Summit at Sunset (Sunset Vampire Series, Book 3) (21 page)

Caleb picked out a small handful of novelties and was perusing the shelves near a small window when something caught his eye. The window looked out towards the nearby forest and a small brick building that appeared to be an automobile repair shop. A small exterior light attached to the building illuminated the area enough to see four men standing next to a nondescript delivery van. Three of the men he didn’t recognize, though by the uniform one appeared to be a local police official. However, he clearly recognized the fourth person as Baldar Dubravko.

One of the men accompanied the police official into the van, and the vehicle proceeded further into the forest via a worn dirt road. The other man and Dubravko watched the van depart before turning and entering the small building.

I wonder what they’re up to?

“Caleb, everything okay?” Dori asked as she touched his arm to get his attention.

He jumped slightly with surprise and snapped, “Be-jeezus!”

He quickly tried to collect his wits while running his hand through his hair. “Sorry. You startled me.”

She looked at him with some concern and gazed out the window with a curious expression.

“What did you see out there?” she whispered.

He frowned at her sudden change in behavior from innocently curious to suspicious and whispered, “Baldar Dubravko, a police officer, and two other men. Not really sure what they were doing.”

Dori took note of her surroundings before offering, “Let’s talk about it outside.”

He made his way to the front of the store where he paid for his novelties, and they walked out onto the sidewalk. Aiden whistled from down the street and waved at them as he and Talise entered another shop.

Dori turned to stroll casually alongside Caleb and asked, “Now tell me.”

He recounted the strange scene and waited as she quietly mulled over his revelations.

Finally, she offered, “Maybe it’s nothing, just Dubravko conferring with associates.”

“You don’t really think that, do you?”

“Not really. Alton suspected that Dubravko might be up to something. It’s doubtful that he supports the goal of the summit, despite his financial backing for renovating and upgrading the hotel’s accommodations.”

“What then?” he pressed, his mind racing with a host of possibilities all at once.

“I don’t know,” she replied.

“We could follow the van,” he suggested.

She bit her lower lip and studied her watch.

“Not a bad idea, really.”

Someone cleared their throat nearby, and they turned to see a local police officer standing not far from them. He wasn’t the one whom Caleb had seen from the shop window, but rather one who had been patrolling the streets when they first arrived.

“You are guests from the hotel?” the officer asked with a strong Slovene accent.

“Yes, we’re just shopping,” Dori replied, turning on her charm.

“The shuttle, it leaves very soon,” the man observed. “You should return to the loading area,” he politely suggested, though with an insistent tone.

“Yes, of course,” she replied. “Thank you.”

The officer watched them walk back towards the bus. Barely twenty minutes later, the bus departed for the hotel, and Caleb and Dori were still ignorant regarding the nature of Dubravko’s activities.

After returning to the hotel, they bid goodnight to Talise and Aiden and looked at each other with tentative expressions as they stood near a small fountain not far from the bus.

“So, how do you feel about a daytime stroll around town tomorrow?” Caleb asked.

Dori adopted a shrewd expression. “Why Caleb, I thought you’d never ask.”

Caleb took a shower and wondered when Katrina would finish working with Alton. Somehow, he suspected it would be a while, so he passed the time in the suite sitting on the couch reading some materials that he had packed in his luggage for the trip.

He pulled out a recent issue of
The Chronicle of Higher Education
, which was renowned for its insight into relevant issues of the day affecting colleges and universities. The latest issue discussed the financial challenges of colleges during the recent nationwide economic downturn. One article decried the folly of releasing non-tenured faculty members from their contracts in order to save money.

It was the last thing he remembered reading before falling asleep.

Katrina entered the hotel suite and was surprised to find the lights on, as it was well after three in the morning. She quickly spied Caleb leaning back against the couch with his head cocked to one side, his mouth slightly ajar, and a newspaper absently strewn across his lap.

The scene fondly reminded her of when she used to watch him through his apartment window from the vantage point of his fire escape.

I was quite the stalker back then
, she quipped while kneeling at his side.

She lightly ran her fingertips across his cheek, concerned by how uncomfortable he appeared in his sprawled position.

He stirred slightly, and she kissed Caleb on the forehead. He smiled, suddenly realizing that she was next to him, and began to stretch.

She helped him from the couch, and he half-staggered into the bedroom. She held the covers aside as he slipped beneath the sheets, and she kissed him on the lips.

“I’ll just take a shower and be right back,” she promised, and then shed her clothes.

Caleb intended to remain awake for her, but quickly succumbed to sleep once more.

Katrina finished her shower and shook her head at his slumbering form as she exited the bathroom. Instead, she appreciated the time lying in bed next to him for a few hours while contemplating the early events of the conference.

It appeared that she would have less time to spend with Caleb than she had originally planned, and she hoped he would understand. Then again, it wasn’t as if she were particularly happy about the development herself, and she silently cursed Alton for getting her involved at such key levels.

Yet she was beginning to share Alton’s concern for the implications of an unsuccessful end to the summit and felt compelled to support him.

Time passed quickly as she lay beside him, appreciating his rhythmic heartbeat and falling into a sort of meditative trance. She even dozed for an hour or so, though she was actually still days from needing any sleep.

When she finally stirred and noted the clock on the nightstand, it was time for her to rise again. She gently slipped from beneath the sheets, dressed, applied some makeup, and lightly kissed him on the forehead. After placing a note on his nightstand, she quietly departed the room.

Upon waking, Caleb immediately realized that Katrina was no longer next to him, and he groaned.

Gone already? Dammit
, he silently cursed, wishing that he could be a vampire and not waste valuable time sleeping.

