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Knowing her nearness was e of the bed “What are we going to do about the body?”

“I’ll take care of it,” he said, his voice terse

“Should I call the police? I could tell them he attacked me and I shot him in self-defense”

Rane shook his head “No I’ll take care of it”

She nodded, thinking it was too bad that Werewolves didn’t just vanish in a puff of smoke and ash, the way old Vampires did

“The sun,” she said “You could have died out there” Had the day been brighter, had there been no cover over the patio…It sickened her to think about what could have happened to him, and all because she had ht?”

“Stop worrying” He glanced at the bed “I need to rest until dark, and then I’ll be going out for a while”

His words pierced her heart like a dagger She knehy he was going out He needed to feed She kneas necessary, kneas foolish to envy whoever he chose to drink from, but she couldn’t help it, and with that jealousy came concern for his prey Rane needed blood, a lot of blood, and he couldn’t take any more fro mortal, which would most likely leave his prey dead, or would he drink frohts tugging at her ed so dramatically, that in only a few short weeks, her world had turned upside down and her once ordinary life was now anything but ordinary The world as she had known it no longer existed; the cocoon her father had wrapped her in had burst with the knowledge that her mother and father had been Va was the fact that she had fallen head-over-heels in love with a Vaet any more bizarre?

Clad in black fro with every move he er and pain made him impatient; the fact that the streets were virtually eer He understood why Mara made her lair in this quiet part of the world, but at the moment he wished they were in her horants and winos on the back streets of Los Angeles Had he been stronger, he would have transported himself to a city, but the loss of blood, co out in the sun, had under the Werewolf’s body out of the backyard and carrying it up to the top of the mountains hadn’t helped any He had dumped the Werewolf’s remains in a deep ravine where it was unlikely to be found, and if it was discovered at so on the body to connect it to Savanah or hihtclub on the corner of the town’s main street He had hoped to find a transient, someone ouldn’t be e to kill, but the streets were e

The club was dark inside A lone couple danced in a far corner, their bodies pressed so closely together, it was hard to tell where one ended and the other began Threeabout their love lives Tomen shared a table near the front

At the bar, Rane ordered a glass of wine, hoping it would help to ease his thirst though he kneas a vain hope Only blood, and lots of it, would satisfy his hunger and ease his pain this night

Turning, with his back resting against the edge of the counter, he eavesdropped on the women’s conversation Both schoolteachers, they appeared to be in their early thirties They had cole; the brunette recently divorced Both were childless Rane grunted softly That was good There would be no husbands or children to hts to the tomen, the redhead first and then the brunette When they looked in his direction, he pushed away from the bar and headed for the door, confident that they would follow

Outside, he linked his arms with theirs and walked down the street until he cas

Certain that no one would intrude, he admonished the brunette to sit down and close her eyes After she had cothen in anticipation He hadn’tso now filled him with exhilaration The first taste was like aue This hat he hat he had always been Why had he denied hier to take it all—her hopes, her dreams, her ined Savanah was there, watching him, her eyes filled with sorrow as he surrendered to the darkness within him

With a cry of despair, he put the redhead away fro several deep breaths, he commanded her to sit down and rest her head on her knees and then, with rabbed hold of the brunette and yanked her to her feet

He drank quickly, his enjoyuilt rose up in its place He drank as htclub At the bar, he ordered thee juice and bid the the to eat, preferably a steak When he was certain they understood, he stalked out of the club and into the night

Outside, his hands clenched against his sides, he drew in a deep breath Eager for a fight, needing an outlet for his anger, he turned into the wind, hoping to catch the scent of a Werewolf or soh it was doubtful that, in his current condition, he would survive such an encounter But the air carried only the sh he kneas little ined he detected the o in front of the hearth when he returned to Mara’s place She didn’t move, didn’t say a word, but the question was there, unspoken, in the air between theaze for several tautat me like that! I didn’t kill anyone”

Her relief was patently obvious and only served toan oath, he stalked out of the rooh, he sank down on the edge of the bed In spite of the blood he had taken, he was still weak, his wounds still painful