by Debra Dunbar
I had one more card to play if my threats didn’t dissuade him. And if that didn’t work, it was time to scare the living crap out of him with a horrible case of magical food poisoning.
And if that didn’t work…well then, Russell really left me no other choice.
Chapter 30
JANICE BOUGHT ME lunch again. I was beginning to really like this reporter woman. I scarfed down my burger and fries like the starving woman that I was, grateful that I wouldn’t need to start my shift at the coffee shop with an achy, growling stomach.
“This is a pretty fantastic tale you’re telling me.” The reporter shook her head. “I can’t exactly report that the surviving member of a murdered family is into the occult and siccing his dead family on the family of the vampires who killed his loved ones, or that he has a scepter that might allow him to command an army of zombies.”
I was just grateful that she didn’t have me locked up in the loony bin as soon as I began telling her of necromancers and vampires, and that she was still willing to pay for my lunch. “Maybe if you say it’s the family of the gang that killed his loved ones forty years ago?”
It made me wonder if the vampires were tax-paying citizens in the eyes of the U.S. government. Not that it mattered. Janice would want to hide the identity of the “gang family” to protect them from other retaliation and harassment. To the vampires, remaining out of the public eye was important. The fewer who knew about them, the safer they’d be while they rested, vulnerable, during the day.
She tapped a French fry against her bottom lip. “That would work, but what Russell is doing is a crime. He’s killing people…well, sort-of people. The police are going to want to get involved, and being jailed for contempt of court because I refuse to reveal my sources isn’t in my long-term career plans.”
“You’ll need to push it more as a human interest piece. Survivor tracks down the family of the people that killed his family.”
“Don’t get me wrong, that sort of thing is golden. People love these kind of follow-up stories that deal with karma and grief. I’m just worried that I won’t have much of a story without the unbelievable supernatural angle.”
“Trust me, there will be one hell of a story either way.”
She slapped two twenties down on the table. “Then I’m in. I’m trusting you on this one, because I’m hoping you’ll come to me with other information in the future.”
“Absolutely. It might be weird stuff, and you’ll need to figure out how to spin it, but I’ll give you the heads up.”
Janice checked her phone. “Then I better get going. It seems Russell Robertson, a.k.a. Findal, is eager to meet with me in regards to information I have regarding the murder of his family.”
My heart raced. This was all coming together, but it seemed too easy. I knew better. The big risk was in what was going to go down tonight. I wasn’t sure how Russell was going to react. Heck, I wasn’t sure how Dario was going to react. Screw the other vampires, it was him I was worried about. If he hated me for this, if things went horribly wrong, I’d have made myself an enemy instead of repairing a friendship.
“I’ll see you tonight,” I told Janice as she rose from the table.
“I wouldn’t miss it for the world,” she replied.
My shift at the coffee shop seemed to crawl along. Every few minutes I was checking the windows, watching the sun slowly creep toward the horizon.
“Think I can get out of here right at nine?” I asked Petie. “Or earlier?”
He smirked. “Got a hot date?”
“Yeah.” It was easier to let him think I was running off to meet an eager boyfriend. In reality I was worried about my ability to get to the north end of Baltimore before sundown. Nine would cut it close—too close. And my arriving late would spell disaster. I’d texted Dario giving him the heads-up, but he wouldn’t get the message until nightfall.
“I don’t know, Aria. You’ve switched shifts and come in late a bunch of times this past week.”
I had. It was totally not like me. How did superheroes do this? Somehow they managed to juggle their secret-identity jobs and crime fighting. Yeah, Spidey got chewed-out a lot at the newsroom, but his boss was a total ball buster. Did others have this problem? Did Superman have to call in to change shifts because Lex Luther was bombing the city?
