B006P1R39O EBOK

by Lorraine Kennedy

  “Good,” he smiled. “Then we will meet here at dawn on Easter Sunday.”

  Warning bells were sounding in her head. “Wait … that’s so soon.”

  “Is there any reason to postpone this any longer?” he asked.

  “No … it’s just that it’s Easter Sunday and it’s at dawn. None of our friends will be able to be with us.” Kathrina’s eyes were pleading with Nicole and Sarah to recognize how wrong all of this sounded.

  “If you are talking about vampires … there are no vampires that are your true friends,” he told her.

  This did get Nicole and Sarah’s attention. “I don’t agree with that,” Sarah told him, her eyes turning hard.

  “You have to understand … we are going after vampires. It is not a good idea to do this after dark.” He had changed his tactic and was trying to get them to see reason.

  What he was saying about fighting vampires in the dark was true, and not a point that Kathrina felt she could argue, but those warning bells were still going off. They would be walking into a nest of vampires with a group of slayers that she didn’t trust. She would just as soon do it at night, if it meant they would have Dash, Darrien and Alec with them.

  “That I won’t agree to this plan,” Kathrina told them. If we cannot bring our friends with us, I will not go along.”

  Jordan smiled. “Okay then … we will go at midnight instead, but don’t say I didn’t warn you. The three of you haven’t the slightest idea of what you’ll be up against.”

  “You’d be surprised,” Nicole told him.

  Kathrina could sense that Nicole was also having second thoughts about Jordan and it made her feel a little better. At least she wasn’t the only one thinking that there might be something wrong with this slayer.

  Before leaving, Nicole told Jordan that she would prefer that they meet on neutral ground. They all agreed to meet at Jackson Square; from there Jordan would take them to Omar.

  Once the three of them were in the car and on their way home, Kathrina voiced her doubts. “Haven’t you wondered how Jordan would know where Omar is?”

  “Yes,” Nicole answered. “But we have to take the chance. I don’t know about you guys, but I’m ready to put all of this behind me.”

  Sarah nodded in agreement. Kathrina had to admit that’s exactly what she was feeling. It was time to rid the world of Omar so that they could start living for themselves again.

  But why all of the sudden did they all have such a strong urge to get it done and over with? They’d been waiting patiently for a long time now, a little while longer wouldn’t make that much difference. Like the unwanted thoughts that she’d had earlier, she wasn’t so sure that what she was thinking was coming from her own head.

  * * *

  Kathrina sat in a pew at the back of the church. She lowered her head as if to pray, but she couldn’t think of a thing to say to a God that would permit so much bloodshed and anguish. In her heart she knew it was not really God that allowed such things, but man. People were far to quick to embrace darkness.

  It was a Thursday night and St. Mary’s was all but deserted. Earlier there had been a janitor in the chapel mopping floors, but he’d gone, leaving her alone with her thoughts.

  The church was beautiful. Although it was dark, light reflected off of the gold-trimmed carvings behind the altar, giving the illusion that the chapel was brighter than what it really was. Behind the altar were several burning candles. The flickering flames from those candles brought a certain eeriness to the moment.

  She’d come to the church seeking peace and solitude, craving relief from the constant doubt that plagued her. Her nerves were fried. She could not help but wonder if attacking Omar right now was the right thing to do. It was her distrust of Jordan that was really bothering her. There seemed to be far more questions than answers when it came to the slayer.

  How did he know where to find Omar?

  Why was he so determined to kill Luciano, and why couldn’t he do it without their help?

  Her heart began to ache when she thought of Luciano. She hadn’t heard a word from him in two days. It was like he’d just disappeared from the face of the earth. Of course two days wasn’t that long, but to her it seemed like an eternity.

  She was certain that he was staying away from her on purpose, though she hoped that he was still watching over her. The knowledge that he might be close made her feel safer and gave her a sense of security. She needed to feel safe right now because she was terrified of what the next few days would bring.

