Warrior (Relentless #4)(24)
“Anyone check on our guests this morning?” Chris asked. “They must be getting thirsty by now.”
Erik nodded. “I looked in on them before we left. The female is still holding up, but the male looks ready to crack. In a few days, he’ll tell us whatever he knows.” His gaze flicked between Chris and me. “Are you two going to join us in the search, or do you have something else in the works?”
“Both. Chris and I have another job.” I told Erik about Sara and who she was, omitting the part about the bond.
Erik let out a low whistle. “Tristan’s granddaughter? I’m surprised he’s not here already.”
“I made him see it would be better if he let us handle this. Chris and I are going to split our time between watching over her and dealing with the vampire problem.”
Erik gave me a look much like the one Chris had given me earlier. “You’re going to work with an orphan?”
I shrugged, ignoring Chris’s knowing smile. “This is a special case.”
A red-haired warrior named Carl entered the room. “We picked up some activity at an abandoned apartment building on Franklin. Could be demons, or it might be vamps.”
Chris, Erik, and I stood at the same time. Erik went to his duffle bags, and I grabbed my jacket and sword that were lying on the dining room table. I checked my inside pockets for knives as I turned to the others.
“Let’s go hunting.”
*
I stood in the shadows between the two buildings across the road from St. Patrick High School and watched students spill through the front doors. It wasn’t until the last few trickled out that I saw the face I was looking for.
Sara walked slowly down the front steps of the school with her eyes downcast. She could have been alone for all she seemed to notice the people hurrying around her.
Someone called her name as she walked toward the street, but she didn’t seem to notice. She looked tired. What was wrong with her? Was she ill?
A movement behind her caught my eye, and my body tensed when I saw someone running toward her. I relaxed when I recognized her werewolf friend, Roland.
He caught up to her and grabbed her by the arm. I wasn’t prepared for the jealousy that burned in my stomach, and I took a step toward them before I came to my senses.
I exhaled slowly and wondered for the hundredth time if it was in my best interest for me to be here checking up on her. Chris had offered to come, but I’d wanted to see for myself she was okay. Or maybe I just wanted to see her.
Roland said something to Sara, and she shook her head. He frowned and gestured toward the school. She shrugged and answered him, but whatever she said only made his brows draw together more.
I wanted to know what they were talking about, but I wouldn’t listen in. It was one thing to watch over her, and another to invade her privacy.
Sara resumed walking, and Roland stared after her, worry creasing his brow.
I waited for him to turn toward the parking lot before I followed Sara at a distance. I wasn’t surprised when she went straight home. On Tuesday when I’d been here, she’d done the same.
She disappeared into her building, and I found a spot across the waterfront where I could see her apartment. A few minutes later, curtains on the third floor moved as a window opened. Sara appeared in the window, staring at the bay for a long moment before she turned away.
I stayed for two hours, and then I walked to where I’d left my bike on the next street over. There was no need to stick around here all night. My time was better served in Portland, helping the others in the hunt for Eli.
*
When my phone vibrated, I knew who it was before I looked at the screen. “What’s up, Chris?”
“The male vampire finally cracked,” Chris said. “He told us about two places where Eli could be hiding out. I thought you might want to be there when we check them out. How soon can you get here?”
“About an hour.”
“Ah. How’s our girl?”
“The same.” I watched the lone figure walking on the wharf, the wind tossing her dark hair around her face. Even from a distance, my demon-enhanced eyesight could see how pale she was, and the way her shoulders hunched. An aura of loneliness surrounded her, and she looked like someone who had lost her best friend.
This was my third visit to New Hastings since I’d talked to Sara on Monday, and each time she looked no better than the last. Had learning what she was really affected her that deeply, or had something else happened to douse the fire in her eyes? Her pain called to me across the invisible thread that stretched between us, and each time I saw her, it got harder not to go to her. Chris was right. Staying away from her was going to be an impossible task.
My fingers tightened around the phone. “I hate seeing her this way.”
“Nikolas, eventually she was going to realize she was different, and she would have had no idea what was going on. That would have been a lot more frightening than what she is going through now.”
My grip on the phone eased. “You’re right.”
He laughed. “I’m always right. Now are you going to spend all weekend there, or do you want to help us take down that vampire?”
I cast one last look at the girl on the wharf and turned toward my bike that was parked out of sight around the corner. “I’m on my way.”