Dying to Date(58)
“Coming,” he called as he jogged down the steps. Wherever his sister was hiding he’d find her and force her into a decent conversation with him. They needed to plan their next steps. His drive through Oklahoma had endeared him to the state, but he still needed her input before he uprooted their entire lives and picked a new spot.
Tarian yanked open the door and regretted it instantly.
“Hello, Tarian,” Dominic said.
“You are not welcome here.”
“I suspected as much.” He pushed past Tarian and into the hall. “Despite the fact it was my money that purchased this land for your mother.”
“She wanted nothing to do with you,” he said. “You know that.”
Dominic glanced back at him before prowling deeper into the house. “Yes. I know very well, Tarian.”
He shut the door as he debated his options. As much as he’d like to denounce the man, Dominic still shared his blood. He could call the vampires, but Lucian would just label him as guilty as his grandfather was.
“What do you want?” he asked, pacing after Dominic.
He found his grandfather standing in the family room, looking out at the sunny space with smiling pictures of Eilin and himself framing the walls.
“You tried to make a home here,” Dominic said, walking past the worn gray sofa and cluttered coffee table.
“It would have worked had you left well enough alone.”
“Ah yes. You’d have the house, the job…” He glanced back at Tarian. “The girl.”
“We’re moving,” Tarian said. “In a few days. You’re to thank for that.”
“Had you not ruined our plans, this could have been your permanent home.”
“Not even for this house was your plan reasonable.”
Dominic scoffed as he leaned forward to study the pictures. “You never let me know her,” he said, studying a smiling photo of Eilin.
“You had contact by phone.”
“But few visits. My own granddaughter.”
“It was all you needed to seduce her to your way of thinking. I shudder to think how brainwashed she’d be if I’d let you any closer.”
“Not brainwashed,” Dominic corrected. “She wanted to fight for our people. For our cause.”
Tarian shook his head in disgust “And that’s all you cared about. Creating another soldier for your war. There isn’t a paternal bone in your body.”
“It would have been nice to know I was leaving the community in good hands should anything happen to me.”
“I promise, should you disappear, it will be in far better hands.”
“Those of a pacifist?” Dominic asked, glancing at him. “You are my heir, Tarian, and you’ve never had the stomach for blood.”
“Not past the fifteenth century, no.”
“I tried to convince your mother not to coddle you. She was so distraught after her husband’s death.”
“Mate,” he hissed. “She lost her mate and still managed to survive him for centuries.”
“Makes you wonder how strong the bond was, doesn’t it?” Dominic asked, turning to face him. “She found a replacement for your father, something a truly mated woman should never have been capable of.”
His hands clenched into fists but he refused to get pulled into the argument. Whatever his parents’ relationship, it was all in the past.
“Whatever she was, she was clear about her desire to separate from you,” Tarian said.
For a second he could have sworn pain flashed across Dominic’s face. “Yes. She hid you for centuries. Always moving. Always avoiding the conflict. But then Eilin came into the picture.” Dominic clasped his hands behind his back. “Quite the little revolutionary you’ve raised, Tarian. Did you know she walked into my car without much prompting at all?”
Ice ran down his spine. “What?”
“I have Eilin,” Dominic said, moving away from the pictures. “And I can see so much of your mother in her. It would be a shame if anything were to happen.”
Tarian shook his head, resisting the urge to rend flesh before he fully understood the situation. “You took Eilin? Why?”
“Because you have direct access to the woman I really want.”
“Melissa.”
“Melissa,” Dominic agreed. “I’m quite happy to trade, of course. Once I have the vampire, you and Eilin can go wherever you wish. I promise not to contact you again. I can do that much in the memory of my poor daughter.”
“But protecting her children doesn’t count as honoring her memory?”
“Not if it conflicts with my plans,” Dominic said, his eyes hard. “We both have something the other wants. Honestly, Tarian, even with your peaceful views this should be an easy call. After all, it’s not like the vampire is your mate.” He laughed at the notion.