‘Remember what you told me … about that vampire, Buck? You said that when Michael questioned him he admitted that he’d been controlling all the other vampires with some potion that made them impossible to detect, but also made them more susceptible to his mind control.’
‘Yes, that’s right.’
‘Potion … that’s what you called it, right?’
‘Yes. But what are you getting at? You think he was somehow giving me something? That’s highly unlikely. He had no access to me—I certainly hadn’t ever seen him before.’
‘No, not him. But what if it was someone else?’
‘Someone else? Like who? What are you suggesting?’
‘Well … what if it was someone, like, living in the same house as you? Who had access to your things—like your clothes and your phone?’
‘My phone?’
‘YES … that’s it! Someone tampered with your phone! You said the guy at the shop said there was nothing wrong with it. So … maybe someone got to it … you know … deleting stuff.’
‘Lili, I’m not following you? What are you getting at?’
It was all falling into place now … the pieces coming together like a huge puzzle. His phone, his attitude … and now, he was back to normal. He was out of that house … away from her. I finally had the answer, and when I told Sam, I was speaking faster than I’d ever done in my life.
‘I saw Angelica go upstairs in this shop … supposedly to buy some creams for a skin condition. Only I couldn’t see any skin condition. It’s not like she had a rash or anything. What if she was actually buying ingredients? Something dark … some sort of black magic. She was very secretive about it.’
‘What are you talking about?’ he asked, a frown just starting to appear on his face.
‘That day I went to the Dandenongs, with Crystal and Angelica. She disappeared upstairs in this shop we were in. Both she and the shop assistant looked really nervous about whatever it was they were up to. Crystal told me that it was for some creams. But what if it wasn’t?’ I was nearly breathless now as it all came together in my mind. How had I not seen this before?
‘Angelica?’ Sam’s frown deepened, and the tone of his voice told me he didn’t believe me.
‘Yes. And maybe it wasn’t just you … maybe she’s been giving something to Crystal as well!’
Sam looked at me as if I had suddenly grown a third eye in the middle of my forehead. ‘Lili, I think you’re letting your imagination run away with you. Angelica … she’s a dhampira. She’s not into black magic. And she certainly wouldn’t be in cahoots with a vampire … especially one like Buck.’
‘Well, but … don’t you see? The timing is perfect. She arrives, and then a short time later you all feel like you’re being watched, so you move … together … where she suddenly has access to all of you.’
‘Lili, slow down.’
‘Sam,’ I said, dragging out his name sarcastically. ‘Something isn’t right about her. I felt it that first time I met her, at Mladen’s. I would swear she narrowed her eyes, and if she’d been a cat she would have hissed at me. Oh, oh, and there’s more. Elizabeth and Cassie … they can’t read her thoughts. They’ve seen her talking to Crystal, and her mind is a blank wall. Elizabeth says that happens for her occasionally, but it’s pretty uncommon. And her story—about being from Spain … Cassie’s from San Diego, and she says Angelica’s accent doesn’t sound like any kind of Spanish she’s ever heard.’
I’d been talking so quickly I was nearly out of breath, so I stopped and looked at Sam, hoping for support. But instead, he just shook his head.
‘Now you’re going too far. She’s a dhampira. You know, one of the good guys.’
‘But how do you know that? How do you know she’s a dhampira? None of you knew that Ceylona was … not until she spotted that vampire. Crystal couldn’t tell … Mladen couldn’t tell.’
‘But if she was a vampire, we’d all know that.’
‘Would you? If she’s been in cahoots with Buck then she might be taking the same potion that made those other vampires impossible to detect. It would explain a lot of things, don’t you think?’
‘Well … look, I think you’re barking up the wrong tree here, but let me talk to Michael about it. I’ll express your concerns, and he can do his own investigating if he feels there’s any reason to question her. But I do think that either Crystal or Michael would certainly have picked up on it by now… she’s been with Crystal constantly since she arrived.’
‘But it all makes sense … you’ve got to agree, right? I mean, it explains so many things that just didn’t make sense. And it could explain why you were, you know, so distant.’
