Fire in Her Blood

by Rachel Graves

  “Why Satin?” I noticed he completely ignored my question.

  “They have an adorable ghost there; I’d love to see what he does for birthdays.” Jakob asked about the ghost and how I knew him. I told him the story, doing my best to mimic Marcus’ expression and antics. I found myself laughing again at the over the top way he showed off for me. I was home and climbing into bed before I realized we’d never gotten back to why he sounded guilty.

  Chapter Ten

  The next morning I dove into the reports I should have filled out the night before. I detailed our encounter with the snow woman and then pulled out a new set of forms to cover Amadeus. Mr. Baptiste, I corrected myself, we weren’t friends. By the time I was done summarizing everything he’d said, I didn’t want to think about him for a while.

  “What are we doing for lunch?” I pushed the forms away. When we worked Saturdays, Katie didn’t pack Danny a healthy wallet-friendly lunch; instead we went out and stuffed ourselves.

  “Indian? We can see Indigo before we deal with the assault case.”

  “Again?” I raised my eyebrows in mock surprise. We’d first worked in the little Bollywood neighborhood tracking down the werewolf group that still starred in my nightmares. Now we came back for the food often enough that everyone who lived there greeted us by name. While Danny had stuffed himself with Tandoori Chicken, I was smart enough to save room for ample desserts. Opening the door to Fantasía Del Chocolate made the small brass bells ring, a sound I was beginning to associate with chocolate bliss.

  “Good Morning!” Indigo sang out even though it was after noon. He looked as scrumptious as the chocolates in front of us in his signature white cotton t-shirt and faded tight blue jeans.

  “What’s fresh?” I asked, cheerfully.

  “Just about everything,” Indigo said with a laugh. “But you should take the fudge.”

  “Sold,” I declared. He grabbed a blue box from under the counter and began to fill it.

  Danny drove toward downtown while I bit into the fudge, like a good partner I was willing to share. It turned out that he didn’t like fudge. “Too thick” he declared. I gave him my deepest sympathies and continued to munch.

  “Tell me what you found out last night,” Danny said. “If you can tear yourself away long enough.”

  I closed the blue box and tucked it in the back seat. We were on our way to interview Amadeus Baptise, the vampire that got under my skin, so while I might not want to think about him, I needed to share all the details. “I didn’t get much. The best stuff came when Jakob talked to him.”

  Danny gave a low whistle. “Another weird vampire conversation? I’m almost sorry I missed it.”

  “Don’t be,” I said. “I can sum it up for you in a few facts. Vianne, the one who might have turned Chris, wanted Amadeus. She attacked him, or maybe had someone attack him. He wants revenge. End of facts.”

  “That’s not much.”

  “I get the feeling he doesn’t want our help,” I said, positive I was right.

  “Like this is some vampire thing they’re going to solve on their own?” Danny asked.

  I nodded.

  “Get the feeling or know?” Danny asked.

  “Get the feeling. Jakob refused to talk about vampire politics with me. He even apologized for the way things went with Michael the other night, what Amadeus said pissed him off in a big way.” I left the part about the boys performing for Vianne out. Jakob’s issues with homosexuality felt private.

  “Interesting,” Danny mused. “You know I’m pretty good at keeping secrets—”

  “I’ve noticed,” I said dryly.

  “My point is, if something does come up you want to talk about, something slightly outside of the law, I can handle it.”

  “Thanks,” I said, and I meant it. “Amadeus is going to go after Vianne.”

  “That’s a given,” Danny agreed.

  “I think—I don’t know but I think—Jakob’s going to help him.”

  “Help him?”

  “Or maybe be there with him. He said something about being a second, which makes me think of the way they fought duels two hundred years ago, but I’m not really sure how it all works.”

  “And since Jakob won’t discuss it with you, you’re not going to find out.”

  “Not likely, but I promise to let you know if I do.”

