As Twilight Falls

Saintcrow was standing in front of the fireplace in the living room when Kadie returned to his house.

She cast about for something to say, but nothing came to mind. She understood his reasoning, just as she understood why Rosemary and the others objected.

"Do you think I'm wrong?" he asked. "Do you think I'm a monster?"

Curling up in the chair beside the hearth, she tucked her legs beneath her. "No," she said quietly. "I don't think you're a monster."

"But you think it's wrong for me to take away their memories?"

"Yes, but I can understand why you think it's necessary."

"But you don't approve?"

"No. What difference does it make if they tell people about this place after you've gone? If there are vampire hunters, then there are already people who know you exist. Just because I didn't know before I came here . . ."

"My point exactly. Other than hunters, very few people believe in vampires. The ones who know about us are fewer still. I'd like to keep it that way."

Moving away from the hearth, Saintcrow knelt in front of her. "I will not put my existence-or your life-in jeopardy for a handful of people who mean nothing to me. If enough people start to believe, more hunters will come. In the old days, long before you were born, the mere mention of the word vampire was enough to send men and women thronging the streets wielding torches and axes. Very few vampires were destroyed but a great many innocent men and women were killed."

It was an impassioned speech, one that resonated with truth and logic from Saintcrow's point of view, and reminded her, yet again, of the differences between them. Though he had once been human, he no longer thought of himself as such. Was it possible for them to have any kind of life together with a gulf like that between them? A gulf only she could cross, and then only if she was willing to give up her humanity to become what he was.

He lifted one brow, mute evidence that he had been reading her mind.

"Rylan, will you let me go with the others?"

He shook his head. "No."

"Will you ever let me go?"

"Perhaps. In time."

She bit down on her lower lip to keep from begging for her freedom. What was the point when she knew it wouldn't do any good?

"You can lie to yourself, Kadie, but you can't lie to me."

"What do you mean?"

"You don't really want to leave me. I know it. And you know it." He snorted softly. "Even Rosemary knows it."

"I hate you." She spoke the words, but there was no heat behind them. And no truth.

He drew her down onto his lap, then wrapped his arms around her. "If I can't have your love," he murmured, lightly stroking her cheek, "I'll take your hatred."

The trouble was she didn't hate him, even though she knew she should. Why didn't she? He had stolen her freedom. He was keeping her from her family. He was a vampire. Yet there was an indefinable connection between them. Even now, the wanting in his eyes warmed her to the depths of her soul. Yes, he was a vampire. Some might consider him a monster. But there was goodness in him. Kindness. Tenderness. He had spared Carl Freeman's life. He had let her buy chocolates for Marti and the others. Right or wrong, wisdom or folly, she wanted to be with him.

"It'll take a few days to send the others where they want to go," he said. "In the meantime, pack up whatever you want to take with you."

"Do you mind if I call my mom and dad tomorrow?"

"No."

Her quick smile was his reward.

Kadie woke late after a restless night. Her dreams were fragmented, filled with nightmare images of Saintcrow eliminating everyone in Morgan Creek. In one scene, she walked streets littered with desiccated corpses. In another, she was the only living creature left in town. Unable to escape, with no way to obtain food or drink, she saw herself wasting away. On the brink of death.

Her own horrified scream had roused her.

Sitting up, she clutched the covers to her chest, felt a slow smile chase away the last remnants of her nightmare when she saw the pale pink rose petals scattered across the bedspread. A vase, overflowing with roses, stood in the center of the dresser.

Picking up a handful of petals, she crushed them in her hand, then breathed in the delicate fragrance.

Vampire or not, he knew the way to her heart.

Later, after a shower and a cup of coffee, she called her parents to let them know she was doing well, she was going to England, and she wasn't sure for how long.

"England!" her mother exclaimed. "That's a long way from Morro Bay."

"I know, but . . ."

"Kadie, what's going on? Have you met someone?"

"I never could fool you, could I?"

"Who is he? What does he do? When will we meet him?"

"Slow down, Mom. His name is Rylan and . . ."

"He's the reason you got sidetracked, isn't he?" her mother said, a smile in her voice.

"Well . . ."

"I knew it! I've never known you to get lost."

