Alex fixed her with a hard look. "Well, if I didn't know better, I'd say he was a vampire."

"Don't be ridiculous!"

"Where'd you meet him?"

"At a nightclub, not that it's any of your business."

"How long have you been dating?"

"We're not 'dating.'"

"No?" Alex glanced pointedly at her luggage. "Then what are you doing?"

"Get your mind out of the gutter. And what I'm 'doing' is no concern of yours."

"I'd like to argue with you some more," Alex said, smothering a yawn, "but I'm beat. I made myself at home in the guest room. Hope you don't mind."

"A little late to be asking, don't you think?"

He grinned at her. "That's why I didn't ask."

"Alex...?"

"Yeah?"

"Did you destroy a vampire and her mortal lover here in LA?"

"Yeah, how'd you know about it?"

She shrugged. "That kind of news travels fast, you know that. You were careful, weren't you?"

"I'm always careful," he said with a wink. "See you in the morning, little sister. Oh, and I'd like eggs, bacon, and French toast for breakfast."

"Have whatever you want. The frying pan is in the drawer under the stove."

"Very funny." Whistling softly, he headed down the hall toward the guest room.

Daisy stared after him. Her domineering big brother was one complication she definitely didn't need in her life right now. She chewed on her thumbnail. She should have warned Alex that Rhys had his scent, but then Alex would start asking questions she didn't want to answer. Questions she couldn't answer unless she wanted Alex to know that Erik was indeed a vampire, just as he suspected.

Yawning, she grabbed the smaller of her two suitcases and carried it up to her bedroom. Maybe things would look better in the morning, she thought as she unpacked her nightgown and got ready for bed.

And maybe not.

Chapter 15

Rhys prowled the dark underbelly of the city. Though he no longer needed to feed as often as he once had, he was addicted to the chase. Life didn't hold much excitement for a man who had lived as long as he had, but hunting...ah, that never grew old. He chose a different kind of prey for each hunt--one week he might decide to stalk only blondes, the next week, only brunettes. Another week he might prey on nothing but young males, then on females. He could be as discriminating as he chose.

Tonight, he was hunting only women between the ages of twenty and thirty who had black hair and blue eyes and who were exactly five feet tall. Thus far, he hadn't had much luck.

He was thinking he would have to redefine his search when Erik appeared beside him.

"What brings you here?" Rhys asked, unable to completely mask his surprise. All of the West Coast vampires had their own hunting grounds. Trespassing on another's territory was forbidden and had, on occasion, led to bloodshed.

"I felt the need of some company," Erik said, falling into step beside the other vampire. "What's on the menu tonight?"

"Black-haired females with blue eyes."

Erik grunted softly. "Any luck?"

"Not yet." Rhys lifted his head, his nostrils flaring as he caught the scent of prey. "But I think my luck's about to change."

"She's blond," Erik said. "A streetwalker. And very young."

"And how would you know that?" Rhys asked, his eyes sparking red with anticipation.

"I passed her on my way here."

Muttering, "All cats are gray in the dark," Rhys moved quickly down the street.

With a shake of his head, Erik followed him, though at a slower pace. Coming here had seemed like a good idea at the time, but now...he swore softly, thinking that Daisy's brother couldn't have shown up at a worse time.

His hunger stirred as the scent of blood drifted on the wind. Up ahead, he could see Rhys standing in the shadows, his head bent over the neck of the blond hooker. Apparently the Master of the City wasn't averse to altering the cuisine he had chosen for the night.

Rhys looked up as Erik approached. A vampire caught in the midst of feeding was rarely a pretty sight, and Rhys was no exception. Blood dripped from his fangs; his eyes burned red. He growled softly, warning Erik to stay away.

Erik took a step backward. Folding his arms across his chest, he watched Rhys drink his fill and in so doing, Erik understood why he was there. It was to remind himself of what he was, what he was capable of.

While watching Rhys feed, Erik knew Daisy had been right.

There could be no future for the two of them.

Chapter 16

Daisy awoke on Monday morning to the deliciously mingled aromas of fresh-brewed coffee and frying bacon. She frowned, momentarily disoriented. This wasn't her bedroom at Erik's, she thought groggily, and then remembered that she was home and that it had to be Alex, cooking in the kitchen.

