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

represents defender. The castle represents safety. The bear stands for strength, ferocity, and protection of one’s kindred. The lightning bolt means swiftness and power, and the oak tree stands for great age and strength.”
    As Erica studied the ring closely, she asked, “What does it say at the very bottom of the shield?”
    He looked up from his ring. “Patronus Of Totus,” he now quoted. “It’s Latin for ‘Protector of All.’”
    He twisted the ring off of his finger and held it out for Erica to take. She held it just for a moment while she finished studying it. “It’s a cool ring.” She stated quietly, as she handed it back to him. “So what kind of motorcycle do you drive?”
    “A Harley, of course!” he answered her, while grinning widely. “I’ve got a picture of her, if you would like to see it.”
    “Oh, of course it’s a female. Does she have a name?” Erica replied with a chuckle, as he reached into his back pocket and pulled out a picture of a black Harley motorcycle bearing the same crest symbol that was on the ring.
    “Nice bike. I’ll bet you can get some speed going on her when you need to,” Erica murmured as she glanced appreciatively at the photo.
    Kevin grinned like a schoolboy. “Yes, she can get up and go when I need her to. Maybe I’ll take you for a ride sometime.”
    “Okay, my turn. How old are you? Kevin began, as he neatly turned the tables on Erica. “Do you have any family around?”
    “I’m twenty-four,” she answered, a bit shyly. “And no, I don’t really have any family. I grew up in multiple foster homes. I was bounced around a lot.”
    “Do you know anything about your real parents, Erica?” Kevin asked, with such a tender look in his eyes it made Erica’s heart wrench.
    Erica sat back and frowned. She didn’t want the spotlight on her, and she especially didn’t like talking about her less than perfect childhood. She had given herself more than one headache trying to search out her biological parents. Up until her mother had died, it had seemed they had both simply vanished. Taking a deep breath, she started, “A couple of years ago, my biological mother passed away. I never knew her, and would not have known about her except the courts found me and I was given a few of her possessions. One of which is a diary. I have it with me, in the bedroom. I have never been able to make total sense out of it. She wrote that she had been attacked, but by a man that she supposedly loved. I guess he really messed her up, and she was lucky to live through it. She wrote in the diary that after my birth, she just couldn’t stand to look at me, I just reminded her of him. So, she walked out of the hospital without me, evidently never looking back.” Erica’s voice was thick with unshed tears as she finished, which she tucked her chin down in an attempt to avoid Kevin noticing. This was a painful part of herself that she rarely spoke of to anyone.
    Kevin quickly noticed the tortured look on her face, and automatically pulled her up against his chest, while running his hand in little circles across her back. “Do you know anything at all about your biological father?” He asked curiously.
    “His name is mentioned in the diary. I tried looking him up on the Internet, you know, just to settle the curiosity, and ended up coming up blank.”
    “If you want, I can have Charles look into it for you. He has more contacts than anyone else I know, and he seems to have a way of retrieving information that not even our own government has access to. However, this is only if you wish for him to,” Kevin offered.
    “Maybe,” Erica replied. “Can I think about?”
    “Of course,” he replied. “Take all the time you need. Can I ask you a personal question?” Kevin asked, knowing he was treading on dangerous ground. When she nodded slightly, he continued. “Did Shawn give you all of the scars on your arms, or have you had a run-in with another vampire that I missed hearing about?”
    “No, they are all from Shawn,” Erica answered him, frowning, as she glanced down at her covered arms.
    Kevin gently took her hands in his as he softly inquired, “May, I see?” Without waiting for her response, he very gently started pulling up the sleeves of her shirt. Erica found herself holding her breath, butterflies hitting her stomach, just watching him roll up her shirt sleeves. She would have never considered such a petty thing as rolling up arm sleeves to be sexy,