Vampire in Chaos (23 page)

T
essa winced as
her father’s boot connected with the heavy metal drawers. She turned to study the far wall of drawers similar to the first. She hated to think it was full of dead humans as the other drawers had been.

Still, how could she find out if she didn’t look? She walked closer, studying the weird energy pattern outside. There was a lot of black on the bottom. She spun around and checked the bodies on the gurneys – they had similar energy surrounding them. She suspected they’d died from the drugs they had been given. Either from being given too much or some new drug that they hadn’t tested fully to make sure it was safe before administering it to others. The last drawer on the right held the biggest mystery. There was energy there, but it was…odd. She strode forward, her hand outstretched to open the drawer when her father called out, “What’s the matter, Tessa?”

She motioned to the drawer. “The energy here is unusual. I suspect that all those victims,” she motioned to the drawers covered in black energy, “and the ones on the gurneys were administered lethal doses – quite probably by mistake.”

“Mistake?” Cody asked. “How could anyone have given them too much of the drug accidentally?”

It was Serus who answered. “They were likely thinking that bigger and better was best and gave too much or didn’t have time to do proper testing and found out too late that the drugs were killing a high percentage of the patients.”

Tessa nodded, hating the thought, but given the panic the assholes had gone into, she could see something like that happening. A small sound wafted up to her. She turned her head slightly. The noise came again.

“Cody? Dad? I just heard a noise from inside this unit.”

Both rushed to her side. Cody pushed her back and pulled it open for her.

Deanna, her arm moving slowly as if to hit the wall again, took a deep breath.

Tessa dropped to her knees beside the old woman. “Deanna, are you okay? It’s Tessa.”

“Tessa?” The woman’s feeble voice was hard to understand. It was so weak.

“Yes, you called to me,” Tessa said, studying the other woman’s faded features. She looked even closer to death – if that was possible. “You told me you were in trouble, so we came to find you.”

“Thank you.” Her eyes fluttered open. She saw Cody and Serus and she reached up a hand. “Help an old woman to sit up.”

With Serus’s help, she sat up and rested for a moment before swinging her legs over the side of the drawer. She sat like that and rubbed her face. “I don’t ever want to go through that again. Being locked up alive is not the end I’d envisioned.” Her glance went from one face to the other before she added in a conversational tone, “The bastards caught me.”

Tessa sat back in surprise. Outside of being very tired, she didn’t appear to be injured.

“Did they get Hortran, too?” Tessa asked quietly. She turned to study the drawers beside the one Deanna sat in. It looked suspicious, too. She motioned toward it and Serus opened it. There lay Hortran, and this time he was older and more frail-looking. He appeared to have succumbed to old age. Deanna looked over at him and grinned. “Hortran, wake up, you old bugger.”

Hortran’s eyes popped open, and he stared at her with his ageless look and smiled slowly. “So it worked?”

Deanna nodded. “Looks like it. Tessa heard my call and came to rescue us.”

The Ghost sat up and nodded at Tessa. “I am, we are,” he corrected, “indebted to you.”

Serus straightened and walked over to stand beside Tessa. “Explain what happened.”

Deanna frowned at his tone, but she obliged in a grudging voice. “They caught us. Being both so old and frail, we pretended to die during the fight, knowing we were outnumbered.”

Tessa gasped. And what started out as a tiny smirk ended up in a full–blown laugh. “Oh my, that’s priceless. Why didn’t you just project that voice of yours into everyone’s minds and knock them all out like you did me?” she asked, still giggling.

The Ghost stared at her in confusion, then his whole face changed as he smiled at her in wonder. “It’s almost as if you understand.”

She grinned back, loving the wrinkles and the man’s strange appearance. She was starting to think these two had tricks she’d do well to learn. “I do. I’ve never tried such a tactic before,” Tessa said. She glanced over at Cody. “Mindspeak is new to me.”

“That you can do it at all is wonderful in one so young,” Deanna said. “That makes you way ahead of the curve.”

Tessa snickered. “Yeah, that’s me. Not.”

Deanna stared at her. “But you are. In many ways. You just don’t know it yet.” She stood up and stretched, then carefully took a few steps forward as if testing her balance and stability. She then strode forward to the wall, turned around, and walked back. She looked over at Hortran. “Are you ready to go?”

He nodded, but he didn’t get up. Tessa didn’t know if he needed help.

As soon as the thought crossed her mind, he turned and gave her a sharp look.
You can read my thoughts
, she gasped silently. She felt Cody stiffen at her side.
It’s okay, Cody
.

Is it?
he murmured softly.

Hortran stared at her with that ageless look in his eyes. She smiled in understanding. In her head, she said,
It’s all right. I won’t say anything.

What if I want to?
Cody asked.

As his response rippled through her head, Hortran raised one eyebrow.

She couldn’t read his thoughts, or at least she made no attempt to. But as she stared at him, an image of a door appeared in her head. She frowned, tilting her head slightly.
Is that you
, she asked him.

There was no answer. Still, she grabbed the knob and pushed the door open. There was a bright light on the other side. She smiled and stepped into the doorway.

Cody said,
Umm, Tessa, are you sure you should be doing that?

She laughed and walked in further. The door closed behind her. She turned, saw the door closed, considered the issue, reached out, and pulled the door open. On the other side she found Cody, a worried look on his face.

