That was why she’d never allowed herself to have a relationship. She’d fought the darkness inside long enough to know that one more devastation, like a broken heart, could fling her over the edge. Forever.
The best thing to do would be to ignore his sexual innuendos. Hard to do, because he had charisma like she’d never experienced before.
He said something to the officer and moved toward her. She liked the way he’d picked up on her emotions and came to her immediately. She liked the attention even though she wanted to deny it.
He made her feel special. A contradiction in terms, if there ever was one. How could a vampire feel special? “What were you two talking about?” she asked.
“The officer just told me I couldn’t stay here until the investigation is over. I guess I knew that all along.”
“Makes sense. Don’t worry. I’ll keep you apprised of what’s going on.”
He huffed out a breath and grabbed his jacket. Everyone was leaving and the inspectors wanted him out so they could lock up and seal the place with evidence tape.
“Want to stay in the rectory tonight?”
His eyelids lowered just enough to send sensual shivers across her skin.
“That’s the best offer I’ve had all day.”
“Only if you think sleeping in the bedroom next to a priest is particularly erotic.” She deliberately kept her voice hard.
He let out a long, even breath and pulled his coat on. “Now that’s a splash of cold water.”
“Do you want to leave your key with the officer so they can lock the door when they leave?”
“I already did. Doesn’t much matter. This place is like Grand Central Station anyway. Vampires coming and going, leaving dead bodies at will. Might as well leave the door unlocked and make things easier for them.”
“You’re tired. You need some sleep. Things will seem brighter when you’re rested”
“Rest is only one of the things I need. But not the most important thing,” he murmured, breathing the words slowly, making her blood sing.
She pretended to ignore him and led the way out of the apartment and to the street. Regent’s vehicle sat next to the curb. She glanced at the skyline. No obvious shadows. No silhouettes of anyone watching. Strange.
One thing she did know, she had to stay away from Britt tonight. She couldn’t handle any more of his overtures. She’d taken about all she could handle. One more burning look and she’d be the one attacking him.
So she stomped into the rectory ahead of Britt, woke Regent with barely a civil word, and told him to settle Britt in for the night. Then she stalked off without another word.
They just gawked at her as she left. Let them! She didn’t care.
The call came the next evening, just as the sun had set and Jess had showered and dressed and fed.
Britt was in the kitchen having supper with Regent. The two of them were laughing about something when she entered the room. It made her ache inside to hear the familiar sounds of friendship. Regent must miss that. She was always too serious, too concerned about keeping herself in the light to let herself be a sister.
“Sampson wants us in his office right away,” she said.
“What’s it about, Jess?” The smile left Regent’s face and she regretted taking away his enjoyment.
“Said it was too important to talk about on the phone.”
Britt jumped up. “I’ll get my coat. Regent, can I get yours for you?”
“Sure, it’s hanging in the front entry. The green one with the leather collar.”
“I’ll get the truck,” Jess said and slipped out the back way. It’s not like she’d get any colder anyway.
Regent and Britt were waiting at the end of the driveway when she pulled the truck around. Britt jumped into the back.
“You didn’t have to give me the front seat, Britt,” Regent chided
“Your truck, you should at least get the front.”
“Any idea at all, what this about, hon?” Regent then asked Jess.
She expertly maneuvered around a sharp corner. “It must be about the results of Tat’s autopsy.”
Regent reached up and unsnapped his collar. He usually did that when he was acting as his sister’s protector.
“Maybe it’s got something to do with inside information,” she said. “If you can believe it, Britt, Sampson’s got a couple of vamps on the inside. They give him information every now and then, but just bits and pieces.”
“Can he trust them?”
“Sampson is careful. If he trusts his sources, then he’s very sure of them.” She tapped her fingernail on the steering wheel. “Plus, as far as we know, Sampson is the only guy on this planet who’s got the expertise to eventually find a cure for them. That’s a mighty good reason to keep him happy if you don’t want to spend eternity as a vampire. I don’t think they’d set him up.”
They got into the elevator. Britt thought they’d go to the same lab at the geochemical building, but it stopped on a different floor.
“Where are we going?”
“To the boardroom. I’ve never heard Sampson so excited. Whatever’s going on has got to be big.”
They entered a boardroom fit for a world leader. No expense had been spared. Sampson wasn’t present, and the scent of coffee lured him to the side table immediately. “Want coffee, Regent?”
“Mmmmm, thanks, Britt, don’t mind if I do.”
Britt poured them each a cup and handed Regent his. Then he added sugar and cream to his and carried his mug to the old, exquisite mahogany conference table.
James came in next. Britt watched him scan the room for Jess, then sit as close to her as he could. He had a theatrical look about him, with his shoulder length hair and artistic, neatly trimmed beard. He always dressed in black and usually wore a sports jacket. Not at all what one would expect a vampire to look like.
“Regent,” James acknowledged.
“Hi, son. How’s it going? Where’ve you been lately?”
“I’ve been busy with the team, plus Jess and I have to patrol until dawn. There hasn’t been much time.” His gaze went to Jess and became softer. “Anybody know what this is about? Sampson called me and told me to haul ass and get over here immediately. Since Sampson doesn’t normally swear, I figure it’s important.”
