The Beast

  Obviously she was not living off the blood of her hellren--and Assail assumed that was why she required the likes of Throe's company. But vampires, particularly horny ones, oft enjoyed partaking whilst in the midst of pleasure, even if they were otherwise well fed. Like alcohol or drugs, the drinking amplified everything in a most satisfactory way.

  With his cousin's blood in the air and on her tongue, she was so distracted, Assail was able to get over to the door without her being aware of his withdrawal. Reaching into his coat, he took out a tiny old-fashioned oil can, the kind with the poppable bottom and a short-necked nose.

  Pocka-pocka. Pocka-pocka. Up above.

  Pocka-pocka. Pocka-pocka. Down below.

  The lubricant didn't smell like much because he'd loaded the thing with brand new Pennzoil 10W-40 for motorcars--and after his ministrations, the massive door opened in utter silence. With a sly smile, he slipped out of the playroom and re-closed the heavy panels. Replacing his oil can into the pocket of his cashmere jacket, he looked both ways. Then he proceeded to the left, following the path Throe had taken the previous evening.

  The basement walls and floor were made of rough-cut stone, with electrical lights tacked onto wooden ceiling beams casting dim shadows. He tried every door he came to and discovered storage room after storage room, some filled with lawn-care equipment from the forties and fifties, others with travel trunks from the turn of the twentieth century in them, and yet another with festival decorations that had wilted and spoiled in the damp and mildew.

  No sign of Throe's quarters, and that was truly not a surprise; he would not deign to stay down here in this window-less land of forgotten utility objects. No doggen, either, the house clearly having been modernized, with the supplies and sundries of the servants moved up to higher levels. No wine cellar, but then he would imagine that that, too, would have found a home on the first floor, closer to the hub of social activity.

  All of which was why she had kitted that space out as she had.

  There was privacy to be had down here.

  Mayhap, like him, she did her own sheets from those bedding platforms? Perhaps not. The female probably had a trusted maid.

  At the very far end, a second set of stairs appeared as the corridor took a turn, the stone steps so old they had wear patterns in them.

  Ah, so this was where Throe had run off to.

  Moving quickly, Assail was almost upon them when he came to a final door--which was reinforced like that of Naasha's dungeon, as opposed to the flimsier ones of those storage areas.

  The Master Lock upon it was fresh and shiny, and of the sort that required a specific key. On a whim, he patted around the molding, in the event such a thing happened to be hanging up on a nail or a hook, as some were wont to do. Alas, no. Whate'er was on the far side was something that was precious.

  Or not for prying eyes.

  Taking the stairs, he was quiet as a draft as he ascended to a door that, blessedly, appeared to be unlocked. He listened for a moment, confirmed that there was nothing on the far side, and opened the way with care.

  It was the butler's pantry, going by all the glass-fronted cupboards full of dishes, and the silver closet that was paneled in green felt and stacked with great stores of gleaming sterling.

  Although he did not know the layout of the house, he was well familiar with the necessaries of great manors, and sure enough, an unadorned staff stairwell with bald wooden steps and a functional handrail was not far. As he continued onward to the second floor, he was forced to stop halfway up and flatten himself against the wall as, upon the landing above, a maid passed by with a load of laundry in a wicker basket. When she was gone, he closed the distance and sneaked out behind her into the staff section of the bedroom wings.

  Following his instincts, he whispered to a wide door, one that was broad enough to accommodate all manner of ins and outs--and indeed, on the other side, the hallway became splendiferous, crystal and brass sconces lighting the way, thick wool carpeting cushioning the foot, antique bureaus and tables marking windows that no doubt had views of the gardens.

  He ducked into every bedroom, and each appeared to correspond to a given sex, done in alternating masculine or feminine schemes.

  He knew when he got to Throe's from the aftershave that scented the air.

  Now, he went inside and shut the door behind himself. Fortunately, the maids had already been through and done their tidying up, the bed made, a fresh stack of towels set in the bathroom, new flowers on the writing desk. There were few in the way of personal effects, which would be in line with a former soldier of few resources and much mobility. The closet was filled with clothes, however, many of which had tags on them, indicating new purchases.