  ****

  At the turn of the century the building had been a warehouse, taking goods off the river and holding them until people bought them or sold them downstairs in the wide wooden room. Inactivity and the trials of time left it sketchy, and then in the middle of the century, when the country was gripped with nostalgia for all things past, it became a condo complex.

  For only twice the price of an apartment anywhere else in town you could live in the same walls that had housed slaves, cotton, and covered wagons. Of course that had been in the 50s, when the building had been a desirable address, today there was nothing about it that would make me even consider moving from the Eclipse.

  It wasn’t even vampire safe. They didn’t make buildings that way then. I wondered why Amadeus hadn’t moved someplace that was. Sure he could walk from here to Fairy Tails, but wouldn’t knowing you could move around safely during the day be more important than a quick commute? It was a question I probably wouldn’t ask him. We knocked on the door, and he answered without a smile. We followed him in anyway.

  Tastefully decorated in light mauves and silver, the entire place was perfect 1950s art deco. Carefully placed track lighting mimicked the sunlight aftermarket shutters blocked out. A print of dancers hung over the fireplace. It didn’t look like a man’s place. What woman had picked it out? Was she still in his life? If she was there was no trace of her, no photos, no sweater left casually on the couch, no purse hanging over the edge of a chair.

  The front door opened on to the living room. Amadeus waved his hand over a couch in what might have been an invitation to sit. Danny, oblivious to my need for formality, took it. I tried to lean against a small table in a space behind the couch but couldn’t find a good position. Finally, I relented and took the arm chair farthest away from our host. Hopefully the stiff white leather would keep me from looking relaxed.

  Amadeus didn’t look any better at home than he had at the hospital. He was wearing dark blue jeans with an open button down shirt. It was a look that worked on a few men I knew but left him emaciated and overly pale. I forgave him for it but only because of the heavy bandages across his chest.

  “How’s the burn?” Danny asked trying to open the conversation.

  He shrugged. “Annoying.”

  “It doesn’t bother you?” I expected a professional to be a little vainer.

  “I’ll get a fire witch to take care of it eventually. We had one down at the club who could heal this on her lunch hour. It’s just a matter of finding out what crack house she’s crawled into and dragging her out.”

  “A fire witch who could heal? Isn’t that a little powerful to be a…” I stopped myself before I said it, aware of how condescending I sounded.

  “A whore? Or were you going to be polite and say professional?” he sneered. “She didn’t know how strong she was, and she’ll probably OD in some alley before she gets a chance to find out.”

  “You don’t sound like you like Fairy Tails, why stay?” Danny asked, playing the good cop.

  “I’d rather have someone pay me to eat then scramble around finding food. Besides, I don’t mind being admired.” His smile changed the planes of his face into something reasonably handsome. I smiled back before I realized he was doing it deliberately. “There are other ways to make a living but not many are so easy or pleasurable.”

  “It wasn’t pleasurable the other night.” Danny’s voice was cold. Amadeus only laughed.

  “No, it wasn’t, but that was my own fault for not paying attention.”

  “You mean you knew you would be attacked?”

  “I’m not psychic, Detective. I mean I shou
ld have been careful.”

  “Why? Do people regularly attack you at work?”

  “Not regularly but it happens. Angry husbands, regulars who get jealous, that sort of thing.”

  “But nothing particular stands out about last night?” Danny tried. I suspected Danny didn’t have enough experience to shake something loose. Amadeus might look sixteen, but he was definitely more practiced at this game.

  Amadeus shook his head.

  “All right, did you see anything or hear anything that might help us?”

  “No, I’m afraid there’s nothing to help you.” He smiled sweetly, and I knew Danny had asked the wrong question. I wanted to say what I knew, what he’d told Jakob but didn’t think interrupting their back and forth would help.

  “So you saw something, but it wouldn’t help us?” Danny rallied.

  “The woman I was with was naked and very amorous, would you like me to describe what I saw?”

  “You’re not being particularly helpful.”

  “I’m sorry. I don’t think there’s much for you to do.” His tone was a dismissal, but something nagged at me.

