The Complete Midnight Fire Series Page 32

  "Kira?" Luke asked.

  "Hmm?" She looked over at him, distracted enough to force her questions away again.

  "What's up? I just made an awesome joke, and I didn't even get a laugh out of you. You okay?"

  "Maybe she just didn't think it was funny," Tristan said under his breath.

  "Eh, not possible," Luke responded cavalierly.

  "I didn't think it was funny." Tristan shrugged.

  "Yes, but you're more than a hundred and fifty years old. You still think knock-knock jokes are funny. Kira and I, on the other hand, have a more modern sense of humor."

  "Knock-knock jokes, huh?" Tristan questioned, egging Luke on.

  He took the bait. "What, still too twenty-first century for you?"

  "No, I just have a good one, come to think of it." Luke rolled his eyes in the rearview mirror, glancing sidelong at Kira in the process.

  "What's your joke?" Kira asked, slightly nervous for what was about to happen. Her palms started to sweat a little.

  "Knock-knock," Tristan said, a smirk starting to gather on his face. Kira caught the mischievous glint that always appeared in the corner of his eye when he was about to do something troublesome.

  "Who's there?" Luke asked.

  "My fist."

  "My fist who?"

  "Don't you get it?" Tristan asked, full-on grinning at this point, with dimples puckering on his cheeks. "I just metaphorically punched you in the face."

  "Tristan!" Kira tried to reprimand him. But he caught the twitch of her lips. It was only there for an instant, but Kira knew any chance of lecturing him on treating Luke nicely was over for the time being. She couldn't help it though—the joke was funny!

  "Yes, well," Luke retorted, "clearly we're just on totally different wavelengths because I didn't find that funny at all. That shirt, however, is hilarious." He looked pointedly at the adorable puppy on Tristan's chest.

  Kira rolled her eyes and pushed the radio on with her toe, too lazy to sit up and do it.

  "Hey, watch your feet. This is a nice car." Luke slapped her foot away and fussed with the radio until he found a station to stop on.

  "Whatever, I'm going to sleep," Kira said and rolled over, turning her back on both boys and reclining her seat the rest of the way. If there was anything her new, slightly insane, life taught her, it was sleep whenever you got the chance because you never knew when a vampire was going to come along and try to flip your car over.

  Tristan put his feet up and stretched them between the front seats. His hand appeared next to her face, and she reached hers up to clasp it. It was cool to the touch, but Kira had gotten used to the sensation. The freeze balanced out her normally scorching temperature.

  Maybe this will be good for them, Kira thought hopefully. In Charleston, Tristan and Luke barely spent any time together. Luke could run off with Dave or Miles while Kira hung out with Tristan, and Tristan could easily disappear whenever he wanted to. Unless there were big school functions, like graduation or senior beach day, the two of them stayed pretty far apart. Come to think of it, even at those functions, they kept their talks down to grunted hellos and forced pleasantries. If they were both her best friends, then it only made sense that they were similar enough to like each other.

  She squeezed Tristan's hand and he reciprocated. Too tired to turn around again, she pictured his relaxed face as it leaned against the back of the seat. He was always the first to wake up when he snuck in and spent the night. Tristan always blamed it on his heightened vampire senses—he always knew when her heart was speeding up to wakefulness. But Kira liked to think that he just enjoyed watching her sleep. Not in a creepy way, just for the few moments before she woke up—the few moments where her face was completely free of worried stress lines, and she was undeniably safe in his care. In all of his drawings, she looked so happy and at peace, and Kira guessed she only looked that calm asleep.

  But that wouldn't happen this time because when she woke up tomorrow it would be all business. And well, she thought of the two men next to her, playing referee.

  Chapter Ten

  At the sound of loudening voices, Kira's eyes fluttered open. Bright light stung her pupils, so she instinctively closed her lids again. Upon hearing her name, Kira made sure to keep them shut. Conscious of her quickening breath, Kira counted to four and breathed out, held it, then counted to four while breathing in—a meditation exercise Luke had taught her. She wanted to hear what the boys were saying without Tristan picking up on her quickening pulse. It wasn't like eavesdropping was illegal or anything.

