A Cold Day in Hell (The Hellcat Series) (9 page)

"Really?" she asked, intrigued and already mulling possible future experiments.

"That is
not
a good idea, Gabrielle," he warned, his voice no longer a purr.  "I'm not even sure I would've known if something dangerous approached us.  I certainly didn't care if we were seen." 

She had the distinct impression he was regretting telling her that little titbit.  She'd have to make sure he retracted that regret.  The thought of him losing all control because of something she did to him was very, very appealing.  His next question brought her back to earth.

"Would you mind telling me why you were trying to keep the Rogue alive, instead of just dispatching him?” he demanded.

"I knew you would want to question him, find out where he came from and why he was in the City," she explained.  "He—" She broke off as she suddenly remembered something.  She didn't really want to tell Julius this, but it was too late now. 

"He what, Gabrielle?" Julius prodded.

She bit her bottom lip.  "He seemed to know I was Dhampir." 

The Ferrari actually veered out of its lane for a split second before Julius pulled it straight with a rare curse.  There was a sharp crack as something inside the steering wheel gave way.  Oh dear, Alexander was going to be distraught, she thought. 

"What did he say to you?" Julius ground out. 

Gabi was actually considering asking him to pull over before he wrecked the car.  She should've waited until they were at the estate to tell him, she realised, a few minutes too late. 

"He said I was the epitome of Vampire cuisine, that I would be a five-Michelin-star dinner."  She was amazed she could recall his exact words.

"Had he come here specifically to find you?"  Short, terse as he guided the Ferrari onto an off ramp but didn't slow.

"No, it seemed to be pure coincidence."  She was fairly sure about that.  "He said he'd heard rumours, but he hadn't believed them.  Once he saw me fight and put it together with my unusual scent, he figured it out." 

A little of the anxiety eased from him, but not enough to call him composed.  The car finally slowed; they were in the street leading to the estate.  Gabi was debating calling him out on what was really going on as they turned into his driveway and the guards at the gatehouse rushed to open up, but one look at the expression on the guard's face was enough to freeze the words in her throat.

"What's wrong, Artemus?" Julius asked, rolling down the Ferrari's window.

"You have a visitor, Sire," Artemus replied without preamble.  "He arrived about an hour ago and requested
hospitium
.  He refused to discuss the nature of his call with anyone except you personally."  The other Vampire trailed off as Gabi felt the white-hot flare of Julius's power as it exploded outward. 

"Where is he now?" Julius
said, his voice quiet enough to be truly scary. 

"I, uh," Artemus swallowed, "I couldn't raise you on the phone, Sire, so I contacted Liam.  He told me to send the visitor to the main house, and he would take care of him until you arrived home or called back." 

The Vampire's hands were held rigidly at his sides, but Gabi could see him trying to keep from fidgeting.  He was very nervous about something.  "It has been many decades since I heard the request for
hospitium
, Sire.  He is old school, and he made the Werewolves very anxious.  Would you like me to gather the guard?"

Julius gave a curt nod.  "Alert them that I may have need of them tonight.  Alexander should be no more than a few minutes away in Gabrielle's car.  Tell him what you've told me, and tell him to come straight to the house.  No one else is to enter the main house without a direct order from me. 
Double the guard on the perimeter, and call in any night patrols.  Send any Werewolves back to their quarters, and replace them with Clan," he ordered in a clipped tone.  "And Artemus."  He paused.

"Yes,
Sire."

"Keep it low key.  No excitement from anyone."

"Understood, Sire."  He gave a sharp nod and disappeared back into the guardhouse.

"Has this got anything to do with what you've been keeping from me?" Gabi asked into the palpable tension of the car.  

Julius didn't reply immediately as he pulled the car to a neck-jerking stop outside the entrance of the main house.  Gabi suddenly knew that this was a pivotal point in their relationship.  If he still refused to include her in what was going on, she would walk away from him tonight.  She would step outside and call a cab to take her home.  Then she would call Irene to come and alter the Magical Barrier so that Alexander and Julius couldn't get into her home.  She knew he was still undecided on whether to tell her; she could feel it.  She also stayed quiet.  It was his decision.  Either she was a full and equal part of his life, or she was nothing to him.  There was no halfway with her.  He knew that.  He might not like it, but he knew it. Her heartbeat sounded loud to her own ears as she waited for him to make a decision. 

"It wasn't that I don't trust you, or that I don't want you to be part of my life," he finally said.  His fists were clenched around the steering wheel, and he was staring into the darkness next to his house.  "I said that I would work on my protective instinct, but I also warned you that it was a long-standing habit.  It’s never going to be easy to overcome."

Gabi bit her lip, forcing herself to give him time to speak. 

"I thought I would be able to keep you safe from this.  I have people working to eliminate the threat.  Unfortunately there are some clandestine forces at work, and an old enemy has decided to strike while he thinks I am vulnerable."

"And are you?"  Gabi broke her silence.  "Vulnerable, I mean?" 

He turned his intense, sapphire blue gaze on her, and she felt like she needed to grab onto the car seat to stop from drowning. 

"Yes, Lea, I am more vulnerable now than I have ever been," he said.

"Why?" she whispered.  "Why now?"

"Because there is something more precious to me than my own life, Lea.
  You are my greatest strength and my greatest weakness.  Because I love you and will do anything not to lose you.  If they get their hands on you, I am their puppet." 

Gabi felt uncomfortable and then realised it was because she'd stopped breathing.  She dragged air into her lungs.  Stunned by his declaration, she honestly didn't know what to say. 

Julius put one hand under her chin and tipped her head up so that he could lean forward and lay a gentle kiss on her lips.  "There is no time to explain now.  I swear I will tell you everything later, but first I must deal with my guest."  He said the word with some distaste.  "If it is who I think it is, he’s here to see you as much as to see me." 

