Bound by Blood (Vampire Romance)

by Tara Manderino

  She could hear Philip in the kitchen talking. From the things he said, and the clink of metal and glass, she figured he must be making lunch for Sandy. She had barely made it to the doorway when Sandy scrambled off the chair and flew to her arms.

  Hugging the child, she kept her arm around her as they made their way back into the kitchen. She had no way of knowing how much the others had already told the girl.

  “I know everything,” Sandy immediately told her once she was settled back in her seat.

  Lisa’s gaze flew to Philip. How much was everything?

  He merely nodded in agreement. “Louis and Alex talked to her this morning.”

  Lord, she couldn’t imagine a vampire with a gentle touch, yet Sandy seemed resigned to whatever they had told her.

  “My daddy doesn’t know yet,” Sandy told her, “That’s why I have to wait for Alex to come back for me.”

  “He told you everything?” Lisa ran her hand over the girl’s hair in a soothing motion.

  “I think he had to,” Philip said quietly. “It’s not as if she were a bystander at the event.”

  Lisa hugged the child close then took a seat next to her. “It will be all right, Sandy. Your daddy is a very good man.” She stretched her am along the back of Sandy’s chair.

  The little girl nodded sadly. “That’s what Alex said too. But I’ll miss you, Lisa.” This time, she looked down but not before Lisa saw the tears trickle down her face.

  “What is she talking about?” She kept her arm near Sandy, but her question was clearly delivered to Philip who was mixing pancake batter near the stove.

  “Alex said you were going to go away for a while too, and it would probably be best if it was just daddy and me together.”

  “I…” she almost said hadn’t made any plans, but a warning look from Philip made her keep her own counsel. “I have to talk to your daddy, too, Sandy,” she said, running her hand across the child’s shoulders.

  When Philip placed a plate of pancakes in front of Sandy, Lisa encouraged the girl to eat. “How did you know blueberry pancakes are Sandy’s favorite?” she asked, trying to keep her voice light and infusing some sense of normalcy to the late morning.

  “I told him!” Sandy answered without looking up from her task of drowning her pancakes in maple syrup.

  Seeing that Sandy was settled for the moment, Lisa announced she was going to change her clothes. Returning to Alex’s room, she slipped on the pants she wore yesterday then looked through Alex’s dresser drawers for a smaller fitting t-shirt. She felt a bit guilty looking through his things without his knowledge, but there really wasn’t much of an alternative. As she passed through the Great Room again she noticed Sandy’s overnight bag from the other night. Directing Sandy to the bag when she was done eating, she was glad the child at least had a few clean clothes to wear. Urging her to change, she insisted they would feel better after a walk in the fresh air.

  Indeed it seemed to do wonders for the child. Even Philip commented on it once they returned. She was far from bubbly, not that Lisa expected her to be, but she had a healthy tiredness by the time they returned to Alex’s, and the shadows seemed to have been pushed to the back of her mind, at least for the moment.

  While Sandy seemed content, Lisa was not. She passed some time playing simple card games with Sandy and an equal amount of time discussing ancient customs with Philip; subjects she knew her father would find fascinating. “You will have to meet with him someday,” Lisa said. “He has expressed a tremendous amount of interest in your work.”

  Alex arrived sometime after they had finished a late dinner of delivered pizza and salad.

  He stooped down next to Sandy and asked if she was feeling all right. All of the questions Lisa had expected from Sandy earlier came tumbling out for Alex. The only one of concern was when Sandy asked point blank if they had really been going to kill her.

  “I heard them talking, you know. My mommy…” her voice broke and she started to cry. She pushed Alex away when he tried to comfort her. Lisa figured this was a good time to intervene, so she did, wrapping the child in her arms and smoothing her hair as the girl cried. When the tears finally slowed, Lisa used her hands to wipe away the child’s tears. She struggled to find the right words, but couldn’t imagine what they would be. Instead, Sandy started talking again after taking a shuddering breath. “My mommy gave me some icky stuff to drink, so I don’t remember a lot. It made me sleepy. When I woke up, I was tied up. I saw that mean lady, mommy’s friend—Janelle, and I was scared, then you and Alex came.” She sniffled as she looked at Lisa.

  Immediately, Lisa’s gaze flew to Alex. If that was all that she remembered, it would be all right. His look said there was much more, but apparently that was all she was going to express at the moment.

  “It won’t be long and you can be at your own house with your daddy,” he assured Sandy.

  “But not with Lisa?”

  Alex didn’t meet her gaze. The wretch knew he had said nothing to her yet. “Not right now.”

  Rising, he spoke to Philip, caressed Lisa’s cheek and then left.

  Typical. He raised many more questions than he had answered.

  Chapter 28

  “Where in the hell have you been?” Nick barked nearly the same time as his supervisor when Alex strolled into his office.

  “Exactly there.” He walked to his desk, knowing they followed him.

  “What does that mean?”

  “Know that fire over on the warehouse block?”

  Both men nodded. “Four alarm,” his partner said. “Once it was started, they were afraid it would spread to all of them. You know how that goes.”

