vampires of san francisco 07 - suckers lost and found

by mcbrayer, jessica

  SEVEN / SEBASTIAN

  The moment I realized Lily was in danger I cursed myself to the darkest Hell for not watching her. It has been too painful to see her flirting with the King and now this Lothario wannabe. I know by now that she is mine and believe me if we live until the wedding I will never doubt her again. It’s time to vamp up. I’m going to start by finding out from this guy Aidan grabbed what the hell is going on.

  “What did he give her?” I grab the guy by his shirt and pull him up showing my fangs.

  He shakes his head. I don’t think he speaks English and he mumbles incoherently in Italian. I can understand and read some Italian but never bothered becoming fluent and I don’t want to miss a word he says.

  “Julian,” I say quietly. In a second he is standing before me in nothing but a pair of jeans. He takes one look at Lily and the man I have pulled up by his tip toes. “He doesn’t speak English. Lily’s been drugged.”

  Julian growls and starts talking in rapid Italian. The man moans and Julian back hands him. The man replies quickly this time.

  “He says that they spiked her blood with a mixture they keep on hand for Cristian.”

  “What’s in the mixture?” Aidan asks as he shifts Lily in his arms.

  Goddess, I want to hold her but don’t want this guy to think I am going to be soft on him. I renew my grip on him and shake him another time hoping to get some answers out of him.

  Julian and the man talk again. Julian is now showing his fangs. He rarely loses control enough to show them. This has to be worse than what is already going through my mind.

  “He says it’s the equivalent of a vampire roofie. It renders the vampire paralyzed but they are fully aware of what is going on. They just can’t act on it.” Julian is interrupted by the man’s ramblings.

  “He’s saying something about so many vampires disappearing. He says Cristian is good at making people disappear.” Julian lets out a low growl but the loudest sound comes from Aidan. He lets out a guttural sound that makes my heart clench and it plummets to the ground. He loves Manda but he will always care for Lily. I hope like a brother because he has her back and mine as well.

  “Sebastian, take Lilith. I’m going back to find this Cristian,” he says through gritted teeth. He transfers Lily to my arms and he is gone. The Italian vamp starts screaming. Guess he didn’t know about djinns. He wakes everyone up, including our hosts. Vamps start pouring onto the patio.

  “Oh my Goddess,” Hannah squeals when she sees the scene in front of her. Diel puts his arm around her.

  “Helena, can you take care of Lily? I want to continue my talk with this waiter.”

  “Of course,” Helena says as she takes Lily out of my arms. I can hear her softly laying on spells as she tries to help Lily. Something tells me we won’t be able to use magick on this.

  “Julian, does he know of an antidote?”

  “He says they have one at the club in case there is ever an accidental dosing. He says he’s sorry over and over again. He is not only employed at the club but indentured to them because of a gambling debt. If he leaves he will be killed instantly. He had no choice.”

  I want to rip his arms off but I see the pleading in Lily’s eyes. I know her and I know she is right.

  “We need to get him out of the country then. He’s cooperated and was forced to do what he did,” I say.

  “I agree. We need to reach Aidan and see if he is still at the club. Have him get the antidote,” Julian says.

  “If the club is still standing,” I say.

  “What’s going on?” Hannah finally asks. I knew it wouldn’t be long before she demanded some answers.

  “Lily and I went to a vamp club with Aidan to do some intel. She got into VIP and started chatting up the guy who got her in. Next thing I know Aidan has her and is whipping up a wind storm.” I hear Julian on the phone with Aidan. I should be calling him not having to spend precious moments with retelling. But they need to know. “Aidan grabbed this guy and me with Lily in his arms. She wasn’t moving but she was wide awake.”

  “He doesn’t speak English so I called for Julian. He’s been very cooperative. Turns out he had been ordered to give the equivalent of a vampire roofie. She’s paralyzed but is aware of what is going on.”

  Hannah is on him in an instant. It takes Diel and me to pull her off.

  “Hannah, he had no choice. He would have been killed if he hadn’t done it,” I explain.

  Liam and Andrew each hold a baby. Finn whimpers and Hannah finally backs down.

