Key to Justice

by Talia Gryphon

  “Liar,” Kimber said matter-of-factly.

  “Bite me.”

  “You’re not my type.”

  “I’m hungry. Let’s get something to eat,” Gillian suggested, hoping to distract everyone, including herself.

  “Replacing an emotional or sexual need with food is not a good practice to start, from what I have read in your psychological journals, Gillian,” Trocar said sagely.

  “I really hate you, you know.”

  “No, you do not; you love me.” The tall Elf draped an arm over her shoulders and the other over Kimber’s, then led them down the promenade to find something to eat and wait for their incoming passengers.

  CHAPTER 2

  CASSIOPEIA and Helmut arrived right on time. Unfortunately they were on two separate airlines coming in from two separate directions. Gillian went to greet Dr. Delphi while Kimber and Trocar went to fetch Dr. Gerhardt.

  It was full dark now, but Cassiopeia would have to be unloaded from the specially designed cargo hold. Since the legalization and recognition of Vampires and other Paramortals, most major airlines had passenger facilities to accommodate their special-needs clients.

  Dr. Delphi would have gotten into her shipping coffin at dawn, been picked up by the passenger-cargo recovery van and delivered to her waiting airline. The flight from Greece to Romania wasn’t that long, so the coffins of any Vampire passenger and similar compartments containing various Sidhe that could not take the rays of the full sun were kept in a special holding area until their flight was ready to depart.

  In Cassiopeia’s situation, she would wake in the coffin and then emerge after landing. It was a proficient method and generally easiest on the Vampire. Cassiopeia traveled extensively throughout Greece but generally didn’t take long trips that necessitated daytime flight. She enjoyed her status as a Master Vampire and really didn’t miss her Daywalking life at all. She was there as a favor to help with Gillian’s shielding abilities since her professional relationship with Perrin’s special case had strained her control.

  Cass had her own agenda as well. She was hoping to lure Gillian back to the Greek location of the Miller & Jackson Center to be her clinical director.

  Gillian hurried forward to hug her friend as Cassiopeia came slinking down the corridor. The Master Vampire was jaw-droppingly gorgeous. She looked like a young Greek Elizabeth Taylor: short, curvy, blue violet eyes, stylishly arranged raven hair, double-thick lashes, the whole shebang. The two women embraced and exchanged pleasantries. It had been a few years since they’d seen each other but they were definitely good friends.

  They collected Trocar, Kimber and Helmut, with all of his luggage, then piled into the car for the drive back. Discussion was kept light, mostly about the Rachlav Institute and how well it was doing. Cassiopeia was most interested in some of the new information Gillian was coming up with in her dealings with an extraordinary number of varied races and crossbreeds.

  Sensing that Gillian tensed when that particular subject was brought up, Cassiopeia refrained from questioning her further until they could be alone for some girl talk. She’d been Reborn in the late 1930s and, like most Vampires, retained some of the social mores of her original time period. Some things were just not discussed unless it involved almost a slumber-party-type atmosphere.

  Later, when they had everyone back safely at the castle and unloaded, Gillian and Cassiopeia wound up chatting together in a private study that Gill sometimes utilized for individual therapy. It was cozy and quiet with leather furniture, a fireplace, shelves of books and a small rolltop desk. They were lounging on the overstuffed chairs. Cass was embroidering a lovely picture of the Greek wine festival of Dionysus, and Gillian was drinking tequila.

  “So, Perrin’s Sidhe blood must have been the catalyst for the Gargoyle magic. That’s probably why you had such a hard time shielding with him. I am sorry I missed meeting him.” Cassiopeia glanced over at her blonde colleague.

  Gillian lit a cigarette and poured another shot. “Yes, but it was more than that. I had to remain somewhat open to him or he would notice. His glamour was more than just glamour. It was like my empathy combined with magic and pure instinct,” Gillian responded, swirling the tequila in her glass.

  “I do not doubt that, baby girl, which is probably why your own shielding broke down around that new Vampire patient of yours. It was already overtaxed from your original patient; then to deal with that level of Vampiric magic . . . How old did you say he was?”

