The Mourning Woods - 03 (10 page)

“As I said, I’ve been stressed. It slipped my mind.”

“Well, did you know we’re going to be having company, as in company that just so happens to use magic and wants me dead?”

“Yep, heard that too. Pity they’re going to be under a flag of truce, otherwise I’d say it’d be a good opportunity to make them disappear.” She said this last part conversationally, her eyes closing as Alfonzo continued to work her scalp. “Oh, and before you ask, yes I know that your roommates are coming too.”

“Boston knows about
that
?” I asked. Were the assholes spying on me now?

“No, but let’s face facts, they follow you
everywhere
. It’s like you live with two lost puppies. Speaking of which, remind Ed to bring his shotgun...just to be on the safe side.”

“I’ll remind him to bring a box of condoms and some penicillin too...
just to be on the safe side
.”

She sniffed at the dig. Some months back, Ed had asked Sally out. She had agreed, much to my surprise. They hadn’t gone on a second date, but I suspected that had a little to do with the fact that I completely freaked out upon learning of the first one. Since then, they had both asked about each other a few times, leading me to believe there was probably some unfinished business between them. Truth be told, I wasn’t jealous of them developing a relationship. Well OK, I wasn’t
that
jealous. Don’t get me wrong. If given the opportunity, I’d happily bang Sally. You just don’t say “no” to a piece of ass that fine. Nevertheless, I had my sights set elsewhere. I was more against their relationship out of fear for Ed. Sally is the femme fatale that
James Bond
has nightmares about. If the mood struck her, she could use Ed, break him, and then treat him like a
Happy Meal
without a second thought.

“Just make sure Tom leaves at least some of his stupidity at home,” she said, changing the subject away from Ed.

“As if that’s even possible,” I replied with a grin.

* * *

I found myself back at the loft on Saturday. Boston had informed Sally that preparations were nearly finished. Our “guest” would be arriving that night to fill us in on the details. As we were also informed that the information we were about to be imparted with was for our ears only (our? I guess knowledge of Sally as my silent partner wasn’t as silent as I thought), we decided to meet at the loft. It was easy enough to tell the rest of the coven to find somewhere else to be for the night. Sally also didn’t want to meet at the office and run the risk of having to shut down her precious hotline. God forbid the city be allowed one night where its people weren’t being harvested like cattle.

I arrived early and had to listen to Sally go on and on about the fabulous job Alfonzo had done on her hair. Truth be told, the changes were subtle - some layering and a little extra body added (did I actually just think that?). That being said, some people pull off subtle far better than others do. Sally is one of them; however, letting her know that wouldn’t be any fun.

“So what did he do?” I asked innocently. “Clean out any excess lice and rat droppings?”

A few minutes later, Sally was distracted from trying to break into the bathroom - where I was hiding - to answer the door. Saved by the bell. And
yes
, it was totally worth it.

As she disengaged the multiple heavy-duty locks (we had upped security a bit ever since the Khan’s buddies paid us a visit), I slipped out and assumed a casual position on the couch. I was fairly sure the elder vampires already had a relatively low opinion of me. I saw no reason to exacerbate it further by letting them see Sally and me acting like ten-year-olds.

She slipped me a sour smile and then opened the door. While she did so, I indulged in a little fantasy involving a sword swinging through the open doorway and decapitating her before she had a chance to make even a single snarky remark.

Alas, no such luck on that happening. Instead, a voice said, “Hello, my name is Alex. I believe you are expecting me.” (*sigh* what is it with the formality? Do vampires above a certain age become allergic to contractions?)

Sally stepped aside and made a welcoming gesture. As our guest walked past, I could see her sizing him up and not entirely in a sisterly manner either if you get my drift. She looked up from his ass just in time to meet my questioning gaze. Realizing she had been caught, she quickly turned to close the door.

As usual with the vampire world, the person who stood before me was nothing like I expected. This guy was supposed to be a specialist, hand-picked by the Draculas. As such, I was expecting some Nosferatu-looking dude in a severe black and white suit. Sure, I had never actually seen a vamp who looked like that, but still, this guy had flown in from Europe. I had figured that maybe over in the old country they still respected tradition...or at least the tradition established by multiple Christopher Lee movies.

The newcomer was a few inches shorter than me, but his shortcomings ended there (figures). He was broad shouldered and obviously had a strong build beneath the unassuming leather jacket he wore. Jeans, a t-shirt, and a laptop bag rounded out his look. Hell, the dude looked like he could have just driven over from some construction site in Jersey. Apparently, the Draculas weren’t big on giving their minions a hefty expense account for wardrobe purposes.

Moving on to the rest of him: he had wavy dark blonde hair, and a smooth complexion; however, what stood out most of all were his eyes. An intense gaze met my own, one that was augmented by the fact that two different colored eyes peered out of his head: one a bright green, the other brown. Hell, I thought Huskies were the only ones like that.

Thus, instead of saying something non-idiotic like, “Hi,” I instead asked, “Contacts?”