He never even had a chance to discuss what he saw in town the night before.

Maybe Dori told Alton
, he hoped.

He rubbed his eyes and reached over to read the note on his nightstand.

He placed the note back on his nightstand.

This trip is going to end up as a scrapbook full of scenic pictures and notes from Kat
, he sardonically determined.

He dressed, shaved, and took the time to check his email on his notebook. After checking his personal messages, he logged into his college account.

Unfortunately, the article he had read the night before about college budgets’ being tightened was prescient. Robert Fulton Community College was expecting harsh budget reductions as they looked to the new fiscal year, slated to begin July 1. Among the list of reductions in travel expenses and supply purchases was a possibility of staff reductions. Apparently, more information would be forthcoming in the coming week once the legislature had allocated funds to state agencies, including funding to higher education via the State Regent’s Office.

He shook his head, hoping it wouldn’t come to that.

He shut down his notebook and called Dori before proceeding to the hotel restaurant for a late breakfast. She was already seated at a table in the corner when he arrived.

“Good morning,” she happily greeted as he sat down.

“Ready for a little sleuthing?” he asked in a mock-conspiratorial tone.

Her eyes darted around her. “You mean,
sightseeing
, don’t you?”

He tried not to look too obvious as his eyes swept the room. Other than some other human companions eating or visiting, he didn’t spot anybody within hearing range and certainly no vampires.

“Um, yeah, sightseeing,” he agreed with a quirky expression.

She’s awfully serious about this spy stuff
, he observed.

A pensive, yet polite, waitress took their orders, and they passed the time casually visiting while waiting for their food. No mention was made about their suspicions from the previous evening or about their plans for the day other than going into town to peruse the shops at length.

Dori said that the shuttle was leaving for town within the hour. They quickly finished eating and made their way outdoors to sit and wait until the shuttle was available for boarding.

It was a beautiful day, and the scenery was breathtaking. For the first time since his arrival, Caleb looked forward to enjoying the sights unimpeded by darkness. He only wished that he could share his experiences with Katrina, and he momentarily lamented her shared chairmanship responsibilities with Alton.

Upon arriving in town, there was far more activity than the prior evening. Citizens went about their business shopping or doing errands, while tourists blended into the scene before them. Caleb noted that, unlike the previous night, there were three human hotel guards, though they sported only small side arms. No local police were evident, save for an empty patrol car parked across the street from where their shuttle was parked.

Rather than go to the souvenir shop where Caleb had seen Baldar Dubravko, Dori led him to a nearby crafts shop where they browsed at length. And while he pretended to be interested, he couldn’t have been more bored in his life.

However, she seemed to gauge his interest level, because she smiled to herself as she perused the crafts. In the end, she purchased a couple of knick-knacks before they finally left.

“Oh please, do try a little harder, won’t you?” she sincerely pleaded. “Patience, Caleb.”

The two walked down the street in the direction of the souvenir shop, but halted some distance away from the establishment as Dori abruptly sat on a park bench beneath an awning. She removed a small ceramic figurine of an angel from her bag and examined it.

Caleb joined her. “Why did we stop?”

“So that we have a few moments to survey the area. Did you happen to look for surveillance cameras last night? I know I didn’t,” she whispered even while studying the delicate figurine.

She absently observed the area, much like a tourist taking in the sights.

“You have practice at this, don’t you?” he suspiciously asked.

He felt there was more to the young woman than met the eye, and his curiosity was piqued.

“Me? I’m just a curious tourist passing the time? Aren’t you?” she meaningfully countered. “There’s an older video camera in front of that jewelry store across the street, but I suspect it’s just watching the shop’s entrance,” she said.

They sat for a few minutes, and Caleb took the time subtly to mimic her method of casually surveying the area. It helped for him to repeat the mantra “curious tourist” in his head.

“Video camera in front of the repair shop next to the souvenir place, but I think it can only view the front of the building and maybe part of the area in front of the shop,” he said while gazing at the figurine in her hand.

“Very good, Caleb,” she complimented. “You catch on quickly.”

“Should we try an alleyway or something?” he suggested.

Her piercing violet eyes playfully pored over him as she replied, “Alton said you were a clever young man who thought quickly on his feet. Now, I can see why.”

He blushed slightly as she placed the figurine in her sack and rose from the bench. He followed, and they proceeded further up the street, turning down an empty alleyway between two shops that appeared to be used as a delivery lane to the rear of the buildings.

As they made their way out of the alleyway, they noticed an older man unloading small boxes from the back of a delivery van, though he ignored them as he traversed between the van and the interior of his small shop.

Dori signaled Caleb to follow her and led the way towards the empty field of grass stretching away from the back of the buildings towards a nearby forest.

Upon reaching the tree line behind the souvenir shop, they proceeded through the trees and made their way to the dirt path that Caleb had seen the night before.

“The van went that way,” he said while pointing in a direction that led deeper into the forest.

They proceeded along the dirt road at a leisurely pace so as not to draw undue attention if they were observed.

It was a beautiful day, and Caleb appreciated the fresh smell of the forest coupled with the sounds of chirping birds. They walked for about twenty minutes, and he noticed that the mountain overlooking the town loomed before them as they drew closer.

Finally, the road ended at a small clearing next to a rocky outcropping on a sheered-off portion of the mountainside. Butted against the rock facing stood a single-story, windowless shed constructed of stone and sporting a tin roof. A single wooden-planked door was secured with a newer-looking padlock.

Caleb surveyed the area and focused on Dori with a perplexed expression. “What’s a storage building doing out in the middle of nowhere?”