by Tamsin Baker
No point delaying the inevitable. The necessary.
Lucien stood to leave.
He’d been so lost in his thoughts he’d not noticed Katrine’s approach. It only took meeting her amber eyes to shake his resolve.
‘You didn’t want to talk to me again?’
Her directness was disarming, but so arousing.
‘I did. Very much.’ Too much, which was why he’d been leaving.
‘Good.’ She smiled. ‘Then sit back down.’ She took a seat and patted his. ‘Since I shared my secret place with you last night, I want to know about yours.’
‘What makes you think I have one?’
‘Everyone has one. Somewhere just for themselves. Everyone needs that.’
This red-headed faux vampire threatened to restore his soul.
‘Yes,’ she said softly. ‘Everyone has secrets.’
‘Do you always get so deep and meaningful with the patrons?’
‘No. But I’ve never kissed one in a doorway before. In my book, that entitles me to get a little up close and personal with your mind as well.’
Her sense of humor was as alluring as her body and her kiss.
He would share his secret because it no longer mattered. He wanted her to know. The one person who might understand. He wanted to at least have the importance of his existence acknowledged somehow.
‘I understand that I can’t encroach on your time here again, Katrine, but I would very much like to spend time with you away from all this.’
‘I don’t have to work every night.’
That she hadn’t even hesitated to reply made him ridiculously happy and a wave of relief washed through him; a weight he didn’t know he’d been carrying, lifted.
‘How about after my number tomorrow night, we can hightail it out of here? Maybe you can show me your secret place?’
‘Maybe.’
‘Ahh, a man of mystery.’
If only she knew. Would she be so amused when the truth was revealed?
A deep, disturbing twinge gripped him somewhere inside and it had nothing to do with the thought of more time alone with Katrine. Lucien glanced sideways and saw Lisette heading towards them.
Was it an instinctive reaction to the approach of another vampire? Coming to Eternel had been the first time he’d put himself in such close proximity to others of his kind for this very reason. In case they could somehow sense each other.
But surely a male vampire wouldn’t even be in her thought process. Still, he wasn’t going to take any chances.
‘Your boss lady is heading in this direction.’ He put his hand over Katrine’s, reluctant to leave the evening without some sort of touch. ‘So I’d better not distract you any longer. Can’t have her thinking you have favorites.’
He stood and pushed his chair in, ready to head for the door. He cursed the fear that was rapidly suffusing his body. Cursed that it had replaced the desire and anticipation that Katrine had roused.
Fear of exposure would always hang around like the cloying stench of dead bodies. Even if the twinge that had a vice-grip on his gut had nothing to do with Lisette’s approach, he’d had enough of constant apprehension.
‘I’ll see you tomorrow,’ he blew her a kiss, hating his rapid departure and hoping his instincts were wrong.
CHAPTER 8
Katrine’s stomach growled at the cheesy, spicy aroma of pepperoni pizza that had been placed in front of her. Without hesitation she picked up a slice, took a bite and sighed with pleasure.
She’d come deliberately early to indulge herself and the melty cheese and tangy tomato sauce wasn’t disappointing. It didn’t matter if Alain arrived at any moment. She was starving.
Even half feeling like she may be betraying her family by meeting him, talking to him, couldn’t dull her appetite.
While she waited for one man, her thoughts were on another.
Lucien’s abrupt departure last night had surprised her. If he’d bothered to turn up again to see her, why hadn’t he stayed longer? Lisette had seen the kiss he’d blown her as he left. Had that put the strange tightness in her voice, the wariness in her eyes. That Lisette had even questioned her about him was strange too. She never usually taken too much interest in who she spent time with at the club. Her philosophy was that the longer a patron stayed talking, the more he’d spend at the bar.
‘Pizza must be good if it deserves such intense concentration.’
Katrine looked up to meet Alain’s grey eyes. He pulled out a seat and sat down.
‘It is. You should get one.’ Katrine took another bite.
Alain signaled for a waiter. ‘Would you like a glass of wine?’
Katrine nodded. She wasn’t one to drink alone so enjoying wine was a rare treat. ‘Something white.’
He ordered two glasses of Sauvignon Blanc and Katrine enjoyed the feeling of being looked after. Not in the way Lisette and the women had looked after her, raised her. In the way a man looks after a woman. It felt good.
But countering the good feelings was the niggle of uncertainty about where the conversation might go.
Well, she had hoped it might take a little longer to get to the nitty gritty.
‘Do you spend much time away from the club?’
‘Not a lot. Our business hours don’t usually allow for much daytime activity.’
‘Like working permanent night shift.’
‘Exactly.’
‘I’m going to be honest, Katrine. I’m curious about how you came to be at Eternel.’
She drew a deep sigh. Since she’d been old enough to grasp the uniqueness of her situation, she’d known this question would come from someone, at some time. But the relief she thought she’d feel at finally being able to tell her story wasn’t there. Would the truth somehow betray Lisette and the family.
Alain must have sensed her reluctance+
‘That isn’t a police questions, Katrine. It’s not relevant to the case. I’m just intrigued by your situation.’
