Bloodgifted

by Tima Maria Lacoba

  Judith leaned into the crook of his arm as she cradled her baby close. Luc stroked his sleeping child’s tiny head, sighed deeply and lowered his head onto the top of hers, the silence in the car broken only by her sobbing. Luc’s shoulders quaked.

  I closed that memory and forced myself back to the present, lifted a few papers and sorted through others, reminding myself of my duty as head of this hospital. Sure that Laura was safe, I scanned through the top layer of reports.

  Several results needed to be published while others needed re-examining. I went through a great many using the supernatural speed of my kind, then stood and headed for the shower, discarding my jeans and T-shirt along the way.

  The steaming water was refreshing as it washed over me, but I couldn’t relax and automatically fingered the gold crucifix around my neck. Images of my own mother came to mind. It had been hers once, a very long time ago. I was a boy of eleven when she died. Tuberculosis. I’d determined to become a doctor, to find a cure for the wretched disease that had killed her. It was one of the few times in my life when I saw my father cry. It was also the reason he later decided to leave Scotland.

  ‘This is yours now, Alec,’ my mother had said, her voice painfully weak. She held out the gold crucifix at her throat. ‘You have to undo it. I haven’t the strength.’

  I leaned over her, fighting back the tears as only an eleven-year-old boy could—with anger. ‘I don’t want it, Ma. It’s yours. Give it to me when I’m all grown.’

  She reached out with her hand and touched my cheek, before letting it fall back onto the bed. ‘I’m not going to be here to see that,’ she whispered as a tear rolled down her sunken cheek.

  I shook my head and refused to take it.

  ‘Let me,’ my father said, as he gently unclasped the chain from around her neck and placed it around mine. Then he went back to her side, took both her hands in his and kissed them. ‘Sleep darling,’ he said.

  She closed her eyes and I ran out of the house, my mother’s small gold cross bouncing on my bony chest and my tears mingling with the rain as I cursed all and sundry for taking my mother from me.

  The shrill sound of the ringing phone shocked me into the present. How long had I been lost in the past? I glanced down at my watch. No more than two minutes. It seemed hours. I grabbed a towel, wrapped it around me and strode out to answer it. ‘Doctor Munro.’

  ‘The police are here to see Miss Dantonville.’

  ‘Okay, tell them I’ll be right out.’

  I stood there for a minute to collect my thoughts, then donned fresh clothes and walked out of my office.

  The same two detectives waited for me at the Reception Desk. Detective Senior Constable Delaney looked even more tired than earlier—the dark circles under his eyes were quite pronounced. The younger detective—the woman, Norris—appeared fresher. She must have managed to get some sleep since our last meeting.

  Both smiled and Delaney extended his hand. ‘Thank you for seeing us again Dr Munro.’

  I nodded curtly and returned the handshake.

  ‘Is Miss Dantonville up to speaking to us?’ he asked.

  ‘I think so. If you’d like to come with me, her room is on the first floor.’

  They followed me into the elevator. ‘Nice facility you got here,’ Delaney said.

  ‘Thanks,’ I answered.

  ‘Your, uh, father started this place up. Is that right?’

  He’d been doing his research. ‘Yes.’

  ‘What year was that?’

  I turned to look at him. ‘1961. Checking up on me, Detective?’

  He gave me a ghost of a smile. ‘Only part of the job.’

  The elevator doors opened and we strode down the corridor toward Laura’s room.

  ‘Must be proud of the work you do here,’ he said.

  He had been doing his homework. ‘Don’t know about proud. We’re all dedicated to finding a cure for some of the world’s worst diseases.’

  ‘How do you stay funded? You’re a private hospital. Government support must be pretty meagre.’

  He was right there. ‘We’re lucky enough to have some generous benefactors who are grateful for the work we do here.’

  He nodded in understanding. Like an ever-present shadow, Norris followed behind jotting in her little incident book. This was going to be tricky. I sensed Delaney’s questioning was more than just interest. He was fishing.

  ‘Would you mind waiting here a moment? I’d like to check if she’s strong enough,’ I asked as my hand curled around the door handle. I needed a few minutes alone with her.

  Delaney nodded. I walked in and closed the door behind me.

