by C. L. Quinn
She awoke the next morning to a dusting of soft, light snow covering her just before sunrise. The cats were gone. The little beasts. Moving into the warmer house so quietly they did not wake her so they could seek warmth in her bed. She didn’t mind. A little snow never hurt anyone. But she did have to work, and soon, so she stood up, stretched, and went inside. Two young skunks were polishing off a bowl of cat food near the door and she gently urged them out. Gorgeous white tails curled over their bodies like white clouds danced as they hurried out with their rocking gaits. Beautiful animals with soft souls. Well. Time to dress for work.
When she entered the bathroom, the image of the naked woman with the unbound robe and hair stared back at her from the large mirror that covered the wall. Cherise smiled again. The night air had done her some good…her skin glowed and so did her aura. She dropped the robe on the floor and stepped under the hot glistening water. While the shimmering drops caressed her cold skin, she knew. She’d be alright. Her heart would miss him and her body would want him. But she’d be okay.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Lauren rose early to some pretty awful coffee and stale toast. Uh, uh. Not with that bakery close by, and an overwhelming need to meet its owner. She thanked her senior intern for his offering, but told him she was going out for a run. She dressed the part, then threw her coat over her sweatpants and light jacket. Snow had arrived, and while the overnight amounts were small, it was still coming down and had even increased over the past thirty minutes. Didn’t bother her…she really was going to walk to the village center to get some breakfast and meet Cherise Devereaux.
It was quite enervating. Lauren was originally from Miami, so snow was still a wonderful surprise for her. The flakes were suddenly quite large and falling at a steady rate gliding on air as if they were playing. Her hands were a little cold, needed to buy some gloves, but other than that, it was the best she had felt in some time. Stress and guilt had overwhelmed her the past several months, but now, with refreshing mountain air and the cleansing snow, she was breathing easier. And coming home. God, she’d needed to come home. Suddenly she realized she was smiling ear to ear. She felt hope again. Like the future may yet hold good things for her. Like maybe the universe might actually someday forgive her.
Deep stomach gurgles made her even a little giddy at the idea of a good meal in a less hostile place. There it was up ahead just a few more yards. The sidewalk was getting a little slippery now, so she slowed her pace and scanned the front of the bakery from the wide window. La Petite Patisserie. It was sweet, lovingly designed and decorated. Nearly all of the little tables inside were filled as well as several people at the counter. She didn’t see Cherise anywhere. Well, she was hungry either way.
As she opened the little door, no chime announced her, but a pretty woman of about sixty looked up and smiled at her.
“Hey, honey. We’ll be with you in a moment. You eating in?”
Lauren smiled back and nodded.
“Take any table you want. Menus are on them.”
A table near the window was vacant, and Lauren snatched it before a crusty looking man who just came through the door grabbed it. Once she picked up the menu, she raised her eyes to scan the room again. Everyone just looked so…happy. She drew a deep breath. Let her be happy again. Please. This was exactly the kind of town she hoped to find after she escaped her life.
With a loud complaint, her hunger made her look finally at the menu. Everything looked so good.
“Hard to choose, isn’t it?” said a lovely voice with a slight French accent and musical tones from above her. Lauren looked up to see Cherise Devereaux smiling down at her. The second subject.
Lauen couldn’t stop herself. She stared. Cherise was so much more lovely than her flat two dimensional photos could convey. Her multi-hued eyes were luminescent, her skin, literally, glowed with health. Her hair was a deep brown, long, but twisted into a clip that allowed long curly strands to escape all around her face. She thought she had never seen a more beautiful woman in her life. Thank god she looked happy and well. What a sin to harm this lovely woman with the welcoming smile.
“Would you like a suggestion, cherie? Or perhaps just more time?”
Lauren forced herself to respond. “Uh…” Yeah, good start. “I’m sorry. My first time here. And, please, what would you recommend?”
“My omelets are exceptional. There is only one other who ever made them better.” She paused. “And he is gone. So, if you like eggs and fresh garden ingredients, you will not be disappointed.”
“Sounds perfect. Please, your own favorite omelet, that’s what I’ll take.”
“Ah, a smart woman. Knows when to take good advice. I may be biased, of course. I own the place.”
“You do? Well, it’s charming. Nice to meet you, ah…”
“Cherise. And you as well. You are…”
“Lauren. Lauren Collins.”
“What brings you to this small village?”
“Business. Just…business. But I love it so far.”
“Yes, well, if you stay too long, you may not be able to leave. That is what happened to me.”
“Yeah. I can tell you’re not originally a local. French, by the accent?”
“Good ear. I suppress the accent as much as possible. I love my new home and want to fit in. Well, I will have your breakfast in moments. Margaret will bring you coffee or tea, if you like.”
Cherise smiled again and went behind the counter. She seemed like she was fine. Lauren let out a sigh. Okay, at least she hadn’t helped them fuck up two lives. Margaret did indeed bring her a mug of hot vanilla mocha as she waited, perfect for a snowy mid-morning in the foothills of the magnificent Rockies. With closed eyes, Lauren took a sip and laid her head back. She felt better already. It was going to be alright.
