He closed his eyes as he sensed the coming sunrise. When he was first made, the onset of the sleep of his kind had been scary as hell. It was like falling into a deep black pit, with no assurance that he would ever wake again. In the beginning, he had feared being discovered by a vampire hunter and destroyed while he slept, but that had proven to be a needless worry. Some innate vampire sense warned him when his life was in danger; if necessary, he awakened long enough to defend himself. He called it vampire adrenaline, that burst of energy that roused him from sleep.

He reached out, his senses searching for Kaitlyn, as the dark sleep overshadowed him, dragging him down into oblivion.

Chapter 20

Kaitlyn bolted upright in bed, her heart pounding, Zack’s name on her lips. Sitting there, the sheet clutched to her breasts, she glanced quickly around the room. Seeing nothing, she switched on the light. Still nothing.

“Zack?” Certain he was near, she slipped out of bed, opened the door, and peered into the hallway. All was quiet. The corridor was dark and deserted.

Not surprising at this time of the morning, she thought. The vampires sought their lairs before sunrise; most of the mortals who lived here kept the same hours as their mates.

Frowning, she pulled on her robe and padded barefoot down the corridor, pausing to glance into every room she passed, but there was no sign of Zack. Or anyone else.

Still, she couldn’t shake the feeling that he was nearby and so she kept searching. Moving quietly down the stairs, she peered into the kitchen, the dining hall, and the laundry room. Of course, he wouldn’t be here.

The next floor was where the sheep had been kept. The dormitories and one of the dayrooms had been turned into apartments for the men and women who now willingly made their home in the Fortress. The second dayroom had been turned into a nursery/playroom for their children. Zack certainly wouldn’t be there.

The vampire lairs were on the next level down. He definitely wouldn’t be there.

Was it possible he was in the dungeon? She tried to link to the blood bond he said they shared. He had told her he would always be able to find her. Why couldn’t she find him?

Telling herself there was nothing to be afraid of, she went down two flights of stairs, then paused at the narrow door that led to the dungeon. Her grandfather, Rodin, had not approved of her father marrying Elena. In his anger, he had imprisoned her father down here. It was a snippet of family history she wasn’t supposed to know, but she had heard bits and pieces of the story while growing up, mostly from the sheep.

She opened the door, surprised that it didn’t creak loudly, the way wooden doors always did in scary movies when the foolish young woman went exploring on her own, even though she knew there was a monster on the loose.

Kaitlyn grinned as she stepped into the dungeon. In this case, she was the monster.

Thanks to her preternatural vision, she needed neither candle nor lamp to find her way in the thick darkness. Iron-barred cells lined both sides of the room. Someone had obviously mopped the floors and cleaned the cells, but the air remained rank with the smell of old sweat, urine, and fear. The ceiling was low, the stark surroundings oppressive.

She was relieved to find all the cells empty.

Returning to her room on the main floor, she crawled back under the covers and closed her eyes. It must have been her imagination. She had been wanting to see Zack so badly, she had imagined he was here. But that was just wishful thinking. Even if he knew where she was, he wouldn’t be foolish enough to come after her.

When Elena decided to do something, she did it quickly, and in grand style. By Saturday night, the welcome home party for Stefan had been arranged for the following night. Of course, there was little to do when one gave a party for vampires. There was no need for an elaborate buffet. The mortals who dwelled within the Fortress had also been invited. A lavish dinner would be provided for them prior to the festivities. If they were willing, they would supply the refreshments for the vampires; if not, there would be a ready supply of bottled blood as well as a variety of wines and champagne.

Kaitlyn had mixed feelings about attending the party. She was fond of her aunts and uncles, eager to see her grandmother again, and happy that Stefan had returned. On the other hand, she was still angry with her father for whisking her to the Fortress against her will.

She had considered refusing to attend, but that seemed petty. And she knew it would hurt her mother’s feelings if she stayed in her room and sulked. And so, ever the dutiful daughter, she arrived in the appointed place at the appointed time.

The ballroom in the Fortress was like nothing else in the world. The walls and ceiling, made almost entirely of glass, afforded a splendid view of the valley below and the star-studded sky above. As a child, Kaitlyn had loved to play up here when they came to visit. At night, she had pretended the ballroom was a star in the sky; during the day, she had pretended the room was an enchanted castle.

A trio of long tables covered with gold damask cloths flanked both sides of the room. Dozens of cut-crystal decanters and delicate wineglasses sparkled on the tables.

