Taken at Dusk

No! Kylie screamed in her head, even as Jane Doe dropped back on the bed and resigned herself to being cut open with nothing to dull the pain.

"Kylie? Wake up!"

Kylie felt someone shake her. Still screaming, she opened her eyes and saw Della and Miranda standing over her. She managed to stop screaming but couldn't stop shaking.

"Should we get Holiday?" Miranda asked, looking worried.

Kylie shook her head no. "I'm okay." She rolled over and dried her tears on the blanket. "Go back to sleep," she muttered. Her heart still carried the panic from the vision, and she could feel the cold. Jane was here.

Della and Miranda looked at each other as if unsure what to do next.

"Go," she repeated.

As soon as they left, Kylie sat up. Jane sat on the edge of the bed. Her abdomen gaped open and blood spilled onto the tops of her bare thighs. "I didn't kill my baby. I loved him."

"I know. I saw." Kylie hated to ask, but finding answers was why Jane had come to her. "Did the baby die? Is that what happened? Did your baby die during childbirth?"

Jane looked at Kylie again. "No." She smiled, and instantly the blood on her hands disappeared and she was dressed in a pretty sundress with big yellow sunflowers. "He lived. My baby lived. I made sure he was okay. And then I went back home."

"Where was home?" Kylie asked. "Home to who?"

She blinked and then looked up. "I don't know. I can't remember."

"I'm a little confused," Kylie said. "Did you die during the birth?"

"No, I already showed you how I died. They killed me." And then she faded.

It took Kylie forever to fall back to sleep, and when she did, another dream had her in its trap. Immediately, she recognized what was going on. She hadn't moved into the dream, someone had come into hers.

She waited just a fraction of a second to make sure it wasn't Derek, then she saw him. Red. He stood by the lake.

"I'm not trying to fool you this time," he said.

"Leave me alone!" she snapped.

"I need to tell you..."

Kylie woke up in a panic in her bed. Red was gone. "Don't come back!" she said, and hugged herself, proud of how quickly she'd woken herself up.

* * *

The next four or five days at Shadow Falls were all about getting the camp ready to become a full-blown school, and that was fine with Kylie. Holiday was busy interviewing a few more potential teachers while a construction group-all paranormals-built a few large classroom cabins. Another all-paranormal crew put heating units into the cabins.

Kylie was still being shadowed. Because nothing else had happened, she'd started to feel guilty about piling on to everyone's busy schedules. On Friday morning, she took off to Burnett's office to suggest he call a halt to the shadowing. He disagreed.

"If anything, this is the time to be more careful," he insisted.

"Why?" Kylie asked.

He frowned. "For starters, how about because this place is a revolving door right now? I don't like strangers being here."

Kylie felt a shiver run down her spine. "You think someone working here could really be working with Mario?"

If so, that might explain Miranda's growing feeling that someone was lurking around their cabin. She'd started putting protective spells on their cabin every day now and had even gone to Holiday and Burnett with her concerns. Concerns they'd listened to but didn't feel held a huge threat. Or at least Kylie had assumed until now.

Burnett, all two-hundred-plus pounds of muscle, leaned back in his office chair. "I've checked everyone's credentials a dozen times." He reached for a heart-shaped stress ball with the words Donate Blood and squeezed it. "Maybe Holiday's right, and I'm being overly cautious, but I'm not taking chances."

Burnett turned his head to the side as if listening to something from outside the cabin. He frowned. "Another were is at it again. I'll be so friggin' glad when tomorrow's full moon is past. Excuse me." He shot out of the room.

Kylie ran out of the cabin after him, afraid Lucas was involved in whatever was happening. While normally she wouldn't consider Lucas getting into trouble, these last few days, he'd been extra tense. Last night when he'd come by her cabin to say good night, he'd barely kissed her.

When she'd asked if something was wrong, he'd reminded her that the closer he got to the full moon, the more he turned to his instinct instead of logic. Then he'd reached out and passed a single finger over her lips. "You are temptation in its purest form, Kylie Galen."

