Anton tried to fill his father’s shoes as the host and kept the conversation lively when Dominic re-entered the room and said solemnly, “Richard, Anne, I’m so sorry to have to throw a wrench into our plans, but I must leave for California right away. Anton, would you take over in my absence and show our guests some fun today?”
“Of course, Dad, but what’s happened in California?” Anton asked.
“I don’t want to kill this happy occasion, son,” Dominic said.
“Now hold on there, Dominic. Weren’t you the one calling us your extended family just hours ago? If something’s happened, PLEASE, do what you must but you can tell us what is going on. Maybe we can help too,” Richard graciously offered to which Anne nodded in agreement.
“You’re right, Richard, I’m sorry. It’s Blake. He’s taken ill and is headed for the hospital in San Francisco. Rowan is beside herself, from what I could hear on the phone. Dean and Sally are with them. I have a call in with Dr. Andrews to meet them when the ambulance arrives,” Dominic explained.
“What happened?” Josh asked.
“They’re not sure, he just dropped and went into convulsions,” Dominic answered. Josh, Dominic, Melanie, and Anton all shared confused looks. It was obvious to each of them that they were all wondering what would make a vampire drop ill so suddenly.
Anne was the first to say something. “Well, you go and be with him. Your family needs you. There’s no need to entertain us. We can get to the airport just fine,” she said, patting Josh on the hand as if he would be the one to take them.
“Mom…I’m sorry…I need to go to California with Dominic, if he’ll have me. Blake risked…I mean…Blake has done so much for me, if nothing else, I need to be there to support him and Rowan right now. We can make arrangements to come to Minnesota as soon as I know Blake’s out of danger. I hope you don’t mind?”
“Not at all, son,” Richard said for both of them.
“Of course, Sweetie. You always know where to find us,” Anne said.
“I know, Mom. I don’t mean to disappoint you; I just feel I need to do this, especially with Devon gone,” Josh admitted.
“Right. Devon…” Dominic said. “How will I ever get ahold of him to let him know what’s going on with his brother? I don’t believe there is any phone service at the house yet and I can’t imagine there is much cell service out where they are. Geez…I really must try to get ahold of him somehow.”
“Dad…Don’t worry about it. I’ll get ahold of Devon. You go make arrangements for you, Josh, and Melanie to get on the first flight out. I’ll make sure the Brenners get safely to their plane in the morning and you can keep me posted as to Blake’s condition,” Anton said.
“Thank you, son. Yes…Well, I best start making some phone calls and pack. Richard and Anne? Will you excuse me?” Dominic said.
“By all means, Dominic. We hope Blake will have a speedy recovery and we thank you so much for your hospitality,” Anne said.
“Not at all. I hope when this is all behind us we can do this again real soon, where you can meet Blake….. Devon, and all the others,” Dominic said as he exited the room.
Anton excused himself, leaving Melanie, Josh, and his parents alone in the dining room.
“I do hope Blake will be okay,” Anne said. “It’s odd someone so young dropping like that. Does he have epilepsy or some kind of condition that would explain the suddenness of his collapse?”
“No. He’s the picture of health, that’s what’s got us so worried,” Josh said.
“Well, maybe it’s not as bad as it seems. It’s hard when you are far away and you don’t know what’s going on. Once you get there things won’t seem so scary. Now scat. Get upstairs, you two, and start packing, it’s going to be a long flight to California. I think I‘m going to make your dad take me out on that so-called pond and give me a little ride in the row boat,” Anne admitted.
“Are you insane, Annie? You want me to drop from a heart attack?” Richard asked.
“Oh, you’re such a whiner,” Anne said as she drug him out the door of the dining room. Melanie and Josh could still hear them as they made their way to the back of the house.
“You used to be so romantic when we dated, what happened?” Anne asked.
“Well, I won you over already. Why do I have to be romantic now?” Richard wondered.
“Oh, Richard…would it kill you to be a little romantic?” Anne asked.
