After Sundown

Marisa poured herself a cup of coffee and carried it to the table. She had kept Grigori's hours for so long, it seemed odd to be up when the sun was still high in the sky. She smiled faintly as she glanced at the wedding invitation lying on the table. Edward and Kelly were getting married day after tomorrow. She hoped they would be happy together.

Though she wasn't in the mood to shop, she supposed she would have to go out and buy them a gift. She wondered if they had invited Grigori, and if Khira would allow him to attend.

She stared into her cup. It was hard to get excited about anything these days. No matter where she was, or what she was doing, all she could think of was Grigori... Grigori living in Khira's house, hunting with her. Grigori had told him that Khira was a sensual creature, one who didn't like being told no. They had once been lovers, Grigori and Khira. The thought of the two of them together was like a dagger in her heart.

She slammed her hand on the table. She couldn't think of it any more or she'd go crazy! Grabbing her handbag, she left the house. A day of shopping was just what she needed. It had been a long time since she had spent a day at the mall.

But forgetting Grigori was impossible. The car she drove had been a gift from him. She smiled with the memory. In the nights before the wedding, he had brought her a gift every day: white roses by the dozen, yellow ones, pink ones, a single, perfect, bloodred rose, chocolates and perfume, a diamond necklace that was so beautiful it took her breath away. Her car was the most extravagant gift of all. She well remembered the night he had given it to her.

He had given her a small square box that night, handed it to her with a wink.

When she had asked him what it was, he had told her to open it and see. Stomach fluttering with excitement, she had lifted the lid. A key rested on a bed of blue velvet. She had looked up at him and asked if it was the key to his heart. He had laughed softly and told her it was the key to her new car. She had thought he was kidding until he told her it was parked out front. When she had gone to the window to look, she had seen two Corvettes parked at the curb, a sleek black one and a red convertible. When she had asked him which one, he told her to take her pick. She had scolded him for being so extravagant, saying it must have cost a fortune to buy two such expensive cars. "I have a fortune, cara mia," he had replied. "Let me spend it on you."

She lifted her hand to the gold filigree heart at her throat. It, too, had been a gift from Grigori. He had given her so much, but his love was the best gift of all.

She wandered through the mall. It felt good to be out and about, to be in the company of ordinary people doing ordinary things. She passed young women in business attire who were obviously on a lunch break from work, mothers with small children, and elderly women sitting on benches, watching the world go by. She felt a pang of regret as she smiled at a little girl with long blond pigtails. If she accepted the Dark Gift from Grigori, she would never have a child of her own. She thrust the thought from her mind. She had come here to keep from thinking of Grigori and what he might be doing with his ancient lover. She turned back to the task at hand. What kind of wedding gift did one buy for a vampire couple, anyway? They didn't need dishes, glassware, or silverware, had no need for crock pots or toasters or popcorn poppers. New bedding was a possibility, but she didn't know if they rested in beds or - she shuddered - in coffins. Finally, she settled on a crystal vase and a pair of matching candelabra.

Pleased with her purchases, she stopped at Mrs. Field's and bought a dozen dark-chocolate-chip cookies. Another simple human pleasure that would be denied her if she accepted the Dark Gift.

She was leaving the mall when she had the sudden, unshakable feeling that she was being watched. She glanced over her shoulder, remembering the monster who had kidnapped her, but she saw nothing out of the ordinary. Could Khira be trusted to keep her word and leave her alone while Grigori was with her?

She had just convinced herself she was imagining things when a man seemed to materialize out of the crush of people walking through the parking lot. He positioned himself squarely in her path. She stopped abruptly, heart pounding.

He raised a placating hand. "I didn't mean to frighten you. You have nothing to fear from me."

"Who are you? What do you want?"

"I'm Tom Duncan."

Tom Duncan. The vampire hunter. Her heart seemed to drop to her feet. "Why are you following me?"

He fell into step beside her. "A friend of yours asked me to keep an eye on you."

"Oh?"

"Ed Ramsey."

"I see." Bless you, Edward, she thought. "Well, thank you."

Duncan blew out a breath. "Hell of a mess," he muttered.

Marisa nodded. "This is my car," she said. "Oh, I guess you know that."

He grinned at her. "I'll follow you home, make sure you get there all right."

"Thank you."

"You won't have to worry much longer."

"What do you mean?"

"We're working on a plan to dispose of Khira permanently."

Marisa's eyes widened. "Are you crazy?"

"It's gotta be done. There's no telling how many she's killed," Duncan said flatly. "We rarely find a body when a master vampire makes a kill. But there's been a sharp increase in missing persons in the last few weeks. I'm not talking runaways. I'm talking men with good, steady jobs. Women with kids at home. People who have no reason to suddenly disappear."

Marisa felt suddenly faint. It was Khira. She knew it was. She braced her hand against the car door. What if Grigori was also responsible? She knew he was capable of violence. She had seen it firsthand. She knew he had killed when he'd first been made vampire, but he had assured her he hadn't killed anyone in over a hundred years, and she had believed him. Had it all been a lie?

She felt suddenly faint. "What about Edward? And Grigori? You aren't..."

"No. Just Khira."

"Everything all right here?"

Marisa glanced past Duncan to see a security guard in a green cart. "Yes, fine," she said. "Thank you." Unlocking her car, she opened the door and put her package on the seat.

Duncan waited until the guard had driven away before saying, "She's ruthless. A female Kristov."

"I know. Edward and Grigori are both afraid of her."

"Yeah, well, I can understand that."

"Grigori wasn't sure that they..." Her words trailed off as a young mother with two children approached. The woman looked at Marisa and Duncan curiously a moment before unlocking her car and settling her children inside. She glanced at them again before sliding into the driver's seat and pulling out of the parking lot.

"Go on," Duncan said.

"I was saying that Grigori wasn't sure they could destroy her, even with their combined powers."

"Well, we need to find a way, and soon." He pulled a card out of his pocket, wrote a number on the back, and handed it to her. "Call me if you need me."

"Thank you." She thought about everything Duncan had said to her on her way home. Could he be trusted? He had said he was only after Khira, but what if, once Khira was destroyed - assuming she could be destroyed - Duncan decided to destroy Edward and Kelly and Lisa, too? And Grigori?

She blew out a sigh as she pulled into the driveway, wondering if this nightmare would ever end. She had been so certain all their troubles were behind them when Kristov had been destroyed.

She saw Duncan's car slow down as it went past the driveway. He waved and smiled.

Edward trusted him. She only hoped she wasn't making a mistake in doing the same.