There was a part of Kylie that wanted to give in to that temptation, but another part of her still resisted. And as much as she wished it weren't true, she knew her reason for holding back had to do with Lucas's grandmother.

The moment Kylie hit the edge of the porch steps, Della showed up. "Ellie and Fredericka are going at it."

"Why?" Kylie asked.

"Supposedly, Ellie overheard the she-wolf talking bad about you and decided to teach Fredericka a lesson. You know, I hate to admit it, but Ellie's growing on me."

"Oh, crap. Where are they?"

"By Ellie's cabin."

Kylie took off. By the time they got there, Burnett had Fredericka, and Lucas was holding Ellie back. Ellie was bleeding, and from the glow in her eyes, she wasn't finished fighting.

"Let go of me!" she growled at Lucas. "I'll teach that dog-"

"Calm down," Lucas snapped. His own eyes were a bright orange. "She'll tear you apart. You can't win a fight with a were the day before a full moon."

"Watch me!" Ellie tried again to pull away, her fangs showing.

"Stop! Or I'll teach you a lesson myself," Lucas growled, his body growing tenser and his eyes brighter. Obviously, with his own body feeling the effects of the coming full moon, he shouldn't be the one trying to break up a fight.

"Why?" Ellie countered. "Why are you protecting that she-wolf? You should be helping me kick her ass. I thought Kylie was your girlfriend. Where does your loyalty lie? With that she-wolf, or with Kylie?"

Lucas paused; the question seemed to catch him off guard. "I'm trying to save your life, though I'm not sure it's worth much."

"Because I'm not were?" Ellie spit back.

"Enough!" Burnett roared.

Lucas let go of Ellie. The pissed-off vamp stepped back, but her eyes stayed bright. Then her angry gaze found Kylie. "You have definitely chosen the wrong guy. Derek would never defend someone who said those things about you. Never!"

Kylie's gaze locked with Lucas for a moment, and then she turned and walked away.

* * *

That night, Kylie awoke to the smell of roses. Before she opened her eyes, she checked the temperature to make sure it wasn't Jane. Or worse, another vision. But nope. No cold. Just the sweet floral scent.

"Hey, beautiful," said a familiar male voice. She opened her eyes.

Lucas knelt beside her bed, holding a bouquet of roses in his hands. She sat up and saw more roses all around the room. "What did you do, rob a florist?"

He gave her his bad-boy grin, and Kylie felt her heart melt just a little. "No, but let me just say that my grandmother is going to be really pissed when she sees her garden in the morning."

She grinned and then remembered she was mad at him. And yeah, it might not have been fair to be mad when all he'd done was do the right thing by breaking up the fight, but Ellie's words had stung and stung deep. And Kylie had been nursing a bit of a broken heart ever since.

It didn't help that Kylie knew, once he shifted into wolf form, he would run off into the woods with Fredericka fast behind him. So when he'd dropped by earlier that day to see her, she'd told him she'd had a headache and was going to bed.

But he was back now. And this time, he hadn't gotten her permission first to come into her room.

"Scoot over," he said.

Kylie arched a brow, remembering his caution about not getting too close to her before the change. "Is that a good idea?"

"I'll behave. I've made sure of it. I just want to hold you and apologize."

"For what?"

He took a rose and ran it down her nose and over her lips. It felt soft against her skin-a bit like velvet.

"I'm sorry that Fredericka is being such a bitch. Sorry for how things may have looked. I wasn't defending Fredericka. I was trying to keep Ellie from getting hurt."

There it was again. The fact that he'd been doing the right thing. And she knew it was true.

"But..." He set the rose beside her pillow. "I got to thinking about how I'd feel if it were you defending Derek. I really wouldn't like that." He scooped her up in his arms and moved her over and then crawled in beside her.

His warmth came against her side, and his lips brushed against her cheek. "You are the most important thing to me, Kylie. There isn't anything about you that doesn't fascinate me. The way your eyes light up when you smile. The sound of your laughter." He picked up the rose and ran it across her mouth again. "The shape of your lips. The way they feel against mine."