Her aunt Miranda sat at the grand piano located on a small stage at the far end of the room. A floor-toceiling mirror took up most of the wall behind the piano. Miranda’s bright red hair gleamed like reflected fire in the mirror. Her long, pale fingers flew effortlessly over the keys, never missing a note. She smiled when she saw Kaitlyn; a moment later, the notes of “Clair de Lune” filled the room. Kaitlyn smiled back. “Clair de Lune” was her favorite song.

Kaitlyn moved confidently among the guests, nodding at Marta and Elnora and Torrance, who stood in a group by themselves, along with their vampire mates.

Kaitlyn hugged Stefan and her grandmother, noting that Liliana looked even more radiant than usual, no doubt because her youngest son was home again. Kaitlyn spent a few minutes chatting with Andrei and Katiya, nodded at Ciprian, who was dancing with a pretty mortal girl.

Kaitlyn was thinking about having a glass of wine when she saw her mother hurrying toward her.

“Kaitlyn, there you are,” Elena said, smiling. “How lovely you look!”

“Thanks, Mom, so do you.” Clad in a floor-length dress made of white silk, her mother looked young enough to be Kaitlyn’s sister.

Elena frowned. “You’re still angry, aren’t you?”

“I can’t help it. He had no right . . .”

“He had every right, Kaitlyn. He’s your father. Did you think he’d just ignore the danger you were in? If he hadn’t brought you home, I would have.”

Before Kaitlyn could reply, her father joined them. He was a handsome man, and never more so than tonight. Wearing black slacks, a gray silk shirt, and a black jacket with a velvet collar, he could easily have been a male model.

“May I have this dance, Kaitlyn?” he asked with exaggerated formality.

“Of course.”

He swept her into his arms as Miranda began to play a waltz. It reminded Kaitlyn of past visits when she and her father had danced up here, just the two of them. The memory of those days made it difficult to stay mad at him.

“Are you ever going to forgive me?” he asked, twirling her around and around.

“I guess so,” she said with an aggrieved sigh. “But when this trouble with Nadiya is over, I’m going back to Zack.”

Drake nodded. “I see. No stopping true love, I guess, if that is what it is.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You are a young woman, just out of college, away from home for the first time. Hormones raging,” he added with a grin. “You meet a handsome man . . .” He shrugged. “You will probably fall in love many times before you find the right man.”

“You mean a man you approve of.”

“No, Kaitlyn. I would not tell you who to marry. I hope you will find a mate here, among your own kind. But if you choose a mortal, how could I possibly object?”

“And what if I fell in love with one of the Others?”

His eyes narrowed. “What do you mean?”

She hadn’t meant to tell him like this, but maybe now was the time. “I mean Zack is a vampire. He was turned six hundred years ago.”

“Turned,” Drake repeated slowly. “He is not one of us.”

“I don’t care what he is. I’m in love with him.”

“I have indulged you your whole life,” Drake said quietly. “I let you go to America when I was against it. I let you stay there after you graduated because you wished it, even though I did not approve. But this . . .” He shook his head. “As your father, I do not approve. As the leader of our coven, I cannot allow it.”

Kaitlyn stared up at him. Too late, she knew she never should have said anything. And yet he was bound to find out sooner or later. “You can’t keep me here forever,” she said, blinking back her tears. She didn’t want to have to choose between Zack and her father, fervently hoped it would never come to that. But if it did . . .

She had to talk to Zack. She couldn’t call him now. She would have to wait until tomorrow, since it was still morning in Nevada. What was it like for Zack, to be drawn into darkness with the sun’s rising? Most of her people also rested during the day, although those born to Liliana had the ability to be awake in their cat form when the sun was up.

“I am sorry, Kaitlyn,” her father said as the music ended. “I believe Stefan is coming to ask for the next dance.”

“Indeed I am,” Stefan said, coming up behind them.

Drake bowed in his brother’s direction, then left the dance floor.

Stefan took Kaitlyn in his arms as Miranda began to play another tune. “You’ve been crying,” he remarked.

Kaitlyn nodded, unable to speak past the thick lump in her throat.

“You have every right to be angry with me,” he said.

“It’s . . .” She sniffed back her tears. “It’s not you.”

Stefan glanced over her shoulder to where Drake was standing. “What did he say to upset you?”

“I told him about Zack.”