Free Sunrise at Sunset by Jaz Primo

before an elaborate oak computer hutch in an oversized basement serving as bedroom, entertainment room, and study at her estate. Daytime was often a boring period for her as she awaited dusk. She had already checked her various foreign and domestic investment accounts and shifted some funds to her bank account in Atlanta. She was passing the time Web surfing, following up on some emails with fellow vampire acquaintances around the world, and longing for sunset.
    Her mind was preoccupied with contacting Alton and reviewing the information he had provided to her regarding the lost contact with two vampire associates in Europe. It appeared that Garett from Paris had disappeared entirely, and Alton had found no trace of where he might have disappeared to. Equally curious was the question of why Garett had gone underground so hastily. There was also the odd matter of Octavia from Trondheim, who was normally rather social for a vampire, but who had stopped interacting with her peers as abruptly as Garett.
    Vampires didn’t require a lot of sleep, so Katrina had a lot of time to mull over both situations, which were beginning to appear connected. Unfortunately, there were still too many unanswered questions, and she hoped Alton’s continued investigations would prove more fruitful.
    Despite her attempts, her normally unshakeable concentration was distracted with thoughts of Caleb. Katrina had enjoyed their brief visit the prior evening, and longed to spend more time with him. Needless to say, he definitely held her interest. The only problem was that his social life was complicated by Melanie, which meant that Katrina’s own interests in him were also handicapped by the woman.
    Oh, how I dislike Melanie , Katrina mulled with a clenched jaw. She realized that she needed a viable, innocent reason to try to interact with Caleb again. Something that won’t put me on Melanie’s radar too much.
    Maybe I should just kill Melanie , she brooded.
    Katrina felt that she was supposed to feel a pang of guilt for thinking so shallowly about humans. But for some reason, guilt failed her at that moment. Instead, there was a prospective sense of feral satisfaction.
    She banished the idea from her thoughts entirely, though not because it might cause Caleb some degree of sadness, but because she needed to keep the body count to a minimum in order to avoid raising suspicion among the authorities and starting unnecessary manhunts. As a matter of practice, thanks to the blood bank, she usually lived in an area for rather long periods with virtually no need to kill anybody. Already, she’d dispatched one human in the short time since arriving in Atlanta. But that was to protect Caleb. Katrina resolved with complete clarity that no body count concerns would deter her from protecting him. It seemed that her concerns for him were still as strong as when he was a child.
    “Angel Caleb,” she sighed out loud with a contented smirk as she considered the formerly innocent little boy who’d grown into such an attractive, intriguing young man. He’s unlike the other men in my past , she mused, but in a good way . So kind, endearing, and sincere. Yet, there’s a definite vulnerability in him, a weakness, perhaps. He’s damaged from his past. Strength lurks dormant inside him, but he doesn’t seem to realize it yet. I can help him harness that over time, I think.
    She froze in place, wondering why he meant so much to her when so few humans had during her time as a vampire. Because he’s special to me , she determined. Such a connection springing from a solitary day surrounding a singular event nearly twenty years ago might seem unlikely to most. Yet it had been pivotal to her continued existence. If not for him, she would likely be dead. I’ll be grateful to him forever for his simple, guileless effort; an act of selfless assistance.
    But could someone rationally expect to base a relationship on such a flimsy premise? She scoffed, breaking the silence