Batman. Now that guy had it good. Wealthy, with a butler to take care of all the loose ends. That could be me if I took my Oath, if I accepted the money my parents had been sticking in my other checking account. But then I wouldn’t be me, I’d be a martini-by-the-pool Templar, not one who would face down a necromancer to protect a group of vampires. And hopefully protect the necromancer, too. Leonora would be thrilled to see him dead, and she would no doubt accomplish that if she had a few more hours.
Hopefully I could avoid that scenario. Hopefully I could ensure the vampires were left in peace, and Russell lived the rest of his natural life with a soul at rest. Somehow that meant a lot to me. Russell locked in a jail cell, or with anger festering inside him for another forty years wasn’t the solution I wanted.
Because he was a Pilgrim, too. He just needed a course redirection.
Petie waved a hand to the door. “Fifteen early, girl. But only because I’m a fan of true love.”
I smiled. I loved my coworkers, really I did. “Thanks. You’re the best.”
“Huh. Just remember that when it’s Secret Santa time. And I like cognac, classic vinyl, and wool socks.”
I winked. “Got it.”
Quarter of nine I busted out the door and revved the engine of my little Toyota, hoping there weren’t any cops as I sped through the city. I didn’t encounter any delays, and pulled up outside the neat brownstone row house as the sun tinted the sky pink and lavender. The same woman rocked on the porch. I took the steps two at a time, and paused to greet her.
“Whatcha want, hon?”
I got a feeling that her “hon” was more local speech than any kind of endearment. “I need to talk to Bella’s guardian.”
She lifted an eyebrow and shook her head. “The girl ain’t fed yet. Won’t be safe for you to enter until she’s got a full belly, if you know what I mean.”
Crap, I’d totally forgotten Bella’s lack of control. Dario should be arriving as soon as the sun went down, but I was hoping to move things along before then, just in case he thought my idea was horrible, or too dangerous. Which it probably was.
“When does her donor for the evening arrive?”
The woman nodded, and I turned, watching as a young man sauntered toward us, grinning as he joined us on the porch.
“I’m Mario, here to meet with Bella?”
Elaine shot me a quick glance. “Can you take Mario in and entertain him until Bella is ready? There’s wine and other refreshments in the parlor.”
I went in, feeling a bit like a Madam in a whorehouse. Mario followed, his swagger indicating his complete ease with the whole process. The table did hold wine with several glasses, as well as…other things.
“Help yourself,” I told Mario as I uncorked the wine. He did help himself—to a jalapeno popper and a line of what looked like cocaine to me. My only experience with drugs beyond Tylenol was what I’d seen on television, so I wasn’t sure what the white powder was. I remembered Sarge and Dario mentioning that donors were provided with drugs, and that with the less restrained vampires, like Bella, they helped numb the pain of the experience.
“You done this before?” I asked the man as I handed him a glass of wine. Was it okay to drink wine with a line of coke? I assumed so since the guy practically downed the contents of the glass in one gulp. If he died tonight, I wasn’t sure whether to blame Bella or his careless disregard when it came to mixing chemical substances.
“Screwed some handicapped woman? Yeah. I mean, they got needs and I need the money. No different than anyone else, except it’s usually wrapped up in under an hour.”
I held back from a massive eye roll. This guy was an arrogant
asshole, but even a cocky gigolo didn’t deserve to walk into a situation like this blindly. “You know she can get a little over excited?”
Mario snorted. I wasn’t sure if he was laughing or it was from the drugs. “Yeah, sure. Guy did her last night. She weighs all of ninety pounds, and is a real looker. A little rough stuff doesn’t bother me, especially with what they pay. Plus there’s a woman that watches and makes sure nothing gets out of hand. They pay extra for the audience, ya know?”
Oh God. What an idiot. “She bites.”
This time he did laugh. “I’ve been tied up, spanked, got it in the backdoor with all sorts of stuff. Trust me, some hot young thing’s love bites are nothing compared to deep-throating an eighty-year-old guy in the back of a minivan.”
He had a point.
“True. Just making sure you know.”
