He’d only backed down when he’d been confronted by Jake. He’d seen into the other man’s mind and known they were connected by far more than he could have ever imagined. Jake was his brother.
And so, they’d become allies.
But Kaitlin hated him. Likely she would never forgive him.
And he couldn’t stop thinking about her. His feelings had changed.
She was no longer a child.
He’d had women in the past—after all, he was over a hundred and fifty years old—but he’d never allowed those women to mean anything, certainly never allowed them to come between him and his mission. He’d always broken off relationships before they could get too serious, before the woman involved could realize that he was different, that he didn’t age.
Secrecy was everything, though the truth was, he had never found it hard. He preferred to be alone.
Until now.
He would see her soon. This morning, he was heading to the meeting in Scotland. They would all be there.
It was to take place at the Rayleigh estates, where his parents had lived for many years after they’d left Uganda. He would meet them for the first time since he was four years old.
He wasn’t sure how he felt about that.
On his way to Scotland, he intended to make a detour to London—he was going to make sure Kaitlin attended the meeting. He had an idea she would try to avoid it—and him—if she could. And he wouldn’t allow that.
Time was running out. He needed to make things right between them before that happened.
He needed her forgiveness, though he would never ask it directly.
More than that, he had to somehow get through to her, find a way that she could, at least, forgive herself for her part in Sam’s death. Because only once she had forgiven herself—and let go of her guilt—could she ever start to forgive him.
Chapter 4
“Are you ready to go?”
Kaitlin glanced at the man beside her—Detective Steve Bennett. He was handsome in a tough sort of way, tall, with dark messy hair and gray eyes. Dressed in jeans and a leather jacket, he still managed to look like a police officer.
She liked him. And she didn’t like many people. But he knew what she was, and he didn’t care that she could see into his mind. Most people clamped up like a vice, as though they could hide their thoughts from her.
She’d been staring into the one-way window to the man on the other side. He was one of the guys who had tried to take herlast night. They’d been picked up by the police after her call and apparently were wanted for a multitude of crimes from burglary to assault.
She’d wanted to have another look into their heads, to be sure she couldn’t find out more about who had paid them to take her. But all they had were anonymous calls and an arrangement that they would be contacted with a drop-off time and place once they had her.
Kaitlin had first met Detective Bennett a year ago, soon after she’d moved back to London. She’d seen a report on the news—a girl had been kidnapped. They had a man in custody, but he wasn’t talking, and they were worried for the girl’s life.
Kaitlin was supposed to be keeping a low profile—Kane was all about secrecy, but really, it was none of that goddamned bastard’s business. And if she could save a life, then she would take the risk that someone might learn about their existence.
She’d always believed that the way forward was through openness. That only when the public knew about them would they be safe and able to do any good in the world.
And despite everything that had happened, she wanted to do good. It had been Sam’s dream. He’d always been the nice twin. She and Sam had been a bit like Josie and Sadie. Sadie was a bitch, Josie a complete sweetheart.
So, while she wasn’t blasting what she was from the rooftops, neither was she pandering to Kane’s pathetic desire for total secrecy. She would make her own decisions.
And stupid Kane’s stupid mission came pretty low on her list of priorities.
She’d contacted the detective in charge of the case and said she might have information. Detective Bennett was a good man. At first, he’d been skeptical about her abilities, and reluctant to give her access to the man in custody.
So she’d told him exactly what he was thinking.
It had taken him a while to process what she was, and he’d had a little disbelief to overcome. But in the end, there wasn’t a lot of choice but to believe her, and he’d taken her to the man—at least to the room next to where he was being kept. Which was plenty close enough.