Muttering under her breath, she headed for the shower, wondering how long Alex intended to stay, and how she could persuade him to leave sooner if he was planning to stay more than a day or two.

After pulling on a pair of faded jeans and a blue Mickey Mouse sweatshirt, she padded barefoot to the kitchen door. Pausing a moment, she took a deep breath, pasted a smile on her face, and entered the room.

"Hey, good morning, sleepyhead," Alex greeted her cheerfully as she stepped into the room. "I wasn't sure what you were in the mood for, so..." He gestured toward the stove. "I made a little of everything. You take what you want, and I'll eat the rest."

Daisy glanced at the counter and shook her head. He had made a little of everything, all right. There were plates of bacon, sausage, scrambled eggs, pancakes, waffles, buttered toast, and a ham and cheese quiche.

"Alex, there's enough food here to feed a family of six."

"Well, I don't know about you, but I'm famished. Do you want coffee, milk, tea, juice, or hot chocolate?"

Realizing there was no point in arguing, Daisy sat at the table. "Juice and coffee will be fine."

Alex carried all the plates to the table, then slid onto the chair across from hers. "Dig in, sis."

Daisy helped herself to a couple of pancakes, two strips of bacon, and a helping of scrambled eggs. "You really are a good cook," she remarked. "If you ever get tired of taking heads, you could probably open a restaurant."

Alex snorted softly. "Where's the fun in that?"

"Where's the fun in taking heads?"

"It's not in the taking," Alex said, speaking around a mouthful of eggs. "It's in the hunting. You know how it is, the way your mouth goes dry and your heart beats with excitement..."

"With fear, you mean."

"Fear, excitement, whatever it is, it makes you know you're alive."

"So, you've never thought of doing anything else?"

"No," Alex said, looking surprised. "Why? Have you?"

Daisy shrugged. She had considered finding another line of work from time to time. Since destroying Saul, she'd been thinking of it even more, but she was reluctant to admit it, especially to her gung-ho brother.

"It's because of that vampire you killed, isn't it?"

"In a way. It made me feel good, knowing I could defend myself if I had to, but..." She pushed her plate away, her appetite suddenly gone. "I killed a man..."

"He wasn't a man," Alex said curtly. "He was a vampire."

"Well, he was a man once," Daisy insisted. "If it wasn't for me, he'd still be alive or undead, or..." She threw up her hands. "The point is, I killed him."

"Listen, Daisy, vampires aren't human any longer. You know that. And you can't kill them. They're already dead, remember? The only reason they aren't fish-belly white and six feet under is because they exist on our blood."

"And I sell theirs!"

Sitting back in his chair, Alex crossed his arms over his chest. "All right, Daisy Mae, what's this all about?"

Daisy glared at him. Even though it was a long-standing joke between them, she hated it when he called her Daisy Mae. Usually, she reciprocated by calling him Little Abner, but this morning, she wasn't in the mood for levity.

"Daisy?"

She couldn't tell him the truth, of course; she couldn't tell her brother that it was her feelings for Erik that were making her doubt her chosen line of work.

"Does this have anything to do with that guy that was here last night? That artist?"

"Of course not." Using her fork, she pushed the eggs around on her plate, careful not to meet her brother's eyes. "Why would it?"

"I don't know." Alex leaned forward, his arms folded on the table, his brow furrowed. "You tell me."

"I'm not like you," Daisy said. "I can't kill someone, destroy someone, and tell myself it doesn't matter. Taking their blood..." She shrugged. "It seemed like a bizarre game at first, finding their lairs, sneaking in, stealing their blood, leaving without a trace. But now...now it just seems wrong."

"They kill us, Daisy," Alex said quietly. "They don't just take our blood. They take the lives of innocent men, women, and children. We aren't people to them, we're prey. They're all monsters, and the worst of them lives right here, in LA."

Daisy's heart skipped a beat. "What do you mean?" she asked, praying he wasn't talking about Erik.

"The Master of the City," Alex said. "Rhys Costain."

Relief washed over Daisy. "Is he the reason you're here?" she asked, careful to keep her voice and her expression impassive.

"No, I came because Mom and Dad were worried about you. It's just a coincidence that the vampire I'm hunting lives in the same city you do."

"Why are you hunting him? Don't tell me you've run out of vampires in Boston?"