by Lynsay Sands
“I’ll tell you what,” he said finally, moving to put the orange juice away. “I’ll ask her if she’d like to picnic with us and if she would, we’ll join her downstairs. Okay?”
“Okay,” Livy said happily.
Nodding, he headed for the door to the basement, adding, “You just stay there and drink your orange juice. I’ll be right back.”
“Okay,” Livy repeated as he opened the door and started down the stairs.
Pulling the door closed behind him, Paul moved slowly down the stairs, trying to think how best to convince Jeanne Louise to agree to a picnic and promise not to say anything about being kidnapped. The only thing he could come up with was begging. Paul wasn’t too proud to beg for his daughter. He’d do that and a lot more for Livy, and suspected he would be doing a lot of it until the situation was resolved.
Grimacing, he approached his office, surprised to see that he’d forgotten to close the door when he’d carried Livy out earlier. The office was soundproof, but it only worked if the door was closed. It was one of the things he’d arranged over the last month when he’d decided on his plan. He’d moved his office out of this room because it was windowless, had had it soundproofed, then had moved the hospital bed he’d purchased while his wife, Jerri, had been ill into his office. He hadn’t wanted her dying in a cold, sterile hospital. She’d spent the last two weeks of her life in that bed in their home with a nurse and himself tending to her and standing watch.
Paul had also bought chains and had begun taking a little blood from himself every day to build up a supply for Jeanne Louise while she was here. And while he’d done all that, he’d planned and replanned when and how it was best to take her.
He could have kidnapped her and brought her here a lot earlier if he’d simply robbed a blood bank rather than build up a supply of his own blood, but Paul wasn’t a thief and blood banks were already in short supply. His conscience hadn’t been able to deal with stealing from a blood bank and risking someone dying because of it. It was all right, though. The added time had given him the opportunity to properly plan kidnapping her. He’d come up with several plans this last month, but the one he’d settled on had been the best.
Jeanne Louise appeared to be asleep when Paul stepped up to the open door, but her eyes opened almost at once and she peered at him solemnly and announced, “Yes, I’ll join the picnic.”
His eyes widened incredulously. “How did you—?”
“I heard Livy ask you,” she interrupted gently. “We have exceptional hearing.”
“Oh.” Paul stared at her blankly. He’d known they were stronger and faster, but hadn’t realized their hearing was improved as well. “What else do the nanos do for you?”
Jeanne Louise shrugged. Mortals working in R and D were briefed on immortals. He would know about the night vision, increased speed and strength, etc. What he wouldn’t know about was that they were usually able to read the minds of and even control mortals. Those abilities had been necessary when they’d fed off the hoof, hunting humans and feeding off them. Slipping into their thoughts and keeping them in place while ensuring they didn’t suffer any pain had been most useful. As had being able to make them think the small marks left behind were from an accident with open shears or something. Paul didn’t need to know this though. To keep him from asking the questions she could see swirling in his eyes, she said, “You’ll have to remove most of these chains. I can’t eat like this. One around my ankle ought to be sufficient during the picnic. You can always put the others back on afterward.”
Uncertainty immediately claimed Paul’s expression and then he asked warily, “You’re stronger. How do I know you can’t just snap the one chain?”
“I can’t just snap it like twine,” she assured him. “It would take a little bit more effort than a quick jerk. You don’t know that for sure, of course, and I could be lying. But if you keep your tranquilizer gun on you, it shouldn’t be a problem, should it?” she pointed out quietly.
His eyes narrowed with a combination of confusion and suspicion. “Are you saying you won’t try to escape?”
“I can do better than that. I promise you I won’t try to escape. At least not until I’ve heard this proposition of yours,” Jeanne Louise said solemnly.
Paul’s eyes narrowed. “Why?”
Jeanne Louise hesitated. She simply couldn’t tell him it was because he was a possible life mate for her and she hoped to claim him. In the end, she went with, “Because I like Livy.”
It was the right thing to say and apparently thoroughly believable to him. He relaxed at once, a small smile curving his lips. “Everyone likes Livy. She’s adorable and so smart and funny. She makes the world a brighter place.”
