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canyon. But Williams would probably send Ortiz after me and what would that
accomplish but to delay the inevitable? I toss my purse inside before folding
myself into the backseat.
Williams doesn't wait for me to get settled or for Ortiz to get the car back
on the road before he starts in.
"Tell me something, Anna, do you have a death wish? Could you have called any
more attention to yourself? How the hell did you get involved in a kidnapping
inEl Centro ?"
He's speaking quietly but with great agitation. The softness of his voice
makes his anger more intimidating than if he'd been yelling. He stops abruptly
and waits. I swear he's growling, he's so furious.
"Well," he snaps when I don't reply quickly enough. "Are you going to answer
me?"
I feel like a kid who's a hairbreadth away from being smacked if she gives
the wrong answer. The fact that he's completely shut me out of his head
confirms how close I am to unleashing the beast. I let a few seconds go by to
give Williams a chance to cool off.
When his shoulders become less rigid and the frown lines around his mouth
retreat from exasperation to mere annoyance, I ask, "What would you like to
know first?"
"How did this happen?"
The version I offer Williams is sanitized. No mention of a drunken tryst. I
compose my words as carefully as my thoughts to give nothing else away.
When I'm done, he says, "You want me to believe you ran into this 'old
friend' by chance in a bar last night and he told you his daughter was in
trouble and you rushed to her aid."
"That's my story and I'm sticking to it."
He doesn't appreciate my attempt at humor. Watching his face is like watching
an approaching storm. There may be blue skies overhead now, but you know
trouble is coming.
Since he's not asked another question, I venture a few of my own. "How did
you find out about it? How did you get here? Why didn't you let the local cops
know who you were?"
He passes a hand over his face. I suspect the gesture is a delaying tactic. I
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sense his anger boiling again to the surface. I don't push.
Finally, he says, "The report of a suspected kidnapping is broadcast
statewide. An alert was issued as soon as that girl's uncle spoke to the
police. He said you and her father were going after her. He named you, Anna.
It is all over the news. The press will be waiting for you at the cottage, at
the office. David has called me a dozen times already."
He says all this in a clipped tone, as if I've done something wrong. It's
beginning to tick me off but it does clarify one thing. How Foley knew where I
was. "I was trying to save a woman's life. What's wrong with that?"
Williams turns in the seat. "What's wrong?" he snaps. "How were you going to
do that, Anna?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean did you bring your gun? Were you planning to use human self-defense
techniques? If you'd gotten shot, what would you have said to avoid being
brought to a hospital? How would you have explained a wound that heals almost
instantly? The anomalies that would have appeared in your blood had samples
been taken? Or would you have simply told the doctors not to worry, that
you're a vampire and have no need for human medical assistance?"
His sarcasm is as heavy-handed as his anger. And he doesn't wait for me to
answer. He points to the blood on my clothes, his eyes so intense, I feel the
pressure of his gaze. "Blood. Yours or his? Did you control the bloodlust and
hide your true face?"
Again, he gives me no opportunity to confirm or deny. "You didn't, did you?
You took the easy way, unleashing the animal. You exposed your nature yet
again to mortals. It's in your head. I see it."
Then there's no point in denying it. And yet, if I hadn't used my powers, I
never would have reached Sylvie in time to prevent Alan from plunging a knife
in her back. I want to remind Williams of that, but he's not in a receptive
mood.
He continues to stare at me in stern disapproval. "You are so ignorant, so
impatient. I protected you when your niece was in trouble because I could. But
now you have exposed yourself again. This time to strangers over whom I have
no control."
I know it's not smart to argue, butsmart is hardly what I've been lately. "I
think you're overreacting." I say it in a very small voice. "I didn't kill
this guy."
"Oh? What did you do, Anna?"
The image is sharp in my mind. Lunging at Alan, growling, snapping at his
throat.
"It will be clear in the minds of this woman and her father, too." Williams
says it softly. "Anna, did you not learn anything from what happened with
Trish? The mortal world has its own rules. We have to abide by them if we are
to coexist. As much as we may want to, we cannot use our powers impulsively.
We cannot call attention to ourselves."
"That's a funny statement coming from a chief of police."
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As usual, the mouth engages before the brain is in gear. Williams is holding
himself in check, I can tell by the way his hands curl into fists and his lips
form one thin line of irritation.
I hold up a hand. "Okay, that was stupid. You have never shown anything but
your human face in public. I think I understand why you chose to be a
policeman. It puts you in the position to use your powers to protect those who
are most vulnerable. But you do it discreetly. I get that. I respect what you
do."
The frown softens.
I take that and the fact that he hasn't tried to rip my head off as a signal
to press on. "I think you and I have the same instincts. So how could I have
ignored a father's plea for his daughter's safety?"
Williams drops his head a little and looks at me with brows drawn in pained
tolerance. "You could have called the police called me when you first heard
the story."
"There wasn't time. I swear I thought I was just going to serve the guy with
a restraining order. Things got out of control."
He nods. "And why was that? How did you find yourself in such a situation to
begin with?"
His tone is deceptively neutral. He is looking at me with an expression that
says more clearly than words that he already knows the answer. I cross my arms
over my chest and nod for him to continue.
"You got into a fight with David and crawled away to nurse your wounds in a
bar. You got drunk, Anna, and ended up with a stranger in a motel room. Do you
have any idea how irresponsible that was?"
"Irresponsible?" It comes out whiney and childish but I don't like being put
on the defensive for trying to help, even though I called myself worse this
morning. "Funny word to use considering how it turned out."
He's clearly not impressed. "What would you call it then? You did get drunk
last night, didn't you? Did you feed from the guy while you were having sex?
Did you take care to obliterate the marks? Do you even remember?"
How does he know so much?
Williams shakes his head. "How do you think? You smell like sex and a
distillery."
He's looking out the window. I'm glad. He can't see the color that floods my
face. I'd been careful to keep my thoughts compartmentalized, hidden away from
his scrutiny.
Shit. While I could screen the thoughts, I could do nothing to block that
sensitive vampire nose. A hundred showers wouldn't have been enough to erase
the scent.
Williams isn't finished. He turns in the seat. "That woman's uncle, the one
you met last night in the bar, told the El Centro PD the whole story. The real
story, Anna. You never laid eyes on either of those men before last night."
So he knows every damned gruesome detail. I shouldn't be surprised.
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I hunch a little lower in the seat. "You said David called you. What did he
say?"
Williams is frowning again, not the least bit fooled by my lame attempt to
change the subject. But he says, "Not much. Just that you and he had a fight.
He's very upset. He cares for you. Too much, probably." [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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