“They’d been watching the house?”
“Yes. They’d followed Alastair from the creek and had been keeping an eye on him.”
“Why’d they let me get to the house without attacking me?”
“Well, as I said, I didn’t think you had any way of finding Alastair. So I hadn’t given them instructions to be on the lookout for you.”
“And when you sent them in, the pack was supposed to kill me.”
“That was the plan. Once you and the girl were both dead I was going to swoop in and pretend to save Alastair from the big bad wolves, and be a hero in his eyes. But somehow you got away.”
“Sorry to disrupt your totally insane, convoluted plans.” Joey’s voice registered his disgust.
Augustine sighed. “They didn’t start out convoluted. But then it all started getting away from me, and I kept having to improvise.”
Joey paced across the apartment, stopping before a floor-to-ceiling window. He pressed his palms against the glass and stared out at the city, sprawling magnificently in every direction. Then he noticed the sunlight falling across his arms and he closed his eyes, turning his face toward the light. It was the first time in six years that he’d gotten to experience sunlight without the risk of it killing him. But his fear for Alastair’s safety and his blinding anger toward Augustine made it impossible to enjoy this incredibly rare gift. After only a moment, he turned his back to the window and leaned against it.
Lu addressed Augustine. “Alastair thought he could read your mind. What was that about?” With one hand she was eating peaches right out of the can with a fork, and the other hand held an energy bar.
“I’d had Jin install an open channel into Alastair’s mind when we were bespelling him, just in case I needed it at some point. That’s how I knew when Bryn was trying to break the spell, when I sent Jin to shake up the house,” Augustine said.
He continued, “And when things totally stopped going according to plan, I tried to control the situation by showing him what I wanted him to see, making him think I was rushing to help him from L.A., that sort of thing. I could plant ideas in his mind as well, to some extent, like making him ask me for help, and making him think he could trust me.”
“God that’s manipulative.” Lu shook her head in disbelief.
Augustine sighed. “I know.”
“So everything you showed him was a lie,” Lu said.
“Well no, not everything.” Sadness clouded Augustine’s features.
“You showed him memories of torture at your hands,” she said. “Why would you do that?”
“Joey had already told him all about me at that point. So I decided to let him see some of the milder truth for himself, but feel it all from my perspective. I thought that would work to my advantage, that it would temper some of what he’d been told by letting him experience it from my point of view. And that was somewhat successful, he actually did start to empathize with me. Sympathy for the Devil, if you will,” Augustine said with a sad little smile.
And from across the room, Joey sighed and said, “Exactly.”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
About an hour later, both Lu and Joey were showered and dressed in clothes they’d scavenged from around the penthouse apartment. Lu had figured out why there was food in the apartment when she discovered the little dormitory where the vampire CEO had kept his human consorts. These people were long gone, but they’d left behind some clothing and various toiletries that Lu and Joey put to good use.
Joey had found that he and the vampire CEO wore the same size, so he was decked out in an expensive black suit with a deep indigo shirt and tie. They didn’t have the same shoe size, however, so Joey wore the Armani with his old Converse.
All the women’s clothing in the penthouse was of one variety: skimpy party dresses. So Lu ended up in a sequined black mini-dress, along with black tights and the same black boots she’d gotten at Bryn’s house. The dress was far shorter and far tighter than anything she’d normally wear, but it had been the most modest of the lot. She had one of the CEO’s dark suit jackets on over it with the sleeves rolled back. Overall, she felt the outfit was better than her blood-soaked, torn jeans and sweater. But only by a little.
Augustine meanwhile had gone out to feed. He’d assured Joey that he wasn’t going to kill anyone, and Joey hoped he was telling the truth because he currently was too weakened to stop him.
They waited impatiently for Bryn’s call, Joey pacing nervously while Lu stood at Ted’s bedside, watching him sleep. Eventually Ted stirred, eyelids fluttering, and she said his name.
“Lulu,” he replied, reaching for her hand.
From somewhere behind her Joey said quietly, “I’ll give you some privacy,” and left the apartment.
Ted blinked repeatedly and squinted his eyes. His glasses were missing, but Lu knew she was close enough so that he could see her clearly. “You’re ok,” he said. “Thank God! I was so worried.” His voice was thin and hoarse, little more than a whisper.
“Do you remember what happened?” Lu asked gently, squeezing his hand and resting her other palm on his forehead, leaning in close.
“Wolves. Big ones. At your house.” He thought for a few moments and said, “No, not wolves. Something else. They knocked me out. I woke up in a cement prison cell. I was there…I don’t know how long.” He struggled to sit up, and she helped prop him up with some pillows before handing him a glass of water, which he accepted gratefully.
“Why did you come to my house, Teddy?” she asked as he took a long drink.
When he spoke again, his voice was a little stronger. “I’d left things so bad between us. I got jealous when I saw that good-looking guy at your house, and I just ran off. The next day when I calmed down I went back to talk to you, to apologize for acting like that.” He finished the water and Lu took the empty glass from him, setting it on the nightstand.
