Forbidden Fangs

Chapter 12

“Kylie, wake up.” A heavy hand shook her arm.

“What?” The blonde woman opened her eyes blearily. For a moment she was lost in the sight of Logan, wrapped in a towel, still steamy from the shower. Then she felt the heavy gunblade still in her hand and the horror of recent events came rushing back to ravage her.

“Just that, we should get going.” He said, motioning at the digital alarm clock before stepping back into the the bathroom. It was after four in the afternoon. They'd wasted most of the daylight sleeping and showering.

“Oh no,” Kylie said, jumping to her feet and finding her purse on the nightstand. “Are we too late? Are we going to be stuck here for the night?” She didn't like the hotel's security much. It didn't offer much more than her own apartment had. And Luchaver had literally walked right through all of that.

“No,” Logan's voice came out of the bathroom slightly muffled. Perhaps he was pulling his undershirt over his head. Kylie tried not to think about the way it no doubt made his muscles ripple. “We've got plenty of time to make it to my safe house. We can spend the night there, research and regroup. I have automated ultraviolet systems that would fry that sucker if he tried to get in.”

“Oh, I… good.” Kylie said, tucking a lock of blonde hair behind her ear. She turned around as Logan came back into the room. He'd hung his suit in the bathroom and steamed it while showering, so the worst of the rumples were gone. He looked like a moderately successful businessman who had drank a few too many beers the previous night at the hotel bar. Kylie looked down at her own clothes. She looked like she was at the gym, and had misplaced her street clothes. “Can we stop by my place first?” She asked. “I could use some new clothes, and… I wouldn't mind making sure I have a door.”

“Right, of course,” Logan said, slapping his forehead. “We’ll go there first. And then I guess we should pick up some food somewhere…” He held the door for Kylie and they walked side by side down the carpeted hall. Logan checked them out and led the way to his large sedan. He beeped the locks open with the FOB and they got in almost simultaneously, the big vehicle rocking evenly on its shocks. Logan asked if she wanted the radio as he fired up the engine and she declined. This did not seem like an appropriate time for country or even classic rock. She felt hyper aware of her surroundings as Logan drove smoothly through the familiar streets. She didn't have to remind him of any turns, and before long he pulled into the same spot outside her red brick building as he'd used the night before.

“You can wait here,” Kylie said, getting out of the car quickly and leaning in, “I'll be safe after all, right? It's still daytime. And I promise I'll be quick!”

“I'm leaving the engine running, then.” Logan said. He pulled a pair of aviator sunglasses out of the glove box and put them on fluidly.

Kylie turned and scampered inside, using her keys at first the security door and then her mailbox where, thankfully, a fresh door key had been deposited. She made her way to her room almost fearfully. The door seemed too clean, too new. Its placard naming it 309 looked borrowed from the old door, however, and stood slightly askew. Kylie used her new key and pushed through the new door, and sighed as she settled into her apartment. The familiar sights and smells put her at ease in a way that even Logan's comforting presence could not. She took a moment to touch the table, so recently set right side up, and then paced into the bedroom to pack a small bag. She brought only what she would need - extra panties, a bra, a T-shirt and another pair of yoga pants, and then changed into jeans and a sweater. That gave her one set of day wear and one set of night wear. She added a few makeup items from her bathroom but decided against bringing the straightening iron. This wasn't a vacation, after all. She spent a few moments primping in the mirror and then turned and hustled back out the new door, back down the steps, and back into the front seat of the black Crown Victoria.

“That was quick,” Logan smiled.

“I didn't want you to waste fuel.” Kylie grinned. “Where are we off to now?”

Logan turned the leather-wrapped wheel hand over hand and pulled out onto the street. He shifted lanes and made a couple turns, waiting until they were within the flow of traffic to answer.

“My base is about a thirty minute drive north of here,” he explained. “It looks like just a little cabin in the middle of nowhere, but it's outfitted with the latest state-of-the-art security systems. And it houses a vast library of vampiric knowledge. We'll be safe there, and we should be able to pick up some useful information about the Wythyrians.”

A long silence passed, filled by the hum of the car's engine and the stream of passing vehicles.

“What sort of useful information?” Kylie asked at last.

Logan gave her a wry grin.

“I have no idea.”