“I can’t. I have to feed. It’s the only thing that will stop the burning,” he hissed, desperate.
“Burning?”
“In my blood,” he answered.
Stunned, Morgan remained silent too long. She jumped a little, startled when there was a loud clatter, as the phone bounced against something solid. Cursing herself, Morgan strained to hear anything beyond the rush of wind over the line. She tapped the volume control on her phone until the speaker was at maximum, but the microphone limited what she could hear. A knot of fear settled in Morgan’s stomach, as she heard tires crunch on gravel. Large tires.
She glanced at Nicholas who was leaning on her desk, gripping the edge of it so tight his knuckles had turned white. She waved to catch his eyes, and tapped the note Charles had left. A deep frown creased Nicholas’s handsome features for a moment. Storm grey eyes met hers, and Morgan gave a tiny shake of her head. Nicholas nodded, reached into his jacket pocket and walked out of the room, dialing a number on his cell phone.
“You,” a voice on the phone startled Morgan, and sent a new wave of terror rolling through her. The Doctor remained silent for a few moments, chuckling, when she didn’t rise to his bait. “You will return. There’s no sense in fighting. I promise it won’t hurt as much once you surrender. The blood in your veins will burn, and only I can stop it.” His Southern drawl was smooth as satin and seductive as a viper’s. Morgan dug her nails into her palm but didn’t say a word. “Nothing? Oh well, no matter. I have Julian’s screams to keep me company. And I really should devote some quality time to my latest acquisition. Such a beautiful Creole doll that one is, with a sharp mind to match. It will be such a pleasure to break her to the master’s will,” he mused, and then the connection was cut.
“Marcus?” Morgan whispered, her voice sounding reedy and thin to her own ears.
“Yes?”
“What happened Morgan?” Nicholas asked, as he came back into the room.
“Is it done?” she asked him, turning to her husband.
“Lauren is seeing to it that Julian’s Will is executed. It’s the best we can do Morgan,” Nicholas sighed, crossing to stand beside her. As if he knew she was on shaky emotional ground, he slid his arm around her waist, lending her a measure of his strength.
“I know,” she whispered.
“Damn it girl!” Marcus roared, slamming his fist into the desk. Morgan jumped a little, shocked by the outburst. Marcus has been almost always cool and collected no matter the situation. He hadn’t become General in the Roman army without being able to keep it together under stress.
“That was Julian, he’s been taken by the madness,” she dropped her head into her right hand. They all knew that there was no coming back from the madness. Once a vampire gave into it, they became unpredictable, a liability, they had to be put down. “I don’t think there’s anything to be done for him.” She felt Nicholas move to stand behind her, his hands kneading her shoulders more for comfort than to release tension.
“What in the name of Dante’s seven Hells does that have to do with Elizabeth?”
“The doctor got on the phone after Julian dropped it.” Her voice was empty, clinical as if she were suppressing her emotions. “He said that his latest acquisition was a Creole doll with a sharp mind that he was going to enjoy breaking. We know he works on vampires, so that’s a safe assumption, then the question is how many of vampires fit that description?”
“Could be a Rogue or Nomad,” Nicholas offered.
“No. It’s her,” Marcus answered his voice bleak. “I may be retired but New Orleans is still my city and I know of no other Creole vampires who still live here.”
“It doesn’t have to mean that it’s a New Orleans–based vampire.” Christophe interjected.
“This doctor is obsessed with his quest. I don’t see him taking my escape well.” Morgan shuddered at the memory of his voice slithering through her mind. Feeling the tremor, Nicholas slid his hands down her arms and rubbed them. “He would have found a replacement as soon as they realized I was well guarded.”
“That fits the timeline for Elizabeth’s disappearance. But how do we prove it, and what do we do about it?” Nicholas asked, practical as always.
“This means we can’t sit here and wait. We have to be proactive.” Christophe ran his hand through his blonde hair.
“He’s right,” Nicholas sighed.
“Charles, Christophe, and I should all head to Los Angeles as soon as possible,” Marcus muttered, as though he was thinking more but didn’t want to say it.
