“How can you read my texts and drive?” I glanced away, irritated.
He tapped his eyelid with his finger. “Good eyesight.”
“Huh.” I turned the phone away from Adam’s gaze and texted back: It’s a secret. I sent it, then decided it was better to say something to him via text rather than not at all, especially since I didn’t know when I’d see him again. So I texted: I wanted to apologize for the other day. I shouldn’t have thrown your gift in the pool. It was actually very thoughtful. Thank you, and I’m sorry. Really, really sorry. I hit Send and waited for a response.
Finally one came: Who is this and what have you done with my Bea?
I laughed. She’s here. Just a little changed.
Now I really want to see you.
I’ll text you when I get back.
Adam arrived at the airport. I directed him toward the private airstrip. Our plane was silver and had a red rose blooming on either side. The name Cavanaugh was painted in large black letters over the top.
“Your family doesn’t do anything small, do they?” He parked and glanced over.
“Nope. Some of my dad’s business associates say his slogan should be: Go Cavanaugh or go home.” I smiled.
Adam got out of the car. I met him at the trunk where he pulled out my bags and handed them to a waiting agent.
“Take-off is in twenty minutes,” the guy said.
“Alright, I’ll be there in a moment.”
“Yes, Miss Cavanaugh.” He took the suitcases and went up the stairs. I watched him, nervous about turning back to Adam. Facing him. Saying good-bye. I didn’t want to do that. Part of me wanted to demand he come. I’d promised myself when I first met him that I would make him suffer.
Adam broke the awkward silence. “If you need me, call. Or text. Or send me a text anyway, just so I know you’re all right.”
I smiled, fighting back the tears. “Okay,” I whispered.
He tugged on my chin, forcing me to see him. “I’m going to do something so crazy, like freak-out crazy. So if you need to freak out, it’s fine.”
“What?” I asked, searching his eyes.
“This.” Adam leaned down and kissed me right smack on the lips.
A surge of emotion rushed through my heart and into my throat. Fireworks exploded over and over in my stomach. My pulse raced. His lips were firm but tender. I sensed he wanted to give me only a quick kiss, but I wasn’t ready to let him go. I dropped my purse and flung my arms around his neck. He responded by pushing my mouth open, taking our kiss deeper.
He ran his tongue over my teeth. I met him with mine. We kissed and kissed and kissed and kissed. His hands grabbed my waist and pulled me against him. Then they roamed up my back to my shoulders and into my hair. I felt him remove the tie. Tenderly he undid the braid with his fingers. In that moment or in those minutes, everything but Adam and me disappeared. There was only us. We were no longer on an airport runway, but in a forest, my back pressed against a tree. Wildflowers grew all around us, perfuming the air as birds sang us their love song.
All I could do was cling to him. My body was alive with so many amazing feelings and emotions that I thought I would die from the glorious pain.
The agent cleared his throat.
We reluctantly let each other go. Adam’s eyes held mine though and for a moment I felt like he was still kissing me. He touched my bottom lip with his thumb, caressing it.
I was shaking all over with needs and desires and wants I’d never had before.
“The pilot is ready to take off, Miss Cavanaugh.”
“Right. I’m coming,” I said, keeping my focus on Adam. “Why did you do that?” I whispered. For some reason I had to know. I didn’t mind. In fact, I loved it so much I wanted to do it again.
A mischievous twinkle lit his eyes. “I’ll tell you when you get back.” He bent over and picked up my purse and phone and then took me by the arm and led me over to the stairs. I was so glad he did. My body had forgotten how to move and needed his encouragement. “Hold on to the rail,” he said, as he handed me my stuff.
I did, climbing the steps carefully. When I reached the top I turned back. He was still at the bottom. “Go on. I’ll see you soon.”
I nodded. I wanted to say good-bye, but the words wouldn’t come, so I raised my hand and waved.