  Kathrina jumped when she heard movement behind her. Turning her head quickly, she looked over her shoulder and was immensely relieved to see that it was Dash.

  She’d asked him to meet her at the church so that they could talk without anyone knowing. It’s not that she didn’t trust her sisters; she just didn’t want to give them any further reason to doubt her sanity. She had a feeling that they were doing a lot of that lately.

  There was another reason. The discoloration that she’d discovered around her lips was now on other parts of her body as well. She was literally beginning to resemble a zombie. It was just one more reason why she had begun to distance herself from most of the people in her life. Not only did she feel self conscious about it, but she didn’t want to deal with all of the questions right now. At least not until she had some answers herself.

  “What’s up buttercup?” Dash gave her one of his sheepish grins.

  “Thank you for coming,” she told him. Though Kathrina tried to smile, there were tears welling up in her eyes. She hadn’t realized how much she’d missed him, or how alone she’d felt the last couple of days. Nicole and Sarah were so set on working with Jordan that she no longer felt comfortable around them.

  Dash leaned over and placed a hand on her shoulder. “What’s happened? Are you okay?”

  Kathrina nodded. “I’m okay … I just don’t feel so well I guess.”

  Dash drew his brows together. “Why? What’s going on?” he asked, his voice full of agitation. “If someone’s been messing with you …” Dash slammed his fist into the palm of his hand. “I’ll kill them!”

  “Dash there’s something wrong?”

  “Well tell me what’s up. I can’t do a thing to help you if you’re going to keep it to yourself.”

  “I don’t know,” Kathrina shook her head. “I can’t really tell you for sure what it is. I just know that there’s something wrong.”

  “Well you’re a lot of help,” he frowned.

  “Tell me the truth. What do you think of Luciano?” Kathrina was almost afraid to hear what his response would be, but she wanted an unbiased opinion. The problem was she wasn’t sure she’d get a neutral opinion from Dash, or anyone else for that matter.

  “Well I think he’s a spook,” Dash shrugged. “I mean … he’s a vampire, what else would I think of him?”

  For the first time in days Kathrina smiled. “Dash, you’re a vampire too.”

  “Well that’s true … and I’m a spook … right?” He gave her a wide smile.

  “I think you are avoiding an answer,” Kathrina scowled.

  Dash laughed. “And I think you young lady … have a bit of a crush on that old vampire.”

  Kathrina felt her cheeks color.

  “Oh no … tell me it isn’t true.” Dash looked pained. “You don’t go falling for guys that kidnap you … especially if they happen to be vampires that plan to drink your blood.”

  “I know,” Kathrina admitted. “But he did change his mind and then he saved my life.”

  “Well there is that,” Dash gave her a lopsided smile. “But don’t go getting it into your head that you can change what he is. Luciano is a killer and there must have been some motive for letting you live.”

  “I know a lot of those … killers I mean.”

  “You do, but Luciano is different. He’s what nightmares are made of.”

  Kathrina shook her head. “I don’t believe it. I just think he is misunderstood.”r />
  Dash lifted his hands in the air in exasperation. “Then why’d you ask if you didn’t want to know?”

  “What I want to know is why everyone thinks this awful stuff about him?”

  Dash was silent for a moment, studying Kathrina as if she were a bug under a microscope. “Okay,” he said with a deep sigh. “I’m going to be as honest with you as I can be about this.”

  Kathrina waited quietly. A part of her really didn’t want to know about Luciano, but she had asked, and Dash was someone that she trusted.

  “I don’t know a lot about him … only what I’ve heard, and that hasn’t been good. He’s an ancient. He has been here since the beginning … according to legend anyway. I mean … you saw what he did at your party. Do you know any other vampires that can do anything like that?”

  Kathrina shook her head.

  “That’s what I’m getting at. He’s a vampire, but not really like the rest of us.”

  “That doesn’t necessarily make him bad,” Kathrina pointed out.