The rose moved up. "Your nose. The way it turns up on the end."

"It doesn't turn up that much." She'd always hated her nose.

"Maybe it does just a little." He grinned. "But it's so damn cute. And I love the way you sneeze."

"Now you're taking it too far." She giggled.

"Seriously, I love the sound you make when you sneeze. It sounds more like a puppy than human. A very cute and sexy puppy."

His smile faded and his blue eyes stared right at her. "For the first time in my entire life, I'm not looking forward to shifting. Because ... then I won't be able to kiss you like this." His lips melted against hers, but he ended the kiss too quickly. "I'll be out there. And you'll be in here. And instead of enjoying the thrill of being free of this body, I'll be missing you."

He kissed her lightly on the lips again. "So, please. Please, don't be angry at me. I didn't mean to make you feel bad, or to make you feel as if anyone else is more important to me than you. Because they aren't. I'd kill for you, Kylie Galen. But more than that, I'd die for you."

She felt a tear roll down her cheek. "You'd better not die on me, Lucas Parker."

He caught the tear and wiped it away. "Am I forgiven?"

"Yes. You're forgiven." She reached up and wrapped her hand around his neck and pulled him in for a kiss. His mouth devoured hers, his tongue swept across her lips. After several long, delicious moments, he kissed his way down to her neck. It tickled, it tingled, and before long, she heard the soft humming sound emanating from him. She liked hearing it. Liked knowing she made it happen. Liked how her inhibitions faded while listening to it.

His hand slid up under her tank top, touching bare skin. Touching the edges of her breasts, and then his hands moved higher. His warm hands felt like sunshine against her skin. She closed her eyes, loving how it felt. She wanted this.

He broke the kiss and jerked his hand away. "Okay, it's time for me to go now."

He jumped out of the bed and frowned down at her. "I'm sorry."

She bit down on her lip to keep from telling him it was okay. To keep from asking him to get back in bed. Instead, she whispered, "I'm not sorry."

He gazed down at her. "You are so damn beautiful. And if I don't leave now..." He started out.

"Lucas?"

He turned around. "Yeah?"

"Thank you for the roses."

"You're welcome." He looked back at the door. "I should probably go before I run out of time."

"Out of time?" she asked.

He shrugged. "I told Della to kick my ass out if I stayed more than twenty minutes." He looked at his watch. "And knowing her-"

"Time's up!" Della pounded on the door with so much force, Kylie was amazed the door didn't break down.

Lucas grinned. "I knew I could count on her."

Kylie laughed.

Once he'd gone, she leaned back in bed, stared at the ceiling, and just breathed in the scent of roses, trying to remember every word he'd said. She wanted to remember this night forever.

* * *

Several days later, with her stomach gnawing on her backbone and Jonathon, her shadow of the day, in tow, Kylie set out to the dining room to get some breakfast.

Life had calmed down. A little, anyway. With the full moon behind them, Lucas was back to his normal, patient self. And he was being amazingly attentive, too. But if Kylie were honest, she sort of missed hearing his hum.

Not that she didn't enjoy his sweet side. He'd even brought her more roses last night. If Mrs. Parker didn't have reason enough to dislike her, Kylie figured the she-wolf's decimated rose garden would seal the deal.

Even Kylie's ghost was calmer. Jane Doe still made regular visits, but the ghost was back to giving Kylie the silent treatment. Which was fine for now.

Kylie ducked under a low-hanging branch on the trail and picked up speed.

"No! And I can't believe you'd even suggest it!"

Holiday's voice rang in Kylie's ear a good three hundred feet from the office. Kylie stopped and looked around to make sure the camp leader wasn't standing nearby.

She wasn't.

It must be the gifted hearing again. It had come and gone several times since her mom and Holiday's little discussion during Parents Day. Curious, Kylie looked at Jonathon to see if he'd heard it, too.

"What is it?" he asked.

"I thought I heard something. Did you hear it?"

