His mental voice was a whisper as it entered my mind. “Remember that I love you and I promise to keep you safe. For now, you need to follow my lead. If I tell you to answer in a certain way, it is imperative you do so.”
Squaring my shoulders, I pulled away from him and my mouth was set in a grim line. “I'm so going to kick your ass when we get home, Stefan. This is the vampire bullshit you were referring to I assume?”
He chuckled aloud, breaking the silence of the room. He nodded and picked the suitcase off the bed with one hand. He hesitantly offered me his other hand, waiting for me to join him. I reluctantly put my hand in his and squeezed it affectionately.
Are you ready for this, vackra?
Releasing a resigned sigh, my shoulders drooped slightly. That was the million dollar question. I knew I'd never be ready to fly off to meet a council of vampires and rely on Stefan's mental queues to make it out alive but I didn't have a choice in the matter.
“I'm as ready as I'll ever be. Let's go so we can come home.”
***
The drive to Denpasar International Airport was silent and filled with tension. I clung to Stefan's arm during most of the car ride and Adolfo made no attempt to make any conversation as we drove along. I found myself looking out the tinted backseat window, the beautiful scenery a blur as my mind tried to make sense of what happened. Just this morning I was considering becoming one and now I was on my way to go before a Council of vampires that wanted to assess my abilities, most likely ridicule our relationship and all Stefan could tell me is that we'd be coming home together. On a scale of 1-10 on having a bad day this had to be a 40. Resting my head against the car seat, I turned my head slightly to look at Stefan sitting next to me.
He was staring straight ahead and his posture was rigid. The chiseled lines of his face were hard, his jaw set rigidly. One of his hands rested on my thigh and the other absently tapped on the seat. He was nervous and I was trying to figure out why since he'd assured me we'd be coming home together.
Closing my eyes, I mentally reached out to read his thoughts. The recurring theme in his mind was seeing us on a flight home together. The remainder of his vision was a jumble of black spots and blurs as his mind calculated the situation we were walking into, flashes of faces and conversation flying through his mind. His thoughts would change direction to focus on Adolfo and his mind became dark and sinister. I was almost dizzy from the speed of his mind working.
“Stefan? Will you talk to me?”
He didn't acknowledge my mental questions. His eyes sunglass covered eyes were fixed on the back of Adolfo's head. He was as still as a statue. A deadly, beautiful statue that had a case of nervous fingers.
I tried again. “Stefan.”
“Josephine.”
“You need to talk to me. I have no idea what's going on. Your vision has black spots and blurs. What does that mean?”
Watching as he swallowed heavily, the thick muscles in his neck tightened. “You need to stay out of my mind, vackra.”
“Really, Stefan? Hello, pot and kettle. Have you met? You're inside my mind constantly. Explain the 'variables', please.”
An arched eyebrow indicated his humorous surprise at my mental gibe. “There are things that I cannot see. If a person involved changes their mind, it changes the vision. You know this, Josephine.”
Sighing heavily, I turned my head back to stare straight ahead. I noticed Adolfo's sunglass covered eyes glancing at me in the rear view mirror. For a brief moment I was tempted to have a 'Lukas moment' and stick my tongue out at him. He was a pompous jerk and he'd betrayed Stefan's trust. I could feel my temper flaring and the heat spreading across my face. Stefan's hand tightened on my thigh in response to my thoughts, his responding mental chuckle breaking the tension of the moment.
“You really need to stay out of my mind, Romeo. What is Adolfo's talent besides being a gigantic asshole?”
Stefan cleared his throat to hide his laugh. “His talent is useful in finding vampires. He is particularly adept at locating vampires that do not want to be found.”
The magnitude of his words hit me like a sledgehammer. For over 900 years, he'd been a vampire that didn't want to be found. He'd traveled and been able to fade into obscurity even though he worked for the Administrative Board. Prior to meeting me, he would be called to complete an assigned task and when he was finished, his life of anonymity could resume. Did he regret finding and choosing to be with me since he'd previously lived so privately? I was putting him squarely in the spotlight of a life he didn't really like or want.
