"That poor girl," Lara whispered.
"You did all you could," Jack said quietly.
Robby crossed his arms, frowning. "So is everything done here?"
"Just about." Jack motioned to the guards. "They have to be teleported to town."
"And there's another guard by the kitchen," Lara said.
"I'll get him." Robby strode from the temple. Phil trotted alongside him.
"Where's the wolf going?" Lara whispered.
"He's probably going to his clothes so he can shift back. Lara, we're the only ones who know that Phil can shift when the moon isn't full. Don't tell any of the people in Wolf Ridge. I'm not sure why, but Phil wants to keep it secret."
She nodded. "Okay. I guess I'll have a lot of secrets to keep from now on."
He touched her cheek. "It's no secret that I love you and adore you and want to spend my entire life with you. You can shout that from the mountaintops."
She grinned. "I'll just shout it from the top of a certain bell tower I know in Venice."
Jack laughed. "It's a date."
Lara sighed as hot water sluiced down her body. She hadn't wanted to spend one more minute in that white gown. While Jack stayed in the temple, watching the guards, she'd gathered her old clothes from the trunk in the side room. Then, she'd run back to the dormitory to shower and change.
It was all over, she thought, as the last of the soap and shampoo spiraled down the drain. No, it was actually just beginning. Her life would be an exciting adventure with Jack. He'd assured her that he just wanted her to be happy. She could return to her job as a police officer on the night patrol. She could continue to work toward her detective badge. Or she could start as a detective right away, working for MacKay Security and Investigation.
It was tempting. Very tempting. She already knew about Vamps and Malcontents and shape shifters. How could she go back to her regular job when she knew about this strange new world? She would have to find a way to explain it all to LaToya. She turned off the water and stepped out of the shower stall.
"Hello, bellissima."
She gasped. "Jack." He was standing across the bathroom, leaning against the vanity with his arms folded. His reflection didn't appear in the mirror behind him. "How long have you been here?"
"Long enough." His golden brown eyes twinkled.
She snorted and grabbed a towel to dry off. "I thought you were going to stay in the temple to watch those guards."
"Robby just teleported the last one away, and I was there all alone, getting worried about you. I wanted to make sure you were all right." He smiled slowly. "You are definitely all right. All over."
She grinned as she towel-dried her hair. "You should have joined me in the shower."
"I seriously considered that. I also considered using one of those beds in the dorm room. But they're expecting us to teleport to Wolf Ridge. If we don't show up in a few minutes, they'll come here looking for us."
"Oh, I'd better get dressed." She pulled on some underwear.
Jack watched with a wistful look. "Well, it was nice while it lasted."
She grabbed her bra. "Thank God I can wear this again. I was so tired of flopping around in that gown."
"Yes, it was a very sad thing to watch."
She scoffed. "I was afraid my breasts would start sagging."
"They look perfect to me." His gaze focused on her chest. "They perk right up when I see them."
She laughed and put on her bra, then her jeans.
"Jack, are ye here?" Robby's voice called from the dormitory.
"Merda," Jack grumbled. "Coming!" He strode into the dormitory.
Lara quickly donned her T-shirt, then her socks and shoes. She ran into the dorm room.
Robby nodded at her. "I was just telling Jack that we've altered the memories of the guards and most of the lassies. There was one, though, who wanted to retain her memory Her name is Sarah."
"Oh, right." Miss Forbidden. Somehow, Lara wasn't that surprised. "Sarah was starting to figure things out. She was given to some creep who called himself Zeus, and he abused her."
"Aye." Robby frowned. "She couldna remember Zeus, so I helped her regain those memories. It was verra hard on the puir lass. She knows now that he raped her and bit her."
"Then she knows about vampires," Jack said.
"Aye. We'll have to be verra careful with her. I'm teleporting her straight to Romatech, where we can keep an eye on her until we decide whether or not to let her keep her memory." Robby turned to Lara. "Ye know her better than we do. Do ye think she can be trusted?"
