Odyssey (The Vampire Destiny Series Companion Book 1) (28 page)

I answered back with the same questioning tone.
“Josephine.”

“
You need to talk to me.  I have no idea what's going on.  Your vision has black spots and blurs.  What does that mean?”

Automatically tensing at her mental intrusion into my thoughts, I reacted harshly.  “
You need to stay out of my mind, vackra.”

“
Really, Stefan? Hello, pot and kettle.  Have you met?  You're inside my mind constantly.  Explain the 'variables', please.”

She was feeling spunky and my eyebrow arched at her humorous mockery.  “
There are things that I cannot see.  If a person involved changes their mind, it changes the vision.  You know this, Josephine.”

She released another frustrated sigh.  She had thoughts of sticking her tongue out at Adolfo each time he stared at her in the rearview mirror, which was quite often.

“Vackra, you need to behave.”

“And you really need to stay out of my mind, Romeo.  What is Adolfo's talent besides being a gigantic asshole?”

I cleared my throat to hide my barking laugh. “
His talent is useful in finding vampires.  He is particularly adept at locating vampires that do not want to be found.”

For over 900 years, I had been a vampire that did not want to be found.  I had traveled the world and been able to fade into obscurity even though I was called in to work for the Council and Board.  Prior to finding her, I would perform my required duty and fade into obscurity and would resume my search for her.

And now she worried I was having second thoughts about her, of what trouble she was causing me?  She was incredible, the oddest human I had ever had the pleasure of encountering.

“Josephine, I have no regrets being with you.  I love you eternally.  This is one of those minor details that we deal with and move on from.  Do not worry.”

Our conversation came to an abrupt halt as we pulled to stop outside of a private airport hangar.  I finally turned to look at her, a tentative smile on my face.  Her beautiful face was lined with worry, her green eyes brooding.  I intertwined our fingers, opened the car door and pulled her out behind me.  We walked quickly to the unmarked jet, climbing the steps to enter the plane.  Quickly scanning the interior for any other vampire, I relaxed when I realized we were alone except for the pilot and co-pilot.

“What about our luggage?” Josephine asked.  It was odd to hear her sexy, throaty voice after nearly two hours of non-verbal communication.  I led her to the two seats in the back of the plane, my thumb rubbing against the top of her hand.  My mouth spread into a thin-lipped smile as I removed my sunglasses and placed them on my lap carelessly.

“Adolfo can take care of it. It is the least he can do.”  My voice was severe and cold as I spoke of the vampire that had not yet entered the small plane.

Her mind was sharp, and she was considering the tone of my voice for a moment. She knew I could see the futures of vampires, so she was curious as to why I had not foreseen Adolfo betraying me?  She was wondering if this one of the black spots in my vision or something more?

Ah, she was already beginning to think like me.  Clever woman.

“Possibly.  It is something I am unaccustomed to encountering.  There is another party involved that I cannot see or that continues to change their mind, vackra.”

Adolfo entered the plane, removing his own sunglasses and walking slowly down the aisle to sit in the seat across from us.  His arrogance from earlier in the morning was gone.  He seemed almost regretful as he began to speak to us, his eyes downcast.

“Stefan, I understand why you're angry with me.  I didn't mean for this to happen when I was doing my research.  One of the members of the Administrative Board found out and demanded you both appear.  I had no choice in the matter,” he said, his heavily accented voice breaking off in apology.  “I'd rather not fly twenty plus hours to come here, then another twenty hours back to serve as your escort.”

“It is irrelevant at this point.  I specifically asked you to be discreet, Adolfo.  How is a member of the Administrative Board finding out about your inquiries being discreet?”  I seethed, feeling the anger that flashed across my face.  My hand gripped the armrest of the chair so tightly I could feel the metal bend under the pressure of my grasp.

“I have known you for three centuries, Stefan.  The last thing I wanted to do is jeopardize our friendship,” Adolfo replied, adjusting his suit jacket nervously and flashing me an apologetic smile.

“Consider it jeopardized, Adolfo. We will have plenty of time for you to atone for your mistake.  Our friendship has met its end.” I sneered, refusing to meet his imploring stare.  Our terse conversation was interrupted by the pilot's voice coming through the overhead speakers, advising us that we were cleared for take-off and to expect a brief stop in Tokyo to refuel.

Josephine released my hand for a moment to buckle her seat belt.  She quickly laced her fingers back through mine, holding on to me like I was her lifeline.  She offered me a shaky smile and sent me a heartfelt mental thought.
“I love you.”

For the first time today, I smiled and meant it.  ”
As I love you.  Hearing you say those words makes all of this worthwhile.”