‘Well, whatever that was, it’s over—I can’t keep my hands off you anymore. And speaking of that, we won’t have the house to ourselves like this again for weeks, my dear. Can I tempt you back up to our bedroom?’
His smile, or rather his cheeky grin, warmed me in places I didn’t know could get warm. And after a few moments all thoughts of Angelica and potions were wiped from my mind like steam wiped from a foggy window. I stood up and held my hand out to him and in a flash he picked me up and we were racing up the stairs.
Man, I loved this house.
~~***~~
‘Has she arrived yet?’ asked Claire, when she rang a few hours later.
‘Not yet, but I expect her here shortly. Debs was going to pick her up. Why?’
‘Oh, nothing really … just, she was bringing something for me—a present from my Dad. I think it’s jewellery. You know … just some little trinket from Tiffany’s I’d say.’
‘Oh, you’re so spoiled,’ I laughed.
‘I know,’ she said, and even over the phone I could tell she was smiling.
‘So, will you be able to make it to dinner with us, on Christmas Eve? It would be so nice if you could. It’ll be our first Christmas here at the house … as a family.’
‘Ah, I wish I could, but I’m going to Bali for three weeks … with a few of the girls from my old job—you remember Steph and Holly? Wish I could do both … you know, especially if Tom will be there.’
‘Oh, yeah, no, I mean, I don’t think he will … I think he plans to spend it with Rebekah.’
‘Oh, her. Yeah, well, since I can’t be there anyway it doesn’t really matter I suppose—I just thought it could have been nice.’
‘Yeah, I thought something might happen too. I mean, after our housewarming party, well, I thought you two seemed to be getting on like old times. I watched Tom, you know … and the look on his face—he seemed mesmerised. But nothing … I mean, you haven’t seen him since?’
‘No, I haven’t heard from him, so I guess he was just reminiscing.’
‘Hmmm … but you’re okay with that, aren’t you? I mean, you’re not heartbroken or anything, are you?’
‘Heartbroken? No, I wouldn’t say I was heartbroken. But I wouldn’t mind getting back together with him either … if he wanted to. There’s still something about him … none of the other guys I’ve gone out with seem to compare to him.’
‘Yeah, I know what you mean. But you never know what the future holds.’
‘No, you sure don’t. Like, who’d ever have thought I’d be working in an advertising agency and you’d be a lady of leisure in your own magnificent home.’
We had a good laugh and then she promised to drop around after work one day during the week to see Ceylona and drop off some presents for her—not to mention to pick up her own present from her Dad.
~~***~~
‘This one is perfect,’ I said to Sam, pointing to a tree that stood at least six feet tall. Ceylona stood beside me and nodded her head in agreement.
‘Are you sure it’s big enough?’ laughed Sam, ‘I mean, I don’t want you to feel you’re being denied the tree you really want.’
The tree was huge—bigger than any I’d ever had as a kid. Ceylona giggled beside me.
‘I like it Mommy. There’ll be plenty of room f
or presents under it,’ she said, giving me a cheeky grin. Her eyes sparkled, and she took my hand. There was a hopeful look on her face.
I leaned forward, pressing my face up against the lower branches of the tree and took a deep breath. The scent was invigorating—bringing back memories from my childhood.
‘We’ll take it. Ceylona and I are both quite happy with this one,’ I laughed.
Sam paid the man, and declined any offer for assistance as he lifted the tree up easily. I grabbed Ceylona’s hand and bent over and kissed the top of her head. Smiling like Cheshire Cats, we followed behind Sam as he led us home.
When we walked into the house, Mom, Cassie and Elizabeth all gasped, no doubt for Ceylona’s benefit.
‘Well, that’s some tree you’ve chosen. I don’t think I’ve ever seen one that big,’ Mom said, coming over to stand behind Ceylona as Sam set the tree up in the family room. ‘You’ll need a lot of decorations for this one.’
‘Hmmm, yes, I guess we will. I have a few things, somewhere … but definitely not enough. Let’s see … I want gold tinsel, and a big angel for the top, and lights; lots of lights. And Sam, would you be able to put up some lights outside—like, along the balcony? And maybe a star?’
