The Vampire Jonah

by Ann B. Morris

  As for the Watchers Jonah had told her about, they were only human. If she planned carefully, she should be able to outwit them. She reached for a grape. For now, she had to go along with the script she’d been handed. But not for long. She would leave. Because she feared her powerful attraction to Jonah could be far more dangerous than going outside alone.

  “Tell me, Scott,” she said as she nonchalantly popped the grape in her mouth. “Exactly who are these Watchers Jonah mentioned? How did they become who they are? And why wouldn’t I recognize one if we came face to face?”

  “A Watcher is simply a human like yourself, except that he or she has chosen to be the eyes and ears of a vampire during the day while he sleeps. I assume you met the couple who take care of Jerome’s house while you were in San Francisco.”

  “Yes.”

  “They’ve been Jerome’s Watchers for many years.”

  “Are they like you? As old as Jerome?”

  Scott smiled and shook his head. “No, since they’re human, their lifespan is the same as any human’s. The only difference is that they are descendants of Watchers. Their ancestors go back a long, long way.”

  “So it’s a way of life for them, passed down from generation to generation?”

  “Exactly.”

  Scott took a cracker from the tray and lifted it to his mouth, but at the last moment, he set it on the napkin in front of him. “Everyone who works in the house or who comes here on a regular basis is one of Jonah’s Watchers.”

  “Like the people who clean or cater?”

  “Yes, as well as the gardener, the repair people we hire, and the people closest to Jonah at the club.”

  “Wow.” The whole concept of vampires, Changers, and Watchers was mindboggling.

  Scott grinned. “I guess that’s about as apt an expression as any I could expect from someone recently introduced to our world.”

  “I keep forgetting what you are.” She quickly covered her mouth with her hand. “Sorry, that didn’t come out the way I intended.”

  Scott waved his hand. “No need to apologize. If I were in your shoes right now, there’s no telling what I’d say. But let’s get back to the matter at hand. Is there anything you need, any shopping you want to do, any questions you need answered? I’m clear for the next few hours.”

  “The only thing I want to do right now is sleep. I’m exhausted.”

  “I’m surprised you don’t have more questions about Jonah and the legacy he’s inherited.”

  A legacy that could easily entrap her, if she didn’t find an escape route soon. “Jonah’s told me a lot about the Whitcombes already. More than I wanted to know, to be honest.” She hesitated for a moment, then decided to lay it all out there. Scott wouldn’t hold it against her. “I’m twisted in knots. When my blood isn’t boiling from anger, I’m shaking in my boots from fear.”

  “Angela, I consider you a friend and—”

  “I want to go home, Scott.” She swallowed past the knot of emotion that clogged her throat. “I have the possibility of a great job waiting for me—a job I’ve dreamed of for years. If it wasn’t for the fact that I haven’t seen my sister in over five years, I wouldn’t have extended my trip at this time to visit her.” She swallowed back another lump in her throat. “You don’t know what it’s like to have the opportunity of a lifetime within reach, only to have it unexpectedly snatched away.”

  Scott sat in silence for a few seconds. Then he looked directly into her eyes. “I’m going to tell you something I know I shouldn’t.” He locked his hands together on the table and leaned forward. “Jonah too, has a lifelong dream on the horizon—one that your entrance into his life has jeopardized.”

  She didn’t know what to say, so she remained quiet and let Scott continue.

  “Jonah is a magnificent pianist. He’s waited a lifetime to play at Carnegie Hall. He finally got his opportunity, but now there’s a real possibility he’ll have to forfeit it.”

  “Carnegie Hall?” She was dumbfounded. A vampire—sitting on the stage at Carnegie Hall? How had he managed that?

  Scott rose from the chair. “I’ve said enough on that subject, so on to something else. Are you coming to the club tonight?”

  She shook her head. “I really need to rest.” She couldn’t risk Jonah asking her to dance again. Not after the way she had melted when she was in his arms.

  “Okay then. The catering service dropped by this morning, so there is plenty of food in the refrigerator. Everything is labeled. If you don’t find anything you like there, feel free to raid the freezer for a commercially prepared meal.”

  Maybe it was her imagination, but it looked like Scott had something on his mind.

  If it had to do with the secret he’d told her, she wanted to allay his fears. She called to him on his way to the door. “Scott?”

  “Yes?”

  “My lips are sealed where Carnegie Hall is concerned.”

  Scott gave her an appreciative smile and she followed him out of the kitchen, her mind already on a phone call to Dottie. She went to her bedroom, closed the door behind her, then sat on the edge of the bed and dialed her friend’s number. Surprisingly, the call went through on the first attempt.

  After letting her know that everyone was fine, Dottie told her they were still experiencing aftershocks in San Francisco. Angela knew that—she’d seen it on television. What the news hadn’t reported, however, were the continued vampire invasions in the hardest hit areas of the city. Jerome and his Cadre were out fighting every night and returning home covered in blood every morning.

  “And how are things on your end?” Dottie asked. “Are you on your way to Oklahoma?”