“Miss Cavanaugh. We need to get you buckled in. Genevieve has prepared you a steak per Isaac’s instructions and once we’re in the air she’ll bring it to you.”
I allowed him to lead me inside and to my seat. After buckling up, I peered out the window. Adam was by the driver’s side door of the Lykan. He waved once and then got inside and drove away. I watched until I couldn’t see the car anymore.
Genevieve came over. “We are about to take off. Can I get you a drink?”
“No. Thank you.”
She nodded and left the main cabin, I guessed to buckle herself in. The airplane lurched forward and we sped down the runway. When the plane lifted off, I had the oddest sensation that my life would never be the same again.
In Total Darkness
Twelve
I called Adam Henry as soon as I landed. He gave me an address for Salem, Massachusetts, which I then gave to the driver. Then I texted my Adam just to let him know I’d arrived.
It was a little after ten in the evening. I stared out the window at the water and the lights. Salt Lake was a booming city. It had everything, but it wasn’t until I drove in a city like Boston that I realized Salt Lake was still pretty small.
The partition between the driver and me was down and he asked, “Are you here for business or pleasure?”
My mind thought one thing: business. But my mouth said the other, “Pleasure.”
The driver winked. “If you want the inside scoop on where all the fun places are, just let me know.”
I pressed my back into the seat. “My itinerary is already capped out, but thanks for the offer.”
The driver chuckled. He was a big guy with burly arms and beefy hands. His hair was black, greasy, and slicked back. “Itinerary and pleasure can’t mix.” He laughed again.
“They do in my world.” My words came with icy finality. I was done talking.
It took nearly forty-five minutes to get from the airport to the address Adam Henry had given me. I realized it was a residence not unlike mine as a large mansion illuminated by dozens of lights came into view.
“Nice place,” the driver said, putting the car in Park.
“I agree.” He came around and opened the door for me. I climbed out. “I’ll need you to wait here. I shouldn’t be too long.”
“Yes, Miss Cavanaugh.”
I climbed the steps, my heart thundering in my chest. Adam Henry had information about the Vaktare. He had answers. The prospect of finding out more was both terrifying and exhilarating. I knocked on the door. A guy around my age, maybe a little younger answered. “You must be Beatrice?”
“Yes, may I speak with Adam Henry?”
“Sure, he’s waiting for you in his study.” The guy was tall, had lean muscle and that just-mussed hairstyle all the guys were going for. “I’m Troy by the way.”
I glanced up at his pretty brown eyes. “Nice to meet you, Troy.”
“So you must be in some kind of trouble. I know Grand Pops has been flitting around the house like a scatterbrained—”
“I don’t flit.”
Troy jumped and whipped around. I leaned around Troy so I could see who spoke. The man standing in front of me was older. He smiled, and the skin around his eyes wrinkled. His hair was graying. He was handsome. Kind eyes. He wore khaki pants, a button shirt and a button sweater. Across his forehead was a set of silver reading glasses. And in his hand was an ancient book.
“Go on, Troy. I need to have a conversation with Miss Beatrice.” He winked when he said my name and I had to smile. He was personable, friendly, and I immediately liked him.
“Fine.” Troy jogged past Adam Henry, and slapped him on the ba
ck. “See ya, Pops.”
Adam Henry chuckled. “My whole life has been filled with boys. It’s nice to see a female in the house again.”
I nodded. “You are Adam Henry?” I asked, just to verify.
“Yes, but everyone calls me Professor Pops.”
That was an odd name. “Ad— Mr.—” Professor Pops totally fit. “Professor Pops, you know what a Va—” He put a hand over my mouth.
“Follow me.” Then he put a finger to his lips, giving me the universal sign for be quiet.
I complied and followed him through the kitchen, down a hall, to a set of stairs. We went down. We were in the basement. He opened a door to what appeared to be a storage room. In one corner was a furnace. Professor Pops walked up to it, pressed a button and the wall behind it swung open to reveal another set of stairs.
