A Bloody London Sunset (Sunset Vampire #2) - Page 4

For days, Caleb silently fumed over Katrina's pact with Devon Archibald. It felt as if she had chosen the huge vampire over him. And while admittedly sanguinary, he wanted nothing less than revenge for having narrowly avoided death at the hands of his unexpected adversary. Seeking sympathy, he called Paige. And while she had listened patiently, his brief conversation with her had been useless; she had all but openly agreed with Katrina's decision. He came close to hanging up on her and decided to avoid talking to her for a while for spite.

His friend and teaching mentor, Tanisha, had been very curious on Monday morning as to how his camping event had gone that previous Friday evening. Unfortunately, he could scarcely tell her what actually happened. His reflection on their conversation had only raised his ire, accompanied by a sense of betrayal by his mate.

Still, he followed the rules he had promised to uphold and lied to his friend. He told Tanisha that he and Katrina had a nice enough time, but he didn't care to revisit the location anytime soon. Fortunately, his outward wounds had healed well enough that she didn't see any evidence of his physical injuries, though his body still felt very sore and achy in places. However, his perceptive friend did detect something was bothering him, so he admitted that he and Katrina had argued Sunday night, and he was still somewhat upset over the event.

Tanisha advised him, "You know, Caleb. Part of loving someone is admitting to yourself you may not always be happy with your partner, but remembering that you love them. Sometimes you have to let go of festering resentment, or it will eat you alive inside and prove detrimental to the overall health of the relationship. In the case of arguments, it's hard to look beyond pride or ego on both people's parts and instead be brave enough to make amends for the benefit of the relationship."

He conceded the logic of her advice, but countered, "So, what do you do when William makes you angry by making a decision you believe is short-sighted, particularly where he didn't take your feelings fully into account?"

She paused to consider Caleb carefully. "Well, first, I'd ask him if he thought my feelings were important enough to him to consider more seriously."

"And then?"

"Then," she continued with a smirk, "if I thought he was sincere, I'd let him know how disappointed in him I was. And if he weren't sincere, he'd spend a few nights thinking it over while sleeping on the couch."

He smiled as she giggled and silently considered her solution might not work quite that well with Katrina. His alpha-vampire mate was cut from a little different cloth than the average person, even for a vampire. Instead, he merely sighed and thanked her for her advice. He half-considered calling Alton, but quickly discarded the idea because the stately vampire apparently agreed with Katrina on her decision. Of course, he was still boycotting Paige, as well.

By Tuesday afternoon, he was still vexed over the entire affair, though he realized he needed to work through his feelings somehow. However, Wednesday passed with no resolution.

By Thursday evening, he had two evening classes left to teach and needed to refocus his attentions on the upcoming lectures. He went to the student union to eat dinner and was happy when Tanisha unexpectedly joined him. Apparently, she was teaching a section of Early American History on Tuesday and Thursday evenings for an adjunct professor who had just had surgery and couldn't teach for the remainder of the semester.

After a quick meal, his first evening class went well. But as his second section started, something odd occurred. He finished roll call and was bringing up the PowerPoint presentation for his lecture when he spied a quick blur of movement outside of his open classroom door. A pale-skinned, muscular man appearing to be in his early thirties and sporting a crew cut stood in the hallway curiously staring back at him. Another shorter man of Native American heritage in his twenties appeared beside him. He also stared at Caleb while whispering something to his taller associate. A chill went down Caleb's spine as he realized their odd mannerisms and piercing eyes suggested they were likely to be vampires. It was when the taller one smiled and revealed two slightly extended fangs that Caleb finally had his answer.

He immediately looked down at the computer screen at the instructor station before him and tried to remain calm as he navigated through Windows. He announced, "Just a little delay getting my PowerPoint to come up, everyone. Go ahead and open up your books to chapter eight and review the questions at the back of the section for discussion. You might want to jot down some quick answers in case I call on you, as well."

He casually slipped his phone from its belt carrier and opened the facing to scroll to Katrina's number. He glanced up discreetly and noticed both of the men had disappeared, and he paused to consider what to do next.

