She stood there in awe for a minute or two with the cat on one side and the dog sitting on her bunny slippers, when she heard footsteps behind her. She wiped her eyes and spun, hoping to find her handsome vampire. To her disappointment, it was Bernard.
“Miss Darby, are you quite all right?”
“Oh sure, Bernard. Just admiring the beautiful snow. I don’t get to see it snow very often, so this is quite a treat. I was just thinking how nice it would be to have someone to share it with and you showed up.”
“I’m sorry, Miss. Shall I go fetch Master Devon for you?”
“No, Bernard. Master Devon wants nothing to do with me this evening or last, for that matter. I meant you.”
“Me?”
“Yes, would that be okay? If you just stood her for a minute with me watching the snow?”
“I, well, I…”
“You don’t have to, Bernard. I’m just feeling so lonely and it’s so beautiful.”
“I guess when you live here you take for granted the beauty of the falling snow. Yes, Miss Darby. I would be honored to join you.” He stood there next to her and they watched the snowfall. He put his arm around her and she put her head on his shoulder.
“I suppose the snow just means more work for you and the staff, making sure the walkways are clear and all that.”
“Yes, it does pose its problems.”
“Can I help with the shoveling tomorrow?”
“Oh no, Miss Darby. The Master would never allow such a thing. A guest shoveling snow? No.”
“I guess it would be improper of me. I’ve already had enough disapproving looks from Mr. Larsen.”
“Really? He seems quite taken with you. No one has used Lady Gail’s room, well,l since Lady Gail was last here. That, in itself, is a huge declaration of his approving of you.”
“Well, he wasn’t so taken with me before I yelled at him.”
He pulled away and looked at her with shock. “You yelled at the master?” He started to chuckle. “I would have loved to have seen that. Oh Lordy, that would have been something.”
“It wasn’t all that great, but he did start laughing quite heartily after. Even Devon turned in his seat as if this was something he had never seen.”
“The master had a good belly laugh too? Oh my! This gets better and better. You, my dear, are going to bring life back into this cold crypt of a home.” He put his arm around her again and she put her head back on his shoulder. She could hear him chuckling.
“Tell me, Bernard, how is Anton doing? Any better?”
“Oh no, my dear, far worse. He seems absolutely depleted of all energy. He can barely stand on his own.”
“And nobody knows why?”
“It’s quite a mystery, indeed.”
“Are there any vampire doctors that could look at him?”
“There are those that are doctors who are vampires, but there’s not much need for such a thing. Although sometimes setting a bone speeds the healing process. To my knowledge there are no known vampire diseases. The Master’s doctor friend, has checked on Anton, but can’t find any reason for his illness.”
“Are you a vampire, too?”
“No, Miss, just a humble human.”
“Just like me then.”
“Hardly, Miss. You are like the sunshine after weeks of doom and gloom. A breath of fresh air, so to speak.”
“You flatter me, Bernard.”
“That was my intent, Miss.” She sighed heavily. “What is it, Miss?”
“Hmmm? Oh nothing. I just wish I knew what was bothering Devon. He’s completely changed towards me since Mr. Larsen showed up. He’s barely said a word to me and he keeps pushing me away. I have no idea why I’m even here.”
“Well, I can tell you that, you’re here to save the family.”
“Don’t be ridiculous, Bernard. What can I possibly do for an ailing vampire, a crabby uncle, and a boyfriend who won’t talk to me?”
“You’ve already started, Miss. The process has already begun.” She tried to cover up a yawn and Bernard continued, “How about I get you some extra blankets and get you to bed? You’ve had a long day and the snow will be there tomorrow.”
“I suppose I should.” He took her teacup, setting it down on a nearby table, and led her back to her room. He even tucked her in, like her father had when she was a little girl.
“Warm enough now, Miss?”
“Yes, thank you. Good night, Bernard, sleep well.”
