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She reached out and caressed the man s jaw. He
wore a suit and tie, which made him more acceptable
than some of the less formally dressed patrons. His
dark hair reminded her of Zachary s. His clipped
mustache accentuated lips she might consider worth
exploring, if she had the time which she didn t. His
blue gaze stared back at her, clouded with his
slightly inebriated state. She pursed her lips in a
mock kiss before extending her fangs.
The man jumped back as if scalded, slamming
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into the couple standing behind him. Gabriella
laughed when the woman s partner pulled back his
fist and plowed it into the face of her rejected suitor.
Two minutes later, her view of the door was
once again clear, and the man s unconscious body
had been removed from the floor.
The door s bell signaled another arrival, and she
took out her compact and lipstick. She liked some of
the advantages of this day and time. It was much
easier opening a tube instead of crushing berries to
color her lips.
She angled the compact toward the door and
applied color as she watched the two men approach.
They strutted within a foot of her barstool.
She returned the makeup to her bag, twisted
her body on the swivel seat, and managed to slide off
the stool, right into the arms of the better-dressed
man.
Oh, I am so sorry.
As Gabriella had hoped, the man wrapped his
arms around her waist and held fast.
Nothing to be sorry about, lady.
That s so kind of you. I d really like to make up
for my clumsiness. Would you allow me to buy you
and your friend a drink?
How about I buy you a drink?
Gabriella nodded but resisted the smug smile
that threatened.
The man released her waist but captured her
arm. I think we ll be more comfortable in the back.
She allowed herself to be led to the rear of the
bar and then seated in a booth, her body wedged
between the men who slid in on either side of her.
She wrinkled her nose. The air reeked of cigarette
smoke, perspiration, and cheap cologne.
After the better-dressed man placed an order for
drinks, Gabriella propped one elbow on the table.
She pursed her lips once more, but this time without
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any evidence of her fangs.
My name is Gabriella. She caught her bottom
lip and worried it with her teeth. I don t usually
drink with strange men.
We can take care of that right now, pretty lady.
My name is Jake and my associate here, is Tyler.
****
Zacke dove and twisted through the dark sky.
The time spent inside the police department s
confining walls had helped. His strength was back to
normal, the nausea gone, and the slight headache
he d developed after hearing from Gideon a thing of
the past. However, his hunt for Gabriella so far had
been fruitless. He d stopped at the mausoleum right
after he left the station. His old abode smelled of
death and the slight scent of her perfume but was
devoid of her presence.
The night wind caressed his body as he moved
with it. He welcomed its soothing touch after the
day s sultry heat. He headed toward a small
graveyard on the outskirts of the city. Although it
fell at the bottom of his list of places Gabriella would
seek as a haven, he still needed to check it out. Hope
dwindled to reality with the knowledge that he
might not catch her in her lair or at all this night.
He landed inside the gates of a private family
plot. Most of the departed souls lay buried
underground in coffins, with the exception of one
petite aboveground crypt. Given his knowledge of
Gabriella s taste, he really didn t think this would be
her choice of a resting place.
The door hung on its hinges but rested flush
against the threshold. He placed one palm against
the rotting vegetation covering the iron handle and
pushed. The door splintered and then caved in onto
the stone floor. His nose wrinkled from the burst of
putrid air expelled out of the crypt s moldy interior.
Cobwebs without inhabitants strung a canopy of
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Faith V. Smith
silver across the ceiling and the corners of the tomb,
but no footprints marred the dust-covered floor.
His fist slammed into the mildewed side of the
tomb. Rivulets of crimson ran between his fingers
and spattered a floor strewn with the bones of
rodents long dead.
Despair carved a wound inside his heart. He had
to find Gabriella before she again sought revenge for
his imagined wrongdoings. The she-demon would
bask in delight as she enlightened Miranda to the
circumstances of his origins. He could only imagine
Miranda s reaction to his creature-state. But
Gabriella would not stop there; she would torture
Miranda before she killed her. He scrubbed his face
with his knuckles. Gabriella s bargain was broken,
and now, there was only one way he could ensure
Miranda s safety.
His frustrated roar startled two bats that had
entered in his wake. The winged creatures left their
newfound home and flew back through the doorway,
escaping to the sky.
Zacke followed a moment later a new
destination taking root in his mind.
****
Miranda moved around the cubicle comprising
her kitchen and winced when she jammed her hip
into the refrigerator. Another bruise to add to the
many she d accumulated since moving into the
apartment. She missed the large homey kitchen of
her parents home. She had kept the house after
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