Matters of the Blood Page 23

  No inflection, no emotion colored his answer. I couldn't tell what he was feeling. Maybe the absence of sentiment that comes from seeing too much death and evil up close, of having to forget. Adam had said that he and Niko had been companions, partners for a long time. They'd probably experienced the war together, too.

  "Does Boris say he knows Niko?” Adam asked me.

  "I don't know,” I said, not taking my eyes off the pair next to us. “Boris keeps trying to warn me about someone here he recognized from the camps. Someone who was talking to Marty."

  "You think this person had something to do with your cousin's death?"

  "Death?” The question came from Andrea.

  "Yeah, as in drained of blood, fang marks on his neck. Left on his own embalming table like one of his own clients."

  "I do not kill humans,” Niko said, staring steadily at me. “We do not kill humans. Not even when we feed from them."

  I stared back at him, meeting his gaze. He didn't flinch or look away. How could I tell if he was telling the truth? He was a vampire of power, and could probably tell me bald-faced that he was directly descended from Vlad Tepes and I'd have to believe him. Of course, he might just be.

  I scooted even closer to Adam. I wanted to sit nearer, to touch him, a little for reassurance, a little to re-establish the connection we'd had before. A small thrill of energy ran up my arm as I touched his hand. I glanced at his face, and he smiled, but the emotion didn't reach his eyes. Instead, a deep sadness welled up behind the clear sea-green, tingeing them with gray.

  I started to say something to him, ask him what was wrong, but Andrea's voice broke in.

  "Your cousin was the undertaker?” She sounded surprised.

  "What do you know?” Adam fixed his gaze on Andrea.

  She glanced at Niko, then looked back at Adam. I could have sworn I saw a flash of defiance instantly replaced by the same neutral look that she'd had earlier.

  "I saw him,” she said. “He was here, talking to John."

  "When?” I asked.

  She shrugged. “A week, two weeks ago. Before the security gate began working. Before most of us were here. I'm not sure. Our nights tend to blend together."

  I looked over at Adam, who shook his head in a small gesture. “John is our day manager and human,” he said. “He's been with us for more than twenty years, but he's only in his late forties."

  I slumped in my seat. “So he couldn't be the one Boris was talking about. Too young and too human."

  "Yes, John would be too young,” Adam said. “But not the rest of us.” He looked over at Niko and Andrea, his face set in grim lines. “I'll talk to John later, but there must be someone else here, someone who knew Boris, who conspired with the undertaker. We need to find out who was in residence when Marty came."

  "I'm on it, Adam, but conspired how, and for what? What would we need from an undertaker?” Andrea spoke with distaste, as if the thought of a mortician was beneath her. Guess that crossed her off my list of potential Marty mates.

  I answered what was probably a rhetorical question. “Coffins?” Three pairs of eyes turned and looked at me. I shrugged. “Well?"

  I hadn't really meant it, but if there was one thing I knew about my cousin, he wouldn't have stopped at poaching animals.

  Adam smiled and kissed my hair. “We don't buy retail, my sweet. Besides, I prefer a nice canopy bed with curtains and a Sealy Posturepedic. Infinitely more comfortable."

  Niko and Andrea weren't quite smiling. I got the feeling I'd definitely committed a faux pas. Well, sue me. How the hell was I supposed to know?

  "Fine, but my cousin was getting paid by someone here for something. Plus he was obviously someone's dinner, at least once. You people are the only vampires in the area, so, hello, get a clue? I don't give a crap about your politics or, sorry Adam, about whether or not someone's hunting your game and breaking laws, or even if Boris Nagy is just having hallucinations or there really is a former Nazi at the ranch. All I really want to know is if Marty was actually murdered by the Albrights or if he convinced some bloodsucker to drain him, planning to come back in three days."

  I stood up, frustrated by all the talk. I'd been willing to listen, to find out the lay of the land, so to speak, but now that the cards were on the table, it was time for someone to shut up and start dealing.

  "Nazi?” “She's right."

