by Nancy Warren
“No. I don’t want to go to the hospital. I’m fine.”
“You’re not fine,” the doctor said. “I want to check you out properly. You took quite a bang on the back of your head. You could have a fracture.”
I almost hoped I did, then maybe Sylvia wouldn’t be too angry with me.
It was a faint hope.
I was lifted carefully onto the stretcher by two paramedics and then tucked up in what felt like a blanket. I closed my eyes because the light hurt them. And Rafe kept his hand in mine and we were on our way. I heard someone say in an angry voice, “But I must leave. I can’t be held hostage here because of some petty thievery.”
That was Lady Pevensy. I recognized her voice. And Edgar, in a soothing voice said, “I’m sorry. I know it’s an annoyance, but you must understand something priceless has gone missing. The police have been called. No one can leave until they get here.”
Lord Pevensy spoke up now. “I’m not nobody, you know, young man.”
“I know that, Your Lordship. I couldn’t be more sorry. Please, have patience.”
They must have seen me then, because Lord Pevensy made a sound of distress. “Oh, that poor girl. Is she dead?”
And thanks for that. “No, no. Badly injured though.”
“Seemed like such a nice young woman. What is this world coming to when thieves and bullies can find their way into a gala at my old Oxford college, eh? That wouldn’t have happened in my day.”
I closed my eyes then and drifted off.
When I opened them again, I was in the hospital. I was taken for a CT scan and then returned to a room to await the results. Rafe was there. Gran was sitting on the other side of the bed, and I could see she’d been there for a while. Her face was crinkled with concern.
“Lucy. My poor love. How do you feel?”
I looked around. Sylvia wasn’t in the room. “Sick.”
“Should I call a nurse? Are you going to be ill?”
I shook my head, then winced. “No. I feel sick that the jewels went missing. I don’t know what happened.”
“You’re not to worry about that, my dear. What matters is you.”
“Is Sylvia very angry?”
I could see the look they exchanged. It told me everything I needed to know. After an awkward moment, Gran said, “She’s upset about the jewels, of course. But she’s as happy as I am that you weren’t worse hurt.”
“I think I fell into a trap. I didn’t mean to. I thought I was doing the right thing. But the accountant, he said he had something important to tell me. I only went down the hallway just past the ladies’ bathroom. It wasn’t like I met him in a dark alley or anything. I would have thought my magic would have protected me. But it didn’t.”
“No, dear. It didn’t.”
“We have to find them.”
There was a terrible pain in my head but worse was that awful feeling in my gut that I’d done something unforgiveable. I put my hand to my throat as though Sylvia’s priceless and irreplaceable jewels might suddenly appear under my fingertips. But, of course, they didn’t. I didn’t even care that my head felt like a cracked egg. For all I knew, my brains were leaking out. But I’d happily lose half my brains than have to face Sylvia and tell her I had lost the Cartier set.
A doctor came in and asked me a bunch of foolish questions. What my name was, what the date was, who the prime minister was. I said, feeling irritable and cheeky, “I’m American. We have a president.”
But the doctor treated me as I suppose one treats a patient with a concussion. He nodded, looking very serious.
“And do you know who the president is?”
I actually had to think about it for a minute. But I did manage to come up with names of both the president and the prime minister.
He nodded, looking neither pleased nor displeased.
“Can I go home?”
“Yes. Your scan was clear. But I want you to take it very easy. If you start seeing double or can’t remember things or the headache gets worse, you’re to come back. Do you understand?”
“I do.” I matched him for seriousness.
“And I want to see you in my surgery in a week.”
I nodded, then wished I hadn’t because it hurt. But I didn’t wince. The last thing I wanted was to be stuck here any longer. I had to get out of here. I had to find the jewelry before Sylvia acted out the rage I knew she must be feeling.
I did not relish joining the vampire knitting club.
Knowing Sylvia, she wouldn’t even turn me into a vampire. She’d do something even worse.
No, I definitely needed to find those jewels.
Chapter 8
Rafe helped me to the car and even put my seatbelt on for me. Gran said she was needed at home, and I guessed her mission would be trying to contain Sylvia. I didn’t envy her that task.
I closed my eyes and leaned back as he drove the smooth, quiet car from the hospital. After a while, I opened them. Shouldn’t I be home by now? And then I saw the canopy of trees linking overhead, the moon and stars far above and realized we weren’t heading back to my flat. He was taking me to his manor house.
I thought about arguing, but really, settling into that soft bed, knowing that William, Rafe’s efficient butler and excellent cook, was there to look after me was wonderful. Even better, if Sylvia wanted to get to me, she would have to go past Rafe. She might be furious, and I knew she would be, but I would back Rafe against any force, alive or undead.
“Is Sylvia very angry?” I asked Rafe as we pulled up to his manor house.
There was a tiny pause, and I could feel his cold anger without him saying a word. “Leave Sylvia to me,” he said curtly.
Oh, boy, she must be really mad.
And she was right to be. I put my hand to my aching head. “I can’t believe I was so stupid. He seemed so inoffensive, that little man. The accountant. He asked me to meet him in a quiet room. Away from the crowd, away from the security, away from everybody. What was I thinking?”