Jeanne Louise stayed silent. The man loved his daughter. If she hadn’t already figured that out, the way his eyes lit up and his face softened as he spoke of her would have done it.
“Right.” He smiled, looking more relaxed than he had since she’d woken up to see him standing over her. “I’ll make a picnic for us and then come down and get you. We can have it outside. It’s a beautiful sunny day. Livy will like that and—” He blinked and paused, a frown suddenly tugging at his lips. “Oh. I forgot, you can’t—”
“I can go out in daylight, I will just have to sit in the shade,” she said quickly.
“Really?” Curiosity immediately filled his expression again. “Most immortals work at night. I thought you all avoided sunlight.”
“We avoid it to avoid needing more blood, but we can go out in daylight,” Jeanne Louise said solemnly.
Paul nodded and she could see a million questions swimming in his eyes, but in the end, he simply said, “You’ll have to tell me more during our picnic. I’ll go fix sandwiches and stuff for us. You like ham, cheese, and mayo right?”
Jeanne Louise blinked at the question. It was her favorite, but she had no idea how he knew that.
“It’s what you usually order in the cafeteria on your first break,” he explained and she relaxed. The man had obviously paid attention to the details while planning this kidnapping.
“Yes, I like ham, cheese, and mayonnaise,” she agreed quietly.
Nodding, Paul turned to the door. “I’ll be as quick as I can.”
Jeanne Louise watched until he was out of sight and then laid back and closed her eyes again. This was good. A picnic outside. She suspected he wanted her to get to know and like Livy in the hopes that she’d be more agreeable to turning the girl, but it would also give them a chance to get to know each other better in a more natural setting. She would also be able to see if the other symptoms of life mates were there as well. Or perhaps not, she thought with a frown.
Not being able to read a mortal or immortal was only one sign of a life mate. A resurgence of appetite was another. A lot of immortals stopped bothering with food after the first hundred years or so, but Jeanne Louise was just 102 years old. She still ate, and mostly still enjoyed food, though she had noticed lately that it didn’t seem as tasty as it had always been. Which was why she’d been so surprised that the food he’d offered when she’d woken up here had smelled and tasted doubly good. But he may just be a good cook. Cafeterias weren’t known for tasty fare and that’s where she usually had her breakfasts.
Other appetites awoke in an immortal when they found their life mate as well. Sex for instance, but that hadn’t begun to wane yet for Jeanne Louise, so she wasn’t sure she’d be able to tell anything at all there. In fact, she was presently casually dating a sweet, smart mortal who was very skilled in that area. So much so that she hardly ever took control of him to encourage him to do the things she liked. Something she disliked doing to begin with, but sometimes couldn’t resist in the heat of the moment.
Truthfully, Jeanne Louise wasn’t sure spending time with Paul would really help her figure out if he was her life mate. But it couldn’t hurt either, she supposed, and wondered how long it would take him to get the picnic together and come back for her. It would be nice to g
et out of this bloody bed and get outside for some fresh air. By her guess it was midday or, perhaps, mid-afternoon. She doubted anyone would realize she was even missing yet and had to wonder how soon it would be noticed and what would happen then.
Jeanne Louise actually had a date tonight with her mortal that she would obviously be missing. But other than being annoyed and leaving nasty messages on her answering machine, he probably wouldn’t do much. She kept her dates apart from the rest of her life, so it wasn’t like he’d call her best friend, Mirabeau, or her brothers or father to find out why she hadn’t shown up. As for anyone else discovering it . . .
She smiled wryly, knowing that it could be Sunday night, when she didn’t show up for work, before her absence was noted. It wasn’t that she led a solitary existence. Her father often called or visited on the weekends as did her brothers. At least her oldest brother, Nicholas, and his wife, Jo, often visited. Thomas visited much less though, since he was in England with his Inez. Although when he’d called last week, Thomas had said that Bastien was working on transferring Inez to the Toronto office so that they would be closer to family. Then there was her friend Mirabeau, her cousin Lissianna, her aunt Marguerite, and Rachel, her cousin Etienne’s wife. She’d become a good friend since their marriage. Any one of the women might call.