“Josephine, I have no regrets being with you. I love you eternally. I have spent 200 years searching for you. This is one of those minor details that we deal with and move on from. Do not worry about this.”
He'd obviously been listening to my internal dialogue again since he'd answered my mental thoughts. I was getting ready to answer when I looked up to see us pulling up to a private airport hangar. Stefan finally turned to look at me, a tentative smile on his face. He intertwined our fingers, opening the car door and pulled me out behind him. We walked quickly to the unmarked jet, climbing the steps to enter the plane. Quickly scanning the interior, I noticed it was equipped with six leather seats, a small seating area with a kitchenette and a room I assumed was the bathroom.
“What about our luggage?” I asked, my voice sounding loud after the quietness of our non-verbal mental conversation.
Stefan led me to the two seats in the back of the plane, his thumb rubbing against the top of my hand. His mouth spread into a thin-lipped smile as he removed his sunglasses with his free hand, placing them on his lap carelessly.
“Adolfo can take care of it. It is the least he can do.” Stefan's voice was severe and cold as he spoke of the vampire that had not yet entered the small plane.
I considered the tone of Stefan's voice for a moment. Something wasn't right with this whole situation. Stefan could see the futures of vampires, so why hadn't he foreseen Adolfo betraying him? Was this one of the black spots in his vision?
“Possibly. It is something I am unaccustomed to encountering. There is another party involved that I cannot see or that continues to change their mind, vackra.”
Adolfo entered the plane, removing his own sunglasses and walking slowly down the aisle to sit in the seat across the aisle from us. His arrogance from earlier in the morning was gone. He seemed almost regretful as he began to speak to us, his eyes downcast.
“Stefan, I understand why you're angry with me. I didn't mean for this to happen when I was doing my research. One of the members of the Administrative Board found out and demanded you both appear. I had no choice in the matter,” he said, his heavily accented voice broke off in apology. “I'd rather not fly twenty plus hours to come here, then another twenty hours back to serve as your escort.”
“It is irrelevant at this point. I specifically asked you to be discreet, Adolfo. How is a member of the Administrative Board finding out about your inquiries being discreet?” Stefan seethed, anger flashing across his face. His other hand was gripping the arm rest of the chair so tightly I could hear the metal groan in displeasure under the pressure of his grasp.
“I have known you for three centuries, Stefan. The last thing I wanted to do is jeopardize our friendship,” Adolfo replied, adjusting his suit jacket nervously and flashing me an apologetic smile.
Shaking my head, I snorted in response. It was a little too late to try to make friends with me, considering we were sitting on a plane because of his little slip-up and he was the cause of Stefan's highly agitated state. I was hoping we'd make it to appear before the Council without Stefan ripping Adolfo apart.
“Consider it jeopardized, Adolfo. We will have plenty of time for you to atone for your mistake. Our friendship has met its end.” Stefan's responding voice was severe and had an ominous quality to it. I instinctively knew that Adolfo's days were numbered from the double meaning of his words.
Their terse conversation was int
errupted by the pilot's voice coming through the overhead speakers, advising us that we were cleared for take-off and to expect a brief stop in Tokyo to refuel.
Releasing Stefan's hand for a moment to buckle my seat belt, I reached back to lace my fingers with his again to prepare for take off. I gave him a shaky smile, sending him a heartfelt mental thought. “I love you.”
A radiant smile broke over his face. He was almost glowing as he leaned over to kiss me, his lips soft against mine. ”As I love you. Hearing you say those words makes all of this worthwhile.”
As the plane began to taxi down the runway, I hoped that he still felt the same way when we returned.
***
Twenty hours later, we were landing at JFK in New York. The flight had been monotonous and tension filled. When I wasn't sleeping or having mental conversations with Stefan, I spent my time watching him alternate between glowering at Adolfo and pacing the length of the plane.
We stepped off the plane at another private hangar where a black sedan with tinted windows was idling, waiting for our arrival. Stefan led me to the car and opened the door for me, motioning for me to slide through so he could follow. He closed the door behind him, my hand firmly encased in his. I heard the trunk close and Adolfo got into the passenger seat.
