3 Hit the Road Jack (21 page)

My eyes widened of their own accord. “Ok! So Al, you and the guys were tapping into the cameras around the city. Anything else? What have you found?”

“Nothing so far. We haven’t seen anything out of the ordinary or caught any suspicious behavior. We set up this computer over here to alert us if anyone tries to dial out on a scrambled line so we’ll be able to tap into it and hopefully decode it in time. We’ve scouted the local hang outs to try
and visit
tonight.”

“Which reminds me!” I pulled out my phone and text John. ‘Anything yet?’

He immediately replied. ‘You’re a mind reader. On my way to Cardiff right now with the intel. You have a Judas in your group.’

I paled the second I read it. I looked around the room. The only person I didn’t fully trust, but believed he wouldn’t betray me still was Will.

“What’s wrong Lexi?” Al asked, looking up from the computer screen at me. I passed him my phone. He quickly returned it to me. “We’ll talk about it later.” I nodded. We couldn’t change what was heard or known; we’d just have to be extra cautious. Even the door alarms didn’t work with Jack’s group before. They somehow threw off every piece of technology; my necklace was a complete waste around them but worked fine when I tested it on the way to the airport.

Having a leak was huge though. It meant regardless of where we went, how well prepared we were, Jack would still have the upper hand.

“Last time we had the most success being out there, not cooped up in a room staring at computer screens and cell phones. Let’s go grab something to eat, walk around the city, eavesdrop; then we’ll hit a few clubs and parties later tonight.”

“Finally we get to the good stuff,” Craig
exclaimed, leaping up
off the bed
and heading toward the door.

“Wait up. I need to check on Kellan. He was supposed to meet us in here.” I started walking towards the door but turned back. “Everyone meet in the lobby i
n
five. Does that sound ok?”

They nodded, only somewhat listening, as they began talking amongst themselves. Al and Will were talking animatedly with Aunt Claire about what’d happened so far. Will and she instantly connected on their in
depth knowledge of basically my present and future life.
I shrugged, catching up with Craig.

“Mugger buggers!” Craig exclaimed, zipping off in a heartbeat.

My heart pounded in my chest at the sight before us. Kellan and Kai were nose to nose, their chests puffed out; Kalel was nowhere to be seen. I heard no words exchanged though silently they were stabbing each other; their eyes were narrowed like daggers pointing straight at their opponent.

“Hey now! Let’s not get our tizzles in
a
nizzle. Hey! I sound like snoop there it is doggy dog. Woof! Woof!” Craig laughed awkwardly, which was odd for him as he forced himself between the two of them.

I stood back, frozen in place. I wasn’t angry or sad; I was almost numb. All this was about ego. That’s it. I was a prize to them; a prize to fight over. I wished I could crawl back into my fat suit so I didn’t have to deal with it. Perhaps I was being melodramatic and petty, but I felt cheap. Seeing this cheapened the act to me. I loved him; I always will, but I didn’t want to be in the middle of a pissing match.

The feeling began to return to my limbs. I swallowed the depression trying to rear its nasty head and, as nonchalantly as possible, walked past them both and straight to the elevators. Thank God I had grabbed my wallet and cell on my way to Kalel’s room earlier. I needed some fresh air; a moment away from it all. I’d taken a huge step in my life a little bit ago and the last thing I
wanted was to feel bad about
in anyway. I knew I didn’t regret it, but I didn’t want any hint of a negative connotation surrounding it; and that’s exactly what the guys were creating.

I stopped short finding Kalel in the lobby speaking to John.

“Didn’t you just say you were on your way to Cardiff?”

He looked up at me, shrugged nonchalantly. “The plane hadn’t landed yet; technicality.” He sounded a bit Nordic at the moment.

I looked around for his luggage, but didn’t spot any. When our eyes met again, his nose was scrunched, head cocked slightly. He definitely smelled the difference. He raised a questioning brow when I didn’t volunteer any information.

I sighed. “I’m going to go for a walk. Just text me when everyone’s ready to go and I’ll head back.”

“Damn. Was it that bad?”

I shook my head. “What do you mean?”

He switched to a Japanese accent now. “It is man’s job to please the woman. If he fails; all will know. A happy woman is a satisfied woman, and you do not seem happy.”

I tensed at his suggestion. I wished I could hide my scent; wash it away. I hated the fact that everyone knew the moment I walked into the room. I hated the fact that they all had to point it out. What happened to my privacy? For once, I missed the company of humans. No one would have been the wiser in that group unless I offered up the information.

I turned
about-
face and headed out the door seeking freedom. I was weary and weak; vulnerable. I needed to toughen up. I needed to get a grip. I couldn’t walk around with my emotions on my sleeve around Jack and his crew. I was already seeing a strong difference between myself and the vampires I spent most of my time with. I was clearly the vampeen in the group; the most human of them, and I no longer felt comfortable with that.

As I hit the pavement outside, I walked towards the marina. A shiver ran through me. When we’d arrived in Cardiff, the weather was a manageable thirty six degrees Fahrenheit; it’d definitely taken a nose dive in the hours that’d passed.

I tried not to think of anything as I strolled. I needed to let go of what was going on in my personal life and focus on this mission. Any sort of distractions were unnecessary and dangerous. That’s how vamps get you; they hit when you least expect it and when you’re the most vulnerable. Basically when they feel like they could easily overpower you. In my case, a distracted mind or a heavy heart was a death dart.