When Cherise brought the omelet, she sat down opposite Lauren at the little table.
“I always like to see my clients take their first bite. If you do not mind.”
Lauren matched Cherise’s warm smile. “Not at all.” She cut off the corner of the large overfilled omelet. And groaned. The flavors exploded in her mouth, the textures fluffy and delicious. Fresh tomatoes, onions, pepper, chopped ham and cheese. And spices she did not recognize, both sweet and tangy.
Cherise was smiling. “Ah, that is what I live for.”
Lauren smiled back and took a second bite. She rolled her eyes again. “Oh, my god…I have never had anything so amazing.”
Cherise moved her hand in a flourish. “It is what I do. I make food that makes love to your palette. I will leave you to enjoy. Let me know if you desire anything else. My pastries are also unmatched.”
Lauren finished slowly, so she could savor every bite. She knew Cherise’s entire background. She’d been born to a life of managing living beings, mostly hybrid or not human. Her body was a conduit for bridging the worlds between species. It was a vampire-centric world. Because it also could be one of violence, she knew the gentle woman had left the life she was expected to live and chose a simpler one within a large vampire compound in Canada. After that compound had been attacked and utterly destroyed, several close friends murdered in the attack, she’d come here, to find a life without any of those complications. And Project V had screwed it all up for her.
Well, it looked like she was fine. Good. Great. The others could worry about the vampire. She would leave here tomorrow and never look back. But not before sampling at least three of Cherise’s sweets.
It looked like lunchtime was winding down. The little restaurant had only a few diners left. Cherise came over and sat across from her again. Her brows were arched.
“Forgive me. I am somewhat…intuitive. I sense a recent break in your life. Something bad, but you are trying to move forward. You are very troubled.”
Lauren shouldn’t have been surprised, given what she knew about Cherise. But she was.
“Uh…well, yeah. I’ve been somewhere…pretty horrible for the past year or so. It’s
only the past day or two that I have felt some hope. Wasn’t sure I ever would again.”
“Ah. I understand. I, too, am in a sad place. I have lost…someone…someone responsible for my happiness, recently. I don’t believe I’ll ever see him again. It’s painful. It always will be. But…we must endure.”
Lauren saw it then. A dark shadow, settled over Cherise, covering her entire image. Something she’d never seen before. Like Cherise’s skill unveiled something for her. She should never have been able to see this. Cherise’s aura. She had damaged this woman. The darkness…it was deep…it came from her soul. God. Lauren knew there would be no redemption for her.
Cherise leaned in and touched Lauren’s arm. A flame licked from that point up and through both women’s bodies. Even Cherise seemed surprised by this.
“Oh, I am sorry. I must have shocked you. It’s the time of year. Are you okay?”
Lauren couldn’t speak. That was no shock. It was beyond that, but Cherise was trying to cover it up for the civilian. Only she was no civilian. She couldn’t let her. Her culpability was too great.
“Cherise, I have to speak to you. You need to know something…”
“It’s nothing, cherie. An arc of electricity.”
“Or shared aura’s.”
Cherise’s smile faded. She knew now. Lauren was more than just a diner.
“Who are you?”
Lauren winced. This would not go well. But she felt committed. And knew that Cherise wouldn’t let her out of it anyway now.
“We need to talk. I can explain, but not here. Or…here, but after you close. It isn’t for the ears of other, uh, people.”
Cherise was quiet, stared into Lauren’s large brown eyes. They were dark, but there were flecks of lighter colors in a pinwheel pattern. It was unusual. She finally spoke.
“Oh, yes, we will talk. Yes, here, tonight. Come here at eight o’clock. The back door. It will be unlocked.”
“Okay. Well, I really did love my breakfast. You are an excellent chef and host.” Lauren paused. “I guess I’ll go, then.”
Cherise stood. “I guess you’d better. Tonight, then.” And she turned away without glancing back, then disappeared into the kitchen behind the counter.
Lauren took a deep breath as she gathered her things and walked out into a furiously quick snow. It was beginning to pile up on the ground. Cherise was intimidating for a petite woman. She could sense the power in her. But talking to her, confiding in her…it was forbidden. The subjects could never know they were in play. Hell would rain down if they ever did. Lauren realized she did not care. Whatever happened to her, she had to let Cherise know what was happening, how they had invaded her life. Interfered with her heart. Destroyed a man who they should not have even known existed. And it was her own brother who has started it. Lauren knew…she was going to end it. Even if it ended her own life.
She slipped on the icy snow covered pavement, but recovered before she could fall. She hoped that would be her closest call for the day. Didn’t believe it for a minute. Time to get back to base and pretend she was still on the team.
Cherise would have thought there couldn’t be any other surprise to knock her off balance. She’d been wrong. The woman in her bakery…what the hell? She’d sensed something odd about her from the beginning. It was apparent she knew Cherise...what she was…and not for a good reason. The stoic hard jawed woman had made that clear…there were secrets. She hated secrets. And she knew. It had something to do with her vampire.
