by Jeanne Rose
“No, you do not, but that is expected.”
Perhaps she didn’t. Adriana mulled over this news. For some reason, she hadn’t considered Val’s not being present at the service. She was oddly disappointed. But why should she be? Val had gone further out of his way for a stranger than she’d have expected of anyone.
He’d even gone to the morgue with her . . .
“The marks on Eddie’s neck,” she said, remembering his conversation with Panchella. “How did you know they weren’t made by some kind of an animal?”
“The holes were too perfect,” Val answered, his tone indicating his displeasure at her bringing up the subject. “Teeth would leave a jagged wound.”
The very idea leaving Adriana feeling queasy. “Whoever killed Eddie must be really warped. I mean, draining a person’s blood isn’t a normal criminal activity. Who would do an awful thing like that?”
Her gaze met Val’s, but she was not comforted by the experience. He seemed . . . cold, withdrawn to the point of remoteness.
“Various cultures throughout the ages believed in blood sacrifice,” he said. “They thought to mimic nature herself, where there are predators and prey. Something must die so that something else may live.”
Adriana’s stomach turned even though she was quite familiar with the facts of nature and knew something about history. “I don’t care what people did in the past. We’re not living in the Dark Ages here. And we’re not beasts. Anyone who would suck all the life’s blood out of another human being, even using a modern instrument of some kind, no matter the reason, is just plain sick.”
If she expected him to argue with her, he didn’t. Instead, he stated, “Indeed, there are terrible diseases, Adriana. Some that affect the soul, as well as the body.”
“What are you talking about? Mental illness?”
But he made no reply as he slipped on his sunglasses, holding himself rigidly and definitely apart from her, as if he chose to ignore her existence.
What in the world had happened? Certain Val felt the same disgust at the way Eddie died that she did, Adriana couldn’t understand how an invisible wedge had suddenly been shoved between them.
She didn’t have long to think about the situation, however, for they’d reached Broadway, and Val stepped into the street to hail a taxi for her. The driver pulled over to the curb with a screech of brakes.
“Your vehicle,” Val stated without emotion.
She tried staring into the eyes that had held her prisoner less than an hour ago. She imagined that, behind the dark glasses, they appeared cold. Dead. He’d closed himself off from her. An unacceptable situation.
“Val, what’s wrong?”
“It is late. You must be going.”
He was using that voice on her, the annoying one that got other people to do his bidding. A flash of frustration kept her from being equally inveigled. She ignored the taxi.
“Not until you tell me what’s going on here.”
“I have business to take care of, as I told you before.”
“I don’t mean that, and you know it,” she argued, noting a hip-looking young man dressed in black leather was jogging down the street straight for them. “What happened here? You’re acting as if we’d just met or something. No, not even that. You came on to me when we met.”
Val’s lips were set in a straight line, and his jaw was clenched tight. The garish street lights accentuated his pallor. His expression and stance made him appear tough and mean, totally unlike the man she was getting to know. Before she could wring an explanation from him, the guy in the leather duds sped by them and stopped before the taxi.
Panting, he threw open the rear passenger door. “I need to get to–”
Quick as lightning, Val shot out a hand and stopped him from completing his sentence. Fingers of steel latched onto the stranger’s arm and spun him away from the vehicle. The taxi driver hiked around to see what was going on.
“Hey, do I gotta fare or not? Somebody make up your mind or I’m getting outta here and finding a paying customer.”
“This is the lady’s taxi,” Val told him coldly. “You will wait for her.” Then he turned to his quarry. “You get your own.”
“And you get stuffed.” His features pulled into a nasty expression, the young man slashed Val’s hand away. “The lady wasn’t going nowhere that I could see. And I’m late for an important appointment. She can take the next taxi that comes along.”
The guy tried approaching the cab once more, but, face a fierce mask of anger, Val acted even more quickly than before. This time, his hand connected with the stranger’s throat, stopping him cold.
