The Fabled (10 page)

Roman ignored the other Vamp. “I’ll handle
her, Carly,” he said to the Djinn before turning back to me. “What
are you doing here, Sunshine?”

I caught Carly’s attention before she left.
“Don’t go far. My partner will be questioning you and I expect you
to be more cooperative this time.”

She narrowed her eyes at me and I raised a
brow. If she wanted to tussle I was up for it. There is a lot I can
do with some Djinn magic. Instead of trying anything she turned and
left.

Roman looked irritated. “You didn’t answer my
question.”

“I’ve found six dead Vamps over the last
three weeks and three more have disappeared within the last two. Do
you know the one thing the missing Vamps have in common?”

“I’m sure it has something to do with someone
I know or else you wouldn’t be here.”

“You’re damned straight. They all either
frequented this club or were last seen here. Do you know anything
about this?”

He shook his head. “No. But I am interested
to know why. If someone is killing my patrons, it is my
responsibility to find out who it is and stop them.”

“Wrong. That would be my job.”

He smiled instead of arguing. “Perhaps we
should continue this conversation in my office. There could be
someone listening.”

I looked around to see the VIP section
practically deserted but it wasn’t worth arguing about.

“Whatever makes you more comfortable.”

He slid out of the booth and motioned for me
to precede him. As I stood up I saw Tristan enter VIP by flashing
his badge to the bouncer and pointing in my direction. The bouncer
looked at me and Roman then opened the rope for Tristan.

“Seems everyone’s in as good a mood as they
were last night.” He looked from me to Roman then back.

“Tristan this is Roman Alexander, the club
owner. Roman, Tristan Harris, my partner. Tristan, I’ve already met
the head of security and she’s waiting for you to question her.”
Harris was Tristan’s name when I found him and I intentionally kept
all of his legal documents with that name so no one knew of our
relation.

“Alright.” Tristan gave Roman the once over
and his face said he found him lacking. He turned back to me. “Are
you going to be okay?”

Did he know about mine and Roman’s past or
was he just reading the animosity between us? I wouldn’t put it
past Lucian to have told him.

“I’ll be fine. Don’t take any crap from that
Djinn. This is about missing people not a pissing contest.” I shot
Roman a look and saw he was watching the exchange between me and
Tristan closely. He finally met my eyes and realized what I was
getting at.

“You’ll have no problems from Carly. She has
been advised to fully cooperate with you.”

“It’s about damned time.” He looked at me
again before leaving to find the Djinn.

“You and your partner seem close.”

“We are.” Our relationship was none of his
business.

“How long has he been your partner?”

“About six months or so. You were going to
tell me what you know in your office?”

“I believe I said we would discuss the
details of your investigation.”

“You say tomato I say you’re going to tell me
everything you know.”

“I think that’s quite a difference but, after
you.” Again he motioned me toward the stairs.

I led the way up and found they ended into a
door. Roman pulled out a set of keys and slid past me to unlock
it.

“What, no laser eye scan?”

“I prefer more traditional methods.”

“I’m sure you do.”

He raised a brow as he opened the door and
motioned me inside. I walked into the room and found it was set up
as more of a sitting room than a standard business office. There
was a desk at one end of the room with a couple of chairs in front
of it but the majority of the room was filled with a couple of
couches facing each other with a large ottoman in between and
tables on each end. There was even a fireplace along one wall that
was obviously gas. Apparently he liked to mix business with
pleasure. This was probably where he brought his nightly conquest
to feed from and fuck. Not my business. I would find out what
information he could give me then I would take my leave. I did
decide to stand instead of sit. Who knows what’s on those
couches.

“Would you like something to drink?” He
walked over to a small bar in the corner.

“No thanks.”

“Don’t trust me?”

“Should I?”

“Probably not.”

“That’s what I thought.”

He came over and handed me a drink. “But I
assure you I’m finished adding things to your drinks.”

“Technically it was K that added it at your
request.”

He smiled. “I’m the only one here now.”

He took a step closer. I stepped back and
took a small sip of my drink. He sat on one of the couches and
patted the seat next to it.

“Have a seat, Sunshine. We’ll discuss this
nasty business that brought you back into my life.”

“I’ll just stand thanks. Why don’t you tell
me what you know about the disappearances and don’t try to convince
me that you know nothing. Augustus and I already played that game.
It ended with neither of us happy.”

“Games with Augustus seldom do.”

It didn’t surprise me that they weren’t
BFF’s. They both liked to be in charge too much.

I just stood there looking at him to let him
know I wasn’t going to ask about what he knew again. He would
either tell me or I would leave and try to force it out of someone
else. I knew Roman too well to think I could force anything out of
him that he didn’t want me to know. He sat there looking back at me
for a minute before patting the couch again.

“Come. Sit and I will tell you all that I
know in regards to these missing Vampere.”

I raised a brow but walked around and had a
seat on the couch facing the one he was sitting on. I wasn’t stupid
after all and there was always a pull toward Roman in which he
played to his benefit perfectly. I certainly don’t want to fall
into that pit again.

Once I was seated he huffed out air and again
just looked at me. “Do you love him?”

I didn’t bother to ask who he was talking
about. There was only one man he could be talking about. So he had
guessed Tristan was my lover. I’m sure the thought that he was my
son never crossed his mind. I could set him straight on the issue
but it seems it might play more to my advantage if he continues
believing I’m taken. Maybe then I can get through this
investigation without having my heart mutilated.

“Yes, I love him.” He would be able to tell
that I wasn’t lying so I left it at that.

