She shook her head. She would not allow herself to be manipulated by theories as erroneous as fate or destiny. She would make her own decisions in life. Her own choices.
For example, she would choose not to venture into the basement today. Even if he had written a new note for her, she would not go near him. She would distance herself. She would do her job at Romatech, and then leave.
And never see Dougal again. For she was far too logical to fall in love with a vampire.
Chapter Thirteen
She hadn't read his note. Dougal was fairly certain of it.
He stood in the security office the next evening, drinking his bottle of breakfast blood while he watched the monitors. The captive soldier was still in stasis in the silver room. Leah was in the lab with Abby, concentrating hard on her work. Not once did she glance at the camera.
There had been no lingering scent of jasmine in the basement when he'd awakened from his death-sleep. The newly written note clasped in his left hand had appeared unopened.
He gulped down more synthetic blood. She'd rejected him. He'd poured all his longing into the kiss last night, hoping somehow he could touch her heart, and it hadn't worked.
She'd rejected him.
Had his red eyes frightened her? It wasn't something he could avoid. Whenever a Vamp became sexually aroused, his eyes automatically glowed red.
Was he pushing her too fast? He'd been waiting almost three hundred years, but for Leah, it was now only five nights. He needed to slow down. Give her a chance to adjust. Give her time to get to know him. And trust him.
It might help if he didn't look like a bloody pirate. After the fiasco last night, he'd called the number Gregori had given him. The stylist at DVN had agreed to see him after Laszlo's appointment two nights from now.
He finished his bottle while memories of the kiss flitted through his mind. He could have sworn she had enjoyed it. She'd wrapped her arms around his neck. She'd moaned and melted against him. It had taken just a few minutes for his eyes to turn red and his groin to grow stiff.
He pushed those thoughts from his mind and sat at the desk to e-mail a report to Angus. Freemont had the night off, so Dougal did the rounds himself. A few hours later, back in the office, he saw his chance. Leah and Abby were headed to the cafeteria for supper. It was the perfect time to do another round.
He zipped through the grounds, then slowed down as he approached the basketball court. At this time of night, she and Abby had the cafeteria to themselves. He let himself in through the patio door.
Leah glanced up. Her eyes widened before she refocused on her piece of apple pie.
"Oh hey, Dougal." Abby smiled at him. "What's up?"
"No' much." He approached their table.
Abby spooned some ice cream into her mouth. "I guess your increased mind control wore off. We didn't hear any crowing tonight."
"Nay." He watched as Leah pushed an apple slice around her plate. "I appear to have no effect at all on any mortal."
She glanced up, and he heard her heartbeat pounding louder.
His mouth curled up. Gotcha.
A blush stained her cheeks, and she stabbed the apple slice with her plastic fork.
"I'm glad you stopped by." Abby finished her ice cream, licking the spoon. "We're very close to having a serum to test on the guy in the silver room. Can you come with us tomorrow night when we try it out?"
"Aye." He glanced at Leah. "Congratulations. Ye're making excellent progress."
She shrugged, refusing to look at him. "I'm concentrating on my work from now on."
"I'm sure that is the wise thing to do."
Her blush deepened.
He breathed deeply, letting her scent of rushing blood and jasmine fill his head.
Abby stood and motioned toward the hallway. "Can I talk to you for a second?"
"Aye." He followed Abby out the door.
"I had to send a report to Angus about your prosthesis," Abby whispered. "I told him your mind control was being affected temporarily by your emotional state." She slanted a glance toward Leah. "But I didn't elaborate on it."
So she suspected Leah was the cause of his distress. "Did ye tell anyone?"
"I mentioned it to Gregori, and he agreed." Abby frowned. "He said you wanted to pursue Leah. Is that true?"
Dougal crossed his arms. "Ye doona approve?"
"I'm not sure." Abby glanced at Leah. "She's brilliant, but at the same time, young and naïve. She seems completely oblivious to Laszlo's puppy dog looks. But you - I think she's very aware of you."
A surge of hope flared in his chest. "Ye think I have a chance?"
Abby grimaced. "I really like her, Dougal. I don't want her to get hurt."
"I would never hurt her."
Abby gave him a dubious look. "You guys always say that. Just be careful, okay?"
As Abby walked back to the table, he glanced again at Leah. Their eyes met, and a pained look crossed her face before she turned away.
Dammit. Abby was right. He was already hurting her. With an inward groan, he walked away.
The following night, Dougal glared at the monitors. How long would she continue to ignore him? He'd fallen into his death-sleep, clutching the same damned note, but Leah had not come to see him. Now she and Abby were busy in the lab, preparing the serum for the captured soldier.
He paced about the office. Then he zoomed around the grounds and the building.
Finally, Abby called and asked him to meet her in the silver room. He dashed down the stairs and punched in the code to unlock the silver room.
