Better, right. Only if Nicolas was found and killed.
I followed behind him, my shoulders slumped and feet dragging. All I’d thought about at first was getting the vampire out of there. Needless to say that my self-preservation instincts and prejudices didn’t consider the potential victims. And then when I’d tried to do something, I failed.
No matter if it was a school night, there would be children out on the streets. If one of them was killed, if anyone was killed by Nicolas, it would be my fault.
“Marg was a precious soul. So beautiful.” Tears flowed down Annaleigh’s lovely face just as it was pouring rain outside.
Margery Lutz had scales and a tail. I polished them so they shone for the viewing. Now I held Annaleigh Bartlett’s hand as she cried over her dead friend. Ala demons were long-lived. They had known each other for two centuries. Annaleigh’s grief went deep and shook her whole body.
I sat quietly as I fed off the sorrow and let Annaleigh do most of the talking. Her southern drawl was soothing even as it warbled with grief. I asked a few questions to keep her talking and drawing out more emotion. The spots along my back and limbs warmed and tingled. I fed, but not with joy. Sadness infused every cell, and I’d feel it long after the deceased’s loved ones recovered from their grief.
Centuries of memories. A sisterhood like nothing I’d ever experienced. Margery and Annaleigh giggling over men, discussing philosophy, and laughing as they danced in the rain.
“She once made a storm cell with tornadoes that devastated most of the crops in Kansas. She was the best of us.” Annaleigh sniffled and dabbed her eyes with a lace kerchief. It was a wonder that her make-up never smeared.
“She sounds like she was an impressive woman.” I meant it. Some lives I experienced through the mourners’ grief were not terribly exciting, but the Ala demons had a great love of life. They liked to go big no matter what they did.
Even as I comforted Annaleigh and supped on the sorrow, my mind wandered. Aleo had said nothing more about Nicolas. Had he been found? Did they kill him? I hadn’t seen anything on the morning news. No dead children. Yet that didn’t mean much. It only meant no bodies had been discovered.
“She was, she was. She was like a mother to me.” Thunder rumbled from the dark clouds outside. “I have the honor of leading the ceremony today. Her sisters would have done so, but they hadn’t any time to prepare. The storm season is starting in the Great Lakes region.”
I didn’t know who Aleo had sent after Nicolas either. He called them professionals, but I wasn’t aware of any connections he had. Nor were vampire hunters listed in the phone book. I should have tricked the vampire somehow. Locked him in the freezer, or, more appropriately, one of the coffins.
“We’ll be sending tornadoes out south of here. Ones with the lopsided curled edge like Marg used to do.”
I blinked, focusing on the conversation again. Tornadoes? That wasn’t good. At least it wasn’t as bad as letting a fledgling vampire loose on the city.
Annaleigh patted and squeezed my hand. “I see you’re tired. Don’t fret over it, hon. You look like you might break if someone puts one more worry on your shoulders.” She smiled and it widened as she stood. She smoothed out her designer dress. Black and trendy, flattering at every angle considering she was hiding a tail under there. “Thank you for sitting with me, sweetie. Aleo was right. It did help talking to you.”
“I just listened, Ms. Bartlett. I’ll be happy to do so any time.” I rose and marveled at Annaleigh’s height. I was tall at five foot eight, but still three inches shorter than the Ala demon. Maybe I should start wearing heels. Glancing down at Annaleigh’s spikes, I immediately dismissed the idea. No way in hell was I ever going to torture my feet like that.
“Oh, look at you. So sweet. And no ring on your finger.” Annaleigh raised her perfectly plucked brows. “Best you grab that good looking boy, Aleo’s eldest, before he gets married off. He’s a charmer. Even made a matronly ol’ thing like me blush.”
I nipped my lower lip to keep from chuckling. Matronly was the farthest thing from my mind when it came to Annaleigh. She was a southern beauty through and through, looking no more than a human woman in her late thirties. She reminded me of the blonde from Sex and the City but with taller, curlier hair and a bigger chest.
“Cort’s like a brother to me. And I think he already has more women than he can handle.” Far more, and Cort liked it that way.
