Into the Darkness (28 page)

“She’s decided not to accept Inanna’s invitation.”

Simon seated himself opposite her on another well-padded

sofa. “Did Inanna see her to the door?”

Chessa examined her fingernails and found a hangnail. She

stuffed her finger in her mouth and bit it off. “Not exactly,”

she said, not meeting his gaze.

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Simon laughed. “My Natalie has good instincts. But you

still haven’t said what you want from me.”

“Are you in a rush to get rid of me?”

His sigh was long and exasperated. “Is this something that

can wait until another day?”

“She needs sanctuary,” she blurted.

Simon’s expression shuttered, but not before she’d heard

his breath draw deep. “Is she asking for it?”

“She doesn’t even know it exists.”

“Then you have to find another way to keep her safe. Send

her back to Inanna’s and make sure they don’t let her out

again.”

“Simon, you and I both know she won’t be happy there.”

“Since when do you care about Natalie’s happiness? I suppose you’ve become great friends.”

“Simon, I can’t keep her safe long. She’s ravenous. She’ll

draw attention the first time she steps out to find a meal.”

“Is she really pregnant?”

Chessa laid her head back on the cushion and looked at the

molded ceiling. Nice place he had here. “Inanna seemed to

think so,” she murmured.

“What about her policeman?”

“His name is Rene.”

“Will he go with her into sanctuary?”

“He’s not willing to become her life mate.”

“Must be one stubborn human to resist her. Or maybe he’s

found someone to deflect all that lust building in him,” he

said, his tone insinuating.

Chessa flushed. “I’ll need you to explain it to her—and she

might be resistant to the idea.”

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“I can’t imagine why. Who wouldn’t be willing to leave behind the world they know? Take a one-way trip into another

time and place?”

Chessa straightened, bunching her fists on her knees.

“Simon, what part of this aren’t you understanding? She’s

not safe here.”

“Oh, I understand. But I also know you have your sights

on her boyfriend. The daddy to her child. Do you really think

this is the best thing for her? Or is it the best thing for you?”

Chessa’s back stiffened ramrod straight. “I mean her no

harm, and I’ve given up any claim to Rene. You know why I’m

doing this. I only want her and her child safe.”

“Take a long look in a mirror, Chessa—not mine of course.

If you still want me to send her to sanctuary, I’ll talk to her

about it. But you need to purge your demons first.”

The metallic rattle drew their attention to a doorway.

Madeleine carried a large tray with a teapot and cups. “I

thought you might want something to fortify yourself before you face that storm again.” She placed the tray on the

coffee table and perched on the edge of the sofa next to

Simon. When her gaze met his, her smile said it all. She was

his willing captive.

Simon’s head swiveled toward Chessa. “Don’t come back

until the new moon. Our girl still has more growing to do,

and I’m going to be very, very busy.”

Natalie awoke in the darkness to the sound of her stomach

grumbling. She checked the time on the digital clock on the

nightstand. Nightfall had come. Soon, Chessa would arrive to

take her to dinner.

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She rolled from the bed and pulled clothing out of her

drawers then headed to the bathroom. Once inside, she

showered and applied makeup to her face. The task was

pointless really. She wasn’t trying to impress anyone, and

the storm outside would likely wash it all away as soon as

she stepped outside. But she needed to do something to

while away the time.

Her hands shook with her hunger as she lined her eyes, and

the result was a little ghoulish, but appropriate to her mind.

She dressed in a silver sleeveless top and blue jeans that were

very loose at the waist and baggy in the rear. She dug for a

belt to hold them up and stepped into silver, jewel-studded

slides. The clothes were silly, the shoes ridiculous. She was

going to troll for blood and would likely stain everything she

wore. She wondered if vampires ever wore bibs and thought

the innovation might catch on.

When she’d dried her hair, she sat on the edge of the bed

and waited, counting the minutes.

This time when the knock came, she checked the peephole

first. Chessa stood in the hallway.

Natalie opened the door and gave Chessa’s attire a quick

glance. She’d overdressed. Chessa wore blue jeans and a

scruffy leather jacket.

Chessa intercepted her glance and held open her coat. Her

holster fit snug against her waist. Then she slid a long dagger

from an inner pocket. “I never travel without a little reinforcement.” Her eyebrows waggled up and down.

Natalie grinned. “I’ll have to remember that.”

“Now, that scares me. Get some lessons first.” Chessa

glanced inside the room. “You ready?”

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“Since I no longer have a purse or any cash to put into it—

yeah. It’s on you, right?”

“You have what you need to make payment. Let’s go.”

Rene sat at his desk, tired as hell. His eyes felt scratchy and

his underwear stuck to his cock. He needed a bath and to

brush his teeth, but he’d been in such a hurry to leave Natalie’s room the first time, he’d forgotten the necessities.

Staring at the copy of the faxed report from the Memphis

PD, his gaze blurred. He sat back and rubbed his eyes. Damn,

he’d lost so much blood to Natalie, he knew it would be a

while before his body restored the loss and his stamina was

back—that or he’d have to go to Charity Hospital and ask for

a transfusion. But how would he explain how he’d lost a few

pints?

There was this girl who happened to be born a vampire . . .
It

sounded nuts, and that’s what they’d think he was. If that

was true, a great big pair of baby-blues was responsible for

his lapse in sanity.

Rene swiveled in his chair, trying to decide whether to get

the cot from the lounge or sack out on the moth-ridden couch

when his gaze fell on Chessa’s filing cabinet.

The one sitting in the corner behind her desk that contained the cold case files she’d kept for forty years—since before he’d been born.

He’d read most of them. The ones in the upper three drawers. The bottom drawer was the only one she kept locked.

