Vampire Memories #5 - Ghosts of Memories (11 page)

Then Christian’s expression shifted to anger. “So you’ve led a killer right to us, and you expect us to trust you enough to travel to Portland after a few moments’ chat? I don’t think so.”

This time Eleisha flinched. But the truth here had crossed Wade’s mind as well. Good intentions or not, they’d led Julian right to Seattle.

“I promise we can protect you,” Eleisha said. “I have…defenses, too. You just need to stay near us.”

Christian tilted his head to one side, studying Eleisha, and Wade couldn’t help having second thoughts about him already. Something about his manner was unsettling. Wade couldn’t say exactly what that was…but something. He just seemed so calculated.

“I agree with staying near you,” Christian said. “But we must all be better acquainted before there is any talk of Ivory and me going with you to this…community…and indeed before you should consider inviting us to take such a step. You know nothing about us.”

“What are you suggesting?” Eleisha asked.

“The three of you should come and stay at the mansion for a while. You will be close and can offer this protection you promise, and we can come to know each other better.” He paused. “Does that not seem the wisest option? The mansion is gated. Could you not protect us more easily there?”

To Wade’s surprise, Philip nodded. “Yes.”

But Eleisha looked flustered. “What about Vera? What will she say to three more houseguests?”

To Wade’s further surprise, Christian laughed, looking Philip up and down. “Do not concern yourself. She’ll be thrilled.”

He stood up and pulled a cell phone from his pocket, pushing a button, putting it to his ear, and walking toward the bar. The waitress brought their drinks.

Eleisha turned to Wade with questioning eyes.

What do we do?
she flashed.

Although Christian’s suggestion had caught him off guard, too, they certainly could not expect these two vampires to just pack up and leave for Portland tonight. And the knowledge that Julian was already here in the city meant that they both needed protection.

I think we have to agree,
he flashed back.
We can’t ask them to come with us so quickly, and we can’t just leave them on their own.

After a few seconds, she nodded, and he was suddenly ashamed of his own excitement at the prospect of living in such close quarters with Ivory. He knew nothing about her, and he was far too old for a schoolboy’s crush on a stranger with a beautiful face.

Julian stopped his car about thirty feet outside the manor’s gates. He got out and quietly closed the door, letting his eyes run down the high fence as he pondered the best way to get inside. It bothered him that he didn’t know much about either of the vampires Eleisha had located—and he liked having more information before attacking. But since he knew exactly where they were, it just seemed prudent to go ahead and kill them tonight.

His normal method for hunting members of his kind was to hide in the shadows until the target walked past and then step out and take a swing, severing the head before anyone saw him coming or knew he was there. But he had killed two vampires at once before, and he could do so again, as long as they were together when they walked past him and he moved fast enough. He’d taken out a male/female pair, Demetrio and Cristina, in Italy in 1826 by hiding behind a door on the terrace of their villa.

Since Julian had never developed telepathy, he could not be sensed or tracked by telepathy, and so none of his own kind knew he was there if they couldn’t see him. He’d simply stepped from behind the door and taken off Demetrio’s head in a matter of seconds. Then he’d swung backward before Cristina even had time to gasp.

It had not been difficult.

He could employ the same tactic here.

But he needed to get inside. Since his method of hunting always depended on the element of surprise, he could not simply ask to be admitted—even if he thought he had a chance of gaining entry. He stepped onward, taking stock of the fence.

The air shimmered beside him, and Mary appeared. Her transparent face seemed frustrated.

“He’s not in there anymore,” she said. “They’re both gone. I think maybe they know you’re here in the city.”

He tensed. “And how is that possible?”

“Seamus saw me. He might have warned them.”

Julian went cold with anger at this news. It must have been what she was holding back earlier. But to make it worse, when she saw his expression, her frustration vanished for an instant, and she almost seemed to be enjoying his rage. Her eyes glinted with amusement. His desire to punish her doubled. He would find a way to make her do his bidding like she used to.

But then he looked back at the gates. He almost couldn’t believe he’d tracked down a possible elder and his child, only to lose them again so quickly. Well, they couldn’t have gotten far.