If he dialed Katrina, she might send that monster Devon, exactly the guy with whom he didn't want to contend. But she would be angry if he didn't call her. Then again, neither of the men, or rather vampires, looked particularly threatening. Certainly, while unnerving, it hadn't caused the same feelings of fear he had felt that night in the wildlife preserve.

He sighed, finally deciding a text message might be the better part of valor. But instead of texting Katrina, he texted his friend and protector, Paige. Granted, she was in California, but she could at least advise him before he made a rash decision. And his class was just beginning, so he had a little over an hour on his hands to consider other options.

He hastily sent the message: 2x fangs outside class. Not scary right now. Plez advise. C.

He set his phone aside and pulled up the PowerPoint for his class. A quick glance through the room indicated his students were still reading or preparing answers to the textbook questions. His cell vibrated, and he read Paige's reply: Don't panic, kiddo. Stall for time. P.

His reply was, Wish U were here. Thx.

He started his PowerPoint slideshow and glanced down to read another reply from Paige: Me 2. B careful. Luv U.

Sighing, he slipped his cell phone back into its pouch and anticipated that Paige was likely already on the phone to Katrina. So he did the only thing he knew he could do: he began lecturing, despite the anxiety forming in his stomach. But he was becoming a much better actor over time and barely skipped a step as he played his role as an engaging professor of history.

Katrina sat at the desk in her study going over some financial paperwork she had requested from one of her overseas bank accounts and an elite credit card company she used regularly.

She sighed, lamenting that her mate was very put out with her as of late, and wondered how much longer it would take before they either had another disagreement or managed to resolve his most recent conflicted feelings. Either way, she dreaded the thought of further arguments with him. Gotta love those lose-lose scenarios.

The cordless phone on her desk rang, and she snatched the handset out of its charger station before the second ring. One quick dart of her eye at the caller ID revealed it was Paige.

"What's up, shorty?" she quipped.

But instead of a snappy comeback, she heard Paige's tense voice at the other end. "Red, our boy's in a little trouble tonight."

"What kind of trouble?" she demanded.

"He's at the college teaching a class, and apparently two vampires have shown up outside his classroom. He texted me to say he's not scared, but wanted advice. I told him to stall for time and stay calm, but I think you better haul ass up there."

"Thanks. I'm on my way," Katrina snapped as she slapped the phone onto the desktop and sped out of the room. Dammit, Caleb, why the hell didn't you call me first? she fumed while grabbing her cell phone, keys, and combat knife.

After Caleb finished his brief lecture, he selected individual students to answer each of the questions at the back of the chapter. He realized only about half an hour had passed, but it was more than enough time for Katrina to arrive. There was no doubt in his mind Paige would have immediately called her following his text messages. Maybe Kat's searching the campus for the vampires while I'm teaching. He thought it odd that she hadn't appeared to indicate her arrival, but at least there had been no reappearance of the two vampires in his doorway, either.

The question and answer session with his students was completed in record time. Failing to have a plausible reason to detain them further, he adjourned his students approximately fifteen minutes early, wishing them a good evening and cautioning them to prepare for a possible quiz next Tuesday. The students cleared the room before he even had time to shut down the instructor computer fully, and he found himself going downstairs to his office in near silence. As he unlocked his office door, he considered whether he should try calling or texting Katrina. He postponed making a decision in lieu of loading his briefcase with items he wanted to take home with him. Unfortunately, the briefcase was too small, so he transferred everything into a backpack he kept in his office for such an occasion. An eerie feeling crept up his spine as he wondered where Katrina was.

He finished preparing his backpack for the journey home and decided to open his office blinds just enough to see what might be going on outside. Fortunately, most of the park-like surroundings outside the campus buildings were well lit by lamp poles scattered throughout the grounds, so he had a reasonable view of the immediate vicinity.

Suddenly, he noticed his two unexpected visitors standing beside a large pine tree approximately thirty feet away from the building. He had almost overlooked them because they wore dark clothing and were both standing on the shaded side of the tree sheltering them from the ambient light.

