Kiss Me When the Sun Goes Down (26 page)

“Why, was she compelled into forgetting who put her up to it?  Just because you weren’t able to break the compulsion doesn’t mean it can’t be done.  Bishop or I might be able to manage it.”

“No, I mean it’s
really
a dead end.  She turned up behind a dumpster in Chinatown with her neck snapped.”

“Oh no.  Was she drained?”

“No, which was odd, but there was no sign of strangulation, so I’m still betting there was a vamp involved.”

“That’s a fair bet any time there’s neck trauma,” Bishop agreed.  “I’ll get my people to check it out and see if there are any clues we can work with that might lead us to the identity of the killer,” he volunteered, and I gave him a grateful smile.

“Thank you, but I’m guessing whoever did this covered their tracks.  I wish I knew what his endgame is.  Was this it, disrupting the party?  Or is this only the beginning?”

“Whatever it is, we’ll figure it out,” Bishop promised, drawing me close to kiss the top of my head.  “At least so far it’s proven to be more mischievous than dangerous.”

“Tell that to the poor girl behind the dumpster.”

“You know what I mean.  Whoever it was could’ve struck with something far more lethal than tincture of hyacinth, or could’ve killed Bakareh while he slept instead of subverting his staff.  And whatever the plan is, he doesn’t seem to be moving against you directly.  It could be that they were just looking for a way to strike at Bakareh since this is the first time he’s been out of his stronghold in years.”

“That’s true,” I considered aloud, not having thought of it that way before.  “Either way, they chose to strike in my lands, which makes it my problem.  That means we’d all better be on the alert for anything out of the ordinary.”

“Already one step ahead of you,” Carter grinned.  “I’ve asked Lee about leasing some of his grunts for daytime protection, since Bakareh’s staff was approached before dark.”

“Ugh, not more security again.  Didn’t we agree that I’m not the target this time?”

“We don’t know that for sure,” Carter shrugged.  “And until we catch the bugger, it makes sense to protect our flank when we’re exposed.”

“I agree,” Bishop nodded.  “Better safe than sorry.  I’ll have a briefing tonight and pass the word to the Order that we’ve got a prankster in our midst that likes to play rough.  I’m sure everyone’s on edge after the bloody display on New Year’s.  If we ask the right questions, maybe we’ll turn something up.”

Carter clapped his hands together.  “Okay, sounds like a plan, man.  But we’d better get going.  I’m sure the council ain’t getting any easier while they wait.”

“Right,” I nodded, searching for my shoes and slipping them on before I took a hasty sip of my cocoa, which had grown tepid.  “So, I’ll see you later tonight?” I paused before Bishop, trying to sound more hopeful than needy.

“Count on it,” he agreed, his hands settling on my hips as he pulled me close.  “Be safe out there.” 

“You too,” I smiled, my hands sliding up his arms as he kissed me slowly and deliberately, refusing to be rushed by Carter’s impatience or the council.  I was inclined to agree with him, giving myself up to the kiss, but eventually we had to part.  “Love you,” I whispered, ducking out before Carter decided to drag me out by my hair. 

“Is this what it’s going to be like from now on?” Carter asked once we were alone in the car. 

“What?”

“All hearts and flowers and mushiness?”

I smiled at the distaste in his voice.  “I think I’ve earned a fair amount of mushiness, don’t you?”

He let out a long sigh.  “I guess you have.  If he does anything to break your heart, I get to break his face though, right?”

“Oh yeah, that’s a given,” I nodded, hiding my smile behind my hand at the way he brightened by the thought. 

“Then I guess it’s okay if he moves in with us.”

“Why does everyone keep assuming he’s going to move into our house?”

“Gunnar said...”

“Ah right, I should’ve known.  Well, you can rest easy for the moment.  We haven’t discussed it at all.  But I’m glad to hear I have your permission if it comes to that.”

“I didn’t mean it like that, An,” he muttered. 

“How did you mean it then?”

“I just want you to be happy.  Even if that includes Dumbo.”

“He’s going to pop you one if you keep calling him that,” I laughed.  “But you know what would make me truly happy?”

“What’s that, sunshine?”

“Fix the hole you made in my floor.”

“Nag, nag, nag...” he shook his head in disgust.  “I told you, I’m building an escape tunnel.”