‘I understand. It must seem a little bizarre from the outside.’ She could ease into it.
‘I wouldn’t say bizarre. But definitely fascinating. None of your patrons have ever picked that you’re not also a vampire?’
Katrine shook her head. ‘Not that they’ve ever said. Or asked. I think they get so wrapped up in just being there that they don’t look for it.’
Their wine arrived and she took a grateful sip. ‘Lisette has looked after me since I was a baby. It’s the only life I’ve known. The women raised me. Educated me. Took me into their way of life. Kept me out of the child welfare system.’
Of course he wanted to know more. He had normal curiosities, as well as being a detective. She very much appreciated that he was letting her go at her own pace.
‘My mother was killed by a vampire.’
His glass stopped halfway to his mouth, but he didn’t say anything. Couldn’t?
‘I think it was the last reported vampire killing. Thirty years ago.’
He took a sip from his glass. ‘I’m waiting on those records as we speak. What do you know about it?’
‘Not much. Only that Lisette adopted me. She and the women felt a responsibility because of what one of their kind had done.’
‘Incredible. So, when were you told, or did you work it out yourself, that you weren’t … were …?’
She understood his confusion. ‘From when I was quite young. Lisette hired a nanny so that I could have some semblance of human life, see daylight, go to school. She explained as much as I would understand as I got older. I went to boarding school from age twelve.’
She hadn’t thought about her life as a continuum like that before. She rarely looked back and just balanced her dual existence as best she could.
‘When did you find out how your mother died? Did that change how you looked at your family?’
‘Around the same age I went away to school. No, it didn’t change anything. If your mother had been killed in a car crash, would you look
differently at the members of your family who also drove cars?’
He looked contrite. ‘I’m sorry, I guess I’m not as impartial as I thought I was. And that’s part of why I wanted to talk to you.’
‘And the other part?’ She suppressed a smile. She didn’t imagine he enjoyed being on the receiving end of awkward questions either.
‘The other part is just wanting to enjoy your company. Which I am.’
‘Here’s to mixing business and pleasure.’ Katrine picked up her wine glass, as did Alain, clinking them together.
It was more than the wine that had her lightheaded. The men she usually chose to spend meagre time with weren’t interested in personal conversation. Talking about herself served no purpose. She hadn’t realized how exhilarating it was to share something about herself with someone. To be completely herself.
‘I do have to get serious for a bit, Katrine. Any insight you can give me as to what might push a vampire to kill would be invaluable.’
‘I really don’t know if I can help you, Alain. I can only speak for the women I know. I’ve not mixed with any others. Killing humans is something they all put behind them decades ago.’
‘They’ve talked about it?’
‘Of course. It’s a part of their history, and why humans feared them. Why some still do, or at least not trust them.’
‘What did they say about your mother’s death?’
‘That it must have been a rogue. A solitary vampire because by then all the women had formed enclaves and were fitting in with society.’
‘There’s been nothing since. Well, up until the other night at Montparnasse.’
‘Montparnasse? Cemetery?’ The wine glass in Katrine’s hand shook and she put it down. ‘My mother was killed there. Or did you already know that?’
He shook his head. ‘I haven’t got the old paperwork yet.’
Katrine pushed the half-drunk wine aside. Her mother’s death was a tragic fact from the past, not something she’d thought about too much since she’d grown up, but this reminder now settled a tightness in her stomach.
‘The location may be coincidence. Once I’ve got the files and can compare all the details, we’ll be able to make that call. Not ruling anything out at this stage.’
‘Vampires are a very tight group. They might be accepted more now, but they still mostly keep to themselves. With a few exceptions.’ One of their own apparently had taken up with a human before Katrine’s time and the snippets of gossip she’d heard, Lisette had been furious.
‘Mixed couples?’
‘Yes. The groups don’t hide away, as you’ve probably found, but the couples tend to keep to themselves. I don’t know how you’d even go about finding them.’
Alain nodded. ‘Katrine, have you ever seen any hint of violence in any of the women? Or heard anything about violence within any other enclave?’
Katrine shook her head. ‘No. Not from anyone, anywhere.’ She understood he had to. ‘I’ve never seen it, heard it or felt it. Either towards me or between the women.’
‘Do they all take synthetic blood? Do any vampires ever take human blood?’
It was inevitable that the discussion would eventually get complicated. She was protective of her family and their kind and didn’t want to put any of them under suspicion. But she wouldn’t lie either.
‘Some do. Sometimes. It’s always consensual and usually at the request of the human.’
‘It’s not dangerous? It never goes too far?’
She’d opened the box now, no point in trying to close the lid on the topic.
‘As far as I know, it’s never gone too far. It would have to be extreme to take someone to the point of death. But it has nothing to do with bloodlust, or thirst. It’s driven by the humans. They see it as some sort of badge of honor to get a vampire bite.’
‘And the women can control it?’
‘Yes. It’s not done when they’re thirsty. They make sure of that.’ They. The gulf between who they were and who she was, what she was, was widening as they spoke.
‘I won’t ask you who. But if I need to know, I will have to get details.’