  No doubt by the lady of the house.

  Back out in the room proper, he went through the drawers of the Chippendale highboy and found nothing. No weapons. No ammo. At the antique desk, he searched for papers, phone records, mail. There were none.

  Pausing by the bed, he observed the paintings that hung on the silk wallpaper.

  "There you are, little one."

  With a purr of satisfaction, he went across to a small framed landscape--that just happened to be ever so slightly off center.

  As he removed it, the burnished face of a wall safe was revealed.

  The dial was flat and red, and there were many numbers from which to spin one to another.

  Where was his cat burglar when he needed her, he thought as he put back the painting.

  There were no doubt ways he could get inside if he chose, but he was ill prepared for such an endeavor, and he did not want to run out of time with the fun that was transpiring downstairs--his cousins were a hardy pair, but the fucking was not going to last forever.

  Measuring the gold-leafed frame of the picture, he made certain that it was exactly as off-kilter as before, no more nor less, and then he went back across the Oriental--feeling rather glad that the short-napped, multi-colored expanse would not reveal his tracks.

  With a final look around, he put the doorknob to use and reemerged out in the corridor--

  "May I help you?"

  *

  As Rhage waited for the male vampire down the alley to respond, he glanced up to the roof of the building across the way. Vishous had just dematerialized to that vantage point--but the brother stayed quiet and motionless.

  Refocusing, Rhage called out again, "Show yourself or I'm coming to get you. And you won't live through that, motherfucker. I guarantee it."

  Beneath his skin, the beast surged, his curse coiling and unfurling restlessly in spite of all the sex he'd been having. Then again, his instincts were at a roar. Having already been shot in the chest this week, he wasn't looking to beat the Brotherhood's record for near-death experiences.

  "'Tis I, yet I am unarmed."

  The sound of the aristocratic voice echoed around the grungy tenaments, and then a moment later, Throe stepped out with his palms up and facing outward, his body tense.

  "Do not shoot." The male performed a slow circle. "I am unaccompanied."

  Rhage narrowed his eyes, searching for other signs of movement in that dark corner. When there were none, he zeroed in on Throe again. No weapons were visible, and the male was not dressed for fighting--unless he was looking to bitch slap Zoolander: The bastard's threads were as nice as Butch's, his overcoat tailored like a fine suit, his shoes gleaming even in the low light.

  "Looks like you've had a makeover," Rhage muttered. "Last time I saw you, your clothes weren't that good."

  "My prospects have improved since I have left Xcor's employ."

  "Word had it you weren't employed, you sonofabitch. Conscripted is more like it."

  "I had a debt to repay, 'tis true. But that is done now."

  "Well, we're not hiring. Not assholes with your resume, at any rate."

  "May I put my arms down? They are getting rather tired."

  "Up to you. I'm a trigger-happy douche bag, though, so you might want to watch
where you choose to put your hands."

  There was the sound of someone landing on two feet, and Throe wrenched around. As Vishous stepped out of the darkness right behind the guy, Rhage laughed.

  "You don't like being sneaked up on, huh." Rhage likewise left his cover, keeping his gun up and ready. "Imagine that. And why don't you hold the fuck still while my brother searches you."

  Vishous pounded his way around Throe's torso and down his legs, giving the guy's crotch a good honk. As Throe's high-pitched squeak drifted off, the brother stepped back, but kept his forty pointed at Mr. Neiman Marcus.

  "So if you're not with Xcor, what are you doing out here?" V demanded. "You're wearing too much cologne and you're unarmed."

  "I was hoping to run into one of you."

  "Surprise!" Rhage quipped. "Now what do you want."

  "Did you send Assail to check up on me--or is he acting independently?"

  V laughed in a hard burst. "Say what?"

  "I have perfect enunciation." Throe glanced at V. "And you are no more than three feet from me. So one can assume you heard me well enough."