“Pish posh.” Annaleigh clicked her tongue. “A man believes he can never have too many women. It’s up to the woman to make him want only her. Plus, his family has the blood of Ammut. Highly respected. You’d do well to get married into their family, hon, being a Phage yourself.”
Oh crap. “Pardon? Oh, Ms. Bartlett, I—”
“It’s nothing, hon. I’ve been around long enough to notice these things. I feel better having talked to you, and I truly appreciate it. I’ll cry during the ceremony, but at least now I won’t be incomprehensible.” Annaleigh bent forward and kissed each of my cheeks. The scent of jasmine perfume and ozone filled my nose. I had to resist the urge to sneeze.
Sneeze or not, at least she wasn’t bothered by my feeding on her. It was actually nice to be appreciated for it. Most people never knew what I was doing. That was for the best.
I escorted her out of the room but didn’t follow her down the hall as Annaleigh joined the other Ala demons. Every woman was dressed in the finest clothes, but their tastes ranged from country chic to runway model. There were no men in the group, but none of their human mates would survive the ceremony if they did attend.
“Erin,” Aleo called me from his office. I turned and walked down the hall to the door.
“Yes?”
“I just heard from Connor. He’s almost here with Mrs. Reese. Will you be all right seeing her?” He came forward and rubbed my arm. Ever considerate.
“I’ll be fine.” Debating about whether I should ask about the vampire, I hesitated. Surely Aleo would tell me if something happened. “Any word about Nicolas?”
“No, nothing.” Aleo sighed. “Don’t you worry. I sent Abdiel—”
The name chased away the heat I’d gained from feeding.
“The Allu?” I gasped. Horror replaced the pleasant memories I had siphoned from Annaleigh. The Allu were far from professionals. No, that wasn’t true. They were professional sadistic bastards. “But they’re, well, that can’t be good. And don’t they have a ceremony on schedule for tonight?”
“Abdiel has more sense than most of his kind. He’ll be careful and discrete.” Aleo didn’t seem to be surprised by my reaction. The old man had never been shocked by anything as long as I’d known him. “And yes, they’re scheduled for tonight. Yet it’ll be brief and well controlled. The boys have put some new measures into place to help contain them. Especially with the Ala ceremony this afternoon. Oh, how’s Annaleigh?”
Abdiel. Could there be anything worse? Nope, nothing.
“She’s coping well. She was very grateful you sent her to me. She knew about me.” My heart still raced at the thought of the Allu hunting anyone or anything. Maybe I ought to go looking for the vampire. I was the one who sent him out into the city, after all.
“Oh, I wouldn’t doubt it. A fine lady such as herself knows a lot of things.” Aleo smiled.
“Don’t let Bolona catch you smiling like that about Annaleigh or any of the Ala. She’d find some way to curse you.” I joked, but there was little humor in it. Nicolas didn’t choose to be a vampire. He didn’t deserve the fate the Allu would bring upon him. The responsibility should be mine to find him.
No. I mentally slapped myself. Stop feeling guilty about it. Really, what could I do? Vampires were unnatural. Nicolas was supposed to be dead, and the Allu would make certain he stayed that way this time.
In one of many very horrible ways.
“I already think she has over the years.” Aleo chuckled and nodded toward the side door, the private family entrance. “Connor should b
e here now. The Reese funeral will be small. As long as you’re here, Mrs. Reese won’t be making any fuss. We need to keep it quiet and get the humans out of here as soon as possible.”
“Of course.”
“I really need to rethink taking on human clients after this.” Aleo breathed out and gave me another pat before returning to his desk.
I flashed him what I hoped looked like a sympathetic smile and walked to the side door. Gnawing on my lower lip, I had a hundred thoughts jamming into my mind. Nicolas obviously hadn’t gone home if his mother was still coming to his funeral. Connor was probably right with his guess. It was best if she believed her son was dead. He would be once the Allu found him. Or, at least, dead again. And likely in several pieces.
I swallowed hard. Tonight, while the Allu were having their ceremony, I could walk around, try to find Nicolas. I had to. Maybe he’d listen to reason and surrender himself.