“Val!” Adriana said anxiously.
But Val ignored her. “I said this is the lady’s taxi.” He was practically lifting the man off the ground by his neck. “You can get the next one.”
What in the world was wrong with him? First he’d withdrawn coldly from her, then become furious with a stranger. He’d always seemed to get what he wanted with his softly-spoken commands. She’d never experienced his temper before. And while he’d gotten her guard up a few times, she’d never sensed this capacity for violence.
A frisson of fear crawled up her spine.
Toes of his boots doing a strange tap dance on the pavement, the stranger was making gagging sounds and prying at Val’s fingers and wrist to no effect.
Worried that he would actually hurt the guy, Adriana begged, “Val, please, let him go.”
She touched his arm, felt the muscle like steel ungiving beneath his suit jacket. This wasn’t the Val who’d paid for a homeless musician’s burial. He wasn’t the man who fed and comforted stray cats. He wasn’t anyone she knew. Or wanted to know for that matter.
Her voice trembled when she pleaded with him, “It’s only a taxi, for heaven’s sake.”
Making a harsh guttural sound that raised the hair on the back of her neck, Val lifted the leather-clad man and threw him as if he weighed nothing. Limbs flailing, the stranger shot back into the corner building, colliding into the brick wall with a thud.
Then, hands at his throat, he staggered off, croaking, “You’re crazy, buddy!”
“Val, what’s wrong with you?” Adriana demanded, even as he herded her into the back of the taxi.
“Take this lady home,” Val said, handing the now nervous-looking driver money.
“Yeah, sure, pal, whatever you say.”
But he didn’t say anything more, merely closed the door and watched as the taxi shot off down Broadway. Confused, her heart sinking, Adriana turned around to find Val staring after her. The thrill of fear clashed with the memory of something equally potent. How could he have turned from her dream lover into her worst nightmare in the space of minutes?
Then traffic got in the way and Val simply disappeared into the night.
“I WISH YOU WOULDN’T disappear like that,” Jennifer complained the moment Adriana walked through the door. She was curled up in a chair studying the day’s stock report.
Having assumed her sister would be tucked into bed, Adriana realized her stressful evening hadn’t ended yet. “Oh, God, dinner.” Another planned shared meal missed. “I’m sorry.” Doubly sorry because she hadn’t eaten, the fact probably making her even more edgy.
“I don’t care about dinner. I left some stir fry and rice for you on the stove.”
“You’re a doll, Jens.” With that, Adriana attempted her escape. “Thanks.”
“Not so fast. Isn’t there something you’d like to talk about?”
Adriana stopped in the kitchen doorway. Where to start? Her meeting Val? Eddie’s death? Being looked upon with suspicion by the police? Learning a man who could mesmerize her one minute could make her shake in her shoes the next? But Jennifer couldn’t possibly know about any of that.
“Like?” she asked, letting her sister take the lead.
“Stone Drake.”
“You listened to my messages?”
Adriana had her own line installed when sh
e’d moved in with her sister. Her phone and answering machine were in her bedroom and they had a strict policy about respecting each other’s privacy.
“I couldn’t exactly help it,” Jennifer said defensively. “I was home and the cat was squalling, so I decided to see what was wrong with her. All Phantom wanted was some attention, so I gave her a few pats and let her have the freedom of the apartment for a while.” She pulled a face. “Stone called while the door was open.”
Expecting a lecture, Adriana braced herself. “Then you’ll know I didn’t ask him to.”
Sighing, Jennifer rose from her chair and crossed to the kitchen doorway where Adriana still stood.
“I know Stone hurt you when he did his disappearing act, and now he’s trying to hurt you again. You’re my sister, Adriana, and you should be able to tell me what’s going on with you, even if you think I won’t like it. Please, don’t hide things. Don’t hide your feelings from me. So I don’t always approve of you – I know you don’t always approve of me.”