  “Very true, but it sure doesn’t make him a nice cuddly little puppy either.”

  “There’s something else,” Kathrina told him. Leaning over closer, she pulled up the sleeve of her blouse and pointed to a blotch of bluish gray skin on her arm. “I’m getting these all over. Could he do something like this?”

  Grabbing her arm in his hand, he drew her nearer. “You’re getting these spots all over you say?”

  Kathrina nodded. “It started a couple of days ago, after I last saw him.”

  “You’ve seen him since coming back?” he asked, a little shocked.

  “Yes, a couple of times,” she admitted.

  Dash was quiet. “Was that the night that you left the club with the slayer?”

  Again she nodded. “He kind of tried to get intimate with me and Luciano intervened.”

  “Hmm,” Dash was still examining the mark on her skin. “It almost looks like bruising … like the blood vessels are bursting.”

  “What would cause that?”

  “Trauma of some sort,” he told her as he let go of her arm.

  “Could he do that?”

  “Well no doubt … look what he did to those vampires.”

  “Kathrina’s heart sank. Why was he doing this to her?

  “But why … why would he do this to me after …” Kathrina’s words trailed off. She couldn’t tell Dash what had happened between her and Lucinao.

  “Maybe he isn’t doing it on purpose?” Dash suggested. “Or maybe it isn’t him that’s doing it.”

  That got Kathrina’s attention. “Then who?”

  “Luciano wasn’t the only one you saw that night … remember?”

  He was right. There had been the boy vampire, and all of those other vampires at the nightclub.”

  “What other vampire could do something like this? You said it yourself.”

  “Who said it had to be a vampire.” There was a cryptic note in Dash’s voice.

  “Well the only other person I saw was Jordan. You don’t think he could do this do you?”

  Dash just shrugged. “You never know.”

  “Well I don’t trust him at all, but I kind of don’t think that he could be responsible for this. He’s just a man.”

  “Well then … when you eliminate all other possibilities, what you are left with is probably your answer.”

  Kathrina lowered her eyes, the ache in her heart had returned. It couldn’t be anyone but Luciano.

  Chapter Eleven

  Dash walked her home. He mentioned something about needing to go see someone and left abruptly.

  She was a little surprised that he would go without talking with her sisters, but she was getting the distinct impression from him that he was feeling a lot of what she was feeling. Sarah and Nicole seemed too taken in by Jordan. If it was making her feel uncomfortable, she could only imagine how it would make Dash feel. Jordan was a slayer, and it was obvious that he had no love for the immortal.

  Kathrina leaned against the porch railing and watched as Dash walked away and was swallowed up by the dark. The image made her shiver. There was something unnerving about watching Dash leave. It made her feel lonely, as if she were the only person left on earth.

  Looking up, she could see a small patch of night sky through the canopy of trees that covered the front yard. The night seemed too dark - unnaturally so. There was no moonlight and the sky appeared empty of stars. Not even a small breeze stirred the air.

  The stillness of the night was shattered by the sound of the porch swing as it moved. Kathrina jumped. Holding her breath, she slowly turned around. The swing was swaying back and forth, squeaking as it moved. For just an instant she thought she saw movement in the dark, but then there was nothing there - the swing was empty.

  To ease her nerves, she grabbed at the idea that it had been a cat, or some other animal that had caused the swing to move. She wasn’t willing to accept that it had been anything else. There were so many things to deal with right now that adding phantoms to the mix wasn’t an option.

  Turning her back to the swing, she opened the front door and stepped inside the house. Kathrina wasn’t prepared for the absolute silence that greeted her. At this time of night her father would be gone, but someone was usually home. Her sisters stayed at the house Alec kept in the Garden District, but they spent most of their time at their father’s.

  Nicole’s mother was always at home. About this time she should be finishing up in the kitchen after dinner. Donavan, Alec and Darrien rarely shared meals with them, but sometimes they would sit at the table while the rest of the family dined.

