by Diana Bocco
“Rumor has it the Volman family had to escape from Eastern Europe because of witchcraft accusations,” she read aloud.
Laurie paused and sat back against the desk chair.
Eastern Europe. Romania. That had to be more than just a coincidence. She swore under her breath. There was something there, but she couldn’t quite grasp it. Something in her gut was telling her Volman wasn’t the kidnapper. It wasn’t that he was gorgeous and famous; pinning these disappearances on him just didn’t seem like the right answer. But that same feeling in her gut was telling her he knew something.
A soft crackling sound rushed past outside her window, and her hand instinctively reached for the gun in the upper desk drawer. It was such a soft rustle, it would have been easy to ignore it, but she knew her apartment well enough to know which sounds belonged and which ones didn’t.
A gust of wind assaulted the room when she opened the window, but other than that, the balcony was empty. Empty, but it didn’t feel that way. Laurie had the firm impression that somebody was watching her right at that very moment. The air felt thick, almost erratic … as if something had just cut into it and left its essence behind. She felt her stomach tighten and closed the window.
When she finally went to bed, she slept with the gun under her pillow.
Chapter 4
Alex finished his brandy and looked at his watch.
He had been waiting all day for Miss Cole to show up, but now that it was almost dinnertime, he wasn’t sure what he would say to her. He wanted to ask her what exactly she had felt before “hearing” the name Corneliu, but he wasn’t sure how to do that without exposing himself. He’d made some phone calls that morning to find out more about her. Where she lived, who she really was, what her superiors thought of her. She had a track record for breaking difficult cases, which meant that if he was going to lie, he needed to come up with something credible.
He hadn’t been able to reach Corneliu yet, but his sources had told him his cousin was supposed to be in town. And that was a very bad thing.
He was about to step out of the study when the phone rang.
He knew it was Anton before he answered. One of the good things about being a family of warlocks was that they all had an otherworldy connection to each other. He and Anton had grown up together, almost as brothers, and their connection had always been one of the strongest in the family. As children, they used to play tricks on the other cousins and drove the kids — and the parents — insane. The connection had only gotten stronger over the years.
“Buna seara. Any news?”
“Not the kind you will like, I’m afraid. I did some research on the ritual.”
“Can I stop it?”
“Not exactly. But you can choose to perform it yourself.”
“Why would I want to do that?”
“Well, the ritual works only once on Samhain, for whoever finishes it first. If you manage to open the door, you’ll be the one who receives all the power, and you can choose what to do with it.”
Alex frowned. “Doesn’t the ritual involve killing somebody?”
“Not necessarily. There are a few different ways to garner the power.”
A moment of silence.
“You do need to find a woman willing to participate … or one you’re willing to kill in the process.”
“Let’s say I find a willing one. What will she have to do?”
“Have sex with you.”
It took Alex a second to get over the surprise before he could answer.
“Have sex with me.”
“Yeah. It’s a bit more complicated than that, and she has to be born on one of the Sabbaths. But basically, yes.”
Alex’s thoughts drifted to chestnut hair and tight jeans.
A knock on the door cut his thoughts short.
“I think that’s Sonya to let me know my dinner date is here,” he told Anton. “Let me think about this, and I’ll get back to you.”
“Sure. And Alex … you don’t have a lot of time.”
He knew.
“Soon. I’ll get back to you soon. Multumesc.”
Laurie Cole was waiting in the lobby, sitting comfortably in one of the armchairs. He studied her for a few seconds while she was looking the other way. There was something about her that intrigued him, something beyond the obvious. She was wearing a long-sleeved top that hugged every curve, and Alex wondered what she’d be like withher clothes off, under his hands.
He swallowed a groan at the thought.
“Miss Cole.”
Her body jerked slightly, and he knew he’d taken her by surprise. She blushed and smiled. “Thanks for the invitation, Mr. Volman.”
He returned the smile, gesturing towards the study. “Call me Alex, please. It seems a more appropriate choice for an intimate drink.”
He saw her hesitate and wondered how much he could push before she objected.
“You can call me Laurie as long as you don’t forget I’m still a cop … or something like that, anyway,” she smiled.
“That’s a deal.”
The lights were dimmed in the study, and candles flickered softly all around the room. He knew he was testing her limits by making things so personal, but he needed to know how close he could get. If he was going to find out what had caused the connection between them the day before, he was going to have to gain her trust. And he didn’t have time to do it slowly.