***

Twenty hours later, we had landed in New York City.  We were in transport to appear before the Council at a five-story Carriage house in the Upper East Side of Manhattan.  It was the official meeting place for the Board and Council of vampires.  I had been here many times on business or to give testimony, and my dread increased as we approached the opposing brick building

The heavy wooden garage doors opened and the sedan pulled inside of the building.  The garage doors closed ominously behind us and I felt Josephine’s suffocating dread as if it were my own.

As soon as the car came to a stop, Adolfo and Lenora were out of the car in a blur.  Lenora opened the door on my side of the car and I began to slide out, hesitating when I saw the look of panic that had settled on Josephine’s beautiful face.   My fingers traced down the side of her face and my thumb stroked her cheekbone reverently. 
“Josephine, I will not let anything happen to you.  I promise you.”

Her emerald irises darted to mine and she nodded slowly.

“Let us talk to them.  We have nothing to hide.”

Offering her my hand, we slid across the seat to step out of the car in the garage.  With each step we took further inside the building, I reminded myself that we were one step closer to finishing our business and could leave without any further hassle.

Josephine’s hand tightened around mine as we followed Lenora and Adolfo to an awaiting elevator.  They motioned us to enter and we filed in, Lenora reaching across to press a button on the panel.  The doors closed and the elevator jerked and groaned as it began to ascend to a higher floor.  After a moment, the doors slowly opened and we were led into the informal conference room.  Furnished with leather sofas, glass tables, and elegant chairs, no one would ever expect this home was inhabited by vampires.  I watched as Josephine’s eyes traveled over the room, taking in her surroundings.  Perhaps if we were here for other purposes, I would enjoy this restored home.  My time here had never been pleasant and I found the artwork that lined the brick walls of the house and the large floral arrangements to be over the top and pretentious.

All of the Council members were in attendance.  Nigel, Derek and Sofia stood at the windows, their heads turning in perfect synchronization as we entered the room.  Lenora and Adolfo went to join them, leaving Josephine and I to stand on the other side of the room with five sets of critical eyes taking in our every move.

Sofia had separated herself from the others and approached us.  Watching my former lover cautiously, my mind sought out her plans.  She had not consciously planned to cause any problems for us and she was more curious about Josephine than anything else.  Her dark eyes swept over her, and then moved to me.  She motioned with her hand for us to sit down on the sofa closest to us.  Smiling curtly, she turned and walked back to slowly lower herself on the couch facing us.  The other vampires took their seats, still silently observing our interactions.  I steered us towards the couch, and pulled us down into the soft leather.   I was still holding her hand possessively. 

“Josephine, I am Sofia Mancini.  You have already met Adolfo and Lenora,” she addressed her softly with her thick Italian accent.  She inclined her head towards the two other vampires. “This is Derek Collier and Nigel Ryan.  We are all on the Council and are very interested in meeting you.  Let us sit and talk, shall we?  It is wonderful to finally meet the woman that has captured Stefan’s attention.”

At the mention of Derek's name, my body stiffened slightly. He had fully healed from my recent visit with him, looking no worse for the wear.  His gray eyes were sullen and his lips curled up in a sneer as he stared at Josephine hungrily.  He snickered when he observed our joined hands, releasing a bored sigh and crossing his arms under his chest.

“Hello?”  Josephine’s greeting came out sounding more like a question, her heart racing wildly.  The Council of vampires continued to visually observe her as if she was an anomaly, their faces a mixture of curiosity, aggravation, and envy.

“Stefan, this is the woman from your visions?  The one you have been searching for?” Sofia questioned me, leaning towards me in interest.  This was a game for her, enjoying my uncomfortable situation.  Her lips turned up in a tight smile as she shifted her attention back to Josephine, her dark eyes were hard and filled with dislike as she scrutinized her. 

“Yes,” I answered her, turning slightly to look down at Josephine.  My beautiful lover sat beside of me, scared out of her mind…yet she never wavered.  She was as brave as she was beautiful.  Our eyes met for a moment, blue to emerald green and a small smile played on my lips. “This is my fated.”

“Josephine, how do you feel about Stefan?  You know what we are and you are not afraid?” Nigel spoke up.  His heavy hand rubbed his chin as he watched her reaction.

She hesitated, squeezing my hand for reassurance.

My thumb stroked over the side of her hand.
“Tell him the truth, vackra.”

Sitting up straighter than before, her chin jutted out in defiance.  “I know that you're vampires.  I'm in love with him…even considering to have him change me so we can always be together.  As for being afraid, I've been more scared in the last 24 hours than I've ever been since I've met him.”