Chapter Twenty

The next week was frustrating for Dougal. With so many people living at the townhouse, he could hardly find any time alone with Leah. She was working hard with Roman and Laszlo, mass-producing serums to repair the genetic damage wrought by Darafer.

After a few nights, Gregori and Abby returned. They were also staying at the townhouse, and Abby was busy making her drug that would put the captured soldiers into stasis.

The shifters, Howard, Phil, and Rajiv, were all rooming on the same floor as Leah, and they set up a security office nearby with monitors connected to all the security cameras. Dougal was still doing his death-sleep in the basement, but now he shared the room with J.L., Ian, Robby, and Laszlo. The married couples, Angus and Emma and Abby and Gregori, took rooms on the third floor. Each night, shortly before dawn, Roman teleported back to his home near Dragon Nest so he could be with his family.

Dinner was about the only time Dougal managed to be alone with Leah. He teleported to the cafeteria at Romatech to pick up the meal of her choice, then he had a bottle of blood with her while she ate in the kitchen. But they were never really alone, not with so many people nearby.

"Angus has asked me to teach you, Abby, and Laszlo some self-defense before we leave on the mission," he told her as she finished a piece of apple pie.

"Why? Won't we be safe with you guys guarding us?"

" 'Tis a precautionary measure. The first session begins in an hour. In the basement at Romatech."

Her eyes widened. "I thought it wasn't safe there."

"Freemont and Austin are still working there as guards, and they say it's been quiet. We'll teleport in just for the practice sessions. We need to use the gym and shooting range there."

"Shooting range?"

"Aye. If one of the bad guys shows up, we'll use him for target practice."

She made a face. "I have to learn how to shoot?"

"Aye. And wield a knife."

"I don't like violence."

"Ye'll be glad to know how to defend yerself when yer life is in danger."

She took her dirty dishes to the kitchen sink. "I don't believe in killing. I'm a doctor. I'm supposed to save lives, not end them. That's why I'm doing all this, so I can save those mutated soldiers, and you won't have to kill them."

"Leah, if ye're under attack, I expect you to defend yerself."

"I thought you were supposed to protect me."

"I will! But are ye saying 'tis all right for me to kill, and no' you? Do ye think I enjoy it?"

She winced. "I didn't mean to sound hypocritical. I-I'm just not sure I can do it."

"Ye're verra brave. Ye can do it."

With a groan, she rinsed off her plates, then stacked them in the dishwasher.

" 'Twill be November by the time we go to Japan," Dougal continued. "I doona know how well insulated this old school building will be. Ye may need to go shopping for some winter clothes."

She gave him an amused look as she dried her hands on a dishtowel. "First you're worried about my safety. Now you're worried about me getting cold?"

"Aye. I spend a lot of time thinking about you."

She returned to the table and sat next to him. "I actually have some winter clothes back at my apartment in Houston. They're left over from my years of college and med school in Boston."

"I could teleport you to yer apartment." And we could be alone.

She nodded. "That would be good. I need more clothes." She smiled ruefully. "I've been wearing the same three outfits forever. When I first came here, I thought it was just for a weekend."

"And here we are two weeks later."

She placed her hand on his shirt, covering his heart. "Sometimes, when I think about it, I'm shocked that I could fall for you so fast. But then, other times, when it feels so right, I feel like I've been waiting for you forever." She gave him a bemused look. "Does that seem strange?"

"Nay." He rested his hand on top of hers. "We've waited almost three hundred years."

She gave him a playful shove. "Maybe I knew you in another life."

His chest expanded with a sudden gasp for air.

She rose to her feet. "I'd better get back to work. I need to finish something before you drag me off to the firing range."

As she strode from the kitchen, he sat still, his heart pounding. Was she remembering Li Lei? He wasn't sure he wanted her to. Then she might remember how badly he'd failed her.

"How did I do?" Leah asked an hour later in the basement shooting range at Romatech. She studied the paper man across the room but couldn't see any holes in him.

Dougal moved one of her ear muffs aside and leaned close so she could hear him. "Ye hit the ceiling. I think ye'd do better if ye dinna squeeze yer eyes shut."

She gave him an annoyed look. "I can't help it. These things scare me." She flinched when Laszlo's gun shot off in the cubicle to their left. He hit his paper man in the chest.

Freemont, who was tutoring Laszlo, punched the air with his fist.

In the cubicle to the right of them, Abby was practicing with Gregori. She was managing to hit her target, too.

Leah frowned. "I'm not any good at this."

Dougal leaned close to her ear. "Ye will be if ye practice every night."

"How can I possibly shoot a vampire or demon when they can vanish at will?"

" 'Tis possible to shoot a vampire if ye catch him by surprise. And the silver bullets will hurt like hell. I'm no' sure about demons, but this will definitely help you defend yerself against Master Han's soldiers."

"But - "

"No buts." He moved behind her and lifted her arms, covering her hands with his. "Widen yer stance."

She did, painfully aware that his groin was pressed against her rump. He'd surprised her when it had been time to teleport to Romatech. His kilt and old-fashioned shirt had been replaced by a tight black T-shirt and black pants with a dagger strapped to his leg. He looked modern, dangerous, and sexy as hell. She was sorely tempted to wiggle her hips against him.

"Again." He moved her ear muff back into place, then grasped her wrists to keep her steady.

This time she hit the paper, wincing at the hole ripped through the abdominal area. A patient would need surgery to survive that, and he'd probably lose part of his intestines.

With the next shot, she obliterated his right lung. But when Dougal stopped helping her, she missed the paper again. Disgusted, she set the pistol down.

"We'll do some more tomorrow." Dougal escorted her from the room, leaving the ear muffs in the entryway shelving unit.