“You must be Josephine.” A female voice greeted me in a crisp English accent. I glanced up to see a pair of large brown eyes staring back at me from the rear view mirror. Her hair was long and pale blond and her voice was pleasant and proper, reminding me of an English school marm.
Letting out a tired sigh, I nodded. Was there a vampire out there that didn't know me? I must be the top news in the vampire world. “That's me. I guess everyone knows who I am.”
“I am Lenora. I'm also on the Council with Adolfo,” she replied, her brown eyes shifting to look in Stefan's direction. “Stefan, it's good to see you.”
“Lenora.” Stefan inclined his head slightly. My grip on his hand tightened and I found myself sliding closer against him.
“Do not turn your back on any of these vampires, Josephine. If you listen to nothing else I tell you, please remember to make sure I am with you and you are not alone with any of them.”
Squeezing his hand to acknowledge his mental words, I took in the skyline of the city. It was all cement and noise, making me homesick for the green lushness of Bali. I hadn't been in the US for two years and all of the buildings and traffic were sensory overload for me.
We rode along in silence, pulling in front of a five-story Carriage house on the Upper East side of Manhattan. The heavy wooden garage doors opened, our car pulling inside of the building. I heard the garage doors close behind us and I felt the suffocating feeling of dread tighten in my throat.
As soon as the car stopped, Adolfo and Lenora were out of the car in a blur. Lenora opened the door on Stefan's side of the car and Stefan started to slide out, hesitating when he saw the look of panic on my face. “Josephine, I will not let anything happen to you. I promise you.”
My eyes darted to his, nodding slowly. I slid across the seat to step out of the car next to Stefan in the garage. He pulled me close to his side and we followed Lenora and Adolfo to an elevator where the doors were already open and waiting for us to enter. We all filed in and Lenora reached over to press a button on the panel. The doors closed and the elevator jerked and groaned as it began to ascend to a higher floor. After a moment, the elevator doors slowly opened and we were led into a spacious room with four leather sofas, glass tables and elegant chairs. Beautiful artwork lined the brick walls of the house and gorgeous floral arrangements sat in the middle of each table.
There were three vampires standing at the windows, their heads turning in perfect synchronization as we entered the room. Lenora and Adolfo went to stand with them, leaving Stefan and I standing on the other side of the room with five sets of critical eyes taking in our every move.
A beautiful vampire swept across the room to stand before us. Her waist length hair was a deep chestnut brown and her expressive black eyes swept over me curiously. Her eyes moved to Stefan, lingering on him much longer than I would prefer. She motioned with her hand for us to sit down on the sofa closest to us. Smiling curtly, she turned and walked back to slowly lower herself on the couch facing us. The other vampires took their seats, still silently observing us. Stefan led us to the couch, pulling me down beside of him. He was still holding my hand, his grip possessive and soothing.
“Josephine, I am Sofia Mancini. You have already met Adolfo and Lenora,” she addressed me, her voice soft with a thick Italian accent. She inclined her head towards the two other vampires. “This is Derek Collier and Nigel Ryan. We are all on the Council and are very interested in meeting you. Let us sit and talk.”
At the mention of Derek's name, Stefan's body stiffened slightly. Surprised at his reaction, I wondered if this was this the same Derek he'd spoken of when he returned from his last assignment.
I didn't have to speculate for long since the look on Derek's face said it all. The dark haired vampire might have been handsome if not for the arrogant sneer on his sullen face. His gray eyes burned with resentment as he glanced first at Stefan and then to me. He snickered when he observed our joined hands, releasing a bored sigh and crossing his arms under his chest.
My gaze turned to Nigel. He was ruggedly handsome and his shoulder length light brown hair was tousled. Expressive hazel eyes flickered over us, nodding slightly. He was a large muscular man, appearing to be uncomfortable sitting on the small leather sofa.
“Hello?” My greeting came out sounding like a question, my heart racing wildly. The Council of vampires continued to visually observe me as if I were an anomaly, their faces a mixture of curiosity, aggravation and envy.