“We’re almost there,” he said when I hesitated.
I went down after him, nervous about where we were going and just how deep into the earth we were. It smelled like dirt and wet cement. The wall closed behind us but before we were in total darkness, lights along the walls flicked on.
When we finally made it to the bottom, there was another door. Professor Pops took a key that hung around his neck and used it to open the door. “It’s peculiar,” he said as he pushed the door opened. “I haven’t been down here in years. But in the past several days I’ve needed to come down here twice.” He gave a short laugh and flipped on a light.
Never in a million years did I expect to see what I was seeing. The door had clicked shut behind me. I had a feeling it locked automatically. But I wanted to test the theory. Because the room I’d just entered couldn’t be real.
I pressed myself against the door, trying to turn the knob.
“Beatrice, it’s okay. This is a museum of sorts. I once told someone it was like a Museum for the Supernatural.” Professor Pops walked over and patted my arm. “Nothing in here is alive, except you and me. And every creature in here gave me permission.”
I swallowed and nodded my head. I wasn’t convinced though. Was he telling me the creatures agreed to allow themselves to be slaughtered so that he could stuff them and put them down here. And for what purpose? There were creatures big and small inside glass boxes. Some were from fairy tales, like a fairy, a troll, and a dragon. Others were from nightmares or scary movies.
“What is he?” I asked, walking over. It was an extremely striking man with crimson eyes.
“That, my dear, is a Hunter.”
I gasped, glancing back at Professor Pops. “Is he like me?”
Professor Pops came to stand next to me. “He is nothing like you. He is a blood drinker whose sole purpose was to mark children so that the Vampire Queen might claim them.”
“Vampires are real?” I held a hand to my neck.
“Yes, they are.” Professor Pops clamped his hands behind his back.
I wanted to ask him more, but the sight of a werewolf distracted me. He stood on two legs and was covered in black fur. He didn’t have on any clothes. His teeth were yellowed and sharp. Around his neck was a pendant of some sort. His eyes were bright green.
“A werewolf,” I breathed, walking over to stand in front of him.
“That’s right.”
“Locanis,” I whispered, pressing my fingers against the glass.
“So you’ve heard the words,” Professor Pops said coming to stand beside me.
“What?” My fingers tapped the glass as I studied the wolf.
Professor Pops bent over and pressed a button. A latch clicked and a drawer popped open. There was a book inside. He withdrew the book and placed it on a wooden podium. “Come here.”
When I stood next to him, Professor Pops said, “Chapter One.”
The pages flipped on their own until they landed on a page with Chapter One across the top.
“How did you do that?”
Professor Pops smiled. “This podium possesses a special magic. Just give it a page number or chapter heading or even a word and it’ll flip to the correct page.”
“Oh.” I stood beside him so that I could see what the words on the page said.
His already serious features became grave. “Beatrice, thirteen years ago I met you and your parents for the first time. They had heard about me and thought I could help.” He took his glasses off his forehead and tucked them into the breast pocket of his sweater. “Before that fateful day I’d never heard of the terms Vaktare or Locanis and I’ve been alive a very, very long time.”
Professor Pops paused and glanced around the room. “These creatures all belong to the seven magics.”
Magics? That was new.
“They receive magic according to whatever creature they are. Of course I knew that the seven magics couldn’t be all that there were. The Universes are too vast, too huge. But I figured after thousands of years, I would’ve seen all the magics this planet had to offer.” He shook his head, and chuckled. “Boy was I wrong.”
My heart was racing again. He’d met my parents. He’d met me. And he knew the word—Vaktare.
“Do you know where my parents are? Can you tell me what the word means?” I asked him, fighting down the urge to grab the edges of his sweater and shake all I needed to know from him.
“I don’t know where your parents have gone. Since your phone call I did some digging and made a few phone calls of my own. A few of my sources haven’t been able to get back to me yet, but so far no one knows anything about your parents’ whereabouts.”