However, they probably wouldn’t worry about her not answering for a couple days, which might be a good thing. It would give her time to try to sort out if Paul was a life mate and what to do about it.
Three
“And that’s Mommy and me at the family picnic. I was three.”
Jeanne Louise smiled faintly at the picture Livy was showing her. The child had been an adorable little cherub at three. Her mother too had been a beauty. Tall, blond, with sky blue eyes, a beautiful smile, and the perfect body. It was enough to depress the hell out of Jeanne Louise. She was not tall, did not consider herself beautiful, and did not have the perfect body. At least not compared to her cousin Lissianna, who she did consider beautiful. Jeanne Louise’s lips were a little thinner, her eyes large but almond shaped, and her face tended toward round rather than oval. She was also shorter and with less in the boob department. She didn’t think she could compete with the perfection of Paul’s first wife, especially when that perfection was a ghost whose beauty would therefore never wither in his memory.
“That’s enough of the pictures for now, Livy,” Paul said gently. “Set it aside and eat your sandwich, please.”
“But I don’t want it,” Livy said unhappily. “It doesn’t taste good.”
“But it’s tuna, your favorite,” Paul said with a frown.
“I know, but it tastes funny,” Livy said unhappily and then added a plaintive, “Everything tastes funny now.”
Seeing the deepening concern on Paul’s face, Jeanne Louise said lightly, “Maybe your taste is changing. Everyone’s taste changes. Here, try this.” She took half her own sandwich and set it before the girl. “It’s ham and cheese. That’s my favorite and your dad put on just the right amount of mayonnaise. Not too much, not too little. It’s perfect.”
When the child hesitated, Jeanne Louise slipped into her thoughts to encourage her and then stayed there, ensuring she took a bite, chewed, and actually enjoyed the bite. The child was all bone; she needed to eat to build up her strength. The turn was a rigorous attack on the body. Livy needed to be stronger to survive it . . . if she was turned.
“Good?” Jeanne Louise asked when Livy swallowed, smiled, and took another bite.
Livy nodded, too busy chewing to answer.
“Thank God,” Paul murmured, the words a heartfelt sigh from his lips.
Jeanne Louise merely smiled at him, her concentration on ensuring Livy continued to enjoy and eat her sandwich. When the child finished the first half, Jeanne Louise wordlessly passed her the second half and continued to make her eat.
“Here.”
Jeanne Louise glanced to Paul to see him holding out a second sandwich from the picnic basket he’d brought out earlier. It hadn’t taken him long to put the picnic together. Then he’d returned to the room and cautiously unchained her and led her outside to a little gazebo in the center of the backyard. He’d used two chains to shackle one ankle to a post of the gazebo. Paul had then covered her with a light blanket to hide the metal tethers. After a hesitation, he’d then assured her he’d be right back and headed for the house.
Jeanne Louise hadn’t needed to read his mind to know he’d been worried that she might escape while he was gone. But she hadn’t even tried. She’d remained where she was, ignoring the way he kept glancing over his shoulder, and then peering out the kitchen window as he’d gathered the picnic basket and Livy before rushing back out.
The relief on his face when he got back to find her sitting sedately where he’d left her had nearly made her grin, but she’d controlled herself and turned her attention to Livy as the girl had begun showing her pictures of her dear departed mother.
“Thank you,” Jeanne Louise said quietly as she accepted his offering. She quickly unwrapped the sandwich and took an absent bite as she concentrated on Livy. But the burst of flavor in her mouth made her blink and her efforts on Livy stutter slightly.
“Is something wrong?” Paul asked, pausing in unwrapping his own sandwich.
“No,” she said quickly, returning her attention to Livy. “It’s good.”
She caught his smile out of the corner of her eye and knew he wanted to point out that she’d told Livy the sandwich was perfect without even trying it first, but he held his tongue. Probably afraid the girl would stop eating, Jeanne Louise thought wryly as she encouraged Livy to finish the last of her sandwich.