“And I keep telling you, the safest place for me is in the spelled house.  I give you three months, okay?  If you’re not done by then the deal’s off and I’m having it filled in.”

“Fine, then stop creating international incidents so I can focus on getting it done, would ya?”

I let out a long breath.  “I didn’t mean to.”  I’d always considered myself a fairly even keeled sort of person, but I wasn’t a pushover either.  How deep had my temper landed me this time?

Fairly deep, as far as the council was concerned.  As I approached them in the dining room, I felt kind of like I was up against a disciplinary tribunal from their expressions.  Cordelia and Durand could usually be counted on to have my back, but even they looked somber at the occasion. 

It was Anders who addressed me first, disapproval coming off of him in waves as he spoke.  “I’m sure you know why we called for this meeting,” he began.  “The rumors of your blunder with Bakareh are spreading like wildfire.”

“I don’t think there’s much we can do about gossip, and I think blunder’s probably a strong word.  It’s true I wasn’t as diplomatic with him as I could’ve been, but it’s not like he was particularly professional either.  I say we chalk it up to an unfortunate visit and move on.” 

“An unfortunate visit?” Holt blurted out, his expression incredulous.  “One might call the fiasco with the tainted blood an unfortunate visit – and one of the most embarrassingly botched gatherings of all time, by the way.  Society will be snickering about our incompetence for the next century.  But your treatment of Bakareh was uncalled for.  You must apologize at once.”

“Okay, first of all – I wouldn’t say it was uncalled for, Bakareh was definitely on the road to a fat lip with the way he acted.  And second, that stuff with the blood was straight up sabotage, and there’s no way I could’ve anticipated it.”  That caused a round of murmurings.  “We’re still investigating it, but the human who administered the poison has unfortunately turned up dead, so we don’t have anyone to point a finger to yet.”

“A human poisoned our blood?” Cordelia gasped, visibly shaken.  “How could this have happened?  Do we need to inform the Order of this?” 

An argument broke out as to whether or not our secret was in danger of exposure to the humans, and if we should involve the Order or not.  It took me a few seconds to get their attention again, and I had to finally do it by slamming my hand against the table. 

“Guys!  The Order is already involved in the investigation, but so far it doesn’t look like it’s an attack on us by any human faction, or their spy wouldn’t have turned up dead.  The toxin used wasn’t very lethal, even by human standards, so I don’t think we’re looking at a move by humans against vamps.  It’s just the way our bad guy got to us.”

“Setting that aside,” Holt continued, waving that away.  “There’s still the matter of your shameful treatment of Bakareh.”

“With all due respect, Mr. Holt, I believe I treated him the way he deserved to be treated.  I can hardly offer respect to a guy who shows me and my House none.” 

“Bakareh is easily the oldest turned vampire on the planet.  The usual conventions don’t apply to him.  You should have treated him with deference.  Now our only hope is if you send him a personal apology, and hope that he accepts it.”

“I won’t apologize for not allowing him to bully me,” I insisted, standing my ground.  “You picked me to be the Elder of the West because you thought I’d be strong and wouldn’t let the other Houses push us around.  Well, this is me being strong.”

“Here, here,” Durand spoke up, rapping his knuckles on the table in support.  “I, for one, am glad she demonstrated that the West will not be treated as a second class House.”

Anders’ palm came up in disagreement.  “There is a difference between being strong and being obstinate.  It’s not wise to antagonize one of his strength and power.”

“He’s a spoiled brat, and we all know it,” Cordelia chimed in, but she looked distressed more than anything else.  “But that’s not the question of the day.  The question is, how can we repair the damage between our Houses?”

“What could he do to us, really?” I asked, wondering what all the fuss was about over a little argument.  “Bakareh lives a half a world away.  Even if he declared war on us tonight, how would it affect us?”

Powell spoke for the first time, his words slow and careful.  “Any time two Houses have a parting of ways, it affects us all.  Different factions pick sides, it could very quickly escalate into a global war.  And nobody wants a global war.”

“So why didn’t you flip out when I cut all ties to Vetis?”  Felix had practically been turning cartwheels when I snubbed both Corley and then Aubrey after him.  Where was Felix, I wondered?

“Because Aubrey is a new leader and relatively green,” Cordelia explained.  “He doesn’t have strong ties to any of the other Houses, and there are plenty who’d be interested in seeing him fail.  Bakareh is old and well respected.”