“Stefan, this is the woman from your visions? The one you have been searching for?” Sofia questioned him, leaning towards him in interest. Her lips turned up in a tight smile as she shifted her attention on me, her dark eyes were hard and filled with dislike as she scrutinized me. I could feel a tingling sensation against my brain, as if she was making an attempt to push her way inside. She was obviously unsuccessful as she sat back deeper into the couch, glancing at Derek and her brows pulling together into an affronted frown. She glared at me, appearing to be furious that her ability didn't work on me. She must be the telepath Stefan had spoken of.
“Yes,” Stefan answered simply, turning slightly to look down at me, his handsome face serene. Our eyes met for a moment and a small smile touched his lips. “This is my fated.”
“Josephine, how do you feel about Stefan? You know about what we are and you are not afraid?” Nigel spoke up, his voice inflected with an Australian accent. His heavy hand rubbed his chin as he watched my reaction.
“Tell him the truth, vackra.”
Sitting up straight, I felt my jaw jut out in defiance. “I know that you're vampires. I'm in love with him, even considering to have him change me so we can always be together. As for being afraid, I've been more scared in the last 24 hours than I've ever been since I've met him.”
“We apologize for our abrupt invitation. It was necessary to meet you.” Nigel leaned forward with his forearms against his thighs. “We need to assess if you are a risk and your abilities.”
“My risk? I love him,” I snapped, looking around the room at each vampire. “I have no intention of telling anyone anything about your existence.”
Stefan squeezed my hand lightly. “Josephine. I know you are angry. Do not let them provoke you.”
Sighing, I squeezed his hand back. They were intentionally trying to make me angry. I needed to stay calm and answer their questions.
“And why should we believe you?” Derek asked coldly. His voice had a southern drawl that reminded me of Georgia. I didn't fail to miss the note of sarcasm in his voice. “You are just a human after all.”
“You don't have to believe me. Here's the thing, Derek. I have no one to tell. My adoptive parents died four years ago and I have no li
ving family. Prior to meeting Stefan, I lived a solitary life. I have my own issues, let alone causing problems for you.” I was proud of how non-nonchalant I managed to sound, even though my stomach was twisting in knots with anxiety.
Derek eyed me for a moment, his gray eyes flat as stone. He looked towards Stefan and his eyes turned harder. A sinister smile broke across his face. “Stefan, you know the risks of choosing to play with your food.”
Derek's words caused a deep growl to resonate in Stefan's chest, his jaw clenching and the muscles in his neck were tense and corded.
“Stefan, remember what you just told me. He's trying to piss you off. Let's get this over with so we can leave.” I mentally implored him. He relaxed slightly before he spoke.
“I do not consider loving someone ‘playing with my food,’ Derek. In case anyone in attendance has forgotten Derek's indiscretion, let me remind everyone why it was necessary for me to have a discussion with him a week ago,” Stefan said, his voice devoid of any inflection as his eyes bored into him. Derek shifted uncomfortably under the weight of his severe stare. “You threatened to expose our kind when humans started going missing after being seen in your presence. Your ignorance and arrogance could have exposed our existence. Yet you sit before me and have the audacity to warn me of 'playing with my food'? Inkompetent rövhål!”
The room was silent for a moment and Stefan's words hung in the air. Derek rose and walked to the windows, turning his back to the room. To say there was no love lost between Stefan and Derek was an understatement.
“She's a psychic like you, yet she also has a talent for reading emotions. Is she able to read you? Or any vampires?” Lenora questioned, flipping her pale blond hair over her shoulder. She turned her head to the side slightly, as if evaluating my talent.
“No, I can't read Stefan's future or emotions. Or any vampire,” I jumped in to answer before Stefan could speak. The four vampires exchanged looks amongst each other.
“I have one more question. Stefan, you contacted Adolfo with concerns about changes in Josephine's body and the power of her abilities. Is this still something you are concerned about?” Nigel inquired. Out of this group of vampires, he had to be the most likeable and trustworthy.
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