  Chapter 34

  Interrogation

  LAURA

  Alec strode back in and approached John and Eilene. He briefly nodded to Dad as he extended his hand to Mum. ‘Long time since I’ve had the pleasure.’ He looked from one to the other. ‘I assume you know all that’s happened?’

  ‘We got the story from Judy,’ Dad replied. ‘It’s not in anyone’s best interest for the police to connect you personally with Laura.’

  ‘Lying to the police!’ Mum’s eyes widened and I saw her rising panic.

  ‘Mum, you don’t have to say anything. Only sit quietly. I’ll answer their questions and be as truthful as I can without compromising anyone,’ I said.

  ‘Eilene, would you prefer to wait in my office?’ Alec asked.

  She examined each of our faces in turn. ‘No. I want to be here for Laura. I didn’t have the courage to attend the Ritual, but I’m not going to back out now.’

  Dad ran his arm around her shoulders and gave them a squeeze. ‘We’re both staying,’ he said to Alec.

  Alec nodded and turned to me. ‘I didn’t mention anything about your kidnapping. Actually I had to bend the truth a little. Told them we found you both unconscious and bleeding in your flat. I decided to take you here, as my hospital was closer and has better facilities—which it does—while the ambulance took Sommers elsewhere.’

  ‘Okay.’

  In the back of my mind was a gnawing fear I may know the two detectives waiting outside. Since Matt and I had been together, we’d attended one or two functions where I got to meet several of his friends and work colleagues. His partner, Jonno, knew me well—I taught his kids. The police community was quite a tight knit affair. If I broke up with Matt, word would soon get around and it would hit him hard.

  Alec went to open the door, opened it and said, ‘Mind if I stay?’

  ‘Yes, that’s fine, since this now involves you as well.’

  I knew that voice and when his face appeared in the doorway my heart sank. Dave Delaney. Of all people... I nearly groaned aloud. Why couldn’t it have been someone I didn’t know?

  Dave Delaney smiled and walked over to my side. ‘Hey Laura,’ he said, then frowned as his eyes travelled over my injuries. He and Matt had been partners before Matt’s recent promotion to the city. Dave had been his mentor in many ways, and Matt once mentioned his mind was as sharp as a switchblade; that he made connections others missed.

  My stomach clenched.

  ‘How are you?’ he asked.

  ‘Sore.’ I managed a half-hearted smile.

  ‘Look, I know Jonno should be in charge here, but I specially requested this assignment. We’re working together on this one. I want to catch this SOB.’

  ‘We all do. Whoever it is, has attacked one of our own,’ a low female voice said. It belonged to the other detective, a pretty young woman in navy pants and black and white polka dot blouse who stood behind him.

  ‘Oh, sorry. Laura, this is Detective Constable Norris,’ he indicated with a flick of his head.

  ‘Barbara,’ she said with a smile.

  ‘Nice to meet you,’ I replied. She had a pleasant smile, but I did notice the way she kept stealing glances at Alec. I wondered who was doing the looking—the detective or the woman?

  I looked back to Dave who was eyeing Eilene and John with interest.r />
  ‘Dave, I’d like you to meet my parents.’

  ‘Glad to meet you, Mr and Mrs—Dantonville?’ He didn’t take it for granted that our surnames were the same. People divorced and remarried too frequently these days. I always had to be careful when addressing my pupils’ parents. On one occasion I’d made the mistake of assuming a parent’s surname was the same as their child’s—much to our mutual embarrassment.

  ‘That’s right,’ Dad answered.

  Dave smiled. ’It’s always good to check.’ He turned his attention back to me. ‘Laura, I know this is painful for you, but I’d like you to try to remember exactly what happened Tuesday night.’

  ‘Matt and I drove up to my block of flats. We got out and went to my door. I unlocked it, opened it and someone grabbed me. I screamed and got hit on the head. That’s it.’ I shrugged.

  ‘What time was that?’

  ‘Um, after nine, nine-thirty? I’m not that sure.’

  ‘That coincides with the neighbours’ statement. They said they heard a scream from your flat around that time. He—or they—were waiting for you. If it had been a straight burglary, they would have fled the scene as soon as they heard you coming—out the window. But they didn’t.’ He stopped for a moment and his eyes never left my face. ‘Did you see anything?’

