Authors: Lina Gardiner
Even worse, at one time a parishioner had accused him of devil worship. That had been a dark time for both of them. He'd nearly been excommunicated when the parishioner had seen Jess fighting with a vampire outside the Rectory. They'd seen her dark alter ego.
At that time, Regent had been able to talk his way out of it, but the incident would still be in his personnel file. He'd have a lot more explaining to do this time.
"I've caused you so much heartache over the years, Regent. Maybe it would be best for everyone if I left the Rectory."
Regent instantly looked alarmed. “Who would protect you during stasis?"
Now she understood why he was so adamant about Britt being her protector. Investigations took a long time and most likely she'd have to leave the rectory for the duration. Regent wouldn't be able to be there for her.
For once she had to do something for Regent, even if it did hurt Britt. Somehow she'd make Britt understand the ground rules before she asked him to take on the task. “Don't worry Regent, I'll talk to Britt. Ask him to be my protector. That way you can put your full energy into the task ahead of you."
"I know you feel like you're being cornered, Jess. And, in a way, you are, but inevitably it's crucial that you have a younger protector. Maybe this is God's will."
She closed her eyes. It broke her heart to think about losing Regent. To think about him having to come up against a full inquiry, and all because of her.
Suddenly, she realized it would take a lot of strain off her brother if she had a younger protector. Rather than hurt him if she chose someone else, it might alleviate his stress. Her heart ached when she looked at her seventy-two year old baby brother, an old man now. He'd aged while she'd remained young. It seemed so unfair that his skin had become thin, and spotted while hers remained smooth and firm. He'd devoted his life to her. Worked for decades to keep her from reverting into the horrible monster she fought to control every day. As a young priest, his devotion to God had been completely unselfish. He wanted to spread God's word. And even though she'd tainted his life with evil—his devotion to her was the most amazing gift anyone could ever give a sister. What did she give him in return? The daily reminder that evil existed in physical form. Not to mention, as her protector, they'd fought other vampires side-by-side. He had killed his share of them. How that must have damaged his soul? Taken his purity away forever. He deserved a reprieve from evil. From her.
Why hadn't she considered that before?
"I'll talk to Britt when he cools off a little."
Regent looked concerned. “Should you wait?"
"He's a cop, and a tough one. There'll be no talking to him until he's over his initial anger. I promise I'll ask him as soon as the time is right."
She saw the troubled look in her brother's eyes. “It'll be soon. I'm sure he'll agree."
"You're probably right, dear."
"You look tired, Regent. Why don't you get some rest?” She looked around his office. “Is there anything I can do? Clean the place up a bit before the inquisition starts?"
Regent laughed, sounding lighter in spirit already. “Inquisition? Good thing they don't burn people at the stake any longer. No, Mary Beckman is coming in the morning to do a thorough clean-through, so it's not necessary for you to take on my menial chores. Thanks, though."
She saw the relief on his face now that she'd promised to talk to Britt, and wished she'd done it much sooner.
With fingers gripping the steering wheel, and her foot a little too heavy on the gas pedal, Jess pulled into the Chemical Company's parking lot. Sampson should have something to tell her by now.
Thinking about the look on Britt's face when he left the Rectory made her feel hollow inside. Even though she'd done it for his own good, it didn't make her feel any better about hurting him. And, regardless of personal feelings, she should have stopped for him before she came here, since they'd discussed seeing Sampson together. It didn't help to avoid him, especially now that she had such a huge favor to ask of him.
She bit her lip. No matter what he'd heard her say, she knew this wasn't over. He wouldn't give up easily, especially if she signed him up as her protector. He might get the wrong idea about her needing him in that capacity. Somehow, for his own safety, she had to make sure he understood the difference between protector and lover.
Jess found Sampson scrubbing up in the Lab's anteroom. He had soapsuds clear to his elbows.
"Jess, my dear. I knew you'd drop by tonight."
"You know me well, Sampson,” she said. Anything interesting turn up yet?"
Why was her relationship so easy with Sampson? And Terry and James? Of course she knew the answer to that. She cared about them deeply, but she didn't love them the same way she did Britt.
Her heart lurched! She'd actually consciously formed the thought that she loved Britt. Not good.
"Wish I could answer that. In fact, I tried to call you on your cell phone, but I think it's turned off again,” Sampson said in his most diplomatic tone.
Not unusual for her to forget about her modern contraptions. She whipped her cell phone out of the case on her belt and looked at it. “Yes, it's dead, again.” Shrugging, she shoved the phone back into its case. “Why were you calling me? Have you found something?"
"Jess. This is going to be a bit of a shock.” He took a couple of steps backwards to grab a towel off a nearby rack.