  Adam and Niko spoke over each other. Adam looked at his wildlife manager and nodded. “You first. Why is Keira right?"

  "I was coming to tell you,” he said to Adam, his voice quieter than before, the cocky attitude gone. “But the sheriff showed up just then."

  "Tell me what?” The danger was back in Adam's voice.

  "I found out the two humans, the Albrights, were collecting money from someone here at the ranch."

  Carlton was right after all.

  "How?"

  Niko stood, shaking off Andrea's hand. “After we saw them the other evening, when Andrea dropped you off at the funeral home, I followed them to find out where they lived. This morning, I broke into their apartment just before dawn. No one was there, but I found a couple of envelopes with cash still stuffed inside. Our envelopes."

  Adam rose and faced Niko. “What else did you find?"

  The redhead shrugged. “A couple of hunting knives, some guns and too much beer. The knives had blood and hair on them, from deer. The place was a pigsty, spoiled food, pizza boxes, piles of filthy clothes reeking of animal and human blood."

  "Human blood?” I asked, immediately thinking of Marty.

  "No large amounts,” Niko answered. “Just spots, like if you cut yourself and wiped it off on your shirt."

  "Oh.” I slumped back into the couch.

  Adam perched on the arm of the couch, his hand stroking my hair. I was beginning to think this was a nervous habit of his, something tactile to do while his brain was ticking.

  "Cash, in envelopes from the Wild Moon,” he said. “We know they were poaching. Could one of my guests be hunting?"

  "Adam, that has to be it,” I said. “Hunt, feed, let the humans clean up after so you don't find out. Easy and safe and points the finger at the Albrights. Too damned easy if you ask me."

  "She's got a point.” Niko leaned against the wall, now relaxed; his natural arrogance again evident. “In fact, it's not a bad idea, Adam,” he said. “Leaving out the cleanup part, anyway. It's not like hunting humans. We could set up regular hunts of the native fauna, leave the exotics alone. Hunt the weaker ones. Kind of a supernatural natural selection."

  "No. We've barely begun to live without hunting. We can't go back now."

  "We have to do something, Adam,” Niko argued. “You asked me to manage the stock, to take care of the animals. A good wildlife manager knows when it's time to cull. It's getting to that point. We've been building the herds since you bought this place. Between the rescued exotics and the local whitetails, the deer population is going to overtake the natural resources soon. Do you want idiots hunting them from deer blinds? Or would you rather let them starve to death?"

  "How soon?"

  "Months, maybe by early next year."

  "Damn it, Niko, why didn't you tell me sooner?"

  "Because you weren't here,” Niko replied. “When you finally arrived, you were too damned busy working on your plan. You didn't want to talk about livestock."

  "I don't want to now,” Adam said. “That can wait. Right now, it's important we find out if Keira's cousin was killed by one of us."

  "But you will consider it?"

  Adam looked at Niko in silence, his gaze steady, as if weighing the consequences of what he was going to say. The seconds stretched into a long minute, then he finally spoke.

  "I'll consider it,” he said, quietly.

  Niko nodded, acquiescing the point.

  "Andrea, we need to make sure the ranch is secure. If the hunters are my guests, I need to know. If there's a rogue around, I need to know that as well. There could be someone h
ere out to undermine my power base."

  Andrea moved swiftly and was almost out the door before Adam stopped her.

  "Wait, have one of Evan's people go out to the Bexar County morgue and find out if Keira's cousin was turned. If he was, he'll know what to do. Have Evan come see me. Niko, make sure the lab is secure. I'm taking Keira to my place. When you get back, Andrea, assign someone to watch the house. Until we find out what's going on, Keira may be in danger."

  Andrea left without a sound, like a good little minion. Handy. Niko stood, much more slowly, and looked at both Adam and me, as if he wanted to say something, to make a parting remark. But instead, he said nothing, then turned and walked out the door.

  Adam came back over to me, and kneeled down in front of the couch.

  "Can they do that?"

  "Do what?"

  "Undermine your power base."