”Jens–”
”C’mon, don’t try to deny it. It’s a fact. Our parents must have gotten one of us from space aliens or something. But just because we’re different doesn’t mean we can’t be there for each other.”
The backs of Adriana’s eyes stung. She’d been feeling alone when she didn’t have to. She put her arms around her sister, and Jennifer gave her a comforting squeeze. She should have known better. Despite her lectures about Stone, hadn’t Jennifer been the one to insist Adriana move in with her so that she could feel safe again?
“So, you want to talk about it?” Jennifer asked.
Adriana pulled back and searched her sister’s face. “Not about Stone, no, but there’s something else . . .”
“Let’s get you something to eat first.”
A few minutes later, sitting at the kitchen table, Adriana cautiously told Jennifer about Eddie, keeping the details to a minimum, fearing to push this newfound closeness. She skipped the trip to the SRO and morgue and merely said she was helping to make arrangements for Eddie’s burial and service that would be held the next day, if possible.
“Why didn’t you tell me you knew him when you saw the newspaper article?”
Swallowing a mouthful of vegetables and rice, Adriana made a face. “Guess.”
“Well, I wouldn’t have assumed you were personally involved with the guy’s death.”
“I wasn’t, though I spoke to Eddie on my way home. Val and I were possibly the last people to see him alive.” Adriana realized telling her sister was inevitable. “Don’t be surprised if a Detective Carmine Panchella comes to call.”
“Omigod!” For a moment, Jennifer looked horrified. Then her expression changed, and she said, “Val?”
“A man I met at the club.”
“You’re dating someone and you didn’t tell me about that, either.”
“We’re not dating . . . exactly. I mean, we are attracted to each other,” she said, wondering what Jennifer would think if she admitted that she was pretty much obsessed with a virtual stranger. “But with Eddie’s death and all . . .”
“You haven’t exactly had time to develop a relationship,” Jennifer finished for her. “So tell me about this Val.”
Uh-oh, now they were in dangerous territory. Adriana chewed on the last of her food. No way would she admit Val alternately spooked her and turned her on. No way would she tell Jennifer that he must have been following her home the night Eddie died. She would stick to the easy stuff.
She swallowed and said, “His name is Valentin Kadar, he’s from Hungary, and he’s a photographer.”
“Newspaper or portrait?”
“Um, more like art,” Adriana reluctantly admitted, knowing her sister hadn’t been too fond of some of her artist friends in the past. “He’s going to exhibit at a local gallery.”
If Jennifer had any negative vibes, she hid them behind her cup of tea. “So he’s good?”
“I don’t know. I haven’t seen his work yet.” No photographs had been in evidence in Val’s home. She hadn’t realized that until this very moment. How odd. “I only met him a couple of days ago.”
“So, is he handsome?”
About that she could be totally honest. “Drop dead gorgeous.”
“And nice, I hope.”
“He has his moments,” Adriana said, the incident with the taxi suddenly foremost in her mind.
Not that she was about to mention Val’s scary temper to Jennifer, either. She wasn’t about to push this open door policy between them.
“When am I going to meet him?”
“I couldn’t say.”
She couldn’t even say if she would ever see him again. He obviously wasn’t planning on coming to the service for Eddie, and after their strange interaction earlier, she wasn’t certain he would seek her out again. The idea that he might be out of her life for good tore at her. His putting her on edge once in a while seemed a small price to pay to be near him. As for the hint of violence . . . now that she thought about it, she was probably blowing the incident out of proportion.
Either that, or she was doing one hell of a job of rationalizing.
Jennifer yawned loudly. “Boy, I’m pooped.”
“It’s way past your bedtime.”
“Mm.” Rising, she said, “Will you do something for me? When you figure out what you’re doing tomorrow – the service for your friend, or whatever – just leave me a message as to where you’ll be so I don’t worry.”
“Sure.”
“Good.” Stifling another yawn, Jennifer kissed her cheek and left the room.