“Do it,” Nicholas said, with a nod. “Morgan, you, and I are going deeper into hiding for a few days. It will give Marcus and the others a chance to get things settled at the club and house in L.A. It will also give you a little more time to gain what control you can over this thing.”
“Nicholas,” Morgan started to argue, but the look he leveled at her was enough to stop her. “If you think that’s best.”
“I do.”
“So be it. Where are we going?”
“I’ll handle everything,” Nicholas whispered, taking her hand in his. She glanced out of the corner of her eye and saw a hint of a wry smile curling his lips. She leaned over and kissed his cheek, wondering what he had in mind.
“Well, I’ll leave you three to discuss whatever changes you have in store for my club and home. However, I will not tolerate bars on the windows of either.” She kissed Nicholas’s cheek and started to leave. “Don’t forget. We’ll need to make some arrangements for Eric. He’s going to need a strong hand for the first few months, maybe even years,” she said and walked out of the room.
16 – THE MOUNTAINS – OCTOBER 9, 2009
MORGAN WOKE WHEN the car Nicholas had been driving for the past day, and a half came to a stop, and the engine shut off. She hoped they were wherever he was headed; after all, they could only go west so far before they drove into the ocean. While we could survive without air, I’m certain that the rented sedan wouldn’t fare as well. That they’d reached their destination was a safe assumption because, so far, Nicholas had only stopped for gas and one errand he didn’t explain. She opened her eyes and stretched, feeling her muscles protest the long period without use. Outside the car’s windows, a small stone cottage was set among giant redwood trees, at the back of a clearing. A quick glance at the car’s clock told her that it was a little past seven in the evening.
“We’re here?” she asked, turning to Nicholas.
“Yes,” he whispered, exhaustion written in dark circles under his blue grey eyes and on his pale complexion.
“Let’s get you inside, and to bed. You look like you haven’t slept, or fed, in at least a month.”
“I called Ireland while you slept. Lilly should be here in about seven hours,” Nicholas answered, referring to his current blood donor. Morgan nodded, telling herself that she liked the young woman, and was glad that Nicholas had called her, but it was a lie.
“Good. You can see her tomorrow night. Right now you need to sleep,” she replied, knowing that he would have arranged for another place to meet Lilly. I can’t stomach watching my husband feed from another woman, don’t care if she’s his donor or not, Morgan thought, as she opened the car door. She stepped out and took a deep breath, filling her lungs with fresh air, tasting a hint of salt sea air, mingling with moist deadfall and living wood. Morgan stretched and yawned, feeling her muscles release and joints pop. Nicholas stayed in the car, leaning his head against the back of the seat, eyes closed. Morgan shook her head, walked to the driver’s side and opened the door.
“Come on, love. Sleeping in the car is not recommended,” she chided, while taking hold of his arm.
“It’s a comfortable seat,” he complained, in a low somewhat amused grumble.
“That’s what you say now, but just wait, soon there will be aches and pains, then I’ll have to hear all about it. Come on. I’m sure there’s a nice big comfy bed in the cottage,” Morgan coaxed, as she slid her ar
m around his torso, ready to lift him out of the car if need be. Nicholas chuckled and stepped out of the car, leaning on Morgan for support. “Are you sure you didn’t hit Marcus’s bar before we left?”
“No. Why do you ask?”
“Because last time I had to help you inside like this, the two of you had been on a seventy–two hour bender,” she laughed, as they made their way along the stone path to the cottage.
“We’d almost been killed by a group of Renegades. We deserved to celebrate.”
“Oh, so that’s what you didn’t tell me,” she growled, while fighting to keep him upright, and open the front door at the same time.
“I never told you?” Nicholas asked, with a certain lilt to his voice that told her he was unguarded. She knew she could ask him anything, and he would tell her the truth. Much as she wanted to press him for answers to the questions doing laps in her skull, Morgan couldn’t bring herself to take advantage of his vulnerability.
“You don’t talk about your job much, my love.”
