Off With His Head

09. Who the hell even owns a sword these days?

I am inwardly seething about Lideri's plot to pacify me.

What a jackass. Who does he think he is?

Well actually, he is the leader of an elite group of Hunters, so he is a pretty big deal.

Ugh, that sounds like something Zach would say.

My internal arguing is brought to a halt by Henry's arrival. I open the door to a large bunch of roses, blocking my view of him.

"Sweetheart!" He gasps when he lowers the bouquet and sees me. "You look outstanding." He leans forward to give me a kiss hello and I try my best not to flinch away. "I'm sorry I've been so quiet and I haven't seen you for a few days, I had some business to attend to."

"So you said. What business was it?" I try to keep the accusation out of my tone as I take the roses and go into the kitchen to fill a vase and put them in. I have a feeling it had something to do with going on a killing spree.

"Nothing to worry your pretty little head about." He follows me and kisses my temple. While I arrange the flowers, he stands behind me, placing his hands on my waist. I try my best not to shiver at his proximity, but I can feel my skin crawl.

I turn to face him and put my hands on my hips, stepping back from him slightly so he loses his grip on me. "You know; if you want us to be in this relationship, I'm going to need more honesty from you." I'm almost impressed by how convincing I sound.

"Fine." He leans against the kitchen counter, a look of resignation on his face. "If you must know, I was helping my friend track down a hunter who was hell bent on killing him."

"A h-h-hunter?" Shit. Shit. Shit.

"Yes sweetheart, a Hunter. There is a whole organisation of them trained to kill people like me," he tells me and I try to paste a look of shock on my face. "But not too worry, I killed him so I am quite safe."

No you're not.

"You killed him?" I wonder if it's someone that Zach and Caleb knew. Maybe he was a friend of theirs. My heart clenches at the thought.

"Would you rather he killed me?" he asks me. I want to answer truthfully and tell him that yes, I would rather he died than some poor innocent Hunter who was just trying to make the world a better place. But I can't do that. I have a feeling he wouldn't appreciate it too much.

"Henry," I rack my brain for what I can say. What would the girlfriend of a vampire act like? Obviously, I can't be too compliant. Given my reaction to him when I found out, it would be too suspicious if I suddenly started seeming okay with this. Nor can I show him how I truly feel. I need to find some sort of middle ground. "If we are going to keep dating, I need you to promise me that you won't kill anyone else. I can't stand the idea of innocent people getting hurt."

His eyes darken and he leans back on the kitchen counter. "You think that a vampire hunter is innocent? They kill us Peyton, how is that any different?"

Because you're a monster.

"Okay," I concede, knowing this is a battle I will lose, probably making him angry in the process. "Fair enough on the hunter, but what about the people you feed on?"

"I'm sorry, darling." He grabs my arm and starts walking me towards the door. "But I cannot promise you that, I need to feed to survive. Now enough of this sordid talk, let's go for dinner."

He takes me to a restaurant in the quiet part of town. It should be romantic, and in any other situation, it might have been. But all I can think is that it's a good thing because it will give Zach and Caleb a good chance to get to him without witnesses.