Hidden Mortality (23 page)

She snuggled close to him and held on tight as she shook. That was one silver lining to having been depressed and sick. When she couldn’t sleep because of the pain, the doctors prescribed strong sedatives. She had crushed up enough to put an elephant to sleep. It was lucky that he liked sugar so she could cover the bitterness.

She leaned closer, kissing his cheek. “I love you so much, Seth. I didn’t think I could feel this about anyone again. I know you want to find a way to be like the rest of us, but that way I’d lose you forever. You think you need me so much, but I wasn’t really alive until you came along. I know you’ll live on after I go, and I’m being selfish. I’m sorry. Please don’t hate me.”

Chapter 24

Inspector Seps waited outside her flat. Fifteen minutes later when she finished her story, he shook his head at her and glanced at his watch.

“Ms. O’Donovan, Cara. I know you’ve been through a rough time recently with the family deaths, and then Shona’s murder. You can’t expect me to believe this. I’ve been up since two this morning dealing with the body we found yesterday. At this moment, my team thinks I’ve gone home to see my sick wife.”

Cara clenched her fists. “I know some bad things have happened but I’m not lying.” This wasn’t going well, surprise, surprise!

“You’re having counseling, aren’t you?” Inspector Seps raised an eyebrow. “Are you taking any drugs that could cause hallucinations?”

“No.”
Okay, snapping at the cop isn’t such a good idea right now either
.

“So you want me to go in this man’s house and accuse him of being a murderer because you had a vision. You think he paints pictures of dead women and has a book with a dagger in it.” Inspector Seps shook his head. “None of this will stand up in court.”

Well, if he was going to put it that way, then he was right about how crazy all of this sounded.

“If you can get to that room and see if Shona’s picture is there and her ring, then you’ll have proof. I saw a bracelet with the name Melanie in my vision. Do you know the name of the girl who was killed yet?”

“There have been a few names mentioned of missing persons. As yet we haven’t made a definite identification. The name you mentioned piques my interest, but you’re not giving me much to go on.”

“But, you came anyway,” Cara said, slightly irritated.

He nodded, unsmiling. “I’ll give you an hour. After that, I’m headed back to the station. I’m not involving anyone else. Your proof is a bit strange to say the least. If we find anything, I’ll call for back-up.”

When they arrived, Cara rang the doorbell. Vincent answered. His smile disappeared when he saw she was not alone.

“Cara, I wasn’t expecting you to bring someone with you.”

“This is Inspector Seps. I asked him to come. He’s been looking into my cousin’s murder. Boscombe, the man she worked for, mentioned your name. I told Inspector Seps I knew you. I was sure you wouldn’t mind him asking some questions.”

“Of course not, do come in. I’ll be happy to help.”

As Cara expected, no one else was there, not even Stephan. Vincent led them through to his office.

“Please. Take a seat, Inspector. I’m ready to answer anything.”

“Ms. O’Donovan wasn’t quite accurate in what she said. In fact, she made some statements to me today that could indicate you had some involvement in the murder of Shona Williams.”

Vincent glared at Cara for a moment before he regained his composure. She shivered. She was the lamb, he was the lion, and she was in his den.
Stay calm
, she told herself. She was safe. She had a policeman with her. Vincent was too clever to risk anything.

“There must be some mistake. I don’t believe I ever met her. Cara did mention she had a cousin who worked in Bath, but I never pursued it any further.”

Vincent’s eyes narrowed as he turned towards her. “Cara, I thought we had a professional relationship. Personally, I can’t understand how you could have any grounds to think I could be involved in any way with your cousin’s death.”

“What about the room with paintings of the women you’ve killed?” Cara blurted. She had intended to keep quiet and let the Inspector do the talking, but she had a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach that Vincent would worm his way out of everything. She couldn’t let that happen. He might come after her. Well, Seth had better be a good protector.

“Inspector, I like to paint,” Vincent said. “I can assure you that I don’t paint dead women. This is all very melodramatic, but I’ll be happy to show you my studio.”

Cara followed them upstairs. The room was the same as before with paintings around the walls. One painting was on an easel. It was covered up. Before Vincent could protest, Cara ran over and pulled off the sheet. It wasn’t Shona. In fact it was just a rough sketch and the face was not clearly defined.