  "Oh, come on, Luke!" Tristan said with frustration evident in his tone. His voice came from the front seat, and Kira realized he was driving now. She must have slept through the last rest stop.

  "What?" Luke responded, feigning ignorance.

  "Just admit it, will you?"

  "I told you, I'm here to keep her safe. Nothing more."

  "We both know Kira can hold her own in a fight."

  "Maybe that's not what I'm keeping her safe from." Luke said in an accusatory voice.

  Tristan laughed darkly under his breath. "From what, me? Do you honestly think Kira would still be with me if she was at all afraid of me? She's stronger than that. Just admit you're here to try and win her over."

  "Why? Are you threatened?" Luke asked, and Kira could hear the slight strain of hope in his voice. He was trying to be tough, but it wasn't in him to be intimidating. He was too good-natured.

  "Kira and I share something you'll never understand. We're both outcasts, and as much as I hate to admit it, we're both beings that sound bad on paper but strive to be good," Tristan said sadly.

  "Are we talking about the same person here?" Luke asked incredulously.

  "Come on, a vampire that needs blood to survive? Evil. But add a soul and the line isn't so clear—not good, but not evil either. Mixed-blood conduit that could mean the end of the world as we know it? Not good. But add Kira's will and heart and strength, and it becomes far more complicated." Tristan paused, trying to find the correct words. Kira hung on his breath like a lifeline, wondering whether the sentence that followed would push her off the edge or carry her to safety. "We both know what it's like to not fit in, to strive to change the destiny that's been set for us. Kira means everything to me because she gets it and she's the only one who ever has. You look at me and see a vampire, but she looks at me and sees a person."

  Kira couldn't contain the smile that widened her lips, but thankfully, she was still turned away from them so neither boy noticed. Conduits look at me and see something dangerous, she wanted to say, but you look at me and see something beautiful. She couldn't help the sense of warmth blossoming in her chest, but Kira tried to still her emotions. She wasn't ready for the eavesdropping to be over. It was just getting interesting.

  "Yeah, well, I happen to think Kira and I share something special too, something you'll never understand. Mortality, for one. And, how about a penchant for home-cooked meals? She does want to be a chef, you know. Pretty hard to test out new recipes with a boyfriend who can't eat food."

  All the bitterness Luke never showed her was starting to seep out. He tried so hard to be the happy-go-lucky best friend who could always cheer her up, which she loved, but she wished he wouldn't keep so much inside. Sometimes, it was all right to be real and emotional.

  And then the tone of his voice changed. Kira sensed that something inside of him was finally letting go.

  "We'd be happy, Kira and me. I know you make her happy, but I would too. We're always laughing, and together we can make any situation a good one. I may not be alone in the world, but that's only part of what she is. The other part is all fire and that's something you'll never understand, Tristan."

  But Kira understood. As much as she wanted to deny it, his words rang true. A sense of peace and pride leaked into her mind, bubbling over from Luke's head into her own. For the first time in a long time, Kira knew he was speaking from the heart. Part of her wished she could turn he
r ears off, but the strength of Luke's conviction kept her from blocking him out.

  "She doesn't have to worry about being in control around me," he kept going, impassioned by Tristan's lack of retort, "because I'll always be there to ground her. You might be Kira's boyfriend, but I'm her other half. I'm her rock. When she goes into that dark place inside herself, you need to run in the other direction to save your own life, but I can run toward her to bring her back home. And that's what I meant by keeping her safe. Not from vampires and not from you, but from herself. Now you admit it, Tristan. Admit that I'm the only person who can do that."

  The silence in the car was deafening, and it cut like a knife piercing Kira's heart. Tristan would never admit that he agreed with Luke, but his lack of response was all anyone needed to hear. She loved him, really loved him, but Luke's words were undeniable.

