What Lies Beneath

I heard music when I woke up. Something familiar. It was the piano lesson song from The Music Man. When I opened my eyes, I was in a moving vehicle. My iPod was plugged in, and my playlist was on. My head throbbed when I moved. My fingers tentatively probed the lump, and I winced at the sharp and intense pain that I couldn't remember earning.

"Oh good," Landon said. "I thought you might have slipped into a coma."

"What happened?" I groaned.

He turned the music down. "Well, it would seem Knox knows I'm following him. And I find it very cliché that you're a fan of The Music Man."

"Screw you. I didn't ask your opinion on my taste in-" My hand went to my neck, and I felt more pain. I flipped the visor down and looked at the mirror. Two small holes were in the side of my neck. "YOU BIT ME!"

I turned to give Landon a death stare, and he was smiling. "Sorry. I needed to heal quickly. You were sleeping. I figured you wouldn't mind."

"I DO MIND! You drank my blood."

He shrugged. "Only a little."

"I'm going to hurt you."

"Then I'll only need more blood." He continued smiling. "Maybe you should just calm down."

I really hated that I needed his help. I couldn't hurt him at all. "Did you actually need it?"

"I broke a finger, so yes. We heal quickly, but blood makes it instant. Same with humans."

My eyes narrowed. "So you could have healed me too?"

"Yeah."

I waited a few seconds. "And why didn't you?"

He made a sound that was almost a laugh. "Partially because you annoy me. Mostly because you don't just... do that. It's hard to explain to a human, but it's not the same thing. Sharing blood is meant for something more than a snack or a bandage."

"What is it then?"

He sighed. "If a human and a vampire exchange blood, it Links them. The vampire can feel them, track them. It really does nothing for the human other than make their blood very strong for the vampire. A human can be that for one vampire, but a vampire can have as many humans as one desires. The Link dies when the human does. It's called being a Familiar."

"Can you do that with other... things?"

"Vampire blood is toxic to demons in almost every case. An instant and painful death. It's almost impossible to make a demon into a vampire. But it's been done. On occasion, it makes them insane."

I seriously didn't know how I was having this conversation. I should either have been laughing or crying. But really, I just wanted to know more.

"How do you turn someone?"

He eyed me. "Why? You interested?"

"No," I scoffed. "I prefer humanity. I just wanted to know."

He gave in. "You would just need to die with vampire blood in you. It heals whatever killed you."

Another question came to mind. "So, that's what happened to you?"

Silence. Then, "We're not friends, Mila. You don't get my back-story, and I don't want yours. We work together, and then we're done."

I rolled my eyes. "You ate some of me. I feel like I should get a few questions in."

"You did. And now you're done."

I was just noticing how dark it was getting. It had been afternoon when Jaxon was taken. Maybe an hour after that, I'd met up with Landon. Not much later, we'd been attacked. "How long was I out?"

"Couple hours."

I felt panic rush through me. My brother was close by, and we were just driving away from him, going who knows where. I didn't even recognize where we were anymore. "You just left after the fight?" I sounded only half as angry as I felt.

"No," he said, annoyed with my tone, "I put you in the van and looked for Knox. He was gone. Those were just a couple people he'd left behind. Hardly matters now. They're dead."

Maybe I should have been more shocked that he'd murdered them, but I was too scared for Jaxon. "That man was one of the ones that got Jax. He was probably back there, and you just drove away."

He breathed out. "If he'd been there, I would have found him. I promise you he wasn't."

"And why should I believe you?"

"Because I have no reason to lie. I want him found so I can get my information. I want to spend the least amount of time with you as possible."

"That makes two of us, sweetheart."

We drove on, and I didn't even know where we were going or why. Landon didn't offer up any conversation. The silence might have been the only thing keeping me from killing him. It was no wonder why he was alone. He was so insufferable that any companion he had would only want to stab him. It wasn't as if I was even allowed to ask why he was alone, so I had to make up my own reasons. Though mine seemed believable.

"We need to stop for the night," Landon said after the sun went down. "I have to sleep."

I rolled my eyes. "What, my blood didn't perk you up?"

He looked over at me with no amusement. "No."

He found a motel that was fairly close to the Nevada border, according to Landon. It looked shady as hell, but it seemed to be his pick. We got two rooms next to each other and brought our suitcases in.

Once my bag was placed on my bed, I collapsed onto the uncomfortable mattress. My feet hung off the bed, and I groaned at the ceiling.

I should be out looking for Jax. But instead, I was lying here with a vampire only a few feet away from me. One who had bitten me and thought that was okay.

"You gonna be all right in here all by yourself?" he asked.

I sat up on my elbows just to glare at him. "If I get scared, I'll just come crawl into bed with you."

He smirked. "I sleep naked."

Then I frowned. "We're in a motel. You can catch something."

