Blood Red Dawn (12 page)

She gave a small, vicious laugh and I wondered for a minute whether calling her was a good idea. But what choice did I have? “You'd better make it soon, sweetie, it's almost dawn.”

 

V
ivienne's threats to Angelo paid off. He wasted no time in leading Sam and me directly to Maggie's house in the quarter. Just like he'd said, it was a pretty little house, for what that was worth. As we drew closer, though, we heard the sounds of hysterical sobbing, adding an eerie touch to an already tense atmosphere.

Angelo stopped just short of the front walk. From where we stood, we could see Maggie quite clearly, she sat on a glider on the front porch, rocking back and forth, crying and shaking. I nodded to Angelo, and he scurried off down the street. Chris was nowhere to be seen. “Let me talk to her,” I whispered to Sam. “She knows me.”

Sam nodded and moved back into the shadows of a nearby tree.

“Maggie?” I called her name softly as I walked toward the house. “It's me, Mitch. Are you okay?”

“Go away,” she said, “you don't want to be here, not with me. I'm more of a monster than any of you ever will be. I killed my children. Didn't you know that??”

“But you called me, Maggie. You said you wanted my help. And I know all about your children, Maggie, and it's okay. Both of your children are alive.”

“No! They are dead. Eduard saw to that. He took care of everything. And I let him do it. That means their blood is on my hands just as if I'd held the knife myself. I know that and you know that.” She gave a choked laugh. “We all know that.”

“Where's Chris, Maggie?” I tried to keep my voice calm and conversational in tone. In the past, I'd handled criminals in this sort of shape, demented, damaged, and totally capable of doing absolutely anything. It had never frightened me before, all part of the job, but this time was different. I didn't want to lose my son a second time, and she was the only link to him now.

“Chris?” She repeated the name back to me as if she'd never heard it before.

“Phoenix?” I asked using the name she'd most often called her child. Maggie recognized that name; her eyes sought my face in the darkness and I stepped forward. “Mitch? You found me, that's good. I just want you to know right now that I'm sorry, Mitch. I couldn't help it, couldn't help any of it. I didn't want to, I don't want to. But I had no choice, I had to. He made me.”

“Who made you, Maggie? And what did you do?”

“Steven. My son. I murdered him. Didn't you know?”

I looked over at Sam and motioned him to move farther away. We weren't going to get anywhere with her, not while she was so agitated. And Sam was a stranger to her. She didn't seem as if she'd noticed him yet, but if she saw him, she might be more intimidated. I wanted her relaxed and more likely to talk.

“Maggie,” I said softly, approaching her more slowly, holding my hands out in clear view so that she would know I wasn't armed. “I've just come to talk to you. No one wants to hurt you.”

She threw her head back and laughed. Somehow the sound was more unnerving than her crying had been. “Why not? You should
want
to hurt me. All of you should. And if you don't want to hurt me now, you certainly will eventually. It's all I'm good for. Eduard knew that. And so does Steven. Phoenix hasn't hurt me yet, but I know it will just be a matter of time.”

“Where's Phoenix?” I asked the question of her again, a little less gently this time, not liking the turn her mind seemed to be taking.

“Gone, Phoenix is gone. Before he could hurt me like all the rest of them . . .”

I moved forward, but Sam stopped me. “Don't threaten her,” he whispered. “We need to get her away from here. Some place unfamiliar, with nothing around to remind her of the past. This house probably feeds her insanity, all those unhappy, horrible memories haunting her. You have to try to lure her from the porch and lead her somewhere else. Somewhere we can watch her and keep her safe.”

I nodded. “Maggie? Why don't you come with me? We were all friends back in Whitby, weren't we?”

She smiled and a flash of her old mesmerizing beauty shone through her madness. “I always did like you, Mitch. You had a way of treating me like I was a person who mattered.”

“You do matter, Maggie. Why don't you come with me? It's a pretty night and it's just a short walk to Lily's house from here and we can talk.”

I extended my arm and she came toward me. Behind me, I felt Sam tense up, but I could tell by the way she was holding herself, erect and proud, that Maggie had recovered some of her composure.

She took my arm and we walked, talking of the weather and the city and not much else. When I tried to steer the conversation into the direction of recent events, I could feel her tremble. I shot Sam a glance over my shoulder to where he walked a few yards behind us. He held his hand positioned awkwardly in his pocket, so I knew that he was keeping a tranquilizing syringe close, in case it was needed. Though it seemed that the farther Maggie moved away from her house, the saner she became.

