Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye (16 page)

Isabella rolled her eyes over the handsome black man, checking for signs of animosity hidden beneath the charming smile, and found none. “Same to you,” she said, trying not to show much emotion.

“Your father and the others should be here shortly. Don’t be nervous. Nothing is going to happen to you.”

“That’s easy for you to say. You don’t have a contract on your head.”

Lucius shifted nervously. “King Adjatay lifted the contract months ago.”

Isabella chuckled. “Apparently not everyone listened. Someone tried to take me out a couple of hours before I came here. I believe they were some of Adjatay’s people.”

Lucius smiled weakly. “I’ll see that the word gets spread to leave you alone.”

Lucius was the leader of a powerful wolf pack in New Orleans, as well as one of Alesandro’s closest friends. Both of the men made her very uncomfortable by the way they stared at her with puppy dog eyes, when she knew they could tear her apart with an order from their king.

“Thank you, but it won’t really matter if the world ends in three days.”

She and PAK spent most of the evening searching databases, trying to find information they could use to find the two creatures Lucifer spoke of. So far they found some who could fit the bill but no one totally good or evil.

“Have faith, Miss Denning. You will think of something. I kind of like the place and don’t want to see it destroyed.”

“To be fair you have an out.”

“You mean the Otherworld?”

Isabella nodded. “You, the wolves, Alesandro and his gang can pack up and leave anytime you get good and ready and go home.”

Lucius continued staring at her. “You think either Darius or Alesandro would leave you behind if we chose to leave?”

“They won’t have much choice since I refuse to step foot in the place.”

“But it is your home,” Lucius replied.

Isabella refused to argue with him. She’d be dead the moment she set foot there and he knew this. It was better to die on Earth among friends.

The door of the chamber opened before she had a chance to reply. Her father and his best friend, Zolin Alta entered, deep in conversation.

Darius was tall and muscular. He wore his dark brown hair shaved at both sides. He and his daughter shared, not only the same blood, but the same silver/grey eyes.

Zolin, an Aztec, looked surprisingly tanned for a vampire. He’d cut his long golden hair into a shorter more stylish fashion. She sighed. The man was simply breathtaking with cool blue eyes and a very muscular build.

Too bad the bloodsucker was crazy. Most of the time, Zolin still lived in the past where it was acceptable in his kingdom to perform human sacrifices. Alesandro and Darius kept a pretty tight rein on him to make sure he behaved, but she never allowed herself to be alone with him for one minute. Anyway, it really didn’t matter because in three days she’d be history.

The two men spotted her and Lucius and walked over to them.

“Nice to see you again, Isabella,” Darius said.

There was no love lost between her and her father. Inside she wanted to reach out and strangle him. It took everything she had not to. She bowed. “Father and Prince Alta.”

Zolin did not comment at her formal greeting toward him. Calling the killer by his first name would have given him false hope that she liked him, which she didn’t. In order to get along with the vampires, she decided to keep everything strictly business.

Zolin bowed back. “Princess Masakerta.”

Isabella rolled her eyes at him. He knew she hated to be called by her true name. She refused to comment in respect to the treaty between them.

The doors of the chambers opened and the rest of the members arrived dressed in their royal blue robes. The eight member council took their seats. Alesandro was noticeably missing.

“He’ll be here,” Lucius told her as the two of them found seats in the audience, with the other non-members who were invited.

Alesandro arrived a few minutes later, looking a bit harried. “Sorry,” he apologized. “I been on the link with King Adjatay.”

The link he spoke of was a mental form of communication shared amongst the vampires...and between her and Alesandro.

Isabella frowned when she heard the king’s name. Her action did not go unnoticed by her father who shook his head disapprovingly at her. Isabella ignored it, more concerned about the content of the conversation between the king of vampires and the prince of the city.

“Of course he is concerned about what is happening here and wants us to come home at the first sign of danger.”

Right, like rats deserting a sinking ship.

“He’s using all of his contacts to help us with this puzzle.”

Thaddeus raised his hand. “What problem?”

Alesandro stopped talking. “Oh yes, I forgot you don’t know the reason behind the meeting. The world is ending.”

There was mumbling and gasps amongst the ranks.

Carlo raised his hand. “What are you saying? And, what is she doing here?” He pointed toward Isabella.

“First of all, do not refer to the future Princess Roma, as she.”

Isabella hissed loudly at his statement but Lucius patted her hand to comfort her and to help her keep her cool.

Alesandro did not really help matters by carelessly looking toward her lovingly. Ooh, he aggravated her nerves to no end. Why did he want to incite a riot when he knew how the council felt about her?
Ha, his future bride. I’d rather be stripped and boiled in oil.

“That can be arranged,”
Alesandro said in her head.

Zolin stifled a chuckle, which meant both he and Darius were privy to their conversation via the private link. Isabella forcefully blocked them out. All three vampires moved slightly from the pressure push.

“Now, as I was saying, the mortal world is going to be destroyed in three days.”

One of the few things she liked about Alesandro was, he did not beat around the bush when he had something to say.

“What are you talking about?” Galen, the shade asked. “I don’t find this a bit funny.”

Isabella did. What did Galen care since she was already dead?

“This world is going to be destroyed in three days unless we figure out a way to prevent it.”

The conversation among the others grew louder. A few of them thought Alesandro was crazy, while the others worried about insignificant stuff like their businesses and homes.