His heart leapt in his throat as he noticed one of his history class students stop near the men as they engaged her in conversation. Beth Wilkins must have lingered after class and appeared to be heading across the grounds to the parking lot on the opposite side of campus. He wasn't sure what the vampires intended for him, but he knew Beth was in a particularly vulnerable situation and would have no idea of the potential danger posed to her.

He made an instant decision and grabbed his leather jacket before pulling his office door closed behind him. His heartbeat increased anxiously, but he deliberately walked out into the cold night air towards the trio. He adopted a stern expression and stopped perhaps twenty feet from the two vampires, who noted his approach with curious expressions.

Beth noticed the distracted attention of the two figures, and her head slowly turned to gaze at Caleb with an almost relieved expression as she clutched her book bag tightly to her chest. Apparently, even she had begun to grow wary of the two men, even though not realizing the true extent of their danger to her.

"Beth, it's getting pretty late," he observed. "Do you need someone to escort you to your car?"

Beth swallowed and replied appreciatively, "No thanks, Professor Taylor. I'm parked fairly close, but I better get going."

"Okay, see you next Tuesday," he replied with as casual a voice as he could muster. I hope I'm around to see you on Tuesday, he thought anxiously.

She turned and walked away with hurried steps, glancing back over her shoulder twice before disappearing around the corner of the science building. Caleb's gaze settled on the two vampires, who appeared mutually amused by him.

"Caleb Taylor, I presume?" asked the tall vampire with the crew-cut. "Your student spoke very highly of your skills for a professor that's so young."

"I found my niche early, I suppose," he quipped, although his false bravado was shaken by the growing feeling of vulnerability forming from not seeing anyone else in the vicinity.

The shorter Native American-looking vampire smirked. "I can see why Pete wanted to stop and see if you were the real deal. You're gutsy for a human."

Caleb gathered the taller vampire was named Pete, and he frowned, wondering what they wanted with him exactly.

"Oh, he's the real deal, all right," came Katrina's level, steel-edged voice from somewhere behind him.

He started to glance behind him, but quickly decided it was more prudent not to take his eyes off the two vampires before him. He was glad for that, because he would have missed the priceless expressions of surprise and dismay as they looked past him to where Katrina must have been standing. But Caleb was startled noticeably as Katrina's body suddenly appeared before him and to the left, slightly blocking his vision. His eyes caught sight of the handle of a combat knife protruding from underneath the back of her leather jacket.

"Who are you, and what do you want with my mate?" she coldly demanded.

The two vampires stepped back slightly and held their arms out to their sides as if expecting to engage in combat at any moment. There was a palpable increase in the tension growing in the air around Caleb, and he flexed his muscles with anticipation.

"Wait," the taller vampire insisted with his hand held up. "We're not here to cause trouble. I'm Pete Crenshaw, and my friend is Eric Holata. We're from North Carolina and were just passing through town on our way to the Rockies."

The shorter vampire spoke up. "Yeah, we heard about how you and your mate killed that South American vampire. We just wanted to know if everything we heard was true."

"Why did you approach him? Why not me instead?" Katrina demanded.

The two vampires fell silent. Then Pete replied, "We, uh, heard about how you were an alpha -"

Eric interrupted, "We thought it would be easier to talk to your mate. There was no need to disturb you over something so trivial."

So, word's getting around about either Katrina's stern attitude or temper. Or maybe both, Caleb mused. He felt more at ease about the situation with each passing moment.

"You should've approached me first," she corrected Eric. "You both seem fairly inexperienced, so let me offer you a little tip. It's traditionally better protocol to approach a vampire first, rather than their human mate."

These two must be really new vampires, she mused. She wondered who their creator was and why they hadn't been mentored better.

"I see that," Pete replied. "Thanks."

The shorter vampire cast a quick glance at his friend and offered, "We'll be going now, if you don't mind. Sorry to have disturbed you and your mate."

The two slowly backed away, but Caleb stepped out from behind Katrina. "Wait."

Both stopped and quickly cast glances at each other before focusing on him as he reached inside his leather jacket and pulled out a business card.

"Here, take this. Email me, and I'll answer any questions you might have about what happened to us," he offered as he extended the card in his outstretched hand.