He smiled as Mr. Chow found a cozy place on her bed, and Sammy lay next to her bunny slippers on the floor. “Goodnight, Miss. Sweet dreams.”
“Thank you, Bernard. You too.”
Chapter 5
Darby woke in the morning to a quiet tapping on her door. “Come in,” she said groggily. She rubbed one of her eyes with the heel of her hand and sat up.
“Begging your pardon, Miss, but breakfast is about to be served in the dining room. I brought you a cup of coffee per Master Devon’s request.”
“How thoughtful of him, and you, for that matter. Thank you, Bernard. Is it okay if I go to the dining room in my jammies or should I be more appropriately dressed?”
“Jammies will be just fine, Miss,” Bernard said as he retreated from the room. She slipped on her bunny slippers and grabbed a hoodie out of her luggage and put it on. She, Mr. Chow, and Sammy progressed down the hall and down the stairs. Sammy’s toenails definitely need to be trimmed. It sounds like twenty dogs coming down the stairs instead of one. Okay, so where’s the dining room? It must be around the kitchen somewhere.
She figured if nothing else she would run into Bernard and he would tell her where the dining room was. She walked past a door that hadn’t been opened last night and peeked in to find the dining room. There was Devon, seated, reading the paper and looking gloriously handsome, and at the other end of the long table was Dominic, also reading the paper.
“Good morning, gentlemen,” she said as she walked up behind Devon, putting her hand on his shoulder and kissing his cheek. She added, “I hope you slept well. Did you see the snow?” She went to the sideboard to get another cup of coffee. “It was so beautiful. I can’t remember the last time I saw snow falling.”
Dominic dropped his paper and smiled at her, “That’s right, I suppose the bay area, especially near the coast, doesn’t see much snow does it?”
“About a week or two out of the year, there will be some snow up on the summit of the Santa Cruz Mountains, but almost never where we live. Speaking of that, I was wondering if I could borrow a car or get a ride from someone going into town. I should probably get some more appropriate footwear for snow and a sweater or two. I’m sorry to say, I’m not very well equipped for weather in the teens. It doesn’t often get colder than in the thirties at home.”
“Don’t be silly, I’ll have the driver take you to town,” Dominic said matter-of-factly.
“Okay, but only if it’s no trouble. I can go anytime it’s convenient.”
“It’s no trouble at all,” replied Dominic.
She looked over at Devon a couple of times during the conversation only to see newspaper staring back at her. Disappointed, she focused on her coffee and an English muffin she had set in front of her.
“Mr. Larsen,” she said, looking across the table for other place settings, “won’t Anton be joining us this morning?”
“Oh no, dear, he is far too weak to come down here.”
“I’d be willing to take something up to him,” Darby said. Devon dropped his paper and looked at her with disapproval, much like Dominic had done the previous day. She looked back at him and said, “What? Is that inappropriate? He’s all alone and not feeling well. How is he going to confide in anyone if he’s never around anyone to confide in?”
“It’s not your place, Darby. You haven’t even been properly introduced to the man. Now you want to deliver food to him in your pajamas?” Devon said.
“Okay, well I could get dressed and take him something if that would
make you happy. I just think that, well, isn’t that why we are here?”
“Still, it’s inappropriate. And no. That’s why I am here,” Devon said pointedly.
“Then why am I here, Devon? It’s apparent you don’t want me here. Why am I here?” She knew she was about to cry again as the heat flushed her face. She looked at Dominic, excused herself, and quickly left the room. When she got to her room she closed the door to the sad eyes of Sammy and again the tears came. She took a shower and got dressed. She grabbed her coat and gloves and went down the stairs and out the front door.
Once outside she took a deep breath of frigid sweet air and walked towards the pond. The snow crunched under her feet and her breath made a fog all around her. She grabbed the collar of her coat tight under her chin and walked until she saw a small trail that maybe a deer, or Sammy, had worn in the snow that circled the pond. About halfway around the pond there was a bench. She wiped off the snow that had accumulated overnight and sat down, bringing her knees to her chest and wrapping her arms around them. She sat there for what seemed like days, just thinking. She had a beautiful view of the house and the snow on the surrounding hills.
