Shadow Rising (14 page)

“Sorcerers?” I jotted the information down.

“Actually, no.” She consulted her notes. “You know, the screwy thing is that most people don’t realize that doppelgangers are part of the Netherworld. They’re not spirits per se, but they are creatures that—when they journey to the
physical realm—need to take the form of a person here. They often just mimic whoever they were last in contact with until the next meal comes along.”

“What happens if they don’t feed?”

“They’ll fade back to the Netherworld after a while. So when they’re summoned here, it will usually be by a necromancer. But when they’re charmed, they appear to their targets as the object of their desire. In other words, if I’d been out there last night, I would have probably seen the creature as Smoky or Trillian or Morio.”

Trillian coughed. “Yeah, that makes me feel better.”

“Could Telazhar have empowered it? But he’s over in Otherworld.” Vanzir stabbed another biscuit with his fork and bit into it.

“Think about it,” I said. “Gulakah was originally from the Netherworld, until he got kicked out. I think the Lord of Ghosts might just be into necromancy in a big way.”

“Fuck…just when you thought it couldn’t get worse…” Rozurial still looked a little pale, but mostly he seemed back to his usual self.

I’d let go of the guilt over last night, and now I just wanted to find the cocksucker who was responsible for charming me into that little episode.

“Yeah. And I have a feeling we’re only probing the surface right now—” The sound of the front door opening put all of us on guard, but then Nerissa’s voice rang out through the hall.

“Honey, I’m home!”

I hit the ground running as Nerissa burst into the kitchen, her tawny mane coiling down her shoulders. She looked tired, and was still in her business suit. My love was striking, statuesque, and her Amazon-like stature exuded a pheromone that drove me nuts.

She dropped her briefcase and held out her arms. I raced over and she caught me up, her soft, lush lips meeting mine. As I melted into her kiss, melted into her love and her passion, for a moment the world was okay, and all the ghosts were driven away.

“I’m so glad you’re safe!” My fears vanished as the warm smell of sugar vanilla filled my senses. I loved how Nerissa smelled—and when I was around her, I did my best to wrap myself in her fragrance because it made me feel loved and at home. Nerissa was still dressed in her suit from the conference—a tweed skirt that stopped three inches above her knees, and a tailored jacket over a baby blue button-down shirt. She had on three-inch spikes, which brought her up to Delilah’s height, making her a foot taller than I was.

I floated up to stare at her eye level, then slowly reached out and kissed her nose. “We have problems. Did Iris tell you what went down?”

Nerissa nodded, sliding her big leather hobo purse to the ground. She shrugged out of her jacket and draped it over an empty chair, then kicked off her heels. “You mean about the ghosts and the doppelganger? Yes.”

“Has anybody strange been hanging around you lately? We’re feeling watched.”

Nerissa stared at me for a moment, then looked around
the room at the mob scene that was our kitchen. She snorted. “Um…you mean anybody stranger than normal?”

“Dork.” I tapped her nose. “Yes.”

Nerissa dropped into the chair, leaning her head back. “I was at a conference with two hundred people. There were bound to be oddballs there, but nobody sticks out in my mind. Give me a few minutes to relax and maybe something will come to mind.”

I leaned down and placed another kiss on her lips, then nuzzled her cheek. “Are you hungry?”

“Yeah, I didn’t stop for anything on the way home. Bellingham is a long drive from here on an empty stomach.” She let out a long sigh and leaned forward, eyeing the table. “Plate, please?”

Hanna handed her a bowl and Nerissa filled it with chili and sprinkled cheese on top, then piled three biscuits on the border. She slid into the empty chair next to Delilah and tucked her napkin in her shirt collar. Nerissa had expensive tastes and she was wearing a designer silk shirt—there was no way she was going to chance spilling anything greasy on it.

As she began to shovel the food in her mouth—my girl liked to eat—I glanced at the clock. “There’s a Vampires Anonymous meeting tonight. I have to go. Honey, I know you’re tired, but Roman wants…he asked if you’d come with me.”