Pete moved forwards slowly and took the card from Caleb, glancing momentarily at his college business card.

"Thanks," the vampire said. "I'll do that when we reach our new destination."

Both vampires nodded to Katrina deferentially and turned to depart in a blur. Caleb squinted into the darkness beyond the farther campus buildings, but could no longer discern their location. Katrina's hand firmly fell upon his right shoulder, and she rotated his body to face her.

"Why did you do that?" she demanded.

"Do what?"

"Your offer to answer their questions basically circumvented my directive to have them coordinate through me," she explained.

He looked away and matter-of-factly answered, "I was just being polite."

"I thought you didn't like menacing vampires showing up unannounced," she countered with an arched eyebrow.

He gazed up into her eyes. "Just the ones trying to kill me."

Her right hand darted out to grasp his chin between her thumb and forefinger, and she tilted his face upwards to meet hers.

"First, that was dangerous and reckless confronting them yourself, particularly with you being defenseless, no less," she chastised. "And second, I can probably guess why you contacted Paige instead of me. But if she's not in the immediate area, you call me first when trouble arises. Understood?"

She had anticipated he chose to call Paige first to make the point he was upset with her. It also occurred to her that he might have called Paige knowing she would call her, causing her to respond to the threat instead of asking Devon to assist. Yeah, as if I would ever defer my responsibilities to him when I had the ability to respond in person, she fumed. Either way, she wasn't pleased with his decisions that night.

"My student appeared to be in danger, and I'm not going to just sacrifice her to the wolves without intervening," he retorted. However, he silently conceded she was correct about his being defenseless. It felt as if he would have had little chance against those vampires, even under armed and better prepared circumstances.

She continued to hold his chin firmly. "And as for calling me first when Paige isn't around, are we clear on that?" You don't get a pass on that stipulation, my love.

"Clear," he replied flatly, after which Katrina released his chin. His eyes strayed back towards the social sciences building, and he saw Tanisha watching from her office window with a wary expression.

Damn. He had forgotten she was teaching a night class. He was one of the few full-time faculty teaching a class that late, so the offices were usually deserted by the time of his evening classes. He wondered what she might have seen from her office window.

Katrina noted her mate's distracted gaze and turned her head to look in the direction his eyes were staring. She fleetingly glimpsed Tanisha before the blinds were turned up. Her mind raced with the possibilities of what Caleb's friend may have seen. Perhaps she didn't see anything vampire-specific, unless she noticed how quickly the two vampires departed. If so, she may have to be dealt with.

Caleb didn't like the look in Katrina's eyes, and his body tensed. "Oh, no. You can't," he challenged, anticipating something grim.

Katrina turned to head in the direction of the building.

"Hold on! You can't — No, wait," he stammered excitedly as his hand darted out to grasp her arm.

She glanced down at his hand, and then stared intently into his pale blue eyes. They had a pleading look, and she sensed the tension in his body and facial expression. However, the rules were quite clear on humans who risked her safety by discovering her true nature.

"Please. Let me find out what she saw first," he pleaded. "Just give me until tomorrow."

She drew in a deep breath and released it slowly while considering his request. Perhaps one day's time will be reasonable to ensure I make an informed decision.

"Tomorrow. No later," she stipulated firmly.

He nodded. "Fine. Thank you," he replied with relief.

She bobbed her head curtly and directed him, "It's time to go home."

He acknowledged her, feeling very weary suddenly, and walked back to the building with Katrina following closely behind him.

She was happy she had arrived in time and that the vampires apparently meant him no harm. However, she was concerned about his continued angst towards her from sparing Devon Archibald's life. Maybe she had spoken with Alton far too much lately, but for some reason she was beginning to see the potential benefits to an additional vampire's being available, if even for a limited period of contracted assistance.

Katrina's thoughts quickly returned to Caleb, and a yearning, both physical and emotional, rose within her. She lamented how it had been over a week since they had last been intimate together. She took a moment to appreciate his masculine form as he stalked back into the building to retrieve his belongings and lock up his office. She reflected on his recent efforts at working out more, of which she appreciated the results. Not that she hadn't found him attractive to begin with.