Jess laughed. “You know Sampson. He’s always a bit on the dramatic side. But I’m anxious to hear what’s up, too. He doesn’t find new information all that often, although we’ve learned more in the past few days than in the last century.”
Sampson breezed in, his bald pate reflecting fluorescent light from the overhead fixtures. He grabbed the remote on the table and lowered the projection screen.
Obviously, it was slide show time again. Britt picked up his cup and took a drink.
“I think I’ve hit the mother lode,” he began. “You’re NOT going to believe what I’m about to tell you. It explains a lot of things.”
“What is it?” Jess sounded impatient.
Sampson put the remote down and clasped his hands on the table. “I’ve found out Prometheus, our big, bad vampire from Romania, is about as dangerous as any vampire can be.” His face flushed as if he was holding his breath with excitement. “Prometheus was actually one of Hitler’s henchmen in the Second World War. But that’s not the most interesting part. He worked as one of Hitler’s geneticists!”
Everyone in the room made a noise of surprise.
Sampson nodded. “Thing is, the Aryan race wasn’t Prometheus’s focus. While Hitler had all the money and resources at his disposal, Prometheus was able to spend years developing the serum I found in those bodies on the church roof.”
“Holy shit,” Britt said.
“You can say that again.” Regent pushed his chair back and crossed himself.
“Apparently, this came about because vampires were dying off. There weren’t many of them left, and Prometheus, aka Gunter Haun, knew something had to be done before their kind disappeared forever.”
“He’s a geneticist,” Jess breathed, as if the full impact of Sampson’s statement had settled in with a thud.
“Yeah, problem was, he never quite got it right. Until recently, when he met this brilliant student from MIT who was fascinated with the mythology of vampires.” Sampson cracked a grin. “Not unlike me, except I only work for good, not evil.”
“We’re very lucky to have you, Sampson,” Regent agreed.
“Thanks, Father. Anyway, apparently the kid was expected to do wonders in modern medicine. It was a blow to the medical community when he dropped out of sight. My inside source tells me he’s been working for Prometheus ever since.”
The air in the room suddenly felt stale. Britt shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “Any idea why they’re building up the vampire population?”
“Yes to the first question. Apparently the serum is only fifty percent effective. It works on some vampires and not on others. The desired effect is that they retain their vampire abilities, but also keep their human attributes. They can even eat a little food, I’m told. Enough to at least make it look as if they’re normal. But they still have a taste for blood.”
“What happens to those it doesn’t work on?” Jess asked.
“My source tells me some vampires die and some go insane. And when they go insane, they’re not exactly low key. They’re crazy enough to expose the whole lot of them. That’s why the leader, or leaders, has infiltrated vampires into the police force. It doesn’t pay to have nut-case vampires moving around the city night and day without having a way to keep them under control. They still need anonymity for safety, and this drug creates a huge risk of exposure.”
“If the serum is that volatile why do they keep using it?” Britt asked.
“Prometheus needs it. He’s very old. For obvious reasons the serum is called ‘Sunshine.’” He made quotation marks in the air with his fingers. “It doesn’t drive Prometheus mad, but its effects are too short-lived on him. He only gets the benefits for half as long as the younger vampires. He likes to be young and virile, and according to my source, he doesn’t care how many underlings he sacrifices to find the key to moving about in the daytime. Those who live become addicted. Only Prometheus, with his wealth, can afford to keep giving them their drug, and then only as long as they take part in his experiments.”
“Vampire addicts. Could it be any worse?” Britt leaned forward, forearms on the table.
“Yeah, a vampire who did experiments for Hitler,” Jess said.
“Good point.”
A picture of ocean fauna popped up on the screen and Sampson continued. “Though I haven’t got any serum to prove this yet, I believe Sunshine is made from extremely rare deep sea tube worms that are only found near geothermal vents. I know tube worms are bioluminescent. They’re only found in the extremely deep oceans where there is no light. Bioluminescence may be the element that allows vampire’s to achieve near humanity. The benefits of bioluminescence is being studied by modern science, but we’ve only scratched the surface. If bioluminescent tube worm DNA is being genetically modified, Lord only knows what it can do.”
“How’d they ever find such a rare item to make a serum?”
“Hitler. He tried just about every scientific test possible. From creating cutting edge weaponry to testing the limits of psychic abilities. He had unlimited test subjects. Somehow I don’t think he knew what Prometheus was working on. Meanwhile, Prometheus was using the time and materials to improve his own kind. Most likely not the same agenda that Hitler had in mind.”
“Unbelievable,” Britt looked down at the table.
“The stuff costs two grand a pop for the vampires who survived their first does. And once they start, there’s no stopping. They’re hooked good, according to my source.”
Britt didn’t have to take stock in the room. The silence said enough. Vampires were bad enough, but killer addicts who needed money to get their fix? Vampires who would do just about anything to achieve their end goal? Things had just gotten a whole lot worse.
If they didn’t get a handle on the vampires, and soon, there’d be nothing to keep their existence a secret from the world. Nothing would stop them from attacking people during the daytime as well as at night.
