Rose of Jericho (Lilith Adams Series Book 2) (11 page)

Cohen stepped back into the room and just stopped. His eyes wandered from their guest to Lilith, then to Chance and back to Luminita. Subconsciously, he licked at his lips and swallowed the lump in his throat. “I’m sorry. I should have mentioned it…”

The graceful woman turned in her chair and gestured at Cohen. Lilith was completely lost, but Andrew seemed to understand it perfectly. He handed Lilith the small blue thermos in his hands and reached into his suit jacket. He pulled out the little jamming device, switched it on and placed it in the center of the coffee table again.

Lilith twisted the cap on the thermos and sniffed at its contents. Warm, fresh blood. Her mouth actually watered and it disturbed her as it always did. She was only 27 years old and she had never really been fond of this aspect of her life. It was just a necessity to her, like taking a daily vitamin, a fact of life. She definitely wasn’t the Hollywood vampire that drooled over the throbbing external jugular of every random person that happened to have their neck exposed.

“I don’t suppose that guard has anything else out there. Like maybe a hamburger and fries?” Lilith was grateful to Chance for the distraction. Once he had everyone’s attention, she lifted the thermos and took a healthy gulp that warmed her all the way down to her toes. Her headache eased away immediately and she felt like she could breathe a little deeper. She hadn’t realized just how much she needed blood until that moment. Chance was right. She hadn’t been that far away from snapping. Any longer and she would have looked just like Spencer that night in Madisonville, like a jumper on a ledge.

“My apologies, Mr. …?” Luminita paused as if she was unsure how to pronounce his name.

“Deveraux, though you can just call me Chance if that is easier.” He smiled politely at her and pushed the sleeves of his charcoal grey shirt up his forearms. He definitely wasn’t comfortable in the stuffy shirt and tie, even if it did make him look like something off the pages of GQ magazine.

“Ah, Chance. Yes, thank you. I’m sorry. We have been poor hosts.” Her smile was sweet and friendly. It was almost enough to make a person forget how cruel and ruthless Farren was, but not quite. Lilith had no illusions that they were anything but prisoners. “Food is on the way as we speak.”

The woman returned her attention to Cohen. “Andrew. Please, sit.” She smiled softly and gestured to the vacant seat on the couch next to Chance. Cohen fixed a nervous smile on his face and sat down slowly on the edge of the seat. Apparently, he wasn’t exactly thrilled about cozying up to Chance. Big surprise there. “I understand now why you were so…anxious about Farren. If he had seen what I just saw…”

Cohen hung his head low and sighed. “I should have told you, but I couldn’t. It wasn’t safe. I didn’t know that giving them my blood would produce these…side effects.” He looked up at the delicate woman with complete seriousness on his almost handsome face. “Honestly, even if I’d known, I still would have done it. We need her.”

“Andrew, stop. I know you would not risk this with no good reason. You do not need to defend yourself or Ms. Adams. These… side effects if they are
pentru totdeauna
…what is the English word? Permanent?...
this could be serious problem. If they can feed, even Chance…”

“Luminita. We can cross that bridge when we come to it.” Cohen cut her off quickly, leaving Lilith wondering why. What was it that he didn’t want them to know? Just thinking of the possibilities made her skin itch and apparently, she wasn’t the only one.

“Shut it, Cohen. What does ‘
even Chance’
mean? What about me?” He looked directly at Luminita. She considered Chance very carefully for a moment that seemed to stretch on forever.

“Look, I don’t want to be ungrateful, but we are sitting right here. Please, don’t talk about us like we aren’t.” Lilith shot her sharp look at Cohen before turning her calm attention to the petite woman with all the power. “Luminita, if there is something we should know, you need to tell us. This isn’t Cohen’s call, it’s ours.”

“No, it is mine. I’m afraid Andrew is right. There is no point getting hopes up or putting you in panic. The current situation is too… serious for that. We can talk on these things later.”