“Maybe?” Richard admitted.
Josh and Melanie laughed quietly listening to them bicker until they were outside.
“So what do you think could be wrong with Blake?” Melanie asked.
“I don’t know, but it can’t be good for a vampire to drop like that,” he said.
“Right,” Melanie confirmed.
“You’re not too disappointed we aren’t going to Minnesota, are you?” Josh asked.
“Not at all. There’s plenty of time to go. Let’s just find out what’s up with Blake first and do what we can for Rowan. I know it’s going to kill Darby that she wasn’t able to get to Rowan right away to help. Maybe my new healing powers can help Blake,” she said.
“Maybe…but he should have his own built in healing powers being a vampire, so something is definitely wrong,” Josh said.
“All we can do is be there for them and do our best to help. You’re mom is right. Once we get there we can assess how bad it is when we talk to the doctor. Too bad Dr. Rowe wasn’t in California for some convention or something. He seems to care for the family deeply.”
“Well, he certainly patches them up a lot,” Josh said. “This Dr. Andrews I’m sure is a vampire doctor or Dominic wouldn’t have called him in to help.”
“We should probably go pack. That way we can spend whatever time we have left with your parents before we leave,” Melanie said.
“Right. Have I told you today how much I love you?” Josh asked.
“Yes, but a girl never tires of hearing it,” Melanie answered.
Josh leaned in to her and gave her a sweet lingering kiss. “Mmmmm,” she said. “Waffle flavored kisses. My favorite.”
They both laughed and headed upstairs to pack.
*****
The doorbell rang when the cab came to take them to the airport, followed by a rush of goodbyes said to all.
Dominic asked, “Did you get ahold of Devon yet?”
“Not yet, but I have a courier out to find the house,” Anton answered.
“Good idea. Okay, well, thanks for taking over hosting duties.”
“Not a problem. I made reservations to take them to that little Italian restaurant in town for dinner tonight,” Anton said.
“That’s nice, thank you. All right, I guess that’s it. We’ll keep you posted,” Dominic said. “Anne, Richard? I’m so happy we did this…I mean had you come here. I really enjoyed meeting you both and getting to know you. I’m sorry it was cut short, but I promise I will make it up to you when all is better.”
Richard shook Dominic’s hand and said, “It was our pleasure. We really enjoyed ourselves.”
Dominic started to take Anne’s hand when she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down to her for a bear hug. “Thank you for everything, Dominic. We’re very happy to have you in our lives and in Josh’s life. We just hope to meet Katarina soon,” Anne said then winked at Josh.
Dominic set out for the car. Anne looked at Josh and said, “Come here, you giant handsome boy.” She hugged him hard and mussed his hair as he pulled away. “Don’t forget. You promised when things settled down, you’d bring this lovely girl to Minnesota,” Anne said as she curled her one arm over Melanie’s shoulder and neck, then continued, “And you, Melanie…I can’t wait to get you at home to show you all the adorable baby pictures I have of Josh. Take care, Dear, and take care of my Josh.”
“I will,” Melanie replied.
Richard hugged Josh, patting him on the back several times. “Now you two come and see us soon. And be safe. Give o
ur best to Blake.”
“I will, Dad,” Josh said.
As Josh and Melanie got into the car with Dominic, Anne yelled, “Love you…Call us and let us know you’re okay…Bye!”
The passengers waved as the car passed the house and headed down the gravel drive while Anton, Richard, and Anne waved back and entered the house.
Chapter Thirteen
In a seedy part of town in a dark and dirty alley behind a funeral home, two dark figures met in the shadows where they were sure not to be seen. Very few words were exchanged in hushed voices. A manila folder with some kind of certificate inside and another envelope with a large wad of money was given to one dark figure as the other set the few final details. One figure checked the certificate then thumbed through the stack of bills in the envelope before the other figure tapped a foot impatiently.
