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gaze. In that moment, she wished that he had continued to avoid her eyes; his own held so much despair and disappointment, she didn’t know if she could bear it.
    Her mind raced frantically to figure out what to say and how to say it. Perhaps it was best to start at the beginning and hope a rational explanation presented itself as she talked. Slowly, holding her father’s stern eyes, she explained, “I was at the mall….”
    “Yes, I know that,” his lips curved in a half smile that he quickly quashed. “How did you manage to get bit?”
    Chewing on her lower lip, she tried to figure that one out herself but still hadn’t come to any conclusions. “Well, the vamps swooped in, reeking of death, but they didn’t pay me the least amount of attention.” With a perplexed scowl, she added, “In fact, they actually avoided me.”
    She hadn’t thought about it at the time because everything had happened so quickly. Now that she was thinking about it, trying to pinpoint the moment it all went to hell, she could remember seeing a few of the vamps look at her and then literally cringe away, almost as if they feared her, which was ridiculous. They were vampires, already dead and afraid of nothing….
    Malorie was starting to get lost on that train of thought when her father cleared his throat, forcing her back to the present. Defensively, she added, “It was just weird, is all.”
    “Malorie,” he interrupted, a hint of warning in his voice.
    Wrinkling her nose at him, she continued where she left off, “Suddenly, this… guy appeared and he simply burned with life and I knew that he couldn’t be a vamp, despite his fangs and his associations with vampires.”
    Gus inhaled sharply and as she watched, the color seemed to drain from his face. Swallowing thickly, he said gruffly, “Go on.”
    Malorie felt her cheeks warm with self-conscious color, “I have never seen such life, father, and I am ashamed to admit that because I was, well, mesmerized I never noticed the second one at all. His arm was around my waist and his fangs were at my neck before I even knew what happened.”
    “Why didn’t you fight back?” he asked grimly, his body tense.
    “I don’t know.” She lifted her shoulders, suddenly finding the fringe of her blanket the most fascinating thing in the world. “He was so… warm and when he bit be, nothing else mattered.” Willing him to understand the depth of her failure, she added, “Nothing at all.”
    He was silent for a long moment, digesting her words. Emotions played over his usually non-expressive face and Malorie was apprehensive to hear his thoughts. Licking his lips, he slowly clarified, “He was warm and you had no resistance.”
    At her nod, he swore viciously and started to stand up. The needle pulled at her arm and she hissed in pain, causing Gus to remain in his seat, agitated with nowhere to go. Jerking his free hand through his hair, he swore again, “Damn.”
    “What is it?” Malorie asked in a hushed voice, concerned and confused. “Is it really bad?”
    “You have no idea,” he rumbled gravely, his face twisted sorrowfully as he looked at her, his eyes stormy and his jaw clenched. His abnormal behavior was making her stomach roil and her palms sweat; he was scaring her and she wasn’t sure she wanted to know why. Pushing his thumb and middle fingers into his eye sockets, he suddenly appeared very tired and worn out; an old fighter who had seen it all and was being forced out of retirement to face something new.
    Reaching out her hand, she whispered, “Father?”
    “I’m sorry, Malorie,” he rasped softly, taking the offered hand in his and pressing it against his cheek and squeezing his eyes closed. Swallowing thickly, he repeated, “God, I am so sorry; how can you ever forgive me?”
    She had been prepared for a harsh condemnation; she wasn’t prepared for this, a confession of her father’s sins. Hesitatingly, her world spinning in this new and unexpected