She was distracted all day. Made one small error after another. When her favorite customers, a sweet family of five who came routinely for dinner, stopped for a take-out instead, due to concern for the increasing snow amounts, she made so many mistakes, she packed everything into a large bag and gave it to them. Over and over, she stepped out into the cold wet snow to find her calm…it cooled the burn inside her. She had felt barely in control as it was since Kav left.
He moved across the stunning landscape quickly. After centuries of compelling people to his will, he was a slave to the same self compulsion…he had to keep moving north. Passing Montreal, and back out into endless tree-lined, snow covered vistas, the urgency continued to grow.
The hardest part was making sure he had a safe place to sleep off the daylight. But he was managing well. His mind was clearer and clearer as the days passed…his health extraordinary. He was certain he was as well as he had been before…well, whatever the hell it was that had happened to him. He still had flashes of memories. But that was all. Nothing solid, nothing specific, just patchwork images and feelings. Flashes of moments. He still had no sense of who he was. And he still missed Cherise so intensely there were moments he nearly turned around and headed back to her. But he would overcome the pain and remember why he left her. Besides, he felt certain that he was well and truly on the mend and that someday, he would be complete again. And then he would return to claim her. He did not intend to spend the rest of his life without her. There was little of his “fractured” life he remembered, but that he did know.
The need to go north was so strong, he knew his spirit amulet was guiding him. Cherise said it channeled his powers, protected him, and he knew it was taking him home. It seemed to know that was the only place he would be able to really heal. So he followed his own personal magnetic north. And had already surmised, because he somehow knew he would fly across water, and the occasional memory of the northern lights, that it was taking him near the top of the world…to Iceland. Once he determined that, even in the face of the urgency, he found a calmness he hadn’t felt before.
Sitting in a diner after midnight watching an obnoxious young woman being really rude to an overtired waitress, he decided to go over and compel her to leave a huge tip. Once done, glancing at the table, he saw she had been looking at a computer tablet, so he picked it up, told her she’d lost it, and carried it back to his table. It had internet access and he spent the next two hours eating almost everything on the menu and looking at images of Iceland. It was a raw and stunning island world, and although it still sparked no further memories in him, he knew this was home. Just…well…it would take time. He was immortal…he could afford to be patient. But Cherise was not. Every day he lost, he lost with her.
When it was time to get some rest, he asked the waitress for a doggie bag filled with hot french fries and three chocolate milk shakes. She was kind and sweet, just the other side of half a century in years, but looked frazzled and exhausted. Tough job. He leaned toward her.
“Here, you have a smudge on your cheek. Let me.” He leaned in to touch her cheek lightly, leaving behind a deep compel of contentment and health. She brightened immediately.
“Thank you for all your hard work tonight,” he said, and compelled a business-suited man behind him to give the waitress a couple of twenties. Then he picked up the computer tablet and went back to his windowless hotel room. He would finish this journey the next night from the Jean Lesage International Airport in Quebec City, and cross over the sea.
Lauren finished reading the latest reports on David and Cherise’s relationship. Wow…she would have liked to have been here for that. Two powerful, passionate supernaturals…intensely drawn to each other sexually…it had to have been very stimulating. It had been…how long? Years, maybe three, maybe four…since she herself had been intimate with a man. Archived reports had shown that Cherise had a similar sexual history…rare dates that culminated in even rarer hookups. But with David, surely they had gotten together. He was so hot…there were times Lauren wished that she herself had been able to have him. Just once. Well, just once, but maybe all night…
The village usually had a few good snowfalls by early December, but this one was actually the first that accumulated this year so far. By close of business that night, Cherise leaned out the door to assess at least eight or ten inches had fallen through the day. She breathed deeply of the clean air and pure snow. God, how she loved winter. Her people were from high in the mountains, so as
a child she played in the snow often with her brothers and sisters. It reminded her of the innocent days before her gifts had come.
Well, innocence was long gone and she had a date in a few moments to face yet another trial. A stranger who knew her…and shouldn’t. Who had news for her that would not be welcome. Just when she’d righted her apple cart once more, she could see the wind coming over the trees again to tip it over.
Margaret was gone, early, to get home safely. Cherise never worried about travel…this morning she had walked in, just as usual. Even though they expected the snowfall, she knew she would make it home safely on foot. By now, this time of night with this first big snowfall, the village was deserted and she would have the entire trek home completely to herself. She was finishing clean-up when a light knock on the back door interrupted.
With a deep sigh, Cherise opened it to a tall bundled figure. Stiff wind and frantic snow flew in with her. Once the door closed and the scarves came off, Cherise stared at the face of a woman who had yet to be revealed as friend or foe. She beckoned her on into the kitchen and then into the front room, where she motioned to a table.
“We may as well be comfortable while you pull the rug out from under me.”
The woman who said earlier today her name was Lauren, winced and pulled out a chair. Cherise took the one opposite her, but did not pull in close to the table. She captured Lauren’s eyes and stared at her.