  He did. So had Louis, who had assumed that was the best way to keep them all busy and not suspicious. “I was over there. Messy business.”

  “Why were you there?” his supervisor barked, not asked.

  “I had business nearby. When I heard the alarms I headed that way to see what needed done since I was in the vicinity.” No one questioned it, as he expected. Any of them would have done the same.

  “Fortunately there weren’t many people involved,” his partner said. “They’re still trying to identify the remains of one woman they found there. They suspect it was Barbara Morgan – you know the one who heads all those charities. No one knows what she was doing there.”

  “I don’t suppose we’ll ever know,” Alex said. If he still prayed, he would have added that to the list.

  “Hey, wasn’t that the name of the little girl who was kidnapped last week?”

  Alex nodded.

  “Man, tough break for the guy.”

  Or a lucky one indeed, but aloud Alex agreed with his partner. “I’m heading over there now to talk to him.”

  “Good idea,” the captain said. “The IDs just came through so no one has been to see him yet. He’s familiar with you from the kidnapping.”

  His partner offered to accompany him, but before Alex could think of a good way to dissuade him, the captain told him he should get caught up on paperwork.

  Alex made it to the Morgan residence in record time. This was always a distasteful aspect of the job, more so in this case, although Morgan would not be aware of it.

  Once all of the facts were laid before him, minus a few pertinent details such as the vampire community, Jason Morgan seemed fairly accepting of what had occurred. Not nearly as surprised as Alex would have expected. Either that or the man was still in shock. He could hardly be blamed if that was the case.

  Moving stiffly, Jason stood and made his way to the bar and poured himself a whisky, neat. Taking another glass from the shelf he held it out to Alex, silently asking if he wanted any. Alex shook his head.

  Downing a healthy swallow, Jason poured another shot before turning to face Alex. He sipped at his drink before speaking. “Barbara never wanted children,” he finally said. He leaned against the bar, holding his drink and talking into the glass more than to Alex. “I was all right with that. I thought so
, anyway.”

  Alex didn’t say anything, just let the man talk.

  “Then one day, not long after Barbara met some new friends, she started talking about a child. We had been having some problems, so I thought this was her way of patching things up.” He shrugged and glanced at Alex before looking away. “Sorry. I don’t even know why I’m telling you all this.”

  “You can tell me anything. It’s over now.” There was a reason they detectives had gone through counseling, he thought. But in this case, it wasn’t just about Jason, Alex really wanted to know.

  Jason gave him a tight smile, and rolled his glass between his palms, no longer looking at him. “After she had Sandy, I really didn’t understand why Barbara had bothered. She practically ignored the baby. I let Barbara hire a succession of nannies and caretakers, but Sandy was my child.”

  Alex knew the feeling of being on the outside looking in. He had done much the same when his son had been born to Katherine. Watching his child being raised by another man was torture. Seeing him learn to ride and care for the horses that were Alex’s passion was more than he could stand. That was the first time he left the country and tried to put distance between them. It had helped, but not solved the situation.

  Standing, he paced until he finally stopped near the window, and Jason. “So the baby was what—a goodwill token?” Although from the sequence of events, he suspected she was more than that. His voice was soft so as not to disturb the man’s train of thought, but prompt him on. Jason glanced at him, seeming surprised to see him so close but it didn’t stop him from speaking.

  “Never to me. She was my baby from the beginning.” He took a sip of his drink. “Barbara made sure I knew she wanted nothing to do with her. You know, she never changed Sandy’s diaper -- not once. That was why she hired a nanny almost immediately.” He turned and put his glass down on the bar, and braced his hands on the edge. “How am I supposed to deal with this?”

  The question was rhetorical, but Alex felt compelled to answer anyway. “The best way you can.” He would do his best to suppress any of Cassandra’s memories that he could. He would have done it immediately, but Philip had convinced him it would be best to let the girl remember then it could be pushed into the recesses of her mind. Her father though knew very little of what actually occurred aside from the kidnapping and that his wife had been involved with some underhanded business with Janelle. Alex would do his best to make sure it stayed that way.

  Facing Jason, he extended his hand for the other man to shake. There was nothing more he could do here. His official business was done and he had the answer to the question that plagued him: How could a mother use her own child in such a fashion? In Barbara’s eyes, Sandy had never been her child, merely a means to an end. It still chilled him.

  “I am sorry for your loss,” he said the words by rote. Mentally, he thanked God. It was evident Barbra only had Cassandra for one reason, for her to meet the needs of Janelle. He couldn’t imagine how Barbara thought she would come out ahead in such a devilish deal. Janelle had only ever watched out for Janelle.

  “Cassandra will return to you shortly, but Lisa will not be staying.”

  “Not -- I depended on her!” Jason pushed himself away from the bar, standing straight. “I can certainly understand her concerns, but Barbara is gone. I will need someone to help care for Sandy.”

  “Perhaps Lisa will have a recommendation. Someone will bring Cassandra by shortly, Mr. Morgan.”

  But it wouldn’t be him. He would be with Lisa – he hoped. Abruptly, he turned and headed for the door, not waiting to see if the man planned on showing him out.