"Yes, I do." Lara had to admire Sarah. She'd made a tough decision to keep those awful memories. It would have been so much easier to have them simply erased.
"Normally, I would just erase her memory anyway," Robby continued. "But she's studying to be a schoolteacher, so I thought I'd let her talk to Shanna first."
Jack nodded. "I heard she needs more teachers."
"Teachers for what?" Lara asked.
"A school for special children," Jack said. "Shape shifters or kids like Constantine who have some Vamp DNA. I'll tell you about it later."
"Please do." Lara was really curious about the possibility of having children with a vampire.
"One more thing," Robby said. "When I brought back her memories of Zeus, she was able to describe him. Tall, dark eyes, Russian accent, and a left arm bent at a strange angle. He wore a glove on his left hand."
Jack stiffened. "Nine circles of hell."
"What?" Lara asked. "Do you know him?"
"We've been hunting him for several years," Robby explained. "The most recent reports had indicated he was in Eastern Europe."
Jack gave Lara a worried look. "He's Casimir, the leader of the Malcontents. And he's here in America."
Lara gulped. This had to mean more battles. More deaths. More mortals in danger.
"I'm going straight to Romatech to alert Roman and Connor," Robby said. "Then I'll call Angus. He'll want to transfer every available man here."
Jack nodded. "Go. I'll take Lara to Wolf Ridge."
Robby vanished.
"Let's go." Jack wrapped his arms around Lara.
"Wait." She pressed her hands against his chest. "Just how bad is this? What does Casimir want to do?"
"He's building an army of vampires who were criminals in their mortal lives. He plans to kill every decent, bottle-drinking Vamp like me. And then they'll terrorize the mortal world, feeding and killing with no one to stop them."
Lara shuddered.
Jack brushed her damp hair away from her face. "I'm sorry, cara mia. I didn't mean to drag you into this."
"It's all right." She touched his face. "After the car accident, I wanted to do something really important, something that made a difference in the world. This is it. I can't think of anything more important than this."
"You are so brave, cara mia." He kissed her brow. "But I have to disagree with you. There is something much more important than Casimir and all his nasty followers."
Lara smiled. "Are you talking about love?"
He nodded. "Amore. With love on our side, we can never be defeated."
Epilogue
Three nights later, Lara was standing in the campanile of the Piazza San Marco, gazing over the moonlit rooftops of Venice. She leaned back against Jack's sturdy chest, and he wrapped his arms around her.
"It's so beautiful, so peaceful," she whispered.
He rubbed his chin against her hair. "This is where I first told you that I love you."
"Mmm. It was very romantic." She jumped when music started below. "What's that?" She peered down from the bell tower and laughed when she saw Lorenzo playing his accordion. The strains of "Bella Notte" drifted up to her.
"Oh Jack." She touched his face. "You're so sweet."
"I wanted everything to be perfect."
She gave him a wry look. "Are you trying to recreate that first date?"
He winced. "Not really. You left me at the end of that date."
"Well, yes. But you did make me scream. I'm afraid I permanently traumatized the pigeons."
He held up his hands. "I learned my lesson. Tonight, we will teleport to my bedroom at the palazzo, and there, I will make love to you all night long. I promise to do my best, but the screaming will be left to your discretion."
She laughed. "You rascal. You always make me scream."
He grinned. "And then tomorrow, while I'm totally useless in my death-sleep, you will be taken on a tour of Venezia. Gianetta's niece works at a museum, and shell spend the day as your personal guide."
"Oh, that's wonderful. Thank you, Jack."
His eyes sparkled. "And I have another surprise for you. You won't be sightseeing alone. I gave LaToya a first-class ticket to Venice. She'll be arriving in the morning."
Lara gasped and pressed a hand to her chest. "Jack, that's the most wonderful gift ever."
"She's been a good friend to you. I don't want you to lose her just because you're with me."
Lara's eyes filled with tears. She hadn't told LaToya everything yet, but it shouldn't be difficult to convince her best friend that Jack was the most wonderful man in the world. Because he simply was.