The door swung open as I neared it, and Connor ushered in Nicolas’ mother. Mary Reese was not what I expected at all. Mary was completely and utterly ordinary. I didn’t know why I should have expected anything else, but Nicolas had a booming personality, and it had nothing to do with him being a vampire.
“Mrs. Reese,” I greeted her with soft tones. “My name is Erin Driscol. Please, come in and warm yourself. I’m here for anything you need today.” I glanced over the woman’s shoulder at Connor and gave him a nod to excuse him. He could be a sweet guy, but he had no desire to deal with the grieving more than driving them from one place to the next.
“Thank you.” Mary’s voice was rough as if she had been bawling all night. She didn’t look up as she followed me down the hall to a private room where families could sit apart from the other attendees before the funeral.
“Would you like something to drink? Tea, coffee, water?”
“Oh, no, nothing.” Mary slipped out of her coat with jerky movements. Looking down at her hands and seeing them shake, she sucked back a sob. “Well, perhaps some tea.”
I poured some tea from a pot already made. Bolona had all angles covered when it came to hospitality. “Sugar or cream?”
“No, thank you.” Mary sat on the couch and brushed some unseen lint from her sleeve.
I set the teacup in front of Nicolas’ mother. It clinked on the saucer and seemed louder than it should. I folded my hands on my lap as I sat next to Mary, but not too close. Ordinary people had this fixation about personal space. A few inches seemed to make the difference between being comfortable and miserable awkwardness.
“Will there be any other family coming? Maybe a friend to sit with you?”
“No.” Mary’s voice cracked and her sorrow was ripe in the air. I drank it in deep. “Nicolas was my only child as I was an only child. My husband passed when Nicci was only five. It’s been just the two of us for so long.”
“It must have been hard on both of you.” A little shiver slithered through me as I fed. The unseen energy which fueled emotions was more potent than the sun’s life-giving rays. I soaked it up in a way similar to a person tanning, if they could will themselves to speedily do so. The image of an adorable blond boy flitted through my mind. “I can sit with you, if you’d like.”
“You’re very sweet.” Mary wiped at her tears and reached for her tea. She took a sip, almost spilling it as she put it back down. “I don’t want to impose. Nicci was my son, my burden. Oh!” She burst out with another cry. “I shouldn’t say such things about him. I loved him no matter what he did.”
“It wouldn’t be an imposition.” I’d a nice feast with Annaleigh, but the grief here was raw. A more scrumptious flavor. Margery Lutz’s death wasn’t unexpected, but Nicolas was a young man with his whole life ahead of him. It didn’t seem as though he was making the best out of it, but I didn’t know the guy. “It helps to talk. Some people want to keep it all in, but it does really help reminiscing about those we loved.”
Mary said nothing for over a minute. Finally, she sighed and swiped at her cheeks again. She ignored the tissues on the table in front of her.
“Nicci was such a clever boy. He did well in school, liked to act and play sports. Well-rounded. That’s what they call it. We were happy. At least that’s what I thought. It wasn’t until later that I found out he was sneaking out at night, smoking and drinking with the wrong sort of people.” Her jaw tightened. I wondered if she was angry at Nicolas, or, perhaps, more at herself. Whatever it was, it translated into heartbreak.
“He went away to college, studied business of all things. When he came home during the breaks, he still was sweet to me, but he felt like a stranger in a way. It was in his eyes, you know?” She clutched at the top of her blouse and let out a long breath.
A clean cut teenage version of Nicolas flashed in my head. He looked good in a suit. Scrumptious. His smile was brilliant. He shared silly stories with his mom, making her laugh, and never failed to bring her flowers for every special occasion.
“Nicci told me everything was going so well. Then one day, he came home and moved all his stuff into the basement. He said he had a job, but he came and went at odd hours.” Mary shook her head. “I’m not an idiot. He must have thought he had me fooled, but I knew. Drugs. What could I say, though? He was an adult. At least with him downstairs, I could make sure he still had food to eat, clean clothes, that he was still aliv—” She cut herself off with sad laugh that reminded me of water trying to go down a clogged drain. “I couldn’t even do that.”