  She wanted to reach out for his hand and tell him she didn't care, that she didn't need Tristan to save her. All she needed was more control, and she would get that and they could be together. It would all work out—Kira had to believe it. Tristan was too important to her, and their future together was too important to just drop without a fight.

  She wanted to say all of those things, but instead Kira let her pulse race and turned over with a sleepy groan.

  "She's waking up," Tristan said just to say something—just to keep Luke from having the last word.

  Kira let her eyes open and played dumb. "Talking about anything interesting?" she asked, fooling herself with the scratchy, sleepy pitch.

  "Just your obnoxiously loud snoring," Luke said, instantly carefree again. Kira could feel the change in her mind, the thoughts of his she had been trying to ignore just disappeared entirely. Sometimes, she wished she could flip the switch like that. Even now, her mind was running at a mile a minute because of what she had overheard.

  "I do not snore," she said indignantly, playing the part as best she could.

  "My bloodshot, sleep deprived eyes totally disagree with you. Look at them. I look like a creepy zombie or something." Kira looked back and choked on her own breath when she met his eyes. She did not snore, but something must have kept him up all night because he looked like crap.

  Her eyes wandered to Tristan, who, she was happy to see, was still wearing the puppy shirt. He looked slightly defeated with hunched shoulders and a hollow straight-ahead stare. She reached over and entwined their fingers together, comforting him as best she could without giving anything away.

  "So, what's the plan?" Kira asked as a sign that read "Baltimore — 30 miles" flashed by the window.

  "Unfortunately," Tristan started, "I need to leave early to meet with the head vampire in this region. I need permission for a prolonged stay, and I want to question him. It's possible he may have seen Diana recently and could tell us where she is."

  "And where is this guy?" Kira asked.

  "An old plantation, of course. Vampires are nothing if not slightly old-fashioned, but it's only five or ten miles outside of the city."

  "Okay," Kira said reluctantly. "And Luke, what's our plan?"

  "Well," he said, and Kira knew instantly that he was about to say something she didn't want to hear. His voice always sounded slightly sweeter as if needing to sell her on an idea.

  "Spit it out," Kira said with a sigh.

  "I'm going to reach out to the local branch of Protectors to see if they've heard anything."

  "Sounds fun!"

  "Yes, but you can't come."

  "What!" Kira turned around in her seat to stare at him with an open-mouthed expression. "You can't be serious. Why can't I come?"

  "It's full-blood Protectors only. That's just the way it is, I'm sorry."

  "So what am I supposed to do then? Sit in the car and twiddle my thumbs?" Kira glanced from boy to boy, and she had the sneaking suspicion that Tristan was silently communicating with Luke through the rearview mirror.

  "We were hoping you could figure out the hotel situation..." Luke said slowly, trying to gauge her anger as the words came out.

  "Need me to iron your clothes and cook some dinner too?" Kira snapped.

  "That would be awesome," Luke said, jumping out of the way of the punch he had anticipated.

  "Seriously, I feel like I've been transported back to forties. The boys go fighting while the girl stays at home." She sat back and crossed her arms. "This sucks."

  "But we'll both be back later tonight, and hopefully we'll have enough information to start working on a plan," Tristan told her.

  "A plan that I'm part of." It wasn't a question.

  Both boys nodded.

  She placed her feet on the dashboard and settled in for the rest of the car ride. Tristan pulled off of the highway about seven miles outside of the city and swerved through country roads before pulling to a halt outside of a gated estate. He promised to call Kira with updates and then forced them to leave before he notified the vampires of his presence outside.

  Twenty minutes later, Luke directed Kira toward a row house closer to the inner city. To her, it looked more like a movie-style frat house than a secret hideaway for conduits, but she trusted Luke and sent him on his way, only eighty percent jealous that she couldn't go.

  Okay, completely and totally jealous that she couldn't go. But he had given her his credit card for the hotel room. And all that came to Kira's mind was the saying, "while the cat's away, the mice will play". Well, while her cats were off doing manly things, Kira would have a little fun, female-style.

