Page 115 of The Last Vampire
Trevor is frowning at the text, as if it disappointed him. “Before break, I started to feel a draw to some of the books in here. The ones with green covers. It’s like I know something important about them, but I’ve forgotten what it is. I’m probably not making any sense.”
Guilt nibbles at my gut. “I guess we spent so long searching these books for a drop of ink that maybe some part of you still hasn’t given up.”
He looks like he’s considering that, and he nods vaguely. Since he seems less guarded than usual tonight, I ask, “What did you do that was so bad your parents sent you here? You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.”
“Whatdidn’tI do?” A devious glint crosses his greenish eyes. “Stole my dad’s boat for a weekend and took the football team on a trip to Catalina Island. Hired male strippers to crash last year’s prom—still haven’t been caught for that. But I did get caught sleeping with one of my mom’s best friends last year, which was probably what sealed their decision to send me away.”
He winces, as if just realizing something. “Could you not tell Salma about that last one?”
“You really like her, huh?” I keep my tone gentle so he knows his secrets are safe with me.
“Back home, I’m always the one trying to keep things casual. This is the first time a girl’s doing it to me, and I bet you think I deserve it.”
“I don’t think that,” I say. “Since we were little, Salma knew she wanted to travel the world and go on adventures—the only things she’s never wanted are a boyfriend or a husband or even a family.”
“Damn.”
“If it makes you feel any better, I was sent away here, too. I did something stupid last year that nearly destroyed my mom’s career.”
“You mean drinking and smoking at that party?” he asks, like it’s common knowledge. “That’s amateur. One of my friends who’s an actor invited me to the wrap party for his movie over the summer, and I got so drunk that I got into a fistfight with the director. I’ve been banned from all future parties hosted by a certain studio that I’m discouraged from naming.”
I shake my head in awe. “That is quite a repertoire, Mr. Cross. But…whydid you do all those things?”
The good humor seems to fade from his face a bit, his mouth tightening at the edges, and I worry I shouldn’t have asked.
“Have you heard of the Masons and the Illuminati?”
“Yeah, they’re like secret societies, right?”
“Not so secret because you’ve heard of them. I was born into arealsecret society. Mine is one of the highest-ranking families, which means my future has been planned for me since conception. I’m supposed to work for my father and one day replace him.” He rolls his eyes, then he blows out a hard breath. “I’ve never told anyone any of this before.”
“I won’t say anything,” I say, my pulse quickening. “But what does this secret society do?”
His eyes widen in warning.
“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”
CHAPTER 33william
Nate and Cisco are asleep when William returns to the apartment.
Most vampires require only three to four hours of rest in a day cycle, so before they wake up, William combs through the entire place—kitchen cabinets, entertainment center cubbies, closets. Despite all the progress he has made with Nate, the ponytailed vampire still does not trust him, and there must be a reason. If Nate refuses to say what it is, William will find out for himself.
He moves stealthily, as silent as a whisper, and neither guy stirs while he searches their rooms. Yet after looking everywhere, William finds nothing out of the ordinary, aside from a bag of condoms in Nate’s nightstand drawer.
William throws himself onto the couch in defeat. Why does Nate still not trust him? Why is this Lenny so powerful? Why would vampires need protection during sex?
William leaps to his feet and sneaks back into Nate’s room. He removes the bag of condoms from the nightstand and brings it to the living room. Then he spills the contents onto the coffee table, and a metal device falls out from among the little square packages.
It has a single button, and William presses it.
The floor vibrates lightly as the gray marble wall with the television begins to retract. Once it is fully recessed, William sees only one thing:Guns.
This secret storage is lined with what looks like every variety of weapon, enough to arm a small army. Since bullets will not stop a vampire, they can be here for only one purpose: Killingpeople.
As William surveys every inch of the space, his gaze alights on the one thing that is not like the others. A notebook.
The cover is bloodred, and the paper edges have yellowed. It looks as ancient as his copy ofHamlet.