I gulped, fighting back more damn tears.
Professor Pops continued, “As for information on Vaktare, I can give you most of it.” He moved and indicated I should stand in front of the book.
Why not all of it? Where were my parents? What didn’t Professor Pops know and where would I find the answers?
Professor Pops tapped his fingers against the book. The movement sent particles of dust into the air, leaving a smell of old paper hanging around us. “Within these pages is most of the history of the Vaktare. It isn’t as thick as histories from other magical realms or creatures, but that’s because your species are relatively new to me.”
My fingers brushed the pages. I was thrilled too. “Have you ever seen a Vaktare? A werecat?”
He glanced at his watch. “I have not, at least not in its original form.”
For some reason that made me sad.
“It’s eleven-thirty. Are you hungry? I can prepare you a steak,” Professor Pops said.
I’d eaten on the plane. “I think I’m too excited for food.”
Professor Pops nodded. “Very well. I’ll leave you down here to read. You’ll be safe. The only person with a key is me.” He patted at the key around his neck. “If you get tired, there’s a cot in the other room.” He pointed to a smaller room without a door. “There’s a bathroom as well.”
Did he think I would sleep down here all night? No way. Just thinking about being so far underground, away from the moon and the sky made my heart race. “Professor Pops, I have my driver waiting outside. I think I’ll have him take me to the hotel where I can get some rest and then come back in the morning.”
Professor Pops came forward. “I know this is odd and not at all what you’re used to.”
“That’s right.” He obviously didn’t know my family that well at all if he thought I’d do anything except what I wanted. I was a Cavanaugh after all.
“Have you changed forms yet?”
His question frightened me and I couldn’t meet his gaze. I turned my focus to the words in the book. The first two sentencesread:Hiraken is the tenth realm on Earth. The Vaktare came first, followed by the Locanis.
So the Locanis were a species and not the name of the wolf who’d protected me the other night. One question answered. “Yes,” I finally said.
“If you were to change in the hotel tonight, and needed to hunt, what do you think you would go after?” He pointed to a line in the book. “Read it.”
“The Vaktare and Locanis h
unt and eat all flesh.”
“All flesh,” he reiterated.
“Are you saying you think I would hunt people?” I was disgusted. How could he think that? I was a person too.
He rubbed a hand over his eyes. “I don’t know for sure, but do you want to take the chance?”
I glared at Professor Pops. So many wicked ideas ran through my head. “No, I don’t.” I leaned on the stand. “Fine. I’ll remain down here, but don’t leave me for too long.”
“Of course not. I’ll be down first thing in the morning.” He went to the door. “And if there’s an emergency, text me. You have my number.”
I’d forgotten that.
“I’ll have the driver leave your suitcases here and then we can reassess the situation in the morning, after you have some of your answers.”
“All right.” I heard him, but I had another question. “The werewolf over there. Is he a Locanis?”
Professor Pops seemed perplexed. “I don’t think so. This werewolf came from a small town in Arizona. It was believed he was the last of his kind.” He shrugged. “Anything is possible.” His eyes twinkled as he touched the pages of the book. “This is the history of your people but it’s more than that. It’s the history of your realm. Read it with care.”
“Thank you, Professor Pops.”
He used the key to unlock the door. So it locks from the outside and the inside, I thought, making a mental note. Before he closed the door, he turned to me and said, “I can count on you to keep this room secret, right? I think you can imagine what might happen if so much supernatural information fell into the wrong hands.”
“Oh, um, right. Yes. I won’t say anything.”
Professor Pops smiled. “Excellent. It’s been lovely to see you again, Beatrice.”
Vaktare And Locanis
Thirteen
When Professor Pops was gone, I checked my phone. I still had bars. Adam hadn’t texted from the last time, but I texted him again anyway: Hope you’re good. I’m getting answers. Talk more in the morning.
A Beauty So Beastly Page 9
