Vampire in Chaos (14 page)

Lamar cried out in fear as if the Ghost was going to come and get him personally.

“Yes,” Tessa said, “And Deanna.”

Excitedly, with Cody interjecting when she missed a point, she told them what had happened to them.

David, still standing on the second stair, stared down at her. “Really? So that really old vampire we found already dying was her husband?” At her nod, he whispered, “Holy crap.”

“She immediately knew it would have been Tyson that had attacked him.”

When his father was quiet, too quiet, David glanced over at Serus to see him staring at Tessa, a really odd look on his face.

“And Deanna talked to you?”

Tessa nodded. “Yes.” When he didn’t say anything, she asked, “Why?”

He shook his head in wonderment. “She doesn’t speak with many, and even then she only speaks with the elders.”

“There were no elders there.” Tessa shrugged. “Besides, she seemed to think I have some of her genetics in my blood.”

Serus frowned. “Some, but I doubt much. You must have caught her on a good day. She is one of the most powerful vamps of all time, and very cranky.”

“She’s also dying,” Tessa said.

“But is she?” Cody glanced over at her. “She’s old, but do you really think she’s dying?” His voice said he was doubtful.

David wished he’d seen her. Met her. She was a legend in her own right. “She likely still has another century or two left in her,” he scoffed.

Tessa stared at him. “No, I’d say days.”

“And you’d know this how?” Serus asked.

Silence.

“I don’t know. Something about her energy. It didn’t look…right?” She shrugged. “Not sure how to explain it. But it’s like the energy was fading. Not black like the energy of the enhanced, I saw no sign of that, more like a dying out. As if she was done. Inside and out.”

“She doesn’t want to live now that her husband is gone, that’s for sure, but I wouldn’t count her out,” Cody said.

“No, I’m not,” Tessa said. “She has something she wants to do. Something she needs to do, and it’s not revenge, but when she’s done, I suspect she will die.”

“She’s a tough old bird.” Serus snorted. “It will take a lot to kill her off.”

“Maybe,” Tessa admitted. “Her Ghost was as ancient a being as I’ve ever seen, too.”

“And that’s a second very odd fact,” Serus said, “I’m not sure I’ve seen a Ghost in many a century.”

“I never have,” David said.

“I got the impression they were rare now,” Cody said.

“And I got the impression he was in fact the last one.” Tessa said. “He’s supposed to meet us outside. Show us the headquarters the humans involved in the blood farm used. But…” she looked around. “I’m not sure where he is.”

The stranger started to shake. “If a Ghost is coming, I don’t want to be anywhere around here.”

“And why is that?” Serus growled, squeezing the man’s neck.

“He’ll kill me,” the vamp cried.

“So will my father,” David said calmly, “So what’s the difference?”

The man started to shriek loudly. Serus sighed and shifted his grip. Instantly the vamp went limp and silent.

“Should have done that in the first place,” he muttered. He glanced over at David. “Let’s go, son, you can lead off.”

Out of the darkness came a long hollow cry. “No. You must not go up there.”

*

Rhia woke slowly.
It seemed to be all she did these days, waking up and trying to assimilate her surroundings with her pothole memory banks. Still, she came to faster and more alert than she could remember doing in a while. Thank heavens. She had a lessening of the brain fog she’d been fighting. She thought about her son Seth, wondering what she could possibly have done to him. She understood she’d done it for his own good – but what did that mean? Especially in her drug–induced mental state. And where had she sent him, if she’d sent him anywhere? Maybe she only thought she had done so. Maybe he was still in whatever was left of the blood farms – like the hospital. That made her sick to her stomach. How could she have trusted those doctors? She lay back down on her bed. Her mind swelled with confused memories. Had she trusted them? She must have. She’d been there. Gitorria and Rosha had both been there earlier. They must have trusted the men too. Was her family in on this? Who could possibly have drugged her again – and how?

She hadn’t eaten anything or drank anything that she knew of.

It boggled the mind to think she’d been so susceptible.

So vulnerable that she’d have been slipped more drugs.

It made her sad.

And it really made her angry.

*

Jared stared out
the doorway to the now–empty hallway. Should he sneak downstairs and try to help the kid? Did he even know which boy it was? He’d thought from that quick glance that it was Tobias, but had it really been him?

He turned to look down the other end. He cast his mind over the bedrooms to the side and mentally tried to match up the glimpse he’d caught to the kids he knew here. Then he realized that the door at the end of the hallway was open. That was Tobias’s room. He was sick but getting better. At least that’s what Clarissa had said last night. Was that only last night? He hoped so. The days were all mixed up. He couldn’t remember what day it was or what date it was. But Tobias had been in good shape last night when he’d seen him.

He had to make sure. He tiptoed down the hallway to Tobias’s room. And found it empty, the blankets tossed to the floor.