Turning, he started back toward his rented car.

“Find them,” he said.

Eleisha did not refuse when Christian offered to drive them all back to the manor in a black Mercedes. At the time, it had seemed sensible, as this would certainly keep all five of them together.

He’d also said he would “send someone” to their hotel for their luggage. Again, she’d agreed, but as he pulled the Mercedes up to the front gates of the manor, lowered the window, and punched in a code, Eleisha watched the gates swing inward, and she was struck by an uncomfortable feeling that she’d handed over too much power in this situation.

They had no car of their own here. They were passing through a gate for which she did not have a code, and Christian was making all the decisions. Wade sat beside her in the backseat, and she could feel his tension as well, but on her other side, Philip just kept looking out the window. Maybe he’d realized this was their only option, and that’s why he’d agreed so quickly. There simply wasn’t anything else they could do.

Christian drove toward the north side of the manor and hit a button on the key chain. A huge garage door opened, and as he pulled inside, Eleisha saw a row of luxury cars. He parked in an open spot.

“Home, sweet home,” he said.

Philip opened the door, and Eleisha climbed out after him. Ivory had been in the passenger seat, and she pointed toward the back of the garage at a door. “That way.”

Again, this all somehow felt wrong—too alien—and Eleisha regretted their hasty decision to accept hospitality here. But again, what choice did they have?

Wade fell into step beside Ivory, and they all headed inside the manor, walking up a flight of stairs and passing through another door before emerging onto the main floor.

They passed down a wide hallway…and then Eleisha stopped three steps inside a vast room, trying to take everything in at once. The sight was overwhelming.

She believed herself to be standing in some oversized living room—maybe.

The first thing in her sight line was a huge white fireplace, but every inch of the mantel was covered in Victorian teapots. She counted at least six couches or settees. There were stuffed chairs, tables, brass lamps, Persian rugs, Chinese vases, candleholders, and small crystal or porcelain knickknacks everywhere. A full-sized painted carousel tiger—with a saddle—stood near the fireplace, and mismatched paintings hid every inch of space on the walls.

Philip and Wade were staring as well.

Eleisha had never seen anything quite like this. There was barely room to walk.

“Christian, darling!” a cheerful voice called.

A woman swept in from an open archway, coming toward them with her arms wide—apparently having no trouble navigating the furniture. She appeared to be about sixty year old. She was short and stocky, wearing an orange caftan with gold inlay and six strings of pearls around her neck. Countless silver bracelets jangled on both her wrists. As she smiled, the entire scene struck Eleisha as something right out of an Agatha Christie novel.

Christian leaned down, and the woman kissed both his cheeks, after which she greeted Ivory warmly. Then she took a good look at Philip. “Oh, Christian, you did not exaggerate. Who
is
this divine creature?”

Philip smiled slightly and leaned over, grasping her hand and kissing the back of it. “Philip Branté,” he said. “Charmed.”

Eleisha had seen him in this persona before, usually when he was trying to lure off a victim, but his ability to shift so rapidly caught her off guard. She herself had no such skill and felt completely off center.

But the woman beamed up at Philip. “Vera Olivier,” she said, turning quickly to Wade and Eleisha. “You are all most welcome. When Christian called to tell me that members of his own circle had arrived here in Seattle, I insisted he bring you here.”

His own circle? Did she think they were some kind of spiritualists as well?

“Of course you did, darling,” Christian said, stepping forward and taking charge again. “It’s in your soul to be generous. Can we get them settled? Have you arranged three guest rooms?”

As these words left his mouth, Philip glanced at him and then reached out, placing one hand on the back of Eleisha’s neck. “Two guest rooms,” he corrected.

A flash of surprise crossed Christian’s face, followed by a frown. But both vanished as quickly as they’d appeared. “Of course. Two rooms.”

Vera laughed and grasped Eleisha’s hand. “Good for you, my dear,” she said. “I’d have done the same thing myself twenty years ago.” Looking Philip up and down, she sighed and then pulled Eleisha along through the maze of furniture. “This way.”

