The Last Guardian Rises (The Last Keeper's Daughter)

by Rebecca Trogner

  “I embarrassed him.”

  “You made the royals more curious about you. Curiosity is rarely a good thing when vampires are involved.”

  “So he’s going to be even more crazy about my protection.”

  Bingo. “I think thorough would be a better word.”

  Immediately after the incident, Krieger had ordered him to take Lily away. She’d resembled the Elder rising up above them, her eyes radiant with anger and indignation. The light emanating from her body, making her glow like a vengeful angel. Of all the places to show this newfound ability, Thaddon Hall was the worst. The royals had watched, said nothing, and retained every detail of the experience. If the royals perceived her as a threat to them… He stopped that line of thinking.

  Not knowing how precarious her situation was, Lily pulled out her phone. “At least we have cell coverage now.”

  “Don’t, not until we land,” he groused. If Krieger would have allowed it, he would have flown with Lily tucked in his arms.

  “You’re scared.”

  Lucien rolled his eyes at her and clutched the armrests as the plane touched down on the runway and taxied to the private hangar. He looked over to see Lily already listening to her messages. Krieger’s orders were clear and direct. Lucien would be entering Beline’s territory and would need to keep his true purpose secret. He followed Lily down the plane’s steps and directly into the vehicle. She’d been a magpie the whole flight over but was now silent. “What is it?”

  “Jo left me a strange message.” Lily stared out the car window.

  “Who?”

  “I told you about her. She’s my best friend.” Lily turned towards him. “She’s funny, like you. I think you’d like her.”

  She thought he was funny. Lucien knew of no one that would use that word to describe him. He merged onto East M4 toward London. Traffic was reasonable for an evening arrival into Heathrow Airport. He hoped to make good time and be at The Savoy to meet with Hunter and Meirta within the hour. Something about the phone message had upset Lily. She was trying to hide it from him, but not doing a very good job of it.

  “Is she hurt?” he asked.

  She shook her head. “Why can’t I hear you anymore?”

  “You seem to hear me just fine.”

  “You know what I mean.”

  He was thankful that he had to focus on the road.

  “We’re all alone so there’s no reason not to tell me the truth.”

  “You know why.” Lucien twisted his hands around the steering wheel.

  “If I knew why I wouldn’t be asking,” Lily said in an agitated tone. “You started it. I didn’t ask you to pop into my head and start talking, and I didn’t ask you to stop. So what’s the deal?”

  “It’s difficult to explain.”

  Lily leaned back hard against the car seat and propped her feet up on the dash. She’d taken her shoes off and he noticed her brightly striped socks. She’d physically wedged herself into the space and was determined to have this conversation. “I’m sure you’ll manage.”

  He passed an irritatingly slow car whose driver could not maintain a constant speed. “It wasn’t appropriate for me to speak with you like that.” Lucien glanced at her; she was not wearing a happy face. “Look, I’m not saying this right.”

  “Is that why you’ve been avoiding me?”

  “With everything going on right now, is this really important?”

  “God.” Lily kicked her foot into the dash. “Are all men such cowards?”

  Lucien laughed. She was no longer the shy young woman he’d helped navigate court life. “You’re just learning that. I’d rather go into battle than argue with a woman.”

  “We aren’t arguing,” she said a tad too loudly, took a deep breath and started again. “Was it something I did?”

  Fuck. “No.” A glance told him she felt it was her fault. His hand naturally went to rest on her thigh. “No, I mean it. You know all vampires can trance, right?” He caught her nod out of the corner of his eye. “What we did was sort of like the trance, but not.” He moved his hand from her leg to turn off the radio. “It shouldn’t be possible for us to communicate that way. It’s dangerous.”

  “No one else would know.”

  “Do you truly believe that?”

  She looked out the window for a long time and he thought she might be willing to let this go. “There’s no one around now. What could it hurt?”

  “Lily,” Lucien sighed. “You are Sanguis Ancilla to the king.”

  “Oh, I see, right, because I’m the king’s woman. Is that what you’re saying? It’s not true. I’m my own person.”

  Lily was usually quiet and controlled, but now her emotions were volatile and he couldn’t help but be infected by her anger. He slammed the steering wheel with his hand. “Woman! Do you mean to torment me?” Traffic be damned, he turned to see her face, but she was looking out the car window.

  “What did your friend say, Jo, right?” He hated to see her sulk.

  “She has something to tell me, probably about this new guy she’s seeing.”

  Nothing strange about that.

  “Jo said in her message, ‘hope the meeting’s going well’.”

  “Did you tell her?”

  “No, maybe she misunderstood or something.” She grabbed her toes, stretching. “I’m getting as paranoid as the rest of you.”

  There were a lot of things he could say to her flippant remark, but he bit his tongue.

  “What Malach said about aging, is that true?”

  “Does it bother you?”

  “No.” She reached out to the console and turned the heat down. “Do you ever miss things the way they were?”

  “When I was turned?” He didn’t wait for her to answer. “Rarely.”

  “You’ve never told me how it happened.”

  And I won’t, not tonight at least.

  “So.” She didn’t press the question further. “Where are we going?”

