the fact Ethan had modified it so it wasn’t nearly as loud as a normal bike. If it wasn’t Ethan in the house, I didn’t want whoever might be there to know I was coming.
I walked the motorcycle to the side of the road and left it behind a tree. If everything was okay at the house, I’d come back to get it. If not . . . it might not matter where I left it.
I flexed my fingers to loosen them. I’d been gripping the handles of the bike so hard, they’d started to lock up. And the cold didn’t help. It might not bother me as much as it would a Pureblood, but the cold still got to me. Just because I was a vampire didn’t mean I was impervious to the elements.
I kept low as I worked my way up the driveway. I made sure to step in the tire tracks so I wouldn’t leave footprints behind. If someone were to come up the driveway, they might not see the Honda parked behind the tree, and I didn’t want them to know I was there until I was ready for them.
There were lights on in the house and my pulse began to hammer. The light upstairs was faint in Ethan’s bedroom window, as if his door was open and the hall light was on. There were no lights on in the living room, but the TV was on. Its flickering light caused shadows to shift and move as I approached. No one moved within the lights.
I didn’t have my garage door opener on me, but I headed for the garage anyway. I peeked through one of the windows and saw a car parked in my usual spot. The station wagon was beat-up and the paint was peeling. I’d never seen it before in my life.
Everything else in the garage was the same. I gave the car one last hard look before turning toward the house.
I could just make out faint footprints leading from the house to the driveway. I couldn’t tell if they were a day old or only a few hours. I was pretty sure they meant someone else had been here in another car at some point.
I slid up along the side of the house and peered in through the window to the living room. The heavy drapes Ethan had installed were closed, making seeing anything inside impossible. I could just make out the glow of the television through them.
I moved to the front door and gingerly touched the doorbell box. The front door appeared to be the same as when I left it, but someone could have changed the locks; I wouldn’t know until I tried to get in. I ran my finger under the box and found the tiny switch beneath. I pressed it so I could lift the doorbell, exposing the fingerprint reader Ethan had installed months ago. I ran my finger down it and was rewarded with the sound of the door unlocking.
I waited a moment to see if anyone inside had heard, but if they had, they didn’t come charging at the door. I licked my lips, wishing I had as good of a nose as a werewolf. It would make my life a whole hell of a lot easier if I could sniff out who might be inside.
I held my breath as I turned the doorknob. It barely made a sound as I turned it all the way. I waited a heartbeat before throwing the door open.
Warm air blew over me as I burst through the doorway. I spun to look over the half wall that separated the living room from the entryway, toward the TV where I fully expected to find a stranger waiting.
There was a blur of movement as someone leaped to their feet from where they’d been lying on the couch. He spun to face me, eyes instantly turning a feral yellow. He started to bare his teeth before his face froze in surprise.
No, it definitely wasn’t Ethan.
It was a werewolf.
4
“Where is he?” I snarled, stepping around the half wall. While I didn’t have my weapons, I did have my teeth and hands, which could be deadly enough. If it wasn’t a wolf I was facing, it would have been more than enough.
The feral yellow eyes studied me for a second before bleeding back to pale blue.
I knew the werewolf, though that didn’t mean I had to like him. Jeremy Lincoln had jumped me one night after I left The Bloody Stake. He’d thought I would be a
I walked the motorcycle to the side of the road and left it behind a tree. If everything was okay at the house, I’d come back to get it. If not . . . it might not matter where I left it.
I flexed my fingers to loosen them. I’d been gripping the handles of the bike so hard, they’d started to lock up. And the cold didn’t help. It might not bother me as much as it would a Pureblood, but the cold still got to me. Just because I was a vampire didn’t mean I was impervious to the elements.
I kept low as I worked my way up the driveway. I made sure to step in the tire tracks so I wouldn’t leave footprints behind. If someone were to come up the driveway, they might not see the Honda parked behind the tree, and I didn’t want them to know I was there until I was ready for them.
There were lights on in the house and my pulse began to hammer. The light upstairs was faint in Ethan’s bedroom window, as if his door was open and the hall light was on. There were no lights on in the living room, but the TV was on. Its flickering light caused shadows to shift and move as I approached. No one moved within the lights.
I didn’t have my garage door opener on me, but I headed for the garage anyway. I peeked through one of the windows and saw a car parked in my usual spot. The station wagon was beat-up and the paint was peeling. I’d never seen it before in my life.
Everything else in the garage was the same. I gave the car one last hard look before turning toward the house.
I could just make out faint footprints leading from the house to the driveway. I couldn’t tell if they were a day old or only a few hours. I was pretty sure they meant someone else had been here in another car at some point.
I slid up along the side of the house and peered in through the window to the living room. The heavy drapes Ethan had installed were closed, making seeing anything inside impossible. I could just make out the glow of the television through them.
I moved to the front door and gingerly touched the doorbell box. The front door appeared to be the same as when I left it, but someone could have changed the locks; I wouldn’t know until I tried to get in. I ran my finger under the box and found the tiny switch beneath. I pressed it so I could lift the doorbell, exposing the fingerprint reader Ethan had installed months ago. I ran my finger down it and was rewarded with the sound of the door unlocking.
I waited a moment to see if anyone inside had heard, but if they had, they didn’t come charging at the door. I licked my lips, wishing I had as good of a nose as a werewolf. It would make my life a whole hell of a lot easier if I could sniff out who might be inside.
I held my breath as I turned the doorknob. It barely made a sound as I turned it all the way. I waited a heartbeat before throwing the door open.
Warm air blew over me as I burst through the doorway. I spun to look over the half wall that separated the living room from the entryway, toward the TV where I fully expected to find a stranger waiting.
There was a blur of movement as someone leaped to their feet from where they’d been lying on the couch. He spun to face me, eyes instantly turning a feral yellow. He started to bare his teeth before his face froze in surprise.
No, it definitely wasn’t Ethan.
It was a werewolf.
4
“Where is he?” I snarled, stepping around the half wall. While I didn’t have my weapons, I did have my teeth and hands, which could be deadly enough. If it wasn’t a wolf I was facing, it would have been more than enough.
The feral yellow eyes studied me for a second before bleeding back to pale blue.
I knew the werewolf, though that didn’t mean I had to like him. Jeremy Lincoln had jumped me one night after I left The Bloody Stake. He’d thought I would be a
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