  “About six hundred years.”

  “Well, darling, there you are. We gain a certain level of power and the skill to wield it through the centuries if we are Masters to begin with. Otherwise we simply top out, if you will; gain quickly and then stabilize. The really old ones like Osiris, Dionysus and their main Courts are astonishing in their abilities. Aleksei will gain more as he ages as well.”

  “Terrific. Can’t wait till he discovers just how far Vamp sex foo can be pushed. Or what other forms he can adopt,” Gillian grumbled. She picked up a saltshaker, licked the back of her left hand and sprinkled it lightly with the crystallized condiment.

  Cassiopeia’s musical laughter earned her a glare from Gillian before her young friend licked the salt off, downed the tequila, then shoved a lime wedge into her mouth and bit down.

  She shuddered. “How can you drink that?”

  “Want some?” Gillian grinned.

  “Not even when I was still mortal would I drink that poisoned cactus juice.”

  “Of course not. Ouzo is so much better. Just another one of the festive gifts from the Greeks, like that horse,” Gillian retorted, grimacing.

  “You are a bitchy drunk.”

  “I am not drunk . . . yet.”

  “Oh, well, do tell me when you are, dear, so I can be sure to notice the difference in your personality,” Cassiopeia quipped smugly.

  Gillian flipped her off and poured another shot before continuing. “What was really weird was that Perrin really got to me, you know? I have never met anyone, Human or otherwise, who was so completely vulnerable. You couldn’t be in the same room with him and not want to comfort him. I don’t know how he lasted as long as he did without having any kind of relationship.”

  “Probably his defensive magic was strong enough to put off any inquisitive searching. Anyone who accidentally got close enough would likely be horrified by the pull from him and would have run like a rabbit.”

  “Well, he’s gone now. I think he’ll make it on the proverbial outside. He’s very bright and now is determined to carve out a life for himself.” Gillian’s voice had a bit of a wistful quality that did not go unnoticed.

  “You know, ducky, any sort of Fey is very difficult to detach one’s self from,” Cassiopeia pointed out. “I am impressed that you did not get completely sucked in by his glamour.”

  “Really?” Gillian looked skeptically at her friend and mentor. “I was concerned about the therapeutic wisdom of letting him practice being a companion and partner.”

  “You did exactly what your patient needed,” Cass said definitively. “Sex therapy is not just about sex, you know. It is about relationships too. He did not have a clue as to how to have a relationship with anyone. You gave him the tools he needed, my precious girl. Do not forget that.”

  “Thanks, Cass. I never felt a pull like that from anyone before. It’s a bit troubling to send him off into the world by himself, even though I know he’s lived and functioned alone for a hundred and fifty years.”

  “Occupational hazard, love. Some of them get to you. There is no avoiding that. It is the same whether you are Human or not.”

  “You’ve had one get to you?”

  “More than one, darling Gilly. But I have been doing this longer than you have,” Cassiopeia reassured her. “If you are not too plastered, we can practice your meditation and work on your shielding.”

  “I am not plastered.”

  “Yet.”

  Much later, after they had worked on improving and s
horing up Gillian’s shields, Cass went off to walk the Institute grounds with Daedelus. Gillian discovered that, despite her best efforts, she wasn’t drunk. There wasn’t much else to do, so she wandered off to the Great Hall to read by the massive fireplace.

  One of Gillian’s passions in life was a good book. Rarely did the opportunity arise for her to sit and just read. She tried to make it a point to read through Tolkien’s trilogy at least once a year, and she was a huge Harry Potter fan. The newest installment in the Potter series had come in several weeks ago, but with everything that had been occurring, she had no time to sit and read it. Now, engrossed in her book, sipping on a cup of coffee, she didn’t hear Aleksei come in, and she jumped when he leaned over the couch to kiss her head.

  “Dammit, I thought I told you not to sneak up on me like that!” she growled at him.

