"Yeah, we know about that."
"What am I going to do? Alex is determined to collect that reward. He's like a pit bull when he sets his mind to something. He sinks his teeth in and doesn't let go."
Erik squeezed her hand. "Sounds like your brother and Rhys have a lot in common."
"I can't let him kill my brother!" Alex had always been Daisy's favorite. He was the one she had run to for comfort when she was in kindergarten and Bobby Thomson called her names, the one who had showed her how to blow a bubble with bubblegum, the one who had taught her how to roller-skate. As a teenager, it had been Alex she confided in, Alex who had stood up for her.
"Honey, if your brother finds Rhys, Rhys will kill him, and there's nothing you can do to stop it."
Coming to a halt, Daisy looked up at Erik, her gaze searching his. "Can you?"
"I don't know," Erik said after a moment. He had wondered, from time to time, if he could whip Rhys in a fight. Realistically, he hoped he would never have to find out. "He means a lot to you?"
"Alex? Of course. He's my brother."
"Of course." Sometimes it was hard to remember how strongly woven familial ties could be. He had loved his wife and children, but that had been centuries ago. In the first few years after he had been turned, he had sometimes spied on other families, torturing himself with what he had lost. He had stood on the outside, watching mothers and fathers gather their children around the hearth at Christmastime, carving pumpkins for Halloween, coloring eggs at Easter. He had ached inside as he observed mothers rocking their babies to sleep, watching fathers tuck their sons into bed at night.
Daisy started walking again and he fell into step beside her, shortening his stride to match hers.
"Did you have brothers or sisters?" Daisy asked after a while.
"No. My mother used to tell me I was all she needed. I always thought she didn't want any more kids because I was such a horrible child."
"Were you? A horrible child?" It was hard to imagine Erik as young and vulnerable. He was so self-assured, so invincible. It was easier to picture him as a young Greek god than as a mortal child.
"Yes," he said, smiling. "I suppose I was. I burned down the stable while trying to master the art of conjuring fire. I killed a chicken when I tried to turn it into a duck..."
"Are those the kind of things that young warlocks do?"
"I don't know, but it's what I did." Eventually, he had mastered fire, among other things, but on the day he married Abigail, he had put his magick behind him. And then he had been turned and found he possessed supernatural powers he had never dreamed of, inherent vampire magic that didn't require magical spells or enchantments.
"Here you are, safely home again," Erik remarked when they reached her house.
Daisy nodded. Always her protector, Alex was waiting for her on the front porch. "About time you got back," he said gruffly.
"Alex, I'm a big girl now. You don't have to wait up for me."
"Uh-huh." Alex glared at Erik for a long moment, then turned on his heel and went inside.
"Big brothers," Daisy said fondly. "They can be a pain in the butt sometimes."
"If you say so. Can I see you tomorrow night?"
"Erik..."
"I know all the reasons why we shouldn't," he said, drawing her into his arms. "But right now they don't seem to matter."
Happiness bubbled up inside her at the prospect of being with him again. "What time?" It wasn't the smart answer, it wasn't the safe answer, but it felt like the right one.
"Whatever's good for you," he said with a wink. "I've got all night."
"Eight o'clock?" She could have Alex fed and settled down by then.
"Shall I pick you up?"
"No, I'll meet you somewhere."
"At the Crypt?"
"All right." She gazed up at him, her heart pounding with anticipation as he lowered his head to claim her lips with his. She would see him again tomorrow night. She was already counting the hours.
"Sweet dreams, my little flower," Alex murmured as he kissed her lightly on the forehead; then, mindful that her brother was watching his every move from the living room window, Erik walked slowly to his car, unlocked the door with the key instead of his preternatural power, and slid behind the wheel.
After starting the car, Erik blew a kiss to Daisy, who was still standing on the front porch. And then he waved to her brother, who glared at him from the window.
Grinning, Erik pulled away from the curb.
Chapter 18
"Hey, sis," Alex called. "Are you ready to go yet?"
"I'm coming." Daisy checked her pockets and her handbag, making sure she had everything she needed, including her keys. "What's the rush?"
"I don't want somebody else to beat me to that two hundred grand. Here," he said, thrusting a can of Scent-B-Gone into her hand, "spray me, will ya?"
Daisy sprayed her brother from head to foot, then held her nose while he returned the favor.
Alex grinned at her. "Sure stinks until it dries, doesn't it?"
With a nod, Daisy followed Alex out to his car. She had spent the wee small hours of last night and all of this morning trying to talk her brother out of going after Rhys, but to no avail. The two-hundred-thousand-dollar reward drew him like a magnet.
"I need to be home early," she said, fastening her seat belt. "I have a date."
Alex shook his head as he backed out of the driveway. "I really don't like that guy."
Daisy rolled her eyes. "Are you still harping on that?" It was all she'd heard since Erik had brought her home last night.
She'd had no intention of going with Alex to look for Rhys, but Alex had asked her to tag along in hopes that her compass would lead him to the vampire he sought.
"I don't trust him. If he's an artist, I'll eat my Harley."
A sound of impatience rose in Daisy's throat. "He is an artist, you idiot. I have a painting to prove it."
"Yeah? Did you see him paint it?"
"Alex, you're impossible. Turn right at the next corner." She stared out the window, watching as the houses grew farther apart. They were in an older neighborhood now, one that looked like it had once been a pricey part of town. The homes were large, but mostly run-down, the lawns unkempt, the paint faded.
"Okay, he's an artist," Alex said. "What do you say we ask him to do a family portrait?"
"Sure, next time we're all in Boston. I'm sure Erik's got nothing better to do. Turn left at the corner."