  He was not interrupted during the rest of his shift. That was not necessarily a good thing; it gave him too much time to think while he shuffled papers and did routine tasks. There had been no word from Philip or Louis. Not that he expected them to call. He told himself this was good too. If they had it might have been to tell him Lisa had left their care. Left him. He wouldn’t go there. If he could have perspired, he would have been drenched in it by the time he made it home with all of the scenarios running through his mind. It was one thing for him to tell Jason Lisa would not be returning, but actually, there was nothing to prevent her from doing so.

  Pulling into his driveway he could see the few lamps he had set on a timer were lit, telling him nothing. No one stood at the door to greet him. He couldn’t tell if that meant something or not. He could detect no movement. The house was eerily silent after the past several days of activity.

  Calling himself foolish, he let himself into the house. Immediately, he raised his face, trying to catch a scent of her, and he did, but realized it was fruitless because he had no idea if it was fresh or not.

  A quick search showed she was not the only one gone. The rest of them had left too, confirming what he already knew.

  Walking to the kitchen and grabbing a glass, he helped himself to nourishment, calling himself all kinds of fool the entire time. What had he expected? Last night she had turned to him because he was the good guy. Today he was what he had been for centuries – a vampire. She was probably on her way back to England right now. Setting his glass in the sink, he headed to the corner of the great room where he kept his small desk. Philip was to have given her the tickets and money she would need to get to her parents. The tickets were still there; so was the bulk of his money. He folded himself into the desk chair, wondering what that indicated. Was she angry and insulted and left it, or was there something else?

  Leaning forward, he rested his head in his hand, his elbow propped on the desk. He was tired. He had been so for some time, but for a short while, with Lisa, he hadn’t been so weary, and that was in spite of the danger surrounding them. The danger was gone and so was Lisa. He let himself ruminate for a few more minutes, then shaking his head dismissing his own foolishness, stood and headed to his room. If he wasn’t careful he would get maudlin, something he accused Louis of often enough.

  When he heard light footsteps on the driveway he closed his eyes to better concentrate on the sound.

  He was at the door and had it open before she had a chance to knock. Before Lisa could acknowledge him, he pulled her into his arms. She looked up in surprise, only to be greeted with a crushing kiss, one that she participated in quite nicely. Finally, he released her, but framed her face with his hands, not letting her step too far from him.

  “I thought you were gone.”

  She placed her hands on his wrists, holding him in place as she studied his face. “No, only for a short while. Philip took Sandy back to her father.”

  “Did you go with them? You weren’t here.”

  “No, although I do have to go back to the Morgan’s at some point. I mean, all of my things are there.”

  He drew her further into the house, crowding her so her back was against the foyer wall. She looked at him questioningly, but he merely leaned in, kissing her again, devouring her, wanting her to know this was the only place she needed to be.

  Finally she put her hands up to his shoulders and pushed gently, then harder. He wasn’t moving.

  “I like where I am,” he said in between kisses, resting his forehead against hers.

  “I like where you are too,” she said, smiling at him, “but I wanted to show you something.”

  He stopped and gave her the slightest bit of room. “Unless it’s your gorgeous body, I’m not sure I care.”

  “Alex!” She slipped away from him, and he turned, watching her, confident she wasn’t going far.

  Shoving her hand into the front pocket of her jeans, she withdrew it, keeping her fist clenched. She turned and held her hand out to him, unfurling her fist. “I thought you might want this.”

  Stepping closer to her, he studied her offering before reaching out to take the ring from her hand. Holding it between his forefinger and thumb, he rubbed the stone against his jacket before slipping it on his finger.

  “How did you ever find it?”

  “I went to the s
ite this afternoon. I waited until the investigators were finished, then I was there for a few hours. Louis joined me later. He’s the one who actually uncovered it from the ashes.”

  “I thank you,” he said simply, clenching his fist around the ring. He had never thought to see it again. He would have mourned its loss, but in comparison to his worry over Lisa and Cassandra, it had been a trifle.

  “You know, Philip once said that you walk closer to the light than you thought. I didn’t understand him before, but I think I do now.”

  “You do?” He draped his arm about her shoulders and guided her into the great room.

  “It could have gone a lot of different ways there with Janelle, but you never wavered, not once, not even when she offered you immortality. I think that says a tremendous amount about your character.”

  “Do you indeed? Perhaps I just didn’t believe her.”

  “There is that, but I don’t think that was the case.”

  “No, the case is that I prefer mortality over being a vampire, so I can imagine being undead would win hands down over immortality.”

  “I guess.”

  She hadn’t sounded too believing and he tried to make her understand. “All of the world’s great battles have been fought by mortal men – and women – who had seen things greater than themselves. They didn’t have the option of immortality, yet they achieved unbelievable heights.”

  “It all comes down to war, then.”

  He gave her a half smile. “No. Think of the scientists and artists, Da Vinci, Edison, Curie, all who have achieved more in one lifetime than others could have in several.”

  “True.” She canted her head to one side looking at him. “Think you could be one of the great ones if you only had one lifetime?”

  “I’ll never know, at least not right now.” He pulled her into his arms again. “Frankly, at the moment, I really didn’t care.”