  I walk over to Lily then and kiss her forehead and whisper in her ear. “Je t’adore ma petite.”

  “Lily, if you can hear me, blink,” Hannah yells at her. Finn starts wailing. Of course Lily can’t blink so Hannah starts to freak out until Diel explains that to her again. He also reminds her Lily isn’t deaf. Thank fuck for that because now Fiona is crying, trying to outdo her brother. Andrew and Liam take the babies back to their room. Hades starts to bark, upset with the twins crying. But he follows them anxiously.

  The owners of the villa are upset. Diel talks to them and smooths things over. He doesn’t have years of etiquette and negotiation skills for nothing. I shake the waiter just because I need to take some of my frustration out.

  Aidan pops in holding a syringe. Julian takes it from him.

  “Any luck finding Cristian?” I ask.

  “He’d already left the scene of the crime and he’s gone to ground somewhere. I didn’t get a good enough fix on him to follow him.”

  “Helena, lay Lily down on the bench and I will give this to her,” Julian says.

  Helena takes extra care making Lily comfortable. I hand the Italian to Diel and go to put Lily’s hand in my lap. I hold her hand while Julian plunges the antidote into a vein. The result is almost instantaneous. She starts stirring and then yelling.

  “That Italian fuck head! Aidan, he knows something. He told me he liked to play with his toys and that he specializes in making vamps disappear,” Lily says in a whoosh. Aidan looks stricken and his body starts to flicker. Lily lunges for him and holds on. I think she is the only thing grounding him at the moment.

  “Easy, ma petite. I think he is coming back to us. You need a minute to rest and let your body acclimate. Have you been following everything we’ve said so far?”

  “Yes, I have,” she says through gritted teeth. I’m overjoyed at her response. She’s showing fang and I can feel her body trembling, ready to take someone down. This is a good response. Any fear is long gone.

  “I want to beat the shit out of something,” she says as she eyes the waiter from over Aidan’s shoulder. Aidan is holding on for dear life. He finally lets go, touching his forehead to Lily’s. I see him mouth ‘Thank you.’

  “Oh no, Lily. He is an innocent bystander, he had no choice,” Julian says to her anticipating her moves.

  “He still gave it to me,” Lily mutters petulantly. “We need to find Cristian. I would love to ‘talk’ to him. More like kick him in the junk.”

  “Right behind ya, babe. Ganja Momma is coming out of retirement. Hells yeah,” Hannah yells.

  Diel shakes his head. We catch each other’s eyes and laugh. We can’t help grinning at our little kick-ass women. And me with relief that Lily is okay. Aidan puts a hand on my shoulder and squeezes.

  “Just think you have to be legally tied to this woman in a day,” he says. He’s calmed a bit. Perhaps the women’s fierceness reinforces our commitment to help him.

  “I can’t wait,” I say as I lift Lily’s chin and give her a long-overdue kiss.

  “What are we going to do with this gentleman?” Julian asks, as he points to the Italian server.

  “Might I make a suggestion?” Aidan asks.

  “Of course,” I say as I run my fingers through Lily’s soft, sweet-smelling curls.

  “Let me take him back to the states. It’s far enough away that he should be safe and I can get him set up in an apartment until he gets on his feet. I can’t
stand anyone being a slave and that was what he was.”

  “That sounds very generous,” Lily says. “Can you magick him so he can speak and understand English? That would be necessary.”

  “I can do that and will. Now which state should I take him to?”

  “How about Forks, Washington? They are trying to grow their population and its low key, temperate and close to us so we can check up on him,” I explain. Lily rolls her eyes.

  “Sounds good. Let me give the gift of English and then we can ask him if he agrees.”

  Julian has been busy translating this whole time so when Aidan waves his hand and the man sputters and then starts gushing his thanks to us in English. We release our resentment as he tells us his story. Even Hannah relents.