Her heart sank. She couldn’t be wrong. She couldn’t. Too much depended on this. Inspector Seps came and stood next to her. Vincent covered up the sketch.

“I think I’ve been very understanding so far. You’ve come into my house. You accused me of being involved in a murder. Now, you touch my private possessions. Inspector, unless you would like to obtain a search warrant, I believe it would be appropriate if you leave. Have no doubt. I will be talking to my lawyer about this visit.”

“I’m sorry we troubled you. Ms. O’Donovan has been under a lot of strain recently. We’ve had no success in this investigation. We won’t bother you again.” Inspector Seps mobile rang. He walked away from them, past the easel and towards the window. “Excuse me one moment.”

Sensing Vincent staring at her, made the hair rise on the back of Cara’s neck. She kept her gaze on the Inspector. Her hands were clammy and the bravado of earlier had completely disappeared.

“And that’s a definite identification. I’ll be there soon.” Inspector Seps turned back. “I need to return to the station. Please excuse us, Mr. Blatchford.”

Cara wanted to scream, but it wouldn’t do any good. She had played her hand and needed something else.

As Inspector Seps walked around the easel, he stopped and peered down.

Cara moved next to him and saw a paint brush on the small shelf at the bottom of the picture. Next to it was a blood splattered bracelet with the name Melanie engraved on it. Being frozen to the spot and having a lump in your throat wasn’t the best option right now, but it was all Cara had.

“May I ask you where you came by this bracelet?” The Inspector looked up at Vincent who had approached and stood beside him.

Vincent didn’t answer. Instead, he swung the large glass jar that he’d held behind his back. The inspector fell to the floor. Blood from a gash across his forehead spread on the cream carpet. Vincent smiled down at the body on the floor.

Cara reached into her bag for the dagger. It might be her only chance.

“You’re wasting your time. It won’t work on me. You have to be immortal and I’m the only one left. I’ll prove it to you.” He lunged forward, causing the blade to be pushed into his chest.

She let go of the dagger. She spun. She ran for the door. He was on her before she reached it. He knocked her down. His hands closed on her throat. She kicked and thumped as hard as she could. No effect. For once she wished her mother was outside and could hear her screams. As he squeezed tighter, the image of his grinning face disappeared.

Cara felt something hard beneath her back. Where was she? Vincent leaned over her. She opened her eyes but struggled to focus. He was saying something, but she couldn’t concentrate. She drifted out of consciousness again.

Next time he appeared there was a stinging sensation in her arm. She tried to move. She couldn’t. Staring at the wooden beams of the cellar roof, she forced herself to concentrate. Her arms were bent back at the elbow and there were cords around her wrists.

Vincent stood beside her. There was an intravenous needle in her arm. She tried to move her feet. Cords cut into her ankles. Tears welled in her eyes and ran down the sides of her face. Before, when she had been sick, she imagined dying. The scenario had her mother and father sitting in the corner looking appropriately sad.

Daniel and Jeff, and more recently Matcher and Seth would tell her not to give up. She intended to keep Seth from dying, but now she would be the next victim. She shivered.

“Are you cold? I would do something. There hardly seems any point.” Vincent moved away and sat next to a small table set up with wine and glasses. He picked up the glass and smelled the aroma. A smile of contentment came to his face as he sipped. “You know my recent kills haven’t been as rewarding as they used to be.”

“You’re insane,” Cara whispered.

“It‘s most frustrating,” Vincent ignored her. “I like killing. I think it was something I inherited from my father. My mother was often sick when I was young. Father had needs and gratified them with the servants. There was one who used to be nice to me. Her name was Harriet. She made the mistake of saying no to my father.”

Vincent sipped his wine. “I was ten years old when I hid and watched him beat Harriet to death with his belt. I shed a tear, but only one. The excitement I experienced observing her death took over. My heart was beating so fast I thought my father would hear it. It made me hard. The thought of your impending death is doing the same. I started with animals and birds, and then eventually progressed to humans. I had friends once who were equally willing to partake in the killing, but alas, they’re no longer here.” Vincent stood up and made his way towards her.