He nodded slowly. “I see.” He was silent for
a couple of seconds before he seemed to shake his thoughts off.
“I’m happy for you then. Now, on to this business of missing
Vampere. I don’t really know what information I have that might
help you. Of course I heard about them right after their confirmed
disappearance. I also looked into it and found that each of them
had been at the club before going missing. In two of the cases it
was determined that the club was the last place they were seen. I
have hired extra security to canvas the exterior of the club and a
two block radius around it. No one has noted anything unusual
though.”

“Did you hire the detail after,” I looked at
my notes on my phone. “Craig Henderson disappeared five days
ago?”

“Yes, I believe no one else has went missing
since. I don’t know if that is because of my added security or
because of other factors.”

“You haven’t heard anything through your
other connections about who could be doing this?”

“My other connections?”

“You know, your ‘business partners’.”

He knew I was referring to the Vamp he was
speaking to when I got here.

“I have not heard anything from them either.
It is likely that whoever is doing this has picked my establishment
simply because it is a popular hangout for our species.”

“Possibly. Or it’s also possible that you’ve
pissed of the wrong person and they’re picking off your customers
because of it.”

He laughed. “I don’t believe that is the
case.”

I rolled my eyes. “Either way the council
would like to know any information you might learn in regards to
these disappearances as soon as you hear it.”

I stood up and sat my drink on the coffee
table.

“How will I contact you?”

“I’m sure you know the number to the local
council office. You can leave a message and it will get to me or
one of my colleagues.”

“You mean your partner.”

“Yes, he is working this case with me so the
information will go to him too.”

Roman nodded. “I will be sure to contact you
if I receive any new information.”

“See that you do. Also, warn your Djinn that
there will likely be agents from the council watching the club
until this is solved. I wouldn’t want her giving them as hard of a
time as she did Tristan.”

“No, we certainly wouldn’t want that.”

I ignored his sarcasm and walked toward the
door. He was there opening it before me and I continued to ignore
him as I walked through.

Once on the main floor I made a B line for
Tristan who was talking with the bartender.

“You ready?” I asked him.

I could see that Roman was talking with the
Djinn but watching us.

“Yeah, no one gave me anything other than
they knew the victims as regulars.”

“That’s about what I got too. Fortunately,
Mr. Alexander has decided to be fully cooperative with the
council’s investigation from now on.”

“That’s something I guess.”

“Yep. Let’s go.”

“I’m right behind you.” Tristan turned to
look at Roman and Carly before he left. The look on his face said
he still didn’t care for the Vamp. I couldn’t say I blamed him.

“
Boys will be boys”

I was so warm and comfortable wrapped in my
blanket but there was an insistent ringing sound. I came awake and
listened. It was my cell ringing. I looked at the bedside table and
the alarm clock there as I reached for my phone. Who would be
calling me at three-thirty in the morning? It wasn’t Lucian because
he has his own ringtone set. I swear if this is someone drunk
calling the wrong number their night just went downhill. The phone
stopped ringing before I could answer but immediately started
ringing again.

“Yeah,” I answered.

“There has been another Vampere taken.”

“Who is…Roman? How did you get my personal
number? You know what, never mind. How do you know one was
taken?”

“One of my security details spotted a Vamp
being stuffed into the back of a van.”

“How did they know it was a Vamp?”

He sighed. “He saw the same guy leave the
club just minutes earlier.”

“And he didn’t think to stop them or at the
least to follow them?”

“He was too far away to stop them. He tried
to follow but he said they disappeared.”

“They disappeared? Wow that sounds
plausible.”

“I wouldn’t know because I wasn’t there,
Sunshine. I’ve closed the club early and made sure everyone left in
groups.”

“How far from the club was the Vamp
taken?”

“Six blocks.”

“Alright. I need to meet with your security
and scan the area. Text me the approximate address and I’ll meet
them there in twenty.”

“Very well.” He hung up.

Great. Now, not only is there another missing
Vamp and a definite link to Roman’s club, he thought he could just
call me whenever he felt like it.

Tristan met me at the park with the portal we
would use. He got into my car and I could instantly tell he was
ticked.

“Don’t tell me I made you kick another woman
out of your bed.”

“No mother. Nothing like that. Surprisingly
enough I was alone.”

“What has got you so pissy then?”

“It’s nothing. Let’s just focus on the
case.”

“Alright. What are your thoughts?”

He shrugged. “It’s possible the Vamp pissed
someone off so their picking off his patrons as retaliation.”

“So you think it’s possible these
disappearances aren’t related to the frozen Vamps we found?”

“It’s possible. I’ll admit the timing is
really close but just because Vamp bodies are showing up in Dallas
and Vamps are going missing in Fort Worth it doesn’t mean they are
related.”

“That’s true.” I thought about it for a
minute. “My gut tells me the two are connected but we’ll keep open
the possibility that these could be two separate cases. If that is
the case, then you are right. It’s most likely someone Roman pissed
off is getting back at him any way they can.”

“Roman? I didn’t realize you were so friendly
with the Vamp.”

“Would you prefer I refer to him as Mr.
Alexander? I don’t think a club owner that most likely deals in the
unsavory side of Forth Worth deserves to be called by his surname.
I guess I could always call him Dr. Alexander.”

“Why would you call him that?”

“Oh, uh, he has a medical degree.” Several
actually.

“Did you look him up because of this
case?”

“Didn’t you?” When too much information is on
the line turn the question around. Works every time.

“Yeah.”

“Then you know why I said I could call him
doctor.”

“What else do you know about him? I mean the
stuff that isn’t public knowledge.”

“Not much. I know he’s owned Eternal Darkness
for about eight years and it’s been the hottest nightclub in FW
since it opened. It mostly caters to the Fabled but allows Humans
to keep things interesting. The ironic thing is I’ve checked all
police records associated with the club and none of them have
involved any Fabled and Human indiscretions.”

“So you think Alexander is running a tight
ship?”

I shrugged. “It’s probably the Djinn.”