‘You think it would be someone who’s already got a taste, or has rekindled, a taste for blood?’ Like Lisette. She wasn’t the only one who took men up to the night garden, but she did go up there the most.
‘I don’t know anything at this stage. This is information we’ll have to examine. Thank you, Katrine. It can’t be easy being in the middle like this.’
Weren’t cops supposed to be hard-nosed and all business? Not that she was complaining. Explaining her life situation had unloaded a weight she hadn’t even realized she’d been carrying.
It had been her own private thing, but she’d been caught out and now, somehow, she felt different. Like maybe she belonged more in this world than her night world.
‘I’m not in the middle of anything. My family have nothing to do with this.’
Alain didn’t contradict her.
‘Ok, Inspector, your turn under the spotlight. Tell me the Alain Donet story.’
His brow creased and she loved that she’d caught him off guard. That the coolness and control had a chink.
‘Extremely ordinary and uninteresting I’m afraid.’
He relaxed back in his seat, loosened his tie and undid his top button. An innocent gesture that she found unexpectedly intimate.
‘Born and lived my early life in Marseille. Came to Paris to join the police force and stayed.’ He took a sip from his glass, then gave its contents his attention. ‘One brief, disastrous marriage. Now I’m just married to the job.’
He met her eyes. ‘I can’t remember the last time I just sat and had a drink with a beautiful woman.’
‘We’re not that dissimilar then. I can’t remember the last time I just sat and had a drink with a man who wasn’t a club patron.’ Or who wasn’t just for a hurried night of anonymous sex.
Alain clinked his glass to Katrine’s discarded one. ‘Here’s to breaking the drought.’
She hadn’t felt this fully human for a very long time and she was liking it very much.
‘I’d like to do this again, Alain. If your busy marriage would allow.’
The surprise that widened his eyes matched her own that she’d made the invitation. She was no novice at finding casual company, but that was done with intent. These words had come out of her mouth without a conscious thought.
‘I’d like that too,’ he answered immediately.
At least there was no embarrassing silence, and a smile lit up his steel grey eyes.
‘No business talk, I promise. He looked at his watch, and then outside. ‘You’ll need to get back soon? I can drive you, or we can walk.’
She did need to go back. Dusk was starting to drape itself over the city and her other life called. For the first time that she could remember, Katrine felt she was going to a job rather than going back to what was her life.
***
He was glad Katrine had chosen to walk. A bit of extra time with her took the business edge off their meeting. He didn’t often get to take a leisurely interest this beautiful city. Or in a beautiful woman. Both by choice, and tonight he’d chosen to take a step back to having a balanced life. His confidence in asking someone out had eroded years ago. Yes, the tough on the outside cop hadn’t handled rejection well. Katrine’s invitation had saved him the stress of asking himself. Now he’d just have to act on it.
When was the last time he’d been able to forget work and just enjoy a walk?
He was tempted to take her arm, but reluctant to show such familiarity. As they approached the Square Louise-Michel, the tinny strains of the old carousel carried on the night air. Katrine cast a glance over her shoulder and smiled.
‘Did you want to go down?’
She shook her head and quickened her step. In minutes they reached the club where the inhabitants waited for darkness to complete.
He wouldn’t walk her right to the door and be
reminded of her steamy clinch the other day. He wanted her in a clinch of his own but hopefully fate would sort that out.
They crossed the road and he stopped at the corner. Katrine moved closer and dropped a soft kiss on his mouth. Her lips didn’t part, but they did linger for a moment. A moment of promise. ‘Thank you, Alain.’
Before he could ask what for, Katrine turned and walked briskly to the club’s door.
He crossed the street, ready to walk back to his car. He cast a look back at Eternel, to the rows of windows on the upper floors. To what he knew must be Katrine’s room. No discernible movement, but knowing Katrine was most likely there put a spring in his step as he went back to his car.
***
‘You’ve been out a lot lately.’ Lisette’s voice startled Katrine as she was about to open her door. The hint of accusation made Katrine surprisingly defensive. She understood Lisette’s motherly concern for her wellbeing, but she rarely displayed it.
‘You’re up early.’ Lisette rarely stirred before it was fully dark. ‘I went to get something to eat. It’s too beautiful an evening to eat in my room. I’ll change and go down to let the staff in.’
‘No, no. Take your time.’ She brushed a strand of hair behind Katrine’s ear, her touch soft but cool. Vampire cool. ‘Sometimes I forget that my little Katrine has another life.’
Katrine slid her arms around Lisette’s waist. ‘Not so little anymore. Not for a long time.’ In ten years she’d be Lisette’s age, and then older. She would continue to age while Lisette, while the women, didn’t.
An inconceivable thought, and part of the reason she was spending more time contemplating her future. Perhaps eventually a future with a man in her life.
‘Actually, I’d like to finish after my number tonight.’
Lisette stiffened. ‘Oh, yes?’
‘Yes.’ She didn’t want to, wasn’t obliged to, elaborate.
‘Of course.’ Lisette kissed her cheek. ‘I’ll see you downstairs.’
Katrine went into her room and closed the door. Not long after she heard the sounds of the others moving around and getting ready for the night.