“I brought chips too,” Paul announced, setting his own sandwich aside to retrieve two bags of chips from the picnic basket—barbecue and sour cream and onion. “I’ve seen you eat both kinds, but wasn’t sure which was your favorite.”
“Both are,” Jeanne Louise admitted with a faint smile. “Sometimes I prefer barbecue and sometimes the other. It just depends on my mood.”
“And which would you prefer today?” he asked, arching one eyebrow.
“Barbecue,” she decided.
“And what mood does that mean you’re in?” Paul asked with interest.
“In the mood for spicy?” Jeanne Louise suggested absently, her main concentration on Livy still.
“Hmmm,” he murmured, and she heard the rustle as he opened the chips.
Livy finished her last bite and Jeanne Louise kept ahold of her thoughts for another moment to ensure the child’s stomach wasn’t rebelling at being so full, and that all was well, then released her to turn her attention to her own food. Her eyes widened when she saw the small mountain of potato chips on her plate next to the sandwich she’d unwrapped.
“Thank you,” she murmured and picked up a chip to pop in her mouth. The explosion of flavor on her tongue this time made her eyes close. Dear God, she’d forgotten how good these were. Or perhaps they just hadn’t tasted that good for a while. Her taste had been fading, Jeanne Louise realized. But it was definitely back. That thought made her open her eyes again and peer at Paul. He was definitely a possible mate for her then. She didn’t know whether to be glad or dismayed. This was not going to be easy, any way she looked at it. The chances were better that everything would go sideways and she would lose Paul than that it would work out.
Realizing Paul was peering at her in question, she forced herself to chew and swallow the now soggy chip in her mouth and then picked up her sandwich.
“Ah ah ah,” Paul said suddenly, and Jeanne Louise glanced to him to realize he was speaking to Livy. The girl had picked up her photo album again and was moving closer to Jeanne Louise with it. “Let Jeanne Louise eat first.”
“But—” Livy began in protest.
“Why don’t you go let Boomer out of the garage?” Paul interrupted. “I put him in there while Mrs. Stuart was here and forgot to let him out again when I got back. He’s probab
ly crazy for a run around the yard.”
Livy was on her feet and skipping toward the house at once. Jeanne Louise watched her go with a smile and then glanced to Paul with a raised eyebrow. “Boomer?”
“Shih tzu,” he said with a faint smile. “I bought him for Livy when Jer—her mother died. She was only three. Shortly after the last picture she showed you. Livy kept screeching ‘boom boom’ when she chased him around the night I brought him home, so I named him Boomer.”
Jeanne Louise grinned at the words, and then gave a startled gasp as a small furry power ball lunged at her, startling and tumbling her backward on the gazebo floor. The fur ball followed, landing on her chest, front paws on her chin as it licked madly at her face with its little pink tongue.
“He likes you! I knew he would!” Livy squealed with delight and Jeanne Louise burst out laughing, and then quickly cut herself off and closed her mouth as the dog immediately turned his attention there.
“Boomer!” Paul said in a voice she suspected was supposed to be firm. However, the effect was somewhat ruined by his laughter.
Realizing it was up to her, she clasped the squirming little body in her hands and eased him gently down to her lap as she sat back up. Boomer wasn’t having any of that, however, but kept trying to squirm out of her hold and up to lick her face again. She was vaguely aware of Paul standing and moving off, but he was back quickly and waving a small pink ball in front of the dog’s face.
“Fetch,” Paul said and then tossed the ball.
Jeanne Louise instinctively released the animal as he launched after it.
“Sorry about that,” Paul said wryly, handing her a napkin. “He’s an affectionate little thing.”
Jeanne Louise chuckled at the words and quickly wiped her face, then glanced around for her sandwich, relieved to see that it still sat where she’d set it at her side, undisturbed by Boomer’s arrival. She picked it up, her gaze seeking out Boomer and Livy to see that the girl was throwing the ball for the dog and cooing happily as he fetched it back to her.