Nerissa tore her gaze away from her food to stare at me for a moment, but I kept my mouth shut and gave her a short shake of the head. I didn’t want to discuss Roman’s obsession with watching the two of us in front of everybody. I’d fill her in before we left, in private.

I looked around at the others. “Delilah, Camille…would you and Morio and Smoky come with us? Last night I met Roman on the Dream-Time and he said he’d ask around about Andrees. With any luck, he might have some information for us tonight.”

Nerissa groaned. “I hoped we could just stay home.” I winced as she added, “But since you have to go, of course I’ll come with you. Let me take a quick shower first, after I eat, and change into something more comfortable.”

“Don’t show too much skin,” I muttered.

She snorted. “Right, go to a VA meeting decked out for clubbing? I don’t think so.” And then, before I could say anything, she plunged back into her food.

After a moment, she stopped. “You know, the convention had a lot of people there but I did notice something, now that I think about it. There was one man—the first day I was there, every time I turned around, he seemed to be staring at me, but I didn’t think anything of it. Guys do that to me. But when I think about it, he was at every meeting I had that day. I can’t remember much about him except that he seemed nondescript. He wore glasses, had short hair, average height. About my age. If anything, he made me think of a librarian, but I was so busy focusing on the speakers that I didn’t really pay much attention.”

“Did he ever speak to you?” Morio leaned in. “Did he touch you? Touch anything you were carrying?”

Nerissa spooned another bite of chili into her mouth and tapped her biscuit on the side of her plate as she thought. “You know, now that I think about it, he did. There was one point later in the day, where I got into the elevator and he crowded in, too. It was full—there must have been ten people in there—and he scooted next to me and then, he lurched a little and caught himself on my shoulder. He apologized, and I didn’t think anything of it, except that I was glad he hadn’t grabbed my butt.”

“Ten to one, he’s spying on us and was scoping you out.” Morio glanced over at Shade. “They’ll be gathering as much info on us as we are on them.
They
being Gulakah’s forces.”

“I think you’re right,” Shade said. He turned to Nerissa. “You say you only saw him the first day of the conference?”

“Yes. I guess I thought he was only there one day. Like I said, I would never have noticed him if he hadn’t been around me so much. In fact, I thought it was odd that he didn’t introduce himself.” She polished off her food and Hanna carried the bowl to the counter.

“He probably wanted to make sure you weren’t meeting with other allies there. After the first day, he probably figured out it was just a conference, and not some clandestine
plot.” Shade leaned forward, resting on his elbows as he folded his hands together.

“You’re probably right. Why do you think he was watching me?”

“Because you’re aligned with us. You’re Menolly’s fiancée.” Shade paused. “But he had to know enough about you and Nerissa to know she’d be at the conference.”

I frowned. “Good observation. Who knew you were attending?”

She shrugged. “A lot of people. Everybody at the FH-CSI. You guys all knew. And a number of my friends. And of course, the conference organizers and anybody who had access to the attendee list.”

“Hard to trace through, then.” I was about to suggest Camille try scrying when the doorbell rang. Since everybody else was busy eating, I answered it. Lindsey Cartridge stood on the porch. By the looks of her flat tummy, she’d had her baby.

“Lindsey—we haven’t seen you in several months. Come on in.”

Lindsey was the director of the Green Goddess Women’s Shelter for battered women, and she was also the high priestess of an FBH pagan coven of witches. While the magic of full-blooded humans differed greatly from magic like my sister and Morio used, it was still be a powerful force, and Lindsey was an advanced practitioner.

“I didn’t mean to interrupt your meal,” she said as I led her into the kitchen. In the brightness of the overhead lighting, she looked tired. In fact, I’d never seen her looking so worn out.

“No problem.” Camille jumped up. “Here, sit down.” She motioned to the rocking chair. “Are you all right? I heard you had your baby—how’s everything going?”