  "Yes. Our culture is fairly Darwinian, my love. Survival of the fittest and all that. Another reason I moved out here. No other vampire enclaves for hundreds of miles. I thought we had this place to ourselves."

  "You don't?"

  "I don't know. If your cousin was killed as some sort of payback to me..."

  "But he may not have been."

  "Exactly, and we won't know until we can find the answers. That's why I asked Andrea to get one of Evan's crew to go to San Antonio and get your cousin."

  "You just sent a barback to check out my cousin's body."

  He laughed. “Not a barback. Evan's not just a bartender, either. Think of him as Andrea's counterpart. He takes care of the Inn while she handles the outside security."

  "Has he been with you as long as the others?"

  "Not quite. He came to me after the war, escaped from Germany, changed his name, his apparent nationality. A little rough around the edges, but good with security. Makes a mean margarita, too."

  "So all those people in the bar, the blond brigade. Were they lackeys or guests?"

  "If you're talking about who I think you are, they're employees. Evan's security staff. Although I think I like ‘blond brigade’ better."

  "They don't like me,” I said, remembering Evan and the other man laughing.

  "I'm not so sure it's you they don't like,” he said.

  "You?"

  He nodded. “Quite possible. They were unhappy in Europe. Evan convinced them to come to the Wild Moon. They're fairly new to us and still adjusting to my way. Most of them prefer to take human companions. I've told them not to while they live here. They have to obey me, but they don't necessarily have to like me. I can tolerate a little dissension behind my back as long as my orders are followed."

  It was just like my own clan. I had to obey direct orders from Gigi, but I sure as hell didn't have to like it. A major reason I was living apart. If I wasn't in her immediate radar, I was fairly safe.

  "I don't know how long it's going to take to find out,” Adam said. “The drive to San Antonio is at least an hour and half, and there's the matter of getting inside and finding out. I imagine he'll call after that. If he has to wait long, it could be early morning."

  "Damn. Then he'll have to bunk down somewhere and you'll be asleep."

  "Not necessarily,” Adam said. “I prefer to sleep and need to sleep at least a few hours, but I can stay awake during daylight if I try. I just can't go out in direct sunlight."

  "You don't poof into dust or anything, then?"

  He took my hand in his and grinned again. “No. No dust, no glowing flames. But, if we're weak, it could be fatal. If we've fed and are strong, it's more like an extremely bad burn."

  Adam's tone sobered. “I promise you, Keira, I will find the answers. The ‘blond brigade’ do come in useful. If someone here killed your cousin, they'll help me find the truth. In the meantime, you will be safe."

  "I'd be safe at home,” I protested. “That's not why I agreed to stay here.” I leaned a little closer to him, concentrating on his face, letting my emotions and desire show in my eyes. “I think here could definitely be a lot more interesting."

  "Definitely,” he whispered.

  He closed the small space between us, his lips brushing mine, a soft feather touch, a promise of more to come.

  "Does that make it more interesting?"

  "I'm not sure."

  "Well, then, I think I can do better."

  And I let him.

  Eons later, we broke apart, mostly because I needed to breathe. This whole undead immortal thing could come in handy, except when the undead in question forgot that his partner was living and needed oxygen.

  He smiled at me, sheepish. “Sorry, got a bit carried away."

  I smiled back and traced my finger across his cheekbone. “No worries. I kind of was a little carried away myself."

  I rubbed my thumb over his lower lip, feeling the points of the fangs that were now fully extended. “You do distract me, love."

  He playfully bit at my thumb, grazing the skin slightly, then ran his lips across the palm of my hand. “I distract you, do I?"

  "What do you think?” I closed my eyes, letting myself get lost in the sensation.

  "And you called me ‘love'. Was that a distraction, too?"

  I blinked and started to pull my hand away, but he grabbed it and pressed it back to his mouth, placing a careful kiss on the palm. Shit. I had said that, hadn't I?

  "Does this mean you share my feelings, Keira Kelly?"