Then he continued, “The door to your house was open. There were footprints and animal tracks leading into the woods, so I followed them. There was so much blood, the snow was all red with it. I was so scared that something had happened to you, and I started to go back to my truck to call for help. But that’s when the animals -- or whatever they were -- that’s when they attacked me.”
“Your family must be so worried, Teddy. We need to call them.”
“What day is it today?” he asked.
“December twentieth, I think.”
“They’re still gone. They all went on a holiday cruise with Grandma Pippa. They won’t be back until after Christmas.”
“They left you alone for the holidays?”
“They asked me to go with them, but I didn’t want to.” Ted grinned a little then. “Can you just imagine being trapped at sea with my crazy grandma and my parents and sisters for two weeks?” Lu smiled at that too.
But then Ted’s expression became serious as he asked, “Lu, what happened? What was all that blood? And where are we? What is this place?” He squinted at the penthouse apartment, but Lu knew he couldn’t really see further than five feet in front of him.
“We’re in an apartment in San Francisco. There’s a lot to explain, but right now I’m more concerned with getting you someplace safe. Doesn’t your cousin Marty live in Berkeley? That’s not far. I think the best thing would be to get you to him.”
“It’s not safe here?”
“No, not really,” Lu admitted.
Ted swung his feet off the bed. “So let’s get out of here and get you to safety.”
“Not me, Teddy,” she said gently. “We need to get you to safety. And when you get back to Ashland, don’t go and retrieve your truck right away, ok? Don’t go back to my house for any reason until I call you and tell you it’s safe.”
“You’re not coming with me?”
“I have things I need to do,” she said. “I’ll come home eventually. But someone needs my help now, and I’m not going back until I know they’re safe.”
“It’s that gu
y, isn’t it?” Ted guessed. “The one you’re sleeping with, the one that looks like a movie star. He got you involved in something dangerous, didn’t he?”
“I’m not sleeping with him. And the danger found him, Teddy, he didn’t go looking for it.”
Ted tried to sound firm as he said, “You need to leave with me now and get yourself out of danger, Lulu. That’s all that matters.”
“It’s not all that matters. He matters. Helping him matters.”
“What happened to him?”
She hesitated, not sure what to tell him, and finally settled on, “He’s been kidnapped.”
“Then it’s a matter for the police! Did you call them?”
“No.”
“Call them! And then come home with me and let them handle it!”
“It’s not a matter for the police.”
“Oh ok, so you’re going to save him?” His tone was incredulous.
“As a matter of fact I am,” Lu said, crossing her arms over her chest.
“That’s completely insane! Those things that grabbed me, is that what took him? If you somehow think you can fight them, you must be delusional!” Ted was on his feet now, hands on hips, his voice rising.
“I’m not going to fight anything. Probably. And I’m obviously not doing this alone. But I think I can help, at least in some small way, so I’m staying here. And you’re getting in a cab and going to your cousin’s!” Her voice rose too.
“Like hell I am!” Ted yelled. “I’m not going anywhere without you!”
“Lu’s right. You need to go someplace safe.” Joey had come into the apartment, and now stood close behind Lu. His voice was level, controlled.
“And who’s this now?” Ted demanded.
Lu did a quick introduction. “Ted, Joey. Joey, Ted.” Lu stepped back so that she was standing beside Joey, and took his hand. She could tell he was tense. His eyes were a little too bright, too alert, as if at any moment he might go into fight mode.
“And who the hell is Joey?” Ted’s eyes flickered to their linked hands. “Don’t tell me you’re involved with him too!”
“We’re not involved,” Lu told him. “Joey’s my best friend.” She hadn’t thought about what she was saying, but as soon as it was out of her mouth she knew it was the truth. “And he saved your life Teddy, so try talking to him with some respect!”
Ted looked crestfallen then. “I thought I was your best friend.”
“Yeah, funny how dumping me sort of rendered our friendship null and void,” Lu told him. She tugged Joey’s hand then and dragged him across the apartment, calling over her shoulder, “I need to talk to Joey for a minute. Try to calm down. And for God’s sake, sit down before you fall over!”
She pulled Joey through the connecting door to the dormitory, slamming it behind them, and turned to face him. He was grinning broadly. “What?” she asked.
“I liked hearing that I’m your best friend.”
“Well, of course you are.” She pulled him into a hug and held on tight.
“Are you ok?” he asked against her hair.
“Yeah. Ted just always manages to push all my buttons.” She stepped back from Joey but again took hold of his hand.
“I think I know what you’re going to ask me, and I’m fine with it,” Joey said.
“What am I going to ask you?”
“To compel Ted, to wipe his memories of all this. Right?”
Lu nodded. “I feel really guilty for even contemplating this. But Bryn’s going to call soon, and we need to get Ted out of Augustine’s apartment with no memory of any of this, for his own safety.”
“You’re right.”
“I guess that makes me a total hypocrite, since I was furious when you tried to compel me,” she said.
“You’re not a hypocrite. You’re just trying to help that guy.”
“Everything that happened to Ted is my fault, and this is the only thing I can think of to make it right.”