That was true enough on the road, Kadie thought, but she was in unfamiliar territory where Saintcrow was concerned. "I'll tell you all about it some other time. How's Kathy?"

"She seems to be in remission at the moment."

"Great. Can you put her on the phone?"

"I'm sorry, she's not here. She's gone on an overnight camping trip with Susie and her family."

"That's wonderful!"

"She'll be so sorry she missed your call. Hang on. Dad wants to talk to you."

"All right. Love you, Mom."

"Kadie, darlin'!" Her dad's voice boomed over the line. "When are you coming home?"

"I'm not sure. I'm going to England with a friend."

"What kind of 'friend'?"

"A guy friend, Dad. How are you?"

"Hey, we're not changing the subject. When do I get to meet this 'guy'? What's his name? Where did you meet him? Do I need my shotgun?"

Kadie laughed. "I'll bring him home as soon as I can. And no, you don't need your shotgun. Listen, I've got to go," she said before he could ask any more questions she couldn't answer. "I'll call you soon. Give Mom a hug for me."

"I know what you're doing," her father said. "But we'll talk about this again. Oh, wait, before I forget. Did you get a new phone? I've been trying to call you for weeks."

"Sorry, the battery went dead and I . . . I lost the charger. It took me a while to replace it. Talk to you soon."

After saying good-bye, Kadie sat there a moment. How could she even think of leaving the country when her sister was so ill? Even though Kathy was doing better now, there was no telling how long it would be before she had a relapse.

Kadie blew out a sigh. Whether she wanted to go or not, she really had no choice. Closing her eyes, she uttered a silent prayer that Kathy would hold on long enough for her father to determine the cause of her illness and find a cure.

She sat back on the sofa, her legs stretched out in front of her. So, her parents wanted to meet Rylan. She found herself grinning as she tried to imagine introducing Saintcrow to her family. Hi, Kathy. Mom, Dad. This is Rylan Saintcrow. I'm his prisoner. Oh, by the way, he's a vampire. Yeah, that would go over real well.

Too curious to wait until tonight to find out what Rosemary and the others had decided, she drove to Rosemary's house. When no one answered her knock, she drove to town. She found everyone but Chelsea and Jeremy in the restaurant.

All eyes turned toward her as she stepped inside.

Kadie hesitated. Was she imagining things, or was there a look of hostility in their eyes? "Would you rather I left?" she asked.

"Of course not," Nancy said. "We can't afford to make an enemy of you."

Kadie stared at the other woman. "What does that mean?"

"It's us against him," Donna said. "And you're with him."

"Guilty by association, is that it? None of this is my doing. If it wasn't for me . . ." Kadie pressed her lips together. She had promised not to tell anyone about Marti or Carl. Hurt beyond belief, she left the restaurant.

She laid rubber as she peeled out of the parking lot. With no destination in mind, she left the business district behind. She supposed she couldn't blame them for the way they felt. For the first time, it occurred to her that if and when Saintcrow let her go, he would probably erase all her memories of this place from her mind.

And she would hate him for it.

Kadie was loading her dinner dishes into the dishwasher when Saintcrow appeared in the kitchen.

"Shall we go get this over with?" he asked, coming up behind her.

"I'm not going."

"Why not?"

"I'm no longer one of them."

"You never were."

She whirled around to face him. "I went to see them this afternoon. I felt like . . . like they hated me."

"I know the feeling. Nevertheless, I think they'll be more at ease if you're there."

" No."

"This is not open for discussion. Are you ready?"

There was no point arguing. Wordlessly, she followed him out of the house and into the car. She refused to look at him. Instead, she concentrated on building a wall in her mind so he couldn't read her thoughts.

"Very good," he remarked. "With practice, you might be able to keep me out."

She glared at him, then turned and looked out the window once more. So, it was possible to keep him out of her head. Concentrating, she added height and depth to her mental barrier.

The human residents of Morgan Creek were all gathered at the restaurant again.

Kadie hung back as Saintcrow strode through the door. His gaze swept the room, his power a tangible thing. "I've come for your decisions," he said curtly.

It came as no surprise to Kadie that they all chose to have their memories erased.

Saintcrow nodded. "Next, I need to know where you wish to go. Rosemary?"

