"Are you going to… to… " She couldn't say the words.
"Just as soon as I find him."
"Well, that shouldn't be too hard. He's right out there!"
"He's probably long gone by now. Besides, hunting vampires after dark is a risky business. I prefer to do it when the sun's up."
"Do you know where he stays during the day?"
"No, but I'll find him. It's just a matter of time."
"Yes, time," she murmured, and hoped that Tom found the vampire before the vampire found her.
"Don't worry. I'll get him." Duncan squeezed her hand. "Do you want to leave?"
Was he crazy? The way she felt right now, she wasn't leaving this place until the sun was up. "No."
Tom regarded her for a moment, then picked up his knife and fork and began to eat his dinner.
Blowing out a breath, Vicki speared one of the shrimp on her plate, thinking that if this was going to be her last meal, at least it would be a good one.
When they finished dinner, Tom asked if she would like to take a walk, but Vicki shook her head. She was never going to feel safe out on the streets after dark again, not as long as that fiend was somewhere out there.
"Let's go back to my place for dessert," she suggested. "I made a cake today."
"Sounds good to me."
Unable to help herself, she kept looking over her shoulder on the drive home.
"Relax," Duncan said. "No one's going to hurt you while I'm around."
She nodded, but all the while a little voice in her head wondered who was going to protect her when he wasn't around. The thought had barely formed when Battista's image rose in her mind.
They reached her house a few minutes later. She unlocked the door and turned on the lights. Maybe vampires couldn't cross a threshold uninvited, but she was still glad that she didn't have to go into the house alone.
She gestured at the sofa. "Make yourself at home. Would you like a cup of coffee with your cake?"
"I'd rather have milk, if you've got some."
"Sure."
Going into the kitchen, she pulled a couple of dessert plates and two glasses from the cupboard. She cut a generous slice of cake for Tom, a smaller one for herself, filled two glasses with milk, and put everything on array.
She had just opened the silverware drawer to get a couple of forks when the hair prickled along the back of her neck. Her heart pounded heavily in her chest as she tried to resist the urge to look out the window in the top half of the back door. Knowing what she would see and yet unable to resist, she slowly turned her head.
He was there, staring back at her, his yellow eyes glowing like a cat's in the dark. His lips moved and even though she couldn't hear the words, she knew he was calling to her. Her feet felt like lead as she took a step toward the back door, and then another.
He smiled, displaying even white teeth.
The sight jerked her out of whatever spell he had cast upon her. With a cry, she whirled around and ran into the living room.
Duncan sprang to his feet as she burst into the room. "What is it?"
She pointed a shaky finger over her shoulder. "There! He's out there!"
Tom didn't have to ask who she was talking about. "Stay here," he said curtly. "Lock the door behind me."
"Don't go!"
His gaze met hers. "It's what I do," he said, and then he was gone.
Vicki locked the door behind him, then ran through the house, making sure all the doors and windows were locked, the curtains drawn.
What was Tom doing out there? Hadn't he told her not an hour ago that he didn't hunt vampires at night?
Turning on the back porch light, she looked out the window, eyes and ears straining to see or hear something that would tell her what was going on. Was the vampire still out there? At first, she heard nothing, then the sound of running footsteps, a crash, a curse, and then silence.
She pressed her hand to her heart. Oh, Lord, had the vampire killed Tom?
She jumped when she heard a knock at the front door. "Who… Who is it?"
"Open the door, my sweet one."
"Antonio?" Switching on the porch light, she peered through the narrow window beside the door, murmured, "Oh, my," when she saw him standing there holding Tom in his arms.
"Come in!" She quickly unlocked the door and just as quickly locked it behind him.
"What happened?"
"This idiot went after Falco."
Vicki stared up at Battista. "You know Falco? Are you a hunter, too?"
"A hunter?"
"You know, a vampire hunter. That's what Tom is." Only after she'd said the words aloud did she realize how foolish they sounded. No doubt Battista would think her mad.
She waited for him to laugh at her, to tell her how foolish she was to believe in such things.
But he didn't laugh. "No," he said. "I am not a hunter."
"You don't think I'm crazy? For believing in vampires?"
"No."
"So… You believe in them, too?"
He nodded, his expression grim.
Vicki stared at him, speechless.
Battista looked down at Duncan. "Where shall I put him?"
"What? Oh, on the sofa, I guess."
With a nod, he relieved himself of his burden.
"Is he badly hurt?"
Antonio shrugged. "Hurt? He is lucky to be alive."
Vicki studied Battista for a moment. He was dressed impeccably in black, as usual. His hair was windblown, his deep blue eyes almost luminous. "What are you doing here, anyway?"
His gaze caught and held hers. Heat flowed between them like a thread of invisible fire.
She pressed a hand to her heart, wondering why it was suddenly hard to breathe.
Though no words were spoken, she knew in the deepest part of her being that he was there to protect her, that he would be there to defend her until the monster who was stalking her was captured or killed.
"That's very gallant of you," she murmured, and then realized he probably had no idea what she was talking about. Thinking of Antonio as her knight in shining armor was no more than wishful thinking on her part.
A slow smile curved his lips. "I will not let you down, my sweet one."
She blinked at him. Was he reading her mind? Had she read his?
A low groan from the direction of the sofa drew her attention. Looking past Battista, she saw Tom sitting up, his head cradled in his hands.
She hurried to his side. "Are you all right?"
"Yeah. I almost had him."
Sitting beside Duncan on the sofa, she combed her fingers lightly through his hair. He let out a yelp when her hand brushed against the large bump on the back of his head.