Blood Type (27 page)

I
studied
her in the way of one who knows another’s secret. “Not as odd for you as it is
for
me,” I said, which made Margaret smile in a slow, deliberate way.
I’d never really noticed how pretty she was.

“I have a feeling you’re not here to see me,” she said, sounding almost disappointed.

I shook my head.
“I’d like to speak to your father.”

Margaret removed a driving glove from
her left
hand and examined her nails.
“My father is a busy man. Surely you know that.”

“
I do. But i
t’s important.”

The rev of an engine caught my attention
then
, and I watched as Thomas raced toward us and pulled up alongside his sister
’s car
. He yanked off his helmet and smiled up at me.
“Hi Blake.”

“Hi Thomas.”

Margaret pushed her lips
out
in a pout.
Thomas had a way of monopolizing attention. He was as equally stunning as his sister, and yet he actually had a personality
that made people gravitate toward him
.
He’d always been one of the most
popular
guys at school, and there was never a shortage of girls throwing themselves at him.

“Tommy, run along and tell Father there’s someone here who wishes to speak to him.”

“Mother said not to disturb him,” Thomas said
.
“He’s in a meeting.”

Margaret’s eyes cut to me as her mouth broke out in another
Chesire
-cat grin. “
Somehow
I don’t think Father will mind.
Run along now.
”

“It’s your neck,” Thomas said. He
got out of his car and
broke into a leisurely
jog
toward the main house.
Margaret turned back to me.

“Well, then. What brings you here? That’s a hideous tattoo, by the way.
Very uncouth.
I don’t even pretend to understand children these days.
”

“I’ve come for John,” I said
as I tugged at
my collar. I thrust my hands in my pockets so I wouldn’t be tempted to blot out the shame of the tattoo by hiding it under my hand. 

“I take it you mean John
Kelly
.”

My stomach twisted. “I was told Josiah brings all
the, um,
c-criminals,” I said, stumbling on the word, “here to your father, the Head Watcher.”

“And who told you that?” Margaret asked, removing
the driving glove from her other hand
one finger at a time. She folded her arms over her chest and raised a dark brow in expectation. 

I swallowed hard. “No one you need to be concerned about.”

That earned me a faint snort
.
Margaret
got out of her car at last and
stood
in front of me. H
er eyes traveled the length of my ratty frame. “The entire school will mourn your loss,” she said abruptly. “Even students who didn’t know you well will lay claim to grief. They’ll say things like
She was so young
and
What
a tragedy
. I’ve seen it happen before.”

I blinked once
but otherwise held my surprise in check
. “I have no intention of dying.”

“It would appear you don’t exactly have a choice in the matter.”

“Don’t I?”

Thomas
hailed
us from across the yard
just then
. “Father says come in!”

“
Well then.
I guess we shall see,”
she
said.

I trailed behind
Margaret
, silently revising my earlier opinion of her character. Quiet she might be, but I had a feeling she possessed the same predatory instincts of a tiger lying in wait. I made a mental note never to get on her bad side.

A
n attractive older woman
greeted us. She i
ntroduced herself as Mr. Abernathy’s personal secretary, June. “Can I get you anything while you wait?” she said to me.

“I’ll take a pint,” said Margaret. “I’m feeling not altogether myself at the moment.”

“Certainly, Miss Abernathy.
And for you, Miss
Ehlert
?”

I
felt
not altogether myself
, too
.
I
had pushed
the limits of my
practically non-existent
stamina
already
. I should be at home taking it easy, not trying to rescue my vampire boyfriend from the clutches of Conrad Abernathy and Josiah Butler. “A glass of water would be nice,” I said. 

June turned on her heel and walked away
, the clack of her heels like a metronome against the
parquet
floor
. I put my purse on a side table and began fishing for my medication.

“Those won’t help,” Margaret said when she saw the bottle of pills in my hand.

I didn’t look at her.
I decided I really didn’t like her very much.
“They won’t hurt, either. And they
do
help.”

“Maybe a little.
But your body’s red blood cells are dying faster than they can be regenerated.”

“I know
that
,” I snapped. “
You’re not my doctor.
You don’t have to explain it to me.”

Margaret turned away, a slight smile on her face
. We waited
in silence until June returned.
When she did, s
he presented a tray topped with a clear glass of water, as well as a blue plastic tumbler.

Margaret sniffed in distaste. “I told you I prefer to take it in one of Mother’s crystal goblets.”

“I was trying to be sensitive of our guest,” June replied, her words and tone clipped.
Obviously June had issues with Margaret, too.

Margaret narrowed her eyes but didn’t say another word about it. Instead, she took the offered drink and sipped casually, delicately wiping the corners of her mouth with the tip of her finger every now and
then
. When she
had finished
, she handed June the tumbler and stalked off.

