Page 6 of Property of Fire

“You’ve had plenty of time to come clean with what’s goin’ on with you, Evelin. Now is the time to start talking. You don’t, I put in a call to Heat and Herja, they come here, and you not only have to answer to them, but you also get the third degree in a way you don’t fuckin’ want.”

“You’d seriously go to my mother?” Evelin snaps, the fear taking a backburner to her anger.I’d definitely take her anger over fear any day. “You’d actually tell on me like a little child?”

“Baby, it was you that came to me,” I tell her, stepping into her space. “You, until just now, had a freaked look in your eyes, pale face, and fear coming off you while telling me you were in trouble. Now, you need to start talking right about now.”

“You . . . I . . .” I watch as Evelin’s brows draw together. She whispers, “Baby?”

I hadn’t even realized I’d called her that.

Fuck me.

“Evelin,” I growl, staring down at her. “Start talking.”

Evelin looks me dead in the eye, lets out a heavy breath, and turns away, hands going up to sink into those thick, long, curly locks of hers. For a split second, I thought I was going to have to follow through with my threat of calling her mom and brother. Thank fuck, though, she doesn’t make me do this.

Evelin takes a deep breath and slowly turns back to face me. Her eyes are wide with fear, but there’s also a steely determination in them now.

“His name is Holstein,” she says quietly. “I met him at college. At first, he seemed nice, charming even. But then . . .” She shudders. “I saw what he really was. The things he did . . . they were monstrous, Fire. Totally and completely hideous. He’s . . . well . . . Holstein and his friends, they’re, um, vampires, and the things he did to her . . .” Evelin clenches her eyes closed and shakes her head, her body starting to visibly shake.

My jaw clenches. “What kind of things?”

“He . . . he killed a woman. Ripped her apart while he . . .” Evelin trails off, unable to finish, the fear in her eyes back. I didn’t like it. It did something inside me that I didn’t understand.

What I do understand is the rage that courses through me at the thought of what this bastard did and that Evelin was a witness to it. This Holstein person, whoever, whatever he is, has Evelin terrified, and I want nothing more than to hunt him down and tear him limb from limb. It doesn’t matter to me if he’s a vampire or not. He won’t be able to stop me from tearing him apart when I get my hands on him.

“Why didn’t you tell anyone?” I demand, needing to know the rest of it. “Why keep this to yourself?” We’ve all tried to get her to open up since she moved back home after dropping out of school.

Evelin shakes her head, wraps her arms around herself, and starts pacing the length of the room. “I was scared. I didn’t know what to do. Holstein . . . I didn’t know at first what he was. He told me one evening. He was a student and taking classes at the same school as me. The fact he was a vampire didn’t really phase me. I didn’t mind because I knew a few already, and they weren’t so bad. But . . . Holstein, he . . . he wasn’t like the others. He’s something else. Something powerful and dangerous. After what I saw . . . what I . . . I thought if I just ran away, came back home, it would be over. That he wouldn’t bother coming after me.” She pauses and lets out a scuff.

I wait for her to continue. There was more she needed to get out.

“I was stupid to think that. I knew this when he kept calling me after I left school. He knew what I saw. Said he’d find me.”She takes a shaky breath, turns back to me, wraps her arms tight around her middle, and meets my eyes.“And he found me. Him and his friends. They were at my house tonight when I got home. That’s why I ran here.”

My fists clench at my sides as I process all of what Evelin’s shared so far. She didn’t want to share any of this with us when she should have. The club would have protected her. Saw to her safety. I would have kept her out of harm’s way.

“You’re staying here tonight,” I tell her, not giving a damn if she liked it or not. I wasn’t taking chances with her safety. It’s probably the worst idea, but right now, it’s what’s happening. Tomorrow is another story altogether. “Tomorrow, we’ll go to the clubhouse after you get some rest and fill your brother in on all of this shit.”

“No,” Evelin exclaims, panic flashing in her eyes. “Fire, please. Don’t! I don’t want him or anyone else to know. This is my problem. Not a club problem.”

“It’s not just your problem, Evelin, and you know that. You’re Heat’s little sister. A part of this club. None of us are going to let something like this slide.” I pound a fist against my chest and growl, “I’m not gonna let this shit slide.”

“You can’t make me go to Heat and tell him any of this. It’s my problem, and I’ll deal with it.”

“Yeah?” I cock a brow at her and cross my arms. I ask, “How you gonna deal with it? You didn’t tonight. You ran. Ran right to my fuckin’ door.”

“Because you were the closest to me.”

I knew I was the closest person to her. The house she’s renting, it’s not owned by the farmer she thinks it’s owned by. It’s owned by me. I bought all the land this side of the clubhouse when it went up for auction. The farmer who farms the land, I told him he could stay in the house he’s lived in all his life. It was only because of the economy he hadn’t been able to pay his taxes. I told him he could rent out the little house next to my place, but it had to be someone I’d approve of. Gotta admit, I hadn’t expected it to be Evelin who rented it, but it worked out. His place was well down the road, far enough away that he had the fields he tended between us and him. He also had a whole tree line that butted against the back of the land, which also butted the club’s land.

“Doesn’t matter I was closest or not. You came to me. Now that I know what the hell is going on with you, I’m not letting you out of my sight. You aren’t without protection. You understand me?” While I say this, I drop my arms, stalk toward her, and yank her to me without even thinking. All I could think about was the fact she was in danger. Has been and didn’t tell anyone. Didn’t tell me. I wasn’t going to let it slide anymore.

Before she can answer me, I let her go, take her hand, and move her toward the back of the house to my room. I grab a tee out of the draw and shove it at her. “Get changed. Get in bed. I’m making a couple calls, then we’re both going to bed.”

I didn’t know how I was going to be able to manage sleep with her so close, but until I knew exactly what was going on with this Holstein character, I wasn’t letting her far from me. Meaning, her ass was in my bed right next to me.

FIVE

EVELIN

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