The Vampire Laird (A Ravynne Sisters Paranormal Mystery/Romance) (22 page)

Grey smiled strangely. “Stay close to me. We must be very careful with you. Being mortal and alive has certain disadvantages.”

Zack searched the eyes of the man before him and measured the pain he found there. “And I imagine the opposite is also true. Being
dead
does not bring an end to what troubles you.”

Grey’s eyes narrowed and his smile turned self-mocking. “So it would seem.” In turn, he studied the man before him…strong wiry build…canny and sure of himself. He was moving well now and would be either a powerful ally or a deadly enemy….especially where his heart was concerned. This man cared for Meg’s sister. He could see his pain in his eyes. The kind of pain he knew all too well.

She felt a curious lethargy steal over her…a languorous warmth and knew she must have been drugged. But how? She hadn’t taken anything by mouth and, if they had injected her with something while she was unconscious, it should have taken effect long before now.

Seth watched her struggle to maintain control over a body that was, slowly, not responding. “You’re wondering why you feel so enervated. You…Charlie Ravynne…who prides herself on being in control must feel sadly at a loss now that your beautiful body does not want to obey you. You must truly hate feeling so deliciously compliant….”

“Hardly that,” she replied as offhandedly as she could manage, when she knew he was only too right.

“So malleable,” he continued with a smile.

“Or that either.”

“Orianna’s mother, in addition to being totally mad, was an herbalist of prodigious skill…quite possibly a witch. In another time, she would have been burnt at the stake.”

“We have one of those in our family…my step mother… and she would never harm a living thing,” Charlie replied pointedly.

“Orianna has her mother’s skills and loves to harm living things if it suits her purpose. Or mine. You enjoyed your warm, fragrant bath with Orianna’s own special mix of herbs that are easily absorbed through the skin and here you are, limp as a rag. She also used her skills on Quinn who played the gallant at dinner and now lies helpless in his own bed after, she added a little something to his wine.”

Charlie wouldn’t let him see how much his words distressed her. Her best…and only weapon…was indifference so she yawned. He was watching her closely, as he continued. “In case it’s slipped your mind, he was your lover a short time ago, though I doubt he bothered to introduce himself. I haven’t harmed him permanently only because he may be a very useful client.”

“For your trade in human beings? Women to use as….”

“Not just women, but they tend to have the most uses…sex slaves or slave labor…whatever the market demands and believe me when I say that business is very lucrative…especially in your country.”

“So you kidnap these women from their homes?”

“Sometimes they’re picked up off the street, but usually we set a trap. One of my associates puts an ad in the local paper…say in the Ukraine…’Looking for domestic…good wages, must be able to travel, etc.’ and they turn up looking for a better future.”

“And you give them a living hell,” she said acidly.

He laughed in genuine amusement. “Still struggling for control, I see. I smuggle them in all over the world…girls…women…young men and boys without papers and no one to ask questions back at home. I make sure none of them have people who have the money or influence to ever find them. Of those that come through here, I usually keep one or two for a time to serve my own needs…or Orianna’s. They’re kept here until they are dead or no longer satisfy us.”

She found herself yawning…this time for real… and fought the slow stealing of her senses. “And that’s to be my fate, I take it?”

“Not necessarily…I find I may have more than a passing interest in you, which is why Orianna is in such a flap.”

“But she’s your daughter…..” she murmured drowsily, as he led her to the bed. She wanted to resist, but she found herself curiously detached from the woman whose hand he grasped. Stretching out on the black satin sheets, she watched through half closed lids the man who stood over her, smiling strangely.

“You are so very beautiful,” he said huskily, pulling at the sash that tied her robe. Reflexively, she slapped his hand away and he laughed. “So it seems you aren’t quite ready to surrender completely. But you will be…and soon.”

It felt… and sounded… as though someone else was talking when she replied in little more than a thick whisper, “And here, all this time, I thought you liked me feisty.”

He put one knee on the bed next to her and she couldn’t help but notice he was already fully aroused. “I do love your spirit. And I will enjoy all that later, but right now I want complete control, as I initiate you.”

She knew that didn’t sound at all good, but at the moment she was powerless to do anything about it. “I’d really rather not do whatever you have in mind,” she managed to murmur.