A moment passed and the figure with the envelopes nodded and exited the alley by way of a back door to the crematory. The other agilely entered back on the street and disappeared into the night.
*****
Dominic, Melanie and Josh were seated on the plane and getting settled, when Dominic pulled out some papers from his briefcase.
“What’s that?” Melanie asked.
“Oh, I thought I would bring some things to work on during the flight. I brought a handwritten copy of the prophecy, and the strange seal that came off the artifact along with my notes. Thought if I couldn’t sleep at least I could see if I could work on figuring out something useful from these items,” Dominic explained.
“Great idea. At least it will keep our minds occupied and not worrying about Blake,” Melanie said.
“Can I see the seal?” Josh asked.
“Sure,” Dominic handed it to him. Josh flipped it back and forth in his hand. “It’s like a big button with no holes, or a coin.”
“It is odd,” Dominic said. “At first I had thought I had broken it, when it came off in my hand, but I’m pretty sure it is meant to come off. I can only assume it serves some other purpose if it was intentionally made to come off.”
“You’re right. There’s no sign of it being broken,” Josh said.
Dominic went back to his notes as Josh inspected it for a long time.
“Dominic, have you any idea what this thing is?” Josh pointed to a strange groove on the back of the seal.
“No. I haven’t determined what it is yet. At first I thought maybe it was somehow related to how it attached to the artifact, but after looking at it further, I don’t see how that is possible,” Dominic answered.
“Yeah. I think you’re right but it must serve some purpose, unless it is just a mark from when the piece was cast,” Josh added.
“I don’t think so. To me, it seems deliberate and there is no roughness or blobbing that it would have if it was formed during the casting,” Dominic said.
Josh inspected it, flipping it over and over again. He then used one of Dominic’s jeweler’s loupes to see it up close.
“Did you notice this?” he asked Dominic. “Here,” Josh pointed to a spot near the edge, “This.”
“I’m not seeing it,” Dominic said.
“Here, try the loupe. Now look at the very edge. It looks like there’s a lip there. A decorative outer piece and every now and then an indent, like in the back. They look evenly spaced to me,” Josh explained.
“Oh yes. I see it now. Huh. I wonder what it is for?” Dominic wondered.
“I think maybe this turns or moves,” Josh said.
“Hmmm. I think you may be right. So you think this inner part of the seal turns?” Dominic asked.
“Yeah, maybe.”
Dominic pulled out a pair of tweezers and clamped it to the center seal and twisted. Like a well-oiled machine, it rotated easily and with a pop, triangular pieces emerged from its edge that made it look much like the pedals of a flower, and on the back were four prongs protruding on the perimeter of the indent.
“How amazing. Well, look at that,” Dominic said and handed the piece to Josh. “You were right, this groove does serve a purpose.”
“I can’t help but think this is some kind of key to something,” Josh thought.
“My thoughts exactly,” Dominic agreed.
“Look, Melanie, what Josh found,” Dominic said as he handed the item to Melanie.
“Wow. Look at that. What do you think it’s for?” Melanie asked.
“Well, I think Josh is right. I think it’s a key. The question is, to what?” Dominic answered.
“It must have something to do with the prophecy, since it was with it,” Melanie said.
“Maybe. Of course until we find what it unlocks, I guess we won’t know, but it is very intriguing,” Dominic admitted.
“Have you come up with anything else on the prophecy?” Josh asked.
“After seeing everyone’s new ‘abilities’ of late, I think that it was these new abilities that the prophecy was referring to when it said ‘The four will have allies with great power and that power will be quadrupled by the destruction of ‘ones heart’ as payment for their good deeds’,” Dominic explained.
“Speaking of that, I forgot to tell you that I have discovered mine,” Melanie said quietly.
“Your ability?” Josh asked.
“Yes.”
“Why, what happened?” Dominic asked.
“Well, when you, Mr. Brenner and Dr. Rowe were smoking cigars and Josh and Anton were warring it out at basketball, Anne and I were helping Bernard with the dishes. Mrs. Brenner couldn’t see the knife under the soapy water and she cut her finger, pretty badly,” Melanie explained.
