After we hung up and the sound of the road was the only thing to distract me from my situation, I relied on Max’s words as my life raft.

It kept me from imagining Nathan’s death at the hands of the monster who’d created him.

Chapter 19
Rescue

To Max, it seemed the best way to find Nathan was to retrace their search of the neighborhood they’d been in last night. As fast as possible.

“Let’s go this way.” Without waiting for Bella’s answer, because he knew it would be a contradiction of what he’d just said, Max dove into the hedges.

“Not that way!”

He heard the gentle hum of an electric fence a moment before it bit into his ankles. “Fuck!”

“It is your own fault,” she admonished, laughing as he stumbled backward and fell on his ass. “I could smell it.”

“You can smell electric fences?” He scowled at her. If this had happened to anyone else, even her, he would have found it funny. Especially if it had been her.

She shrugged. “Not anymore. Now I smell ozone and burned skin. Let me see.”

He yanked his leg back as she knelt beside him. “It’s fine.”

“I am sure it is.” She grasped his ankle. “Let me see.”

“Fine.” He rolled up his pant leg, revealing the line of pink, puffy skin where the evil wire had attacked him.

“That does not look as bad as I thought it would.” She seemed impressed.

“I aim to please.” He didn’t realize the double meaning his words could take on until she glanced away, her olive skin tinged red.

He closed his eyes and grimaced, as though his harshly drawn breath could suck the words back in. “I didn’t mean…”

Standing, she acted as if her jacket needed serious adjusting. “I have his scent, but it is old. Maybe it is from last night?”

Damn. Max thought things had gone well between them. After a good long romp on Nathan’s kitchen floor, they’d spent the day researching and trading not-so-subtle innuendos. Then he’d asked a simple question, and it had all fallen apart.

“Hey, can werewolves become vampires and vice versa?” he’d asked, looking up from A Warlock’s Demon Compendium. The book was about two miles over the Dungeons and Dragons nerd county line, and he’d needed a break.

Her face had gone pale, and she’d looked quickly down at the notebook Nathan used to keep track of local vampires. “I do not know what you mean.”

“Yes, you do. You’re a smart girl.” Max had stood and moved to join her in her nest of blankets on the floor, and she’d scooted away nervously. “Let’s pretend you bit me right now. Would I become a werewolf?”