Chapter 8: Vow of Secrecy

“What the hell do you mean there’s another vampire in town?” Jax asked for the hundredth time as we made our way home.

“Not sure what part of that is unclear.” I scowled.

“Well, did you see who it was?”

I shook my head for what had to be the hundredth time. “I didn’t stick around to find out. I needed to make sure Chloe made it back safely.”

Though, she couldn’t possibly be safe hanging around Marc. I’d very strongly suggested she avoid him, and the first chance she got, she was spending the day with him. What was she thinking? If only I wasn’t such a coward, I could tell her the truth about me—and Marc—and then she’d realize how important it was to stay far away from him. Too bad I had no idea how to even start that kind of conversation with her.

Jax rolled his eyes and huffed. If he so much as uttered a single word about the decision I’d made, I’d punch him so hard he wouldn’t be able to talk for a week.

“And you didn’t recognize the scent?” he asked.

“No.” I swung the truck into our driveway, killed the engine, and hopped out before he could ask me yet another question I didn’t have an answer for.

“We have to tell Dad.” Jax was hot my heels.

I didn’t respond as I yanked open the front door, strode across the living room, and headed straight downstairs to Dad’s office. As expected, he was in there, studying his research. I really wish he’d get a life.

“Hey, boys.” Dad acknowledged us with a smile. “Learn anything about Marc?”

“Other than he’s a creep perving on a local girl?” Jax shrugged. “Nope.”

I gave my brother a dirty look. “No, but I crossed paths with another vampire. I didn’t get a look at them, and I didn’t recognize their scent, but they were feeding on animals in broad daylight.”

At that, Dad’s eyes widened.

“To make it worse, I’m pretty sure Chloe saw something, though I doubt she knows what she saw.” I rubbed the back of my neck. The memory of how freaked out she’d been lingered in my mind.

“It’s not uncommon for vampires to pass through this town. I’m sure that’s all this was.” Dad stood from his desk chair and stretched.

“Really?” Jax crossed his arms. “This Marc kid shows up, messes with Chloe’s head, latches himself onto her cousin, and now there’s a strange vampire passing through town. Seems a little too coincidental.”

My stomach sank. As badly as I wanted Jax to be wrong, he wasn’t. The timing of everything was too suspect, which meant there was something bigger going on. But what? And why now?

“You’re probably right.” Dad sighed and rubbed his hands over his face. “Be extra vigilant, and I’ll ask around, see if I can find out anything.”

I nodded, then turned to go back upstairs. Jax followed, and he made a beeline for the kitchen. I hesitated, but then joined him, though I stayed out of his way as he dug around in the cupboards and refrigerator.

“I know don’t really give a shit about Chloe, but thanks for going with me today.” I pulled out a chair and sank down into it.

“What else is there to do? Homework?” He laughed and set a frying pan on the stove. “This town is a million times more boring than I remembered, so if stalking a witch is what I need to do to get my kicks…” He shrugged. “Hopefully, it pays off and I can kill something soon.”

I rolled my eyes, but smiled nonetheless. That was my brother—kill first, ask questions later. Maybe that philosophy would come in handy this time, especially if it meant he was on my side in terms of protecting Chloe.

I’d wanted nothing more than to make my presence known today, to be able to sit on that blanket with her, to hold her hand as she basked in the sun. To be more than some guy she knows from school. I wanted to be her everything. I sighed and hung my head.

“You got that dopey look on your face again,” Jax said, but when I glanced up, he had his back to me. “Must be thinking about Chloe.” He sang her name in a sickeningly sweet tone, drawing out the syllables.

“You’re a jerk.”

He laughed. “What’s so special about her anyway?” He turned, leaned against the counter, and crossed his arms. “She seems so… ordinary.”

“That’s exactly what makes her so special. She’s… good. Even you said her aura was pure white.” I drummed my fingers on the table. “She’s smart and funny and inquisitive and beautiful…” I smiled wistfully. “She’s perfect.”

Jax made a dramatic show of gagging. “You’ve got it so bad.” He shook his head, a faint smile on his lips. “You have to know there’s no way this will ever work out for you two.” He raised a brow, waiting for me to disagree.

Sadly, I couldn’t.

A vampire human romance was difficult when both people knew the truth, but to try to start a relationship without Chloe having all the information… I was setting us up for failure. But how did I tell her I was a vampire? For someone like her, so sweet and innocent, that would be a dealbreaker.

“You should just wipe yourself from her memory, and we should move. Save all of us a lot of headaches.” He turned back around to stir whatever he had on the stove.

“I can’t just walk away,” I mumbled.