Nice butt, she observed with amusement. Her body craved a sudden desire to take him home and make love to him. But her hopes were dashed quickly when he exited the building a few minutes later with a tight-lipped expression. His footsteps were heavy as he walked towards her, and he stopped a couple of feet away from where she stood.

"Thanks for coming to help me out tonight," he offered half-heartedly. "I guess I'll see you at home."

"Maybe a little kiss for my efforts here?" she suggested.

He stepped forward and bent his face up meet hers. But instead of bending down to meet him halfway, she made him step up on his toes to reach her lips. Although rather than a nice, passionate kiss, he merely popped his lips against hers in a brief peck.

"Thanks," she muttered darkly. Of course, he's likely still upset with me over Devon. And I did just suggest I might have to kill one of the few human friends he's made recently. She sighed and followed him to his car to make sure he was safe. Why the hell does it seem like I'm always ending up the bad guy lately? She was definitely starting to feel somewhat underappreciated.

Friday morning arrived quicker than Caleb wanted, as it had been rather late when he and Katrina had arrived home on Thursday evening. He had had trouble sleeping the night before. His mind had been preoccupied with thoughts of what he would ask Tanisha to ascertain what she had seen. He certainly didn't want to lose his friend, but even more importantly, Tanisha had a family, and he didn't think he could live with himself if he deprived them of a wife and mother. Tanisha was a good, sincere person and didn't deserve to have her life cut short by something that should not have happened on campus. In fact, if anything, he felt as if the fault were partly his for bringing such threats to the campus by his very presence.

His eventual conversation with Tanisha took place later that morning while neither was teaching. They had the same schedule that day for open office hours. He entered her office and closed the door behind him. Then he plopped down into the empty guest chair next to her desk.

Tanisha barely looked up from grading essays before her and prompted, "Good morning, Caleb. I can bet I know why you're here. It's about last night, isn't it?"

"Yeah, last night," he replied quietly, though his pulse was already racing.

She pursed her lips and glanced over at him with a serious expression. "I saw you step outside to check on that student," she offered. "Was she one of yours?"

He nodded. "Yeah. Her name is Beth."

Tanisha's eyes narrowed. "Did you know who those two guys were?"

This time he shook his head. "Nope. Still don't, really."

"Yeah, I kind of got that impression just from watching your and Katrina's reactions towards them," she ventured as she stared at her desk like she was recalling past events.

He let the silence grow between them for a few moments and asked, "Did you happen to see them leave?"

She frowned. "No. I picked up the phone to call security, but stopped for some reason and glanced back to see what was happening. But they were already gone. I was surprised how quickly they left, because I only turned my head away for a few seconds."

A surge of relief flowed through him, and he had to force himself not to chuckle out loud. Oh thank God, he thought. "Yeah, they took off pretty fast," he agreed.

She arched her eyebrows and admitted, "It's true that Katrina can seem intimidating at times, but I can see where that could be handy on occasions such as last night."

Caleb was delighted, though more from relief than from what Tanisha had said. "Oh, she can be intimidating, all right."

Tanisha's hazel eyes stared directly into Caleb's. "Was Katrina angry with you last night? It looked like she was reading you the riot act right after those guys left."

He took a deep breath and let it out slowly to stall for time while considering a response. "She thought what I did was too risky."

She nodded. "It was. But that also doesn't mean it wasn't the right thing to do for your student. We're not just educators. Our students expect for us to look after them while they're here. This is our domain, and you were well within you right to challenge those men."

"Thanks," Caleb replied with a pleased smile.

"Although a call to security might have been smarter before you walked out there," she added.

He rolled his eyes. "Oh, not you too! It's bad enough to have Katrina preaching to me."

She grinned. "Hey, just because Katrina can be gruff doesn't mean she doesn't have your best interests at heart, too."

He frowned as he considered that and conceded that his mate did indeed care very deeply for him. He loved her for that. And while he still felt miffed with Katrina over her Devon decision, it didn't mean he didn't love her. He shook his head and decided he was simply happy not to be forced to lose a good friend.