  “The Savoy. I was there for its grand opening.” He and his sire had toured the hotel, marveling at the electric lights, lifts, and hot and cold running water in every bathroom. Back in the late 1880s having a private bathroom was a true luxury. “Hell, I can remember when the property was given to the Earl of Richmond by King Henry III.” How many, if any, knew the history behind the buildings and objects they saw daily? How many would care?

  “It must have been something.” She watched out the window as they drove into the garage underneath the hotel. She waited as he parked and turned to face him. “I’d love to have seen it then.”

  Why did Lily bring out feelings he’d thought lost to him? He’d thought his heart was as cold and lifeless as a stone after centuries of fighting and killing and caring only for duty and honor. But with Lily he felt like Eros’ arrow had found its mark in his side. He ached to hold her, to share his blood with her, and pass eternity together.

  “We need to speak of what happened. Was it being near Grigori that caused it?”

  “I don’t want to talk about it.”

  “We must. You realize that, don’t you?” She tucked her head down towards her chest and let her long hair shield her from his direct gaze.

  “I do, and I will, just not now,” she whispered.

  A woman with two children walked to her van park directly in front of them. They waited until she had them both strapped in their seats and the doors closed before continuing with their conversation.

  “Why must I choose between the two of you?” she asked.

  “What?” Lucien knew more than most that women were rarely predictable. Had she read his thoughts? Was she being sincere? Yes, he’d forgotten how guileless and open she was. “You do have both of us. But I doubt in the way you’re meaning. Krieger is the right man for you.”

  “Cherie doesn’t have to choose.” Lily tried to slip her feet into her shoes. “She has you both.”

  Lily comparing herself to Cherie showed just what a child she still was. “She is
an ouled.”

  Her hair had fallen like sheets of white silk as she leaned over to put on her shoes. He brushed it back from her face.

  “So?” she said, sounding like a petulant child.

  “So she is an artist and sex is her medium.” He smiled, liking the phrase. “And the king rarely visits her, and would not if …” Lucien quieted.

  “Does everyone know that we’re not…?”

  “No.” Was it his fault she didn’t share the king’s bed? It had been a lapse in judgment to silently communicate with her. He knew it confused her, created a sense of intimacy that should not be between them. He was the slayer, the wielder of the Dragon Sword, the harbinger of death. The king should have left him in his self-induced purgatory instead of ordering him back to court to help guard Lily.

  “Kiss me.”

  Again she surprised him. How many times had he lain in another’s arms wishing for Lily? How many moments of her company did he relive when alone? You cannot do this, he told himself, it is forbidden to feel this way.

  Lucien felt the intangible pull she exuded and even as his mind raged at him for doing so, he ran his fingers along her cheek and cupped her face. As he leaned in, she closed her eyes and lifted her face up to his. The gesture was so pure, so innocent that it made him feel jaded, but it did not keep him from pressing his lips against hers and feeling their velvety softness. How easy it would be to tear her from the car and disappear into the night sky with her.

  “No!” He drew back and grabbed her wrists in one hand.

  Eyes wide, Lily looked up at him and then down at her wrists. He released them and she immediately reached out to touch his face.

  “Don’t,” he said.

  Her hands floated down until they settled in her lap. “What if he weren’t king?”

  “I don’t waste time on what ifs. Krieger is king and my brother in all but blood.” He opened the door and the overhead light hurt his eyes. “We’ll not speak of this again.” He slipped out of the car.

  Lily walked around to his side. “Now you’re mad at me,” she said too loudly, before whirling to stomp away from him.

  It had been centuries since someone had willfully bickered with him. Lily wasn’t intimidated by him, his sword, or his curse. Not that she knew much of the last. This lack of fear she felt for him, her womanly determination to whittle down his defenses, was a potent aphrodisiac. A quick head swivel revealed no persons close, and instantaneously he moved to impede her way.

  “Dammit,” she uttered, bouncing off him.

  He steadied her, remained close enough to feel the rise and fall of her chest. “I’m mad at myself.” He loomed over her like a skyscraper. “I’m mad at this untenable situation. What are you thinking? That you’ll have me on Mondays and Wednesdays and Krieger on Tuesdays and Thursdays? Krieger loves you. Do you understand that? He loves you.”

  “And do you love me?”

  Yes, which is why I will never have you. “Who do you love, Lily?” He took her by the arm and marched her into the elevator. “Figure out your own heart first.” The doors closed and he punched the button for the top floor.

  He focused on the elevator floor lights illuminating their way skyward. Without constant vigilance, the overpowering needs of the dragon would break free. He only allowed this in battle or in his duties as a slayer or when he secluded himself far away from humanity. How could Lily know what lurked below the surface? All he’d ever shown her was the good-humored Lucien. Inside, deep inside, he was a tightly controlled and emotionally compartmentalized individual who always accomplished the king’s business. It was part of the reason he’d been given the Dragon Sword and also why he was one of the most feared vampires in the world. He hadn’t allowed himself to care for a woman, not until Lily, who waltzed through every barricade he’d erected. He desperately wanted her. He wanted to be the man she saw with her jeweled eyes while he made love to her. And yet, he needed her to see the killer deep inside.