  Where was the noise from the radio? Vicky always listened to the radio while she was cleaning up.

  In the front parlor there was light from a single lamp, but the rest of the house was dark. Kathrina took a few steps and winced when she heard her footsteps echo through the hall. The house was empty.

  “Vicky!” Kathrina yelled. “Nicole! Sarah! Is anyone here?”

  Her only answer was absolute silence. Taking off her jacket, she flung it over the back of the chair and started for the kitchen. It was empty, just as she thought it would be. The rest of the house was as well.

  The stillness of the house gave her the creeps, though she couldn’t understand why. It wasn’t as if she hadn’t spent time alone in the house before.

  Back in the kitchen, Kathrina opened the fridge to pour herself a glass of soda. The fridge was completely empty.

  Now she was confused. When she’d made herself eggs this morning, the fridge had been full.

  Had they left New Orleans and moved away?

  Kathrina brushed the notion aside as ridiculous. Her sisters wouldn’t have left without saying anything, and she was sure Donavan wouldn’t. He had no reason to leave New Orleans. The only threat to him was Luciano, and she couldn’t imagine that her father would let another vampire chase him away.

  Still confused, Kathrina pushed the refrigerator door closed. Leaving the kitchen, she decided that she would go to Alec’s and see if she could find out where everyone had gone.

  Slipping on her jacket, she reached out to open the door, but thought better of it. Alec lived several blocks away. She’d probably get there a lot faster if she called a taxi. Kathrina took her phone out of her pants pocket and tried to dial the local cab company. She’d taken a cab the other night so the number was already programmed into her phone. She pushed redial, but a message popped up on the screen indicating that there was no service.

  Kathrina wrinkled her forehead in confusion. She’d never had this problem before.

  Giving up, she went to the house phone that was on a table near the fireplace. She picked it up and put it to her ear, but there was nothing. It too was dead.

  Fingers of fear wrapped around her throat - cutting off her air - choking her until she was struggling just to get oxygen into her lungs.

  Kathrina willed herself to be calm. There had to be some kind of logical explanation. Ev
en within her strange existence, there was still a sense of order and reason.

  She would never find out what was going on if she sat in a corner like a scared rabbit, waiting for someone to show up and give her an explanation.

  Her footsteps sounded hollow as she walked down the street. The city was as silent and deserted as her house had been. Kathrina pulled her phone out to check the time, but it was dead. She couldn’t even get it to turn on now.

  Damn! Why didn’t she wear a watch?

  Kathrina couldn’t imagine that it was any later than 10:00 PM. She hadn’t been gone that long, yet the streets were empty.

  That wasn’t normal for New Orleans. There should be sirens, the sound of cars, people shouting or laughing - just the average noise pollution that you could expect from a big city. But there was nothing.

  After walking several blocks, she still hadn’t so much as seen a car drive by. Kathrina turned onto a street with several lampposts. At first she felt some relief, but she quickly noticed that the light from the lamps almost seemed to be smothered by darkness - like the shadows were alive and were somehow able to eat away at the light.

  Kathrina walked faster. The sooner she could get to Alec’s place the better.

  A few moments later she turned into Alec’s circular driveway. His car was there, but the windows were dark.

  He was a vampire and it was night. There was no reason to believe he’d be home. Maybe her sisters had gone out with their guys.

  She knew the explanation was more to make herself feel better, but she held onto the thought anyway.

  Kathrina knocked on the door and waited.

  No one came to the door and she heard nothing from inside. Again she knocked, this time louder.

  “Hey it’s Kathrina!”

  Still no one came.

  Kathrina reached out and turned the knob to see if it was locked; it wasn’t. Pushing the door open she stuck her head inside. “Is anyone home?”

  The house was dark and as silent as the grave. Obviously no one was there.

  Now what?

  Kathrina eyed Alec’s car. Did she dare take it without permission?