Sweet Discovery (The Jessica Sweet Trilogy Book 2) Read online

  I was tired, so tired, and I knew the tequila was only part of it. Harrier was right. I didn’t want Raven to be guilty. It may be too late for us as a couple, but I knew he was a good man—as good as a Vampire can be—and his friends believed in him. Didn’t he deserve that same respect from the woman who claimed she loved him?

  I stood to go check on Piper, anxious to drag myself to bed, and was startled to see Harrier standing there watching me.

  “Something else?” I asked.

  “Just—thanks,” he said, waving his almost perfectly healed arm at me. “And don’t worry, I won’t tell. Be sure to lock up,” he added, and he left, closing the door firmly behind him.

  Wait. Tell who what?

  Chapter Thirty

  “I told you,” Perry said as Harrier came down the sidewalk toward the cars.

  “What the hell are you talking about, Soldier.” Harrier was in no mood to play games with the smart mouth punk.

  “She’s hard to say ‘no’ to,” Perry replied. “You nearly tore my head off when she tended my injuries a few months back, but now you know. You just have to do what she says and keep your mouth shut.”

  “You saw that?”

  “Yep.”

  “You’d better not be smiling,” Harrier said, without looking at the younger male.

  “Harrier.” The voice was coming from the shadows by the barn.

  “Who’s there?” Harrier called, asking what his other senses had already confirmed. Perry was standing alert, his hands on his jacket pockets where Harrier knew the boy kept the knives he favored.

  “Please, Harrier,” the voice sounded again. “I need to talk to you.”

  “Stay here,” Harrier told Perry, and he went to join Malcolm on the dark side of the barn. When he rounded the corner, Malcolm was standing in the shadows, nude, having shifted in order to talk to Harrier. The lack of clothing didn’t bother him—Harrier was part Shifter, and getting naked went with the territory—but he was still kind of pissed at the little pussy. “You bit the hell out of me, you piece of shit. What makes you think I won’t rip your head off?”

  “I know how you feel about Raven,” Malcolm said. “I guess I was hoping…I don’t know.”

  Harrier watched as Malcolm stood there rubbing his dreads. The guy was agitated, nervous as a cat, he thought with a smile.

  “Hoping what, Shifter? The enemy of your enemy and all that?” Malcolm shrugged. “I know you were with her tonight, but based on your reaction, I’m guessing she didn’t have a clue it was you.”

  “Something’s going on with her and Raven,” Malcolm said. “I had to do something. I may never get another chance. But I couldn’t just blurt out, ‘Hi, I’m Malcolm. I’ve been sleeping with you for months, but you thought I was a cat. Anyway, you wanna dance?’”

  “I doubt you would have had your arms around her tonight, true.”

  “I need time for her to get to know me, the human me, and then I’ll tell her the truth.”

  “Not sure if you noticed, but she’s kind of fed up with preternaturals right now.”

  “She didn’t seem to have a problem with you and Perry.”

  “I don’t think we count. I’m sure I don’t.” Harrier lifted a shoulder, indifferent.

  “Just, promise me you won’t say anything. To her or to Raven. I need this, Harrier. If she turns her back on me later, fine, but I deserve a chance.”

  “Why? Because the Were Pack hired you to watch her? You saw her first? Don’t tell me you’re calling dibs on her.” The irritation Harrier felt surprised him. The truth was, he would much rather see Jessica with Malcolm than Raven, but it really wasn’t his call. She was definitely a female with a mind of her own, and in spite of her questionable taste in men, she was good people.

  Malcolm was pacing in the shadows, waiting for Harrier to give his word. It should have been easy. One more way to stick it to the male he hated above all others. But when he thought about the girl inside the old farmhouse, he shook his head. Jessica had just treated him, Harrier, with a kindness no one had shown him since he was a little boy—since his father died.

  Still, the Shifter was going to great lengths to be in her life. He was apparently as stupid about the human as Raven was, the why of which becoming clearer to Harrier with every moment he spent in her presence.