Mario tilted his head, taking another drink of wine. “What, you her sister or something? I promise I’ll show her a good time. I’ve got a reputation to protect, you know. Plus with this kind of money, I’d like to make sure they call me back.”
In six weeks, once he was medically cleared to donate another pint of blood. This was all on the up-and-up, just as Dario had said, just as Sarge had said. Mario got what he wanted. Bella got what she needed. And someone stood by to make sure nothing got out of hand. The fact that it was kind of icky for a vampire trapped in a fourteen-year-old body to be getting nightly services from a male prostitute bothered me. So did the fact that Bella mentally was far younger than fourteen with the brain damage that had occurred between her death and rebirth. Whatever. Her body had needs, and Mario seemed happy to provide for the compensation offered.
“She should be up soon.” I eyed the fading light outside the window. The sun was down, the sky a million shades of grey in that twilight space between day and night.
“Cool.” Mario did another line and poured himself a second glass of wine, popping a pill with the beverage. Good grief, that guy was going to be freaking comatose by the time the vampire was awake—unless that little blue pill was for something else.
A woman walked into the room, starting in surprise as she saw me. “Aria? What are you doing here? Is Sarge with you?”
“No.” I smiled, trying to look relaxed in this very awkward situation. “I texted Dario to let him know I was coming, so he’ll probably be here soon. I need to speak to Bella as soon as she’s finished…ummm, with Mario here.”
The man in question grinned, puffing his chest out. “My girl ready?”
“Should I just hang here?” I asked. Not that they were expecting me to watch. Although I’m sure Mario wouldn’t mind tacking on extra for the viewing.
But should I watch? It would be a rare opportunity for me to see a vampire feed, especially one who had very little control. Would there be a risk to me? Would I be able to watch the process objectively? And more to the point, was there actual sex involved, as Mario seemed to think there was? I know vampire victims always got an orgasmic rush from the process of giving blood. I’d assumed that for many vampires, sexual intercourse was part of the feeding ritual. Watching Bella take blood would be instructional, watching her hump a male prostitute was beyond what I wanted to experience.
Actually it was all beyond what I wanted to experience. Nope. Sitting this one out.
Mario left and I was grateful for either the silence of the participants or the excellent sound proofing of the house. I assume it was the latter. I was just finishing up my glass of wine when Dario slammed through the door
“No. Just no. I won’t have you endanger her, or upset her that way.”
I’d prepared for this conversation. “I’ll be there to protect her, as will you. And you don’t know that she’ll be upset. She might not even recognize him. She might not remember anything about her human life. Actually if she does, it would help. Did you ever think that she might be glad to see someone she recognizes from her past? She’s been surrounded by vampires for the last forty years.”
“Then what about him? It’s going to rub salt in the wound to see his older sister like this. It was Jean Marc’s taking her as a blood slave that started the whole feud.”
That was a strong possibility, but this was my last chance to try and get Russell onto a better path. “If so, then we’ll have no other choice but to kill him. I’m hoping he’ll see that you’re not all like Jean Marc and Aubin. You tried to save his sister the only way you knew how. Your family has lovingly cared for her all these decades. That’s got to make you humane in his eyes. If he can see just one of you as redeemable, then we might be able to salvage this situation without further bloodshed.”
Dario rubbed a hand over his face. “He’ll see her as a monster like the rest of us. He’ll think we made his sister into a monster. Bringing her to meet him will be the same in his mind as Jean Marc killing her right in front of her father.”
He might be right, but this was my chance to change Russell’s mind. I glanced out the window. “We don’t have time to argue. How long does it take Bella to feed?”
“Another ten maybe. It depends on if she wants to play first. She’s hungry, but she’s not always focused on getting the job done.”
Great. I didn’t need that visual. And I was worried about the vampires back at Leonora’s house. “Did everyone vacate Leonora’s house?”
He nodded. “Not because Leonora is evacuating the place, but because they’re off to hunt down your necromancer.”