A brief spark of emotion sizzled through their psychic link before he clamped down on it, and Gabi was left with the strangest sensation that he was preparing himself for an inevitable but unacceptable outcome.

Maximilian waited for them, lurking just inside the front door.  Gabi and Maximilian didn't like each other much.  Their first meeting had resulted in his heart very nearly making acquaintance with
Nex.  The tall, skinny Vampire reminded her of Riff-Raff from her favourite cult classic
The Rocky Horror Picture Show
.  She thought she'd try calling him Riff-Raff in future to see if it got a bigger rise than Maxi did.  She delighted in annoying him every chance she got, and he reciprocated, but only when he was sure Julius wouldn't find out about it.  They both knew he was treading a very fine line. 

"Sire, the visitor is in the boardroom.  He will not give me his name, but Nathan and Fergus are keeping him, uh, company while awaiting your arrival."  It was clear that Maximilian was expecting a rebuke from Julius for allowing the stranger into the house.

"It's all right, Maximilian," Julius told him.  "Though it is rarely used these days, the visitor is entitled to invoke
hospitium
.  See to it that drinks are served in the boardroom, as well as something for Gabrielle to eat." 

The house steward scuttled off without another word. 

"Would you like to change into something else and join us in the boardroom?" he asked her, obviously remembering that her clothes were in tatters under his overly long duster. 

She desperately wanted to put on some clean clothing and have a quick wash, but there was no way she was missing this. 
Whatever 'this' was.  "No, I'm fine," she said, raising a challenging eyebrow. 

Julius's reaction was unexpected; he actually seemed to approve.  He led the way down the wide, brightly lit corridor, as she quickly folded back the sleeves of the coat so that she didn't look entirely like a street urchin.  At least her boots had survived the fight, and
Nex was a comfortably familiar weight down her spine. 

The previous manor house hadn't had a boardroom.  Julius had tended to keep business away from his home, but with the rebuild it had seemed a good idea to include somewhere that formal guests could be entertained should the need arise.  The boardroom was large and stately enough to hint at Julius's wealth without being ostentatious, and was not comfortable enough for anyone to truly relax in.  It was a statement that clearly said 'make your point and leave'. 

Those who were welcome in the house gathered in the function room, a replacement for the previous entertainment room, which featured comfy seating, a bar, pool tables and large-screen TVs.  Gabi doubted their visitor would be invited back to the lounge with them. 

The tension in Julius was palpable, and different from anything she'd felt from him before.  She'd come to associate his anger with heat; being too near him when his temper flared always felt like standing too close to a furnace.  Now it felt cold. 
Darkly, bitterly, glacially cold.  He paused for a moment at the closed door, collecting himself before thrusting it open.  He didn't look at her as he stood back to allow her to precede him into the room. 

A man was standing on the far side of the rectangular twelve-seater boardroom table, pretending to admire the artwork on the wall.  Gabi could sense his watchfulness from the other side of the room.  He'd been waiting with keen anticipation for them.  He took her in from head to toe with a polite, enigmatic smile, just as she studied him.  He didn't have a European complexion; she would hazard a guess at Middle Eastern origins or possibly South American.  He wasn't particularly tall, stockily built, boasting a neat moustache and goatee, and neatly trimmed, dark hair.  He must have been in his mid-forties when he was turned, but he held his age with grace.  He was dressed in a three-piece suit that she could only describe as dapper, and carried an elegant cane, which he obviously didn't need.  She allowed her Vamp-sense out to play and immediately picked up on his age, which was close to
Julius's, but his power level was confusing to her.  Not anywhere near as powerful as Julius, but his power had a strange feel to it, and it seemed somehow familiar. 

"Caspian."
Julius's tone was sharp, but outwardly calm and controlled.  He stalked further into the room, keeping the boardroom table with its plush leather executive chairs between them.  Gabi kept pace with him, but didn't crowd him.  She always allowed enough room to draw a sword in tense situations.   

"Julius." The man greeted him with a slight nod of the head in a polite, almost paternal tone.  It bordered on patronising, and Nathan and Fergus stirred slightly at the mild insult to their Sire.  They were standing against the walls on either side of the room, the newcomer sandwiched between them.  Julius didn't give them the nod to subside; he allowed the tension to rise to a firm simmer. 

"I am not here to pick a fight with you, Julius," Caspian said soothingly, his strong accent negating Gabi’s previous assumption of his origins and making her think more of Spain or Portugal.  His grasp of English was excellent, though.  "I have simply requested an audience with you and safe passage in the City for a few days." 

He took two steps away from the artwork on the wall, closer to the table, and hefted the cane so that the head was clearly visible.  It was an intricately carved wolf's head with rubies for eyes and ivory fangs.  Both guards tensed, hands on weapons, but he ignored them as though they didn't exist.  "Are you going to introduce me to the lovely lady at your side, or should I introduce myself?" 

Spanish, Gabi decided, hearing his heavily accented English.

"This is Gabrielle Bradford," Julius said stiffly.  "Gabrielle, this is Carlos Medina, now known as Caspian." 

The other man inclined his head respectfully and took another step closer so that he was pressed up against the table, one hand on the back of a chair as he laid the wolf's head cane across the highly polished surface of the table.   

"Enchanted to meet you, Gabrielle," he said in a slow, lazy drawl.  "Please don't consider me rude for keeping my distance."  He indicated the table between them.  "I don't want to upset my host; he seems a little…highly strung tonight."  His eyes flashed to Julius, and something passed between them. 

Julius remained silent, but a muscle ticked along his jawline.  Gabi wasn't in the mood for obeying the rules and niceties of Vampire society.  She narrowed her eyes.