“It’s daylight,” I warned. “You’ll burn to a crisp.”
The vampire was stoic. “I won’t betray her. You do what you have to do.”
“Ugh.” I was honestly tempted to throw back the curtain. The only thing stopping me was the vampire’s unflappable loyalty to the girl. If he loved her enough to sacrifice himself for her, odds were she also loved him. If the girl’s parents were dead, which sounded like a possibility given the way the vampire was protecting her, he might very well be her only anchor in what would turn into a brutal world. I couldn’t risk killing him.
Before I could decide on my next threat, there was a loud rap at the front door. Surprised, I glanced in that direction. “Who the heck is visiting us this early?”
Gunner shrugged. “That’s a very good question.” He left his mug on the counter and headed toward the door. “Stay here.”
The vampire had gone rigid in his chair, to the point where the hair on the back of my neck was standing on end. “Wait,” I called out to Gunner. It was already too late. I heard the front door open, and then a terrific ruckus as something slammed into the wall.
I raced to the hallway and found Gunner on the floor, dazed. Standing in front of the open doorway was a familiar sight. It was the girl, her hands raised and glowing, and she looked ticked off.
“I’ll take my vampire now,” she announced in a calm voice.
“Your vampire?” Honestly, I would have laughed under different circumstances. She, however, was completely serious.
Behind me, the vampire in question began struggling. “Sami, you need to get out of here!”
“Rafael!” Sami shifted from one foot to the other, her relief palpable. When she turned back to me, there was a glint of determination in her eyes. “Get out of my way.” She sounded deadly and yet I didn’t miss the reverberating fear rolling through her.
“Listen, Sami, I think we got off on the wrong foot,” I started, darting a look at Gunner. He was clearly okay, although whatever the kid had hit him with was hard enough to ring his bell. “I think we should call a truce and talk about this.”
“I can’t.” The kid almost looked apologetic. “I need my vampire.”
As if on cue, a ripping sound tore through the room behind me. The vampire had somehow managed to rip through his restraints and was racing through the hallway.
My instincts kicked in. “Don’t!” I tried to step in front of him, stop him from facing death by the sun, but he barreled through me as if I was nothing, knocking me into the wall.
I watched in abject fascination as he caught the girl around the waist and lifted her, stepping directly beneath the sun and hugging her tight. The thing is, he didn’t burst into flames. Rather he looked perfectly fine as he searched the girl’s face.
“Are you okay?” He ran his fingers down the girl’s tear-streaked cheek. “Nobody hurt you, did they?”
She shook her head, tears choking her reply. “I want to go home.”
“Soon,” he promised. “We have to find your parents first.”
Officially dumbfounded, I regained my feet. “Hold it right there.” When I extended a warning finger in the girl’s direction she tensed and looked as if she was about to unleash a bolt of defiant energy. “Don’t. I’ve been very careful not to use my magic on you, or your friend, who really should be a pile of ash about now. We don’t want to hurt you.”
The vampire looked conflicted.
“Rafael, right?” I addressed the vampire. “That’s what she called you. And you’re Sami.” I gave the girl my friendliest smile. “Well, Rafael and Sami, my name is Scout Randall. This is Gunner Stratton. We’re members of the Spells Angels, if that means anything to you.”
“Spells Angels?” Sami brightened considerably. “They’re the ones Mom and Dad were looking for!”
“Shh,” Rafael admonished her. She was a teenager and yet he kept his arm wrapped around her as if she were a five-year-old. “We don’t know they’re really who they say they are.”
“We don’t know who you are at all,” I pointed out. “This is a leap of faith for all of us.”
“More for us,” Rafael insisted.
“And yet you’re a vampire who can walk in the sun and she’s a girl who obviously has a heckuva lot of magic at her disposal. You can protect yourselves. We only want to help.” I forged ahead. “Look, that kid has been out on her own all night. She’s probably exhausted and hungry. We can fix at least one of those issues.”
“I am hungry,” Sami admitted, her imploring gaze regarding her protector. “It was freaky being in the woods all night. Can’t we just take a breath? Maybe they have a phone so I can call Mom.”
“I have a phone,” I told her. “You can call whomever you want.”
Rafael remained conflicted. “We’ll sit on the front porch,” he said finally. “Sami will use your phone to call her parents. You will feed her, but only after I’ve ascertained you’re not trying to poison her.”
That made me laugh. “I’m a terrible cook. You might think I’m trying to poison her regardless.” I leaned over and helped Gunner to his feet. “I agree to your terms.”
“Fine.” Rafael was a grumbling mess as he carried Sami to the chairs on the porch. He positioned her in the one farthest away from Gunner and me as we stepped out onto the porch to join them. Everyone was leery, which was to be expected. “I need a moment with her.” He shot me a pointed glare then focused on the girl. “Are you hurt anywhere? Does anything ache?”
“I’m fine,” Sami assured him, looking none the worse for wear. “I didn’t even see any other vampires in the woods last night. I think those were the only ones. You know what that means, right?”
Rafael nodded. “Your parents eliminated the others. I knew that would happen. I told you everything would be