By the time we'd arrived at Lily's house, she'd progressed to joking and flirting and seemed much like the carefree woman who'd arrived at The Black Rose. It was hard to believe that had only been a short while ago, so much had happened. My whole life had disintegrated in front of my eyes; I'd regained my son, then lost Deirdre and him. And the instrument of this torture, walked dangerously close to me, laughing up at me and being totally charming.

I shook my head.

“What is it, Mitch? Did I say something wrong?”

“Say something wrong? No. But do something wrong?” I pulled away from her so that I could look straight into her face. “Where's Chris, Maggie? Where's Deirdre?”

Her eyes darted back and forth nervously. “Chris? He ran away from me. I think I must've been acting pretty crazy. And I don't need to tell you I don't really know where Deirdre is, do I? I can tell you, though, that you'll not see her again. Steven has her.”

“And just who is Steven? What soul did your bastard husband put into his body?”

She laughed mirthlessly and I felt a chill. “You know who it is, Mitch, I can read it in your eyes. He almost killed you once but she interfered. She shouldn't have done that. You should have been a dead man and she should have been his, that's all he's ever wanted. Fortunately, Maggie is here, ready to obey orders, and more than willing to rectify those mistakes.”

Her abrupt switch from friendly to hostile took me completely by surprise, as did the knife she drew from her sleeve.

“You can't kill me with that, Maggie. You of all people should know better.”

Still she lunged at me, her grin reminding me of the Other assailant that first poisoned Deirdre. I drew back and her smile broadened.

“Yes, you are a clever one, aren't you? The blade is poisoned, of course. I've just been waiting for you to show up, counting on your arrogance to ensure you'd come alone. I'll take care of the rest of your little group of friends after you're dead.”

I grabbed her wrists to keep the knife away. She may have been strong, but I was stronger. And more determined. I only had to hold her still for a moment for Sam to arrive and administer the tranquillizer. Her eyes widened then drooped closed, the knife fell to the ground, and I managed to catch her before she fell on it. Asleep, in my arms, she looked like an angel.

“Thanks, Sam.”

He grinned at me. “Quick Draw Samuels,” he blew a puff of air on the tip of the needle, “Yeah, they all call me that.” Then he grew serious. “No problem. I'm glad I was here.”

I carried Maggie the rest of the way to Lily's house and Vivienne greeted us at the door. “I see the poor little lamb is asleep again. She is safer that way, no? Did she tell you anything before Sam stepped in?”

“Yeah, she did. Seems like Chris is alive, although we weren't all that sure of it at first. He ran away from her and is hiding out somewhere.”

Viv smiled at me, showing off her dimples. “This is true,
mon cher.
But first things first. Have you thought where we would stow the sleeping beauty?”

“I thought Moon's room would make the perfect guest bedroom,” I said, heading down the hallway with Maggie's limp body. Vivienne went ahead of me and opened the door to the tank. I entered, not without a shudder for the remembrance of my stay in the same place, lay Maggie down on the small cot, and, after making sure the oxygen supply was turned on, closed and locked the door.

“Now, what were you saying about Chris?”

Viv gave a little high-pitched giggle and took my hand. “Come with me to the kitchen,
mon chou,
and all will become clear.

More than clear, actually. There, sitting at the kitchen table with Lily and Claude, was Chris, my son, none the worse for wear.

He stood up when I walked in and came over to give me a quick hug. “Is Mum okay?”

I nodded and clapped him on the shoulders. “After she sleeps off whatever it was Sam gave her, she'll be fine. But how did you know where to find us?”

“I didn't. I'd gotten away from her finally. You know, I didn't really want to leave her. I mean she was acting so crazy, and I was afraid she'd hurt herself. But she pulled a knife out of the kitchen drawer and threatened me. ‘You're already dead, anyway, so doing it again won't matter. And I will kill you, if you don't get out of here now.'” His voice trailed off and his eyes grew sad. “I know none of you really understand it but I can't help myself. I love her, I have to love her. She's the only mother I remember. And she wasn't always this way.”

Vivienne laid a hand on his shoulder. “One must never apologize for loving their mother. We do not judge you, Chris.”

“Thanks,” he said, sitting up a little straighter. “Anyway, I ran and ran and eventually found myself in a huge open cemetery. After all the running, I was tired so I sat on the steps of some mausoleum for a while. Seemed fitting, somehow, since part of me rests in a place like that.” He held his hands up in front of his face, examined them, then shrugged. “It's funny. I can't imagine having another body, lying in a grave somewhere, rotting. It's almost like I feel about Mum, this is the only thing I remember.”

