his hands over a clean shirt.
“I found something while you were downstairs,” I said.
“About Caleb?”
“No, Sebastian.”
He frowned. “What is it?”
“I was going over the police reports—hoping something would pop up about Caleb or Olivia. Instead a bulletin pinged from some keywords I entered.” I walked over to the computer and pointed at the screen. “A man was seen fighting with another man near the train tracks in West Virginia. Two railroad workers witnessed the altercation and thought it was probably two homeless men. Apparently they’re common in the area. When the rail workers got closer one man lit the other on fire.”
“Gruesome,” Grant said. “But I’m not following.”
“Well, it seems the body that caught on fire? Completely incinerated. Nothing left but ash. The other man got away, but not before the worker was able to give a description.”
“What did he look like?”
I looked at Grant. “He specifically said the man’s features were blurry and hard to make out. But that a sudden horn sounded from one of the trains, surprising everyone. While the man burned to death, his attacker’s face shone in the light—his very scarred face.”
“You think it was Sebastian?” he asked.
“Yeah, I do,” I said. “The way the guy described the blurriness? That’s what it was like when Sebastian fought those vampires with me the other night. It was like looking through some kind of distorted glass.”
He rubbed his head. “Why would he kill someone? Bass isn’t the type to look for trouble.”
“He wasn’t human was he?”
“No, the way the body ignited… sounds like a vampire. There’s usually little evidence of a body when we’re burned.”
“Maybe,” I said, looking for the right words, “maybe he’s had a breakdown or something.”
“It’s possible,” he agreed. “Don’t say anything to Ryan about this—not yet. We’ve got to get through the next twenty-four hours and then we can deal with Sebastian.”
“Okay.”
His phone rang and he quickly pulled it from his pocket.
"Ryan," he answered with raised eyebrows. Speak of the devil.
I watched as his jaw clenched and tightened. I couldn't hear the words on the other end, but Ryan was speaking quickly and excitedly about something. I tugged on his belt, hoping he'd give me some kind of sign.
"Stay there. We'll meet you as soon as we can get there," he said, and listened once more, his fingers rested on my collarbone and he began rubbing the smooth skin over the bone.
"No, don't go after him. Once we reach you we can all fan out and follow his trail. I don't want to risk losing anyone else," Grant ordered, his voice full of authority. "Call Miles and tell him." He put the phone away, wrapping his steel arms solidly around my shoulders. All the tension we'd worked to remove was back, seeping into his muscles.
"What happened?" I asked, almost afraid to know.
"Ryan and Elijah were in the woods, hunting," he explained, his chin resting on the top of my head.
“I thought they’d come back already?”
He scratched the back of his neck. “That was my discrete way of saying they gave us a little privacy.”
“Oh.”
Oh.
"Right. Anyway, Ryan picked up the trail of a herd of antelope when Elijah took off, in the opposite direction. Ryan thought he had a line on other prey but when he couldn't locate him, he caught the trail himself and realized it wasn't food Elijah was after."
I pulled my head back to see Grant's face, hoping seeing him would make his words clearer, but instead all I found was his beautiful face twisted in distress. "What was it? What did he smell?" I ran my fingers down his cheek.
He uttered the one name I never would have guessed, "Olivia."
"Olivia?" I questioned, shocked by this news.
"I don't know what it means. It could be her or just a trap. Caleb has proven he loves to play games," he explained, his eyes flashing with anger.
I watched as he turned from me and walked to
“I found something while you were downstairs,” I said.
“About Caleb?”
“No, Sebastian.”
He frowned. “What is it?”
“I was going over the police reports—hoping something would pop up about Caleb or Olivia. Instead a bulletin pinged from some keywords I entered.” I walked over to the computer and pointed at the screen. “A man was seen fighting with another man near the train tracks in West Virginia. Two railroad workers witnessed the altercation and thought it was probably two homeless men. Apparently they’re common in the area. When the rail workers got closer one man lit the other on fire.”
“Gruesome,” Grant said. “But I’m not following.”
“Well, it seems the body that caught on fire? Completely incinerated. Nothing left but ash. The other man got away, but not before the worker was able to give a description.”
“What did he look like?”
I looked at Grant. “He specifically said the man’s features were blurry and hard to make out. But that a sudden horn sounded from one of the trains, surprising everyone. While the man burned to death, his attacker’s face shone in the light—his very scarred face.”
“You think it was Sebastian?” he asked.
“Yeah, I do,” I said. “The way the guy described the blurriness? That’s what it was like when Sebastian fought those vampires with me the other night. It was like looking through some kind of distorted glass.”
He rubbed his head. “Why would he kill someone? Bass isn’t the type to look for trouble.”
“He wasn’t human was he?”
“No, the way the body ignited… sounds like a vampire. There’s usually little evidence of a body when we’re burned.”
“Maybe,” I said, looking for the right words, “maybe he’s had a breakdown or something.”
“It’s possible,” he agreed. “Don’t say anything to Ryan about this—not yet. We’ve got to get through the next twenty-four hours and then we can deal with Sebastian.”
“Okay.”
His phone rang and he quickly pulled it from his pocket.
"Ryan," he answered with raised eyebrows. Speak of the devil.
I watched as his jaw clenched and tightened. I couldn't hear the words on the other end, but Ryan was speaking quickly and excitedly about something. I tugged on his belt, hoping he'd give me some kind of sign.
"Stay there. We'll meet you as soon as we can get there," he said, and listened once more, his fingers rested on my collarbone and he began rubbing the smooth skin over the bone.
"No, don't go after him. Once we reach you we can all fan out and follow his trail. I don't want to risk losing anyone else," Grant ordered, his voice full of authority. "Call Miles and tell him." He put the phone away, wrapping his steel arms solidly around my shoulders. All the tension we'd worked to remove was back, seeping into his muscles.
"What happened?" I asked, almost afraid to know.
"Ryan and Elijah were in the woods, hunting," he explained, his chin resting on the top of my head.
“I thought they’d come back already?”
He scratched the back of his neck. “That was my discrete way of saying they gave us a little privacy.”
“Oh.”
Oh.
"Right. Anyway, Ryan picked up the trail of a herd of antelope when Elijah took off, in the opposite direction. Ryan thought he had a line on other prey but when he couldn't locate him, he caught the trail himself and realized it wasn't food Elijah was after."
I pulled my head back to see Grant's face, hoping seeing him would make his words clearer, but instead all I found was his beautiful face twisted in distress. "What was it? What did he smell?" I ran my fingers down his cheek.
He uttered the one name I never would have guessed, "Olivia."
"Olivia?" I questioned, shocked by this news.
"I don't know what it means. It could be her or just a trap. Caleb has proven he loves to play games," he explained, his eyes flashing with anger.
I watched as he turned from me and walked to
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