“Wine?”
“Sure, thanks.”
While Laurie chose a place to sit, he filled a wine glass and handed it to her, then poured some for himself. He debated for a second where to sit, deciding not to be too close just yet. He settled on the armchair across from her. The candles provided just enough light for him to study her without being too obvious.
There had been a lot of beautiful women in his life. More than he could care to count or remember. So it wasn’t just Laurie’s all-in-the-right-places curves or deep olive eyes that were intriguing him. There was a sort of energy between them, and he had a suspicion that she was feeling it too. She seemed just a little too aware of his proximity, almost restless.
She raised her eyes from the glass and caught him staring at her. She blushed and then smiled slightly.
“So I’m guessing you’re on a break from your show,” she said.
“A three-week break, yes. We’re trying to revamp some things. You know, keep the public surprised.”
She flashed a smile. “I see. So I guess you’re not going to share your trade secrets with me, are you?”
He wasn’t sure if she was testing him or trying to get him to relax. Either way, it wasn’t working. His whole body was on edge, though he wasn’t sure if it was because of the investigation or just her presence.
“Are you close to your family, Laurie?”
He could tell he’d asked the right question by the changes in her face. Her smile faded, then came back as a forced grin. The kind you use when you’re trying to pretend everything’s okay.
“No. My mother died a long time ago. My father…” her voice trailed off and there was a long pause. “Sorry, I haven’t talked about them in a long time.”
He got up and took a faded black-and-white photo from his desk drawer. As he handed it to her, his fingers grazed her arm and she winced. He felt a shot of heat reaching down his skin and all the way to the pit of his stomach. It was easy to guess she’d felt the same thing. And that she was being very careful not to show it.
“That’s my grandfather.”
He saw her eyes focus on the picture with more than just expert curiosity.
“Is this…?” She pointed at the large chair floating in a corner of the photograph. It was almost a blur, but it was definitely there. “How old is this picture?” she asked, a hint of suspicion in her voice.
“Almost a hundred years old.”
“I didn’t know they had trick photography back then.”
“We have a lot of family secrets, Laurie. This is just one of them.”
He could see the conflict in her face and decided not to push it. He wasn’t even sure why he had shown her the picture in the first place. Except that he’d felt he had too. Just like he suddenly felt he had to kiss her. He was going to control that impulse for now, though. Going around kissing cops when you were a suspect probably wasn’t the best idea.
He sat back down. “So, Laurie, I got the impression yesterday that you had more questions. Unless you’re here for some other reason.”
Her eyes were boring into his. “Like what?”
He could hear blood rushing in his ears. He was having trouble being objective right now. Hell, he was having trouble thinking clearly, period. All he wanted was to reach out and get his hands on her.
He saw her hesitate and realized she was choosing her words carefully.
“Is your family Romanian?”
Or maybe she wasn’t.
He thought for a second, trying to decide how honest he wanted to be with her. How honest he could be without blowing his secret.
“Is that the word out in the streets?”
“One of many.”
“What if I said yes?” he teased her.
“Then my next question is going to be who’s Corneliu and why do I know that name?”
He studied her carefully. “When’s your birthday, Laurie?”
He could see the confusion in her eyes, her mind reeling, trying to figure out what the question meant.
“Why?”
“Because that might change how much you get to hear from me tonight.”
She readjusted her position on the couch, her back all of a sudden straighter and her chest rising swiftly. His original idea was to make this a light, relaxed evening, but that had gone out the window pretty quickly. Right now, the air in the room was tense.
“I was born on Halloween. Do I get to ask questions now?”
Alex let out a laugh. “Well, things just keep getting better around here. Go ahead and…”
And then the whole left wall of windows exploded. Billions of tiny shards of glass flew directly towards them. Laurie’s scream was muffled by the explosion and the shockwaves that rattled the room. The air was alive with the humming and shimmer of flying glass.
Alex jumped towards Laurie and pulled her to him. As soon as she was in his arms, he lifted his hand towards the glass flying at them. Every single piece stopped flat in the air and fell straight to the ground.
“What the hell—?” her eyes went big with surprise.
“Stay still,” he ordered.
He closed his eyes and imagined a thick shield growing around them. Almost like an elastic bubble, hugging their form inch by inch, tight and steady. The shield embraced them, thickening by the second, until it was unbreakable. He could see the shimmer of the bubble around them, a slight flicker here and there as it moved around them like a mist. As long as she stayed against him, she’d be safe. His gaze darted around the room. And then he felt the eyes on his back and knew what, or rather who, had caused the explosion.