He glanced over at me but didn’t say anything.
I answered his unasked question anyway. “He said he had concerns. Something about the production was bothering him and he didn’t want to talk about it in front of everybody.” I rubbed my head. “What a patsy. That must be the oldest trick in the book. So, like a fool, I went to meet him.”
“And then what happened?” Rafe asked in a quiet, not at all accusing tone. That made it easier for me to remember.
“He wasn’t there.”
“Try and remember exactly what happened. Everything you remember. A sound, a sight, a smell.”
“I remember being hit over the head.” Well, that wasn’t exactly true. I remembered the terrible burst of pain and then that sense of falling. I didn’t even remember hitting the ground.
“I felt something or someone behind me. I went to turn my head, and that’s when he hit me.”
“I should have been there.” He sounded furious, and I realized it wasn’t with me but himself. “It was dangerous for you to go there with a fortune in uninsured jewels hanging off you. It was so wrong of Sylvia to treat you like a mannequin. We all should have known better.”
I appreciated his support, but how could any of us have known? It had seemed perfectly safe. And it would have been if I hadn’t slipped away from the crowd to meet with someone I didn’t even know.
I knew that if they had any ideas where the jewels were, he’d have told me by now, but still, I had to ask.
“Are there any clues?”
“None. Your accountant seems to have made a clean getaway.”
“I will find him,” I said. “I don’t want to say if it’s the last thing I do, because with Sylvia around, it might well be. But what’s he going to do with them? It’s not like he pilfered something from a regular jeweler. Something mass-produced that you could sell on eBay.”
“No. Sylvia says any jeweler or collector will recognize the set immediately.”
“You’ve s
poken to Sylvia?” My voice came out really eager and desperate.
“I have.”
“Does she have any ideas?”
“She does not.”
“I have to call her.”
“I wouldn’t advise it. At least, not until she calms down.”
It was gratifying to see that the minute we pulled up, the big doors to the mansion opened and William came hurrying out. He opened my door even before Rafe could do it, and between them, they helped me out. I laughed and then wished I hadn’t because it hurt so much.
“I can walk, you know.”
William looked at both of us. “Oh, let Rafe do his He-Man thing. He’s going to anyway.”
And then I found myself picked up once again and held against Rafe’s chest. I was even more like Scarlett O’Hara now, being carried into that beautiful mansion. And up those stairs.
He took me into the room that was pretty much known as mine. Fortunately, I kept some extra clothes and underwear and toiletries here. I couldn’t go around in an evening gown for much longer.
I rejected both their offers to help and got myself undressed and into my pajamas. It was nearly three in the morning. In the en suite bathroom, I inspected myself and found that my face looked pale and drawn.
I washed my face and brushed my teeth and then crawled into the big bed.
William came in with a tray. It was as though he’d read my mind. “It’s a little soup and some chamomile tea. I thought that might help calm you.”
“You’re a saint.”
He left and then Rafe came in and sat on the edge of the bed.
“You’re not to worry about anything. Get a good night’s sleep.”
“But the police?”
“They’ll be here in the morning,” he said soothingly.
I wanted to argue, but I didn’t have the strength. When I was done, he took the tray from me and then pulled the quilt up over my shoulders.
Then he leaned forward and kissed my aching head. “Things will look brighter in the morning,” he said. “I promise.”
Amazingly, I slept the night through. I didn’t wake up until after nine the next morning, and I was feeling a lot more human. My head still ached, but a couple of painkillers took it down from acute to manageable. My vision wasn’t blurry. I could remember pretty much everything, including the fact that one of the most powerful and scary vampires in the world was no doubt my sworn enemy right now, and while my headache was still present, it seemed to me in keeping with a bash on the head yesterday.
I showered carefully and left my hair to do its own thing. The thought of a comb or blow-dryer or a brush was too much. I dressed in comfy sweats and padded downstairs. I found William in the kitchen, where he’d obviously been waiting for me. He looked at me searchingly before he spoke.
“How are you feeling?”
“I’ve been better,” I told him.
He came forward, and I could see him searching my eyes to see if they looked okay. He was so sweet. “Coffee’s on, and breakfast is whatever you desire.”
Truth to tell, I didn’t have a great appetite. Which was a tragedy when I was in William’s kitchen. I told him I’d start with the coffee, and then he tempted me with yogurt and fresh fruit and granola.
Rafe came in and was much less subtle than William. He tilted my chin and told me to open my eyes wide. The doctor had sent us home with a list of warning signs, and Rafe now asked things like whether I had weakness or dizziness. He made me walk up and down the kitchen and checked my gait and balance. He also seemed satisfied by what he saw, however.
I said, “I need to get back into town.”
He shook his head. “Violet’s running the shop. She’s perfectly capable.”
“It’s not Violet I’m worried about. I need to talk to Sylvia.”
He and William shared a glance. “Let Sylvia cool down. It wouldn’t be a good idea for you to go near her right now.”
“At least I should apologize. I never meant to—”
“Please, Lucy, trust me. She needs time to cool down.”
No doubt he was right. “Well, then, I need to get to the college. And the police will want to talk to me.”