“He might be old, but I think we all know he’s not well respected,” I snorted.  “The guy’s a joke.  I stand by my decision to boot him out on his pampered butt.” 

“And what the Houses will see is you flaunting your disregard for tradition,” Holt scowled, but I caught onto his idea with enthusiasm.

“Yes, that’s exactly what I’m doing.  I’m not kissing his behind for the sake of tradition.  If there’s anything you can say about my rule, it’s that I will challenge the conventions I find stupid.”

“That isn’t going to win any popularity contests,” Anders sighed. 

“Well, what are we doing here?  Trying to win a popularity contest, or trying to make this nation stronger?”

“Too often they go hand in hand,” Cordelia mused aloud, winding an auburn curl around and around her finger and then letting it go again. 

Durand stood, giving me a confident smile before he addressed the others.  “I applaud Anja on her stance against mistreatment by the old ones.”

“You would,” Holt sneered.

“Would you relax?” Durand grinned.  “Like she said, what’s the worst Bakareh can do?  Yes, he’s worshipped like a god in his country, but we’re in the modern world.  His time is dying out, and if he can’t adjust, that’s too bad for him.  Yes, he’s older and stronger than any one of us, but not if we stand together.” 

“And let’s not forget, we are under the protection of Jakob,” Powell added.

There was a general assent at that point, but Holt held fast to his opinion.  “I still think the right thing to do is to send an apology.” 

“You don’t have to mean it, but it would be the diplomatic thing to do,” Cordelia allowed, pitching it as more of a suggestion. 

“I’ll think about it,” I replied, meeting them half way.  “With any luck, Bakareh will hole up in his throne room, and none of us will hear from him for another thousand years.”

Felix met me out in the hallway before I could make a break for it.  “I can’t believe you pulled that off, boss!” he gushed, shaking my hand with enthusiasm.  “I was sure they were gonna ask you to step down.”

Had it been as bad as that?  “How do you know they didn’t?”

“I heard the whole thing from the security office.”

“Ugh, I have to get Carter to drop the audio surveillance. I keep forgetting it’s all being recorded.” 
Great googly moogly
, did that mean he had a recording of what Bishop and I had been up to the night of the party?  That sounded like a question I might not want the answer to. 

“Nah, it’s a great tool, we’ve already picked up a ton of useful stuff so far.”

I didn’t want to know what he meant.  “Listen, why don’t you pick up something touristy from San Francisco, or better yet, get something from the Disney store and I’ll send it on to Bakareh with a handwritten note.”  Maybe not an apology for the way I’d talked to him, but I could say I was sorry his trip hadn’t gone as planned.  It was better than nothing.

“Great idea, boss, but, ah... I ain’t so sure I’m the right guy for the job.  Without Bridget I’m kind of useless at shopping.”

That brought me up short.  “What do you mean without Bridget?” 

“Oh, didn’t you know?  She up and left.  Said she was homesick for her old neighborhood and her old life.  She even missed working at the hospital.”

“She actually told you she wanted to pick up her old job again?”  That didn’t sound like the Bridget I knew, but then again, I hadn’t spoken to her in months. 

“Yeah, seems kinda nutso to me to give up the lap of luxury, but what could I say?  I don’t want to stand in the way of her happiness.” 

He seemed so lackadaisical about it all.  “And it didn’t bother you at all to break up?”  I’d thought he had genuine feelings for Bridget.

“Things were, ah...” Felix swallowed, adjusting his tie uncomfortably.  “Look, I know she’s your friend and all, but things weren’t good between us for a while.  We just didn’t seem simpatico no more.”

“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t know that.”

“It’s fine.  I ain’t ever been the guy lookin’ for true love, ya know?” he grinned.  “Bridge too, she knew the score.  Neither one of us is all that broken hearted over it.”

“Well, I’m glad there are no bad feelings between you.”  Whether Bridget felt the same way remained to be seen.  I knew from personal experience that she kept a lot bottled up inside her, and I wondered what had made her decide to break things off with Felix for good.  Not enough to give her a call and ask her out for coffee though, those days were over for us too.

“About the shopping,” Felix started to say, and I shook myself out of my thoughts.

“Oh, right.  I’ll have Maggie pick something up, she’ll know what to do, as usual.”