Lilith began to protest again, but Luminita raised her hand. “I understand. I do.” She leaned forward in the chair, crossing her delicate wrists over her knees. There was a sincere weight in her Mediterranean blue eyes as she looked at Lilith.

“I give my promise. Once matters at hand are done, I will answer all questions about your…condition. This is a great favor and I want you to think on it carefully. There is not any of my kind that would offer this. Not even Cohen knows things I know.” Lilith was actually getting used to Luminita’s very thick accent, filling the gaps in her language automatically. What she was really saying was worrisome. How could Lilith’s cooperation be this valuable?

“And just why are you willing to make this deal? If Cohen is right and Farren would outright kill us for these side effects, then why are you so calmly willing to not only overlook it but to actually help?” Lilith was so overwhelmed and frazzled that she hadn’t even thought to question the woman’s motives before. Perhaps it was her endearing demeanor or Cohen’s introduction as a friend. Then again, maybe Lilith was just losing her edge.

Luminita flashed an understanding smile that made her seem completely trustworthy. For the first time, Lilith was reminded that Luminita and Cohen were two of a kind. Perhaps the petite woman was just better at playing the friendly role than Cohen was.

“Your …mistrust is expected. If I were in your shoe I would question  helping hand as well. I will not lie to you. Cohen is correct. We need you. It is simple as that. I could threaten you with death and worse as Farren has, but I find people are more… motivated when there is agreement.”

Lilith sat back and seriously thought about what Luminita was offering and why. It truly seemed that Ms. Dragomir was simply willing to do whatever it took to get what she wanted. Now they just needed to find out what that was. “You said before that there were two reasons you are here…”

“Ah, yes.” A small quiver of a smile tugged at the petite woman’s lips. She seemed happy that Chance and Lilith were satisfied with her explanation and willing to work together. There didn’t seem to be any ill intent or devious master plan behind that small smile. Every micro-expression bolstered the woman’s credibility but the fact that she was a demon like Cohen still nagged at the back of her mind.

“I convinced council to allow me to act as advocate. I am here to give their instructions.” Her delicate hands ran over her edgy black jacket, smoothing it as if she was a dignitary on official business and in a way, that’s exactly what she was.

Every person on the couch seemed to breathe a sigh of relief for similar reasons. Luminita delivering their message definitely seemed like a positive. No doubt they would have sent someone else if the verdict was instant death. Lilith was just glad that they weren’t going to be dragged in front of the whole council. She could go her whole life without seeing Farren again and be perfectly happy with that. Not to mention that it would be next to impossible to hide Lilith and Chance’s new…abilities in an entire room full of demons.

“There has been an…” Luminita paused as if trying to remember unfamiliar words in a very exact way. “…unexpected development and we find we are in need of someone with your talents and knowledge, Lilith.”

“My talents?”

“Yes, as a…” Another pause as she formed the strange words in her tiny mouth. “…forensic examiner. There has been a rather… ill-timed theft at a Museum in New Haven, Connecticut. Bodies have been found which local police believe to be connected to the robbery. They were killed in rather… unusual manners.” Something in her expression gave Lilith the feeling that unusual was one hell of an understatement. “They must have been hired since the object was not found. We need what they stole.”

“New Haven? The Yale Museum?” Chance definitely had a mind for details. It shouldn’t have surprised her, but he always found ways to do exactly that.

This whole side of ‘Chance the Intellectual’ was completely new to her. All the years they had known each other, they’d never shared an intellectual debate. It had always been fun banter and witty jokes about their personal lives. Perhaps Chance’s role as the head of Gregor’s security team had always labeled him as the classic jock in her book. Seeing Chance as a more sophisticated and complete person was both pleasantly surprising and a little jarring.

“The book was stolen?” Cohen definitely wasn’t faking his surprise. Great. So now they not only had to track down the cipher and the missing pages, but now they had to find the damn book. Not to mention they still needed some leverage to keep them alive.