  As V bared his fangs, Rhage shook his head. "You might want to rethink the attitude. My brother's looking like he wants to turn you into confetti."

  "Well?" Throe pressed. "Did you send him to seduce me? You'd have more luck with a female--not that you would find aught out from the effort. I am retired from all conflict."

  "You risked your life," V said, "to send this message, true?"

  "I thought it would mean more if it were in person."

  "You vastly overestimate your appeal. Or the significance of your sexual orientation."

  Rhage spoke up. "Why don't you get the fuck out of here. I'd hate for a private citizen such as yourself to get injured out here in the field."

  "Real fucking pity." V lifted his gun muzzle so it was on a line with the male's head. "Tick tock."

  "Bye-bye, asshole." Rhage made a little waving motion. "Have a nice life. Or not. Who gives a fuck."

  Throe shook his head. "You are wasting your time if you are looking into me."

  "I'ma count this down," V said. "On the count of three, I shoot. Three."

  Throe was out of there just as V let off a round about two feet to the left of where the bastard had been standing.

  "Shoot," V remarked in a bored tone. "Missed."

  "Man, this is such a shitty part of town," Rhage said as he went over to his brother. "You meet the worst kinds here."

  "So Assail is going above and beyond the call of duty. I'll have to tip him--in his thong, evidently."

  Rhage nodded and then pointed to the blast spot on the asphalt. "I got a lesser, by the way."

  "Congratulations. You want another--"

  "Why aren't you looking me in the eye, V?"

  "We're in the middle of the field. I'm busy."

  "Uh-huh. Right."

  Vishous frowned, and still avoided him. But then in a low voice, the brother said, "I talked to Saxton for you."

  Rhage recoiled. "About Bitty?"

  "Is that her name? Well, yeah. Anyway, I got the paperwork together. You don't have to do anything with it, but it's on your bureau in a folder. Later."

  Justlikethat, the brother dematerialized out of the alley, and Rhage knew better than to think that the pair of them would ever speak of it again. And man, that was so V--the SOB was capable of great kindness and empathy, but always at arm's length, as if he were afraid of getting too entangled in emotion.

  He was always there for the people he loved, though.

  Always.

  "Thank you, my brother," Rhage said to the thin air where the male of worth had stood. "Thank you as ever."

  Taking a deep breath, Rhage told himself that he needed to chill. Just because V couldn't find the uncle, and there was now a blank set of adoption forms waiting for him back home, didn't mean that anything was going to happen with Bitty.

  He hadn't even talked to Mary yet.

  And, hello, the girl had agreed only to go out for ice cream and then dinner with them. That didn't mean she was even interested in having a new family or something.

  He really needed to chill the fuck out.

  FORTY-FIVE

  Sitting beside her mother's grave, Mary held her breath as she waited for Bitty to say something further. In the silence, the words the girl had spoken hung in the cold air between them.

  My father used to hit me.

  "It can be so hard to talk about things like that," Mary murmured.

  "Did your father ever . . ."

  "No. Actually, I don't even have any memories of him. He died when I was two in an accident. My mother was the only parent I had."

  "My mahmen was all I had, too. But sometimes I didn't feel that close to her. It's hard to explain."

  "There was a lot going on in your house."

  "I used to get him mad at me on purpose. Just so he wouldn't . . . you know, go after her." Bitty shrugged. "I was faster than he was. I had a better chance."

  Mary closed her eyes and kept her cursing to herself. "I'm very sorry."

  "It's okay."

  "No, it really isn't."

  "I'm cold," Bitty said abruptly.

  "Let's go back to the car then." Mary got to her feet, respecting the change in conversation. "I'll turn the heat on."

  "Do you want to stay longer?"

  "I can always come back." She wanted to take the girl's hand, but knew better. "And it is cold."

  Bitty nodded, and together they walked around the graves, the ground soft underfoot until they got to the lane. As they came up into the Volvo, the girl hesitated.