"Hear what?" He started looking around. "That damn blue jay isn't back, is it? I'm telling you, it's a sick bird."

The bird had returned three more times. Jonathon had been present for two of them. "No. I thought I heard Holiday."

Jonathon tilted his head to the side as if putting his own sensitive hearing to the test. "I don't hear her."

So, was her hearing stronger than a vampire's? What did that mean? Especially when she still had the brain pattern of a human.

"It's not like I have a choice," Burnett said.

Great. They were fighting again. About what this time? Kylie wondered, and continued on to the dining hall. If she had to guess, Holiday was just finding another excuse to try to put some distance between her and Burnett. Since Kylie had walked in and found them kissing, she hadn't seen the two within fifty feet of each other.

"You have a choice," Holiday said. "You go back and tell them that I said hell, no."

"It's a couple of tests. They wouldn't take long and they could clear up everything."

"I said, no!"

"Now I'm hearing Holiday," Jonathon said. "She doesn't sound too happy."

"Don't you think this should be Kylie's decision?"

"What should be my decision?" Kylie muttered, and changed direction and started walking toward the office.

"No!" Holiday said.

"She wants answers. And this could give them to her."

Kylie moved faster. What answers? It didn't matter, she realized. She'd take any answers she could get.

"I won't allow it!"

"Won't allow what?" Kylie stormed into the office, leaving Jonathon behind.

Holiday and Burnett swung around. Holiday pointed to the door. "Get out!" she told Burnett.

"No!" Kylie stepped in front of him. "He stays. This is about me, and I need to know."

Holiday looked at Burnett with anger, then she looked at Kylie. "You wouldn't understand this."

"Why don't you try me?" She looked at Burnett. "Start talking."

He cut his gaze to Holiday.

"The FRU wants to run some tests on you," Holiday said. "To see if they can figure out what you are."

Hope rose in Kylie's chest. "I thought there weren't any tests that could tell me this?" She remembered asking Holiday that question before.

"There aren't!" Holiday said. "They just want to play around in your brain to-"

"I'll do it," Kylie said.

"No!" Holiday looked horrified. "I refuse to let them use you as some kind of lab rat. There are no guarantees that these tests are safe, and they may not even work."

Kylie looked at Burnett. "Are they safe?"

Burnett stared at Holiday, his eyes getting a pissed-off amber color. "I wouldn't let them do anything to her that's not safe," he growled. "Do you have that little faith in me?"

"I have that little faith in the FRU. History repeats itself."

"What kind of tests would they be?" Kylie asked.

"Just some CT scans," Burnett said.

"No!" Holiday turned back to Kylie. "They'll use you as a guinea pig."

"They're not going to hurt her," Burnett said.

"I know, because she's not agreeing to it."

The cold came into the room so fast that Kylie's breath sent tiny flakes of ice falling from her lips. Jane materialized, and at the same time, the three light bulbs in the fixture overhead burst. Shards of glass rained through the air.

"What the hell?" Burnett looked up and took a step closer to Kylie.

Holiday's crystals hanging throughout the room started swaying, sending rainbow colors spiraling around them.

The laptop computer on Holiday's desk started beeping, making serious malfunctioning noises.

"You stay away from her!" Jane shot across the room to stand between her and Burnett.

"Run, Kylie!" Jane yelled in the same tone she'd used to warn Kylie about the sinkhole.

"What's wrong?" Kylie demanded.

"He's wrong!" Jane yelled.

Holiday looked around the room. "What's happening, Kylie?"

"I think she thinks Burnett is trying to hurt me."

"Tell her to leave," Holiday insisted.

"Jane, you're going to have to go."

But Jane wasn't listening.

Burnett took another step closer to Kylie. Jane screamed and then jammed her hand inside his chest. Not only could Kylie see Jane's hand, she saw the inside of Burnett's chest. And she watched in horror as Jane's hand closed around Burnett's heart.

"No!" Kylie screamed.

Burnett's gaze shot to Holiday. He reached for his chest.

"Stop it!" Kylie said.

Burnett dropped to the floor in a dead thud.