Obsessions: A Monster Squad Novel 7 (9 page)

Samael’s face fell. “Then how do we discover which one might have been given this insight?” He punched at the concrete column and ignored the huge chunk of manmade rock that shot from the support.

“One has to be invited to enter the land of the elves or the fairy.” She sidled up next to him and ran a hand across his massive chest. “But that doesn’t stop them from coming out here to our world.”

He turned to her and studied her face. “You speak truly?”

“Of course I do. The wee sprites and those white haired do-gooders are coming across to our realm all the time. Every once in a while a vampire gets lucky and catches one. Rare, but it still happens from time to time.”

“Then it sounds like we need to set a trap.”

5

Mitchell had to pull himself away from Jenny before things got too heated. His head spun while his wolf tore at him, urging him to go back and claim her, make her theirs for all time. He paused more than once and forced his breathing to slow, trying in vain to push the image of the young, blonde haired woman from his mind. Her face haunted his dreams to the point that he wanted nothing more than to be by her side and it caused his body to ache. It caused his heart to ache. It caused his wolf no end of pain.

He felt as though his legs were dragging iron chains as he carried himself back up the stairs and to his office. The air inside felt stale and stuffy as he entered his workspace and took his place behind his desk. His mind seemed muddled and dragging as he tried to do his work. He just couldn’t focus. She was always there. Popping up in his thoughts when he didn’t need her there.

He read through the daily reports and had to reread them a second and third time before finally surrendering and tossing them aside. Another cup of coffee did nothing to help clear his mind and the image of her rising on her tip-toes to kiss him kept returning. He could still taste her on his lips, smell her on his skin.

Mitchell leaned back in his chair and tried to will her from his mind as the knock on his door shattered his concentration. “Come.”

Mark stepped in and plopped onto the couch across from his desk. “Bad news, and more bad news.”

“Okay then, hit me with the bad news first.” Mitchell pulled his coffee mug to him and sipped while he tried in earnest to pay attention to his XO.

“I spoke with Jack. I figured since he and Sheridan were so close, he might be able to shine a little light on this subject.”

“And?”

“And there’s a distinct possibility that at least two more of his men are still alive and kicking.”

Mitchell nodded, his distracted mind not quite making the connections. “Okay. So we need to keep an eye out for these guys.”

Mark tilted his head at him and gave him a quizzical look. “You mean we need to figure out their next move and get a step ahead of them.”

Mitchell stared at him a moment before nodding. “Okay. That sounds good. Make it happen.” He turned back to the stack of papers on his desk shuffled through them.

“You seem distracted.” Mark sat on the edge of the couch and studied the man. “What’s up?”

Matt groaned and gave up his charade. “I’m sorry, Mark. I’m just…I can’t think. I can’t concentrate on anything. She’s got me so worked up that…”

“She? Who…that Simmons girl?”

“Yeah. My Fated Mate.” Matt shook his head and threw his hands in the air. “I can’t stop thinking about her.”

Mark sighed and leaned back again. “You need to get your head in the game again, boss. This isn’t good. With Laura gone and me having to check in with Doc every day, he could pull me at a moment’s notice. We need you four-oh, squared away.”

“Laura’s gone?” Matt gave him a confused stare then realization struck. “I had forgotten that…” He stood suddenly and began pacing. “You’re right. I need to figure out something. I don’t know why that struck me as news.”

“You need to figure out what’s causing this and fix it. Even if it means sending her away.”

Matt turned on him suddenly, his head shaking. “I can’t…I don’t think I can do that.”

Mark shrugged. “Then you need to figure out how to work around this.” He stood slowly and placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. “It ain’t good to have a werewolf with Alzheimer’s running around here. You’ll be chasing your tail and hiking on electrical outlets.”

“Ha-ha-ha.”

Mark shrugged. “If you don’t want to electrocute your junk, you better get a grip on…well, your mind.” He turned for the door. “‘Cuz, I’ll be damned if I’m gonna be the one to paper train you.”

