Hunting Tess by Kathryn Summers (best novels to read in english .TXT) 📗

Parker finally looks down to me, and I don’t want to be the one holding him back. Of course, I would much rather him be here to snuggle after my shower, but who I am to oppose his desire to rid the world of evil?

“Go on.” My lips turn up in a small smile. His eyes crinkle in the corners, softening the hard look that’s been plastered on these last few days. He takes a step closer and my breathing hitches. “Seriously, Marc will leave and then you’ll be stuck with little old me.”

“Tempting, tempting,” he breaths, a smile of his own crossing his features. “Are you sure you don’t want to come along?”

“Ha, no. Hot shower, remember?”

With a swift kiss to the corner of my mouth he dashes out the door. Waiting until my heart rate returns to a normal rhythm, I move to shut the forgotten open door when two sets of eyes flash from the darkness. The Twins sit beneath a rhododendron bush, their tails twitching in aggravation. I look at the SUV’s tire tracks, the car’s taillights still visible in the night.

“Keep him safe,” I whisper, feeling like all the air is sucked from my lungs and fervently wishing I had agreed to go with Parker. “Please.”

The Twins sprint into the dark. I don’t question whatever power informs them of trouble, just like I don’t question the fact they’ll make it to Parker. Sending off a quick message to be extra vigilant along with the additional aid from the Twins, I close the door before treading the stairs up to my room. Extremely hesitant as to our living conditions, I was pleasantly surprised to have my own room, sharing a joint bathroom with Rebecca.

Never far away, Parker bunks with a couple of guys from Salt Lake across the hall who share a bathroom with four other men. Seven men sharing one bathroom. Cringing at the thought, I thank my lucky stars once again for privacy. Goodness knows I need my bathroom space.

My lower lip feels raw by the time I’m stripped and standing in the granite tiled shower, listening intently for every little ding from my phone laying on the counter. There’s no way I’ll be able to fall sleep before Parker returns. Looks like it will be a long night of staring at the ceiling.

“They’ll be fine. There’s no reason to doubt otherwise,” I mumble to myself while lathering shampoo into my hair. My stomach growls and I realize I should have eaten before getting in. “No way I’m leaving my room now. Nuh uh, no way. Though cereal sounds pretty good. Or Chinese food. Or Italian. Maybe I can order pizza and have someone bring it to my room.”

The gabbling continues as an old Muse song plays in my head until I realize that all the thoughts flashing through my head are actually verbal. “Well that’s it for me,” I mouth. “This is the last straw before they send me to the loony bin. This wouldn’t happen if I got sleep.”

Autopiloting necessary cleaning regimes, I stand under the hot pounding water for a few extra, unnecessary, minutes to raise my internal core temperature. When my skin starts to pleasantly burn I’ve reached my goal.

“Uh,” I groan, groping for a towel hanging from a rack just within reach. I’ve come to the resolution that The Agency doesn’t want their employees to shower. Otherwise, they would provide something besides the scratchy piece of cloth posing as a fluffy towel. Towels are meant to encase you in a comforting hug, not rub your skin off.

Steam swirls around the bathroom, encasing the mirror and infusing the air with humidity. Semi-consciously ignoring the fan designed to clear away condensation, I revel in the leftover shower heat.

Trying to be as gentle with the prickly material against my skin as possible, I almost jump when my phone dings loudly. Snatching up the device, my hands shake with anxiety as I swiftly skim Parker’s words.

He informed the others to be on their guard but the destination is still over an hour away, near one of the suburbs of Pueblo. I try to recall one of my conversations with Emily. She visited Florence to see some old timey movie, but ended up getting lost because of poor cell service and missed the showing. That’s all I remember since she related the story right before an audition when I was focusing elsewhere. Can’t believe I remembered the area.

Securing the towel around myself, I open the door to a rush of unwelcome cold air and even more unwelcome smell that freezes me in place. That precious fraction of a second is one I can never get back.

“I believe we have a previous engagement.” The Master wraps his long fingers around my upper arm as I grip the towel to my body. There are too many vampires to have any sort of chance. Unless I can turn into a giant panther again.

Wet hair brushes against my shoulder blade and bumps rise on my skin from the sudden drop in temperature. Preserving modesty with this crowd is a non-negotiable. I wonder how many I can take out one handed.

“Once again, I will offer you the option of how you prefer to proceed. You may dress in the bathroom, but I am not a fool. I will accompany you to ensure you don’t attempt any tricks. If that is not to your liking at the moment then you may come as you are, dripping hair and all.”

The team from Salt Lake plus Pete and a girl named Eunos are in the house. The bedroom window is currently closed and locked meaning they had to travel up the stairs. Didn’t anyone see them?

My brain doesn’t process in time what my eyes are screaming for it to see. Blood.

Flinching away from a finger trailing up my neck, my gaze jolts from vampire to bloodied mouth vampire.

“There is a third option, but I would like to avoid using it