  “I’ll be here another day or so. It’ll take that long to get my car fixed.” She had made up her mind earlier to go along with the fabricated car problem and not mention anything about what had transpired between her and Jonah. Her friend had been through enough already. When the phone connection started to break up, she told Dottie goodbye, feeling a little guilty about the relief that washed over her.

  Weariness overtook her as she put the cell phone back on its charger. Stifling a yawn, she kicked off her shoes and stretched out on the bed. A stream of weak sunlight filtered in through the window. It was the first time she’d seen the sun since she got here. She closed her eyes as bits and pieces of her conversation with Scott flashed across her mind. Then, as if a door slammed shut, her thoughts ended and she fell into a deep sleep.

  When she awakened, the room was dark and cold. Wrapping herself in the bedspread, she rolled to her side, prepared to slip back into her dreams until dawn. Then she heard the music. For the second time in as many days, the beautiful strains of Moonlight Sonata filled the room.

  In the space of a breath, she was padding barefoot down the hall to the living room. She stopped outside the open door. Eyes closed, she hummed the notes and swayed to the rhythm of the haunting, gothic melody. She could see Jonah’s fingers traveling up and down the black and white keys as clearly as if she sat beside him. She could feel the keys beneath her own fingers as surely as if she herself touched each one of them. Then Jonah spoke to her.

  Beethoven wrote this for someone very special.

  Yes, I know. He wrote it over two hundred years ago for a student with whom he fell in love.

  Somehow, I had a feeling this piece would lure you here tonight.

  She didn’t know how to respond.

  Come sit next to me. Please.

  Without thinking, she took a step forward, caught herself, and stopped. Should she? She started toward him again. What harm could come from sitting next to him while he played?

  Chapter Seven

  WHAT HAD HE been thinking when he invited Angela to sit next to him on this narrow piano bench? It should have been enough that his plan had worked and his mus
ic brought her here. Too late now, the damage was done.

  He finished the piece, lifted his hands from the keys, flexed his wrists and fingers, and started from the beginning again. “How is it the daughter of a jazz musician is so familiar with classical music? Was that another of your father’s passions?” he asked, not taking his eyes off the keys.

  “No, not really. When I was in the fifth grade, we went on a field trip to the symphony. I’ve loved classical music ever since. Especially Beethoven and Mozart. How long have you been playing the piano?”

  “A very long time.”

  “I can tell. You play beautifully.”

  He turned toward her. “Scott told me you aren’t coming to the club tonight.”

  She held his gaze for a second before she looked away. “I’m not used to the late hours you and Scott keep. I’m a working girl. Early to bed, early to rise.”

  “You’re not working now.”

  She laid her fingers on the black and white keys, played a couple of chords, and pulled her hands away as if she had touched hot coals. “Forgive me. I shouldn’t have done that.”

  “Don’t be foolish. I doubt the keys know the difference between your fingers and mine. And you certainly didn’t do any damage. Do you play?”

  She shook her head. “Not really. I can manage a few chord runs and a couple of beginner tunes, but I wouldn’t consider that playing.”

  He detected a wistful note in her voice. He wanted to find out more of what her life was like before he met her, but he held himself in check. The less he knew about her, especially the unhappy parts of her life, the better off he would be. Better to stick with the safer topic. “Will you reconsider and come to the club? We’re introducing a new drummer tonight.”

  She ran her fingers through her hair. “I really shouldn’t. I wouldn’t get to bed until late tonight and then I’ll be off my routine again tomorrow.”

  When she rose from the bench, he noticed her bare feet. Put together with her tousled hair and a slightly dreamy look in her eyes, he realized she had been asleep before she joined him. It was valuable information he could use to convince her to join him at the club tonight. He looked her way.

  “Something tells me you had a nap this afternoon.”

  Instead of addressing his remark, she moved to the back of the piano and picked up the silver framed photograph of his mother and father. “Your parents?”

  He nodded. “Taken over one hundred and fifty years ago. Not long after the Civil War, as a matter of fact. And before I was born.”

  “I can see parts of you in both of them.” She set the frame down.

  “Well,” he pressed, “was I correct? Did you nap this afternoon?”

  She walked the few steps to the window and looked out into the inky darkness. He knew she could see nothing but whatever stars were out and a few very distant street lights. He waited for her answer. Finally, she turned around to face him.

  “Yes. As a matter of fact, I did sleep this afternoon.”

  He didn’t like talking across the distance between them, but neither did he want to risk going to her and possibly making her feel intimidated. It was important he not give her any reason to suspect his real motives in wanting her to come with him tonight. As he contemplated his next move, she turned toward him.

  “All right, I’ll go to the club tonight. But on one condition.”

  He had to work hard to hide the note of relief in his voice. “And what condition is that?”

  “I need to get back here at a reasonable hour.”

  He could handle that. He’d have Scott turn the closing over to Bobby. “I’ll see that Scott brings you home well before midnight.”

  What he didn’t add was that Scott would stay in the house all night to make sure she didn’t try to leave. In spite of all he’d told her about Zurik, he knew her feelings of being trapped could overcome her common sense. She had no idea how much danger awaited her.