  With his sword, he broke the security camera lens in the elevator and pinned her harshly against the railing. “This is who I am.” For the first time he dropped his fangs for her and held his face inches from hers. “I’m not some puppet for you to play with. I’m a killer of man and vampire and beast.” He could feel the tingling of the dragon wake inside him. Let me out, it said. Let me feast on her.

  “Are you the dragon of my dreams?” Lily was afraid, he could see it in her eyes and feel her breathing hard against him, but she held his gaze.

  This infernal woman would be the death of him. Why had she asked him that question? He held her tight, paralyzed with the sudden realization that Lily was not only seducing him, but also the dragon. This cannot be.

  “We have a job to do tonight.” Lucien retracted his fangs. “Are you up for it?”

  Her eyes still wide, she nodded and backed away from him. The door swooshed open and they walked down the hotel corridor to Hunter and Meirta’s room.

  Hunter

  Meirta and Hunter had survived the long air trek from Australia and their meeting with Dr. Toolley and now were finally in their suite at the Savoy in London. Hunter was looking forward to a hot shower, room service, and sliding between the sheets for some much needed rest.

  “Lucien left me a message,” Meirta called from the bathroom. “He and Lily are coming here.”

  Hunter groaned. “Did he say why?”

  Meirta walked in wearing a cushy robe and her hair in wet tangles down her back. “No, just that.” She held up her phone and played the message on speaker for him.

  It was Lucien’s voice. “Wait for Lily and me. We’ve landed and will meet you in your suite at eight. Do not relay any information to Merlin.”

  “That’s odd.” Hunter fell back onto the bed wishing he could roll over and go to sleep instead of waiting for them. “What do you make of it?”

  “The fact that they’re coming here or what he said about Merlin?”

  “Both.” He didn’t say, ‘I told you so,’ about Merlin. He liked Merlin, but something was definitely off with his behavior lately. “Does that mean the council meeting is over?”

  She shrugged and rummaged through her suitcase.

  Absently, he studied the ceiling, wondering if the barely visible beige spot which kind of looked like a miniscule candy cane was a water stain, a play of the light, or something more nefarious. He’d thought being in London again wouldn’t affect him, but memories of his time as a detective kept interrupting his thoughts. He’d been in this hotel many times before, but never as a guest, and always on police business.

  “What are you thinking so hard about?”

  He lifted up to rest on his elbows. She’d slipped on jeans and a shirt and had curled up in the chair with her tabloids spread out on the table in front of her.

  “The last time I was here.”

  “And…” she said.

  Before he’d been recruited by the Elder, he’d been an ordinary detective working in London. In the States it was easy to let that part of his life fade into the background, but now, here in London, his past felt fresh and a little too present.

  “I was investigating a suicide. We’d have at least two or three a month in some hotel in the city. The luxury hotels were the place of choice. Put it on your credit card and leave this world in style.”

  Her pupils appeared to change as she stared at him. He was never sure if their shape truly altered or if something about her eyes caused him to think they had.

  “That’s messed up.”

  “It’s one of the hotel industry’s dirty little secrets.”

  “The Elder used to bring me here. Every Wednesday for tea.”

  “I didn’t think he went out much.” He left off ‘among the humans’.

  She propped her feet on the table and selected a magazine. “He said it was to get me out more, but I think he liked the tradition of it. We’d talk and sometimes he’d tell me about the past and future.”

  He sat up. “Future?”r />
  “It’s how I knew about you.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  Her right foot started to wiggle. It was one of her tells when she was nervous. “He told me a detective would be joining us. That he, you, would be special to me, to all Others.”

  “How long ago did he say this?”

  She grabbed a tabloid, fanning through the pages. “I don’t know.” She discarded it and picked up The Daily Telegraph. “Hunter.”

  The way she said his name put him instantly on edge. She tossed it his way. “Read that.”

  “The Jakarta Police report finding ten male brokers (pimps) dead in Club LaLa. This club caters to the local populace of Jakarta and not the large influx of tourists who travel to Jakarta for its sex workers. Usually this area of the city is quiet and the police are baffled by the murders. All the men suffered broken necks. A source who wishes not to be named reported that their heads had been twisted almost completely around. At least thirty prostitutes were working in the club at the time of the murders, but none were injured and they have not been able to give a description of the lone man who allegedly committed the crime.”

  There was more about travel warnings for the area and such, but nothing further about the crime.

  “I think that’s our rogue.” Meirta’s foot was moving double time.

  “I could catch a flight to Indonesia.” He hated the thought of leaving her.

  “He would have moved on by now.”

  “No mention of bite marks. Having your neck completely twisted around could hide that. The Jakarta police aren’t known for their great forensic work. The women…”

  “I noticed that too. He never hurts women, only men.” Meirta looked out the hotel windows. Street lights were automatically turning on as the daylight diminished. “He’s moving west.”

  “Could Harvey pay Audrey Moon a visit?”

  Meirta nodded. “She is the only witness we have.” Midway to her phone, she let her hand drop back to her side and slumped back in the chair.

  “What?”

  “I can’t order a vampire to track and trance a woman, much less a Hollywood actress, without contacting Merlin.”