Forever Young The Beginning (49 page)

Alandra took her seat in the court
behind the barrister who had hired her. As she waited to be
consulted, she thought back at how she acquired an interest in tax
laws after hearing some vendors and traders complaining about their
losses due to the big storm just a few years ago. That had prompted
her to send away for a copy of pertinent tax laws for that subject.
One thing led to another, and with her family recognition she now
was consulted from time to time by barristers who would pay her for
her expertise.

Now she would attend court when a tax
case was heard and wait until asked about salient points of tax law
concerning the client seeking a favorable ruling. She wasn’t
allowed to speak in the court, but must lean forward and whisper
her comments and points of law to the barrister who would then
speak them aloud to the three judges. She always brought her own
copy of the laws of taxation of Spain and always knew exactly where
to look for any clarification needed. By now, she’d begun to get a
local reputation and it was not unusual to see her in a courtroom
in her capacity of tax advisor to the barrister who had hired her.
He was no fool and paid her well for her services, as did another
one later after she had gained some notoriety.

She was still busy
running
Barcelona House
for children’s medical care. It was common now for
her to receive more favorable treatment for everything to do with
supplies and needed work. After all, one never knew when the
services of an expert in tax law would come in handy.

She always dressed somberly, formally
corseted, wearing black as if attending a funeral and always wore
her hair in a tight bun in deference to the somber and formal
atmosphere of any court proceeding. The three judges of the
Barcelona area had a great deal of respect for her even if they
kept it to themselves. On the rare occasion that she would happen
to see one of them in public, they would always stop and doff their
hat as if she were some grand lady of Madrid, and she would always
curtsy properly. One would take her for a pretty lady in her late
twenties instead of a girl nearing her twenty-second
birthday.

Her life had meaning and purpose and
for the first time ever, she felt like she had control of her
destiny. She was content and her parents were at least happy to see
her contentment and that her apparent sorrow had finally
passed.

Suitors had approached her father, but
he had said that he would neither help nor hinder anyone, or any
family desiring to have his daughter as a wife for their son. Not
caring if it ended up costing him his position as ambassador to
France, he didn’t ever want to do even one more thing to cause her
resentment. He was pleased at what she was doing and that no one in
Barcelona had a bad thing to say about her. They concluded that
they were happy with this type of life if their daughter
was.

***

Ian and Celeste returned to Paris.
Knowing that Caryn would be busy working he stayed with her the
whole day. He had come to the conclusion that he would always try
to see to it that she was insulated from most public contact when
not performing. Marie would agree and who knew better than
she?

They had gone to this shop and that
shop, never spending extravagantly because that was not her nature.
Later in the day when he was sure that Caryn wouldn’t be so busy,
he and Celeste went there to her place of business. As they were
entering he met a tall lady with an extremely broad-brimmed hat and
long gloves who was carrying a large parasol. He felt the prickly
sensation and he noticed that she was wearing a pair of the ivory
sun glasses which Henri had made at his facility in Dijon.
Inadvertently he’d given birth to an idea which would become the
must-have item of the century for vampires; a thought which humored
Ian no end

He had just taken his own sun glasses
off and was walking into the receiving area when he and Celeste
almost literally bumped into Alyssa. He recognized her immediately
and stopped dead still in vampire fashion.

She said “Oh! Pardon Monsieur! Pardon
Mademoiselle! I’m so clumsy. Oh, Celeste, it’s you.” Then she
looked up at Ian the second time and her pretty eyes widened as she
smiled in surprise. “Adam! Oh Adam, it is you isn’t it?”

Ian smiled and replied “It is, Alyssa.
You’re looking well. I’ve heard many good things about your
fashions. It seems that you’ve become very popular.”

Celeste said “Alyssa, this is Ian, not
Adam.”

Alyssa looked at Ian
questioningly. Ian turned to Celeste and said “You’re both correct.
I took the name Adam after I broke that man’s arm in Marseille.
Marie thought that I might be hauled into court over that, so she
was afraid to tell anyone my real name at the time. He
thought
a lie, but a harmless one that
ought to work.

Alyssa said “What is your real
name?”

“
Ian McCloud, Mademoiselle
Alyssa, at your service. Enchante.” He took her hand and kissed the
back of it as any well-bred gentleman would do.

Alyssa blushed and curtsied and then
replied “McCloud? I read about you somewhere. It will come to
me…yes…you are the pirate fighter then; that’s it!”

“
Guilty,
Mademoiselle.”

Celeste chimed in then “He fought a
big bully who was beating a boy at a tavern in Marseille and broke
his arm.” Here she proudly looked up and Ian and wrapped her arm
through his. He looked at her and said “Celeste, you’re stirring up
things here. I think you should go and see if your aunt has
finished that new gown for you. Now run along in there, and I’ll
join you in a minute.”

“
All right Ian.” She gave
him a peck on the cheek and said “Good bye, Alyssa.” as she skipped
into the offices of her aunt.

“
So you were the one who
fought the pirates and returned the Ambassador’s
daughter.”

“
Well, I and my shipmates
did, yes. Actually my uncle returned the Ambassador’s
daughter.”

“
I didn’t think of you as a
sailor. It’s been several years since we’ve seen each other, Adam….
I mean Ian.”

“
Well, you’ve certainly made
your mark. Congratulations on your success. I have no doubt but
that you deserve your recognition. I’m really glad to see you
again. I had nearly forgotten just how pretty you are.”

She blushed fetchingly and continued
“Thank you Ian, but look at you! I would have taken you for a
banker.” At this Ian tipped back his head and laughed heartily.
Alyssa smiled questioningly.

“
It may be that you should
work for the King’s Gendarmes as an inspector, Alyssa. I
am
a banker, or at least
trying to be one. Henri Lafayette has made me a senior officer in
all of his banking and trade endeavors.”