Chapter Eighteen
Britt returned to the rectory with Regent and Jess. He stood inside the doorway, not sure why he was here. Or if they even wanted him here.
“I’ll put the kettle on,” Regent said.
“This has got to be a shock to Regent,” Jess said, staring in concern at her brother as he disappeared through the swinging kitchen door. Until now, James and I were the only vampires able to go out in the daytime. And that’s only because Regent’s prayers and his faith have kept us strong and given us those abilities. Finding out there’s a chemical that can have the same effect has to be upsetting to him.
Britt nodded as he studied her. She had to have wondered what it would be like to take the serum and regain more of her humanity. Who wouldn’t? But at what price?
“You and Regent have been through a lot together over the years. I have the feeling you’ve both learned to be very adaptable. I know Regent would like to see you live like everyone else, to be able to eat regular food, to have a human existence, but I don’t think even that is worth risking your life. Do you?”
She pursed her lips. “I don’t know. I just don’t know.”
“Well I do. And the answer’s no. Not at all.”
She gave him an odd look before pushing open the door into the kitchen as Regent returned.
Regent sat at the table, a smile stretching from ear to ear. “Do you realize I could hear every word you two just said in the hallway? And, Britt, I’m so pleased you’ve become a friend to Jess and me. You told her exactly what I’d have said. Now I can die in peace, knowing someone will be around to talk sense into her when need be.” He picked up his teacup and took a sip.
Jess scowled at him. “Regent! Stop talking about dying. I don’t understand why all of a sudden you’re thinking about death all the time.”
Regent heaved a shaky sigh and blinked tired eyes. “I know it’s hard, Jess. I love you with all my heart and I don’t want to hurt you. Ever. But I’m seventy-two years old. The average life span for a lucky male these days is around eight-one. I can’t delude myself. And you need to be prepared for the inevitable.”
“Stop it!” She flew to the basement door, ripped it open and slammed it behind her. The hinges rattled.
Britt leaped to his feet to follow her, but Regent raised a calming hand and motioned for him to sit back down. “She’ll be okay. She might live forever, but she can’t get it into her head that I won’t. I need to prepare her. My time is coming.”
“We all go eventually,” Britt said out of habit, then realized that wasn’t entirely accurate. Then what Regent had said sank in, and he regarded him in concern. “You’re not ill, are you?”
“No. But mortality is knocking at the door.” He sighed, then said, “Britt, promise me you’ll be here for Jess when I go. That you’ll help her through all of the tough times. I am right about you, aren’t I? You do love her. You’ll protect her like I did for the past fifty-years.”
Britt looked away, staring at the oak paneling on the far wall. “I do love her. But she doesn’t want to know it and wouldn’t acknowledge it if she did. I don’t even understand it myself. I know she’s your sister, but how can I love a vampire?”
That revelation probably shocked Britt more than Regent. Those weren’t quite the words he expected to fly out of his mouth, unbidden. He inhaled deeply and considered his words. Why’d he say it? Because—it was true. Even though he hadn’t admitted it to himself, he’d known it for some time. He loved Jess beyond all reason.
Regent set his cup down. “That’s a tough question, and I know what the answer is for me. I love her with all my heart because she’s the most amazing sister I could have.” His eyes got watery and for a minute Britt thought he might cry
. “Yes, even as a vampire she’s a good person. She’s been fighting her illness every day for the past fifty years and only failed once in the very beginning. She’s strong, but she has so much self-doubt although she’d never let anyone know it. She still thinks she’s an evil creature who doesn’t deserve love. But what she doesn’t understand is how much good she has already done in her lifetime, and it isn’t just my prayers that have helped her do that. It’s her innate goodness. She deserves all the happiness and love she can get.”
“I’m increasingly aware of that,” Britt said.
A look of peace crossed Regent’s face. “Bless you, my son! Bless you. I’ve known you were the answer to my prayers for a long time.”
Britt’s head snapped up and he gawked at Regent. “I don’t know what you’re thinking, but I don’t think you should get too excited, yet. Jess isn’t likely to agree with either one of us.”
A week later, the team had been on several raids and each new member had a crack at taking out their own vampire. Griz was the final one to succeed. Britt could see in his eyes that the victory was a difficult one. Killing just wasn’t in him. He wasn’t a vampire hunter.
Britt felt bad for him because he knew Griz wanted out, even though he hadn’t admitted it to anyone yet. He also knew the big guy wouldn’t quit until they’d completed their mission. If it was anyone else, Britt would discuss the issue with Jess. He’d never work with a partner he couldn’t trust. But he knew he could trust Griz in the long run. Griz would never back down from the fight. In fact he’d proven himself already. He could take out vampires; he just couldn’t do it as a lifelong career. He’d seen the same thing happen to cops. Good cops who excelled at the job. They just didn’t have the heart for it.
“Let’s all go out for coffee.” He figured Griz would need the company after his ordeal, and he wouldn’t feel singled out if the entire group went.
They went to the local bar, one of the few open at breakfast time.
Grave Illusions Page 18