“Was she okay?” Dominic asked.
“Yes. It wasn’t terrible, but she asked me to bandage it for her,” she said.
“Yeah. Mom can’t stand the sight of blood. They have to draw blood from her lying down because she passes out every time,” Josh admitted.
“Yes, well, while I was drying her hand my fingers kind of lit up and Bernard and I watched the cut close up and heal right before our eyes,” Melanie exclaimed.
“What did you do?” Dominic asked.
“The only thing I could think of was to put a band-aid over where the cut should have been,” Melanie laughed.
“Quick thinking but what if she removes the band-aid?” Josh asked.
“Well, as long as she waits a day or two, she probably won’t think too much of it. I told her it wasn’t a very bad cut,” Melanie reassured.
“In this family, I think we will find a great use for that ability,” Dominic chuckled.
“Yes. I think that the reason Josh didn’t scar as badly as Dr. Rowe thought he might, is because of me,” Melanie added.
“That’s great. It was so early on after the stone was destroyed, you probably didn’t even realize you were healing him,” Dominic said.
“That’s my thought. I know for a fact that my fingers didn’t glow. I think I might have remembered that,” she said jokingly.
“No doubt,” Dominic laughed.
“Maybe I can help Blake,” Melanie said hopefully.
“I hope so, Dear, but he should be able to do that himself,” Dominic said.
“I know, but a little more healing mojo can’t hurt, right?” Melanie thought.
“Indeed, Sweetheart, Indeed. Let’s hope so,” Dominic said gratefully.
*****
The morning was bright and beautiful with Devon lying beside her in their amazing little world so far from all their past troubles. Darby admired her sleeping prince beside her as the sun spilled in the sheer, white-curtained windows, threatening to wake his sweet slumber. Darby looked over at the night table beside her to grab the book that she’d set there the night before. To her surprise, there was nothing there. She instinctively looked on the ground thinking maybe it had been bumped during the night and fell to the floor, but again, there was nothing there. How odd, she thought to herself. Where could I have put it? I was so sure I put it there last night. As she retraced her activities the nig
ht before in her mind, the slumbering prince inhaled loudly and stretched.
His sexy, smiling face made her immediately forget what she had been thinking about and nothing else mattered as he reached for her, wrapping his strong safe arms about her, and pulled her to him.
“Good morning, Sweetness,” he said as he kissed the top of her head and hugged her tightly.
“Good morning, handsome,” she replied.
“It is indeed,” he whispered softly.
“So what is the plan for today?” she asked.
“Well, I have to go into Dublin to meet with an electrical contractor to work out the details of what needs to be done for the upgrade. You’re welcome to come with me if you like,” Devon offered.
“No. I think I would like to wander around here. Maybe do some gardening,” Darby admitted.
“Okay. Just so you know, around back is a potting shed with any tools you might need. I don’t know what shape they are in, but I’m sure you can find anything you need in there. You can make a list of things you want and we can pick them up tomorrow. The plumber will be starting work tomorrow. He’ll have a better idea what the cost will be and what needs to be repaired once he tears into a couple of the walls,” Devon explained.
“Sounds good. How about I go downstairs and start some coffee and see what we can scrounge up for breakfast?” Darby said.
“Meet you down there after my shower,” Devon said.
“It’s a date,” Darby said, kissing him and jumping out of bed.
When Devon made his way down the stairs and into the kitchen he found Darby cutting up some fruit that someone anticipating their arrival had put in a basket on the counter.
“I found this fresh fruit in a basket left for us…your doing, no doubt,” Darby said.
“Well, we had to eat something, right? I had a gal who lives nearby drop some things off. She keeps an eye on the house for us when no one is around. Are you finding everything you need?” Devon asked while Darby handed him a bowl of freshly cut fruit and a cup of coffee.
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