“Wait. That book has been fully photographed. There are books with every page published. Why do you need the book itself?” Chance’s point was valid but Luminita’s smile seemed slightly patronizing. It was the first time that Luminita rubbed her the wrong way. Of course Lilith had never really gotten along with authority figures, especially condescending ones.

“Despite public claims, not all pages have been photographed and… Alchemists have secret ways. They hide things that cannot be seen from photographs. And yes, Cohen, it was stolen.”

Luminita turned her attention back to Lilith. “I will be your contact for this. Thankfully, the council is too conflicted with what to do with the book to let anyone else take lead. If you find the book and the cipher that Cohen searched for, I may be able to speak on your behalf. I am only sorry that I could not do same for your father.”

Lilith’s eyes misted at her words and the seemingly genuine sorrow and anger in Luminita’s face. She took a deep gulp of the warm blood, taking a moment that she desperately needed to keep from crying. After a steadying breath, she smiled weakly at their guest. “Thank you for the sentiment.”

“It is no mere sentiment, Ms. Adams. I opposed verdict of execution. I alone knew Ashcroft’s crimes from speaking with Andrew. When your father’s crimes came to light, I shared what I knew with the council, but they… refuse to listen. Sir Orrick was a
scârbă
, an uh…abomination and his son was a…monster. Mr. Adams could have been a strong ally. I am only one and most council members are…blood thirsty.” The anger in her heavily accented words was palpable and thoroughly convincing.

Lilith nodded as she fought back her tears. At least there was one person that saw Ashcroft and his family for what they were. Luminita might be the only one on the council that considered Clyde’s feeding rituals of raping and killing young girls to be out of the ordinary. That thought alone sent chills down her spine. Then a thought occurred to her that snapped her mind into clear focus. “How did they come to light?”

“That I do not know. I am sorry. Farren brought charges, and Helton shared information as well as myself, but there were several on council that did not seem… surprised. Sources were not named.”

“Helton?” Cohen finally spoke up, his almost handsome face wrinkled in confusion and dread. “What information did he have?”

Luminita rubbed at her hands, hesitating, as her focus turned to Andrew. It was the first time Lilith truly felt suspicious of her behavior. “He shared information about Ashcroft, his…” She wore that same frustrated look that she’d had before when trying to think of an English word. “…biology? How he was different from us. He knew nothing of Mr. Adams. That came from Farren.”

“But how? How could he know? How could either of them?” Lilith stammered through the words, completely bewildered.

Luminita sighed softly, her ocean blue eyes brimming with sympathy. “I do not know. Farren and Helton…neither like to share. Perhaps you will learn more through your…studies, no, your…investigation.” She let silence fill the room, giving them all time to absorb her answers, before she moved on. “I have plane tickets in your names. Your flight leaves at 10 am. Gives you an hour to eat and rest before escort to the airport…”

“What about the jet?”

“Andrew, law officials do not take private jet to a crime scene.” The look she gave him was a mixture of impatience for having to state the obvious and sympathy for his frustration. She wasn’t wrong. If the local police decided to check them out, flying in on a private jet would be a glaring red flag.

“A rental car will be waiting. A credit card for expenses and phone to contact me with progress. You receive no other resources. Your personal phones and computers are not in your things. It would be…unwise to try and get them. I’m sure that you can get equipment you need from the local police. They will be awaiting you at the morgue. As for weapons, a standard police issue revolver will be waiting for Cohen and Lilith in the rental when you arrive.”

“How did you explain a Detective from Tennessee, a Forensic Examiner from New York City and a civilian? You do realize they will be under no obligation to even let us examine the bodies, right? We have absolutely no jurisdiction.” This was at least a subject Lilith knew something about. It gave her something familiar and concrete to focus on.

Luminita smiled at the question like a proud teacher. “Yes. New Haven has no major crime division. As far as local police know, you three were handpicked by FBI. Since this case will most certainly cross state lines, and involves high level of violence they need specialist. Also the robbery of priceless artifact needs specialist as well. There will be much pressure from the community for a fast…recovery of the book, so locals were very happy to hand the…consequences of failing to others.”