Later that evening, he told Katrina about his conversation with Tanisha. She listened intently, observing his body language and staring into his eyes as if probing him like some sort of lie detector. Finally, she agreed no harm had probably been done. For that, he was thankful. However, the entire affair impressed upon him how important discretion was when it came to vampire-related matters. The ordinary world was a much more difficult place to live in than he had thought just a few months ago.

By Saturday, Caleb had had time to reflect upon matters further. He acknowledged that even if he resented receiving assistance from Devon, he was wrong not to have called Katrina when those two vampires stopped by the campus. Even worse, his decision might have risked his own life and emotionally devastated the love of his life.

It was for that reason he decided to look past his own aggravation and seek to do something enjoyable with Katrina. One of their recent enjoyable endeavors had certainly been his Find Caleb exploits, so it seemed a natural choice. At least he hoped she might view it as extending an olive branch. However, he was determined to make his third installment safer than the last, which meant selecting a site more familiar to him. It also meant he had to be more diligent regarding preparations.

He targeted a nearby abandoned construction site located off the highway outside of Mableton. The largely concrete and steel beam structure was just a few years old and had been abandoned when the original owner, a small recreational vehicle and boat dealership, had been unable to fund the remaining construction. They had intended it to be a three-story structure, but only the concrete and steel framing had been completed, as well as a reinforced concrete stairwell in one corner of the building. The property was secured by a chain link fence, but his brief inspection revealed easy access underneath a section of the fence where the soil had been washed out by frequent rains.

Caleb decided to survey the area from atop the unfinished building during the daytime to become familiar with the surroundings, but he needed a pair of binoculars. Fortunately, he had previously purchased a nice set some years ago and had packed them away in one of the boxes stored in the garage. With Katrina in town that evening, it seemed the perfect time to scrounge for his binoculars.

After grabbing his iPod and queuing up Gram Rabbit's "Devil's Playground," he started pulling boxes from the shelf onto the floor. He rummaged through hordes of stuff, including old music CDs, books, tax forms, college expenditure records, and miscellaneous collectibles. As he removed the last box from the top shelf, it slipped off and fell onto the floor. The lid popped off, scattering a series of photographs across the floor.

"Damn!" he cursed while squatting down to sift carefully through the pictures so as not to bend or crease any of them. Most were photos from his college years, but a number of them were from childhood that his mother had collected. He smiled while picking up a photo of himself at age four sitting on his front porch holding an old stuffed dog his parents had won for him at the county fair.

Another picture was his mother standing with him next to a sparsely decorated Christmas tree, which had been their first Christmas together the year his abusive father had disappeared from their lives when he was eight. He stared at the picture, noting that he and his mother both had forced smiles. It had been a strange year, his father disappearing one evening after work from their home and not even taking the family car with him. Less than a year after the photo had been taken, his mother had secured their new home in the suburbs of Columbus, Ohio.

He slipped the picture back into the box and reached down absently to stack the scattered photos into a pile. I can look at old photos some other time, he resolved. His past, particularly his youth, wasn't necessarily something he wanted to reminisce about at length. As he grabbed at three remaining pictures on the floor, one slipped from between the other two and floated just out of reach. After placing the other two in the container, he reached for the lone one. He quickly scanned the photograph, but something triggered in the periphery of his mind, causing him to scrutinize it at length.

The picture was of his mother and a number of her coworkers at Columbus Mortgage at the banquet where they had won a company raffle for their children's college scholarships. Caleb had no memory of the event because the children had not been present that evening, but his mind screamed with alarm when he saw not one, but two, familiar-looking faces in the photograph. First was his mother, of course, but the second was a young brunette woman standing to the left of the winners. The caption read, Columbus Mortgage Award Recipients with Company Owner, Amber Simmons. Though Amber's hair color was different, there was no mistaking her telltale green eyes and guarded smile. Her face resembled Katrina.

His ears rang with a piercing intensity that blocked out the music from his ear buds. Searing images flared within his mind like a series of vivid flashbacks, nearly blocking out his vision and causing him to lurch where he squatted on the garage floor. He saw brightly glowing emerald vampire eyes appea