Thirst [All-American Vampires 2] (Siren Publishing Classic) by Bree Younger

don’t you?”
    She nodded but sat forward eagerly. “I know. I know. But it’s better than no chance at all.”
    “Why, if she is free, wouldn’t she have come home or contacted you in some way?”
    A shadow crossed her features. “Maybe she hates me for leaving her behind when I escaped. I wouldn’t blame her if she did. And like I said, we didn’t exactly get along the greatest to begin with. I guess I tried to replace our mom, and she didn’t need that. We butted heads a lot. She was always pretty strong willed.” She shrugged. “Besides, I don’t know how she would have gotten in touch with me. Like you said, I haven’t been home since right after I escaped. I’ve moved around a lot, trying to find her. But none of that matters now. I just need to know that she’s okay. No matter how she feels about me. If she doesn’t want to see me, I can respect that. I just need to know she’s alive. That’s all.”
    “And if she isn’t on the list? What then?”
    “Then I’m back to square one, I suppose.” She lifted her chin. “I’m not giving up. I’ll do whatever I have to do to find my sister, if it takes me the rest of my life. Whatever it takes. I might not be the bravest vampire around or the strongest. But I’m not giving up until I find her.”
    Hawk almost smiled. Almost. He considered everything she’d told him and came to a decision. “All right. I’ll make a deal with you. I’m going to check out your story. I’m also going to talk to Quinn and see what he thinks. If you’re telling me the truth, I’ll do what I can to help you locate your sister. But if I find out you’re lying to me, you will wish you were back with the ones who turned you.”
    She shut her eyes for a moment before she opened them back up and nodded. “That’s fine. That’s just fine. I’m not lying. And I understand that you need to check things out.”
    Hawk stood and indicated to Claire that she should as well. He escorted her to the door. “I want you to go back to work. Stick to your usual schedule. Do not under any circumstances leave town. I will find you. Do you understand me?”
    He saw her eyes widen. “Of course. There’s nowhere for me to go, anyway.”
    “I’ll be in touch, Miss Landry.”
    He saw her lips curve up in a slight smile. “Please call me Claire.”
    He considered her request, not sure if he wanted to be on such informal terms with her. But he knew he was just kidding himself. He wanted to be on intimate terms with her. “Claire, then. I’m Hawk.”
    “Thank you, Hawk.” She held out her hand, and he took it in his, not shaking it, just holding it for a moment pressed in his own. It felt soft and delicate, the bones fragile—though he knew her strength— she was vampire after all, not a fighter. She was cut from a different cloth.
    “Don’t thank me yet. I haven’t done anything.”
    “You’ve given me hope. It’s something I haven’t had in a while.”
    He just nodded, releasing her hand, and watched as she began walking down the hallway to the elevators.
    Just as she reached the end, she turned around and nodded. “I’ll be waiting to hear from you.” Then she was gone.
    After she disappeared from his sight, he strode down the hall to Mick’s office. The vampire looked up when he walked in.
    “Hawk.”
    “Mick. Can you pull up the list of the bloodslaves we rescued from Simone’s men and see if there’s a Cassidy Landry on the list?”
    “Sure.” Hawk waited as Mick typed in a few commands and studied the screen. “No. Sorry. No Landry at all.”
    “Any Cassie or Cass? Anything similar to the name at all?”
    “Nope. Nothing even close that I can tell.”
    “Were all of the bloodslaves human?”
    “Five human. One werewolf.”
    “Americans?”
    “No. It looks like they were from Eastern Europe—Latvia, Russia, the Ukraine.”
    “Okay, Mick. Thanks.”
    “No problem.”
    As he walked back down the hall, he considered how Claire Landry was going to