Fangs For The Memories. Kathy Love
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Название: Fangs For The Memories
Автор: Kathy Love
Издательство: Ingram
Жанр: Эротическая литература
isbn: 9780758250803
isbn:
She unbuttoned her blazer and dropped it on the bed. She kicked off her pumps and padded into the bathroom. She needed a hot shower. Maybe that would make her feel more normal.
She turned on the water, then crossed to the mirror over the sink. Just as with everything else in the room, it was old and discolored. But Jane could see herself well enough.
Her lower lip appeared a little swollen from being kissed so roughly. Her complexion was paler than usual, but overall, she looked relatively unscathed.
She patted her ruffled hair and felt a twinge of pain on the back of her head. She gently fingered the spot and found a small lump there, probably where her head had hit the concrete wall when that jerk had choked her. Not bad, though. It certainly could have been a lot worse.
She started to unbutton her blouse and noticed redness around her throat. She pulled back her collar, examining it closer. Mostly just irritation, it probably wouldn’t even bruise.
She finished undoing her shirt and tossed it out onto the bed with her blazer. The mark had probably been made by the chain of her necklace being ground into her skin as he’d throttled her.
She tested the shower’s water temperature, when she stopped. She returned to the mirror, wiping the steam off the glass.
Her necklace was gone.
“Oh, no.” She touched her neck as if the gold chain had to still be there, and she just couldn’t see it. No, it was gone.
She sat down on the closed toilet seat. Tears filled her eyes. This was truly the last straw of an awful, awful day. The necklace held the wedding rings of her parents, and she wore it always—a small way to keep her parents close to her.
The chain must have broken when that man was strangling her. She ran out to look around the bed, hoping the chain had gotten stuck in her clothing. Nothing. No necklace. No rings.
She checked the bathroom mirror again, examining her neck. The marks definitely looked like abrasion created by a chain.
It had to have fallen off between here and the bar.
She debated for a minute. She should wait until morning, then go search. But if the rings fell off on the sidewalk, anyone could find them between now and then.
She couldn’t wait. She didn’t want to ever go near that bar again, but she had to. She had to find those rings.
She turned off the shower and hurried to throw back on her blouse and blazer. She added her heavy winter coat and sneakers.
She unlatched the chain lock, then paused. What if Joey was still hanging around the bar?
She rushed to the bathroom and dug through her toiletry bag. Finding a travel-size aerosol hair spray, she shoved the can in her coat pocket. It wasn’t mace, but she’d bet it would work in a pinch.
Rhys walked into the dark alley. The coward was still there. Still unconscious. He hoped he could rouse him, because he wanted that asshole to experience the same fear Jane had. Except no one was going to save him.
Rhys found him exactly where he’d dropped him. He hadn’t even changed positions. Rhys leaned over to capture the inert man by the jacket, when a flash on the ground caught his attention. He released the man and reached past his shoulder to pick up the sparkling item. It was a delicate gold chain. The clasp was broken, but two rings still dangled from the thin metal.
The gold was warm in his hand. He lifted it up to his nose, already knowing what he would discover. The necklace belonged to Jane. He could smell her, and he had no idea how or why, but the touch of the inanimate object warmed him, literally to the bone, as though she was hugging him.
He stared at the rings in his palm for a moment. Was she married? Had she been married? What would it be like to have someone that sweet, that lovely, in his life every day?
He ground his teeth. Stop! There was no point. No point wondering. But he shoved the necklace in his jacket pocket anyway.
He returned his attention to the lifeless man. He grasped him and lifted him fully off the ground. He shook him like a rag doll, and the man groaned to life.
Joey was disoriented for only a moment. Then he saw Rhys. His eyes bulged, and he opened his mouth to speak, or more likely scream.
Rhys shifted himself around and slammed the man hard against the concrete wall. The man moaned.
“How does it feel to get a taste of your own medicine, my friend?”
“Wh-what are you?”
Rhys smiled, knowing the wide curl of his lips would fully reveal his two long, very sharp canines. “I’m the one who is going to speed up your arrival in hell.”
Rhys yanked Joey to him and sank his teeth deep into the ex-convict’s neck. Blood coursed through Rhys, but he didn’t taste it, didn’t savor it. He thought about Jane’s sweet scent and those innocent green eyes. He thought about the tenderness of her touch. And he thought about his desire for her.
The coward struggled for only a few seconds, then fell limp.
Rhys didn’t kill the mortals he fed from. Even though he used only the dishonest and depraved as his food source, he didn’t believe he, a beast himself, had the right to act as their judge and jury.
Tonight, he planned to let that belief slip his mind.
But at the last moment, when the man’s heart would cease to beat, he pulled away. As full of rage as he was at this man, who dared to injure someone as true and kind as Jane, he couldn’t kill him.
He dropped the coward to the ground and stepped back from him. Rhys wiped the back of his hand across his mouth, disgusted with the man, disgusted with himself.
“My, my, my. Isn’t this a scene?”
The smooth, cultured voice startled Rhys. He spun around. Only a vampire could sneak up on another vampire.
“Hello, Rhys.”
Rhys didn’t speak for a moment. He couldn’t. Shock mingled with the warmth of the blood in his veins.
“Christian?” He knew he was looking at his brother, but he couldn’t believe it. He hadn’t seen his middle brother in—over a hundred years.
“Yes.”
Rhys started to cross to him, to pull him into a fierce hug, but his brother’s words stopped him.
“You still can’t kill, can you? At least not a pathetic mortal.”
Rhys frowned, letting his arms fall loosely to his sides. “What?”
Christian strolled to the once more unconscious man. He peered down at him with a slight grimace tugging at his lips, then turned back to Rhys.
“I just came to tell you, and I’m sure you will be pleased, Lilah is well and truly dead.”
Rhys СКАЧАТЬ