Finally, she heard her family moving through the building. She held her eyes in the light until the others were close. Before they reached the doorway, though, she held the sobbing boy to the light and examined his eyes. She knew they were watching her.
For a brief moment, she wondered if she should come clean. It was probably the right thing to do but she didn’t feel like she was a danger to anyone and didn’t think they’d understand.
Braxton narrowed his eyes at the hole in the wall. “What was the point of that? You should have brought him down.”
Lexi passed the child to Maggie. “I think he’s okay. I’m sure his parents will be relieved to get him back.” She waited until the girl had headed down before she turned to Braxton. “I thought I might have to…you know. I didn’t want to do it in front of Maggie.”
She waved her hand in front of her face like the dust was bothering her. For added effect, she coughed and looked at Braxton and Isaac. “Are you going to check me so I can get out of here?”
Braxton sighed. “You look okay. Head out.”
Relieved, she walked along the hallway. When she reached the top of the stairs, she heard Braxton say her name. Her brain, sped up with the vamp blood, told her it was too quiet for her to have heard. He was testing her. She didn’t even break her stride. Several steps down, she heard him exhale with relief.
Isaac sighed. “Thank God.”
Lexi looked out of the window of their SUV into the bright daylight. They mustn’t see my eyes. She reached for her ring but stopped herself when she remembered it was a nervous tell.
The car rolled into the garage and she decided the safest bet was to get into her bedroom as fast as possible. She had taken only two steps toward the door when Braxton called, “Lexi, it’s your turn to clear the car.”
The others headed in and she raced through the trunk and the back of the car, clearing weapons and storing them in the lockable cupboards in the garage.
She moved into the front of the vehicle and her gaze froze on Braxton’s handheld UV light. Instinctively, she glanced at the house door. All clear. She snatched the little device before she crouched on the far side of the vehicle with her back against the door.
Lexi took two breaths and flicked the switch. Her hand flew into her mouth and she bit down. It was like having her eyes burned by the sun. Tears ran down her face as she forced herself to stare into the purple light. After a minute, she heard the house door open and switched off the UV device before she shoved it into her pocket.
“Lexi?” It was Maggie.
She wiped her eyes. “I’m here. I lost a shuriken under the car.” She stood and blew on it as though it was dusty.
The other girl shook her head. “What do you want for breakfast?”
As calmly as she could, she locked the car and joined Maggie at the door. She started to fake a yawn, but it turned into a real one. “You can eat? I’m going to bed.”
Her Kindred sister deepened her voice like Braxton. “Not until you’ve completed your report, young lady.”
Lexi headed to her bedroom. She put music on, pulled her laptop out, and began to write her report. She printed off the one from earlier in the day and one for the rescued kid, leaned back, and smiled. There was a considerable amount of killing in her job but very little rescuing of toddlers. She felt good and knew she wouldn’t need to be counseled. Her kill was justified.
Every few minutes, she pulled the UV light out and stared into it. It was uncomfortable but bearable.
Maybe the blood’s effect is wearing off.
She pulled the sheets from the printer and found a pen to sign them with. It crushed in her hand.
Okay, maybe it’s not quite worn off yet.
It was a bitter-sweet feeling. As a legacy, this was how strong she was supposed to be—like Isaac and Braxton. She climbed into bed and went to sleep.
A knock woke her. “Lexi, lunch is ready. It’s pizza and the counselor’s on his way.”
Lexi’s eyes flew open and shut immediately. “Okay.”
She breathed slowly. The pain made her dizzy and she wanted to vomit.
Keeping her eyes screwed shut, she stumbled out of bed, opened her drapes, and sat facing the window on the side of her bed. Over the space of a few minutes, she opened her eyes gradually to the daylight. No wonder vamps don’t come out in the day.
As she sat there, she wondered why the counselor was coming. Counselor was the name they gave to a mage who removed difficult memories from Kindreds. Neither of the jobs they’d been on had been traumatic, so they couldn’t be coming for that. Her fear was in the other part of their role. They could also perform extractions, which was the name they gave to looking at someone’s memories. If she was given an extraction, they’d know she’d been tainted. She thought back to the conversation she’d had with Braxton the day before when she asked what happened when people were contaminated. You don’t want to know.
After a deep breath, she wiped tears from her cheeks, picked her reports up, and made her way to the open-plan living space. Two folders rested on the breakfast bar. She checked the labels and added the correct report to each folder. That done, she wandered to the dining table and snagged a garlic-dough ball from the middle of the table before she sat.
Isaac
