Kaitlyn looked at him in disbelief. “Don’t you know anything? Centuries ago, my great-grandfather, Calin Sherrad, declared war on the Others in order to preserve our identity and our way of life.” She had read the story of the war with the Others in the Journal of Alexandru Chisca, written long before her father had been born. In it, Chisca had chronicled the war and how it had started because the Others were feeding indiscriminately on human men, women, and even children. Even worse, they had left their kills in the streets and byways to be found by mortals, which had brought out the vampire hunters. Not only that, but the Others had turned mortals into vampires like themselves, causing panic in the streets. The Romanian vampires couldn’t turn mortals into vampires, although an infusion of their blood prolonged mortal life. Kaitlyn’s mother was proof of that. Although Elena was over forty, she still appeared to be in her twenties.

Zack grunted softly. “I don’t know anything about a war.”

“I thought everybody knew.” She had learned it at an early age. “It was fought over a thousand years ago.”

“I guess that’s why I never heard of it. But what the hell, that’s old history. It doesn’t have anything to do with you and me.”

“I wish it didn’t.”

Zack frowned. He might not be able to read her mind, but in this instance, it wasn’t necessary. He knew what she was going to say before she spoke the words.

“I’m sorry, Zack, but I can’t see you anymore.”

Eyes narrowed, he stared at her and then he pulled her into his arms and kissed her, hard and long. And just as abruptly, he let her go. “So, that’s it,” he said, his voice harsh. “It’s over between us before it’s even started, and all because of some war that took place over a thousand years ago.”

Kaitlyn blinked back her tears. “It’s not what I want. But my father would never accept you. Or forgive me.”

He regarded her for stretched seconds, the taste of her still warm on his lips, her scent permeating his senses. And then he swore a vile oath. Why the hell was he so upset? It wasn’t like she was ending a long-standing relationship. Hell, he had only known the woman for a few days.

“Have it your way, Katy.” Rising, he dissolved into mist and vanished from the room.

Kaitlyn stared at the place where Zack had been standing, wishing she could relive the last few minutes, that she could recall the words she had spoken. And yet, it was better to end it now, before she fell any deeper, before letting him go became impossible.

She brushed the tears from her cheeks. She wouldn’t cry, wouldn’t think of Zack Ravenscroft, or of what might have been. She shook her head. Just her luck. She had finally met a man she liked and he was the wrong kind of vampire.

Kaitlyn closed her eyes and took several slow deep breaths. She refused to just sit home and feel sorry for herself. She was Drake Sherrad’s daughter, heir to the Carpathian dynasty. She had a destiny to fulfill, and Zack Ravenscroft had no place in it. How could she have forgotten that? In a year or two, three at the most, she would be required to return to the Fortress and seek a life mate.

After washing her face, she reapplied her makeup, grabbed her purse and her keys, and left the house. It was still early and there was a movie in town she had been wanting to see. Tonight seemed like the perfect time.

The movie had been a mistake, Kaitlyn thought as she walked toward the ice-cream parlor located down the block and across the street from the theater. She had forgotten the film was one of those chick flicks with lots of long, lingering looks and a sad ending. She had cried all the way through.

Hopefully, a banana split with extra whipped cream and a cherry would cheer her up. Her mother always said there were few miseries in life that a hefty helping of chocolate couldn’t make better.

Kaitlyn had just taken her first bite of hot fudge when the last person she wanted to see dropped into the seat across from hers.

“Hey, Kaitlyn, how’s it going?” Eddie asked cheerfully.

She forced a smile. “Just fine, thank you.”

“I thought you had a date tonight,” he said, his voice carefully casual.

“Something came up at the last minute and he had to cancel.” It wasn’t exactly a lie.

Eddie glanced at his watch. “Well, it’s early yet. Maybe we could go out. I hear there’s a nice dance floor at Ravenscroft’s Casino.”

“No!” The idea of running into Zack was unthinkable. “I mean, I don’t feel like dancing tonight.”

He looked thoughtful. “Do you like bowling? There’s a new place down the street. Lois Lanes. Get it?”

She forced another smile.

“So, what do you say?”

“I don’t think so.” She took a bite of ice cream but it seemed to have lost its appeal and she pushed the dish away.

“I guess it’s not my night,” Eddie remarked.

And it never will be, Kaitlyn thought, pushing away from the table. “Sorry, Eddie, I’m just really tired.” Rising, she plucked her handbag from the table. “Maybe some other time.” Talk about a lie, she thought.