I caught my breath, wondering if everything I was doing tonight was for nothing. If the vampires had tracked down Russell, he could be dead before Bella finished her dinner. “Have they…do they know where he is?”
Dario shrugged, his eyes cold as they met mine. “Our humans interrogated the gang connections until we discovered where he worked and lived. Then we worked those angles. He might be dead, he might not. If he isn’t, he soon will be.”
Interrogated. I knew what that meant, knew very well that there had been a message sent about the price of betrayal. The vampires had cleaned house when they’d caught the blood donor/thief, but now that vampires had died…
“Please tell me you didn’t kill the coworkers or neighbors.”
Dario turned away from me. “Helpful and cooperative humans don’t need to be killed.”
I didn’t like that answer, but I didn’t have time to question the vampire further as Mario staggered through the room, pupils dilated and a smile fixed on his face. I could barely see the tiny marks on his arms and neck. It was time to go—and to pray that we’d get to Russell before Leonora did.
Bella’s caregiver, a vampire I was finally introduced to as Suzette, sat with her in the back seat of Dario’s SUV. The young vampire was fascinated by the car ride, making soft noises and pointing out the window as we passed buildings and parks. Her interest and animation gave me hope that this might actually work.
When we drove up to the block where the Robertsons had lived, she grew quiet, her hand touching the glass of the window. Dario pulled around to a side street and parked, and we made our way through the weed-choked back yards to the back entrance. Bella walked slowly, silently taking it all in. She went to a large oak, its mid-section rotted where a storm must have torn the tree in two. Looking up into the dead, bare branches, she made a rocking motion with her hand.
Swing? If she could remember her human life then maybe she could make a connection with Russell. She wouldn’t be a monster to him if he saw that something remained in her of his sister, Shay.
We went inside and waited. Bella seemed disturbed by the presence of the vampires even though she knew them. She kept shooing them with her hands.
“Do you remember it here, Bella?” Suzette soothed the girl, rubbing her hands. “Did you eat breakfast at the kitchen table? Braid your doll’s hair?”
Again the girl flicked her hands at the other vampire, scowling a bit. The two vampires obliged and watched Bella explore the room. She touched the shreds of wallpaper, moving room to room and
making surprised noises as she ran her hands over everything. Her hands and clothing were filthy with dust by the time she plopped down on the kitchen floor. Hair falling forward over her shoulders, she dumped a handful of crayons from her pockets, wiped the dirt clear from the chipped linoleum and began to draw.
Suzette let out a breath. “She seems okay so far. Excited, maybe a little anxious, but okay.”
Dario folded his arms across his chest. “I still don’t like it.”
I knew he was worried about Bella’s emotional and physical wellbeing. Crossing my fingers, I sent up a quick prayer that all would be well.
And then a voice came out of the darkness. “Where is she?” I felt the creep of necromantic magic, sweet with the smell of rot. “Where is my sister? Give her to me and I will leave you in peace. You have my word.”
Janice had come through. She’d told Russell that she’d found Shay, that all these years a gang had been holding her hostage, but that she was still alive. The hope and fear in the necromancer’s voice gave me faith that this would all work out. He’d do anything to have a member of his family back, even give up his revenge. That was the first positive step toward compromise that he’d ever made.
“We can’t give her back,” Dario spoke up. “Her home is here. It’s all she’s known for the last forty years. She’s happy here with those who love her and can take care of her special needs.”
“Special needs?” Russell snarled. He still wasn’t anywhere close enough for us to see, or close enough to see his sister who sat drawing on the floor. “She’s an addict. Get her away from you vampires so she can detox and she’ll be just fine.”
“She’s no longer a blood slave.” I called out. “Russell, come meet your sister. I vow on the Order of the Templar Knights that this is a neutral space. No one will attack you.”
There was a curl of smoke that rose into a wall of fog. The necromancer stepped from it and I blinked, amazed at how skilled he truly was.