“True. Let’s go. I’ve got your back.”

“I’m depending on it. Nabby isn’t going to take being challenged easy or well.”

“No shit.” Lavos walked beside him after they left the house. “He’ll probably go for a weapon. He has no honor.”

“It would surprise me if he fought fair.”

“At least your clothes have already been torn up. Shifting again won’t be a problem if he pulls the same stunt Dad did.”

There was that. Lorn thought about Kira, hoping she slept late after the long hours they’d spent talking. He eyed the sky, seeing that there wasn’t much daylight left.

Lavos suddenly gripped his arm, bringing both of them to a halt.

“You can’t have the same compassion for Nabby, Lorn. It would be a mistake.”

“I’m aware.”

Lavos frowned.

“I had sympathy for our mother, not Ladius. I realize Nabby has no honor and any promises he makes will be lies. He’ll only seek out Decker and join forces with him if I allow him to live. The fewer enemies we have, the better. He dies.”

“I just wanted to make certain we were on the same page.” His brother let him go. “This isn’t going to be a private family matter as soon as anyone else sees you and smells the blood. It’s a declaration of war on Decker when you attacked his advisor. This is setting the tone for you taking over the clan. Just remember that.”

“As if I could forget.”

Chapter Ten

Kira woke alone and sat up. Hunger pains clawed at her belly. She groaned, shoved off the covers, and stumbled to her feet. “Lorn?”

The light he’d left on revealed the bathroom door wide open and empty. He wasn’t inside the den. She dressed, putting on the clothes from the day before.

Her hands shook and she whimpered, her need to feed increasing until it became difficult to think. She took a seat at the table, gripping the edge of it to keep still. Lorn would be back at any moment. He was outside somewhere and knew the sun had gone down. He’d come.

Just breathe. She focused on that. In. Out. In. Out. It helped, and some of the cramping faded so she eased her death grip on the wood. She rose to her feet and caught sight of the note that had fallen to the floor on the other side of the table. She bent, reading it.

“Shit,” she muttered. He’d just said he needed to deal with something and he’d be back soon. The fact that he’d left said it all. There must be a serious problem with the clan. She searched for the phone he kept but quickly realized he must have taken it with him.

Her fangs wouldn’t retract and hunger pains made her ache. She needed to feed. Pacing around the small den didn’t help. Worry about Lorn only aggravated her more. What if he’d had to interact with the clan? What if they found he was harboring her and attacked him? He hadn’t said why he’d left but the possibilities were endless. Decker could have returned.

Would Lorn challenge for leadership without her?

The answer came instantly. He would.

She walked over to the door, unlocked it, and figured out how to work the lift. It rose and she glimpsed darkness above. She stepped out and released the mechanism that kept the elevator above ground, keeping the entrance hidden. She jumped up on the nearest boulder, finding it much easier to do as a vampire. Her human self couldn’t have done that.

She could detect a lot of scents but there was one that alarmed her. She turned her head and hissed at the sight of one of the men from her clan stepping out from behind a large tree trunk. She instantly recognized Kar.

It was a nightmare. Someone from the clan knew what she was! He would be able to smell her as well as she could him.

“Easy.” He put up both arms, opening his hands. “Lorn asked me to keep an eye on you. I’m not going to hurt you, Kira.”

She wasn’t certain what to do.

“Are you hungry? I didn’t have any rope to use to catch a moose but I herded a few of them this way. They’re close. I’ll help you capture and hold one for you to drink some blood.”

It had to be a trick. The clan would want to kill her. Only Lorn, Lavos, and her father would protect her.

“Don’t look at me like that.” He took a step closer, scowling. “I wouldn’t kill a woman, even a Vampire one, unless I had no choice. Please don’t run.”

“Where is Lorn?”

“Something held him up, or I know he’d have returned before dark.”

Kar smelled so good. Too good. Kira jumped off the boulder, landing in a crouch.

He dropped his hands and stepped back. “Don’t look at me like I’m dinner, either. I’m not allowed to feed you my blood, and to be honest, I don’t want to. Lorn warned me that he’d kick my ass. The moose are just behind that stand of trees. I didn’t want them catching your scent and fleeing.” He pointed. “Go that way.”

Kira rose up and turned, inhaling. She smelled them. Instinct took over as her hunger increased. She sprinted toward the animals.

Kar cursed softly but he ran after her. She could hear him breathing, hear the tread of his boots as he kept close. She saw heat signatures of three medium-sized moose. The speed in which she could move surprised and thrilled her as she hurried over the ground. It didn’t even hurt her bare feet.

The three animals must have sensed her because they charged toward the river. She locked on to the slowest one and launched herself at it. It hurt when she impacted with the creature, knocking them both off balance. Kar was there in the next instant, helping her take it down. He wrestled the frightened moose onto its side and used his weight to pin it to the ground.

“Bite,” he panted. “Now.”

Kira hesitated.

“Bite,” Kar snarled.

The warm body writhed under her and Kira looked at Kar. Tears filled her eyes. She felt sorry for the moose.

“Damn it. You’re not going to kill it unless I have to break its neck to keep it down. Bite and feed.”

“I can’t.” She put her hands on the moose’s side, petting it. Its fear horrified her.

Kar moved one of his arms and extended his claws, slicing a small wound in the moose’s flank.

The scent of blood overwhelmed Kira. She struck without thought and warm blood began to fill her belly.

“That’s it,” Kar crooned. “This big guy’s okay. He’s pissed, scared, but he’ll be fine. You’re not going to kill him, Kira. Keep drinking.”