the water. The noon sun was centered in the sky and water reflected it in diamond sparkles. No cars were parked in the driveway.

But Kirk and Kirk’s friends didn’t always travel by car.

He cut the engine off and got out. He lifted his face in the breeze and caught the lake’s scent as well as a fleeting trace of vampires. More than one.

He relaxed when he didn’t detect Eddie. Another intake of air and he recognized the scents of the council members. Others were strangers.

Chase debated leaving. He really wanted to chat with Kirk, alone.

Of course, since he’d gotten their scents, one of them had surely gotten his.

Leaving wasn’t an option now.

*

“Hey,” Della said and looked up at Steve, trying to suppress a frown at seeing him. If he’d come to “talk,” well, he’d come at the wrong time. Because damn it, she just had too much on her plate to deal with this right now.

“Can I join you?” he asked.

“I’m not in any mood to—”

He dropped down anyway. She stopped trying not to frown and let it happen.

“How are you?” he asked and he looked at her like Steve always looked at her, with concern and patience.

“Terrible,” she said. “And I’m not very good company. So why don’t—”

“I heard some of what happened. That had to be hard.”

“I know, but—”

“Della, you’re avoiding me. Sooner or later we need to talk.”

“Then later it is.” She shot up to her feet.

He caught her. “Don’t do this.”

“Don’t what?” She jerked free and then felt like a bitch again, but she wouldn’t have to be a bitch if people would just leave her the hell alone! “Look, I’m sorry, but I’ve got too much shit going on to pile more shit on top of my other shit.”

“Fine!” he snapped. “But don’t run off. Sit down. Please.” His warm brown eyes looked up at her. “Talk to me.”

“Are you deaf? Did you not just hear me? I don’t—”

“Not talk about our shit, about the other shit. You don’t have to go through this alone.”

She wasn’t, the thought hit. She had Chase, but she might not when he returned, because she was gonna kill him for not texting her back. And she had Kylie and Miranda—though, after being such a bitch yesterday, they might not be on her team anymore. But she didn’t say any of that.

Looking at him, she blurted out, “I’m sorry.”

She dropped down and hugged her jean-covered knees. “My dad’s murder trial is days away. My sister hates me. My mom is dying inside. I know my dad’s going crazy. I’m pretty sure he knows I’m vampire. And it’s my fault. I’ve done this to them all.”

She could have kept going and told him about almost seeing a little girl get her throat slit, about how the smell of death kept following her around, but she didn’t. Even she couldn’t handle that much pathetic.

She pressed her forehead to her knees and swallowed, trying to fight her need to cry.

“What is Burnett saying?” Steve asked.

“He just keeps telling me it’s not as bad as it seems. But the police have a weapon with my dad’s DNA on it. Or rather my uncle’s DNA, but they don’t know he’s alive.”

Steve frowned. “I can see how that’s hard on you. What is this?” he asked, pointing to the papers.

“That’s the DA’s file on the case.”

“Wow, you got it?”

“Burnett did. I’ve been trying to find something that might help.”

Steve picked it up. “Do you mind? Maybe you need a fresh pair of eyes.”

*

Chase clicked the button to put the top up on his car. He hit the locks, and then started walking toward the door. No doubt they were waiting for him by now.

He tilted his head to the side and listened to see if they were talking. He heard a duck call to a mate on the lake, a fish splash in the water, and a motor on someone’s boat move down the lake.

But not a word came from the house.

He walked up the length of the driveway. The hair on the back of his neck stood up. Sensing that someone was watching him, he looked up, and just then the drapes in the front window fluttered back into place.

He ran a hand over the back of his neck, fighting the crazy sensation that trouble waited. But this was Kirk, he told himself. He trusted him.