He’d often wondered why and supposed it might have something to do with her screwy family. But maybe, there was another reason.

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243

He’d never know unless he looked. No stone would be left

unturned in his search for the killer threatening Natalie. He

might not be the right man for her, but he wanted to know

she’d be safe. It was the least he owed her.

Rifling through the tools, pens, and flashlights he’d accumulated in his desk, he found a screwdriver. The lock was the

built-in kind—easy to break for someone who’d jimmied his

own cabinet every time he’d lost the key.

chapter

17

he raucous sound of a cheery accordion and

Telectric guitars blared from the open doorway. Natalie kept her head down against the driving wind and rushed behind Chessa toward the

bar she’d chosen for her “meal.” The hooded rain

slicker she wore ended at the knees, and her feet

and the bottom of her jeans were soaked. But she

could smell food ahead. Her stomach was already

gnawing at her backbone she was so hungry.

Just inside the door a grinning man flashed a megawatt, white smile that looked like the disembodied

grin of the Cheshire Cat against his dark face. “Welcome, welcome. Da hurricane party jus’ started.”

Chessa greeted him with a lift of her lips, showing him a bit of fang.

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His smile grew impossibly wider, and his gaze swept them

both with curiosity. “You be in luck. Da room’s full.”

Chessa paused to remove her slicker and held her hand out

for Natalie’s. She handed both to the man. “Make sure I get

these back.”

“I never say no to pretty ladies.”

His laughter followed them through the noisy bar, past a

crowded dance floor, and beyond to a dark, narrow hallway

with three doors—two marked as restrooms, the last with a

sign that said PRIVATE.

Chessa pounded a fist on the thick door, and it swung open

to a cloud of smoke and the smell of booze and sex.

Natalie tamped down the urge to moan. While her mind

was revolted, her body yearned toward the room. She crossed

the threshold into a devil’s lair.

Once the door shut, the Cajun-flavored music was gone and

in its place a techno-beat thudded like a heartbeat. The lights

were low, but with her improved sense she found couples

dancing so close she had to do a double-take to realize they

mated on the floor. Others sat or reclined in padded booths

in various stages of undress, engaged in sexual acts, some of

which Natalie could only wonder about.

Chessa grabbed her arm and pulled her close. “Don’t stare

like you’ve never seen anything like this before.”

“I haven’t.”

“Pretend. You don’t want anyone to know you’re fresh meat.”

Then Chessa shocked Natalie to her toes by leaning close and

kissing her full on the lips. She nuzzled her cheek and whispered

in her ear, “Anything goes here. You can drink, fuck—just don’t

kill your host. We don’t want the attention.”

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She led Natalie to the bar, and they both slid onto wooden

stools. Natalie tried to keep her gaze from clinging to the

other customers, but the mirror behind the bar only seemed

to magnify the luridness. Bodies rose and fell in unison on

the dance floor. Groans of sexual excitement and pending orgasms were only partially masked by the loud music.

“What can I get you two ladies?” The bartender greeted

them with a knowing smile.

“Thanks, we don’t need you to find our dates,” Chessa

said, then leaned toward Natalie. “Let your fangs down,” she

whispered, “or they’ll think you’re here to bleed.”

Natalie stared at the bartender’s neck and felt the downward slide of her teeth, letting them press past her upper lip

to dig into the lower.

His eyes narrowed, and he lifted his chin toward the dance

floor. “Go ahead and have a look around. There are still a few

who aren’t taken and several who wouldn’t mind sharing, I’m

sure.”

Natalie felt like she’d dropped through a rabbit hole, only

the Mad Hatter was hosting a blood orgy. She swiveled on her

chair to have a look at the menu.

“Remember what I told you,” Chessa said.

Like she would ever forget. In the car, Chessa had briefed

her, priming her for her new adventure. She’d been told certain

bars catered to vampires, and human “hosts” came willingly to

be used. Some hoped for the ultimate hook-up—to be turned.

Others wanted the intense sexual thrill a bite provided.

“Just go with the flow,” Chessa had said. “Everybody

knows the score.”

“What if they want to be turned?” she’d asked.

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“Then they’re doomed to disappointment. That’s never

something we do lightly. If a vampire finds someone he wants

as a life mate, then maybe. Be sure to stay away from the

Revenants
.”

“I didn’t think it mattered whom I drank from.”

“It doesn’t. But you don’t want them taking a reciprocal

bite. If they’ve tasted Born before, they’ll make you. Be sure

you bite first. If he’s undead, make an excuse and get away

quick. You do remember the difference in the taste?”

“Pasqual’s blood wasn’t as rich.”

“Exactly. I’m not sure of the physiology, but it has something to do with red corpuscles and the constant cycle of replenishment to keep their corpses animated.”

“Lovely,” Natalie murmured, shuddering at the description. “How will I know if he’s Born or a
Revenant
?”

“Assume all males are
Revenants
. We don’t bear male

children.”

“Ever?”

“Not since Inanna’s time, at least.”

Natalie wondered why only female children. She opened

her mouth to ask why—

“Would you like to dance?” a voice came from behind her.

Natalie’s eyes widened. For a moment, she’d forgotten

where she was. Casting a wild glance at Chessa, who nodded

her approval, she rose from her stool and turned to find a man

who appeared to be her age. His hair was curly and blond.

His eyes a muddy hazel. His smile was nice if his body was a

little tense.

She leaned toward him and raised her voice loud enough for

him to hear. “Your first time here?”

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249

He nodded, a sheepish grin stretching his lips. “My friends

know this place. Said they have the best parties.” His glance

dropped to her breasts and below.

Best sex he meant, Natalie thought wryly. “You said you

wanted to dance. Was that just a euphemism?”