Thomas, who’d been lurking in the doorway, came over and kissed June’s cheek. “What a spoiled brat,” he said.

June’s shoulders relaxed and she gave Thomas an affectionate squeeze around the middle. “She’s not spoiled. She’s just cranky because she can’t have what she wants.
You know it’s
just a phase.
” Thomas
smiled
at that, his eyes flicking at once to me.

“What does she want?”
I asked.

Thomas laughed. “You don’t want to know. Let’s just say Father would have a fit if he ever found out that his own
dau
—”

“Thomas,” June said, placing a hand on his arm.
She shook her head.
“That’s enough.”

The smile fell at once from his face and he cleared his throat. “My apologies,” he said to the both of us.

She handed him the tray with Margaret’s empty cup. “Be a sweetheart and take this to the kitchen.”

Once we were alone again June said to me, “You’re here to see John, is that right?” 

I perked up at once. “So he’s here? I wasn’t sure. I mean, I hoped—”

“That’s just Margaret being Margaret,” June interrupted. She nodded at a set of closed doors directly behind me. “He’s right
in
there, speaking with Mr. Abernathy at this very moment.”

I turned and stared at the closed doors as though willing them to open with nothing more than the power of my mind. The anxiety
had my in
sides
in knots
. “What do you think is going on in there?”

June shook her head, but I didn’t miss how she was meditatively rubbing the hem of her jacket. “Well, he came in with Josiah. That’s never a good sign.”

I felt like a popped balloon.
“Oh.”

June
put a hand on my elbow, taking me off guard. “How much longer do you have?” 

The iron pill I’d taken
felt
lodged in my throat. I took another sip of water and swallowed hard before answering. “Not
long
. I’ve come to see if I
can bust
John out of here
. H
e’s the only one who can turn me.”

June burst into laughter. “You’ve a whole city of vampires at your fingertips. I can’t imagine he’s the only one.”

“He’s the only one who’s offered,” I revised. “Well, not the only one. But he says he loves me.”

June stopped laughing and her face clouded with an expression like regret. “
I understand
,” she said.
“
In that case
.”

Just then the doors behind me opened and Conrad Abernathy emerged. He was a
kind
looking man
—slight like his children with deep blue eyes—
except when his
fangs
were exposed
.
I took an automatic step back at the sight of him and bumped into June. She grabbed my elbow to steady me and whispered in my ear, “It’s all right.
He won’t hurt you.
”

“Miss
Ehlert
! You’re looking . . . ah . . .
well
these days,” said Mr. Abernathy.
I didn’t believe for a minute that he actually meant it.

June tapped a canine and bobbed her head at him. He furrowed his
dark
brow in confusion and then clapped a hand over his mouth, understanding finally dawning on him.

“I’m so sorry, Miss
Ehlert
,” he said
, turning slightly from me.
“I’m not always so careful in my own home. I’m sure you can understand.”

“No n-need to apologize, Mr. Abernathy,” I stammered. I
could barely get over the shock
of seeing
a man I actually knew, one who had been in my house many times before,
as
a vampire. What would my parents think?

He took a
lengthy
stride forward and grasped my hand in his
long
and
delicate fingers
,
deceivingly firm
and disconcertingly warm. “Tell
me,
to what do I owe the pleasure? And how are your parents these days? I do so love those parties of your mother’s.”

“They’re fine,” I said, withdrawing my hand from his as inconspicuously as possible.
“I, um.
I’m actually here to see John.”

“Actually,” Mr. Abernathy echoed. “And how did you know Mr. Kelly
is
here?”

“I have my sources,” I said, lifting my chin a fraction of an inch.

He smiled, showing his fangs once again. “And I take it you’re loyal to those sources.”

“Yes, well. I sort of have to be.”

Mr. Abernathy’s brows shot up in a look of genuine interest. “Oh? And why is that?”

“Because I can’t start my new life as a snitch.”

“Your new life?” he said
with a shake of
his head. “I
don’t think I understand
.”

“I want to be a vampire.”

Mr. Abernathy stared at me for a long moment before a rumbling laughter bellowed forth from his gut and echoed through the cavernous room. He pulled a satin handkerchief
the color of blood
from inside his
jacket
pocket and
dabbed the corners of
his eyes. When he’d finally gotten control of himself, he fixed me with a more serious expression.

“Miss
Ehlert
, have you taken a look at your reflection in the mirror lately, much less smelled yourself? I’m sure you’ve heard the saying
on Death’s doorstep
. Well, I’m afraid it applies to you.”

I
gritted my teeth
. “I am aware of what I look like, Mr. Abernathy. That’s one of the reasons I’ve come for John. So he can change me.
So I won’t die
.”

He
sober
ed
quickly
and narrowed
his eyes at me
. T
hen
he
flicked his wrist at June. “That’ll be all for now
, June
.
I appreciate your assistance.
Thank you.”