Free Blood Born by Jamie Manning Page A

shoulder.
    “No, I’m fine.” He stopped touching my arm and, though I was grateful, I felt a twinge of longing; I did my best to force the feeling out of my mind.
    “Good,” Chance said with a tiny smile. He began pacing the room, occasionally glancing out the window facing the clearing.
    “What are you looking for?” I asked after the third time he peered through the Swiss cheese-like curtains.
    “Nothing.” His answer was stern and shrouded in mystery. Another lie. Why was he keeping so much from me? I felt the fury climb my neck and fight its way into my head. It was strong, that anger, much stronger than I could remember—not that I could really remember getting mad before. I wanted to leap over and strangle him until he told me what he was hiding; I laughed instead.
    “What’s so funny?” Chance asked, pulling himself from the window to look at me. Falling rays of afternoon sun were bouncing off his tanned skin, almost like he was glowing. I caught myself staring far too long and had to look away.
    “Nothing.” I tried to sound as secretive as he did before, hoping it would be obvious to him; it wasn’t. He simply turned back to his pacing and waiting. “So when are we going back?” I asked after a couple more peeks out the window by Chance.
    “Soon.” This time he crossed the entryway into the other large room spanning the width of the house, immediately looking through those windows as well.
    “You know,” I said, raising my voice to make sure he could still hear me. “These one-word answers of yours are starting to get old.” He didn’t respond, slowly moving around the room before coming to stand in front of me. “I’m going to need better than that.”
    “And your questions are starting to get annoying,” he finally answered, his intensely green eyes never leaving my face. The two of us stood there motionless, staring at each other like we had done so many times since I woke up in that coffin. I couldn’t help but feel the draw between us, like two magnets being pulled together, and I wondered if Chance noticed it too. I couldn’t understand it, really. I had no idea who this guy really was, or what he was doing helping a vampire. But something inside was telling me it was okay to trust him. I was having a hard time listening to the voice, but it was there nonetheless.
    “Then answer them and I’ll stop asking,” I said, doing my best to keep my eyes locked on his, even though what I wanted to do was look away to break the awkward feeling in the pit of my stomach. This time it wasn’t just the scent of his blood that was getting to me. It was him.
    “I’ve given you all the answers I can, Ava. Trust me.”
    “Those are you three favorite words, huh?” My anger toward him was starting to take over again, pushing the other feelings aside. “Trust me, Ava, you keep saying. But why? That’s what I want to know, Chance. Why am I supposed to trust you?”
    “Because what other choice do you have?“ Before I had time to answer him, a deep shiver scurried up the nerves in my back. My head jerked and my eyes flew open. I watched Chance’s face register what I was thinking. I had no clue how he could tell what was going on inside my head, but somehow he knew. Though I didn’t have to say it, I didn’t bother stopping the words.
    “There’s another vampire. And it’s right outside the house.”

7

. FOLLOW THE LEADER
    It’s just Aldric,” Chance said after looking out the window. He stepped over to the door and opened it, letting Aldric walk inside.
    Aldric looked very different in the daylight. He was still attractive, but his features were softer, more subdued. The paleness of his skin was still there, but somehow he appeared flushed, which was really weird seeing as how the blood flowing through his veins was dead. And though he had already said that vampires could easily walk around during the day, I couldn’t help but think that he should be sleeping in a coffin