I nodded. “Yeah. I can't imagine it either.”

“Anyway,” Chris continued, “there I sat, on those cold, hard steps, trying to think, but trying not to think, you know? I heard this funny wheezing whistling sound and noticed an old man, at least he looked old, but he was walking upright and steady through the graves. He came up to where I sat. ‘You lost, young man?' he asked.

“ ‘Not really, just resting.'

“The man laughed at that. ‘Many folk restin' here, but you, young man, you must be special. Most of 'em restin' can't talk about it.' Then he moved closer to me, squinted his eyes and sniffed at me, as if he were a dog catching my scent. ‘You got the smell of Other about you, boy. So you must be Chris.'

“ ‘Yeah, I am. How did you know?'

“ ‘I know lots of things, boy. And it ain't your place to wonder why. But I can take you to your father and his friends, if you like. Do it for free, even, since it 'pears this old man owe your papa a debt. I did him a disservice once and returnin' you will balance that. Ol' bow-legged 'Lo don't like staying in anyone's debt.' He gave a wheezing laugh, I could almost hear the air rattling around inside his lungs. ‘Besides, I need to stay on the good side of that blond one. So I do it for her too. You be sure to tell her I say this.'

“ ‘Vivienne?'

“ ‘Just so, young man. Come along now.'

“We walked a few blocks and he led me up the steps. ‘Take care o' your mam and your pap, young one, and all be well. The spirits, why, they like you. They leadin' you to a good way. And there ain't nothin' wrong with that.'

“He slapped me on the back and when I turned back to thank him, he had already disappeared down the street. And that's it.”

I shook my head. “I'm glad he found you. But I still can't figure that man out. Whose side is he on, I wonder?”

Lily laughed and handed me a glass of scotch and ice. “That's an easy one, Mitch. 'Lo is on 'Lo's side, of course. For him there's no right or wrong, no good or evil. There's just 'Lo.”

W
e all sat at the kitchen table with our various drinks. “Tell me what happened,” I said to Chris. “Why did you go with her? You could have waited for me to return.”

“There's not that much to tell, really,” he said, “I came with her because I thought someone should take care of her. She seems strong at times, but that's just an act. She's always been the most emotionally fragile person I've ever known.”

I made a scoffing noise and he stared over at me. “Yeah, I know what you think, Dad, but before you start on me, all I can say is that, yeah, I know that she tried to kill me twice, but that fact doesn't really make that much of a difference. Like I just said, she's my mother and I love her. It really isn't her fault that she's the way she is. I blame that on Eduard. And Steven. I thought that if I stayed with her it might make a difference. She said she was leaving you a note.”

“Yeah, she left me a note. And another dead dog.”

“Larry?” Chris's voice cracked just a bit and for a moment he resembled the lost child called Phoenix. “Ah, man.” He rubbed his hand over his eyes. “I didn't know, honestly. I was waiting out in the cab in front of the pub and she told me to wait there. ‘I need to leave Mitch a message,' she said, ‘so that when he finds Deirdre he can meet up with us.' It was a fairly long while before she came back out. I remember thinking that the cab fare was going to be horrendous and I hoped she'd have enough money. And when she got back into the cab, she reached over and patted my cheek. Her hand was slightly damp. ‘Sorry it took me so long,' she said, laughing. ‘First I had to find a pen and some paper, and then when I was finished with that I decided I'd better make a stop at the loo before we left.' I had no reason to believe she'd hurt the dog. I'd have stopped her if I'd known.”

Chris' eyes slid away from mine. Either he wasn't being completely honest with me, or he was ashamed that he hadn't known how far gone Maggie actually was.

“She was fine on the plane ride to here. She seemed her normal cheerful self, turning on the charm for everyone.” He laughed a bit in remembrance. “She's got more than her fair share of charm.”

“Yeah,” I said, “I've noticed. She's got a gift, no doubt about it.”

“Anyway, it wasn't until we arrived at the house that she started acting odd. She kept talking to me, but if I'd respond verbally, she'd start to cry. As long as I kept quiet, she was calm. I noticed that she avoided looking at me and if she caught my eye, she'd wince. It was nothing I couldn't handle. I'm kind of used to her little eccentricities. But then she picked up the phone and called Steven. After that all hell broke loose. She went to her room for a while, and when she came out she was crazed, tossing glassware against the walls and overturning the furniture.” Chris shook his head. “She's really quite physically strong, you know. When she started on the ranting about how she'd murdered her children, and pulled the knife on me, well, I just couldn't deal with it anymore, so I left. I doubt she even noticed when I'd gone.”