“Corneliu.”
Laurie’s body tightened and pushed against him. Alex moved slowly, making sure she was shielded behind his body as he turned to face his cousin.
“Bine te-am gasit, frate, nu ne-am mai vazut de ceva timp.”
The amusement in Corneliu’s voice was obvious, but Alex didn’t share a bit of it.
“Yes, long time, Corneliu.”
“I guess you heard about the ritual.”
“Corneliu, let’s talk about this. Just you and me.”
From the left side of the room, a heavy vase flew off the table, directly towards Alex. Laurie screamed and ducked, but the vase just bounced off the invisible screen around them, inches away from their bodies.
“Ah, we’re playing games, I see.”
“Let her go, and you and I can talk about this.”
Corneliu laughed. “Let her go? Do you know when her birthday is?”
Alex stood quiet, feeling the heat of Laurie’s body against his back. His eyes moved around the room, looking for an escape route. If he had to fight, he didn’t want Laurie to be there for it.
“You do know, don’t you? I’ve been tracking this one for weeks. Almost got caught last night when she opened her window.”
“You have to know I’m not going to let you take her.”
“Why not? All the other ones, they were weak. This one is a child of Samhain, Alex. Do you know how much power is in that?”
Alex’s eyes turned icy. “You can’t have her,” he growled.
Corneliu’s smile vanished, and his eyes darted to the side. The cabinet holding Alex’s collection of antique books exploded, sending the books out in all directions. Laurie stifled a scream and watched Alex intently as he raised a hand toward Corneliu.
“You either leave or I’ll throw you out of here.”
Corneliu’s feet were lifted off the ground. It was just a few inches, but it was enough to get him into a frenzy. “Put me down!” he howled.
Alex lowered his hand, and Corneliu’s feet hit the floor again with a heavy thump.
“This is not over. Pe curând, frate.”
“I’ll be waiting.”
Corneliu walked out without looking back. Alex could hear him leave, his thoughts shouting through the rooms and into his own mind.
When he turned to face Laurie, he saw she was pale and breathing heavily.
“Sit down, Laurie. We have to talk.”
Chapter 5
Laurie took a sip of cold water and tried to slow her breathing. The last twenty minutes had been surreal. If it wasn’t for the broken windows, she would question whether it had all happened.
Alex sat down next to her on the couch. He looked calm and composed. He looked powerful. Part of her wanted to get out and pretend this night had never happened, but her brain was telling her that she was a lot safer here than out there, with a madman looking for her. She tried to steady the beating of her heart, but her chest was fighting against her.
“Why?” Her voice came out half-broken, quivering.
“It’s long and complicated. And it involves things I’m not sure you’ll believe are possible.”
She looked into the blackness of his eyes. They were sharp but also inviting, almost urgent.
“I just saw things flying through the air and bouncing off invisible walls. And I just saw you lift a man off the ground using … I don’t know, your mind? Whatever it is you have to tell me, it can’t be more impossible to believe than that.”
Alex let out a sigh and dropped against the back of the sofa. “We’re warlocks, Corneliu and I. In fact, a large number of men in our family are.”
She blinked twice before any sound came out of her mouth. “Warlocks.”
“It’s not what you think. We’re all different, with different gifts.”
“You mean dark powers?”
“No, not dark. The powers are neither dark nor light. We can choose what to do with them.” He turned to look at her. “And you can obviously tell what Corneliu has chosen to do with his.”
“So he’s family.”
“Cousin.”
Laurie could hear her heart thumping in her ears. It was so loud, she was afraid she was going to have a heart attack any second. Her breathing was still heavy and labored.
“So you knew what he was doing?”
“Not until after I talked to you. Listen, Laurie, this is complicated. The short version of it is that he’s trying to perform a ritual to increase his powers.”
“A ritual?”
Her mind was spinning. This was too much. Magic wasn’t real! There were no warlocks, and rituals were something magical boys performed in fantasy books. Still, she couldn’t deny what she had seen, could she?
“It has to happen on Samhain,” he was saying, and she made an effort to follow the words. “Halloween night. And he needs a woman born on one of the Sabbaths for the ritual.”
Laurie’s eyes got bigger.
“He needs … a woman?”
“All the women who disappeared, they were all born on special days. And you, well, you were born on the most powerful one.”