  He watched the Werecat pace a bit longer before saying, “Against my better judgment, but she won’t hear anything from me.” Malcolm’s shoulders sagged as though a giant weight had been lifted, and Harrier was compelled to add, “But if you hurt her, in any way, you’ll have me to answer to.”

  He turned to walk away, but before he could take a step, Malcolm spoke again.

  “There’s one more thing.” Harrier turned back to face him and Malcolm said, “Raven was at Good Times tonight, and something was definitely off with him.”

  “Off how?”

  “He…didn’t taunt me. He saw me with Jessica, and frankly, he didn’t kill me.” That definitely fell into the “off” category, but Harrier kept his opinion to himself.

  “Anything else?” he asked instead. Malcolm rubbed his head again, squinting his eyes as though it pained him.

  “Yeah,” the Shifter said. “He—Alex said I followed him outside, but I don’t remember anything. I came to on the ground in the alley behind the bar, but I was alone, and had a really bad headache. Do you think he, I don’t know, made me forget what happened?”

  Harrier blew his hair out of his eyes and really looked at the Werecat. The guy was wired, whether from his escapades with Jessica, or his encounter with Raven, Harrier wasn’t sure. But he was a decent kid, so Harrier leveled with him.

  “Sure, it’s possible, any Vampire could do that. Not sure about the headache though. Maybe you had too much to drink?”

  “No, I wanted to be sober tonight, wanted to remember…” he trailed off.

  “If Alex hadn’t seen me go out there, I wouldn’t know as much as I do. Anyway, I don’t know what he’s done, but I’m aware that Jessica had a vision, and she’s not happy with him right now. I thought you, the Legion, would want to know about anything unusual,” Malcolm finished with a shrug.

  Poor guy had it bad. Weres usually didn’t get involved with Vampire business unless it crossed a line into their own dealings. Malcolm was breaking protocol for a girl.

  But it was Jessica.

  “I’ll let Mason know.”

  “Thanks, Harrier,” Malcolm said, and he melted into the shadows. A moment later, Harrier saw the cat racing across the orchard and out into the field beyond.

  “Did you get all that?” Harrier asked Perry when he returned to the driveway.

  “No, why? What happened?”

  “You telling me you couldn’t hear? What the hell kind of Vampire are you? We were right over there.”

  “I’m an excellent Vampire, and an excellent Soldier,” Perry replied. “The first rule I learned is that there are some things I’m not supposed to hear, so I’ve developed a system.”

  “A system?”

  “Yeah, a way to sort of tune out whatever it is I’m not supposed to hear.”

  Harrier was intrigued. It had never occurred to him to not hear something. “So how does that work?” he asked.

  “White noise,” Perry said, walking to the Porsche.

  “What kind of white noise?”

  “Barry Manilow.”

  “Barry Manilow?”

  “Yeah—Copacabana usually works best.” The Soldier folded himself into the vehicle, and, with a mock solute, drove away.

  Harrier watched the sports car disappear into the night thinking, Everyone’s gone fucking mad.

  Chapter Thirty-One

  R aven leaned up against the wall of the hardware store, watching a group of clueless humans bail out of Good Times and head for their cars. He had no idea how long he’d stood there, hoping for a glimpse of Jessica, but by now his head felt like it was the anvil to Thor’s hammer. He pushed the heels of his ha
nds into his eyes to try and alleviate some of the pressure, but it was a temporary release at best.

  Thankfully, Mason had taken him off rotation so he could focus on finding out who was screwing with his life. The idea of having to check in with Tas or anyone else right now? The mere thought had him snarling. He was hoping to steal Perry away for moral support if nothing else, but the Soldier was teamed with Harrier tonight. That bastard would veto the swap just to be a shit.

  No matter. Raven checked his watch, a Brietling Avenger Blackbird 44 that Mason had given him when he’d made Warrior, and was surprised to see it was after one already. Where the hell had the night gone? He’d wandered around town a bit, checked out the alley where the Jenkins girl was killed. Afterwards, he decided to loiter near the bar, see if he could pick up on anything from the patrons’ minds.