"Vampire, darlin'. I can't catch anything."

"Then enjoy your nudity. I'll be here. In clothes."

His eyes trailed the length of my body. "Shame." Then he turned and walked through the door that joined our rooms. He left it open. I guess he didn't trust me. That made us even.

****

I jolted awake when something patted my ass. I groaned and opened my eyes. Again, I was on my stomach, holding a pillow. When I looked up, I was met with a vision of a man in only a towel.

"You sleep like the dead," Landon informed me.

"Is that supposed to offend me?" I rolled over and stayed on my back. And yeah, I checked him out. Don't greet me when you're naked unless you want that to happen. He looked quite pretty, and it was nice to have some eye candy. Even if he ruined it all when he opened his mouth.

"No. It's supposed to get your ass up." He stood straight up, and I glanced at where his happy trail disappeared under his towel.

Then I looked up at him from the bed. "What time is it?"

"Eight."

I looked him up and down again. "You couldn't have gotten dressed before waking me?"

He shot me a cocky smile. "If I had, then you wouldn't have been able to enjoy the show."

"True," I said as I was sitting up. I ran my fingers through my hair and threw the blankets off me.

I was far more dressed than he. Shorts and a tank top. I didn't wait around to see if Landon was checking me out too. I just grabbed my stuff and went to shower.

Fifteen minutes later, I was ready to go. I had on combat boots and a dress because - why not? I put my hair in a braid over my shoulder and left the bathroom. Landon was almost fully dressed now, only having to button up his shirt. "Where are we going?" I asked, looking at him through the open door that joined our rooms.

He looked over at me. "L.A. Knox has a place there. Since I don't know if this is business or personal for him, your brother could be anywhere. Best to check what's the closest first."

I didn't say anything. I just finished packing up. We loaded up the van, and Landon started driving us away from the motel.

Jaxon's phone had been left in the vehicle. My eyes were stuck on it, just sitting there in the cup holder. I felt nothing but guilt when I looked at it.

He had to be alive. There was no other option. I couldn't walk this world all alone. I couldn't be the reason he died.

I really didn't know what to do if he was gone. I mean, I knew how to survive, but I didn't know what to do with my life. There was no way I could keep doing this. Keep conning people. Landon had been right. That was what I was. A con artist.

A liar. Thief. I was a bad person. But at least I had someone who loved me. Love that made my sins feel a little less horrid. If Jaxon was gone, so was that love. I wasn't worthy of finding more.

"You look miserable," Landon commented.

I didn't look away from the phone. "I am. He was all I had. If I don't find him, then that's it."

There were a few silent beats before he said, "Well I was younger than you when I was on my own, if that makes you feel better."

My eyes went to him, and I could hear pure melancholy in my voice. "Why would that make me feel better?"

He shrugged. "Because you're old enough to survive without someone looking out for you."

"That's not the point. I love him. I don't want to be alone."

"No one does. You might have to do it anyway."

I stared out the window. "I take it you're all alone?"

Landon sighed. "Pretty sure I told you that you weren't getting my life story."

"I know. But we're stuck in this car for a while. I wouldn't mind knowing the person I'm traveling with a little better. Ensure me you're not a serial killer."

He stifled a laugh and a smile. "Who says I'm not?"

I stayed calm. "You kill people you drink from?"

"No. But I've killed other people. Sometimes it was a good reason. Sometimes it wasn't."

"Have you only killed bad people?"

He waited a few seconds before he said, "No."

"Was it on purpose?"

"No."

"Do you think about them sometimes?"

Another few seconds. "No."

I straightened up in my seat and watched him. "Will you tell me about some of the bad people you killed? And why you're so interested in a ledger with a hundred names that aren't of the man you're looking for?" His hands tightened on the wheel. "You're pushing it."

"I know. Tell me anyway."

He looked over at me before looking back to the road. "You seem too cool at the idea of sitting in a car with a murderer."

"I've met worse people than you, Landon. At least you're not actively trying to hurt me."

"Have people hurt you?"

"Yes."

"A lot?"

"Yes."

"Badly?"

"Yes."

"How?"

I smiled. "I'll tell you if you tell me something too."

"You first."

All right then. What horror story should I go with? Maybe the thing that happened when I was a kid. Well, one of them. The one that was the reason for the knife in my pocket.

"I was about thirteen. Jaxon was a decade older. We had just gotten to a new place. Miami that time. I was enrolled in school, Jaxon had perfected creating fake documents so when we ended up staying somewhere long enough I was able to attend school, and I'd made a couple friends. I'm a chatterer, so it wasn't hard. I just needed to find the ones that I didn't annoy. They were nice. But it turned out Jaxon made some friends too. They weren't nice." Landon looked over again. "Did they hurt you?"