It didn’t take me long to reach the marina. I immediately felt at peace; it reminded me of downtown Charleston. Boats were lined along wooden piers, tied to their docking stations. I didn’t see many fishermen, only a few men in many layers of well warn winter ensembles going the opposite way.

Without realizing it, I found myself walking down a dock. The boats ranged from upscale mini yachts to economy sized fishing boats and even a few speed boats. The one that stood out was a
weathered
, dilapidated shack of a house boat. The boats bow was rusted metal, corroded by the salt water; the actual house portion was crackling wood that I was surprised hadn’t rotted through. There was little to no finish left on the eye soar.

Perhaps its single redeeming quality was how quaint it felt. Odd pots and spoons and shells hung on nails dotting the peripheral. An old yellowish-white and faded red circular flotation device hung to the right of the door; the kind see
n
on every boat as the lone life raft you toss out to rescue a stray.

Suddenly the door flung open and an older man with a long grey beard, weathered face and tattered sweats walked out. I leapt back, unsure of when I’d crept up so close to the vehicle.

“I thought I smelled you. Come on in.” He waved his hand towards the door, walking through without a look back. I looked around the harbor to see if perhaps he was talking about someone else. “Don’t doddle! I haven’t got the years you do,” he grumbled.

Years I do? He knows. But how?

Curiosity got the best of me.
Every horror film that depicted a single white female walking onto a boat with a strange lone male lurking about always ended with the female dead, yet I followed obediently.
For some reason I felt safe. I couldn’t fathom why, but my body didn’t react to him. No serum rose
;
no panic produced sweat or heart palpitations.

The moment you walked inside, to the left was the shining glory of the boat: the captain’s cockpit. The brass wheel still looked brand new as if it’d been shined daily. The nozzles and controls surround
ing
it were still a crisp black. Beyond this single area though, everything else resembled the outside. It was a straight shot from the steer to the twin bed with a one wall kitchen and a half table with two weak chairs.

More eclectic charm was poured into the space inside though with
a
rust
ed
aluminum
can
wind chime h
anging
over the tiny porthole above the kitchen’s extremely shallow sink. The scratched cupboards
,
having seen their better days
,
were obviously once a soft buttercup to
play off
the cornflower laminate counter top. There wasn’t much to the space, yet it was the special touches of random paraphernalia that made it feel inviting.

“Well don’t just stand there, take a seat. I’m afraid I don’t have any blood, but would you like a glass of water?”

It was a struggle not to stand open mouthed gawking at him, but I managed to nod my head politely on my way to the closest chair.

“How do you know?”

“My too
-
many
-
greats
-
to
-
mention grandfather predicted you. He left a copy of his journal to his last born descendent when he died. It was eventually passed down to me.” He set a glass of water in front of me before pulling out the adjacent chair. He grunted and groaned
dramatically
as he sat down, his joints sounded as if there were impacted with fluid and swollen
, yet were limber at the same time
.

I glanced around the tiny space once more finding something new each time despite my vamp vision. Everything was neat yet cluttered at the same time. “How long have you lived here?”

“The last thirty-seven years. It was always a dream of mine to own a houseboat and sail around the world with it. Of course one of these things will set you back three mortgages just for the waterproof belly,” he chuckled, the sarcasm light on his tongue.

“Where are you from?”

“Long Island; of course it wasn’t what it is today when I was
a
lad.”

“How did you end up here?”

“You.”

“You sailed across the Atlantic just for me?” I asked, unable to hold ba
ck
how stunned I was.

“Climb down off your high horse young lady. I’ve been this side of the Atlantic for a while, but it was my gramp’s journal that lured me this way; particularly your role.” He chugged a good bit of water, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. “So where’s the fella?”

“Back at the hotel,” I replied hesitantly. For a human, he certainly knew an awful lot about me, journal or not, which didn’t settle well given my current circumstances. “I, uh, should probably be getting back to him.”

He studied me for a good long minute before shrugging. “Suit yourself, but you’ll be back if you do leave now.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Because you’re curious. You don’t know what possessed you to come down here and particularly come to my home. You also know that I’m more than meets the eye.”

“How can you smell me?”

“I’m what they call a sensitive; always have been. All my senses are heightened like a vamp’s, but my mind is keener. I have the patience to read people, not just smell their fear.”

“Do emotions really have their own scent?”

“It’s minimally different; I’ve become attuned. Right now you’re leery of me still despite what I’ve shared; a bit frustrated and worried. I have a pretty good idea why from the journal, but what the hell. What’s going on in your world right now?” He stood, taking his now empty cup to the sink for more water.

I waited for the serum to rise, for my hair to stand on end or for my gut instinct to lead me away, but alas my body remained tranquil despite my racing mind. He knew so much, but didn’t reveal anything. He hinted and riddled, but didn’t tell or dispel.

“Why are we meeting? What’s the point of me being here?”

He nearly fell into the chair, its legs squeaking under the pressure even though he couldn’t have weighed more than one-fifty.

“There’s a bit of spunk in you after all I guess,” he stated.

My brows furrowed as I tried to read him. I didn’t understand why I was destined to meet him.

“Stop analyzing me,” he snapped.

I blushed slightly. “Sorry.”

I wrapped my arms around myself as a draft crept in through a few cracks along the walls. “Don’t you have a heater in here?”

“Used to. It crapped out a long time ago. Usually this time of year I head down towards the equator so I don’t freeze my tail off, but I had an appointment I couldn’t miss.” He looked pointedly at me. He frowned, the lines in his cheeks and feathered lips deepening.

“What?”