"Sorry about my dog. Apparently he doesn't get around people enough."
I looked at the dog, who was growling and snapping now.
The guy pulled on the leash and yelled at the dog. He apologized to me again.
"He's just trying to protect his owner," I said, narrowing my eyes.
His eyes widened and the scent of fear rose up again. I showed him my now-sharp teeth and he dropped the leash, his heart pounding. The dog ran at me and I picked it up, biting into its back. I spit out the foul tasting blood and threw the dog to the side. It yelped and licked a leg that was clearly broken.
"What are you?"
"The things nightmares are made of," I said as I watched the vein in his neck pulse up and down. I looked deep into his eyes and watched as the reality of the situation washed over his face.
"No…please," he begged. "I have a family-people that love me. I'll do anything, please."
I stopped. Tanner's face flashed in my mind when he said that people loved him. If anyone loved this guy even close to the way that I felt about Tanner, I couldn't do it. I felt my fangs retract. I grabbed his shirt and pulled him close, staring into his eyes until they dilated. "You never saw me. Your dog was hit by a car. Capisci?"
He nodded. "I never saw you and my dog was hit by a car."
"Good," I said, shoving him away from me. "Leave my sight."
He took one more look at me and then ran off. I was about to start running myself when I heard laughing. I turned toward the forest and saw Danny watching me, nearly doubled over in laughter.
I folded my arms. "Enjoying yourself?"
Standing up, he said, "Immensely. Looks like that human boy is making you weak. Who would have thought you would ever let a human go? That's not like the Samantha that everyone knows and fears."
"Shut it."
He took a deep breath. "It smells like you really like him too. You'd best find someone to snack on to get rid of that scent. Vince isn't going like that."
"I said shut it, Danny. What's it going to take to keep you quiet about this?"
"Forget about that indiscretion that you've been hanging over my head for the last decade."
He had killed one of Vince's relatives and I'd been using it to get anything I needed from him ever since.
I thought about it. "Deal. I was getting bored with that anyway," I lied.
"Finally," he said, looking relieved. "Vince was afraid that you didn't get his message so he sent me to make sure that you go it."