It’s okay. The door isn’t locked.

What’s over there?
he asked curiously.

Not sure.
She started to close the door.
I’ll let you know what I find out.

Wait. Leave the door open – just in case.

She considered, realized where he was coming from, and left the door open enough he could see her. Then she turned and walked into the light. And realized it was like a mindspeak highway. She could go anywhere she liked. At least she thought she could.

*

Goran studied Ian’s
face, his mind churning with the reality of his question. “That’s a damn good question,” he looked over at Motre. “Outside of Jewel, who’d been segregated, we have only found males.”

The silence stretched as each of them considered the ramifications of such a selection.

“I can’t see any reason for that. Maybe it’s random.”

“If it were random, then it wouldn’t be only males. The law of averages would say that some would have to be female.” Goran looked back at David and Jewel and realized he had her on her feet, though she still looked washed out.

“I’m wondering if we shouldn’t send these two, potentially Ian as well, back to the Council Hall, and you and I can join up with Serus.” He added, “I’d feel better if we were working together as it is. I really don’t feel comfortable with that Deanna stuff.”

“I wondered about her. I haven’t met her, but I’ve heard the horror stories.”

“Yes, she’s been around long enough to be an icon herself. She’d been a reigning queen of terror in her time. Now she’s old and supposedly mellowed.” He snorted.

“Can someone like that mellow?” Motre asked.

“I don’t know.”

A sound behind him had him spinning around. It was David helping Jewel over to the group.

“I need to take her back to the Council Hall. Sian should be able to help her there.”

Goran nodded. “We were just talking about that. The three of you need rest.” He glanced over at Motre, adding, “We’ll meet up with Serus and stick together.”

Ian and David looked at each other. David said, “I can drive us there.”

“Oh, thank God,” Jewel said. “I just want to go somewhere where I’ll be safe.”

Motre nodded. “And that means the Council Hall.”

“I’m game. I could use some blood,” Ian said, leading the way to the elevators. “Can’t say a nap would hurt either,” he muttered, loud enough for Goran to hear.

“I know the break you had was short,” Goran said. “It was nowhere near long enough for all the shit going on here. Still, you were sleeping most of the time here anyway. Thought you’d have been fine by now.”

Ian shook his head. They reached the elevators. He pushed the button to open the door. “No, it seems like I never got any sleep. Crazy dreams and with the adrenaline rush and panic of trying to help Wendy and not being able to…yeah, I’m pretty wasted.” He yawned.

“The same for me,” Jewel said. “The drugs don’t help that way. I’m exhausted.”

“We’ll get you checked over by the vamp doctors at the Council Hall then we’ll eat and rest. Hopefully Goran and Motre will return with the others in no time,” David said.

“The rest of them? Who all is here?”

Goran looked over at Jewel and realized how much she’d missed. And so had Ian. “David can fill you in later. After you are back at the Council Hall.”

They entered the elevator and dropped to the garage level. It was empty. With Motre and Goran on guard, they waited while the three youngsters got into the car and drove away.

“Do you think they will be okay?” Motre asked as they stood there staring into the early morning. Goran studied the sky. It was not safe for any vamp to be outside now. That was good. With the tinted windows of his car, the kids should be able to go straight to the Council Hall and not be followed.

“I don’t know. I think this latest turn means none of us will be okay ever again.” Goran turned and headed back inside.

*

Serus stood off
to one side and studied the Ghost. He already knew Deanna. She’d been on the Council since forever. And he’d seen her many times. She’d been impassioned for the vampire lifestyle. Not a heavy supporter of the vampire database, and happy to leave the day–to–day running to the Council. She was a staunch friend and supporter and a very dangerous enemy. It was that enemy part that worried him now. For some reason, she’d latched onto his daughter.

And that couldn’t be good. Still, she was a known element.

The Ghost wasn’t. He was something Serus had never seen or known. And he was very close to Deanna. That alone made him very dangerous. And wasn’t that a weird thing?

The two of them were an odd couple. There was almost a worshipping look on the Ghost’s face when he looked at Deanna. And a look of respect when he looked at Tessa. That was also concerning. Or rather disconcerting.

“Why did you call for Tessa?” he asked Deanna.

She turned slowly to look at him. He refused to back down. It would be suicide to do so. She’d rip his throat open if he did. In a heartbeat.

She glared at him. “Councilman Serus, why are you asking?”

“Because I know you.”

She straightened up, insulted.

He straightened up to match, struggling to not show his nerves. Goran’s voice rippled inside his head.
Watch it boyo, she’ll take your head clean off
.

I know
, he answered,
but I need to know that Tessa is safe.

Let me know how that works out for you. By the way, we’re on our way. Motre and I will be there in five. Sent the kids back to the Council Hall. Jewel is fine but weak and exhausted.

Good.

It was hard to keep up the internal monologue with Goran and stare Deanna down. But he wasn’t Serus for nothing.

After a moment, she relaxed and chuckled lightly. “You haven’t changed much, have you, Serus? Still stubborn and pigheaded.”

He shook his head. “That’s my child you’re dealing with. No setting her up for a fall.”

Deanna shook her head. “No, I won’t. I actually need her more than she needs me. I can’t afford to hurt her.”