by Yirak, Laura
Relief was all he felt for about a millisecond, one more loose end tied up with a storm about to hit. With more police poking around, they might discover the underground and then what? Even with his personal struggle over the truth about Alesta, Patrick did not want anyone to else to discover it. He loved her plain and simple and would protect her. It was the moment of clarity that he needed.
Judy came down the stairs just as Patrick came back inside. “I’m waiting for her call. Cara is on her way to the church now. I don’t know how much more of this I can take. Ian, the Father, Sister Ellen, now the police, I’m utterly distracted from what it is I am supposed to be doing again?”
“Well, Claire took care of lunch for us, so dinner? Maybe it’s too early though I feel we just served breakfast. Time is passing quickly. Lord. We can prepare it as we wait, and, just try to calm down. Maybe some tea?” Patrick suggested.
“No, no more caffeine Patrick. My nerves.”
They both went into the kitchen and started to muse over some older menus looking for ideas, “So you got the hint?” Patrick asked settling on duck.
“Yes. I told the Constable that Sister Ellen came by for tea, but he knew I was fibbing. I never was good at it. Now I can keep a secret just fine but anything more than that and, I read like an open book.”
“Aye, I suspect that’s why he’s coming back later, but we’ll deal with it, we did the best we could with no warning……” Patrick slammed the duck down a bit too hard on the cutting board. “Sister Ellen just couldn’t keep away could she?” He flipped the meat over the other way just as loudly. “Alesta is going to be pissed.”
“Maybe not,” Judy said just watching him do all the work, as that was about all she could do as she checked that the ringer was on her cell phone for the fourth time.
Patrick saw her and looked up at the clock, time was going by so slowly now. He wondered how time passed for Alesta. Was it slow or fast or maybe it wasn’t noticeable to the eternal? Judy’s cell phone rang interrupting his flow of conclusions.
“Cara?” Judy said after almost dropping the older cell phone, she nodded and listened for a bit, “Oh thank God,” Judy finally said and thanked her profusely promising she’d tell her daughter the whole story another time, it was another fib.
“So she made it in time?” Patrick asked after Judy said goodbye.
“Aye, thank God. Now I might have a cuppa after all.”
“Me too, if you could?”
“Sure.” Judy went to work a little lighter in step, “Cara said Sister Ellen looked surprised at the information, but just listened, didn’t say much of anything. She thought it was odd.”
“Well it is odd, all of it. Cara having to do that in the first place, you can trust her?” Patrick asked.
“Oh yes, Cara won’t say anything. We haven’t always been close but I know she’s trustworthy and loyal.”
“Good.” Patrick finished prepping the meat and continued on to sides. “Now we wait for Alesta.”
Waking up next to Nicholas was always a good thing, Alesta snuggled into him as she wasn’t quite ready yet to hop out of the comfy coffin. He relaxed as she did and they enjoyed the peace for a little while longer.
“We’ve got to get up,” Nicholas whispered eventually.
“Ahhhhh!” Alesta stretched making sure to squish him.
“Kommen Sie.” He pulled her arm over him and gathered her up lifting her out of the coffin and into the air landing slowly.
“Show off,” she laughed.
“Might as well start the night in flight!”
“Cheesy! Nicholas!” now Alesta really laughed.
“I want a day off. Can I have a day off please? A real day off.” Alesta pulled him out of the coffin room towards the big bath tub and turned on the water.
They sat in the dark in the hot water as white as ghosts, eyes bright, and his hazel, hers that bright blue.
Nicholas dunked his head under the water then popped back up lathering up his hair in shampoo, “Yes it would be nice to forget all of our problems, just vanish and leave it up to whoever, whatever, but…..”
“But we can’t do that,” Alesta added. “Ah, I’m needing a holiday.”
“We can go to Germany, my Deutschland, so lush and green this time of year, not that I can see its true beauty, but it’s just as enchanting at night.”
“To see daylight again, I dream of it.” Alesta sighed.
“I know, it would bring only our end. That is the trade for eternity.” Nicholas rinsed his hair out and tossed the shampoo to Alesta who lathered up.
“The trade is a lot larger than that, humans have everything and they don’t realize it,” she said.
“And so do we…..just in different ways.” Nicholas slipped by her and kissed her as she had her eyes closed to prevent soap from entering.
“It’s hard though. It’s hard.”
“You’re speaking of Patrick?”
“Yes. I went to the ballroom yesterday and thought back to the times of William.”
“And why would you do that?”
“Ian has brought it all back to me, what I did to him, what I did to William, what I did to Ro. It’s all come back now to haunt me.”
“Not to haunt you, Alesta, don’t look at it like that. Time has passed and here they are.”
“But why at the same time, why now?” She put her hands on his face.
“Vampires are subject to karma, God’s will, whatever you want to call it perhaps. Maybe it’s all coincidence or maybe not. You know after all this time I still haven’t quite figured that question out.”
“I think I could drive myself mental pondering.” Alesta dunked her head and then came up again after a long minute, he dunked under too and they both looked at each other in the dampened sound of the water. They both popped up at the same time after trying to outlast each other.