The elevator door opened, and Abby, Laszlo, Leah, and Gregori filed out. Laszlo was carrying a tray.
"Good evening." Dougal inclined his head at Leah, but she refused to look at him.
"Hey, dude." Gregori punched him on the shoulder. "I didn't want to miss out on the excitement." He shot a proud look at Abby. "My wife is quite the cook."
Abby snorted. "I can't guarantee the serum will work. And if it does, it will be only the first step in a long process."
"I believe we're off to a good start." Laszlo carried the tray into the room and set it on a table next to the stretcher.
Dougal strode to the other side of the stretcher so he could see the captive soldier up close. He was a young man, lean and muscular, with a shaved head.
Laszlo moved to the foot of the stretcher, while Leah and Abby stood across from Dougal.
Gregori circled the stretcher, testing the restraints. "You sure you want to wake him up?"
Dougal stiffened. "I wouldna recommend that."
Abby filled a syringe. "The serum won't work as well if he's in stasis. His bodily functions are so suppressed it would take forever to get any reaction. Besides, if he's awake, he should be able to give us some feedback - "
"Ye expect him to cooperate?" Dougal asked.
"I hope so, once we explain what we're doing," Abby replied.
Laszlo twisted a button on his lab coat while he gave Leah an admiring look. "We're very fortunate to have Leah with us. She can speak Mandarin."
Leah nodded. "I'll tell him that we're helping him get back to normal."
Gregori winced. "What if he doesn't want to be normal? I thought these guys made a deal with Darafer. He gives them superpowers, and in return, they belong to him."
Leah looked confused. "I thought the soldier belonged to Master Han."
"He does." Abby turned to Gregori. "I think he will want to return to normal. Once we explain to him that Darafer owns his soul - "
"What?" Leah looked shocked.
Dougal gave Abby and Gregori an annoyed look. "Ye dinna tell her about Darafer?"
"I did," Abby insisted. "I said he was the one mutating the soldiers so they could fight for Master Han."
"Then why does he own their soul?" Leah asked. "How can anyone own someone's soul?"
Dougal snorted. "Apparently, they dinna tell you he's a demon. And when the soldiers die, he takes their souls to hell."
Leah's eyes widened. "Are you serious?"
Abby grimaced. "We should have explained it in more depth, but I didn't want to frighten you even more. You were already stressed out - "
Leah scoffed. "This could only frighten me if I believed it. There's no such thing as hell. Or demons. It's not logical." She glanced at the soldier. "And there's no way I'm telling him such nonsense."
Dougal tilted his head. "Ye doona believe in hell?"
Leah shrugged. "People make their own hell here on earth."
"There's some truth to that," Dougal conceded, "but there is more to life than what we see here. A few days ago, ye dinna believe in vampires or shifters."
He saw her wince. Did she regret being part of their world? Was she sorry she'd met him? Was their kiss nothing but a bad memory for her? "I know our existence defies logic. We shouldna exist at all, but that doesna mean that we are evil."
Her eyes met his, her gaze searching as if she hoped to see into his soul. He tried to show her his feelings. When tears glimmered in her eyes, he thought he might have succeeded.
She closed her eyes briefly and turned away.
Abby heaved a huge sigh. "There was a time when I would have agreed with you that demons don't exist. But Darafer is real. I met him. I saw him blast a guy off a cliff with just a flick of his hand."
"He's the one who made Abby's mom sick," Gregori added. "He admitted that he invented plagues. He gets his jollies out of watching people suffer."
Abby shuddered. "He's scary as hell. He was behind the assassination attempt on my father."
Leah blinked. "Someone tried to kill your father?"
Abby nodded. "You never heard about it because my father had it hushed up. He thought the killer wanted fame, so he made sure he didn't get it." She made a face. "Darafer knew about it. He bragged that he was the one who had twisted the killer's mind."
Leah's eyes widened. "So he's really a . . . ?"
"Demon," Gregori said. "Yes."
Her face paled.
Dougal stepped toward her, and she moved back. "I'm okay."
"Are you?" he asked softly.
She shook her head. "I always knew evil existed. But I always saw it as something vague and shadowy, floating here and there without purpose, randomly causing people to commit terrible acts. I never thought of it inhabiting a powerful being with an agenda." She shuddered. "The world keeps getting stranger. And more dangerous."
"Aye, lass," he murmured. "But ye doona have to face it alone."
Her eyes met his again, and he winced at the pain glimmering in their golden brown depths.
"That's right," Laszlo piped in. "We're here for you."
She sighed. "Just when I think I have it figured out, and that I've adjusted to everything, something new gets thrown at me."
"Try not to let it bother you," Gregori said. "There's no reason you should ever have to meet Darafer."
Leah shuddered, then took a deep breath. "Let's get on with this then."
"Brave lass," Dougal whispered.
She winced. "Not so brave." She moved closer to the stretcher.