  Mary glanced over as she opened the driver's-side door. "Do you want me to take the long way back to Safe Place?"

  "How did you know?"

  "Just a lucky guess."

  As they followed the main lane out to the iron gates of the cemetery, Bitty murmured, "I never knew Caldwell was so big."

  Mary nodded. "It's a good-size city. Have you ever seen downtown?"

  "Only in pictures. My father had a truck, but my mother wasn't allowed to drive it. When we came to Havers that one time, she took it when he'd passed out. That was why . . . other things happened. You know, after we got back."

  "Yes." Mary looked into the rearview. "I can imagine."

  "I would like to see it. The downtown."

  "Do you want to go now? It's really pretty at night."

  "Can we?"

  "You bet."

  At Pine Grove's entrance, Mary hung a left, and headed across the 'burbs for the highway. As they passed neighborhoods full of human houses, most of which were dark, Bitty had her face pressed against the window--and then came the stand-alone shops, and farther on, strip malls that were nothing but glowing signs, empty parking lots, and closed-up spaces.

  "This is the Northway." Mary hit her directional signal. "It'll take us through safely."

  Up the exit ramp. Into what little traffic there was at ten o'clock at night.

  And then there it was on the horizon, like a different kind of sunrise, the city's skyscrapers dotted with lights in random patterns.

  "Oh, look at that." Bitty sat forward. "The buildings are so tall. When mahmen took me over the river to the clinic, she made me hide under a blanket. I didn't see anything."

  "How did . . ." Mary cleared her throat. "How did you get food? You lived in a pretty rural area--there wasn't much within walking distance, was there?"

  "Father would bring home what he wanted. We got what was left."

  "Have you ever, you know, been to a supermarket?"

  "No?"

  "Would you like to go to one? After we drive through here?"

  "Oh, I would love to!"

  Mary kept the speed at fifty-five as they went through the forest of buildings, the highway much like the lanes of the cemetery, fat curves bringing them close to the vertical stacks of countless offices before turning in another direction for yet another view of steel and glass.

&nbs
p; "Not all the lights are off."

  "No." Mary laughed. "Whenever I drive around here at night, I always make up stories about why someone forgot to hit the switch before they left. Were they rushing to meet someone for an anniversary dinner? A first date? The birth of a baby? I try to make it good things."

  "Maybe they have a new puppy."

  "Or a parakeet."

  "I don't think a fish would be worth the rush."

  Annnnnnd that was the silly discussion as Mary made the wide loop through Caldwell's financial district to hook up with a four-lane motorway that took them back in the direction they'd come from. The Hannaford she was heading for was about three miles away from Safe Place, and when she pulled into its parking area, there were only a few straggler shoppers going in and out of its brilliantly lit entrance, some with bags, others with carts, the ones yet to buy empty-handed.

  After she parked, Mary and Bitty got out.

  "Are you hungry?" Mary asked as they walked toward the automatic doors.

  "I don't know."

  "Well, let me know if you want anything."

  "There's food back at Safe Place."

  "Yup, there is."

  Bitty stopped and watched the doors opening and closing. "That is so amazing."

  "Yes, I guess it is."

  As they stood there together, Mary thought . . . God, how many times had she gone in and out of an entrance like this, head buzzing with lists of things to buy, or stuff she was worried about, or plans that were coming later? She'd never given much thought about how cool it was that the doors regulated themselves, riding back and forth on little runners, neither too fast nor too slow as they were triggered by people.

  Through Bitty's eyes, she saw what she'd taken for granted in a totally different light.

  And that was so amazing.

  Without thinking, Mary put her hand on the girl's shoulder--it just seemed like such a natural thing to do that she failed to stop herself. "See up there? There's a sensor--when a person comes into the eye's field of recognition, that's what makes them go. Try it out."

  Bitty stepped forward, and laughed as the glass parted for her. Then she inched back. Leaned in and waved her arms until they separated again.

  Mary just hung on the periphery . . . a big smile on her face, her chest full of something so warm that she couldn't bear to look at it too closely.