Abby, Gregori, Freemont, and Laszlo followed them to the gym, complete with punching bags, dummies, a table filled with knives, and thick pads on the floor.

With everyone lined up behind him, Dougal drew the dagger from the sheath strapped to his leg and threw it at the dummy across the room. The knife whirled through the air, then stuck into the dummy's chest with a loud thunk.

Leah winced.

Dougal turned to face them. "Ye may be wondering why ye need to know how to shoot or throw a knife, but I canna stress enough the importance of killing or wounding the enemy before he can get close to you. Ye doona want to fight any of Master Han's soldiers, no' when they're superstrong. And it is imperative no' to let Master Han or one of the vampire lords get near you. If they grab you and teleport away with you, we would have a verra hard time ever finding you."

"I have a tracking device in my arm." Laszlo glanced at the two mortal women. "Perhaps we should do the same for the ladies?"

"It might be a good idea." Gregori wrapped an arm around Abby's shoulders. "If you're okay with it."

"But Leah and I should be safe in Japan," Abby said.

"Not entirely," Gregori grumbled. "That's why I'm going with you and sticking by your side like glue."

"Doona forget that Darafer came here," Dougal said. "Either he or Master Han could teleport to Japan to grab you. That's why we're teaching you self-defense."

Leah glanced at the dummy with a knife imbedded in his chest. Could she kill if she had to? She wasn't sure, so it might be best to have a chip in her arm. Just to be safe. "I'll take a tracking device. Until the mission is over."

Dougal nodded, looking relieved.

"All right," Abby agreed. "I'll do it, too."

Three nights later, Leah stood outside the security office at the townhouse. She'd arranged for Dougal to teleport her to her apartment at midnight. She hesitated before knocking, trying to remember how messy the place had been when she'd left over two weeks ago. Would Dougal be offended by a few dirty dishes lying about? She'd been in such a hurry to get to the airport. Never in a million years would she have believed that she would be teleporting back with a vampire boyfriend.

The door opened and Dougal invited her in, looking as handsome as ever in his kilt and old-fashioned shirt. "Ye're ready?"

"Yes." She stepped inside and smiled at Howard and Rajiv, who were both munching on donuts. "Thank you for filling in for Dougal."

"Not a problem." Howard cast an amused glance at Dougal. "Take your time."

"Pooh Bear and I will be fine." Rajiv laughed when Howard's nudge nearly knocked him over.

"Come on." Dougal led her back into the hallway and shut the door.

"They don't seem very scary for a grizzly bear and a tiger," she said as he walked beside her.

"They can be plenty scary if ye're a bad guy."

"You won't be offended if my apartment is a bit - " She hesitated when he held the door open to her bedroom.

"No camera inside." He gave her a gentle push.

"Oh. Okay. Privacy is good." She stepped inside and retrieved a folded piece of paper from her lab coat pocket. "Here."

"What is it?" He took the paper. "A love letter?"

She snorted. "You wish."

"I do wish." He gave her an injured look. "I had one for you weeks ago, but ye never came down to the basement to read it."

She winced. "I-I was avoiding you."

"I noticed."

She punched his arm. "I'm not avoiding you anymore. I'm very . . . fond of you."

"Fond? Is this a bloody fondness letter?"

"No. It's my address. So we can teleport to my apartment."

"Yer address?" His mouth twitched as he opened the note. "Do ye think I'm a GPS system?"

She blinked. She didn't want him reading her mind. "Is there another way to get there?"

"I need a sensory beacon. Or I could slip inside yer brilliant brain for a second to see where to go." He stepped closer, his eyes twinkling. "And while I'm there, I might see just how fond ye really are."

She stepped back. "You wouldn't dare."

"I do dare." He moved closer, a slow smile curling his mouth. "Of course, I wouldna have to if ye simply told me how ye felt."

She huffed. "I won't be coerced into a confession of love - "

"Love?"

She winced. "And I won't have you invading my mind."

"Doona fash." He gathered her into his arms. "Lately, I've been much more interested in invading yer body."

She bit her lip to keep from laughing. That was the main reason she didn't want him in her mind. He might see all the naughty thoughts and dreams she'd been having. "So what do you mean by a sensory beacon?"

"I can teleport somewhere if I can see it or hear it. If there was someone there to answer the telephone - "

"An answering machine?"

"Aye." He gave her a rueful look. "That would work."

"Excellent." She pulled her cell phone from her pocket and punched in her home number. "Okay, it should come on soon." She held the phone up to his ear.

"Grab on to me." He pulled her tight and bowed his head to gaze into her eyes. "Love?"

She grinned. "You wish."

"I do wish."

She went up on tiptoe to wrap an arm around his neck and give him a quick kiss.

"Och, lass." His eyes darkened.

The answering machine kicked on, and everything went black.

Chapter Twenty-one

As soon as they arrived, Leah glanced about. Not too shabby. There were some dirty dishes, but at least they were in the sink. "It might be a little dusty."

"It canna be worse than my house on the Isle of Skye. I havena been there in six months."

She realized he was still holding her. "Are you going to let me go, or did we accidentally fuse together?"

His mouth curled up. "Any fusion 'twould no' be by accident."

She snorted, her hands resting on his chest. "You told me that the first night we met."

"Aye, and I've been wanting you ever since." He heaved a forlorn sigh. "Eighteen days I've been waiting."

"You're such a player."

His eyebrows rose. "A what?"

"A player. How did you win me over in only eighteen days? Especially when you're dead half the time."

He gave her an injured look. "Can I help that? I was laying there in my death-sleep, innocent as a lamb, when ye molested me. Perhaps ye're the player?"

"What?"

"Ye unbuttoned my shirt and felt my chest."

"I was checking for a heartbeat. That's all."