Lindsey smiled and gratefully sank into the chair. “Everything at home is fine. Little Feddrika is growing like a weed. She’s almost two months old now and is healthy and happy.”

“Little
Feddrika
?” I grinned at her, making sure my fangs were reined in. I didn’t like intimidating friends.

“Yes.” Lindsey ducked her head, a silly grin on her face.
“I sincerely hope that Feddrah-Dahns doesn’t mind, but we kind of named our daughter after him since he provided the charm that helped me get pregnant.”

The fact that she’d named her daughter after a unicorn prince made me laugh. It just seemed so par for the course in our life. I clapped her lightly on the shoulder. “I don’t think he’d mind. Do you, Camille?”

Camille had the same grin on her face. “No, Feddrah-Dahns would be pleased, and we’ll tell him next time we see him. But what brings you here on such a rainy night? I get the impression this isn’t a social call.”

I had the same feeling, and a quiet sense of dread began to slip over me.

Lindsey hung her head. I could hear her pulse racing, and the scent of fear rose off her like a wisp of smoke. The smell of fear was a turn-on to a vampire, and it spurred on the hunger. But this time, it did nothing for me. Lindsey wasn’t afraid of us. No, there was something else provoking her fight-or-flight response.

I decided blunt was better than tact in this case. “What’s going on, Lindsey? I can smell your worry across the room.”

She leaned back, resting against the headrest on the rocking chair. “I’m not sure, but there’s something wrong. I can tell you that. I’m not sure how to describe it…”

“Start from the beginning.” Smoky pushed back his chair. “That’s usually the easiest.”

I shook my head. The dragon could sometimes be a lunkhead, but he meant well. “Smoky’s right, Lindsey. Just tell us the best you can.”

Trillian and Hanna began to clear the table. Maggie let out a wail from Iris’s room and Bruce went in to tend to her. He had a way with the gargoyle that none of us had expected and had taken over helping care for her.

“As I said, I had my baby a couple of months ago. I took about eight weeks off from leading the coven—three before having Feddrika, and five after—but they look to me for guidance and I decided it was time to take up the reins again. So…it was about three weeks ago that I started attending meetings again.”

She paused to accept a cup of tea from Trillian, and a peanut butter cookie as he brought the tray to the table. “Thank you. I’ve been craving sugar lately and I don’t know why. I never ate much of it before.”

“Hormones?” Iris asked from the sink, where she was scraping plates and filling the dishwasher.

“No, I don’t think so. Lack of energy. Which is a part of my story.” Lindsey frowned as she bit into the cookie. “Okay, here’s the best way I can describe matters. I came back to the coven, feeling okay. I mean, postpartum is hard, and yes, I’m tired from the baby and pregnancy and feedings, but the minute I took up leadership again, my energy began to vanish and I know it’s not related to hormones, though everybody keeps saying it has to be. I checked with my naturopath and she says my hormones are right where they should be for this point. Also, I began to notice the same thing about my coven-mates.”

Good. Lindsey had done all the practical things, which she should have. Now she was coming to us. Trouble was, we sure didn’t have all the answers.

“Do you have any thoughts on what’s happening?”

“I don’t know,” she said. “Even the strongest members of our coven, those who were always the most energetic, are hard pressed to muster up enough energy to charge the candles for ritual. We’ve been meeting the past three weeks as usual, but there’s no…
oomph
there. And what’s worse is that no one in the group besides me seems to give a damn. Maybe they’re all too tired to care.”

“I suppose I could try scrying for an answer.” Camille was fairly good when it came to divination.

Lindsey let out a soft shrug. “I hope you have more luck than me. I did a reading, but my cards are wonky and won’t talk to me the way they usually do. And my cards
always
talk to me. I’m worried and I wasn’t sure where to go for advice. So I thought I’d come here and ask you.”

This was more Camille’s territory. I motioned to her. “Any ideas?”

Camille played with her cookie, breaking it in half and then dropping the pieces on the saucer. She looked perplexed.
“Do you know if this started in your absence, or around the time when you came back?”