  Amused, he came around the couch to sit next to her and draped his arm over the back of the sofa, encouraging her to come closer. Gillian ignored him at first, then let him draw her up against his chest.

  “Petite femme têtue,” he teased her lightly. “Stubborn little woman.”

  “I am not stubborn,” she protested, trying to shift away.

  Aleksei held on to her and pulled her closer still. It was a rare moment that he could just enjoy the luxury of holding her. Neither of them had to be anywhere; nothing had to be attended to. He gently rubbed his chin and cheek over her hair. She always smelled nice: snow on clover, even if she’d been smoking, or right after sex—especially after sex. Now with her virgin scent added to the mixture, it was a heady fragrance and he felt himself hardening in anticipation. Firmly, he pushed his feelings down. This was neither the time nor the place. He had a romantic evening planned for her and would see it through.

  Gillian sighed and scooted into a more comfortable position against his hard chest. Automatically his arm wrapped around her, securing her against him. She didn’t struggle this time, just reached up and patted his hand, then turned another page.

  Another scent was on her: alcohol. She’d been drinking. It wouldn’t affect her as much since she’d accepted an exchange of his blood. Though it was only once, it was enough to enhance her natural abilities: her strength, her speed, her resistance to alcohol and illness. He refrained from mentioning it, as he wisely ascertained that it would not please her a great deal. He really was getting smarter where she was concerned.

  They stayed like that in front of the fire. Neither spoke as Gillian read and Aleksei let his thoughts drift where they would. After a time, he noticed that she hadn’t turned a page in a while and her head was heavier on his chest. Gently, he slid the book out from under her hands, careful to keep her place, laying it on the carved coffee table. Shifting carefully, he scooped her up in his arms and carried her from the room. When halfway up the stairs she stirred enough to loop her arm around his shoulder, he whispered softly to her to be still and sleep as he carried her into the room they shared between dusk and early morning.

  The tall, raven-haired Vampire Lord laid her on the bed and then, with infinite tenderness, removed her boots and tucked her in. He smiled as he watched her snuggle deeper beneath the down comforter he pulled over her.

  It was times like this that Aleksei liked best, when life was simple and uncomplicated for even a few brief hours. Just being with Gillian made him feel content and happy, he realized as he stretched out next to her on the bed and spooned his larger, heavier frame around hers. Whatever their activity, or lack of it, did not matter to him; being with her did. Lying next to her as he was, he could almost feel like a Human man again, holding his lady tenderly in the night.

  A brief scowl darkened his breathtaking features momentarily. He wasn’t a Human man and never would be again. What kind of life had he innocently gotten her into? He had no idea things would turn out the way they had when he’d initially hired her. With her help, he’d finally crossed the last bridge of his adjustment into the Night-walker’s Realm. Nearly four hundred years as a Vampire, all his wisdom, knowledge and experience, yet this little blonde woman with more heart, courage and compassion than good judgment had, in her quietly supportive way, helped his life make sense; made it complete.

  Aleksei knew he shouldn’t think that way. There was nothing tying Gillian to him on a permanent basis. With only one blood exchange between them, and a limited one at that, either one could walk away from the other.

  He briefly wondered if she would have agreed to see him again after her ethical time period ended if the War hadn’t started, forcing her to stay for her own safety. Probably not a good idea to think along that particular path. He might not like the conclusion he came to. Gillian was unpredictable in most circumstances except one: she was an outstanding therapist and never shirked her duty to a patient, no matter what the personal cost to herself.

  Perrin’s departure had been difficult for her. The masked genius had left an indelible positive impression on all of them. Aleksei knew his initial behavior over Gillian being Perrin’s sex therapist was inexcusable. After relenting and seeing the result of her expertise, it had been awe- inspiring to watch Perrin blossom into the man he could have been all along.

  Much as she did for me, Aleksei thought to himself. The one difference being that Perrin was far more Human than he was, even being a crossbreed. Perrin could walk in the daylight with her and hold her all night instead of leaving to find shelter within the earth before the sun rose too high. For the second time, Aleksei wondered if he was being selfish trying to win Gillian’s love and affection; if she wouldn’t be better off with a man like Perrin, who could share a more normal lifestyle with her.