‘Oh, yes please Mommy. Like that house we saw when we were living at Grandma’s house—the one down the street had a big star.’
‘You remember one near Grandma’s, do you?’ I asked.
‘Oh yes. It had lots of lights, and a star … and it had a Santa and reindeer on the front lawn too,’ she replied, smiling coyly.
Mom laughed. ‘That would be the Wilson’s house. They always go all out every year.’
‘Oh yeah, I remember their house. I think we could have lights like that, but perhaps we should skip the Santa and reindeer, don’t you think Ceylona? I don’t think our front yard is big enough.’
She frowned before answering, and I could see a strong resemblance to Sam. It was that same frown I’d seen on his face many times.
‘Okay, we don’t need Santa and reindeer … but can we have lots of lights, right?’ she asked.
Sam shook his head, but his smile told me he would do whatever we asked him to.
‘Do you want to come with us?’ I asked him as I grabbed my backpack and threw it over my shoulder.
‘No, I’ll let you girls go pick out whatever you want. I’ll just drop around and see Michael … make sure everything is still under control. You know, it feels really funny, taking time off like this.’
‘It’ll do you the world of good,’ said Mom, her tone motherly toward Sam. It was nice to hear.
‘I’m sure you’re right. Anyway, why don’t the three of you girls, or should I say the five of you, go pick out what you want and I’ll see you back here a bit later,’ he said as he bent down to kiss the top of Ceylona’s head, then put his arm around me and kissed my cheek. Elizabeth and Cassie just laughed.
~~***~~
Ben and Henry were more than happy to help Sam with the lights. They’d all three been out there for over an hour already, and I began to wonder if I’d gone a bit overboard. But it was our first Christmas in our new house, and possibly the only one we’d have with Ceylona young enough to really get excited.
When they were finally finished, the three men came in and helped with the finishing touches on the tree. Then we all just stood and admired it for a moment—me possibly most of all. I mean, seriously, here we were: me, Sam, our three beautiful children, my mother, Cassie and Elizabeth. This was what Christmas was all about—family—and I knew we’d probably never have another one quite like it.
Debs had agreed to join us on Christmas day since Ian wasn’t coming back from Paris. And Crystal and Michael said they would love to come too. And of course there was Angelica. Sam had spoken to Michael about her, but that hadn’t gone anywhere. Michael had no concerns about her. But I still felt uncomfortable, and wondered how she had them all fooled. The thought of her being here, batting her eyelashes at Ben, was enough to send shivers down my spine. But how could I say she couldn’t come? I’d just have to put up with it. At least Ben hadn’t mentioned anything about her since arriving—although he had disappeared a time or two by himself, and I didn’t dare ask where he’d been. I suppose I really didn’t want to know—it was nicer just to think he was shopping.
But for tonight anyway, it was just the six of us. Well, eight if you counted Elizabeth and Cassie, but they were rather shy when the boys were around, and were keeping to themselves at the moment. So the six of us would enjoy a quiet family dinner, and then sit around and soak up the scent of our tree, and catch up on everyone’s activities. We’d all been doing shopping, by ourselves or in pairs, and there were already several wrapped presents under the tree.
Just a few days until Christmas, I felt like a little kid again, nearly as excited as Ceylona.
~~***~~
‘Lili? Where are you?’ Sam’s voice sounded desperate sending chills down my spine.
‘Down at Melbourne Central—just picking up a few last minute gifts. Why? What is it?’ I could feel the blood rushing out of my face, and the phone felt like a lead weight in my hand.
‘Where’s Ceylona? Is she with you? And what about Ben and Henry? Where are they?’ He was speaking so fast I could barely understand him.
‘Ben and Henry went for a drive—they borrowed Crystal’s car and went down the Great Ocean Road. But Ceylona is at home, with Mom. What is it? Your voice … it’s scaring me. What’s wrong, Sam?’ I asked unable to control the panic in my own voice now.
‘You’ll need to get home as soon as you can. Something is wrong. There’s something about to happen in the gardens. Get home quickly, and stay there.’
‘What do you mean something’s about to happen? What’s happening? What is it? Who is it?’