Adriana cleared the table, though she put off cleaning up the sink. It was getting late and she had several calls to make. She planned to contact Irina and Louis once she found an open-minded priest willing to officiate over the burial of a non-parishioner. Hoping that wouldn’t be too tricky, she pulled out the telephone book from the hall closet and retreated into her bedroom.
Phantom was curled up in the middle of the bed, waiting for her. No sooner had Adriana closed the door behind her than the cat stretched and yawned aloud.
“So you escaped your prison for a while, did you?” She sat on the bed, stroked the animal’s silky fur. “Making a convert of Jennifer?”
Phantom purred her response . . . reminding Adriana of the gray stray that had gotten into Val’s house . . . reminding her of Val.
Closing her eyes for a moment, she imagined she was in his kitchen with him. She imagined he was about to kiss her. As had happened then, longing for him filled her. Even forcing herself to think about the way the evening ended so badly didn’t lessen her craving to be near Val.
Had he put some sort of spell on her, or what?
“Phantom, what am I going to do about that man?” she murmured, staring into the cat’s green eyes.
If there was anything she could do.
“I DID WHAT YOU WANTED, boss,” the narrow-faced snitch said when he showed up on The Buckthorn late that night. “I parked myself some ways down from Kadar’s spook house just like you told me. He never knew no difference.”
Leaning back in his leather upholstered chair, Miklos Rakosi fingered the medallion and stared at the man who hadn’t earned the nickname Weasel for nothing. “Well done.” The snitch would have a heart attack if he realized the full danger he’d been in. “And did Kadar have official visitors?”
“Besides the woman, a suit showed just like you said he would.”
“What time was that?”
“Sunset.”
Rakosi hid his disappointment. The call had been placed the night before. What had taken the police so long to get their act together? He’d fantasized about them breaking the door down and trying to drag Kadar out of bed. There would have been a terrific battle. More troops would have had to be called in. But, with luck, Kadar might have gone to jail first thing that morning. That would have stopped his adversary from coming after him, possibly for good.
“Did the detec
tive take our friend in for questioning?” he asked, thinking Kadar might have tried to be agreeable.
“Nah, the suit left alone.”
So the anonymous call hadn’t been taken as seriously as he’d hoped . . . though the situation had been checked out. That was something, he supposed. Obviously, the authorities needed more incentive before they would take action.
“And then what happened?” Rakosi asked, wishing he could take some sort of action himself. But he valued his own skin too much to face his adversary alone.
“A while later, Kadar left with the woman.”
The woman again. Who was she? “And you followed them?”
“From a distance. Kadar put her in a taxi after having a ruckus with some bozo. Strong bastard. Could never tell by looking at him, that’s for sure.” Weasel’s narrow face pulled into a puzzled frown. “Then he kinda just disappeared on me.”
No surprise there, Rakosi thought. Something made him demand, “His companion – describe her.”
“Kinda exotic. Long purple red hair. A real looker.”
“Kadar does like his women . . .” Rakosi thought hard, his memory suddenly producing an image. “I think I know who she is. I’ve seen him with her myself. Though I don’t know her name.” But he moved on to the more important action of the moment. “I want you to keep watching Kadar and his house. See what goes on there.”
Weasel appeared wary. “Uh, you mean all night? Alone?” So the man did sense his enemy’s power. Rakosi went on, “The police may have the place under surveillance as well. If so, you will need to be careful of them. But I want to know everything they do. Kadar himself will probably not return until dawn,” Rakosi said reassuringly, knowing his enemy’s modus operandi nearly as well as his own.
Then he waved the man off to do his bidding. The snitch slinked away like the weasel he was. And Rakosi settled down to consider his options. All of them.
Including figuring out a way to use the woman to his advantage.
CHAPTER SIX
GETTING A LATE START and speeding toward St. Boniface Cemetery in a taxi, Irina asked Adriana, “You didn’t let Kadar, um, take advantage of you, did you?”