“So don’t,” Nicholas said. “All we have to do is take care of it now in the best way that we can.”
“I think we should let Ro go,” she said.
“What?” Nicholas was surprised.
“Let him go and follow him. He’ll lead us to the truth.”
“But he’ll know we’re following him, that’s so obvious.”
“No, we have to make him think he has escaped somehow and that you and I are some how disposed of by him.”
“It’s risky.” Nicholas sounded hesitant.
“No, it’s perfect.” Alesta got out of the tub and dried off, she gave Nicholas a towel admiringly.
“When?” he asked.
“Tonight.”
It was an eternity to Patrick before Alesta finally came over to the main house. She smiled at him when she came in as though nothing had passed between them but the smile quickly vanished when he informed her of the impending police search. He waited and watched her as she stood there hand on her chin in front of him at the front desk. It was just the two of them.
“They’re coming tonight?” It was a rhetorical question. “Let them. We’ve nothing to hide.”
Patrick largely disagreed with the comment but instead said, “What do you want me to do?”
“Stay here in the Manor and co-operate. I have something I must do later but I will stick around while they pose their so-called investigation. That Queen! He‘s stubborn and unrelenting. I‘d like to just…..Oh!”
Patrick didn‘t know what to make of her words but figured it was vampire talk, “You don’t think they’ll discover the underground, or…..”
“No. I’ll make sure access to that is protected. It will be uneventful for them.”
“Right,” Patrick said.
“You sound doubtful.”
“No…..well…..maybe a little. Constable Queen, he’s tricky.”
“That man! I will keep the place safe, not to worry Patrick.”
She reached out to touch him, but pulled back as she noticed that he seemed unreceptive. They were both left with an uncomfortable silence.
&nb
sp; “Well…..I better get back in the kitchen…..” He interrupted it getting up from his chair.
“Patrick…..” Alesta spoke softly.
He turned and held her eyes a little longer than normal feeling his stomach tighten up.
“I…..” Alesta began.
“Don’t,” he said and pointed to his ear to listen.
They both heard the sound of the gravel being disturbed by several cars.
“It’s them.” Patrick came to stand by her side as they waited.
“Good evening.” Constable Queen looked quite pleased as he entered the Manor with a taller officer beside him. “We are here to search the premises under suspicions I hope that Patrick has discussed with you. I have papers just in case you intend to disagree.”
“No. I will fully co-operate with anything that you ask Constable Queen.” Alesta kept her statements short just like the Constable.
“Right then.” The Constable directed the taller brunette officer who was in a blue uniform to start out back by the shoreline and work his way to the smaller house. “I’ll be here for now.” The Constable turned back to Alesta. “I have some questions for you.”
She was not surprised by that and kept his gaze. She couldn’t help but hear the other officers outside complaining about doing this search at night, she smiled. It was not something a human could hear.
“Something funny?” the Constable asked.
“No, no, nothing,” she said, “How about the kitchen aye, we have guests about?”
Patrick shook his head as he stayed put, the phones began to ring as the worried guests began calling inquiring about the police outside. Patrick apologized for the disturbance and just told them that they were looking for a missing person and not to worry and asked them if they would like some complimentary tea and biscuits. Tea could solve all the world’s problems.
They sat at the kitchen nook, a popular place. “As you probably know, I want to ask you about the disappearance of Father Mac Namara. Can you tell me why Sister Ellen came to visit here today?” he pulled out his little note pad.
“Well I only know what Patrick has said and that is she was here to visit. I have been out all day.”
“Doing what?”
“Touring.”
“Touring?”
“Yes…..with my guest.”
“Oh, the gentleman from the other night.”
“Yes.”
A pair of bright glowing hazel eyes flashed before the Constable’s vision as if they were floating in the room before him, but then he blinked and they were gone.
“Constable?” Alesta raised her tone.
“Um…..excuse me…..where was I…..” He looked at his notepad page which was blank.
But the eyes flashed again, this time lingering a little longer. The Constable paused and stared back at them, held there. Without a second thought he got up from the little kitchen nook and followed them into the dark pantry only to find a dark figure, a white pair of fangs and hazel eyes so bright they looked blonde. Before he knew it he was succumbed by intense pain and intense pleasure.
Nicholas came out from the pantry a little while later looking happy, “Dinner is served! You know I quite like the taste of him.”
“Nicholas!”
“Oh he’s fine. He’s slumped in there comfortably asleep. Anyways I didn’t like his tone, so brash.”
“Tell me about it. Pain in the….. Come on! Help me sit him back here in front of me, for when he wakes up.”
“Fine, fine, you mean you don’t want me to just dump him somewhere? There are plenty more cells in the dungeon.”
“Nicholas!”
“I’m kidding. I’m kidding.”
The Constable came around a while later, eyes slowly opening to an intent Alesta and a blank notepad. He furrowed his brow and scratched his head as he had not a clue as to what he was doing or what was going on.
“Do you have any more questions?” Alesta asked.
“No I guess I don’t,” he responded, “I’m tired.”
“Me too.” Alesta nodded in agreement and faked a yawn.