Confused, Jared wondered if the boy had any medical treatments happening at nighttime.

Damn it. He walked quietly to the top of the stairs and cocked an ear. There were voices talking quietly downstairs. So now what? He crept down a few stairs, hoping to hear things. But the sounds were no clearer. He crept lower to the corner and peered around. He could see the manager talking to another man he didn’t recognize. There was no sign of Tobias. He couldn’t go any lower without being seen.

Tilting his head, he waited, trying to hear the conversation.

“Tonight…”

“Delayed…”

“Not sure this is a good idea…”

“Bosses don’t care. He’s not sick, and the kid’s not…”

Jared tried so hard to hear…he’s not what? But he couldn’t hear anything else. The two men moved further away. He thought about the layout of the downstairs and figured they’d likely gone to the office. But where was the kid? He had to find him.

At the bottom stair, it hit him. What was he going to do if he did find Tobias? If he was unconscious, Jared was hardly going to be able to carry him away. And neither could he do much against the manager and his cohort in crime. But damn it, he had to do something. The kid could be taken anywhere and they’d never know.

The voices rose in anger.

“I understand that, but we promised them a quota.”

Quota? As in needing to supply a certain number of what? And then he knew. Bile rose up his throat, threatening to choke him.

They had to supply a quota for the blood farm.

T
essa turned at
the raspy sound of the Ghost’s voice. “Where should we go then?”

“I will take you to the other exit.”

She started forward and stopped when her father grabbed her arm. “Who speaks?”

Silence.

Tessa whispered loud enough for her group to hear but hopefully not loud enough for the Ghost. “He’s the one we told you about.”

Her father let her arm drop. She watched as he peered into the darkness. “I can’t see him.”

“I think that’s the point,” David said in a low voice.

Tessa strode forward. “Hortran, why shouldn’t we go up?”

“They are waiting for you.”

“Ah, that whole camera thing.” Cody caught up to Tessa. “Makes sense.”

“Hey, I wasn’t looking forward to going up those stairs again anyway,” muttered David. “If you can’t fly, walking would be a bitch.”

“There is another way, but you must hurry,” the voice called back, faint and distant. Tessa groaned. “You guys have no idea what it’s like to follow Hortran. David, the stairs will start to look mighty good in a few moments.”

Cody laughed and took off. Tessa, already knowing what was to come, took long springing steps to keep up with him, but not so fast she couldn’t stop if she saw a wall coming.

She focused on keeping the Ghost’s faint energy trail in front of her. As usual, he was so far ahead he was hard to see.

“Can you still see him?” Cody asked.

“Yes, he’s still ahead.”

“Who is this guy?” David asked from behind. “How can he possibly move like that?”

Tessa was about to explain when her father did. She looked at him to make sure he wasn’t getting as tired as she was, not surprised to see him jumping in long lean graceful steps, the unconscious vampire over his shoulders.

“The Ghosts were known for being the best hunters. Their speed and ability to disappear into the surroundings is what gave them their name.”

“Then if they were so good, why aren’t there more of them?” David asked.

“There were never many of them to begin with. They were so good at what they did, all their genetics went into their skill rather than in another generation.”

“And now they are almost all gone.”

“A dying breed, like many other genetic traits,” Cody said. “Deanna said something about him being wanted by the blood farm people.”

“Of course,” her father said, “with those genetics, they could make vampires move faster than ever, and the ability to disappear like they do would be tempting for any vampire.”

“If he’s the last one…”

“Even if he’s not, he’s the only one I’ve seen in over a century.”

Tessa hated to think that Hortran’s people were all gone. “He was with Deanna. Friend, mentor, or slave, I don’t know, but there was no question he was loyal to her and her alone.”

“Then let’s hope she’s friendly with you and Cody as this Ghost has the ability to kill you just by walking past you. Something to do with his energy.”

“Energy?” Tessa’s steps slowed. Deanna never had explained that aspect. “He works energy?”

“I’m not sure how he does it.” Serus laughed but it was grim, hollow. “Maybe similar to what you’ve been doing lately with your slicing movement.”

Tessa wondered. “If he does, I’d really like to talk to him about that.”

Her head filled with Deanna’s voice.
He won’t talk to you. He won’t talk to anyone but me.

Is he not the one that called us to follow him?

Yes, but he won’t speak of other things.

Can you help? Ask him to speak to me about his ancestors. I can do so much, but I don’t know why and what else there might be yet to learn,
Tessa cried in her head. She hoped no one else understood that she was speaking telepathically to Deanna – especially Cody. If he understood, he might try to stop her. Still, having a conversation with Cody and Deanna was next to impossible. She gently closed the door to Cody. She recognized the confused glance he sent her, but she wasn’t about to stop and explain.

You should keep that door closed. Don’t be so open, so vulnerable that you can be attacked
.

Cody would never attack me,
Tessa said.
I know he wouldn’t.