Blood and Kisses (18 page)

Thalia
, Spirit said slowly.
I’d ask what happened while I was asleep, but I can tell just by looking at you. Your cheeks are whisker-burned, and the neckline of your shirt is stretched out of shape.
His voice was gentle. A tear escaped her control, meandering down her cheek.

Spirit jumped down from the sofa and licked her hand.
A lot has happened. I know you feel sad and alone, but you can’t let him take advantage of your vulnerability.

Thalia laughed through her tears. “It was the other way around. I practically begged him to make love to me. Believe me, he doesn’t want me.”

Spirit gave her a long, assessing look. “If you say so.”

It was almost two in the morning when they pulled up into Mina Shaw’s narrow driveway, but they were expected.

Mina’s Federal-style brick house dominated its small lot, much as its occupant dominated the witch community. A cluster of winged insects fluttered around the porch light.

Thalia was not looking forward to the coming confrontation. She felt much like the insects throwing themselves at the light, condemned to follow an internal imperative she couldn’t understand. Her stomach lurched. Being the Champion was a tough job, but it was the only thing she knew. It defined her. What would she do if they called for her resignation?

She, Spirit, and Gideon got out of the car. The car doors thumped softly in turn as they slammed shut, muffled by the humid night air. In the distance, a raccoon called to his brothers. Crickets cheeped rhythmically in the garden, and even as late as it was, a low intermittent hum could be heard from the nearby highway.

The centrally located front door opened and a small shape was silhouetted against the light flooding from inside the home.

Thalia swallowed. She felt a powerful urge to run back to the car. To say she wasn’t looking forward to this confrontation was an understatement.

“Come in, dears.” Mina greeted Thalia and Spirit pleasantly, as if they were there for Sunday dinner. She examined Gideon with interest in her shrewd brown eyes as he crossed the threshold. “So this is the vampire, hmm?” Her eyes were surrounded by wrinkles, the whites yellowed, but they were still bright and perceptive. Dressed to the nines as always, she wore a sleeveless sheath dress of lilac linen, covered by a lace jacket of the same color, dyed to match pumps, and amethyst and diamond earrings in her ears.

Mina guided them into her generous living room, redolent with the scent of Murphy’s Oil Soap and freshly baked chocolate chip cookies. She took a seat in a leather wingback chair and waved them onto an elegant Victorian-era green velvet sofa, with a knitted afghan draped over the back. The delicate piece of furniture sighed ominously beneath Gideon, but held. “I was surprised when you called me, my dear. I had heard you were searching for Lily’s killer, but I can’t imagine what help I can be.” A chilled pitcher of lemonade sat on a teak sideboard next to a plate of cookies, and as she spoke, Mina filled a tall, frosted glass with the beverage, and handed it to Gideon. She then set two cookies on a small plate, placed a napkin beneath it and passed that to Gideon. Looking a bit bemused, Gideon balanced the plate on his knee.

Increasingly tense as Mina performed these small niceties, and consumed by the feeling they might dance around the truth all night, Thalia went on the attack. “I know about the meeting, Mina.”

The other woman paused in the act of filling a second glass, then finished her task and handed it to Thalia. “Heath felt a meeting was called for and so did I. And now that Kimmy’s dead...”

“I can’t believe that you, of all people, are plotting behind my back. You were my mother’s best friend.” Thalia struggled to stay calm, but she felt like she might be ill. Mina had been like a grandmother to her when she’d been growing up. The older woman’s doubts cut her to the bone.

Mina sighed, her eyes full of regret. “The danger that faces us is bigger than any one person. This isn’t personal. I had a vision and I’m obligated to share it with the community.”

“Why didn’t you come to me?”

Mina’s eyes flicked to Gideon, then back to Thalia. “Let me tell you about my vision. I think it will explain my actions. In the vision, I see you alone in the pitch dark. You have a white candle. It flickers. At times burning brightly and then becoming only a spark. The shadows around you encroach and retreat as the flame grows and shrinks. Behind you looms a monster, covered with the blood of innocents. Bodies litter the ground beneath its feet. It kills you.” Mina closed her eyes, as if this part of the vision pained her. “The candle falls and sets fire to the city, destroying it.”

“I have tried to find some other explanation, but I can only interpret the vision one way. The candle represents your power. The monster is the evil that recent omens have foretold. Probably this rogue you pursue. It will steal your power and use it to consume the world.” She smiled deprecatingly. “Or at least our little corner of it.”

Thalia sat for a moment in shocked silence, then shook her head. “How is this possible? Even if someone could steal my power, I’m not strong enough to endanger the world.”

Mina looked grave. “There’s no telling what this . . .being is, but you are the last of the Champions here. Perhaps your power mixed with its own will somehow increase its potency. I don’t know, but my visions have always been extremely reliable.”

Thalia paced to the massive brick fireplace, the focal point of the room, to maintain control. “So, what? You expect me to just step aside and let someone else take over?” Being the Champion had been the one sure thing in her life and now she felt as if she stood on the edge of a cliff that was crumbling beneath her feet.