"I want to stay here, with Donna and Brittany." Saintcrow shoved his hands in his pockets, bored with the whole thing. "Okay by me."

"Me and Jeremy and Frankie want to go to Hawaii," Claude said.

"Uh, about that," Jeremy said. "Chelsea wants to go home, and I'm going with her."

Claude shrugged. "Looks like it's just you and me, Frankie," he said, and she smiled.

"I'll have tickets for you tomorrow night," Saintcrow said.

"I'd also like to go home," Nancy decided.

Saintcrow nodded, then looked at Shirley. "What about you?"

"If Rosemary and the others don't mind, I think I'll stay here."

"The more, the merrier," Rosemary declared, and Donna and Brittany nodded in agreement.

"Pauline?"

"My house is only a few miles from here. I'm going home."

"All right, then," Saintcrow said. "Those bound for Hawaii will leave tomorrow night. Chelsea, you and Jeremy be ready to leave Wednesday night. Nancy, I'll take you home on Thursday." He glanced around the room. "Feel free to take anything you want with you. Claude, Frankie, I'll come for you tomorrow at sunset. Pauline, you can leave tomorrow night, as well. Kadie, let's go."

She followed him outside, feeling more alone than she ever had in her life.

When they returned to Saintcrow's lair, she went straight to her room and closed the door.

She should have known he would follow her.

"How long do you intend to give me the silent treatment?" He stood in the doorway, one shoulder braced against the jamb, his hands shoved into his pants pockets.

She shrugged.

"Do you think me a monster now?"

"I don't know what to think. My parents want to meet you." She pressed a hand to her mouth, wondering what had prompted her to say such a thing.

He stared at her, his eyes narrowed. "You told them about me?"

"Of course not! But I had to give them some reason for not coming home, and when my mother suspected there was a man involved . . . I told her we were going to England." She folded her arms across her chest. "I'm going to bed."

"So early?"

She nodded.

"If you want me, you know where to find me," he said, and left the room.

Kadie stared after him, confused by her anger. He was only doing what he had to do to protect himself. And even though he hadn't said so, she thought that erasing his memory from the minds of the others was probably for their protection, as well. Who knew what would happen if they told someone they had been living in a town with vampires? Those who didn't believe in such creatures would likely think them delusional, and those who did believe might try to force them to tell what they knew.

She sat on the edge of the bed, one hand absently moving back and forth over the bedspread before picking up the pillow Saintcrow slept on and burying her face in its softness. His scent filled her nostrils and stirred a familiar longing deep within her.

If you want me, you know where to find me.

Kadie stared at the door.

Her mind told her to stay where she was.

Her heart urged her to run to him.

Before she could talk herself out of it, she hurried out the door.

Saintcrow looked up when Kadie entered the living room. To his credit, he didn't look smug.

"I was hoping you would come," he said quietly.

She stood in the doorway, uncertain of what to do now that she was there.

He made the decision for her by holding out his arms.

Sitting beside him was like coming home, she thought, sighing as his arms closed around her.

"You won't hurt them, will you?" she asked as his hand caressed her shoulder.

"No. It's quite painless. I'll simply remove their memories of Morgan Creek and replace them with other memories. Jeremy and Chelsea will think they were old school friends. Frankie and Claude will remember meeting at a restaurant. Rosemary and the women who decided to stay here will remember each other, but their memories of how they met will change."

"Will you wipe away all my memories of you, of this place, when you tire of me?"

His knuckles stroked her cheek. "I will never tire of you, Kadie."

"And you'll never let me go, either, will you?"

"Perhaps, in time, you'll stop asking."

Cupping her face in his hands, he rained featherlight kisses on her eyelids, her cheeks, the tip of her nose, the corners of her mouth. Kisses that, though ever so gentle, sent shock waves of pleasure coursing through her, igniting her nerve endings, energizing every cell, until she was breathlessly aware of his every touch as his hands caressed her.

She slid her hands under his shirt, desperate to touch him in return, to taste him, to feel his weight bearing her down as their bodies merged.

When he stood, carrying her with him, she wrapped her arms around his neck and rested her head on his shoulder.

Right or wrong, she was his for as long as he wanted her.