Funny how snow can make everything look so pretty, she thought. It hung heavy on the tree limbs and some didn’t look capable of holding such a load, but miraculously they did. With the sun out, some of the snow on the trees was melting with a drip, drip, drip. Every once in a while the load of snow would plop to the ground, relieving the fragile branch to dance in its freedom. She heard a door close and she could see Sammy prancing out into the snow, toting his ball.
A few minutes later, she saw a red sporty car pull out of one of the garages, fishtailing a bit in the slippery melting snow, and then it was out of sight. She guessed it was Devon trying to get as far away from her as possible. She sat there for a while more, enjoying the sounds of nature and the pretty ripples on the water as the breeze grazed the surface. Her feet, however, were numb now from the cold and that made the rest of her colder – time to go back. She slowly made her way back to the house. When she got to the foyer, she removed some of her layers. She also took off her now soaked shoes and socks. Grabbing all this, she ran upstairs to her room to put on some warm, dry socks, maybe two pairs, and her slippers.
Her feet now defrosting, she shuffled back down the stairs and into the library with her book. There was a fire crackling in the fireplace and she ran her finger along the old leather book spines, reading their titles as she went by. She could smell the old leather of the books and the musty smell of their old pages. This was a smell she knew well and loved. She owned her own bookstore back in Oljone called the Cauldron, Book and Candle. It was something she’d always wanted to do, and she had opened the store soon after her parents had died in a car accident. From the day she and Rowan had found the old, leather-bound family Book of Shadows in Grandma Lorelei’s trunk, she had been fascinated with old books and knew then that she wanted to surround herself with them.
There was another smell she recognized. Tobacco, the sweet scent of pipe tobacco. Her father used to smoke a pipe sometimes and she had always loved the smell of the tobacco before it was burned. Not so much the smell of pipe smoke, but definitely the tobacco. It must be nearby, she thought. She looked for the pouch of tobacco and there it was. She opened it and took a deep whiff of its contents. Mmm. She sat in the big, leather-covered chair in front of the fireplace and put the small lap blanket that was resting on its arm over her. Her bunny slippers now pointed at the fireplace, and with feet warming, she set her book on her lap. She looked up at gorgeous Abigail Bloomington smiling down at her. She wished she could talk to her about her son. As she looked at Abby’s sapphire blue eyes, she missed her own mother. She wondered what advice Abby might give her, what funny childhood stories she might tell about Devon and Blake as boys.
She thought too of the awful man, Terrence Paine, who had killed Abby and her husband Nathaniel for not helping him in his scheme to save his sickly son. Mr. Paine had come to know that Nathaniel and his family were vampires. He wanted Nathaniel to turn his son into a vampire so that his son could bypass his looming death. When Nathaniel refused, Mr. Paine swore he would kill Nathaniel and all his family. Soon after he buried his son, he came to Nathaniel and killed him, but not before he killed Abby in her sleep. How horrifying it must have been for two young boys to hear that their parents had been killed and that the crazy man who had done the deed would be hunting them too.
In an attempt to get the sad thought of Abby and Nathaniel’s deaths out of her mind, she tried to imagine what Devon must have looked like as a young boy. No doubt he was handsome and sweet. She laughed thinking of Blake as a gangly young boy, too tall for his age, following Devon around like little brothers always do. With that happy thought she closed her eyes, listening to the crackle of the wood.
When she woke, Mr. Chow had made himself a little nest beside her on the blanket. She noticed the fire had died down and the sun was low in the sky. She must have been more tired than she thought. She got up trying not to disturb Mr. Chow and went up to her room. On the bed were a couple of beautiful sweaters, some thick flannel jammies, and a box of lovely black leather boots. She figured they were from Devon. He probably had been going shopping when she’d seen the red car leave. No note. Perfect. She picked up the pile of items and tossed them on top of her luggage. She grabbed her cell phone and texted Blake and Rowan.