  Mostly it was dribble, girls wondering if they drank too much, and guys hoping to get laid. He’d wanted to go inside and ask if anyone had seen anything the previous night, but Jessica asked him to leave her alone, and he wanted to respect her wishes.

  That was the hardest thing he’d ever done. From his soul, he wanted nothing more than to lock her in a room and make her understand.

  When Harrier informed him, none too gently, that Jessica had taken the Porsche and gone home, Raven had been leveled. How detailed had her vision been for her to be so afraid of him now?

  And that was the worst of it. He could handle her being angry with him. He could even get around her doubting him. It was her fear that destroyed him.

  Raven was nothing if not a realist. He knew the carnage he was capable of delivering, and he’d seen the pictures of the dead girl. If this were one of Jessica’s visions of clarity? Well, she had essentially witnessed the murder, and as far as she was concerned, it was done by Raven’s hand.

  Raking his hair out of his eyes, Raven glanced up the street toward the bar where her little Honda was still parked. He was surprised that she hadn’t left yet. Jessica wasn’t much of a partier, at least not since he had known her. In fact, they had only gone out on a few occasions with her friends for drinks and dinner, returning to Jessica’s afterward to play cards or watch a movie. Very simple. Very…domestic. It was one of the things he loved about her.

  For her to still be inside—it was all his fault. The hangover she would most likely suffer tomorrow? His fault. The betrayal she was feeling to drive her to this? Also his fault. He tried to wish they had never met, that he had never dragged her into the drama and horror that surrounded who and what he was. However, the selfish part of him couldn’t quite go there. He was so sorry for her pain, for every bad experience she’d had since he landed on her threshold, but he wouldn’t trade his time with her for anything.

  The girl had changed his world. As much as Mason, and even the Sorceress, had done to turn his life around, it wasn’t until he met Jessica that he understood what the point of it all was. Before the curse, his sole purpose was to murder and maim. After, well it was merely to survive. But from the first taste of her exquisite blood, Jessica Sweet had made Raven want to live.

  Another couple was leaving the bar, and Raven recognized the male immediately. Jessica’s friend Alex was tall and lean, rugged with wild dark hair and a manner of walking that was all his own. The girl with him wasn’t Jessica, or Piper even. This must be the new girlfriend. Alisa? Something like that. He hadn’t had the pleasure of meeting her yet, but from the description Jessica had given, not to mention the way she was hanging on Alex, it had to be her.

  They were walking his way, and Raven decided not to avoid them. Jessica wouldn’t have said anything to the humans that would betray the Legion, but it wouldn’t be a long stretch for Alex to blame her mood on Raven. The two men had gone from blatant dislike for one another to a grudging friendship, but it wouldn’t take much for Alex to turn on him. Raven had to admit that the other man was extraordinarily loyal to Jessica. He trusted Alex to take care of her when he couldn’t be there himself, and he knew the young man would do anything to protect her.

  As the couple approached, Raven stepped in front of them, impeding their progress.

  “Alex,” Raven said, holding out his hand. Alex stared at it like it was poisonous. Yep. He was in the doghouse.

  “What do you want, Raven? Not enough for you to have her in tears once tonight—you came back for seconds?”

  “What?” Raven said, lowering his hand.

  “Well, you’re too late. Piper took her home a couple of hours ago, and if she has a hangover, it’s on you.” Alex had stepped in front of his girlfriend, blocking her from Raven, but when she peeked around his shoulder to get a look at the big male, her jaw dropped. Raven barely noticed.

  “When did they leave? Is she okay?” he asked Alex.

  “Right after you did, you asshole, and what do you think? I swear, I tried with you, I really did. All she’s done is care about you, and for you to treat her the way you did tonight? I’m sorry, Raven. For Jessica’s sake, I’m sorry, but I think you need to leave her alone. Don’t even think about going out there. In fact, leave all of us alone.” Alex didn’t wait for a response. He pulled his girl to a safe distance from Raven and went around him. But something he’d said…

  “Wait,” Raven called after them. “What do you mean, she left after I did?”