“It’s hardly your fault,” Joey said gently as he squeezed her hand. “And we can fix it. Tell me what you want me to do.”
“I don’t want him to know I’m here in San Francisco, I don’t want him trying to find me. And I don’t want him going back to my place when he gets back to Ashland. Not that anyone would still be watching the house, but apparently it looks like a total crime scene,” Lu said. “I don’t want him to know about werewolves or vampires or any of that, and I want him to forget about being taken and imprisoned. I just want him to feel safe, to keep living in blissful ignorance.” She looked at Joey hopefully. “Can you do all that?”
“Not a problem,” Joey told her. “But before I do this, can I just say one thing that you’re not going to like?”
Lu put her hands on her hips. “What?”
“Maybe you should go with Ted. It’d be much safer for you. And Alastair can come find you once I rescue him.”
Lu said, “I want to rescue Alastair as much as you do.”
“I know, Lu. But who knows what kind of danger we’ll be walking into?”
“Joey, if I went with Ted I’d constantly be looking over my shoulder, waiting for something bad to happen. I wouldn’t feel safe. You know where I do feel safe?” She tapped him lightly on the chest. “With you. I know it’ll be dangerous when we go to rescue Alastair. But I’ll still feel better by your side, rather than out on my own in a world I now know is full of monsters.”
Joey ran his hand down her arm. “You know I’ll always try to protect you, Lu. But the fact is, I might not always succeed.”
“I’m not saying I depend on you to protect me. I can defend myself, you know. I’m just saying I feel better with you around. Plus, what if you need my help?” she asked. “Someone should have your back, especially since it’s looking like you’re getting ready to face off against God-knows-what with Augustine riding shotgun. At the very least, I could keep an eye on him.”
“I love your confidence,” Joey told her. “And you know what? You could take out Augustine if you had to. He’d totally underestimate you because you’re human, and you could stake him before he even realized what you were doing. But like you said, we don’t know what else we’re going to be facing. We have no idea who or what took Alastair, or how many of them there are. It really would be safer for you to go with that cheese curd in the other room.”
Lu burst out laughing. “Cheese curd? Really? Where did you get that?”
Joey smiled at her. “No idea. Seemed to fit, though.”
“I’m sticking with you, Joey. End of discussion. And we’re running out of time, Bryn’s going to call any minute. So get to compelling, vampire,” Lu said, pointing to the main apartment.
“You really won’t consider sitting this out?”
“No chance. We’re going to rescue Alastair, you and me together. And once we accomplish that, don’t think you’re getting rid of me so easily then either.”
“Alright, fine,” Joey grinned. “Step aside, BFF. I got me some compelling to do.”
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Less than half an hour later Ted was cleaned up and in a cab with some money in his pocket, on his way to his cousin Marty’s apartment. Joey had woven a story about Ted deciding to visit San Francisco, and while there, getting mugged and having his truck stolen. It explained Ted’s scrapes and bruises and why he didn’t have his vehicle with him. Lu would make sure the truck was returned to him when she eventually made it back home, and for now this story should explain things well enough.
All else was forgotten, the events of the last few days wiped away, all the monsters back to being fairy tales.
“He won’t go back to my house, right?” Lu asked Joey. They were on the street in front of the high rise office building. The sky was a deep indigo blue, the street lamps glowing yellow, and they were waiting for the cab that would take them to the address Bryn had given them when he’d called a few minutes ago.
“I made sure he won’t go back.”
“I h
ate that we manipulated him like that, but it was for the best, right? This way he gets to keep thinking everything’s ok, that there aren’t monsters around every corner.” Lu fidgeted anxiously, shifting her weight from foot to foot.
Joey soothingly ran a hand down her upper arm. “You did the right thing. I know you care about him, Lu, and this was the best thing you could do for him.”
Augustine sauntered up to them then and held out a brown paper bag to Joey. “Here,” he said unceremoniously.
Joey took the bag, raising an eyebrow at Augustine. “What’s this?”
“Take out. I figured you were probably still hungry,” Augustine said. He idly watched the passing cars, the street clogged with traffic.
Joey peered into the bag, tugged at a tube attached to a unit of blood with ‘UCSF Medical Center’ printed on it, and took a long draw, keeping the plastic pouch concealed within the paper bag. Then he said, “Thanks. But I can’t believe you robbed a hospital. That’s bold even for you.”
“I hardly robbed a hospital,” Augustine rolled his eyes. “I just compelled a nurse to bring out a couple blood units. I figured you wouldn’t have the sense to feed, and I know you didn’t drink enough from me earlier.”
Joey took another long drink, then said, “You know I’m totally not buying this nice guy routine.”
“What nice guy routine? I just told you you’re too stupid to eat. And bringing you blood is practical. I still need your help, I need you strong.”
“This will probably all prove to be one huge act, all part of some elaborate scheme,” Joey continued. “But right now I’ll admit I’m having a hard time seeing your end game.”
“That’s because there is no end game. I’m just trying to get Alastair out of whatever trouble I got him into. That’s it. No schemes, no ulterior motives.” Augustine looked depressed and weary.
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