“Actually, she knew you'd gone. And I think she was relieved that you left. Maggie doesn't really want to hurt you, Chris.”

He rubbed his arm where she'd attacked him with a corkscrew that night in Whitby. “Maybe. But you know, it's getting more difficult to believe that with each passing day.” His voice then acquired a wistful note, making him sound younger than he was. “What are you going to do to her?”

I sighed, combed my fingers through my hair, and held out my glass to Lily for refilling. “I have no idea. Keep her from killing any of us, I guess.”

“She tried to kill you?”

I nodded and Sam cleared his throat. “I have her under observation and she's safe in the tank, no danger to herself or to others. I'd like to see her get professional help, though.”

Chris nodded. “That'd be good, I guess.”

“For now,” I said, “there's not a whole lot we can do. You were my first priority. Now that you're safe, all I want to do is find Deirdre. Can you help me? Have you remembered where Steven is? We think that the soul placed in his body is Max Hunter, and Maggie hinted at it as well. But we don't know for sure.”

He gave me a sad smile. “I'm sorry to hear that, but it makes perfect sense. And it sure would explain why I hated him when we were growing up. I can even do better than remember for you. When Mum was done with her phone call, she went to her room. I could tell she was more agitated after that, and I was curious, so I hit redial. She'd called the Ballroom of Romance.”

“Merde,”
Vivienne said, “so it is Max. Did he tear down all of my renovations? And my lovely dungeons?”

Chris laughed. “To tell you the truth, Vivienne, I didn't ask. I hung up when he answered; somehow it just didn't seem like a good time for a brotherly reunion. But if he's doing business as the Ballroom of Romance again, I'd expect so.”

Vivienne pouted a bit then brightened up. “No problem,
mon gars,
I was getting bored with it all anyway. And now I suppose we will be needing tickets to New York. Lily, dear, did I see a computer in your room?”

“Yeah. Go work your Internet magic, Vivienne. But I think Claude and I will stay here. That way we'll be able to talk to Victor when he comes home. And you can leave Maggie here as well and we'll keep an eye on her.”

“Actually,” Sam said, “I'd like to take her with us and see if I can't get her admitted to my old hospital. We can't just keep her locked up indefinitely so we might as well do something positive for her as soon as possible.”

“Fine,” said Vivienne, “so that will be five seats on the next evening's plane to New York.” She gave a small giggle. “Let's see if my airline friend has noticed yet that I've lifted his ID and password.”

“Viv? You are paying for these tickets, right?”

“But of course, Mitch,” she stuck her tongue out at me and winked. “I may be a monster but I am not a thief. Having the airline employee information just makes it all much simpler. And there is nothing wrong with simple, nothing at all. Especially when everything else around one is so complicated.”

She left the room and I checked the clock, then looked over at Claude and Lily. “I don't know about the two of you, but I'm starving. Haven't fed since that night at Heathrow and I've a feeling I'll need to be at my full strength to deal with Max tomorrow night.”

Claude got up from the table. “We've got a few hours until dawn and I know a few places that never close. I'll come along.”

“Lily?” I glanced over at her. She was hunched over her cup of tea, staring into the liquid. “How about you?”

She jumped. “What?”

“Did you want to go out?”

Lily shook her head. “No, I'll stay here if you don't mind. Besides, don't you need to check in at your hotel? We could squeeze everyone in here, if you all didn't mind, but somehow”—she cocked her head back to her room where Vivienne was making airline arrangements—“I doubt it will suit every-one.”

“Damn. I forgot about that.”

“It should not be a problem, Mitch,” Vivienne said, entering the kitchen with printed copies of tickets and boarding passes. “There's time for you and Claude to go out for a bite and still make it to the hotel on time. As for me, I had a lovely meal on the plane the other night.” Her eyes practically sparkled with amusement. “Sam and I will go ahead and make sure that the rooms are in order.”

“Chris?”

He laughed nervously. “I know you don't want me to come along on your hunt, Dad. And to be honest, there are aspects about it that give me the creeps. Nothing personal. So, if Lily doesn't mind, I'll just stay here and keep watch over Mum tonight.”

“I'd be happy to have the company, Chris. No offense, but the thoughts of Maggie, locked into that tank gives
me
the creeps. And,” a faraway note crept into her voice, “Victor might come back. You never know.”

 

Claude and I took to the streets. “There's a little club not too far from here,” he said. “I used to play piano there, back before I met Vivienne.”

I laughed. “That must've been a wild time.”