“Don’t want to worry you,” he muttered, as Morgan let him slip to the bed.
“I wish you would,” she whispered, and brushed an errant swatch of auburn hair from his forehead, but Nicholas was sound asleep. “You probably didn’t even hear me, did you?” With a soft laugh, Morgan shifted him into a comfortable position, letting him sleep.
Feeling restless, she walked into the living room. It wasn’t what she was used to. A little rustic for my taste, but all these little details scream Nicholas. From the sumptuous leather couches to the river–rock–faced fireplace, and treasures that had more sentimental value than monetary, scattered about, it was clear that this cabin wasn’t a recent purchase. Morgan racked her brain, trying to recall if he’d ever spoken about a place like this, but she came up with nothing. I have my private spaces and, apparently he does too. Shaking her head, Morgan went out to the car and retrieved the suitcases. She put the ones with clothes in the bedroom and took her briefcase into the living room. A dark glass bottle of ‘the concoction,’ went into the stainless steel refrigerator. She settled in, plugging her iPod into the Bose stereo system, and hitting play before she curled up on the couch with the book that Joshua had given her.
Nicholas woke in the dark bedroom that smelled of earth and wood. Keeping his eyes closed, he reached to the left side of the bed, searching for Morgan. His eyes popped open when his fingers found smooth sheets and blankets. She hadn’t slept. He got out of bed and walked out to the living room, fear creeping up, until he saw her. She was sitting on the couch, reading the Conclave book. Her brows were pulled down low as though she had to think about the words on the page as she read them.
“I thought you were supposed to read that a lesson at a time, love?” he asked, when he realized that she was already more than half way through the book.
“Never been very good with rules,” she muttered, not looking up from the pages.
“No, you’re not,” Nicholas chuckled. “What time is it?”
“A little after four in the morning,” she replied, before taking a bookmark and sliding it into the tome. “I spoke with Lilly. She called your cell, but you were dead to the world. Her flight arrived, and she’s settled at the hotel.” Morgan took note of the page, closed the book and set it on the Mission style coffee table.
“I should go see her,” Nicholas muttered, as he picked up his keys from the kitchen table.
“I told her you’d be there a little after nightfall. Nicholas, you need to sleep more. I don’t want you risking the daylight,” Morgan answered. Oh, who am I kidding? I don’t want to risk that he’s going to choose to spend the day with Lilly not me. Damn Christophe and his insights, jealous my arse, this is worse. I’m a jealous, insecure vampire.
“You’re probably right,” Nicholas whispered. He waited for her to reply, missing the usual smart–ass comment that came with him admitting defeat, but, as the silence stretched, he realized it wasn’t coming. “Feeling up to trying something new before dawn?” he asked, desperate to change the subject. If I can just get her talking, I’m sure whatever’s putting that scowl on her face will come out. Gods, why can’t this be as simple as when I argue with Marcus? We beat the shit out of each other and get it over with.
“What do you have in mind?” As she spoke, Nicholas realized that it was like she was there but not. Something alien had stepped in and taken over Morgan, and was wearing her face but the heart of her wasn’t there.
“This is what Elizabeth was looking into before she disappeared,” he answered, putting a stainless steel case on the coffee table between them. Morgan watched, curious as Nicholas worked the combination locks and opened it, to reveal a pair of matched firearms nestled in dark foam, that seemed to be made of peaks and valleys.
“Guns?”
“Not the guns, not really,” Nicholas answered, handing Morgan one of the weapons. “It’s more like, the bullets. They’re manufactured to fragment on impact. Marcus tested the theory, and it seems that they are effective against vampires. You need to have careful aim and fire more than one round to make a kill, but they will work.”
“If my aim is off?”
“You’re going to have an angry vampire with a big hole in their body coming after you. In truth, it might incapacitate them. Alexander was able to pretty much shrug off a shoulder wound and escape.”
“Lovely,’ she sighed with a dramatic roll of her eyes.
“What harm can it do? It gives you another line of defense. Something that’s not so up close and personal.”
“You’re right.”
