Immortal Revenge by Mary Abshire Page B

from him. “God, you’re such an asshole.”
    He grabbed the sides of the package, preventing her from taking it away. She tugged on it, but he wouldn’t give it to her.
    “Feel the weight of the box and tell me it’s just a garment.”
    She stopped trying to force the package free from his grasp and he lowered his hands. Sure enough, it weighed heavier than what it should’ve with a piece of lingerie. She never paid attention before.
    “Okay, this is strange.” She found the strip to open the box and pulled it.
    “Where are your weapons hidden?”
    “In the inside of the tire,” she replied as she poured the contents of her package in the far corner of the trunk.
    Two pouches, one large and one small, dropped out. The box immediately felt lighter, yet something was still in it. She tilted the opening down again and something gently scraped the inside. The last object, wrapped in tissue paper, fell on top of the other items. A red garment lay hidden behind the thin white paper.
    While Katie stared at the contents, Riker lifted the cover from within her trunk and ran his hand along the inside of the spare tire. “What’s in the pouches?”
    Katie shook her head, a bit in shock at the discovery. She’d never question what Kyle ordered, never asked how he obtained his weapons. Now, she wondered what else he hid from her, not that secretly ordering knives was a bad thing.
    “Not drugs,” she said as she nudged the thin garment to the side. She couldn’t think about the last gift he’d ordered for her to wear, and she certainly didn’t want to hold it up for display to Riker.
    “Drugs?” He withdrew a dark cloth from within the tire.
    “The police questioned where I was. I told them I picked up a package. Then, they asked if Kyle was a drug dealer.” She lifted the large pouch first, then turned to face him. “They used their drug sniffing dog to search the trunk. Of course, they didn’t find anything unusual.”
    “You show me yours first.” The slight curl of his lip annoyed her more than humored her.
    She untied the black string and twisted the cloth until it opened in her hands. Hidden within were four small daggers, the silver handles sticking out.
    “Nice.” He reached for one. Katie held them securely in her grasp as he lifted the tiny band holding one of the daggers in place. He slid the weapon out and examined it. “It’s light and not too big. Perfect to hide on your thigh or calf, assuming you have a sheath for it.”
    He tucked the pouch in his hand under his arm and returned the small dagger to its home spot.
    “We went through a lot of daggers when we fought. I guess he was replacing them.”
    He lifted his eyes. “You fought with daggers?”
    “Play fight. He taught me how to beat someone of your caliber.”
    “You bested him? Right.” His cockiness irked her.
    “Actually I did. Last year.” She grinned and stared pointedly into his eyes.
    The smirk on his face drained away. “Kyle loved you. He probably let you beat him.”
    Katie closed the cloth with the daggers and twisted away from him as her head suddenly felt ready to explode. “He trained me for years. I beat him in a fair fight. But don’t take the word of a human female.” And don’t turn your back on me. I might decide to take your head off during the day when you’re sleeping.
    “My, my. I’m starting to realize why he liked you, aside from your exceptionally large breasts.”
    Katie stiffened with the second pouch in her hands. “You have some nerve, vampire.” The urge to punch him continued to prick at her. She wanted to fight him to prove she had the skills to take his kind down. But she couldn’t do it without a little help, and she wouldn’t waste a drop of Kyle’s blood on such an asshole.
    He held up a sheathed dagger. “I’m taking this one.” He glanced down at her hands. “Let’s see what you have.”
    Katie pushed her devilish thoughts aside and loosened the other black cloth in her hand.