  ‘No. It was dark and besides, I never got the chance.’

  ‘Sure.’

  He grabbed hold of a spare chair near the door, brought it next to Dad and sat down facing me. ‘Laura, what I don’t understand is why they’d slash your arm when you were already unconscious. From what we can tell, Matt pulled out his gun and tried to fire.’ I must have reacted when he said that, for he added, ‘It was at least a metre from where he fell.’

  Mum’s hand found mine and squeezed.

  ‘If it was just one individual Matt would have easily dealt with him, but his head was shoved into that doorframe with such violence, I can’t see one person doing it. There had to have been two or three at least and Matt saw them.’ He paused. ‘Mmmmm, then what were they after?’

  I knew exactly what they were after and I didn’t want Dave to go there, so I tried changing the subject. ‘How is Matt?’

  ‘They’ve got him in an induced coma. But at least he’s out of emergency.’

  I felt the blood drain from my face. Alec told me Matt was unconscious but that he was okay. He didn’t mention anything about a coma. I turned my head to where he stood near the window, silently watching proceedings.

  ‘It means they’re giving his body a chance to recover and hopefully, once they’re sure there’s no bleeding on the brain, they’ll slowly bring him out of it,’ he said.

  ‘Bleeding on the brain,’ I repeated, as it slowly sunk in.

  ‘You mean he could have brain damage?’ Dad asked.

  ‘There’s always that possibility,’ Alec replied.

  I resisted the urge to cry and swallowed the rising lump in my throat.

  ‘He’s strong. He’ll get through this.’ Dave cracked a small smile.

  His words felt like a punch in my stomach, confirmation that the sooner I left him, the safer he would be—and so would my family.

  ‘Anyway, that slash on your arm’s bothering me,’ he went on.

  No one said a word. I’m sure I wasn’t the only one wondering where this was headed.

  Dave pursed his lips. ‘Know what I think?’ I nearly stopped breathing. ‘We’re dealing with the same killer who’s responsible for the current spate of murders Matt’s been investigating.’

  He was right on both counts. Mum’s hand squeezed mine was so tightly I was sure she’d cut off my circulation. Dad fidgeted in his chair, licked his lips once or twice but said nothing.

  Dave twisted in his chair to face Alec. ‘Doc, I’m willing to have a bet here, that there was something unusual about Laura’s injury and you brought her here for immediate treatment and possible tests. Am I right?’

  ‘Yes,’ Alec replied.

  ‘You also told me that Laura had lost a lot of blood.’

  Alec nodded and Barbara rifled through her notebook.

  ‘What’s bothering me, is that there was no trace of Laura’s blood at the scene. Matt’s, yes. But, Laura’s? Not a drop! How could anyone lose so much blood and not leave a trace? Forensics was pretty thorough. Where did it all go?’

  Alec calmly returned Dave’s gaze, but his lips were a tight line.

  ‘Do you mind if I take a look at your medical records for last night?’ Dave asked.

  ‘Be my guest.’ Alec pulled the mobile phone from his pocket and asked for the necessary documentation.

  While we waited Dave took the notebook from Barbara’s hands and flicked through a few pages before handing it back to her. It was the longest couple of minutes of my life. No one spoke.

  There came a knock on the door and an orderly stepped in with a manila folder in his hand. Alec indicted for him to hand it over to Dave, who perused it thoroughly before passing the loose-leaf copies to his partner. She made more notes in her little pad.

  ‘Four units of blood? That’s quite a bit isn’t it?’ He looked questioningly at Alec.

  ‘It is. That’s why I brought her here—it’s closer than Balmain. I was worried we could lose her,’ he said.

  Dave nodded, apparently satisfied. Barbara handed the folder back to Alec.

  ‘Then correct me if I’m wrong.’ Dave kept his eyes fixed on Alec. ‘But if I were to unwrap Laura’s bandage, would I find bite marks or perhaps deep puncture wounds?’

  I think I may have let out an audible gasp, surprised he had stumbled onto the truth. Suddenly, I had the attention of everyone in the room.