  “There’s nothing else you want to officially share with us?”

  He glared at me, his eyes daring me to say something. “No.”

  “What about enemies in the vampire community? Someone who would know how to hurt you?”

  “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” He looked me in the eyes when he lied, as if I was the one behaving badly. Maybe I was. Maybe what he’d said to Jakob had been in some sort of vampire confidence. Unsure, I switched subjects.

  “The girl, the fire witch who could heal?” I asked.

  “Kelly,” he supplied.

  “When did you see her last?”

  “At health inspections around the beginning of the month. She’ll be back when the money runs out.”

  “Or she’ll be dead,” Danny added glumly.

  “It happens.” He brushed it off. “People come and go. Her boyfriend left a few weeks before she did.”

  “Boyfriend?” Danny’s voice perked up. Neither of us had realized Amadeus could be useful to our other case.

  “He was young; they played at love when they weren’t getting high together. I’m sorry he’s gone. He kept Vianne distracted.”

  “Vianne likes them very young.” Disgust made my voice flat.

  He nodded. “Chris claimed to be nineteen, but he tasted younger.”

  “Illegally young? And you didn’t report that?” Danny asked.

  “I’m not the morality police.” His eyes focused away from us, reliving a memory he wasn’t going to share. “I’ve seen younger men die in war. I’m afraid I can’t get upset about the extended adolescence of modern times.”

  “You’ve thought about this before?” Danny continued.

  “I don’t have to. I’m old enough to have seen the age of consent move up and down. People don’t change; bodies still mature at fifteen or sixteen even if the law says otherwise.”

  “But you respect the law?” I asked.

  “I respect the power of people in authority.” I suspected from his look he meant Jakob.

  “And yet, you aren’t going to tell us anymore about the attack.” Danny interrupted our unspoken conversation.

  “There’s nothing more for you to do, nothing more for me to tell.”

  ****

  It was hard to know what to write up about the interview, but easy to call narcotics and see if they had anything in their files about Chris or Kelly. I left the report to Danny and picked up the phone. Narcotics had a few arrests, all of which had been sealed as juvenile records. I spent some time trying to convince them to give me something, anything, but succeeded only in getting transferred to their lieutenant’s voice mail. I hung up without leaving a message. If we were going to call our mommies, er lieutenants, I’d call mine first. Unfortunately, Lieutenant French was already at the race, with half the office. I hadn’t realized how quickly they would jump at the opportunity to spend Saturday night outside in the park instead of inside filling out paperwork and waiting for a call to come in. So many people had signed up, the nightshift was only going to leave a skeleton crew in place. I hoped that didn’t involve any actual skeletons, but knowing our guys it could.

  I checked the clock again but saw time was still going far too slowly. I was nervous, but I was always nervous before a track meet, that was nothing special.

  “You know, Mal,” Danny started when I looked up again, “you don’t have to run this thing.”

  “Yeah, but I’d have to put up with you and the rest of the squad giving me hell about it.” Simon and Lucas had already left; our side of the bull pen was completely empty.

  “Seriously, if you’re not prepared…”

  “Hey, I’m prepared.” I pointed to the now empty blue box of fudge. “I’ve been carb loading all day.”

  “Okay, so maybe you’re prepared, but you don’t have to do it in thirty minutes,” Danny pleaded. He was giving me an out, which was sweet, but I didn’t want it. The fact that he offered it made me even more determined to run.

  “It’s cute that you’re worried, but I’ll be fine.” The look on his face was too much for me. “Unless you want to run it with me, to make sure I’m okay?”

  “Oh no, I’m useless on dry land. I’m a swimmer.”

  “Like the girls?” Maeve and Nora both swam before or after school depending on the day of the week. I’d been to a few meets, and while I didn’t know anything about technique, the girls could certainly hold their breath longer than anyone in a pool.

  “Better than the girls,” Danny gloated.

  “I’ll tell Phoebe to organize a swim next time then,” I said with a smile. I gave up on work with a final glance at the clock and headed home to get ready.

