CHAPTER 33

JULIANU S

The hunt is on

THE RAIN WAS relentless, but it helped to conceal my presence. Not many people were out on the streets on a night like this, lowering the chance of random victims and making what I had to do easier.

I figured the killer had found my blood source by following me, so as I wound my way around town, I continuously doubled back to check for any tails. When, after several hours of this, I hadn't uncovered anything, I concluded the rain had driven him indoors as well. Unfortunately, I knew that wouldn't last. Like me, he would eventually need to feed, and when he did, another innocent would pay the price.

Not that I was excusing myself. My night also wouldn't end until I had claimed a victim. The difference was, I didn't leave a trail of bodies. Feeding didn't require killing, but it was necessary. And as my need grew more insistent, my search for relief became more deliberate.

I wasn't interested in going back to the hookers. With this weather, they probably weren't out tonight anyway. And the college was out of the question with its heightened security. Instead, I concentrated on the more transient neighborhoods close to the campus where the threat of nosy neighbors and alarm systems wasn't as prevalent.

I paid attention to the cars coming and going, watching which houses they parked at and who got out. Fathers returning home from work to waiting families were quickly dismissed, as were single women with children and houses with lots of roommates. I had just turned down a quiet street of small bungalows when a car approached from the opposite direction. I melted into the shadows and watched it slow down and turn into a driveway. There were no lights on in the house, which meant no one else was home.

After a minute, a young woman emerged from the vehicle, running up the walkway to the front stoop. She was more concerned with getting out of the rain than checking her surroundings, which boded well for me. She carried a paper bag of what looked like groceries, which she shifted onto her hip in order to unlock the door. As she went inside, the front room lights came on. I edged closer, stealing down the driveway to peek in the side window. I could see her moving around in the kitchen, putting away groceries and feeding a cat. She obviously lived alone.

Perfect. It looked like I had found a new blood source. I walked around front to the stoop to get out of the rain and sat down on the step to wait for her to fall asleep, knowing there was no one around in this weather to wonder at my presence.

? ? ?

When I awoke the next evening, it was to clear and colder skies. As with every night lately, my first thought was of Myra. I had to see her. I decided to forego my usual suit for something that would blend in on campus better, opting for the standard jeans and a dark hoodie. I pulled back my hair and glanced in the mirror. Because I looked young enough to pass for a student, no one would question my presence if I had to go to her room to collect her.

As it turned out, that was unnecessary. While I was standing back in the shadows watching her building, I spotted her walking across the quad with her roommate. I concentrated, willing her to feel my presence, and she stopped and looked around. It never failed to impress me how responsive she was to my will.

I stepped away from the shadows and approached her.

"Myra."

She turned at the sound of my voice and smiled when she spotted me. Her roommate had also stopped and was watching her. Myra turned to her and said something, and the roommate answered, "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine." The roommate continued to watch, suspicion rolling off her, as Myra approached me.

"I missed you last night," she said with a shy smile.

I folded my arms around her and pulled her into a quick kiss. The roommate, obviously satisfied that Myra was safe, turned and headed into the dorm.

I felt exposed here. "Let's get out of the middle of the quad," I told her, leading her back toward the darkness of the clump of trees where I had first seduced her. I backed her up against one and sought her lips again, deepening the kiss this time. She moaned into my mouth and wrapped her arms around me, pressing her body against mine, and it required all my control not to take her right there.

"You drive me crazy," I growled, trailing kisses down her neck.

"Can we go to your house?"

I thought about that. I knew it would be more comfortable, but I was loathe to take her there now, knowing the killer was obviously watching me. Whether he knew where I lived or not, I didn't want to risk putting a target on Myra like my previous blood source.

"I can't stay long," I told her, trying to ignore the disappointment in her eyes. "I have some things I need to take care of tonight."

"I thought you didn't work."

I wasn't prepared to answer questions about my activities. Maybe it would have been easier just to take her to my house. "I don't, but I have…business dealings I have to manage. Sometimes those meetings happen after hours."

"Oh." She was quiet for a moment, then asked, "Are you a criminal?"

I grinned at her. If you only knew . "No. Not usually, anyway. I am, however, criminally attracted to you." I pressed my lips to hers to ward off any more questions, my tongue darting inside her mouth to seek hers. Tangling with it, sucking it into my mouth while my hand found its way under her sweater and inside her bra. She arched her back, pressing her breasts against me as I pinched and rolled her nipple .

When I was sure she was sufficiently distracted, I ran my hand down her abdomen to slip inside the waistband of her jeans and she let go a quick gasp. "Sorry if my hands are cold," I murmured.

"That's okay," she assured me breathlessly.

I unzipped her pants and smoothed my hand under her panties where her damp heat beckoned me. "So wet." I dipped two fingers inside her and found her clit, rolling across it until she began to squirm.

"Julianus," she whimpered.

"Yes, cuore mio? "

"I need…"

I chuckled, loving the sound of her pleading tone. I inserted a third finger in her cunt and curled them against her clit while my thumb massaged the area behind her pussy. "What do you need?"

"I need you."

"You need me to what? Tell me."

She breathed a frustrated sigh. "I need to cum."

"With pleasure."

I increased the pressure on her clit, pumping my fingers in and out of her pussy while I ground my raging erection against her, the contact increasing my own discomfort. As much as I would love to have her on her knees with her sweet lips wrapped around my cock, I knew that wasn't possible under the circumstances. Even with the shadows surrounding us, we were still too exposed here. I could wait until later to chase my own satisfaction. Right now this was about her.

She humped my hand while her tongue fucked my mouth, her soft moans music to my ears. When I felt she was close, she broke contact with my mouth and threw her head back, her eyes closed, her breath coming in short gasps as her pussy began to clench around my fingers.

"That's it, cuore mio. Cum for me now. Soak my hand with your sweet juices."

She bit her lip and uttered a long sigh of contentment as the orgasm ran its course. It took several minutes for her pulse to return to normal, during which time I trailed kisses across her mouth and up her neck, fighting the urge to sink my teeth into her soft flesh.

"Feel better now?" I breathed into her ear.

She opened her eyes, a drunken smile curving her lips. "Yes. Thank you. But what about you?"

I shrugged. "I can take care of myself. Are you able to walk now?"

"Yes. Though I have to tell you, I was sore yesterday."

I grinned. "Good. Did you think about me?"

"Every time I sat down." She gave me a shy smile. "When will we do it again?"

"Soon. Right now we should get you back to your room. I want to make sure you're safe before I leave." We started back across the quad, where there were a few students still making their way between buildings.

"What about you?" she asked.

"What about me?"

"Is it safe for you out in the streets? I know there have only been female victims, but that could change."

I wrapped my arm around her shoulders and pulled her against me. "I'll be fine."

The truth was, I wasn't sure of that, as witnessed by my close call the other night. I knew the victims were just a way to draw me out, and I didn't think he was done. I could only wonder, since it didn't work the first time, what he would try next.

When we arrived at the door to Myra's dorm, I pulled her close and claimed her mouth in a bruising kiss that neither of us seemed willing to end.

"I can't seem to get enough of you," I murmured when we finally separated.

"Tomorrow?" she asked hopefully.

This was a dangerous game. Common sense warned me to stay away, but I ignored it and replied, "Yes."

I let her go and watched her walk up the steps, waiting until she was inside before turning away. That's when the feeling of being watched washed over me. I scanned my surroundings and spotted him standing at the edge of the building, his eyes narrowed, his attention focused intently on me. I didn't know how it was possible, but I was certain he recognized me.

Ron.

He didn't move. Didn't attempt to confront me. Just stood and watched while I turned and walked away.