Night Feast (21 page)

Cora shuddered 'that's some back story' she thought, and then the painting came into full view on the television screen.  There was no mistaking the hair, or the beautiful eyes as Cora gazed at the image of Isobel Beauchamp.  She had the same long and elegant neck, and her lips had the same fullness and curved into the same smile..  Cora was shocked she could not believe what she saw before her.  The late Isobel Beauchamp was identical to Lia, her son's girlfriend.  She heard the front door slam shut as Jay came back into the house humming softly, six hours later.  He came into the living room and hugged her. He asked her what she is watching, expecting her to say 'Frasier' or 'Desperate Housewives.'  Cora had been rewinding the recording and watching it over and over again.

''Oh it's a very interesting programme darling, it appears that they've recovered an oil painting that was stolen in the eighteen hundreds, it's worth a couple of million dollars.''

''Cool.''  Jay wasn't very interested in art, he didn't even glance at the television as she spoke.

''Jay did you have a good time?''

''Yeah, yeah it was great'' said Jay smiling inwardly as he remembered Lia's hands all over his body.

''What's Lia's surname do you know?''

''Yeah, she's got one of those double barrel names,  her mom's English and her dad's Russian.  It's Beauchamp-Malenkov.''

''Really are you serious?''

''Yeah what's wrong with that?''

''Look at this.''  Cora rewound the whole programme, and Jay sat and watched it with her.  He too was amazed by Lia's resemblance to Isobel Beauchamp's painting, and the fact that they had the same name. As he looked at the well captured lips on the canvass, he thought that they could easily be the ones that he had so recently kissed with an unbridled passion. They decided that it was very possible that the young society woman was an ancestor.  Jay said that he would ask Lia if she knew anything about it the next time he saw her.  He said goodnight to Cora, and went upstairs to get ready for bed . He felt a little bit thrown by the painting, the resemblance was uncanny, and then he suddenly remembered that he had not asked Lia where she was, on the night that he had been arrested.  However he put all his questions to the back of his mind, and fell asleep with the delicious thoughts of the evening that they had just spent together.

Elena Hudson's bereaved parents had decided to take their annual visit to California, a little earlier this year.  Since the untimely death of their youngest daughter, they had felt themselves at a great loss.  They had carried on running their small hardware business, so during the day it had been easy to keep themselves busy.  However the loss of joint control over Elena's actions had left a void in their lives, that they just could not seem to fill.  They had not allowed her older sister to come to her funeral.  The tragic events had not softened their hearts towards the only daughter that they had left.  Stephanie was still a disgrace, an embarrassment.  Despite the fact that she was a happily married, faithful wife and mother who lived a very respectable life.  She had reached out to them many times, and invited them to come and meet her family in California.  The Hudson's had always refused and had no intention of changing their minds.  They unfairly blamed her for her late sister's change in behaviour.  It was their opinion that Elena would have never developed a liking for parties and boys, if she had not been influenced by her older sibling's actions.  The police had found and returned Elena's purse to them, and they had been shocked by its contents.  It was true that it had contained the small Book of Psalms, that they had insisted she should carry with her at all times.  But they had also found eye shadow, mascara and lipstick which they had forbidden her from wearing.  The Hudson's had also noted that her handkerchief was nowhere to be seen. 

They sat together on their flight from Portland to California, and had no idea that their house was being broken into.  The intruders did not attempt try to wreck the house, but moved around quickly, until they had found the very thing that they came for. They went from room to room searching, until they found the white marble urn in the den, on a table next to a vase of red plastic roses. The thieves then picked up Elena's ashes and left the premises, leaving no trace that they had ever been there.

The news that Amberlee Robinson was back had spread around Claremont college like an uncontrollable forest fire.  The students stood in the long corridors, whispering, gossiping and speculating, about what had really happened after Amberlee had left the dance.  The kids who had asked the 'did you do it' questions, were now patting Jay Patterson on the back, and telling him that they always knew that he was innocent.  He met up with Kevin and Libby in the privately owned cafe, to celebrate his freedom with a soda.

''You the man!'' said Kevin, when he noticed his best friend approaching the table he was sharing with Libby.

''How are you feeling Jay?'' Libby jumped up and kissed him on the cheek.  She and Kevin had been so worried about him, especially as she knew of the lengths that Amberlee would go to, whenever the mood took her.  Jay smiled at his two buddies.  It was great to be back now that things had calmed down, and he was looking forward to his future with Lia.  Tori Martin sat alone in a corner of the cafe looking very shamefaced.  She had spoken to Amberlee since her return to Portland, who had assured her that she had not and would not reveal to anyone that Tori had planted the incriminating evidence in Jay's back garden.

Libby was chatting about her art project.  She was going to do a presentation on the famous European artists from the 19th century, and she was very excited about the prospect of doing the research for the subject.

''Hey'' she said to Jay suddenly.  ''Did you see that programme last night, the one about the stolen painting?''  she and Kevin had watched it at her house, with her parents, under their watchful eyes.

''Yeah dude did you see it? the dead chick in the painting looked just like your Lia''

''Yeah I saw it'' said Jay casually, ''I haven't spoken to Lia yet but it could be one of her ancestors, her mother is from a place called Surrey in the United Kingdom, but that picture would have been painted way before she was born,''

''Lia's mom could be like the great-great granddaughter or something, wow this is so exciting!'' exclaimed Libby.  She couldn't wait to see Lia again and talk about it.  She must have some idea of her historical connections, she certainly seemed very much of that type.  Libby noticed that Judi and Tori were sitting together and talking, Tori looked unusually morose.

''I'm just going over there to talk to Tori and Judi, see you later guys'' and she bounded over to their table.