He could not help but yawn too. “Thank you,” he said, “I know my way out.”
“Of course. Let me know if you need anything. I’ll be around.”
“I will do then.”
Alesta watched the Constable leave walking as if he had a light hangover.
“What did you tell him back there in the pantry?” she asked a rather full and satisfied Nicholas.
“I told him that he had no more interest here in this place and he nodded in agreement. He’s easier than I expected to influence considering his personality. Yeah sometimes you just don’t know if they’ll take commands. Most of the time yes, but there’s the odd one who stumps you.”
“I haven’t experimented with that as much as you have,” Alesta said.
“You should.”
“Perhaps I will.” Alesta thought of Allister.
A mystified Patrick watched as the Constable rounded up his troops early and herded them into the police cars. The visit had been short, but not sweet as a few of the officers had been poking around Alesta’s house and were just about to venture into the wine cellar. Patrick was cringing at every move, but it was all cut so short.
“Vampires!” Patrick whispered.
The clunk of a heavy plate woke up Father Mac Namara.
“I brought you some dinner.” The female whisper resonated through his cell and then smacked him right on the ear drum, he covered up his ears and brought himself to a sitting position.
“Who’s there?’ he asked exhaustedly.
“It’s me, Alesta.” This time she let her voice be as any human.
“Where am I?”
“In a cell.”
“I’d thank you but considering my location…..”
“I’m sorry,” Alesta said. “I didn’t want to do this to you. It’s Ian we’re locking up.”
“Ian, Ian, Ian…..the disgusting thing that takes my body, God’s body……how long aye? How long do you intend on keeping me here? I demand an answer. This whole thing…..this whole thing is absolute insanity! You are all bloody insane. Get me out of here!”
“Please take your dinner. I…..I feel terrible about it all.”
Father Mac Namara made a grumbling sound and took the meat and cheese and ate it as if he was like some sort of rabid beast. He looked up at her with black eyes.
“Ian?” she asked.
“Alesta,” he smiled. “Real meat. I don’t think I’ve enjoyed this taste in sooooooo long.” Ian ripped off another chunk and chewed it like he was in heaven. “I love the taste of red meat. And I love the feeling real, solid…..heavy……” he finished up the last bite and licked his lips. “Ahhhhhh!” He leaned back against the stone cell in his usual position with his hands behind his head and kicked the plate against the bars, it shattered into sharp pieces.
Alesta looked mad, “Why’d you have to do that? Such a mess.”
“So you’ll come in here…..Why else my lovely.”
She shook her head, “Well I won’t be coming in there. You’ll have to sleep in it.”
“You mean the Father will have to sleep in it,” he looked completely amused.
“Being so difficult are we?”
The happy Ian smiled through the Father’s beautiful handsome face, so young and unlined. He could hold that body for a long time if he wanted to. This whole cell idea suddenly seemed like it wasn’t going to work. Ian had all the time in the world and a fresh body. Alesta felt uneasy about the whole thing.
“The vampire next door, I’ve been enjoying him too.”
“What’s that?” Alesta asked surprised.
“Yes. Unfortunately he’s not dead. Quite resilient that one.”
“Ro?”
“Yes. He’s been trying to bother us. Though I surprised him,” he laughed now.
“What?” Alesta didn’t know what to make of the situation.
Ian c
ontinued laughing, “Not much left now….of your so-called Ro.”
Alesta poked her head up and looked into Ro’s cell. Ian was right he was almost dead, not a movement from him in the slightest other than a much weakened breath. She had never seen a vampire in such a state and then realized then just how powerful Ian was. He could really feed off vampires.
“If you can do this to him then why not me?” she asked.
“I can’t do it to you. You’re the only one, the keeper of my own soul. But if I killed you I’d be set free of all this. The truth is I don’t want to kill you. I’m fond of you. I have been all these years, keeping an eye about the place and such. You didn’t even know I was still here, living your life so care free. So I’ll be sticking about.”
“But can’t you stick about and leave the poor Father out of this? Ian?” she tried to reason through to him.
“I suppose I hadn’t thought about it. I’ve been enjoying myself too much.”
“Yes you have. I’m sure we can come to an agreement.” Alesta had an epiphany.
“And that is.”
“Well…..leave the Fathers body and you can stay here.”
“What…..you mean…..you don’t want to get rid of me?”
“Ian I always was fond of you too. I think I even loved you at one point. Is there no way that we can all just get along? God I am so tired of all this hassle. You said you’ve been down by the shore hiding for years. Go back there, leave us in peace and we will leave you in peace. I’ll even visit and…..”
“This sounds like a trick to me.”
“No it’s not a trick. It’s a truce.”
“Truce then?????” Ian sat in silence for a long time. “I suppose I’ve had my fun for a bit.”
“No not a bit. You’ve had your fun period. Anyways I need a protector of the property. With these Ro characters about I never know what’s coming.”
Alesta was betting big and wasn’t sure what Ian would decide.
“A purpose to my lonely existence…..” he pondered a while longer. “I can do that. Keep an eye out and you’ll visit? You’re not just saying that to get what you want?”