  ****

  Time had moved all too slowly in the afternoon, but once the sun set, it sped up to lightning speed. Jakob picked me up, and we were in the park in the middle of the pre-race chaos before I could blink. All around me people were stretching or chatting with friends, wearing all the latest running gear. My shorts and worn tank top felt flimsy in comparison, worse I was freezing. I’d dressed for the running the part, not the standing around after dark part. Detective Auster, wearing a “Hi my name is Ben!” badge handed me my number. Anna waved before walking out to the turnaround point with a giant cooler of water.

  I spotted E in the crowd, chatting with Jakob. Their talk was interrupted by a frantic Phoebe who needed E to start the flame on the hot cocoa pots since no one had remembered matches. It was complete chaos, and all too quickly I had to line up at the start.

  The trick to running a race, any race, is to run at a steady pace. That means not going out too quickly. I knew the rule, but I completely ignored it. When the whistle blew, I went out like a shot and kept running as fast as I could until I hit the first mile marker at seven minutes and thirty-three seconds. It was too fast, my legs remembered the rhythm, but I couldn’t catch my breath. I slowed down, stopping at the half way point for water and encouragement from Anna.

  But I’d slowed down too much; my second mile put my total time at nearly seventeen minutes. I was struggling with the math as I picked up the pace. 5K was longer than any of my distances in school, long enough that my body, which had been on board with this insanity in the beginning, was starting to rebel. The out and back course helped though, I could tell where I’d been, and I knew how much farther I had to go. I decided running out of air was the least of my worries and put everything I had into the last mile.

  The blinking countdown clock came into view. I watched the glowing digital numbers go from 27:45 to 28 as my legs ate up the last yards of the course. The sign seemed too far away, far enough that I’d have to put up with months of jabs. I pushed, I ran as fast as my legs could go and didn’t bother asking if my lungs could keep up. I was gasping for air, my breath coming in desperate pants not long enough to give me what I needed when I crossed the fin
ish mat at exactly 29:55. I stumbled into Jakob’s waiting arms, glad he was able to hold me up. Phoebe hovered behind the two of us, her face filled with worry.

  My gasping didn’t stop when I stopped running. Jakob was instructing me to breathe, but it didn’t help. It was a shame I was going to suffocate before I could savor the irony of breathing instructions from someone who hadn’t been out of breath in six centuries. Jakob steered me into a cheap plastic chair, and I sat down. It didn’t help, my vision started to get narrow.

  “I’ll get, Isa.” Phoebe looked at me and darted away. A second later I couldn’t see where she had been. I tried to concentrate on Jakob’s voice telling me to slow my breathing, but it didn’t help. Every mouthful of air reminded me how desperate I was for more.

  “Having some trouble, Mors?” A hand hit my bare shoulder and suddenly there was air to breath. Sweet cool air filled my lungs, and the race finish wasn’t so dark anymore. Ben was standing next to me, his hulking frame blocking out the light behind him. His air witch magic pulled me back from the edge of unconsciousness.

  “Mal!” Phoebe and Isaura barreled down on the three of us. Before I knew it, Isaura’s hand grabbed mine, and my lungs were doubly full. It was bliss.

  “I’ve got her,” Ben said.

  “I can take care of her. I’m an air witch.” Isaura kept her eyes on my face. I smiled at my second hero.

  “I think that’s my line.” Ben’s voice didn’t sound like it did in the squad room.

  She turned to look up at him and took her hand from me. I could feel the difference in my lungs, but they were ready to handle it.

  “Isaura,” she said with a smile. Ben took his hand from my shoulder to shake the one she offered, and the air stopped again. I wheezed while the two of them said their hellos. By the time they remembered me, I was able to breathe on my own. I waved them off and turned back to Phoebe and Jakob.

  “You wouldn’t believe what those two are feeling. It’s like a contact high standing next to them,” Phoebe said with a far off look. I grinned and Jakob helped me up.

  “Lust or something else?” Jakob asked.