  Alex flipped his middle finger high in the air without looking back.

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  I checked on Piper and found her sleeping soundly. I took the afghan from the back of the couch to cover her up, and put an empty waste basket beside her, just in case. She didn’t move, and I congratulated myself for not trying to make her go upstairs. Heck, I’ve been there before, slept off many a margarita right where Piper was. Would have tonight, if I weren’t such a considerate hostess. Which meant now I had to carry my drunk, sorry ass upstairs, and it seemed like a hundred miles away.

  As I trudged through the kitchen I turned out the lights and glanced out the window. The Porsche was gone, but Harrier was just now pulling the Escalade out of my driveway. I didn’t even waste a second wondering what he was doing. The guy was acting exceptionally weird lately, and I didn’t have a firing brain cell left to try and figure him out.

  I was at the bottom of the stairs when my cell phone rang. I nearly ignored it, but it was after one in the morning, and people—normal people, that is—only called this late if it was important. I checked the caller ID to make sure it wasn’t Raven again, but it was Alex. My stomach lurched as I fumbled for the connect button.

  “Alex? What’s wrong? Are you and Lisha okay?” I nearly shouted into the phone.

  “Calm down, we’re fine. I just wanted to give you a heads up. We ran into Raven on the way out of the bar. He was standing outside the hardware store watching your car. Waiting for you, I guess.”

  “Why would he do that? He could hardly look at me earlier.”

  “I don’t know, Jess.”

  “Well, what did he say? Did he seem—angry?” My mind was scrambling now, part of me wanting him to have missed the whole Mac debacle, the other part still fuming that he had followed me there in the first place.

  “He seemed…weird, I guess,” Alex said. “He acted like he had no idea what I was talking about. It didn’t occur to me at the time—I was too busy yelling at him. But yeah, he acted like he hadn’t seen you at all.”

  Well, hell, that wasn’t good.

  “Do you think he was going to come out here?” I asked, not sure which answer I wanted to hear.

  “I told him not to. Told him to leave us all alone, but you know how he is. Look, I dropped Lisha off a couple of minutes ago, and I didn’t get to talk to you at the bar, so I’m kind of in the dark here. I know you’re mad at him—Piper told me that much—but what did he do to upset you so badly? I’ve never been crazy about the guy, but things seemed good between you two.”

  “It’s a really long story,” I sighed as I wandered back into the kitchen and fell into one of the hard chai
rs at the table.

  “You want me to come over?” Alex offered, and I considered it.

  “No, thanks,” I said. “Piper’s passed out on the couch, and I’m surprised my own eyes are still open. It’s been a long night, and I’d really like to go to bed.” Alex was quiet for a minute.

  “Jessica?”

  “Yeah, Alex,”

  “You know I’m still here for you, right?”

  “Of course,” I said, my eyes drooping.

  Alex’s voice was low, and he seemed a little sad when he said, “I know I’m not around as much, with Lisha and all, but you’re still my best girl.”

  “I know, Alex,” I said. “I know.”

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  R aven sped down the dark country road toward the Legion Compound, his mind racing. Something had happened again tonight, and he needed to get to Mason before someone else did. Alex implied that Raven had seen and spoken with Jessica tonight inside the bar. But Raven had made a point of staying outside, not wanting to upset her further.

  His head was near exploding and his lack of recall only served to intensify the throbbing. It was happening again, and the idea that he could have done something even worse than stalking his girlfriend? Raven shuddered.

  Think! he commanded himself. What had he done the night Mandy was killed? Where had he gone? What had he felt? The answer was obvious. Everything about tonight was the same. He had been near the same bar, had the same headache, and was missing several hours of memories. Was it possible he was having blackouts, instances where the beast inside was taking over? It seemed preposterous, but certainly stranger things happened in his world.

  He was nearly to the manor when it occurred to him he should have searched the area for evidence of further misdeeds on his part. Pulling out his phone, he dialed Perry’s cell.