  And from what Scott had told him about their conversation this afternoon, he couldn’t risk her finding a way to leave. If she was desperate enough, she could take a cab to a motel and rent a car in the morning. Or she might even be able to get a plane out tonight. He couldn’t take that chance. One wrong move and she could be in Zurik’s hands before any of his Watchers had a chance to contact him.

  As much as the thought of anything happening to Angela tore him apart, he had an even greater concern. For centuries, Zurik’s sole reason for being was to destroy the Whitcombe vampires, his most powerful enemies. If he found a way to obliterate them, it would lay the world open to him and every evil he and his minions could bestow upon it. Jonah clenched his fists. If Zurik killed him, there would be one less Whitcombe for the evil one to worry about. And the way to his death, Jonah knew, was through Angela.As he watched Angela leave the room to dress for her night at the club, a heavy weight lifted from his chest only to settle even heavier on it again.

  Tonight he would be free from worry about her safety. But what about tomorrow?

  AT ELEVEN FIFTEEN that night, Angela and Scott pulled into the driveway of Jonah’s house. Scott cut the car’s engine. “As Jonah promised, you’re home early enough to get your beauty sleep.”

  Angela opened the car door and got out to walk toward the house. She hadn’t reached the front of the car when Scott slammed into her, grabbed her wrist, and with his other hand pressed a key into her palm. “Get inside. Fast.”

  “Wha—?”

  Scott thrust her away from him. “Move. Now!”

  The urgency in Scott’s voice propelled her forward. Her heart in her throat, she dashed to the front porch and ran up the steps. Her hand trembled as she inserted the key in the lock. Concerned for Scott, she searched the darkness for some sign of him.

  Horrified, she watched as a large animal leaped from behind Scott’s car and disappeared into the bushes. Operating on pure instinct, she managed to unlock the door. Seconds later, a bloodcurdling scream from the thick greenery followed her into the house as she pushed the door open and nearly fell inside. Heart pounding, she locked the door behind her and sprinted down the long hall. At her bedroom door, her sweaty palm slipped off the doorknob and it took several tries before the door opened. Inside at last, she locked the door behind her and leaned against it. Beads of perspiration popped out on her forehead. She tried to swallow to relieve the dryness in her mouth, but gave up and ran her tongue over her dry lips instead. As she swiped her sweaty palms down the side of her dress, she searched the room for something to use as a weapon.

  A weapon to use against what?

  Blood roared in her ears. She needed to calm down, to focus her thoughts, to think rationally. Forcing herself to take several long, deep breaths, she listened for any sounds outside her door. But it was as quiet in the house as it always had been. She began to breathe easier, until her mind shifted back to what was going on outside the house.

  Scott’s urgency to get her inside to safety. His disappearance. An image of the animal emerged in her mind, as clear as if it stood in front of her. It was a lion she saw jump into the bushes. Instantly, she knew the lion was Scott. Scott the Changer.Where was he now? It was obvious that his superior senses had alerted him to something when they pulled up in the driveway.

  Her legs felt like rubber bands. She lowered herself slowly and sat on the floor. Arms wrapped around her waist, she shook her head at the empty room. It couldn’t be. But she knew the very thing Jonah had warned her about had happened. Zurik had found her. And if it wasn’t for Scott, she would now be at that hideous vampire’s mercy.

  Seconds passed, then minutes. When she realized she had not moved in quite a long time, she glanced at the clock. Two a.m. She had been sitting on the floor for hours. And so far, there had been no sign of a vampire. Or Scott.

  Her heart squeezed in pain. Scott was her fr
iend. If something had happened to him, it would be her fault. There was a knock on the door. Her heart nearly catapulted from her chest. She got to her feet and for the second time that night, searched for a weapon. But what good would it do against a vampire? Besides, why would Zurik bother to knock on her door? It was probably Scott. She took a step toward the door, then stopped. It could be a trick. Her heart hammered in her chest. Her breath stilled.

  “Angela?”

  Her rubbery legs almost collapsed. It was Jonah. Still weak in the knees, she made her way to the door. “Jonah?”

  “Yes. Let me in.”

  She opened the door . . . and couldn’t believe what she saw. Jonah stood before her, his clothes torn and bloody, a long, ugly gash down the side of his face. His beautiful face. She was so glad to see him she could have cried.

  “Are you all right?” Jonah asked, looking around the room as if he expected to see something out of order.

  She closed the door behind him. “I’m fine.” She was surprised at how calm she sounded when her insides were still trembling like the ground before an earthquake. She studied his face. “What happened to you? You’re hurt.” She reached up to touch the wound that had already begun to heal, but caught herself. “Where’s Scott? Is he okay?”

  “Scott was injured in his altercation out front, but he’ll be fine in a day or two. It’s you we’re worried about.”

  “I was frightened . . . still am . . .but I’m unharmed, thanks to Scott. He . . .” She couldn’t finish—what she’d seen tonight was beyond words. She started to shake.

  Jonah rushed to allay her concern. “Don’t worry about Scott. He’ll be fine.”

  She looked up at him. “But you still haven’t answered my other question. What happened to you? How did you get injured?”