Free Blood and Bite by Laken Cane Page A

didn’t leave them more “gifts” along the way.
    “Rune.”
    “Yeah?”
    “Tonight, don’t…don’t lose yourself because of Amy.”
    “I’ll be fine.”
    “Yeah.”
    They both knew better.
    “That newspaper reporter is following you again.”
    Rune glanced in her rearview mirror at the car that had been
tailing them since they’d left Llodra’s house. “I wonder who he found to annoy
while I was gone.”
    She’d discovered his name—Sam Cruikshank—before she’d left
for the clinic. She ignored him and let him get his jollies chasing her around
River County, snapping her picture when he could.
    It could have been worse. Somewhere out there was a video in
which she got sliced up like a tomato. If that video surfaced and was leaked to
the media… that would be worse.
    As long as he didn’t interfere, there wasn’t much she could
do anyway.
    They arrived at Wormwood and slipped inside the gates, not
sparing Cruikshank so much as a glance when he rolled
in and parked behind her car.
    “I’ll find Gunnar,” Rune told Lex. “If vampires are inside
Wormwood, he’ll know.”
    “Gunnar the Ghoul who eats Baby Ruth candy bars.” Lex
grinned. “He’s an enigma, that ghoul. Someday he’s going to let me touch him
and I’ll get inside that head.”
    “I’m not sure reading Gunnar is a good idea, baby.”
    “I’m curious about him—about his past, where he came from,
how he died…”
    “You can get all that?”
    Lex shrugged, carefully sidestepping a small, crumbling
tombstone as though she could actually see it. “Maybe. It depends.”
    They walked down paths made smooth by hundreds of Other feet, finally stepping off the trails and into the
trees.
    Lex didn’t arm herself with vguns as Rune did, but she wore
the stakes. If they found the vampires, Lex would stake them the old fashioned
way—by hand.
    They’d nearly given up finding Gunnar when he stepped out
from behind a tree. The woods were deep and dark, making the winter day seem
later than it was.
    Gunnar’s long face was carefully blank, his hands limply at
his sides. Even if he was disinclined to give information, the scent of the
chocolate would persuade him. It was his drug, and one he could not seem to
resist.
    “Give me the treat quickly,” he said, “and leave these woods posthaste. Wormwood is not safe for you
today.” He didn’t look at Lex.
    Rune shook her head. “Not so fast, baby. I have a question.”
    He held out his hand, frowning. “No, I do not know where the
mad vampire is sleeping.”
    “How the hell did you know I was going to ask that?”
    “I know many things, Your Highness. I know that you are not
safe.” He shook his hand at her. “I’ll have my sweet now, please.”
    But she crossed her arms. “Gunnar, you’re not getting the
candy if you don’t slow down and answer some questions.”
    “ Some questions, Your Cantankerousness? Have you
brought along some candy bars?”
    There were times when she wanted to stuff aforementioned
candy bars up his ass, wrapping and all. This was one of those times. “Fine.” She patted the pocket in which the chocolate rested.
“I’ll leave now and take my candy with me.” And she turned to go.
    “No!” He reached for her, pausing just short of actually
touching her.
    As far as she could remember, Gunnar had never touched her.
    She turned back, eyebrow raised. “Then stop fucking around
and answer my questions. You get one more chance.”
    “Ask, then. You must hurry.”
    She tapped her thigh with her vgun. “First
question. What’s the rush?”
    He threw a glance over his shoulder, and lowered his voice
to a near whisper. “There is mischievousness inside Wormwood. Evil is
stirring.”
    “What the fuck, Gunnar?”
    He stared at her for a moment. “Pardon?”
    “Just tell me what’s going on.”
    “There are bad people afoot. They will do you harm if you
are found here.” He pointed his chin at Lex but still didn’t look at her. “And that one, as