I nodded. "Yeah, they hurt me. They wanted Jaxon to help them with something. Drug distribution or something like that. Our parents warned us to steer clear of that. More trouble than the money is worth. So Jaxon said no. They kept asking, offering more money. He still said no. It got messy. There are some things that I still don't know because he wouldn't tell me.

"Then they came to our house one night. Jaxon was asleep. I was in my room alone. I was up reading. I remember shutting my light off when it was getting late. I lay down. Closed my eyes. And then someone was on top of me." The memory wasn't a very painful one. The worst part was when Jaxon found me. That was what hurt. Not the actual pain. There was awkward silence from Landon. "What did they do?"

I sighed. "He wasn't alone. He had a couple friends. He was on top of me, and his knee dug into my stomach. Broke a couple ribs. His hand was over my mouth so I couldn't scream. They tied my wrists to the bedposts so I couldn't move. Then they spent an hour cutting me up. I started getting dizzy when it was almost over. I lost a lot of blood. They were nice enough to leave my underwear on, so at least my brother didn't find me naked. It might sound like a stupid thing to worry about, but the little things helped."

He glanced me up and down. "They just cut you?"

"Yeah. Another thing I'm grateful for. And the only reason I got Jax to not go find them and kill them."

"He should have killed them anyway. If someone did that to my sister, I'd end everyone they ever met."

"Well, I'd rather have a living brother than revenge taken. I didn't really scar, so that helps. Only some of the cuts were deep enough to do that. Clothes can hide them."

Landon didn't seem to relax at that. "Still should have killed them."

"Easy for you to say. It was three against one with Jaxon. He wouldn't have survived. So we just packed up and went. The day after I got out of the hospital. We moved to Montana that time." I waited a few seconds before I went on. "Well, darlin', I showed you mine..."

He breathed out, loudly. "What do you want to know?"

"Why do you want Knox?"

"Pick another question."

My eyes narrowed. "That wasn't part of the deal."

"You got to pick your story."

"And you told me to pick yours."

He switched lanes and didn't look at me. "I changed my mind. Pick something else."

I rolled my eyes. "How did you die?"

He smiled. "A girl, of course."

Christ. "You changed into a vampire for a girl?"

"No. I was stupid, but I wasn't that level of stupid. I was twenty-three. I'd been on my own since I was fifteen. I was in a pub in London, drinking to pass the time. I met a woman. She was kind to me. Asked me why I was there alone. I told her. We were both alone. Different reasons, of course, but still. A lot to have in common."

I think I knew where this was going. "Do I get to find out why you were alone?"

"No," he said flatly. "Do you want the rest of the story?"

"Yeah," I huffed and crossed my arms.

"Then be quiet. So anyway, I left. My companion, Mercy, decided it was time to move along. She caught up with me outside. She fed me her blood, broke my neck, and then I woke up."

My eyebrows shot up, and I gasped. "She did that without asking you?"

"Well, it sounds worse than it was. She meant well."

"She murdered you."

"Details."

"Big ones."

"She was lonely. So was I."

"And then what? You two lovebirds ripped London apart together?"

He smiled at the road, and I couldn't believe how lightly he was taking this. "Not exactly. The reason Mercy was alone was because she'd lost her mate. Maggie had been gone for a while. Mercy only wanted a friend."

"She didn't get another mate?"

The smile turned miserable. "That's not how it works. A mate is for life. Even if that life goes on forever. And they chose to make it permanent, even beyond that."

"How? Like getting married?"

"No. They couldn't get married. This was a thousand years ago. They would have been tortured for what they had. Instead, they did something else."

"Being?"

"They Linked."

I felt my forehead wrinkle. "How is that permanent? You said that dies when the human does."

"Yes, if there's a human involved. Two vampires, and it's something else entirely. The Link makes each person's blood very strong for the other. More so than the humans would be. Vampire blood is the weakest thing for us, unless we're Linked with that person. That, you can do only once. Then no more, not even with a human. Then the feelings are all mutual. Both can sense the other, track them. Feel when they're hurt. It doesn't break, even when one vampire dies. You just feel part of yourself is missing. Ripped from you. It's not really done much anymore. The older vampires go for it more than the younger ones."

"Did you?"

He shook his head. "No. To have a mate, that would require me to have a heart as well. I lost that long ago. I don't even remember how."

I knew that feeling all too well. "How long were you with her?"

"Maybe fifty years or so."

Tentatively, I said, "And why aren't you with her now?"

His back hit the seat, and he kept his eyes on the road. "I don't know what it's like to have a mate, let alone lose one. I never saw Mercy happy. There were moments, because even in the darkest of times, you find light. But it never lasted. I would catch her sometimes with utter emptiness in her eyes. She left me a note one morning. She said she was sorry. I never did find the body." His next words sounded like they were to himself. "I think that was meant to be a kindness." It was quiet for half a minute. "That's how I died."