“Some vampires turn into savage killers. How do I know that won’t happen to me? Alcoholics don’t know they’re going to be alcoholics until they take that first drink.”

“Believe me, Katy, you’re not the type to turn into some ravenous monster. For one thing, you’re only half vampire. I don’t think you were born with a killer instinct.”

“When I drank from you, I didn’t want to stop.”

“That was different. You’ll see.” He squeezed her hand again. “Are you game?”

“No, I’m the hunter.”

He laughed. “Great. Let’s go.”

Still uncertain she was doing the right thing, she trailed behind him as he moved through the meadow, as silent as smoke. She had expected him to head for the houses clustered in the valley, but he glided past them and moved on.

It took her a moment to realize he was headed for the small town located a few miles away.

“Open your senses, Katy. Feel the darkness around you. Let it become a part of you. Smell the trees, the grass. Listen to the heartbeat of the night. Do you hear that? There’s an animal in the brush just to your left. Can you hear its heartbeat?”

Katy did as he said, surprised at how different the world was when she concentrated on using her vampire senses. Her preternatural power was something she had never fully tapped into, preferring to think of herself as human.

It was as if someone had removed blinders from her eyes and unstopped her ears. The world was alive with sounds and sights and smells she had never truly appreciated until now. Everything seemed brighter, more alive. She saw things more clearly—each individual leaf on the trees in front of her, each blade of grass beneath her feet, each rock, the cricket chirping on top of the rock. Even the air seemed to smell different, fragrant with the scent of foliage and earth and meadow. Why had she suppressed this side of herself for so long? Why hadn’t her father told her it could be like this?

Lost in thought, she was surprised to see the town ahead. Only then did she realize how fast Zack had been moving, and how easily she had kept up with him.

“Close your eyes and concentrate,” he said, slowing to a stop. “What do you hear?”

She frowned at him, but did as he asked. “I hear a dog barking. A man snoring. A baby crying. Music coming from down the street . . .” She licked her lips. “Hearts beating,” she murmured, and felt her own speed up with anticipation. Why had she never noticed before how seductive that sound was? The scent of fresh blood moving through veins and arteries, the rhythmic beating of hearts, jolted through her like electricity.

Opening her eyes, she stared at Zack.

He grinned at her, as if he knew exactly what she was feeling. And maybe he did.

“Come on.” Taking her by the hand, Zack led her down the dark streets. With each step she took, the steady thrumming grew louder, stronger.

“Where are we going?” she asked.

“There’s an after-hours nightclub on the next block. Easy pickin’s.”

They were passing by an alley when Zack came to an abrupt halt.

“What is it?” Kaitlyn asked.

“Hear that?”

She cocked her head to the side. “Someone’s crying in the alley.”

Zack nodded. “It’s a woman.”

“We’ve got to help her,” Kaitlyn said.

Before he could stop her, Kaitlyn darted into the passage.

With a shake of his head, Zack followed her.

The woman was curled up in a ball in front of two Dumpsters about halfway down the alley. Judging from the smell, neither Dumpster had been emptied lately.

Kaitlyn hurried toward the woman. “Are you all right?” she asked, kneeling beside her.

“He beat me up,” the woman sobbed.

Kaitlyn looked up at Zack. “We have to do something.” “Yeah.” Zack darted forward, one hand closing around the throat of the man who had stepped out of the shadows behind the nearest Dumpster, his other hand plucking the gun from the man’s fist.

The woman sprang to her feet and took off running.

“Get her!” Zack said.

Kaitlyn stared at Zack, speechless. “What?”

“Go after her.”

With a grin, Kaitlyn broke into a run. The woman was fast but she was no match for a vampire. Kaitlyn passed her easily, then stood in the mouth of the alley, blocking the way. The woman shrieked and began backpedaling.

Not certain what to do, Kaitlyn grabbed the woman’s arm and led her back to where Zack stood.

“Dinner is served,” he said, grinning.

Kaitlyn glanced at the woman, who stared at her through wide, frightened eyes. “You mean . . . ?”

He nodded. “Which do you want? The man, or the woman?”

Kaitlyn blinked at Zack. Did he mean for them to feed here, in the open? “What if someone comes by?”

“Don’t worry about it. We’ll hear anyone coming long before they see us. So, the man or the woman?”