Though Vera’s countenance was cheerful, Eleisha knew the scars of loneliness well enough to spot them, and in spite of being embarrassed by the woman’s behavior, she couldn’t help a slight rush of affection.

But then she wondered what their guest room was going to look like.

Julian paced the floor of the hotel. He’d decided to come back here and wait for a location report from Mary. In spite of having fed, he was restless and couldn’t seem to sit down. He just felt too blind in the situation.

He wanted to know more about Christian. How old was he? Where had he come from? Why wasn’t he listed in Angelo’s book? What was his gift? Knowledge was power, and Julian was in the dark here.

Worse, if Christian had been warned about Julian’s presence, he’d be on guard, and that would affect how Julian should proceed.

What was taking Mary so long?

She’d been the one hounding him to finish this as fast as possible, and if he’d had a chance at the mansion, he might have finished it already. Now that his target had been warned and had gone into hiding, Julian needed to know a little more about what he was walking into himself, and he wasn’t quite ready for her to demand he keep his promise.

No, he might have to drag this out a little longer.

The air shimmered, and Mary materialized beside the bed. She didn’t look happy.

“What?” he asked, alarmed. “Do you know where they are?”

“Yeah, but you’re not going to like it.”

He waited.

She glanced away. She’d never done that before, or at least not with so much self-deprecation. “They’re back at the mansion,” she said. “But Eleisha, Philip, and Wade are all there, too, and I think they’re staying.”

He stared at her, absorbing her words.

“You’ll never get near Christian with Eleisha and Philip in there,” she said, “and even if you do, you’ll never get back out.”

chapter seven

N
ot long past dusk the following evening, Eleisha found herself gathered with the others back in the overstuffed living room.

Although she and Philip had slept out the day in their guest room, since waking, she’d learned a little more about the place. Vera employed two maids and a cook. Eleisha had also briefly met the stalwart butler, Simmons, who seemed the run the house with surprising efficiency. If he was appalled by the overabundance of furniture, paintings, and knickknacks everywhere, he didn’t show it, and Eleisha had yet to find a speck of dust on anything.

But apparently, Vera had scheduled a séance to take place at eleven o’clock that night, and she expected Christian’s “guests” to participate. Eleisha was both nervous and curious.

However, they had nearly five hours to get through before the event took place, and even though Philip managed to maintain his charming persona with Vera, Eleisha could see he was getting restless. Normally, by now she’d have found some way to entertain him for the evening. He wasn’t big on just sitting around and socializing.

Vera stood by the fireplace and pressed her hands together in what looked like glee. “Well, darlings, what should we do now?”

Eleisha glanced over at her in gratitude.

Vera’s caftan was bright pink tonight. Christian wore dark slacks and a sport jacket, and Ivory was stunning in a black evening gown and diamond pendant. Philip had on black jeans and a snug-fitting turtleneck sweater, but he always looked well dressed in anything he wore.

However…Eleisha was slightly embarrassed by herself and Wade. Since Seamus had observed two consecutive séances from the previous two nights, she hadn’t expected a third séance to be scheduled for tonight, and she’d not been told about tonight’s until a few moments ago, so she was dressed in a long broomstick skirt and one of Philip’s V-neck sweaters, which hung halfway to her knees. Wade was even worse, wearing old jeans and a T-shirt with a depiction of a Blue Öyster Cult album emblazoned on the front—
Some Enchanted Evening
. His shirt wasn’t tucked in, and she could see the small lump of his gun in the back of his pants. What had he been thinking? Maybe he’d just assumed they’d be on guard duty and nothing more tonight.

But Vera didn’t seem to mind, and she was enjoying the rather eccentric mix of company. Eleisha stepped toward her, mulling over Philip’s favorite pastimes.

“Do you play poker?” Eleisha asked.

Vera beamed. “Poker? What a lovely suggestion.”

Philip perked up. “For money?”

“Of course!” Vera answered. “What other way is there?”

Even the near-silent, serene Ivory looked interested at this prospect, and Eleisha stepped back again, just listening as a short exchange of suggestions and warnings followed.