Again they exchanged a glance. “The police are on their way here.”
My eyes widened. “They are?”
“They need to talk to you about the theft.”
Rafe sent me a warning glance. “Don’t forget, Lucy, as far as the world knows, those jewels belong to you. Do we need to refresh your memory on how you came to be Sylvia’s heir?”
“No. If there’s one thing Sylvia was very good at, it was rehearsing me for my part. I’ll be fine.”
I finished my breakfast, brushed my teeth and tried to tidy my hair, but it was so hopeless, I gave up. I went back down and didn’t know what to do with myself. I wandered around picking things up and putting them down. I picked up one of the books that Rafe stocked, but in truth, I couldn’t concentrate. Finally, I slipped on a sweater and went out into the garden.
Henri, a resident peacock who was more like a pampered pet, came waddling up. The peacock is one of the most beautiful birds on earth, but Henri was not a tip-top specimen. His feathers were bedraggled, and he had to be borderline obese for a peacock. But what he lacked in beauty, he more than made up for in personality. Luckily, I might be concussed, but I wasn’t stupid. I’d made William give me a few pieces of steak, Henri’s favorite food, and the bird happily and gently took the pieces out of my hand.
Then I walked around. The morning was misty and made the grounds around Rafe’s manor house look almost like a painting. My reverie wasn’t a happy one. All I could think about was the night before. How Sylvia had entrusted me with her prized possessions and how I had let them be stolen.
The accountant had seemed so nervous and so sincere, I’d let him lure me to a quiet alcove. Honestly, if my head hadn’t already hurt so much, I’d have slapped myself upside it. How could I have been so stupid?
I knew I had to stop beating myself up and instead turn my energy towards trying to figure out how to find the guy. As Rafe had said, these weren’t the kind of jewels that you could easily fence. Maybe there was a chance we could get them back.
If not, I was pretty sure I was going to have to buy myself a ticket back to America. So long as Sylvia was living underneath the shop and I was living above it, I didn’t think I’d sleep a wink.
Rafe’s words floated across my mind. He’d told me that he wouldn’t let Sylvia hurt me, and I knew he wouldn’t. Still, I didn’t want to go through life safe only because I had a big, strong protector. Not that I minded having a big, strong protector. I was glad and flattered. But at some point, I needed to stand on my own two feet.
That meant I had to find those jewels.
While I was walking, Henri trailing my steps hopefully, William came out.
“Lucy, the police are here.”
I took a quick breath in.
I turned to Henri. “And it’s showtime.”
Henri put his head to one side and regarded me from his beady, bright eyes. He had no interest in showtime. He only cared about mealtime.
Disgusted at the lack of steak being offered, he turned and waddled away.
And I went back into the manor house to face the police.
Chapter 9
I was interviewed by a sergeant who asked the obvious questions. Had I noticed anyone suspicious at the gala? No.
Had anyone paid particular attention to the expensive jewels I was wearing? Yes. Everyone.
Were they insured? No.
Did I have any idea who might have taken them? No.
The interview went on for about ten minutes more, but the trouble was I didn’t have anything helpful to offer, and I suspected the interview was part of a checklist of action items that would end up in a file somewhere.
I stayed at Rafe’s for two days and then decided to go back to work. I opened my shop and was aware of a feeling of nervousness in the pit of my
stomach. I couldn’t help but keep thinking of the vampires who lived just beneath my feet. And of one vampire in particular, who definitely had me on her hit list. I didn’t want to anger a vampire at the best of times, but Sylvia? I’d have gone very far out of my way not to have her as an enemy.
I got through the day somehow, but I could almost feel the anger and resentment floating up from their subterranean nest.
I waited until ten o’clock that night, pacing up and down miserably in my flat. Then I couldn’t stand it anymore. I had to talk to her. Rafe had warned me to give her time and space, but I couldn’t do it. I was a nervous wreck.
I went downstairs, and the darkened shop seemed creepy and unfriendly for almost the first time I could remember. I walked through the back where I ran the knitting club, and the empty chairs sat in the darkened room like so many fingers wagging at me in disapproval.
I almost turned tail when I got to the trapdoor. But I made myself continue. I lifted it and went down the rough-hewn stairs into the tunnels. I never liked coming down here, even when I was not alone. But for what I was about to do? I really had to steel myself. I heard a rustling somewhere and assumed it was a rat. I hoped it was only a rat.
I made my way as quickly as I could to the inset door that led to the vampires’ lair. I had to go against every instinct for self-preservation, which was screaming at me to turn around and run.
I took a deep breath and then I knocked on the door.
No going back now, I told myself.
It wasn’t long before the door was opened and my grandmother was standing there. Normally she looked so pleased to see me. I expected her face to break out in a beaming smile and for her to pull me into a hug. But this time she looked unhappy to see me. Frightened even. Instead of inviting me in, she stepped out and pulled the door to behind her.
“Lucy,” she whispered. “What are you doing here?”
“I have to see her. I have to explain.”
She glanced behind her and then back at me. “It’s not a good idea.”
Now I wasn’t the only one pretty much telling me to turn tail and run. Maybe I should. Then a voice I both knew and dreaded called out from behind Gran.