  “Thank you so much. Grazie, those men I worked for were like your mob. They were very dangerous and Cristian is a part of the group. I don’t know how or what he does but you aren’t the first person I have made that cocktail for.” He nods to Lily. “I’ve made it six other times for beautiful women and I’ve never seen them again,” he says. He lowers his head. Lily moves to him. I knew she wouldn’t be able to keep her pique up. She is so soft-hearted. She takes his hand, Daniele is his name. A thirty-year-old vamp. He looks at her and she smiles at him. His eyes grow wide. Mon Dieu, she has another worshipper.

  “Daniele, thank you for telling them where the antidote was. It saved my wedding among other things. You didn’t have to do that but you did. So, thank you and I wish you the best of luck in Washington. We’ll visit you soon or you can come and visit us after you get situated.”

  “You shouldn’t thank me. I gave you the drink in the first place and I’m so ashamed of myself. If I hadn’t been in over my head with my debts I never would have ended up in that place.”

  “We all make mistakes,” Hannah says squeezing his hand. She always acts so tough but she is a big softie too.

  “I’ll be back in a couple of hours after I get Daniele settled. By the way Daniele, I’m a djinn and we are going to travel the same way I brought you here. Are you ready?” Aidan asks.

  Daniele looks apprehensive but nods. Aidan takes his hand and they pop out. I’m sure Aidan is going to question him about Manda. It’s not likely that Manda was ever in the club though.

  “Well that was some bachelor party,” I say and wink at my girl.

  EIGHT / LILITH

  Sebastian helps me up from the bench and we walk the short distance to our little bungalow. It has a huge bed in it and a small suite for the bathroom. The bathroom has a Jacuzzi tub and separate shower and the tub is built large enough for four people. Next to the tub is a floor-to-ceiling window that looks out over an open meadow under the night sky. Blood-red candles cover every flat surface of the bathroom. They smell like cloves and oranges.

  “Sebastian, let’s take a bath and wash off the night.”

  “Sounds like a good idea, besides I get to have you naked and wet.”

  “I’m not for anything wild. Could you just hold me?”

  “Bien sur, ma petite.” He kisses the top of my head.

  I light the candles and turn off the lights. Sebastian gets in and I turn on the jets and he groans. I think all the tension of the last few days has caught up with him, especially tonight. I have to admit that after tonight I need to be with him, feel him.

  “Are you stiff and sore, darling?” I ask.

  “You tell me, cherie,” he says as he pulls my hand under the water.

  We luxuriate in the hot water until we are wrinkled. It is peaceful being in the water with the moonlight mixing with the candlelight. But in the end we are two insatiable, sex-driven vampires needing to reconnect after almost dying and we are soon crawling our way out of the water and towards the bed. We didn’t quite make it the first time.

  The second time we are at least half on the bed. Finally we make it onto the bed and we make love as opposed to the wild sex we had just before. We lie in each other’s arms talking as dawn approaches. Soon it is time and I have to fall asleep. I especially hate the facts of life as a young vampire. Sebastian won’t be staying with me while I sleep. There is too much to be done so he is getting all his last-minute touching of me in now.

  The next thing I remember is waking up to Aidan sitting in the chair next to me. I am a little startled, mostly because I’m not dressed and he hasn’t done this since Sebastian and I became engaged.

  “Aidan, I’m not dressed. Shame on you.”

  “Believe me, it hasn’t escaped my attention. Don’t worry, you’ve been covered up, unfortunately,” he says grinning wickedly. “I enjoy watching you sleep and I wanted to check on you and make sure you were okay after last night.”

  “Hand me my robe, please.”

  I motion for him to turn around while I put my robe on.

  “I was able to relocate Daniele last night. He is old enough that he doesn’t need to sleep so he was going to start getting to know his new town and its surrounding area. He said he would look for a job tomorrow.”

  “That’s good news. I’m glad it all worked out for him. You are a good man, Aidan.”

  “You might not think that in a minute. I also come bearing bad news. Don’t kill the messenger, okay love?”

  “Besides the fact that it is impossible to kill you, you know I would never do that. Spill. What’s going on?”