*****

“I am very uncomfortable with this.” Angelica turned to her sister and shook her head. “I’ve never tried to ‘read’ a vampire before. I don’t even know if I can.”

Victoria patted her sister’s hand. “All Viktor asks is for you to try.” She pulled her sister gently toward the table and pulled her chair out. “They will be here shortly, and we’ve traveled all this way to meet them.”

“If he were not my nephew, I would tell him no. I have no obligation to the pack.” Angelica stared over Victoria’s shoulder anxiously.

“I know, my dear, and I love you all the more for this.” She gently pushed her sister into her chair. “Trust me when I tell you that Viktor would not allow any harm to come to you. When he says that this vampire can be trusted, then he can be trusted.”

Angelica trembled and tried to shake off her trepidation. “I would be lying if I said I am not without fear.”

“I know, darling, but we will all be close. I promise.”

A young man stepped closer and pulled back the heavy covering to the makeshift tent. “They have arrived.”

“I cannot do this.” Angelica stood and turned for the rear of the tent.

“Sister, please, I assure you, no harm shall come to you or your party. Simply try to read him. That is all we ask.” Victoria pulled her gently back to her seat.

The young man stepped within the tent again and announced, “Monsieur Thorn.” He held the tent flap open and Angelica stiffened. She relaxed somewhat when a young man dressed in a white suit bent low and stepped within. Other than pale skin, he appeared perfectly normal. Nothing at all that she had expected.

“Please forgive this rather rushed meeting, and accept my sincerest gratitude for agreeing to do this for me and my people. You may very well save us extremely valuable time in preserving the human race.” Rufus bowed deeply to the Romanian woman seated behind the table. “I am Rufus Thorn, at your humble service.”

Angelica turned wide eyes to Victoria and whispered, “He’s not at all what I expected.”

“And that, too, is my fault,
mademoiselle
. We had no time to prepare once the plane landed. I fear my appearance is most dreary.”

“On the contrary, sir. You look…impeccable.” Angelica stood slowly and extended her hand. “I am Angelica Veres. I shall be performing your reading this evening.”

Rufus accepted her hand and placed a chaste kiss upon her knuckles. Angelica did not miss the coolness of his touch and withdrew her hand slowly, resisting the urge to wipe at it with her warm hand. “Please, take a seat,
monsieur
.”

Rufus sat quickly and placed his hands carefully in his lap. “I am not sure how this is performed.”

“There are many different ways to see the future.” Angelica cleared her throat. “But, to be completely honest, I’m not entirely sure if it will work with somebody in your…”

“Condition?” Rufus gave her a winning smile.

“Yes. Exactly.” Angelica pulled a stack of tarot cards and placed them on the table next to her ‘crystal’ ball. “Exactly what are you hoping to discover, sir?”

“Please, call me Rufus. And I am seeking information about a young vampire that my brother created. His name is Damien Franklin, and I fear he may be involved in some very dangerous extracurricular activities.”

“I see.” She reached down by her feet and retrieved a bowl. “And do you have anything that may have belonged to the young man?”

Rufus thought for a moment and shook his head. “
Non
, the only thing that I am aware of is that he shares the blood of my brother.”

“And did you happen to bring any with you?” She reached inside her robes and pulled out a small leather bag.

Rufus turned and closed his eyes, his arm extended toward the opening of the tent. A moment later, Paul appeared at the tent opening. “You called?”

“We need your blood.”

“All of it?”

“
Non
.” He turned and gave Angelica a quizzical look. “You do not need all of it, do you?”

“No, just a small sample will work.” She handed him the bowl and Rufus handed it to Paul. Paul extended his fangs and bit into his wrist, allowing the blood to pour into the bowl quickly before his wound healed. “That should be plenty.”

They placed the bowl back on the table and Angelica began reciting an incantation. She shook the leather bag and dumped the ancient small bones into the bowl then opened her eyes and stared deeply. She turned the bowl first one way, then the other. With a long finger she mixed the bones and blood then stared again.