  His eyes blazed green fire at me. I knew I wasn't going to get away with anything. I'm not so sure I wanted to, but I wasn't quite ready to admit to love. I'd done it so easily in the past, and gotten so very burned.

  "I ... I don't know."

  "Liar,” he said, smiling. “You know."

  "It's just everything that's going on, Adam,” I protested. “Marty's death, Carlton, Boris flipping out..."

  Adam dropped my hand and rocked back on his heels, then rose to his feet. “Damn."

  "What's wrong?"

  "Distraction goes both ways. I asked Andrea to send Evan to me for a reason."

  "Why was that?"

  "The thing you said, about a Nazi..."

  "Yeah?"

  "I think I know who that might be."

  [Back to Table of Contents]

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  The phone rang. Adam answered, listened and began to scowl.

  "Find him. Bring him back here."

  Adam hung the phone up with a curse.

  "Bloody hell."

  "What's the problem?"

  "That was Andrea,” he said. “Evan's vanished."

  "Vanished, as in ‘poof'?"

  "As in cleared out, taken his car and hit the highway.” The anger in his voice frightened me. Adam ran his fingers through his hair and began to pace. “Andrea says she never found him to send someone to the morgue. One of the other guards says Evan didn't make patrol, so they just went on without him. She's at Evan's house now. Everything's gone."

  "But why—"

  Adam dropped into the chair next to me. “I think Evan was the man Boris was talking about."

  "The ... oh, shit, the Nazi?"

  "Yes. I told you he came to us from Germany."

  "You said he escaped,” I accused.

  "He did, Keira. But he was a member of the party, just like everyone else who wanted to survive. Eventually, it was too much for him. That's why he escaped. He and several of the others who came with him hid out in the north of England for many years, afraid to go back to Germany."

  "Even if that's true, then why disappear?” I asked. “What kind of threat could a poor old guy like Boris be to someone like Evan?"

  I didn't understand. It was possible that Boris had recognized Evan, but who knew? Just because Evan had been a Nazi, didn't mean he hadn't reformed. Some of my own relatives had to hide in plain sight as members of the party, as horrible as that was to contemplate now. They'd had no choice, maybe Evan hadn't either.

  Adam shrugged and leaned back in the chair, his tiredness evident. “I d
on't know. But Evan may well have been the one talking to your cousin. He's the only here that fits the description. That's why we need to find him and bring him back.” He sprang from the chair and headed toward the door. “Wait here, I'll only be a few minutes."

  I started to get up to go after him, but thought better of it. He needed to calm down and my following him wouldn't make it any better. If I guessed right, Adam was feeling guilty. He'd brought Evan here and Evan may have just been the one to kill Marty.

  After no more than a few minutes, the door opened. A thin middle-aged man stood there, holding a white paper bag. He was dressed in brown corduroys and a white button-down shirt, sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He didn't look like a waiter. But the bag he was holding was obviously food. I could smell it.

  "Were you bringing me food?” I was a little confused, since I'd eaten not that long ago, but my stomach growled in reaction to the delicious smells. Maybe Adam had gone to order us something to eat.

  The man gave me a sheepish grin and shook his head.

  "Sorry, actually this is for me and my wife. I was just looking for Mr. Walker. I'm John, the day manager.” His clothes might be working class, but his educated accent could have come from Oxford or somewhere just as plummy.

  "Oh, hello. Adam just stepped out, he'll be back in a few."

  I expected John to either leave or sit down, but he just stood there, his thin arms holding the bag of food. A lock of his graying brown hair fell into his eyes, as he shuffled his weight from one foot to the other. It was obvious he wanted to speak.

  "I'm sorry to hear about your cousin,” he finally said. “Niko told me what happened."

  "Thank you,” I said, wondering what he was getting at.

  "I saw him one day, you know. Late evening, really. Just before dusk. Your cousin, I mean. He came looking for the owner."

  So that was it.

  "Andrea said something about that,” I said.

  "Your cousin wished to leave information about pre-need funeral services. He was rather persistent.” John's homely face lit up with a grin. “I couldn't exactly explain why no one here needed them."