“Excuse me?” he answered in a slightly accented voice.

“Your eyes,” I continued. Hey, in for a penny of stupidity... “Are you wearing colored contacts?”

I heard Sally sigh. No doubt, I was breaking some established protocol for visiting dignitaries. However, being that our guest looked like he had just gotten off a motorcycle, I figured I was justified for not dropping to one knee and looking for a ring to kiss.

If Alex was insulted by my question, he didn’t show it. “You have a unique way of introducing yourself,” he replied in a bemused voice. He held out a hand and repeated his initial greeting. “My name is Alex. I am here as a representative of the First Coven to assist you, and this is my natural eye color. Any other questions?”

I smiled back, half amazed. Though I had met only a small subset of it, my dealings with the vampire world had led me to believe it was mostly populated with self-absorbed, humor-deficient assholes. Thus, to meet a vampire, one who obviously had some rank behind him (the Draculas were rumored to be very picky about who they hung out with) yet wasn’t immediately oozing with douche bag vibes was a pleasant surprise. I reached out my hand and shook his.

“I’m Bill. Pleased to meet you, Alex.”

“Likewise, Freewill,” he said, indicating my status as a vampire freak. He nodded to me and then turned back toward Sally. “And I presume you are Sally,” he said. “I was told you were quite stunning, but I dare say the reports did not do you justice.”

To my surprise, Sally actually blushed (quite the feat for someone lacking a pulse). Damn, Alex was a playa.

He gave Sally an appraising look. “I hope you did not go through a lot of trouble to make yourself so presentable just for my arrival.”

Sally replied, “Oh this? I just threw on something real quick,” as if she hadn’t spent the greater part of the week under Alfonzo’s care. Now it was my turn to eye-roll.

I had to admit that Alex was one smooth character. No wonder the Draculas employed his services as a diplomat. He had disarmed both Sally and me within seconds, the former accomplishment being something I had yet to master.

“We all have a lot to discuss, so we should get started right away...as soon as I make use of the facilities, if I may.”

“Sure,” I replied. “Make yourself at home.”

I pointed him toward the bathroom. He stopped at the doorway, no doubt noticing the numerous dents in the door and newly splintered wood in the frame. He turned back and gave us a questioning look.

“Oh, don’t mind that,” I said. “I was combing my hair earlier and Sally had a burrito for lunch. When you gotta go...”

He gave a sheepish smile in reply and then entered.

As the door clicked shut, I yelled back, “There’s some air freshener in the cabinet if you need...OUCH!” Damn, Sally can hit hard when she wants to.

* * *

Alex returned to find us sitting on the couch waiting for him, me still rubbing my arm. The phrase “hits like a girl” definitely did not apply to the saucy little blonde in the room.

Ignoring whatever had occurred during his brief foray into the restroom, Alex sat in a chair opposite us and opened his bag. He pulled out a ruggedized laptop and proceeded to boot it up. Apparently, ancient scrolls written on parchment made from human flesh was passé these days. Nobody believes in setting the proper mood anymore. *sigh*

“Care for a glass of blood before we get started?” I asked, trying to be cordial. My thoughts on the Draculas aside, if this guy held favor with them, then that probably meant he wasn’t exactly a spring chicken. The older the vampire, the stronger. No need to get on this guy’s bad side and discover just how badly he could kick my ass.

“No thank you,” he said, typing on the keyboard. “I had a light snack on the way over.”

I didn’t ask him to elaborate. Knowing vampires, I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised to read about some missing cabbie in the morning paper. Friendly or not, I needed to remind myself that Alex was probably a top notch killer. It was probably best not to get too enamored of him, especially since his primary job was to prep me on how to be the Draculas’ fall guy.

Seeing that the small talk was rapidly fizzling out, I proceeded to just sit there and wait. Sally too was unusually quiet. Our normal banter aside, it was starting to sink in just how serious this was...or more precisely just how deep the shit we were both standing in was.

After a few more moments of uncomfortable silence, Alex pulled his eyes away from the screen. “Before we begin,” he started, “I should point out a few nuances of your situation. Both of you are far too young to have had any serious dealings with the First Coven.” I opened my mouth to say something, but Alex held up a hand. “I am aware, Freewill, of your dealings with the Khan. Suffice to say, that circumstance was anything but typical.”

“Thank God,” I muttered.

A look very close to amusement passed through Alex’s freaky eyes, then he continued. “The first thing I shall say is that you should both consider it an honor. It is almost unheard of for the First to have dealings with any of our kind less than a century in age. The First are not particularly tolerant of
children
.” He put a heavy emphasis on that last part.

Thinking back to Gan, my mouth decided to have a mind of its own. “I don’t blame the Draculas. Kids these days,” I said with a laugh, only to realize I was the only one in the room grinning. Alex had a look of mild disapproval on his face, while Sally’s eyes were wide open in shock.

“Yes, about that,” said Alex. “I should warn you that the First are not particularly fond of that nickname either. Their agents have been given authority to make liberal examples of offenders.”