‘Zunios, I think. I’ve seen several very nasty looking vampires this morning, and they aren’t laughing. And the gardens … something isn’t right here.’
‘Okay. I’m on my way.’
‘Go home, Lili. Find Ceylona, make sure she’s safe.’
‘Yes, I’ll go straight home.’
‘And don’t go through the gardens—stay well clear of there, please.’
I quickly dropped what I’d been looking at and raced out the door. As soon as I was out into Elizabeth Street, I started running. It was, what, five or six blocks at most? I should be there within a few minutes. I ran down to Franklin Street, then up through the market car park, avoiding going through the gardens. Up Dudley Street, into Milton and there it was. I raced in the front door and stood for just a moment catching my breath enough so I could call out.
‘Mom? Ceylona? Hey, where are you guys?’
When there was no answer, I raced down the hall to the family room. Mom was sitting in front of the television, shaking her head as if to clear it.
‘What’s up, Lili? Back from shopping so soon?’ she asked. She had a confused look on her face.
‘Yes. Where’s Ceylona?’ I replied quickly, trying not to sound panicked.
‘In the back yard, playing with the dogs,’ she replied, but her voice had just a hint of uncertainty. She got up from her chair as I ran over to open the door that led to the back yard. I called, but my voice was met by nothing but silence.
‘She isn’t there. She isn’t here! Oh my God, she’s gone out somewhere with the dogs,’ I said, trying to hold back the full scale panic that threatened to overcome me.
‘Calm down, sweetheart. I’m sure she hasn’t gone far. I’m so sorry—I must have dropped off in front of the television. But she can’t have gone too far. It can’t have been very long.’
‘She’s probably taken the dogs over to the gardens for a play. And that’s the last place I want her right now. Sam rang—there’s something wrong.’
Mom picked up her handbag and threw the strap over her shoulder. ‘Come—we’ll find her. Don’t worry.’
‘No, Mom. You stay here, in case she comes back. She may
just have gone around the block or something. I’ll get Elizabeth and Cassie to come with me.’
‘Are you sure? I think I should go with you,’ she said, guilt written all over her face.
‘No, really, you stay here. Someone needs to be here in case she comes back. If she does, don’t let her leave again. And ring me.’
I stepped out the front door and in my mind I screamed Elizabeth’s name as loud as I could. It was only a moment or two until I heard her humming, then I saw her there in front of me, Cassie at her side.
‘No need to scream so loud, Lili. What’s wrong?’
I quickly ran through the conversation I’d had with Sam, and as I did her normally cheerful face turned darker and darker.
‘We’ll find her, don’t worry. If she’s in the gardens, we’ll find her. We’ll bring her back here if we can, but if it doesn’t seem safe, we’ll get her into Henry’s tunnel. We’ll be able to hide there if there’s trouble.’
With that, she and Cassie were gone.
I didn’t know what to do. I couldn’t just stay at the house, waiting. But I knew Sam didn’t want me in the gardens either. But how could I stay away? If Zunios was out there, how could I let my baby wander around, innocently?
I raced down the street, and then turned left and headed down toward William Street. I’d stay away from Sam’s tree, and sneak around the back of the gardens. I didn’t know exactly where Henry’s tunnel was, but remembering the direction he’d always gone when he left us at Elizabeth’s bench, I knew it was somewhere between her bench and La Trobe Street. I’d skirt around the outside of the gardens and look for Elizabeth—if Ceylona was there, she’d tell me.
I was there in a moment, but I couldn’t see anything. It was broad daylight, or at least it should have been. It couldn’t be any later than five-thirty or six, yet it seemed dark and hazy in the gardens. My mind raced—it shouldn’t be dark ‘til almost nine o’clock … something was wrong … really wrong.
I stood there, afraid to step into the gardens. Didn’t anyone else see it? People were walking past me on the street, heading home from work or off to meet friends for drinks. No one slowed or gave the gardens a second look. Were they all blind? Or was I dreaming? Was everything normal and it was just me—blinded by my panic?
Deception (Absent Shadows Trilogy Book 3) Page 20