“Would you please stop talking and listen?” Darius asked. “Alesandro speaks the truth.”

“How and why?” Carlo asked.

“How, I think in one big explosion,” Alesandro replied. “As for the why, because Lucifer has deemed the mortal world corrupt.”

There were a few gasps from the audience at the mention of the fallen angel’s name.

“When did you speak with him?” someone asked from the audience. It was a female, possibly one of Lucius’ wolves.

“The other night,” Alesandro replied. “He came to me and told me of his plans.”

“Was he joking?” the woman asked.

“I’m afraid not. We have three days to figure out a way to stop this.”

“It all makes sense,” Galen replied as her body began to fade. “The things happening lately…the hurricanes, the bird and fish kills, oil tankers exploding, and things the authorities cannot explain.” She materialized again. Shades could only hold their mortal form for short periods of time.

“It is all your people’s fault,” Thaddeus said, standing and pointing a finger at Zolin.

“What are you going on about, little man?” Zolin asked, rising to the occasion. He never backed down from a fight.

“The Mayan prediction…the end of days.”

Zolin sat back down, straightening his suit jacket. “How can you hold them responsible for an idiotic prediction made eight hundred years ago? Besides the fact it was supposed to happen on the twenty-first of December. It is now the twenty-seventh.”

With Zolin everything was either black or white with no room for anything in between.

“Make them take it back,” Thaddeus shouted at him. “So what if they’re a couple of days off?”

“Predictions don’t work like that, and yes, you’re partially correct,” Alesandro continued. “This does have something to do with the prediction. True, the world did not end on the twenty-first but the other part of the prediction did happen. A portal between the Underworld and the mortal world opened. Lucifer appeared, along with Baron Samedi and Kubol, who I guess are here to take souls back to the Underworld.”

The room exploded with chatter at the mention of the two voodoo Loas.

“So, it’s her fault,” Carlo said pointing to Isabella again. “She caused this.”

“I did not, fat boy,” Isabella said, tired of being accused of everything that went wrong in their lives. “I had nothing to do with this.”

“Then why are you here?” Galen asked.

Isabella turned her attention on the shade. “Because Lucifer seems to think, Alesandro and I might be able to stop this if we can solve his puzzle.”

The ghost eyed her suspiciously. “Why you? There are other female members on the council far more worthy to help Alesandro.”

Was it her imagination or did Galen sound jealous? Isabella eyed Alesandro with contempt. The man did nothing but shrug his shoulders and pretend he didn’t know what was going on with Galen.

“Yes, I’m sure there are but he didn’t come to you or the other women on the council—he chose me. So, we can either sit here and discuss this like rational adults, or we can fight it out to see who gets the pleasure of the prince of the city’s company for the next three days until we die.”

Galen faded quickly.

“Good, that’s settled. Continue Alesandro.” Isabella said.

“Thank you, my Princess. Now, as I was saying, Lucifer has left us with a puzzle. He wants us to find the best and, by best, I mean
good
creature in the world and the worst
evil
creature in the world and get them together.”

“What do you mean, together?” Zolin asked.

“It doesn’t mean putting them together in the same room and the world won’t end. We’re talking about creatures with opposing viewpoints. They have to agree to get along and mean it for the good of mankind.”

Zolin rubbed his chin. “So, we have to find someone good like an angel.”

Isabella shook her head.
Why does every one assume all angels were good? Wasn’t Lucifer an angel?

“Something like that,” Alesandro replied. “I don’t think this creature has to be entirely pure. I’m thinking more on the line of a do-gooder, a defender of justice. Someone who will put the good of the world before his or herself on safety.”

“And the evil one?” Darius asked.

“This is where it gets hard. Whom do you know who can be considered the baddest of bad in this world?”

For some reason all eyes and fingers pointed to him.

Alesandro chuckled. “Come on guys, I’m serious.”

“So are we,” Carlo replied. “You’re very bad.”

Alesandro looked floored. “Really? Am I really so bad? How can you say I’m so bad? I’ve been on my best behavior since coming to the mortal world.”

“Not
before
coming,” Galen said, materializing again. “We heard rumors before you got here. Alesandro, you were a very bad boy.” She paused and wagged her finger at him. “Why else do you think Lucifer appeared to you and not Prince Masakerta or Prince Alta?”

Alesandro thought about what Galen had said and every now and then a tiny smile would appear on his face, like he was remembering some deviant act he’d performed before coming to the mortal world.

For some reason only she seemed privy to his thoughts. Alesandro unconsciously allowed her to view some of his past misdeeds and they weren’t pretty. None of this really surprised her. Isabella knew what kind of monster Alesandro truly was.

Alesandro looked her way and gazed at her through lowered lashes.
“Do not judge me,”
he told her mentally.
“The very same beast rages in you.”

Of course she knew all this to be true.
Why in the hell did he think she wanted the world to end six nights ago?

The only answer he gave her was a raised eyebrow.

To her it was better for her to die than let the mortal world see the other side of her.

“Who would you choose to be the goodie?” Alesandro asked once he’d stopped his perusal of her.

“It has to be someone the complete opposite of Alesandro,” Darius replied. “Someone who hates everything he loves, someone who’d put their life on the line to save the world from him, someone who despised everything he is, was, knows and admires.”

All eyes turned toward Isabella.

Shit.
Down deep, Isabella knew something like this would happen.

Darius chuckled. “That damned Lucifer still has that wicked sense of humor.”