looked like it had been trashed by someone searching for something.
His silent questions came fast and furious. If she hadn’t done it, who had? What were they looking for? The key? Who sent them? Did the local vampires know about it? Did Damon?
Sure, Damon had been with Ronan, but in the short time it took Ronan to walk with Sierra from the bar to the house, Damon could have moved with vamp speed ahead of them and searched Sierra’s room.
Was there a connection between Sierra and the key? Was that why only her belongings had been messed up?
Who could he trust? The answer was no one.
Ronan went upstairs to check his stuff. He didn’t have much, a few changes of clothing, that was it. The casket in the basement was on loan from the funeral home courtesy of Damon.
Damon had said the surveillance cameras didn’t work in this house but what if that was a lie? What if they were watching his every move?
“Paranoid much?” Baron Voz said from beside him.
Ronan refused to show how much the Master Vampire’s surprise appearance caught him off guard. Instead, Ronan stoically stood his ground and put up a shield against his thoughts. He hadn’t felt the need to do so sooner because only a Master Vampire could read another vampire’s thoughts and even then only the thoughts of one they’d turned and indentured.
As always, Voz was impeccably dressed in an Armani suit with a hand-tailored, crisp white shirt and a fine burgundy silk tie held in place with a gold tie clasp with his family’s coat of arms on it. A matching ring with the same coat of arms was on his right hand.
Ronan knew that ring well. He had been branded with it on more than one occasion. He could still remember the searing pain, the stench of his flesh burning. As a Master Vampire, Voz had the power to brand his indentured vampires like cattle.
“What are you doing here?” Ronan demanded.
“I thought I’d see how things are progressing.”
“No one can see you,” Ronan said.
“Of course they can.”
“I mean, you mustn’t be seen here by anyone,” Ronan said.
“By anyone I presume you mean the sexy redhead downstairs? No problem. Just compel her to forget. Why is she here anyway? She’s not one of us. She’s human.”
“She inherited the house.”
“Get rid of her.”
“I will.”
“Now,” Voz said.
“No,” Ronan growled. “I’m no longer indentured to you. I don’t have to obey your orders.”
“You do if you want to save your sister’s soul.”
“No. Our agreement was that I find the key and turn it over to you by midnight on February fourteenth. There is no requirement on my part to obey your orders until then.”
“Time is running out,” Voz said. “Ticktock, ticktock.”
“Then leave me alone so I can get back to my search.”
“Or get back to your redhead. Don’t let her distract you,” Voz warned.
“I don’t intend to.”
* * *
Since Ruby clammed up and disappeared after Sierra questioned her about the driver, Sierra spent the rest of the day restoring order to her room and working on her book.
At least that was her plan. But when she heard voices coming from upstairs, she couldn’t help herself. She had to go look.
The door was open into Ronan’s room, but he was alone. “Who were you talking to?” she asked.
“Nobody,” he said curtly.
“I heard voices.”
“I was talking to myself.”
“Oh.”
Apparently he could tell she wasn’t buying that answer one hundred percent, because he got an irritated look on his face. “I don’t go nosing around when I hear you talking to yourself.”
“I wasn’t nosing around.”
“The upstairs is mine. We signed an agreement.”
“A temporary agreement,” she reminded him.
He waved her words away and glared at her. “Don’t come up here uninvited again.”
Could he have been talking to Hal? Had Ronan been lying when he said he didn’t believe in ghosts? “Has something weird been going on up here?” she
His silent questions came fast and furious. If she hadn’t done it, who had? What were they looking for? The key? Who sent them? Did the local vampires know about it? Did Damon?
Sure, Damon had been with Ronan, but in the short time it took Ronan to walk with Sierra from the bar to the house, Damon could have moved with vamp speed ahead of them and searched Sierra’s room.
Was there a connection between Sierra and the key? Was that why only her belongings had been messed up?
Who could he trust? The answer was no one.
Ronan went upstairs to check his stuff. He didn’t have much, a few changes of clothing, that was it. The casket in the basement was on loan from the funeral home courtesy of Damon.
Damon had said the surveillance cameras didn’t work in this house but what if that was a lie? What if they were watching his every move?
“Paranoid much?” Baron Voz said from beside him.
Ronan refused to show how much the Master Vampire’s surprise appearance caught him off guard. Instead, Ronan stoically stood his ground and put up a shield against his thoughts. He hadn’t felt the need to do so sooner because only a Master Vampire could read another vampire’s thoughts and even then only the thoughts of one they’d turned and indentured.
As always, Voz was impeccably dressed in an Armani suit with a hand-tailored, crisp white shirt and a fine burgundy silk tie held in place with a gold tie clasp with his family’s coat of arms on it. A matching ring with the same coat of arms was on his right hand.
Ronan knew that ring well. He had been branded with it on more than one occasion. He could still remember the searing pain, the stench of his flesh burning. As a Master Vampire, Voz had the power to brand his indentured vampires like cattle.
“What are you doing here?” Ronan demanded.
“I thought I’d see how things are progressing.”
“No one can see you,” Ronan said.
“Of course they can.”
“I mean, you mustn’t be seen here by anyone,” Ronan said.
“By anyone I presume you mean the sexy redhead downstairs? No problem. Just compel her to forget. Why is she here anyway? She’s not one of us. She’s human.”
“She inherited the house.”
“Get rid of her.”
“I will.”
“Now,” Voz said.
“No,” Ronan growled. “I’m no longer indentured to you. I don’t have to obey your orders.”
“You do if you want to save your sister’s soul.”
“No. Our agreement was that I find the key and turn it over to you by midnight on February fourteenth. There is no requirement on my part to obey your orders until then.”
“Time is running out,” Voz said. “Ticktock, ticktock.”
“Then leave me alone so I can get back to my search.”
“Or get back to your redhead. Don’t let her distract you,” Voz warned.
“I don’t intend to.”
* * *
Since Ruby clammed up and disappeared after Sierra questioned her about the driver, Sierra spent the rest of the day restoring order to her room and working on her book.
At least that was her plan. But when she heard voices coming from upstairs, she couldn’t help herself. She had to go look.
The door was open into Ronan’s room, but he was alone. “Who were you talking to?” she asked.
“Nobody,” he said curtly.
“I heard voices.”
“I was talking to myself.”
“Oh.”
Apparently he could tell she wasn’t buying that answer one hundred percent, because he got an irritated look on his face. “I don’t go nosing around when I hear you talking to yourself.”
“I wasn’t nosing around.”
“The upstairs is mine. We signed an agreement.”
“A temporary agreement,” she reminded him.
He waved her words away and glared at her. “Don’t come up here uninvited again.”
Could he have been talking to Hal? Had Ronan been lying when he said he didn’t believe in ghosts? “Has something weird been going on up here?” she
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