The Accidental Vampire(56)

"No?" DJ asked. "What about that story Harper told us the first night? About his friend

and the friend's cousin who both met a woman they couldn't read?"

The reminder of the story made his stomach turn, which in turn reminded him of why

they were out there on Port Henry's streets. To feed. As Victor had told Elvi, it was

against their laws to feed on a mortal unless it was an emergency. For Victor, it was

always an emergency. He'd been born with a genetic anomaly that wouldn't allow him

to survive on bagged blood. He could consume all the bagged blood he wanted, but it

was useless. He had to feed off the hoof to survive.

They were passing a park between two buildings and Victor glanced into it, noting a

couple staggering through the walkway toward the parking lot on the other side. The

man was obviously drunk and held no interest for him. Victor didn't wish to be

intoxicated himself. The woman on the other hand had consumed a couple drinks but

was only at the relaxed stage. She was stumbling under the weight of her much bigger

boyfriend as she tried to steer him toward the parking lot ahead.

Victor turned into the park to offer his assistance; he would take only a small bit of

blood in return for his aid. It was a fair trade to his mind. DJ followed.

Fifteen minutes and three couples later, Victor led DJ out of the park, headed for Casey

Cottage.

"I suppose there is one other possibility," the young immortal said, returning to the

topic they'd been discussing earlier as if it had never been interrupted.

"What's that?" Victor asked.

"Her sire."

Victor glanced at him with surprise. "Her sire? What sire? According to Elvi, she doesn't

have one."

"Yes, but we know that's not possible," DJ pointed out. "One of our kind had to have

given her blood… and whoever it is may be trying to kill Elvi. Perhaps he's found out

that the council is snooping around. Maybe he'd already turned someone else, she was

a second turn, and this would put him in deep trouble with the council. Maybe he's

trying to kill Elvi before we can discover who he is."

Victor was silent, not wanting to believe this theory, yet unable to pooh‐pooh it as he

had the others. Someone had turned Elvi. And they hadn't laid claim to her and trained

her as a proper sire should. Even if she wasn't a second turn for this unknown

immortal, he would be in trouble for that. Deep trouble. Silencing her could save his

neck.

"So we still can't be sure who the arrow was meant for," Victor muttered.

DJ nodded, and then asked, "Can you read her?"

Mouth tightening with irritation, Victor admitted, "I don't know. I haven't tried."

"Why?" DJ asked with surprise.

"I just didn't think of it." Victor admitted, feeling foolish. He should have tried to read

her if for no other reason than it would have sped up their work on this case. Why the

hell hadn't he thought of reading her? He wondered.

Because she was distracting him with her intoxicating scent every time he was near

her, and that damned wide, open, guileless smile and those big beautiful eyes, his

mind answered.

"I bet you can't read her," DJ said suddenly. "I bet she's just unreadable."

Victor frowned. "Can't you read her?"

"I haven't tried," DJ admitted. "I didn't bother after I found I couldn't read Mabel." His

eyes suddenly widened incredulously. "Maybe it's just the whole town. Maybe no one

here can be read."

"What?" Victor asked with surprise.

"Yeah," DJ said, suddenly cheering. "Maybe it's something in the water here."

"Don't be ridiculous," Victor muttered.

"No, listen," DJ insisted. "I can't read Mabel, and none of the men can read Elvi."

"They can't?" he glanced at him with alarm. "They've admitted as much to you?"

"Well…" DJ shrugged. "Edward claims he can and is only staying because there is so

much interesting architecture in Port Henry, and Alessandro says he can, but the

women here are so "bella" he decided to stay the whole week, but…" He arched his

eyebrows dubiously. "Come on, do you believe either story?"

Victor frowned. He hadn't considered that the others might not be able to read her. In

his mind, he was slowly claiming Elvi himself. He didn't like the idea that he might have

some competition.

"I think if they could read her they'd be gone already," DJ said with certainty. "Neither

of them were thrilled about coming here, and the first night they were saying they

were out of here the first chance they got if they couldn't read her… But they're still

here." He shook his head. "They're lying. Neither of them can read her either."