The last bit was a sweet morsel of sorrow. As I took it in, my mouth turned down rather than up. “It wasn’t your fault. You did what you could. He made his own choices. Just remember the sweet boy he once was and hold that to your heart.”
If Mary had seen her son fanged and feral, it would have shattered her completely.
There was a soft knock at the door, and Cort peeked his head in. “We’re ready to begin if you are, Mrs. Reese.”
“Yes, thank you.” Mary nodded to him and stood. She reached for a tissue and wiped her eyes. She wasn’t wearing any make-up to smear. Her hand twitched as if she might reach over for my hand, but she clasped hers together. “And thank you. It did help to talk about him. It helped much more than I thought it would.”
“Did you want me to come and sit with you?” I rubbed my arms, hoping I wasn’t perspiring. Turtlenecks hid my spots completely, but I easily grew too hot. A few minutes outside in the chilly wind would help.
“No, not now, thank you.” Mary held her head up and managed a small smile. She walked around the couch and through the doorway as Cort stood to the side. He glanced over his shoulder and winked at me before closing the door so the funeral could begin.
I hurried to the nearest exit, the side entrance. Fast. I needed to be quick if I wanted to find Nicolas before the Allu. Not just to assuage my own guilt, but for the boy who was so precious to his mother. And for all the mothers who had lost their babies.
The November air whipped at me as I opened the door. The cold wasn’t going to be enough to wipe Nicolas’ gentle laugh or his twinkling blue eyes from my mind.
The storm had grown in its fury by early evening. The wind whipped through the city and lightning lit the sky. Thankfully all of the guests for the Reese funeral had left. All nine of them. Aleo was speaking with Mary by the side entrance to confirm with her the final details of the cremation.
I gathered the few donation cards and notes of sympathy for Mary and put them in an envelope. They’d be delivered to her with her son’s remains. Or rather, with the random ashes they put in the urn she’d chosen.
Having forgotten a pen to write the name on the front, I walked to the front of the building to Cort’s office. I was about to ask him for one when the double doors flew open.
“You’ve got to help me!” Nicolas sped toward me.
Letting out a yelp, I dropped the envelope and held up my arms to ward him off. What was he doing back here? And now of all times! I stumbled backward into the office as he gripped my arms hard e
nough to leave bruises.
“I’m a fucking vampire!” Nicolas opened his mouth to display his fangs. He was still wearing the clothes I’d given him the previous night, but now blood splattered them like a bold attempt at an abstract painting.
“No shit.” Cort came up behind Nicolas and wrapped his arms around him. His demon blood made him strong, but not quite as strong as a panicked vamp. “I can only hold him for so long, Erin. Run. Find Dad.”
Always the protective older brother type. It endeared Cort to me as much as it annoyed me. Like in a bad horror film, the urge to flee didn’t kick in.
I regained my footing and moved to the door. Would Nicolas chase me? For some reason, he had come back here to find me. My breath came out choppy. This time, I wasn’t going to set him loose on innocent people.
“Nicolas,” I said. “You need to calm down and be quiet.” My mouth was so dry my tongue wanted to stick to the roof of it. “Your mother is here in the building. You don’t want her finding out about this, do you?”
Nicolas froze. His chest didn’t rise and fall with breathing. He was still in the creepy way only the undead could be. He cocked his head to the side. “My mom. She’s here?”
“Your funeral was today. She doesn’t know what really happened. You’ll scare her to death if she sees you like this.” A wave of sorrow came from him as his face contorted in a clear effort to get a handle on his emotions. My immediate instinct was to feed, but I needed him to feel it. It was keeping him quiet.
Cort didn’t relax his hold. He took advantage of the moment to get a more secure grip.
“Go get Dad, Erin. This isn’t your problem. Leave this thing to the professionals.”
The second Cort mentioned professionals, my heart skipped a beat. My stomach threatened to empty itself. The Allu. I was more afraid of them than Nicolas. It wasn’t only the rumors I heard about them, but the aftermath of their funeral rites. Aleo never let me clean up afterward, but I’d heard from the guys how horrendous the mess was.
Of Blood and Sorrow Page 2