Smiling, he stood and crossed the room, where he opened an enameled box and took out an elaborate two-handled cup. Returning to her, he sat on the edge of the bed and held the cup so that the light winked off the cabochon rubies that decorated its sides. “Magnificent isn’t it? It’s called a Quiche’, though far more highly decorated than most of its counterparts. It is many centuries old…has been in the MacMorleys’ possession since their tastes became more refined a very long time ago. Has been in my possession alone for almost three hundred years.”

Despite her lethargy, her eyes opened wide at that bit of news! “But that’s not possible!”

He sighed and smiled, then settled his weight next to her and shared her pillow. “I was born in that old castle on the cliffs in 1698. The laird of all of this. I built the original manor though it has been added on and added on by the generations that followed me. I knew exactly how to restore it…reclaim the furniture and artifacts scattered quite literally all over the world.

“I left shortly after I built it following an incident best forgotten and roamed the world, assuming one identity after another when people began to notice I didn’t age…at least not appreciably. But I had to come home at last…close to my family…to the one being I have ever loved.”

Shock lent her strength, as she wriggled to an upright position and simply stared at him. “You know…quite frankly… I find this all unbelievable! You must be as mad as Orianna!”

He shook his head and smiled enigmatically. “I lied to you and your sister. I am a vampire…of the
tainted
branch of the MacMorleys…the very last of that direct line.”

But what of his daughter, she started to ask, but he silenced with a hand on her lips. “Such a life…or whatever you choose to call it…is not for the faint hearted, but now, looking at you with your hot blood coursing just beneath your alabaster skin, I don’t regret who I am.”

She pulled at his hand and managed to say, “But…..” before he pushed her back down and pinned her with his weight, holding her hands above her head.

He laughed as she squirmed beneath him and she felt the evidence of her efforts pressing into her abdomen. “I have no fangs to rip at your very enticing throat, my dear. I use my dirk to open a vein and fill my cup. Sometimes it’s the wrist, but my favorite is the femoral artery that throbs deep inside your milky white thigh so close to all the other delights your body holds for me. Of course, you could bleed out in minutes that way if I didn’t stop the flow of blood as only I know how.”

“In other words…don’t try it at home,” she quipped then looked him straight in the eyes and smiled. “You’d better kill me while you have the chance or…”

He shrugged. “Or what? What can you do to someone who lives forever?”

Charlie yawned again. This man before her wasn’t a yard bag full of leaves…far from it…but he couldn’t be a vampire, she thought. The very idea was ludicrous! He was just someone dangerously delusional. Someone she would have to find a way to….a soft snore emanated from her at the precise moment his hot mouth found her throat.

***

Meg had lost count of the number of times she’d crossed the room from bed to window and back again. Where were they and what was happening to Charlie, she wondered, not to mention Allyn and the signal he was going to send. There did seem to be more activity in the village every time she looked, but maybe it was just more wishful thinking. Even if help had arrived, would it be soon enough to save her sister? She was still hoping with all her heart that Grey had found Zack in time to rescue her.

She threw herself across the bed and looked up at the dark ceiling. Maybe Meaghan would know what was going on, she thought. Though she hadn’t come when she begged her earlier, perhaps now was a better time. Concentrating on her image, she implored, “Meaghan…I need your help again. Please come to me.” Nothing happened so she tried again. The room remained dark…no whirling orb of light…no dancing Baobhan Sith with the girlish giggle.

Finally, she gave up in disgust and buried her face in her hands, giving way to the tears she’d not had time for, when Cloud jumped up on the bed next to her. She gathered him into her arms and hugged him against her chest. “Been chasing a mouse? Have any ideas on what to do next?” she asked him, brushing her cheeks dry with the back of her hand. “Sorry if this makes me a cry baby in your eyes, but she’s my big sister and not knowing what might be happening to her…imagining the worst…is making me crazy…not that I’m not leaning a little in that direction anyway on my best days, but I have to do something…anything.” Then an idea occurred to her in mid babble. Maybe Grey would come to her again and update her on what was going on, if she went back to his portrait. It had worked the last time and was well worth a second try.