Her words are right, but everything in her demeanor says my wife is just humoring me. Nicholas frowned. “Is everything all right Morgan? You seem upset about something.”
‘It’s nothing I can’t handle,” she answered, looking away from him.
“Are you certain, love?”
“I’m still trying to process everything. I’m having a hard time getting my head around some of what’s happened,” she admitted, hoping that the half–truth would stop the questioning.
“Maybe I should stay with Lilly tomorrow? You know give you some time alone to figure things out?” Nicholas offered.
“You’d trust me to be alone?” Morgan whispered, as if she didn’t believe him.
“No one else knows about this cabin. You’ll be safe for a day, love.”
“If that’s what you think is best.” Her answer was what he expected, but her rigid stance and how she looked anywhere in the room but at him, gave up the deception.
“I want to do what’s best for you sweetheart, but I don’t know what that is,” Nicholas replied. I want nothing more than to take her in my arms and chase whatever demons are plaguing her away. But that would be the worst thing I could do. Morgan has always been more independent than most women, and if I’m not careful I’ll piss her off more.
“Fine, stay with Lilly,” she sighed, and closed her eyes shutting him out.
“Morgan, please, don’t shut me out, talk to me. Tell me what’s wrong?”
“I don’t know,” she sighed, looking at him with sad eyes. For a moment, Nicholas thought she was going to open up, and they’d work through this together, but she closed her eyes. When she opened them again a moment later, every wall was back. She was shutting him out.
“Morgan don’t…” he started, while fighting the urge to shake her, in the hopes that it would snap her out of it.
“Don’t what?” she snarled, rounding on him. “I don’t even know what’s going on in my own head right now, I can’t talk about this. Maybe you’re right. Maybe you should go to Lilly.” Morgan rubbed her temples, trying to get her thoughts back under control. Her head was spinning, thoughts flying in so many directions that she just wanted to scream. She wanted Nicholas to comfort and assure her that everything would be all right, but he was pulling away. “You still have time to get there before sunrise.”
“No. I won’t, not when you are like this,” Nichol
as insisted, and in an instant wished he could take the words back.
“You won’t leave me when I’m like this?” Morgan sneered.
“Bad choice of words. I didn’t mean it like that. I mea…” he began, but she cut him off.
“Please Nicholas, just go,” she whispered turning her back on him, and found herself facing the stone fireplace. To distract herself, Morgan began following the lines of grout as though they were a maze. I won’t break down now. Maybe once he’s gone, but not now.
“Morgan I…” Nicholas started, but didn’t know where to go. She won’t even look at me. She’s just staring at the fireplace as though she could douse it with a glare. “Don’t shut me out.”
For a moment, she seemed to relax, and Nicholas thought he’d managed to get through to her, but then it was gone. The tension came back, and she held herself with the otherworldly stillness their kind could adopt. “As you wish. I’ll have my cellular with me. If you need me, call. I don’t care about the time. I’ll be here.” He knew he was babbling, grasping at straws but couldn’t help it. He kept waiting for Morgan to turn around and ask him to stay, but she only nodded. “I love you,” he whispered, trying not to choke on his own voice. When she didn’t speak, Nicholas left.
17 – THE MOUNTAINS – OCTOBER 9, 2009
MORGAN LISTENED TO the crunch of dirt and gravel under Nicholas’s tires, at war with herself. She didn’t want him to leave, but couldn’t stand to have him in the same room. She stood for a long time, staring at the fire, feeling emotions rip through her. When even her heightened sense of hearing lost the sound, Morgan collapsed. She wrapped her arms around her torso, and sank to the coffee table, sitting on it while wracking sobs rolled through her.
A short time later, she was aware of her phone ringing nearby, but she let it go to voice mail. Morgan choked back another sob, and in the process, pulled in a lung full of air. Air saturated with his scent. The walls are closing in. She thought, frantic, breathing in short quick bursts. Feeling the crushing weight all around her, Morgan sprang to her feet and ran outside.
Cast in Blood (Morgan Blackstone Vampires Book 1) Page 22