“The least I can do is walk you home.”

“Thank you, but I have my car.”

“I didn’t see it parked outside.”

“I left it in the parking lot behind the theater.” She started toward the door, a huff of annoyance rising in her throat when Eddie followed her outside and fell into step beside her.

The silence stretched between them, but Kaitlyn didn’t care. She was too upset about how things had ended with Zack to worry about what Eddie Harrington thought. She had nothing to say to him and had no interest in his company. If she didn’t encourage him, maybe he would finally get a clue and leave her alone.

Apparently, he was clueless. “So, you went to the movies? How was it?”

“Very sad.”

“The new sci-fi flick starts on Friday. I hear it’s a good one.”

“Well, I hope you like it,” she said, hoping he would take the hint this time. Grateful to have reached her car, she unlocked it and opened the door. “Good night.”

“Yeah, good night.”

Kaitlyn slid behind the wheel and put the key in the ignition. When she glanced in the rearview mirror, she saw him standing under one of the lampposts, watching her. The surly look in his eyes sent a shiver of unease down her spine. Putting the car in gear, she drove out of the parking lot.

Zack stood in the shadows across from the parking lot, his eyes narrowed as he focused on the man who had been with Kaitlyn. Even from a distance, he recognized the man’s scent. It was the same as the one he had detected outside Kaitlyn’s house earlier that night. Was this guy friend or foe? Judging from the hostile expression in the man’s eyes, Zack didn’t think he was Kaitlyn’s friend, yet she hadn’t appeared to be afraid of him. She hadn’t appeared to be fond of his company, either.

Zack had just decided to confront the man when he disappeared from sight.

Zack grunted softly. Either the stranger was some kind of sorcerer, or he was a vampire. He was betting on the latter. And since the man didn’t smell human, and he didn’t smell like one of the Undead, Zack figured the man was a blood-born vampire, like Kaitlyn.

Frowning, Zack willed himself to Kaitlyn’s yard and took cover in the shadows near the front porch. She might not want anything to do with him, but he was sticking close by until he determined what was going on between her and the stranger.

Chapter 12

Zack rose to his feet and stretched his back and shoulders. It wasn’t really necessary. He never grew tired. His muscles didn’t get sore, didn’t cramp if he stayed in one position for hours on end. But moving, stretching, itching, and blinking came naturally, instinctively, to humans. After being turned, he’d had to practice doing those things until they were second nature again, because not doing so was sure to invite unwanted attention. Unlike vampires, mortals couldn’t sit unmoving or unblinking for hours at a time.

He had spent the last three nights hunkered down in the shadows outside Kaitlyn’s house. He wasn’t sure the stranger he had seen her with was a threat, but Zack had decided it was better to err on the side of caution, at least until he determined what the man was up to, or he left town. Zack grunted softly. It wasn’t like he had anything else to do. Well, other than run the casino, but Kaitlyn was infinitely more important than a few slot machines.

Now, with dawn approaching, it was time to leave, time to seek his lair before the sun found him.

He was about to transport himself to the casino when the stranger materialized on the front porch.

Zack glanced at the sky. Only minutes until sunrise.

When the other vampire reached for the doorknob, Zack flew to the porch, his hand grasping the other vampire by the arm, wrenching him around and away from the door. “What are you doing here?”

The other vampire stared at him, his eyes wide with surprise, not fear. “I’m here to see Kaitlyn,” he replied smoothly.

“Before the sun’s even up?” Zack asked, still gripping the other man’s arm.

“We’re lovers,” the man said with a leer.

“You’re lying. Who the hell are you?”

“My name is Eddie Harrington, not that it’s any of your business.” He straightened to his full height. “Now let me go. I don’t want to hurt you.”

Zack snorted. At six foot two, he stood a good four inches taller than Harrington and outweighed him by thirty pounds.

“I mean it,” Harrington said.

Zack sensed the change in Harrington as Harrington summoned his preternatural power. Harrington’s muscles tensed, his eyes went hard and cold. Power radiated from him, sizzling through the damp air, but Zack knew instinctively that his own power was older, stronger.

Confident of his vampiric strength, Harrington suddenly twisted out of Zack’s grasp, then pushed him down the stairs. He flung himself after Zack, expecting Zack to be facedown on the ground, only Zack wasn’t there.