Vampires Among Us [Vampires Among Us 1] (Siren Publishing Classic)

guilty about,” he quickly countered.
    Placing her hand on his chest, she quickly countered back, trying to make him see that her situation was far from over with. “Yes, I do. I am nowhere near out of danger yet. Shawn will come looking for me, I know he will, and he won’t give up until he sees to it I’m dead. Unfortunately, as soon as he discovers I am with you, you’ll be placed at the top of his hit list, second to my name.” Erica had enough time to think through what she had done this afternoon, and the possible repercussions. She was beginning to second-guess herself, wondering if she had made the right decision in involving this family in the nightmare of her life.
    Kevin seemed to take what she said as calmly as ever, as if the death threat currently hanging over her head was no big deal. “Sit your bag down on the bed, and let’s talk in the living room.” Erica caught him watching her as she cautiously attempted to sit on the couch. She tried not to show the pain shooting through her rib cage, but quickly realized it was a useless move. She cast a quick glance over to see him knit his eyebrows together in concern.
    Kevin knew he needed to reassure her she was safe. The problem, of course, was how to go about doing this without giving her all the facts. He waited until she was settled on the couch to start. “Okay, let me clear up a few things for you. The only reason I am currently taking classes at the college is because I am involved in an undercover drug sting. I am part of an organization called the VCTF. It stands for Victims Crime Task Force. Our unit gets called in routinely when the local authorities need help or backup on a case. So, if you will only trust me, and allow me the opportunity of taking care of you, I feel confident that I can keep the two of us out of harm’s way. You have to be willing to trust me. Will you do this?” he asked gently.
    Erica’s mind was whirling after Kevin dropped his bombshell. Okay, admittedly, she had no idea he was in law enforcement. But, did that matter? Even an armed cop was no match for a vampire! She felt the beginning of a panic attack trying to overtake her, as her mind whirled with all of this information, and she forced herself to take several long deep breaths in an attempt to avoid it. How could she go about explaining things to make Kevin understand what he and now his family had suddenly found themselves involved in? She’d had very little communication with the outside world over the past four years. Could she trust him? Could she trust his family? What would happen if they found out what Shawn really was? Would they throw her back to him, in order to escape his wrath? Yet, as all of this whirled through her head, she knew Kevin had thrown her a lifeline, and he was quite possibly the only one who might be able to keep her alive. Considering all the trouble she was running from, he was her only choice.
    “Kevin, I understand what you are saying, and granted, I didn’t know you were a cop. However, I think you are underestimating just how dangerous Shawn is. He is stronger than anybody else I have ever known, and I’m not just saying this because I am a woman.” She shuddered as memories came flooding into her head. She desperately wanted to tell him the absolute truth, so he knew what he was up against, but stopped just short of it. She just couldn’t.
    Yea, Kevin could just bet that Shawn was the strongest man she had ever met. Obviously, she had never met another vampire before. “Do you trust me?” he asked, all the while staring into her eyes.
    He reached over and gently placed his hand on top of Erica’s, and a sudden calmness washed over her. She was so very tempted to give into the warmth and sense of safety the calmness provided, but she quickly blinked, and forced herself to remember reality. No, she couldn’t afford to let her guard down for one second. Her life depended upon it.
    “I’m not saying I don’t trust you, Kevin, I just don’t want to see anyone get hurt because of my actions. I have nowhere else to go, no one else to trust. I hate putting you in danger right beside me. However, I am smart enough to realize I am in over my head, and I need help!” Erica hung her head and threw her hands up to cover her face. There was no hiding her tears this time. Unfortunately, all of her hard crying was making her ribs hurt worse. Her body started trembling uncontrollably as a wave of nausea hit her without