“
Then you and Celeste
Rochelle…….?” She tailed off leaving that hanging.

“
Oh. Celeste? I’m a close
friend only. She’s only sixteen years old. She is as a daughter to
me. Did you know that she sang for both King Louis himself and the
Duchess of Luxembourg?

“
Really? She’s so young! You
know, she is known hereabouts as the French
Nightingale.”

About then Celeste came back
excitedly, saying “Oh Ian, the gown is so beautiful. Come
see!”

“
I’ll be right there,
Celeste.”

“
Oh, come now,
please!”

“
I promise that I won’t
leave this place until I see it.”

“
Oh, Ian……”

At this point Ian held up both hands
palms down, laughing and making a shooing motion said “Shoo,
Celeste. I’ll be along. Shoo now.”

Alyssa’s face changed
suddenly in shock and recognition. She gasped and took two steps
back, dropping her packages and covering her mouth with both hands.
The color drained from her face. Ian looked at her with a puzzled
look as Celeste stood there wondering what
she
might have done. Then Ian
remembered that he had made that exact same gesture when he had
brought Alyssa home from the vampires’ house. He thought
Damn it Ian, you fool!

“
Ah, Alyssa; I… I’m so
sorry. I never meant harm or to frighten you. Please forgive me. I
did it for your own safety.”

“
Y…Y… You saved…saved…my
life! It was you, Adam…Ian! It was you!”

Celeste stepped forward to face Alyssa
and lowering her voice said “Ian saved me from them too, Alyssa.
I’d be dead but for him, and I’m guessing that you would
too.”

“
But who… how… I don’t
understand, Ian! No one can run that fast, or fight that fast. Or….
or…. How… how can that be?”

Celeste said “I’ll tell aunt Caryn
that we’ll meet her at home.” She turned and ran back toward the
offices of her aunt. Alyssa stood there staring at him while Ian
bent and picked up her packages.

Celeste returned as Ian stood up with
the packages saying “We three should go sit in the park down the
street.” He held the door open and the two went out. They walked
then, arms linked with Ian on one side and Celeste on the other.
For her part, Alyssa mostly stared at Ian with her mouth hanging
open. They sat down on a park bench a few minutes later, Ian and
Celeste still flanking Alyssa.

“
What would you like to
know, Alyssa?”

“
Everything,
Ian.”

Ian tipped back his head and laughed
while Celeste laughed with him. Alyssa looked bewildered. “Ah,
lass. Where to begin? Here’s what I’ll do. Celeste knows that it’s
a matter of life or death to keep quiet about the existence of my
kind.”

“
Your kind, Ian?”

“
Yes, my kind. There are
those of us who would kill you and Celeste with no hesitation if
they knew that you were aware that we exist. Simply knowing about
us is dangerous beyond anything you can imagine. I can’t stress
that enough. I… look Alyssa, whoever you tell about this is in
danger of being killed. I’m not exaggerating.”

Celeste said “He isn’t exaggerating,
Alyssa. He saved my life and killed two of them.”

“
Well, he killed six of them
to save me. And how did you shoot them so fast with two pistols at
once and then again with two pistols at once? I couldn’t see…
couldn’t see your hands move, it was so fast.”

Giddy now with the realization that
her good friend knew about Ian and the prospect that she would have
someone to talk to about him now, Celeste said “Oh! Lucky you! I
would have loved to have seen that!”

“
Celeste, you’re supposed to
be helping here!”

Celeste lowered her voice and leaned
close. “He’s good at killing them, Alyssa.”

“
And that running through
the dark. The speed! And…. and… the jumping! My God the
leaping!”

Celeste giggled. “Ian takes me along
on his back and it is sooo fun!”

“
Celeste! What am I to do
with you? This is how you help?” She giggled and Alyssa started to
laugh too. Ian sat shaking his head and then he stood and stepped
away from them both and looked down at them with an icy stare, his
eyes glowing angrily. They cowed immediately, having never seen
this look upon his face and never ever having seen eyes like that!
Their laughter choked and died in their throats. Alyssa
thought
My God; he’s looking right through
me!

In a low, flat, cold no-nonsense voice
he said “You both know enough to be killed now. How many times must
I say that? You act as if you just saw some cheap parlor trick
instead of what you’ve both seen! For shame, both of
you!”

Celeste sat briefly, and then tears
brimmed in her eyes. She stood and wrapped her arms around his
waist and tearfully laid her head on his chest. “Please don’t be
angry with me. I can’t bear that.” Alyssa stood too and hugged him
saying “I’m sorry too, Ian. Please forgive me too.”

He relented then, saying “Very well.
Please now, no tears. Oh girls! Now, now…no crying, please. Please
girls! Let’s sit here a bit and I’ll tell you… mmm… enough for now.
And that is all, do you understand?”

In unison both of them contritely said
“Yes.”

“
Very well, you’ll be told
more later on. To begin with, I’m not human, although I was once. I
was infected and one of them saved my life.”

“
Cosette, Ian?”

“
Yes, Cosette.” Ian heard
Alyssa draw in a sharp breath.

Alyssa said “And Caryn?”

He looked somberly at each of them and
said “She doesn’t know about us, nor does she need to.”

He looked at Alyssa and then softened
his expression and said “I fell in love with Cosette and we were
married, Alyssa. She was killed trying to save a child. Some of the
others of our kind were involved. I’ve since killed them all. The
last one was that one at Mauritarius’ house who had a wooden foot.
I cut his foot off the night Cosette died. Later I saw him and
followed him to that house. That’s how I found you. I didn’t know
it would be you, but I knew that they were bringing someone to that
house soon to be brought over or killed.” His eyes took on the icy
look once again and even began to glow a bit as his hatred of them
came to the surface.