Free Blood Curse by Crystal-Rain Love Page B

think my mother was killed by a serial killer."
    "You found another victim?"
    Rialto directed the question toward the male officer, but it was the woman who took a step in his direction. “We can't discuss—"
    "You can discuss anything in front of him,” Aria snapped, turning her head to face the pair. “He's my fiance."
    The two detectives looked at each other, silently conferring, before the woman spoke again. “I'm Detective Reilly, this is Detective Porter. There was a second body found last month, and we found another woman's body in Leakin Park late last night. Both bodies were drained of blood and there were two small holes in their necks. We never released that bit of information to anyone outside the department, so we know this isn't a copycat killer. We have officers searching parks as we speak, seeing if we can turn up any other bodies, but so far it seems as though the killer doesn't have a preference for one specific park. Who knows what might turn up where."
    "Who,” Aria corrected the woman, her face devoid of expression but her tone firm. “Not ‘what.’ They may be dead bodies to you but they're someone's loved ones. They're people."
    Rialto squeezed Aria's shoulder and glared at the insensitive woman as she muttered a small and meaningless apology. Reilly appeared older than Porter and had undoubtedly already witnessed enough cruelty in her profession to rob her of compassion. Rialto understood completely. Many a vampire had been turned bad by witnessing evil in abundance. Rialto hoped it would never happen to him, no matter how badly it sometimes hurt to care.
    "We just wanted you to know before it's out in the open,” Porter said. “We have to release a warning to the citizens of Baltimore since it appears we may have a serial killer on our hands. You realize this means there may be reporters wanting to speak with you?"
    Rialto felt Aria cringe beneath his palm. He wouldn't allow the press to get to her, no matter what it took.
    "I'm sorry for your loss, Ms. Michaels,” Porter added. “I wanted to make sure you were aware of the progress of the case and prepared for the possibility of being approached by the media. It's important that if you are questioned you don't give out any information, especially the fact that holes were found in your mother's neck."
    The man's voice was compassionate, as though he truly cared about Aria's feelings. However, the look he gave Rialto was anything but warm. “We'll leave you now, if you're sure you're all right.” He stared at Rialto, his eyes full of accusation. Why?
    He had his answer a moment later when Aria reassured the detectives that she was fine and saw them to the door. He watched as the male detective took Aria's hand and squeezed it, assuring her he would do everything possible to catch the killer. With sudden fury, he realized that the detective had a romantic interest in her. He balled his fists in response and felt the pressure of his fangs pressing through his gums, but he quickly schooled himself.
    He had no claim on the woman and no intention of staking one. He'd learned the hard way that vampires and mortals did not mix. Once he found the killer and destroyed him, he was out of Maryland, and Aria could do as she pleased with whomever she pleased. Even if thinking about it made him want to kill.
    "You can rise during the day?” Aria asked, keeping a cautious eye on him as she sat on the couch.
    "Most of the day,” he answered. “Unlike the stories you've probably heard, we do not die at dawn each day, although new vampires are extremely weak during daylight hours."
    "What happened earlier? I went into my room to get a change of clothes and you were lying there, barely breathing. I checked for a heartbeat and all of a sudden you were speaking to me, but your lips never moved. How is that possible?"
    Rialto recalled sensing her come into the room just after he'd entered the deep stage of sleep. “I remember feeling your fear and hearing