Cloak of Deceit: An Alex Moore Novel by Gwen Mitchell Page A

away. It took another few frantic breaths for my head to clear, even as the combustion reaction he’d started in my body raged onward. “Are you serious?”
    “Yes.” Julian lifted me off his lap and plopped me into the passenger seat. His hands wrung the steering wheel. “This is not the time.”
    “Or the place?” I straightened in my seat, fidgeting with my shirt, fighting the impulse to pounce on him again.
    “We could definitely do better than this. We have to cover a lot of ground if we want to be off the road before sunrise.” He sounded like he was trying to convince himself as well as me.
    I blew out a deep breath and reached over to turn the key in the ignition, then lowered my window. Cool, damp air whisked through the interior of the Jeep, clearing out the cloud of desire hanging heavy between us. It was easier to breathe and think as Julian started the engine and pulled back onto the highway.
    After a few minutes of both of us doing our best to ignore each other, the worst of it had passed. I still felt a twinge every time I looked at him, but figured making conversation would take the edge off. “Tell me about becoming a Sponsor.”
    He glanced at me with a thankful smile, then reached over and took my hand. “You have to have a rank of three or higher before you can sponsor anyone. It ensures that you have the levels of strength and discipline required to keep a newly turned Undead in check. Rank is established through a series of trials designed by the Cloak.”
    “Is it difficult?”
    “You have to know the Code through and through, but the rest is based on your natural abilities and control over them. It’s really just a way for the oldest among us to maintain control. Even a newly turned can technically make another Undead. Obviously. I think being a psychic was the only thing that kept you alive and sane. Cody didn’t appear to know the consequences of what he was doing, which is why his Sponsor will be punished as well. Probably lose rank.”
    Cody probably knew the consequences and just decided they didn’t apply to him, but I didn’t chime in with that. I was done talking about him. Like…forever.
    “Have you ever sponsored someone?”
    He shook his head. “You can only have one Dependant at a time. Undead usually stay with their Sponsor for several years, until they earn enough rank. Even then, the bond lasts a lifetime.”
    “What about your Sponsor?”
    “I don’t have one anymore.”
    I furrowed my brows.
    “Not everyone follows the Code,” he said in answer. From the tone of his voice, I knew not to pry.
    “How does it work?” I would have time to find out all about him later. It was funny, but I felt sure that there would be a later. Maybe it was just my hormones, but our little tryst had reassured me. Julian wanted me, and he wanted to keep me safe. I’d had relationships based on a lot less.
    “There’s a ritual, formal paperwork, but basically, we just share blood. There’s a lot to tell you about being Undead. You really should read the manual.” His eyes narrowed in thought. “We used to hunt humans as our sole source of blood. A lot of our instincts and tendencies have evolved for that purpose.”
    I tried to keep an open mind. I could tell Julian worried about how I would react and that what he was telling me was important. I fixed a studious expression on my face and nodded.
    “Sharing blood forms a bond for life. You’re always connected to someone you’ve taken blood from, if it’s done the natural way. You can track them easily and always sense them. It’s a very…intimate experience.”
    I hadn’t realized until then that my other hand was covering my neck, my fingers tracing the scar Cody left me, my thoughts hovering around whether Julian could do it better. I pulled my hand away. “You mean like… sexual?”
    “Not always.” He hesitated. “But our hunting instincts do lean that way.”
    I cocked an eyebrow at the almost embarrassed tone