Hey, either one of u there?
Blake answered. I’m here, Rowan’s at the bookstore.
Blake, Please tell me what’s going on here.
I can’t Darby, I already told u, I can’t.
U have no idea how bad things R here.
How so?
Devon actually scolded me in front of Dominic this morning.
You’re overreacting. Devon wouldn’t do that.
Telling me I was inappropriate is not being scolded?
He said u were being inappropriate?
Yes. I offered to take breakfast up to Anton, who was not joining us.
That explains that, Blake texted.
How? Aren’t we here because we are supposed to get Anton to confide in us about what is wrong? How can we do that if no one actually sees the man?
I told you Devon has some issues with Anton. Apparently he doesn’t want you around him.
So he insults me in front of your uncle?
I don’t think it was an insult as much as a request.
U weren’t there, that was no request.
Maybe. But I got a text from Devon saying he was out shopping 4 u.
Yeah, w/o me, without a word & 4 some boots, jammies & sweaters – it’s snowing here.
Without you?
Please, Blake. Why am I here? He hasn’t said anything except that I was inappropriate 2 offer taking breakfast 2 your cousin. He hasn’t once kissed me since Dominic showed.
Give it some more time. It’s only been 2 days.
The last time you told me not to worry about his reaction, he wouldn’t speak to me for weeks. Please tell me you are not giving me that same advice?
Touché, but this is a completely different situation.
True, but I’ve never been more alone in my life Blake. Never.
I’ll talk to him again, but I’m not making any promises. So how do you like the place anyways?
It’s the most beautiful cold lonely house I’ve ever been in. Say goodnight to Rowan for me.
Hang in there, Darby.
About an hour later there was a quiet tapping on Darby’s door. “Come in, Bernard,” she said.
“We are having a formal dress dinner this evening. Master Devon has bought you a most lovely dress. It’s there in the wardrobe along with some shoes. I must admit, I’ve been impatiently waiting to see how lovely it looks on you.”
“That’s very sweet, Bernard, and how very nice of Devon.”
“Master Anton will be attending, as he is feeling better today. Dinner will be served in the dining room in for
ty-five minutes, Miss, unless you would like more time, I could stretch it out a bit. It is a woman’s prerogative to make the gentlemen wait.”
“No. Forty-five minutes should be okay. Thank you for the heads-up, Bernard.”
“My pleasure, Miss.” With that, he exited.
Darby hadn’t gotten this dressed up in ages. It was kind of a treat. She hadn’t brought any jewelry but she did redo her eye makeup and added a bit of blush. After the nap and her crying this afternoon, her makeup had all but disappeared. Now she looked at least presentable. What to do with her hair? She swept it up in a makeshift French twist and applied a ton of bobby pins to keep it in place.
She went to the large antique wardrobe to find a stunning black silk sheath and a pair of black satin pumps waiting for her. Devon had done a pretty good approximation in her sizing, although the dress was a bit on the tight side. The dress had sleeves but they were sheer so there was no way to wear a bra with it. It was simple and elegant all the same. She thought she would have picked the very same dress if she had gone shopping; very astute of Devon. She put on an extra dose of deodorant for she knew she’d be nervous. She guessed that the tension at the table could be thick, with all three men there. Last touch was a little color for her lips and she was done. She slipped on the shoes and headed for the door.
She heard a knock and smiled. She had hoped that Devon would escort her to dinner. She ran to the door best she could in the high heels. She opened it to find Bernard looking distinguished in a high-collared shirt that looked starched to the point of being painful. Her smile faded, but seeing Bernard’s smile and his eyes sparkle at seeing her, she couldn’t help but be happy.
“I felt a lady such as yourself, all dressed up, should have an escort down to the dining room. When I saw that Master Devon hadn’t done so, I thought I would step in.”
Blood Lust Page 4