  ‘I’m sorry Laura, I didn’t want to tell you’ —Alec turned to me— ‘as I was waiting for the right opportunity.’ He glared at Dave. ‘You may at least have prepared her.’

  Alec had brilliantly salvaged the situation giving Dave the impression I knew nothing about it. I sincerely hoped my shocked expression would be interpreted that way.

  ‘I won’t apologise, Laura. I needed to see your reaction—give your memory a jolt in case it was blocking something out,’ Dave explained.

  ‘I told you exactly what happened—everything from the moment I walked in till I was knocked out!’

  ‘And that’s what I needed to know.’

  ‘You think my daughter is suppressing something?’ Dad asked.

  ‘It happens,’ he answered before shifting his attention back to Alec. ‘Tell me Doc, did you see something unusual and were there traces of saliva on the wound?’

  Alec briefly glanced at me before returning his attention to Dave. ‘Yes to the former, but the results of the saliva test only just arrived on my desk.’

  ‘Are they human?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Same as the others then,’ Dave said. ‘Appears we’re dealing with one or maybe more perps who believe themselves to be—vampires,’ he emphasised the last word. ‘Tell me, have you written your report yet?’

  Alec gave a derisive little laugh. ‘No. I was procrastinating on that one. How do you think it would look if I reported a patient’s blood loss was the result of human exsanguination?’

  Dave snorted. ‘Up until a week ago I probably would’ve agreed with you. As of late I’m open to a more,’ he paused, ‘imaginative explanation! We’ve had a series of unusual murders lately. Victims completely drained of blood and—what appear to be—puncture marks on the bodies. We’ve kept it kept from the media, so I’d appreciate you co-operation Doctor.’

  ‘I don’t think you need worry there,’ Alec replied.

  If only Dave knew how incredibly close he was—circling the target without hitting the bullseye. I hated having to circumvent the truth like this, yet I knew there was no other way.

  Mum relaxed a little, allowing circulation back into my fingers, but I knew she was worried. Once or twice I felt her tremble. Dad tried his best to keep still, yet every now and then he shifted uncomfortably i
n his seat.

  Alec was the only one out of the four of us who seemed unfazed. ‘You think the attack on Laura and this spate of killings are related?’

  ‘Could be. Although what I want to know is, whether she was a random victim or deliberately chosen, especially as they’ve added a detective to their tally…’ he said, then shook his head as if trying to sort out all the possibilities.

  ‘You think she’s still in danger?’ Alec asked.

  Dave thought a while. ‘If they’re following their MO, the job wasn’t finished—they were interrupted. None of the previous victims survived. Laura did. Unless they’re suddenly deviating, I’m guessing they might come after her,’ he said. ‘I might even consider giving Laura some protection. That way they might think twice before coming back to finish the job.’

  ‘Protection?’ I almost choked and looked—with panicked eyes, I’m sure—at Alec.

  ‘That’s not necessary,’ Alec began slowly, almost hypnotically and his eyes turned a much lighter shade of lavender as he locked his gaze on Dave. ‘Perhaps it’s best for Laura to remain with her aunt in Vaucluse and police protection be given to Detective Inspector Sommers, in hospital?’

  ‘That’s a consideration,’ Dave agreed.

  ‘Oh and if you want, I can let you have that saliva sample, although it will be almost impossible to find a match.’ Alec’s eyes resumed their normal appearance again.

  ‘I’ll take it to forensics.’ Dave blinked a few times. ‘Laura, it may be necessary for you to stay with your aunt rather than be on your own and we’ll put a guard around your flat in case the perps come back. We’re expending a lot of manpower on your case. This doesn’t just involve Matt and you any more. It’s a personal attack on the police, and we can’t let them win,’ he said. ‘I want you out of danger and once Matt wakes up, hopefully he’ll remember and we’ll have more details to go on. Enough to catch whoever’s responsible.’

  Alec smiled.

  Dave slapped his knee and got up from the chair. ‘Right. I think that’s all for now. Thank you for your help, Doc.’ He extended his hand, then turned to John and Eilene. ‘Pleasure meeting you, Mr and Mrs Dantonville.’ With Barbara on his heels, he left the room.