''So'' Kevin punched Jay in the shoulder, ''how are things going with you and Lia?''

''What do you want to know Kev?'' answered Jay playfully.  He could see that Kevin was glad that they were alone, he really wanted to talk about stuff.

''Hey come on buddy, don't be shy, you can tell me.''

The smile that had slowly spread all over Jay's beautiful face told Kevin everything that he wanted to know.

The cafe became suddenly very quiet.  Kevin and Jay glanced around to see that all the eating, drinking and talking had stopped, and that everyone was looking in the same direction.  Both boys followed the unified gaze of their fellow students to the entrance, and immediately understood why the hub of social activity had ceased.  Amberlee Robinson was slowly coming into the cafe. Her eyes were glued to the ground as she walked towards the serving counter, and ordered a drink from the stone faced woman behind it.  She managed to avoid her look of blatant disapproval, before she took her drink and went to sit at an empty table.  Amberlee had come into Claremont to empty her locker.  She hadn't forgotten that Lia had said that she must let everyone know that she was alive.  Her locker had been a perfect excuse to come to the college, especially as her mother had tried to persuade her not go.  Amberlee wasn't looking forward to going home and telling her mother that she was leaving for good, and going to live with her father.  She knew that Alexis would try to talk her out of it, but she was going to take a flight to Philadelphia tonight, and she would never again return to Portland.  However there was something that she felt she had to do before she left.  She rose from her chair, painfully aware that everyone was still watching her, and went over to where Jay was sitting with Kevin.  He was outraged and tried to tell her to go but Jay, when she said that she needed to talk to him, wanted to hear her out.  She was grateful when Kevin left them, to go and sit with Libby because what she had to say were for Jay's ears only.

''I'm sorry for what I did'' she said honestly, ''I was just so hurt by the way that you treated me and everything just got out of hand.''

''But Amberlee we wasn't together, we were never going to be together, surely you must have known that'' Jay replied, he could feel the familiar exasperation welling up inside him.

''But you were my date Jay, and if you wasn't interested in me you could have at least waited until the date was finished before you started pashing someone else.''

Jay felt a little ashamed. He hadn't looked at the situation from her point of view at all.

''Okay, I'm sorry too, I admit I behaved like a jerk, let's just forget about it now.''

''There's something else that I need to talk to you about'' Amberlee took a deep breath, she looked a little afraid and she lowered her voice.

''That girl, the one you were with, how much do you know about her?'

''I know enough, what's it to you?''

''Did you know that she came to see me at my dad's house in Philadelphia, did you know that she tricked him into letting her into the house as he was leaving for work, did you know that she waited for an hour or so downstairs without me knowing she was there, to make sure that I was asleep before she came into my bedroom and slapped my face and threatened  me into coming back here?  I'm not making any of this up Jay, it all really happened and it was really scary.  You need to be careful because there's something not right about her, I'm telling you, there's something not right.''

Chapter T
en

After their love making they had lay wrapped in each other's arms, and slept for a couple of hours.  Jay and then risen and left to take the car back to his mother.  Lia had taken this opportunity to go back through the portal and see her family.  She changed back into her 19th century clothes, and returned to her family home.  While they still slept she was wide awake and she lay on her bed, feeling very contented and happy.  The intimacy that she'd shared with Jay had been everything that she'd dreamed of, and more.  However she was going to continue to keep her lover a secret, until she had given him his own vampire status.  She looked at her hand where she had bitten it to protect him.  It was already almost healed, and she had been touched at how he had kissed it to make her feel better.  She recalled how she'd felt, when he had covered her body with kisses, and a moan escaped her lips.

''Lia?''

''Oh good morning mommy.'' Lia hadn't realised that the time had passed so quickly.  She pretended to yawn, but Arabella could see that she was lying on her bed in a day dress.

''Why are you wearing your dress, you didn't sleep in it did you'' said Arabella, raising her brow disapprovingly.

Lia had to think fast, she had forgotten to change into her nightdress, if she were to succeed in covering her tracks she had to be more careful.

''Oh I woke up and just went for a walk in the grounds.'' she said quickly.  She felt relieved to see that her mother seemed to have accepted her lie.

Arabella went back to the master bedroom to get dressed, and Lia went downstairs where she sat and chatted with her twin.

''Lia's up to something darling, I can sense it'' said Arabella to Valentin.

''I know and I intend to find out what it is'' he replied.  There was a strong note of  determination in his voice.  He had known that his daughter was being very secretive, his only comfort was that she seemed very happy.  Valentin thought that she may have been disobeying him, by hunting in the places that he had prohibited.

''But when Valentin, when could she have done that?  We are almost always together and I feel pretty sure that she didn't leave the house when we went out hunting with Kathrin yesterday.''

''But before I came to bed last night I looked out of the window and I saw Lia leaving the house and going in the direction of the forest.  I think that she will do the same thing tonight, but this time we will be ready for her.''  Valentin then told Arabella of his plan.

''We must behave as normal today, and when we go to bed we must pretend to be asleep.  We must listen for our darling daughter, if and when she decides to leave the house.  As our bedroom window is facing in the direction of the forest, we, when we hear pretty little footsteps going down the stairs, will leave by the window and get to the forest before her.''

''That sounds like a good plan darling.  Should we let Kathrin in on it?'' asked Arabella.

''No, let's keep Kathrin in the dark for now, until we find out what exactly is going on.''

Arabella agreed. ''We don't have to go downstairs just yet do we darling?'' she said and she ran her hand across his cheek.

The handsome vampire smiled and pulled her towards him.  ''No I'm happy to stay in here for a while, what do you have in mind?''