Cloud was sleeping soundly, when she lowered him to the bed and she let herself out the door. Stealthily, she made her way to the gallery. Standing in front of Grey’s portrait, she touched his face, softly tracing the full sensual contour of his lower lip with one finger. “Grey, please let me know what’s going on. I can’t take this waiting around, when I could be helping.” She stopped in mid-plea, when she heard the scrabble of claws and the heavy panting of a large beast coming her way.

Her eyes opened wide in shock, as Orianna pulled Cerberus to his haunches just a few feet away. He was the stuff of nightmares…enormous, misshapen with massive jaws flecked with foam that could tear through her flesh in seconds. His red-rimmed eyes watched her, balefully, and a deep savage growl emanated from his throat.

Orianna laughed wickedly. She had heard evil laughs before, but Orianna would clearly take first prize in that department, she decided, as she tried to swallow the lump of fear lodged in her throat. Cerberus growled again and fought Orianna’s control, until she lashed him with a leather quirt. He whined once and flattened himself on the floor.

“You must forgive his enthusiasm. He’s wanted to tear you to pieces for a very long time and now you are so close he can almost taste you. Meg…isn’t that what they call you?”

She willed her voice to be steady, as she ignored her question and replied, “What do you intend to do to me now that you found me?”

Orianna looked her over slowly. “Tell me where Allyn is and I promise I will spare your life.”

She looked at her without flinching, her chin titled upwards in defiance. “And I should believe a single word coming out of your mouth because? As far as Allyn’s location goes, you’d be the last person I’d ever tell
if
I did know, which I don’t. And furthermore, most of Cerberus’ poor social skills are your fault. No wonder he’s so vicious, when you beat him like that!”

“Oh…I don’t know about that. Cerberus exhibited a talent for evisceration even as a pup long before I ever took him under my wing. Since then, he has merely honed the skills he was born with. Now I want to be fair to you. Just to show you I’m not all bad, I am going to give you a five-minute head start and then I am going to send Cerberus after you. Don’t you think that’s rather generous of me under the circumstances?” she purred.

Her heart was thumping so hard she couldn’t help but wonder why Orianna hadn’t noticed. Or perhaps she had. It would be the very thing to excite her. “I’m not afraid of you. What have you done to my sister?”

Orianna smiled darkly. “She’s with Seth. He has developed a lust for her that must be satisfied in his own fashion, before he comes to his senses.”

Which can’t be at all good, she thought, though she knew her sister was usually more than able to take care of herself. One on one with Seth, she stood a good chance or so she hoped. “I don’t suppose you’d consider locking your dog up and having a tussle with me all by yourself?”

“Why break a nail when I can watch your throat being torn out? The clock starts on the count of three….one….two…three.”

***

Agent Masters stopped Allyn from adding even more embellishments to the drawing of the manor and grounds, by grabbing the pencil from his hand and smiling his thin lipped smile. “That’s more than adequate for our purposes.”

Allyn offered an apologetic grin. “Sorry I couldn’t be more specific. I wasn’t exactly in great shape while I was up there and there are places…whole sections…that haven’t been restored and I’ve never been in.”

“This has been a really big help. Another boat is coming and we have a couple of choppers flying in from Inverness. Our net should get everyone. We’re hoping this Seth Marley, or whoever he really is, is the kind to keep records that will lead us to his other operations. We know that what we found here is only a fragment of what he controls worldwide. We wondered why he would settle here…any ideas?”

“Look around. This place is beautiful. It’s a small feudal kingdom that would appeal to him. Did you know he has his servants call him ‘milord’? He is the Laird around here and makes the most of it,” Allyn told him.

“He must have poured a bloody fortune into this place. Too bad for him, he’ll never see it again. At least in this lifetime,” Agent Masters said with a grim smile.

Allyn returned his smile, but he wasn’t so sure he was right. He wasn’t so sure about anything any more.

***

With the tall Highlander leading the way, Zack hung close to the shadows that lay thickly in the halls that criss-crossed the old manor. He would never have found his way without the help of this ghostly laird and he found himself smiling. He had once believed himself a sane and rational man, but since he met the Ravynne sisters, all that had changed. He not only believed in ghosts, he talked to them and, in the case of Cloud, slept with them.