She turned back toward Mina, who said nothing. “I couldn’t, even if I wanted to. The victims are all people who knew me. We don’t even know if this rogue vampire has anything to do with your vision.” Thalia took a deep breath. Even
she
thought that sounded like denial.

Where to go from here? She wasn’t sure she wanted to share her mother’s prophecy. They would probably use that against her as well.
Could you be anymore selfish
? People are dying. People with friends and family. People like Lily. Mina was a powerful witch. She might have information they could use.

Mina got to her feet and took Thalia by the hands. “I know there’s something you want to tell me. Please, don’t hold back.”

Thalia exhaled. For Lily.

She handed her mother’s grimoire to the older woman and opened the page to the prophecy. After Mina read it, Thalia told her about their visit to Ursula Grant.

Mina nodded slowly. “I’m afraid this just confirms my vision. I do think that it would be best for the community, if you were to step down.”

Thalia made a tiny sound she hoped Mina couldn’t hear. She felt as if she’d been eviscerated, her insides ripped from her body and spilled on the floor.

“Bullshit.”

Thalia and Mina swiveled to confront Gideon, who had come to his feet, leaving Spirit alone in the middle of the sofa.

“You people have no right to ask this of her. I’ve only known Thalia for a short time, but I’ve heard the stories. This isn’t the first time she’s put her life on the line for you. She’s given her all for your precious community and what do you give her in return? This—this betrayal? No. She
should
leave you to your fate. You don’t deserve her devotion, but it isn’t in her to abandon what she believes is her duty.”

Thalia bit her lip. She was both embarrassed and deeply grateful for his words. That he would defend her in the face of all evidence, warmed her, made her feel less isolated.

Mina drew herself up to her full height of barely five feet. “I have only Thalia’s best interests at heart.”

Gideon’s right eyebrow flew up, a raven slash in his saturnine face. “Prove it.”

Gideon awoke in his bed around mid-morning to a powerful sensation of danger.

Outside he could hear cars turning into his driveway. He gauged where the sun would be and pressed the button to lift the shutters, exposing his unexpected visitors.

Police.

Neferet stumbled, exhausted. The broad back of Pharaoh’s mysterious guest bobbed unwaveringly in front of her in the light of the full moon. The moon seemed to taunt her with its cool indifference, turning the vast undulating desert before her into an endless inland sea. She trudged ahead, her head hanging, concentrating on his back and putting one foot in front of the other.

They’d been walking all night. The stars near the horizon were beginning to disappear, yielding to the opaque gray of pre-dawn.

He spoke to her for the first time. “Stay here.” He held up a hand and she halted, lifting her head. They’d entered a small settlement, a cluster of mud-brick buildings nestled in a rocky outcropping.

He strode to the largest dwelling and disappeared inside. Several minutes later he returned, followed by a hastily dressed older man and a woman about the same age.

“This is Siamun and Ankhmutes. They have agreed to take you in as a favor to me.”

The woman came forward and took Neferet’s hands in hers. She had a wide friendly face, and her eyes shone like obsidian behind eyelids folded by the broadness of her smile. “You are free, my dear, and we are happy to have you. We were not blessed with children and truly it is a favor to us if you would stay.”

Reeling with fatigue, she smiled and nodded, unable to reconcile the sudden change in her fate. The stranger turned to go.

“Wait.” Neferet couldn’t stop herself from calling out. He paused and inclined his head toward her. “When will I see you again?”

“You won’t. I will not pass this way again.”

She didn’t want to hurt Siamun and Ankhmutes, but she felt a strange and powerful connection to this man. The thought of him leaving was suddenly unbearable. “Take me with you.”

His glorious voice was gentle, but unyielding. “I’m sorry. I walk a path no one can follow.” And with that, he left her.

Gideon woke Thalia with a gentle shake. “What is it?” She rubbed eyes that were oddly damp. “What’s going on?”

“The police are here to arrest me.”

“Arrest you?” She threw back the comforter, revealing a short nightgown made of some sort of silky lavender material. He took a deep breath as she slid out of bed. The hem rode up, exposing her smooth legs. Spaghetti straps highlighted the creamy skin of her bare shoulders. He swallowed and marshaled his thoughts.

“They think I attacked Cole and Poole.”

She gasped.

He turned, giving her privacy to dress.

“Can’t you
convince
them otherwise?” He heard the distinctive sound of denim as she pulled up a pair of jeans.

He shook his head. “There’s too many. At night I’d take the chance. But during the day I can’t risk it. They might somehow force me into the sun. For now, it’s better if we run.”

Downstairs, he heard the police lining up on the front step. It would be only a matter of seconds before they forced open the door. Finally, he heard her slip on her shoes.

“Come on.” He grabbed her small hand and dragged her back through his room and into the large walk-in-closet. He pressed a piece of quarter-round molding with the toe of his shoe and a small panel opened in the back. He glanced over his shoulder at her pale, tense face. “It locks when you bar the hall door.” He answered her unspoken question.

He ducked inside, turning sideways to squeeze his broad frame into the passage without scraping his skin. He could feel the heat from Thalia’s body as she followed close behind. The door clicked shut. He peered back at her. She was watching her feet, and he realized the tunnel must be almost pitch-black to her mortal eyes.