“You won’t get away with this.” She spat at him. The spittle landed on his arm. “Someone will stop you.”

“I don’t think so, Cara. Not now, I have you. You look like Rosie from long ago. I searched for her sister the next day. She was gone. I wanted to kill her as well as an insurance policy in case the immortality started to fade. Someone said they saw her board the coach for Bristol. I wandered the streets there, looking for a sign of her, but to no avail.”

“She was smarter than you thought,” Cara hissed.

“A ship left for Cork the day after I killed Rosie. As time went by I assumed her sister was on board. Needless to say I didn’t find her, though I spent many months trying. Then all these years later, one of her descendants is here to give me the gift I’ve been waiting for.” Vincent finished his wine.

“I’m not giving you anything.”

“I couldn’t believe my luck when I saw you at Kathleen’s book launch. I wouldn’t have to share the power this time and I’d be able to live for another 500 years. Kathleen was most annoying. She died before I could kill her. If I didn’t know better I’d have said she did it on purpose.”

“She won. She defeated you. So will I.” Cara wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of seeing how afraid she was. “Why have you waited so long?”

“I like to plan things, and there were a few problems. You were right by the way. I had painted her.”

Vincent went over to the far side of the cellar and came back with a painting. It was Shona and tied to the frame was her butterfly ring. “She was one of the problems. She damaged my dagger. It’s my own fault. I wanted to play with you by killing someone close to you. By the way, I hope you appreciated my work.”

He leered at her and smirked. “I hear you had to identify her body. She didn’t have your beautiful and unusual eye coloring. I knew she would only give me temporary respite. I needed you, dearest Cara. The party was an excuse to get to know you. Of course you’ve brought everything forward.”

Vincent sneered as he walked across and placed his hand around her neck and into her hair. “It was very rude of you to get the police involved, but I’ll think of something. He is out cold. I don’t think he’ll come to the rescue any time soon.”

“I know that someone will stop you, some day.” She turned her head. She tried to bite his hand.

He laughed as he slapped her face and jerked away. “I intend to travel again. It’s been a long time since I was in South America. No one notices another dead body amongst the drug dealers over there. I’ll be able to kill as many people as I want.”

He walked over and inserted the syringe into the intravenous access in her arm. He withdrew blood and squirted it into a small dish. Pulling the sheet covering her body back, he stared at her. His face showed no emotion as if he was empty of feelings. It filled her with fear as she tried to control her breathing.

“Your skin is so pale, but we can always add a bit of color.” He ran a finger across her scar. “I see I’m not the first to cleave your skin apart. Don’t worry. I can assure you I’ll be the last.”

She tried to move. It caused the ropes to dig deeper. Vincent dipped his finger in the blood and started to draw on her. She guessed that he would be tracing the lines he intended for his incisions. He picked up the dagger from the table beside her, the dagger she knew too well. She didn’t want to die like this.

She wanted to grow old with Seth. She wanted to see Daniel and Jeff marry. She even wanted to reconcile with her family.

“It was so kind of you to bring the dagger. Seth was to bring it to me.” Vincent placed his hand on her breast and squeezed hard.

She winced, but refused to show any other reaction. She wouldn’t let him win any more than he already had.

“You’ve become intimate with him, haven’t you? I watched the way you two looked at each other during my party. How fitting that he repaired the dagger that performed the deed. I wonder if there’s a way to draw him here. I could render him unconscious. Then, I’d call the police and say he had come here as a jealous lover and murdered you while you waited naked in my bed for my return. They would have caught the slasher-killer and would be happy. That plan will still work. I could find you all here when I returned and I restrained him. I could say he told me he killed your cop friend because he caught him in the act.”

It took every ounce of strength she had, but she had to let him know he would not succeed. “You won’t get away with this.”

“Oh, but I will. I’ve started over many times as a new person. This was the first time in many years that I actually used my real first name. Anyway, it’s exciting to recreate yourself.”

Pain seared through her as he cut across her forehead. She tried to wrench away. He held her face firmly with one hand. He cut again and again. The blood flowed into her hair and eyes. It blurred her vision.