  He smiled ruefully as he grazed his hand down her shimmering hair, because he knew what Gillian would say: that her lifestyle wasn’t normal by any standards, so that wasn’t necessarily a selling point. She would, of course, also punctuate her statement with some sort of profanity and tell him he was off his fucking nut or something to that effect.

  Gillian made no excuses for who she was. Maybe it was time for him to do the same. He was a Vampire Lord, head of his own line, not a Human man. There were infinitely more choices and possibilities available to him.

  Either she would get over her fear of relationship permanency and let herself love him for who he was, or she would eventually walk away. Aleksei knew that as long as he didn’t push her and let her come to her own conclusions, his chances were better for her to stay than if he demanded some form of commitment from her. Besides, he had to grudgingly admit to himself, he really did respect her more than that.

  When dawn broke and he reluctantly left her side to find refuge in the rich earth of the Carpathian Mountains, he was more than ready to rest. He’d spent most of the night thinking way too much and was tired. A last kiss on her smooth brow and he took his leave, a strikingly handsome, elegant figure walking confidently from the castle that had been his family home and striding into the depths of the forest to await the excitement of another night.

  Gillian awoke to the incessant ringing of her cell phone. It was Jenna, calling from Abu Simbel, Egypt. She and Tanis were all toured out and were coming back soon. The two friends chatted and caught up for a little over two hours, with Gillian drinking coffee and getting dressed during the conversation. Gill finally had to leave to meet with Samuel and Esi for some couple’s counseling. She wished her friend well and hung up, then got her thoughts together before she went to meet them in the library area that was used for group therapy.

  Samuel had approached her with a request for some private therapy with himself and Esi. It seemed that Esi was having some issues letting go of her dead husband’s memory and needed to work through her feelings.

  Esi wanted to be with Samuel; she loved him, but it still felt a little like she was being unfaithful to her first husband. Gillian was going to see what she could do to iron everything out.

  They were already in the library when Gillian got there. Samuel sat on the leather couch, his huge bulk positioned
in a sheltering manner next to Esi, who was stiff and prim at his side. A mammoth arm was draped over the back, almost but not quite touching her slender shoulders. Gillian took her seat in one of the large high-backed chairs positioned diagonally from them, tucking one leg under in casual repose.

  “What can I do for you two?” she began, wanting to let them set the pace.

  “Oh, Gillian, I want this to work so badly. I just don’t know if I can get past the memory of Mirko.” Esi was uncharacteristically vulnerable and raw. Samuel gently patted her shoulder with a ham-sized fist, concern written plainly over his almost-handsome face.

  “Tell me what is good about this relationship, Esi,” Gillian said soothingly. “Tell me what it is about Samuel that makes him different from all the other men you’ve had chances with since Mirko died.”

  Gill wanted to establish a positive tone to their discussion. Esi had been dating Samuel for weeks. They had accidentally gotten caught in a sexual energy field manifested by Perrin’s power-laden metaphysical music the first night he’d had sex with Gillian. Instead of cementing their relationship, Esi had been plagued by guilt over behavior she couldn’t have controlled if she’d tried.

  Samuel was growing more and more depressed. He’d been miraculously healed by the magic generated by the combination of Vampire, Sidhe and Perrin’s powers—or as much as a creature sewn together from spare body parts and brought to life through the astronomical power of a lightning bolt could be healed. As Frankenstein’s clinically depressed handiwork, he’d had no hope of ever experiencing love or even life, until he came to the Institute for therapy and inadvertently found Esi as well.

  He’d gone from almost repulsively ugly to passably attractive as a result of that fortuitous curative experience. Still a gargantuan man at over seven feet tall, Samuel had retained his dignity and intellect over the years; even expounded on it. The Creator, as Samuel referred to Viktor, had inadvertently given him a brain that was already inquisitive and intelligent.