  She followed the signs toward the inner harbor and drove around trying to find the glitziest hotel in the city.

  Brick after brick building greeted her, until she finally broke through to the harbor, which was lively and bright compared to the rest of the city. There were sculptures, a fountain, and crowds of people wandering around an outdoor shopping area directly next to the harbor's edge. The water glistened in the sun and made Kira feel like she wasn't in a city at all.

  And right along the road was a humongous, glass-enclosed building that looked like the perfect hotel for her. She pulled in and let the valet take the car to the hotel parking lot.

  "Welcome to the Hyatt Regency, may I take your bags for you?" A bellhop asked as she walked in and approached the concierge. Very classy, Kira thought and started to hand over her luggage.

  She looked down at her and Luke's dirt-encrusted duffels, wondering what she herself must look like, and declined the bellhop's offer.

  Kira walked past him toward the front desk. A hot shower was suddenly all she could think about.

  "Hello, how may I—" a woman started cheerily, but stopped when she looked up from the desk and actually saw Kira. With a small cough, she continued. "Eh, how can I help you?"

  "I'd like a room," Kira said and reached her hand up to her hair self-consciously. Was that mud hardened against her curls?

  Another small cough. "Of course, of course. How many beds?"

  "Two please. Doubles."

  "Harbor view?" the girl asked dubiously.

  "Yes," Kira responded. She wanted to splurge. And this woman was so prissy that Kira just wanted to slap her nose down to a normal angle.

  "We do have one room available, but it will be four-hundred dollars a night." She looked at Kira with a tilted head and placed her hand under her chin, staring Kira down.

  "I've got it, thanks," Kira said and slipped the credit card across the counter top. She tried to cover her gulp and silently hoped Luke would be okay with this. They had a private jet for Pete's sake; a little hotel cost was probably nothing.

  "Yes, well, I just need to check this card quickly—"

  "Look," Kira paused, searching for a nametag, but she couldn't find one. "Look, lady, I've had a very long day, and I just want to take a shower and a nap and I don't need any attitude from you. If you have a room, great. If not, I'll take my loaded credit card somewhere else."

  "Just following protocol, miss," she said and continued checking the card. Kira sighed and rolled her eye
s. So much for a stab at bravado.

  "And will there be anyone else staying with you?"

  Ah, crap, Kira thought, there goes my last hope of maintaining any shred of dignity against this woman.

  "Um, yes. Two other people."

  "Names please, just so we know when they arrive."

  "Tristan Kent and Luke Bowrey," Kira mumbled. The woman's eyebrows shot up to the sky.

  "Two men?" she said with a smirk. "I just need to confirm their gender for when they come in."

  "Yes, that's right. Two boys, each about twenty years old." Kira said with a dismissive wave. Think what you want, she hoped the gesture said, I don't care.

  "Room 12B." She slid a room key across the desk. "Have a nice stay."

  Kira took it with an overly sweet smile and caught the glass elevator up.

  As soon as she opened the door to her room, the view took her breath away. She could see the entire harbor, out past the city even, to where the horizon faded and it was too hard to tell what was ground and what was cloud. When she looked down at the harbor below, Kira noticed a giant wooden ship floating in the water, like something out of a pirate movie, and an awesome triangular shaped building, the famous aquarium from a brochure downstairs. Her gaze followed the water to a raised hillside park, and she itched to look at that view too. Being so close to the water reminded her of Charleston. It almost felt like she was home.

  While the view was mesmerizing, Kira dropped her bags and retreated to the bathroom. In the fluorescent-lighted mirror, she looked even more terrible than she hoped she had looked downstairs. But hey, what could she expect when she had fought a deranged vampire, got in a car crash, and went on a slightly insane killing spree? Kira was amazed that all she had was a little dirt in her hair. Okay, clumps of mud in her hair and swipes of it across her face. All right, she would admit it. It was downright nasty. She bolted to the shower to wash off before taking a long, steaming bath.