Part of me wished I could, because things would be so much easier, but now that I knew my soulmate was here… I’d never be the same man again. Simply meeting her had changed me in ways I could never undo—and I didn’t want to. I wanted to get to know Chloe, to gather the courage to tell her the truth, and then let her decide my fate.

“You’re pathetic.” Jax frowned and slid a plate heaped with rice, roasted vegetables, and rare steak in front of me. Then he sat in the chair opposite me, an equally heaping pile of food in front of him.

“Just wait until you meet your soulmate.” I grabbed the fork he held out to me and dug into the food. As always, it was cooked to perfection, and an explosion of flavors erupted in my mouth. “Then you’ll understand the torture I’m feeling right now.”

“Here’s hoping my soulmate isn’t a human.” He grinned and shoved a large bite into his mouth. “So, you’re really going to tell her the truth?”

I nodded, refusing to meet his gaze. While Jax wasn’t ashamed of what we were, he took the whole vow of secrecy thing that came with being a vampire very seriously. Long ago, we’d made a pact that neither of us would tell anyone what we were unless both of us were in agreement.

“That going to be a problem?” I finally looked up, my expression hard.

“Do I have a choice?” He shoveled more food into his mouth. “Seems like you’ve already made up your mind.”

I pushed my plate away and sat back. “Dad gave me a choice. Tell her or leave her.” I crossed my arms. “And, well, we’re still here, aren’t we?”

Jax grunted and finished his food in silence. “At least get to know her first. Make sure we can trust her with our secret.” He stood and gathered his dirty dishes. “I’d hate to have to kill her.”

I scowled, a low growl rumbling from my chest. “You so much as look at her the wrong way…” I curled my hands into fists.

“Down boy.” Jax smirked and held up his hands in surrender. “I have no intentions of playing with your new toy.” Then he sauntered out of the kitchen. A second later, I heard the TV switch on.

Cleaning off my plate, I headed for my room, bypassing Jax without another word spoken between us. He was right that I needed to ensure Chloe could be trusted with the truth, but how could I determine if she was trustworthy? Did I tell her a smaller secret, see if she told anyone else? If she did, word would spread at that Godforsaken school. I swore that place thrived on drama—real or fake. Testing her like that seemed juvenile and unnecessary, though.

I flopped down on my bed and blew out a breath. And that’s where I stayed for several hours, playing out different scenarios in my mind, going over various speeches and ways to break the news to Chloe that I was a vampire, and that she was my soulmate.

But nothing I came up with was any good, and by the time the sun rose on Sunday morning, I was no closer to having a solution.

Through the decades, Dad had hold various humans that he was a vampire. Maybe I should ask him how he did it. Then again, telling a human friend the truth was vastly different than telling the woman who was your soulmate. I had a lot more at stake.

Hadn’t my friend Whitney told a guy she’d been dating that she was a vampire? I could call her for advice. I quickly shoved that thought away. I loved Whitney, but she could be a lot to handle. She’d ask too many questions and then demand to meet Chloe, all under the guise of helping, of course, but I wasn’t ready to subject Chloe to the likes of Whitney. Maybe someday, but not today.

Around noon, I finally rolled out of bed, showered, and changed, though I had no idea what to do with myself all day. I knew what I wanted to do—see Chloe—but I wasn’t about to stalk her again. At least she’d agreed to let me pick her up and drive her to school tomorrow.

Right then, an idea hit me. Could I talk her into skipping school and hanging out with me instead? Maybe if I had a few hours alone with her, uninterrupted, I could ease her into the truth. Or, at the very least, get to know her a bit more, asks questions and feel her out to gauge her reactions to things. Me, mostly, because not knowing how she felt about me was driving me crazy. If I knew she liked me, coming clean would be easier.

“Dad left to meet Macaih. Said he’d be back in a couple of days.” Jax was sprawled out on the couch, one leg draped over the arm.

Macaih was an old family friend, and one of the oldest vampires I knew, which meant he often had a lot of information and contacts. Dad had been working with Macaih a lot recently in an effort to find a cure to our curse.

My shoulders slumped. Even if I did get the guts to tell Chloe I was a vampire, I then had to explain my curse. If she accepted what I was, surely finding out I was cursed and therefore unable to truly love anyone would send her running for the hills. Now, more than ever, I hoped Dad found a way to break this curse, because doing so was my only chance at having a future with Chloe.

“What’s on the agenda today? Stalking your girlfriend some more? Tailing Marc? Hunting down this mysterious vampire who showed up in town?” Jax stood and stretched.

I wanted nothing more than to check in on Chloe, but I couldn’t keep invading her privacy like that. I’d see her first thing tomorrow morning, and with any luck, I’d get to spend the day with her.

“Let’s go hunt a vampire,” I said.