“What do you see?” Rufus asked.

She shook her head slightly. “I see…nothing.” She gave him a less than hopeful glance. “I don’t know if it’s because the blood is dead or he is.”

Rufus sighed heavily and looked to Paul who simply shrugged. “I can’t feel if he’s departed.”

Rufus turned back to Angelica. “Is there anything else you can try?”

She pulled the tarot cards and had both men shuffle then cut the deck. She began dealing the cards out and attempted to read them. “The Magician. This means that one of you is a channel for great power. Whether that power is for good or evil, I cannot tell.”
She turned over another card. “The High Priestess. Somewhere along this journey, a woman of great power will come into play and once she meets with the Magician, she can take all of his power as well.” She flipped another card. “The Lovers. This can have numerous meanings. Let’s see what else the deck shows.” She flipped another. “Death.” Angelica noticed the look that both vampires gave her and she held her hands up to calm them. “The Death card doesn’t mean ‘death’ in its purest sense. It can mean change or transformation.”

“But it can also mean death, right?” Paul’s voice cracked when he spoke, and he noticed his mouth was dry.

“It can, but rarely.” Angelica flipped another card and placed it on the table. “Strength. This means just that. An inner strength or a newfound strength. Perhaps to complete a journey?” She gave both men a smile as she flipped the next card. “The moon.” She tapped at her chin as she studied this card. “The moon is an odd card. It has no light of its own. It reflects sunlight. It often means the negative of something. Like nightmares are to a happy dream.”

“Could it also mean that since we are vampires, we can only come out at night?” Foster asked hopefully.

Angelica shook her head. “No, not this time, I’m sorry.” She flipped another card and her brows knitted together. “The Emperor. Usually, this is a strong masculine head. A leader. Someone who gives advice or…rules from the sidelines.” She scratched at her head as she looked at the cards. “I’m curious…” She flipped another card and sat back, her eyes wide. “Wheel of Fortune. If this is a negative reading, then…it’s Fated. Whatever you’re supposed to do, it won’t be easy, but this action is destined to occur.”

“So we cannot change it?” Rufus asked.

“Oh, you can always change something. It just may seem monumental to do so.”

Foster waved his hand over all of the cards, “So what is this saying?”

She cleared her throat and gave the two a wary eye. “Whatever your friend is up to, he’s neck deep in it. He’s started the wheels of fate spinning and it won’t be easy to stop him.”

Rufus turned to Foster. “Lilith has been made whole.”

*****

Bigby opened the roll away door and stared at the weapons and equipment that Sheridan had stolen and squirreled away. He let a low whistle escape his lips then stepped inside. It would take a while to unload all of this. He hadn’t realized just how much had been secreted away until it was left to him to utilize it.

With the truck backed to the door, he began lifting the heavy crates and pushing them into the bed. He filled the bed of the truck then began stacking the wooden crates atop the others. He made certain to turn the crates so that their printed contents were turned to the inside of the stack and unreadable to prying eyes. Once he had the truck loaded he pulled out slowly and parked it.

He walked slowly through the rental units looking for open units. If he could find three or four that were unlocked that they could borrow for a short time…but there was only one other unit. Bigby cursed to himself and reluctantly picked up his cell phone. He checked his messages and found the text from Simmons’ men. They were at the airport and about to secure transportation.

Bigby called the number and was grateful the man spoke English. He explained the situation and the lack of suitable abandoned properties.

“What about the warehouse you were using? Did they set up surveillance?”

Bigby paused, his mind racing. Would they have? Would they have a reason to? Would they even suspect that anybody would go back once it had been raided? He wouldn’t expect an enemy to return to a raided stronghold…why should they? “I can find out. I’m not that far from there. Give me thirty minutes to scout the place.” He clicked his phone shut and jogged to the truck.

As he slipped behind the wheel and started the big engine, he felt a smile curving the corners of his mouth. Wouldn’t they be shocked to know that they had set up again in the exact same spot? He chuckled to himself as he pulled away from the storage rental units.