“The man.” He was of medium height, with short blond hair and brown eyes. And he was AB negative.

With a nod, Zack took the woman into his arms. She murmured, “Don’t, please don’t,” as he brushed the hair away from her neck.

He stared into the woman’s eyes. “Relax,” he told her, then looked at Kaitlyn. “I mesmerized the man. He won’t fight you. Just do what comes naturally, Katy. You’ll know when to stop.”

She couldn’t stop watching Zack, noticing how gently he held the woman, how he spoke a few reassuring words to her before he bent his head to the woman’s neck.

The scent of fresh warm blood drifted in the air, making Kaitlyn’s mouth water.

The woman’s eyelids fluttered down and she moaned softly, not with pain, but with pleasure.

A sharp stab of jealousy pricked Kaitlyn’s heart. Suddenly angry, she took the man in her arms, her nostrils filling with the smell of his after-shave. Taking a deep breath, she took Zack’s advice, closed her eyes, and did what came naturally.

After the first taste, she knew she would never be satisfied with bagged blood again.

“So, what do you think?” Zack asked as they walked back to the Fortress. Earlier, he had wiped the minds of the man and the woman and sent them on their way.

“It was”—she spread her arms wide—“amazing. I never knew it could be like that. I never knew I could feel like that.” She twirled around, her arms still outstretched. “I feel like I could fly.”

“Maybe you can,” he said, laughing.

“You’re making fun of me.”

“Never.”

“I could read his mind, only it wasn’t like other times. I’ve always been able to read minds, but this was different. I knew what he was feeling, thinking, what he was afraid of. Is it that way for you?”

“Yeah. This is probably going to sound weird, me being a vampire and all, but I’ve saved a few lives in my time by planting suggestions in the minds of my prey that they didn’t want to kill themselves.”

“Really?” she asked, her eyes wide. “That’s amazing.”

He smiled, remembering the girl, Alice, who had hopes of becoming a Hollywood star. She hadn’t been suicidal, just lonely and depressed. Hopefully, she had gone home and reunited with her family.

“Do you think the reason I can’t dissolve into mist or do some of the other things my father can do is because I’ve rarely fed on humans? Maybe I’d be stronger if I fed more.”

“I don’t know. Maybe. It makes sense. I mean, you can’t expect to be at your full power when you’re denying a basic part of what you are.”

“I guess you could be right.”

“I’m always right, Katy.”

She stuck her tongue out at him. “I don’t know why, but I’ve always been reluctant to embrace that side of me,” she murmured, speaking more to herself than to him. “I always knew what my father was and I accepted it as normal, you know, the same way I knew and accepted what my mother was.” She frowned. “Maybe I played down the vampire part because I wanted to be more like my mother, because I knew my father had chosen a mortal woman for his wife, and I wanted him to love me, too.”

“I’m sure he loves you.”

“Oh, I know he does. But maybe, deep down, I thought he’d love me more if I was mortal, like my mother.” She laughed self-consciously. “I guess I’m being silly.”

“Not at all. We all want our parents’ approval.”

“Did you?”

“I would have, if I’d known them. My mother died in childbirth. My father refused to have anything to do with me.” Zack snorted softly. “I was raised by nuns until I was twelve, and then I ran away. I’ve been on my own ever since.”

“Oh, Zack, I’m so sorry.”

“It was a long time ago.” Over six hundred years, he mused. But it still rankled that his father had dumped him off at a convent in the middle of the night.

They walked in silence for a time. Lost in her own thoughts, Kaitlyn wasn’t immediately aware that Zack was no longer beside her.

Looking over her shoulder, she saw him standing as still as a stone, his eyes narrowed, his nostrils flared. “What is it?” she asked, starting back toward him.

“Shh. There’s another vampire nearby. One of your kind.”

Kaitlyn glanced around. Had her father followed them? But no, it wasn’t her father. She didn’t stop to wonder how she knew it was someone else.

She gasped when Zack grabbed her by the arm and pushed her behind him. Before she could ask what he was doing, she caught a blur of movement out of the corner of her eye. A moment later, a tall man wielding a sword materialized in front of Zack.

“Give me the woman,” he demanded, “and I will let you live.”

“No way.” Zack rocked back on his heels, his gaze intent on the other man’s face.

“You can give her to me,” the man said, “or I will kill you and take her.”