Knowing he wasn’t going to confess any more than he had last night, she stepped out from under his hands. “I’m ready.”
“Good. Let’s go,” he chirped, drawing her toward the door.
Derrick’s trek away from the city surprised Kris. She’d assumed his family—as he continually referred to them—all lived nearby. Instead, they drove north then headed west on 495 toward the city of Harvard. She’d been through Harvard a few times. It was a quaint, but beautiful town. They passed the town hall on their route, and Kris couldn’t help but giggle. It looked as though someone had torn the building out of a Norman Rockwell painting and planted it on the main thoroughfare next to the general store and fire department.
With its whitewashed exterior, front porch, and even a crow’s nest on the roof, Kris wanted to pull out her charcoal and tablet and draw for the first time in years. Several apple orchards and farms with riding stables lent a down-home feel to the small town. It was hard to believe such a place existed so close to Boston.
About a half an hour after they’d left his apartment, they turned north again. After several miles of rolling hills, he finally turned onto a dead-end street as indicated by the no-outlet sign. They passed six chalet-style houses on large plots of land. When he reached the end of the road, he turned off to the left, traveling down a gravel driveway. Derrick finally pulled to a stop in front of another tri-level house, nestled between several species of evergreens. A large barn sat off in the distance adjacent to what looked to be a vacant vegetable garden.
Kris lowered her head, gazing out the window to absorb everything. “This place is enormous. Whose house is this?”
“My parents,” Derrick said simply, opening his door and hopping out of the vehicle.
Her heart thrummed in her chest, her earlier nervousness returning, only worse than it had been as she was now here.
Derrick opened her door and took her hand. “It’s okay, Kristina. No one’s going to bite you.”
“Are you sure?” she fretted, gnawing on her bottom lip. “Maybe we should just go. Give them a few years to get used to the idea of us being together.”
He stepped in front of her, lowering his head to her eye level. “Everything will be fine. You’re strong, independent, and feisty. Feel free to be yourself. Don’t let them scare you, especially Vic.”
“Who’s Vic?”
Derrick kissed her quickly, then taking her hand, pulled her into the house. He opened the door and stepped inside. The area they walked into was a den of some sort, with an older, seventies’ style brown sofa and console television. Derrick walked through that area and up a small flight of stairs, passing a hallway leading to several rooms. When they reached the first landing, Kris could see another living area off to their right, only more modern than the room below them. Derrick ignored that area too and walked out a door leading outside again.
As soon as they stepped onto the porch, Kris saw a hundred or so people—creatus, standing in loose circles. Everyone stopped to look—and glare—but then, other than one group of four people, most went back to their subdued conversations, as if not the least bit concerned. She released a short breath of relief as Derrick took her hand and led her down the steps. Her previous nervousness started to melt away at the warmth of his hand wrapped around hers. He wasn’t embarrassed of her, so what was the worst thing that could happen. Even if his brother or parents didn’t approve, it didn’t mean he’d leave her. He had said he’d never leave her and he’d never let anyone take her away. So she had no reason to fret about losing another person in her life.
Derrick made his way to the smaller group, but the entire time they approached, a woman shook her head, her beautiful face contorting with every step they neared. Her hair was long and raven black. Her features, like Derrick’s, were striking, and Kris realized immediately where the myth of Wonder Woman must have begun. She, along with most of the other women, looked like Amazons, tall and utterly beautiful. Kris hoped that she was a sister Derrick had failed to mention. Because if this woman had a romantic interest in Derrick, she might just kill Kris on the spot by the look of things.
The Amazon took a step forward. “I can’t believe you’d bring that tramp—”
“Victoria!” Derrick barked, causing Kris to cringe behind him. So much for being strong and feisty.
A man standing next to the woman patted her arm, whispering something Kris couldn’t hear.
Victoria’s lips drew back, and if Kris wasn’t mistaken, she growled. “You bitch!”
The man, who Kris noticed looked more like Derrick than any other of the men around her, clamped his arms around the woman, and Derrick rushed them, taking the woman’s other arm. Both men dragged the woman away, kicking and screaming obscenities, before Kris could even blink. Kris stood there with tears stinging her eyes, wanting just to seep into the ground. What had she done? She didn’t even know the woman. A chill started at the base of her neck and rushed through her body, immediately making her shiver. Wrapping her arms around her body, she attempted to calm her nerves before she bolted up the stairs to the safety of the Navigator.
An older woman with lighter hair than the rest approached and Kris quivered, knowing Derrick wouldn’t be able to protect her. “It’s okay, Kristina.” The woman wrapped her arms around her shoulders. Her warm chocolate eyes instantly soothed Kris, making her feel as though she were gazing into Derrick’s eyes. Her features were soft and round, nothing like the other women now gawking at the commotion she’d caused. “Welcome to the family, honey. Vic will get over it; she doesn’t have a choice and she knows it.”
Kris gazed up into the kind woman’s eyes, noticing there was something different about her. Though Derrick had said there was no way to tell, every one of the persons around her looked as though they were related to one another, other than this woman. “You’re human, aren’t you?”
“Yes. I’m Sabrina. Derrick’s mother.”
Chapter Eleven
“What is wrong with you, Vic?” Derrick roared, wondering if it was safe to release his grip on her arm. “Was that you last night? Huh? You think you can scare her away?”
Victoria lifted her head, ignoring his question. Tears trailed down her cheeks. “I loved you, Derrick. How could you?”
He closed his eyes to break off the pain of her declaration. He’d always known that she loved him, and he loved her too, but they’d never be anything more than friends. Well, maybe not anymore, which made his heart hurt for her. She’d always be his confidant; he’d hate to lose her friendship. “You know I tried. We both tried. I’ve been trying for fourteen years. It wasn’t ever going to happen, Vic. You know that.”
She dropped her head to her hands, and Michael patted her shoulder. Sometimes Derrick wished she would just leave. He had a feeling that if he could have fallen for her, she would have instantly reciprocated. It was his hang-up, he knew; his love for Kristina wouldn’t allow it to happen.
“I’ll stay with her,” Michael said. “Go take care of your woman. She’s probably scared to death.”
Derrick stared at his brother in disbelief. Again, Michael’s actions baffled him. Even though they had a human mother, he’d never hidden his distaste for humans. Even their mother knew how Michael felt. Michael knew if the military ever found out about the creatus, especially him and Derrick, they’d use them as guinea pigs. He and Derrick were an anomaly among the group, but no one dared mess with them. As strong as the creatus were, they were stronger. For some reason, a human and a creatus didn’t make a half-anything. Derrick and Michael were twice as strong as their full-bred cousins were. Neither his grandfather nor his father could explain or come up with any rational explanation, even with their combined medical expertise.
Derrick glanced at Victoria, feeling horrible, but he had no choice. He was in love with Kristina, and he finally understood that he’d been in love with her for the last few years, the reason he could never fall for another woman.
As if she’d read his mind, Vic’s eyes smoldered with hatred. “How could you? You’re supposed to protect us. As the overseer, you’re supposed to keep the humans away, not bring them inside.”
He narrowed his eyes. “Careful, Victoria. My mother happens to be one of those humans.”
“Your mother’s not a drunk!”
Derrick sprang across the barn floor, landing in front of her, fuming. “Back off.”
Michael bounded between them, both hands held at arm’s length. He turned to address Victoria, “Vic, he’s fallen. End of story. Nothing you can say or do will change that. You need to set your sights on someone else for once.”