“Actually, it wasn't at all what you'd think. She came in one night and picked me out of the band. I was flattered at the time. Let's be honest, how often does a woman like her even notice a man my size? Let alone pull him aside to whisper sweet French nothings in his ear? I fell in love with her instantly.”

I nodded. “That would be easy to do. Viv is an incredible woman.”

“You underestimate her, Mitch. She's also an incredible vampire. And trust me, you never want to make her angry. The night Cadre headquarters blew up, I encountered her in full rage. She may seem fluffy and soft, but she is anything but.”

“I know.”

“She led me out into the alley behind the club and told me what she wanted of me.” He pulled out a white handkerchief and dabbed his forehead with it before stuffing it back into his pocket. “The odd thing was that I didn't doubt her for a moment. If she'd said she was the queen of England I'd have believed her, despite all evidence to the contrary.” His laughter echoed down the streets. “I've never regretted it. Not once. Except maybe when the Others made all of us into walking targets. And then, my biggest problem was not having her around.”

I looked over at Claude. “Does she know how you feel?”

His laughter had a hollow sound now. “How could she not, Mitch? She's my creator, my life. But she doesn't let on and I certainly feel enough of a fool most of the time without exposing my heart fully. I serve her the only way I can, the only way she will allow me to.”

“It must be hell,” I said, thinking out loud, “to think of her being with another man.”

He gave me a keen glance. “You, of all people, should know.”

“Yeah. I do.” The bitterness and anger I felt spilled out in the words. “Look, let's get moving. I'm starving and we don't have all night.”

We quickened our pace. “I know where the rough sections of town are,” Claude said, “if you'd prefer a quick feed. Otherwise we could hit the clubs.”

“No clubs, no lights, no music. The rough section suits me perfectly.”

He led me down a series of dark streets and stopped at one of the alleys. “Around there,” he said, “there's always one or two ruffians hanging about. You take this one and I'll be a couple of streets over.”

It didn't take me long to find someone who was looking for trouble. And he found it. I'm ashamed to say that my hunt this night lacked even the slightest hint of the civilized man I once considered myself. Instead of establishing contact, I sprang on the first shadowy form I saw and fed on him savagely, tearing at his skin, being far rougher than I needed to be to subdue him and drinking far too much of his blood. My mind was carried away by the taste of his blood flowing into me, warming me, invigorating me, and for the first time ever, I lost control. His tortured gasping brought me back to my senses and I let go of him. He flopped to the ground like a wet rag.

“Damn,” I said, angry at myself, angry at him, angry at the entire world. Bending over him, I felt for a pulse and to my relief found one. I peeled back his eyelids and his eyes focused on me.

“What happened?” he asked, his voice sounded faint and shaky with a note of fear but it was strong enough. He'd live.

“Nothing,” I said, “you were like this when I got here.”

“Shit,” he said. “Son of a bitch sneaked up on me. I never saw him coming.”

“Yeah,” I said. “It happens. Want me to call an ambulance?”

“No way, man, but thanks for asking. I'll be fine.”

He walked away from me slowly, clutching his hand to the wound on his neck. I turned away and went back to the street to wait for Claude.

After about five minutes, he came sauntering out of another alleyway, dabbing at his lips with his white handkerchief. “Want to go back?” he asked. “Or do you feel like hitting the clubs now?”

I shook my head. “I'll go back, but you can stay out longer. I'll see you back at the hotel.”

“No,” he said, stuffing the handkerchief back into his breast pocket. “I'll walk with you. I wanted to ask you something, anyway.”

“What's that?”

“Did you have any trouble learning how to change your shape?”

I laughed. “The only trouble I had was with Deirdre. She absolutely refused to learn the skill and couldn't understand why I'd want to. Why do you ask?”

Claude looked down at the sidewalk. “I've never been able to do it. Change, I mean. So I was just wondering if it was something I needed to work at or if it was second nature to our kind.”

“Actually, it's probably a combination of both. Didn't Vivienne teach you? She's the one who taught me.”

He gave a nervous laugh. “I couldn't do it.”

“Well, it's an acquired skill, it'll come with time.”

“No, I don't think you understand. Vivienne tried to teach me, but I never got past the first lesson. I couldn't”—he looked around furtively—“take my clothes off in front of her.”

“No?”

“No way,” he said, gesturing to himself. “Can you blame me?”

“As I said”—I clapped him on the back—“Deirdre refused to change for years. But when she needed it, the change came to her. Give it time, Claude.”

“Yeah, I guess so,” he said. “Time I've got.”