  “It seems the florist had the wrong day for the wedding and tried to deliver the flowers today. Helena straightened it out, though. The dresses won’t be ready until tomorrow morning at 10:00 and the priest wants to meet with you and Sebastian tonight to do some marriage counseling.” I’m not too worried. Aidan can fix everything if we need it. I’m more worried about the counseling.

  He laughs at this last bit, so do I. The poor priest. If he only knew he was counseling two vampires he would have an angry mob waiting for us.

  “I’ve been to see Basilio again. He wouldn’t talk to me, claimed he was in a meeting with some international dignitaries.” Aidan’s eyes shimmer with fire.

  “He said he would have some news for me when he comes to the wedding. He had better,” I say, feeling my own pique rise.

  Aidan summons coffee for me, effectively changing the topic and I smile at him.

  “Thank you, Aidan. You spoil me.”

  “I love to spoil you. You’ve never let me do half of what I’ve wanted to and I miss doing it for Manda. What are your plans for the day?”

  “I was planning on going into the city to pick up dresses and check on the florist but now I don’t have to. I am not sure what I have to do until we meet with the priest. What is Sebastian up to?”

  “He is in the city with Julian. They are arranging things for a small reception to take place here after the wedding. Since the King is going to be here they decided to make it a bit more formal. I’ve offered repeatedly to Helena to summon and create things for the wedding but she wants this done the old-fashioned way and is punishing everyone in turn.” Aidan sighs and I giggle. He is so funny when he pouts.

  “That’s a good idea. I hate the idea of seeing Basilio again. What are your plans for the day, Aidan?”

  “I thought I would tag along with you until you are otherwise detained. It is my last Lilith Goodwill day. Tomorrow you will be Mrs. St. John,” he says with a smile. But I see through it.

  “Oh, Aidan. Don’t be sad today. I love you too much and I will have to cry and that will bring us both down.”

  “I am trying, Lilith. It’s not just your impending name change, it’s all I want to do with Manda. I want to marry her. I want to make love to her. I want her to have the day you are having. I miss her, my heart feels torn open. You came through Hell, literally, and it gives me hope that somehow she can too. So I am clinging to you.”

  “Aidan, we will find her. If I have to stake Basilio myself, I will.”

  “Enough of this talk for a little while. You haven’t had a carefree day before your wedding and you should be enjoying the preparati
ons. Let’s pop into the city and get you some new Italian shoes?”

  “Ohhh you know how to tempt a girl! Let me get dressed. I’ll need to tell someone that I am leaving.”

  “Let me tell Helena for you, love. I will be back to collect you in ten minutes so hurry. I don’t want to waste a minute with you today.”

  He transmanifests out of my room and I hustle around. I don’t trust him not to pop back in while I am still dressing, just for mischief’s sake, so I hurry to put on a cute little dress and some pumps. A little makeup and of course I have to brush the fangsters. I am still brushing my teeth when Aidan pops back in.

  “Aren’t you ready yet, Lilith?”

  “Almost,” I say around my toothbrush.

  He smirks, and I know he had intended catching me off-guard.

  Finished, I grab my purse, he grabs my hand and we drop into the retail area of Florence. I haven’t seen much of the city so I am busy looking around. Aidan keeps hold of my hand and we stroll around talking and looking at the sites. I need some retail therapy after last night’s excitement and with the consistent maneuvering of the King. I am getting a little pre-wedding jitters too, if the truth be told.

  Aidan is great to shop with. He politely tells me what he really thinks of my purchases and he has great taste. He never complains about holding my bags and he will spend hours with me, shopping. We talk the whole time. It has been ages since we have spent this much time together. I have really missed him. His mood improves by the hour as he absorbs my enjoyment and the good humor around us. Around four o’clock we stop at an outdoor café so I can have some coffee. I have collected a huge amount of shopping bags. It is almost embarrassing. Note, I say almost. After my coffee we decide it is time to go home. It is almost five and Sebastian and I have to meet the priest at six-thirty. He is meeting us at his parish church, which is closer to the villa.

  Aidan gathers up the bags and takes my hand and pops us back to the villa. We land in the courtyard. I think he knew Bast would be waiting for us there. Everyone is sitting together having a glass of wine.