Something in Sampson's expression indicated he might have preferred to have this conversation by cell phone.
"Spill it, Sampson."
With a demeanor too cool to be real, his gaze went to her mouth. She smiled just to prove that she wasn't so angry that she'd grown extra long eye teeth.
"The second body was removed before I got a chance to do the autopsy."
"By whom?” Her VNA saturated blood hiked into hyper drive. “And on whose authority?” It certainly wasn't hers!
"The Chief's, apparently."
"He didn't say a word to me when I met with him last evening."
"Did you find out where they were taking her? And why?"
"I had to practically come to fisticuffs to get some information, but they finally admitted that she was being taken to the police morgue."
Jess gasped. “A regular morgue? Non-vampire? Oh, my God. Where's your phone, I've got to call the station and talk to the Chief. Find out what in hell's going on."
She could see the newspapers now. Woman found murdered, exsanguinated through holes in her neck. “All hell's going to break loose if they realize she's not a normal murder victim."
"I know. That's why I tried your cell."
She hissed out a breath. “Damn phone, why doesn't it recharge itself with solar power or something modern like that?"
The station didn't want this kind of publicity. That's why Sampson was the only forensic specialist who dealt with vampires.
"Sampson, please tell me you had a chance to verify that she was really dead, and not on her way to becoming one of the undead."
He pressed his lips together. “Nope."
She stared at her watch. “Damn. I don't have time to call the Chief. This situation is critical. I've got to find that woman, and fast."
Sampson reached into the pouch on his belt and handed her his own fully functional cell phone.
Jess dialed without thinking. “Britt, it's me. Listen, we've got a very serious situation and I need your help, pronto.” She'd have to discuss the issue of him being a protector later.
There was a slight hesitation before his professionalism covered his hurt and anger. “Where do you want to meet, Captain?"
"Meet me outside the police morgue. And, Britt, wear some B&E clothes. We've got to get inside and liberate a cadaver and quick."
She looked at her watch again. It was nearly midnight. The woman had been killed the night before, if her blood had been depleted to the point where VNA would jumpstart her new life form, she could be waking up very soon. And she'd wake up hungry!
Britt was already outside the morgue when she arrived. “Why are we breaking into a building we have passes to enter?” he asked.
Britt's haunted expression cut her to the tiny piece of soul she had left. A tiny tinge of guilt surfaced, but she didn't have time for that right now. She still wished she could tell him why she had to do this to him.
"I don't know about you, but I really don't want the authorities to know I was in the building the same night a body was stolen. Beverley Kellerman is in there. She was taken from Sampson earlier this evening. Problem is, besides the obvious holes in her neck, he didn't have time to do the autopsy or check the VNA levels in her blood."
Britt's eyebrows shot up. “Not good."
No way in hell could he possibly understand the full impact of what that meant. Or how dangerous it could be. “There's something else, Britt. She might be waking up at any time. And if she does, she's going to be very hungry."
"Christ.” The hurt left his face, and her best Black Ops team member took over. “Let's get in there, then."
"Wait. Doesn't the staff take a break at midnight for a little supper in the coffee room?"
"Last time I was a regular cop, that's the way it was. They were never too thrilled if we brought in a DB when they were having their half hour."
"Can't blame them. They don't get much down-time in this city.” She looked at her watch. It's nearly midnight, now. I'll go in ahead of you, and if they see me, I'll use mind fogging to make them forget. That'll give us a little longer to get her out."
"Good idea. While you're doing that, I'll liberate Ms. Kellerman,” he said. “How'd you get here?"
"Regent's SUV,” she said.
"I'll put her in the back of Regent's SUV, and we can take the body back to Sampson from there."
She grabbed his arm before considering her actions. Or before she thought about how good his warm flesh, and taut muscles would feel against her cold skin. She told herself to pull away, but she couldn't make her fingers obey the order.
"She could be very dangerous if she wakes up, Britt. She won't have any ability to reason. She'll be wild and terribly thirsty. You might not be able to control her alone."
"I'll manage until you can join me at the vehicle. Besides, you said it takes a very special talent to turn a vampire. The odds of her becoming one are pretty low, aren't they?"
"I learned a long time ago that vampires are creatures that should never be underestimated.” She moved closer to the back door and knocked out the light with a rock. “But I hope you're right."
Jess jammed her hand through the outside wall and ripped out the wiring for the alarm system. The door opened quickly. “We're in."
They moved down the hall in unison. She motioned Britt toward the morgue, then indicated she'd go straight to the coffee room.
With a nod, he slipped through the double doors into the morgue. She prayed Beverley wouldn't wake up and consider Britt her midnight snack.
Laughter filtered down the hall from the coffee room. Someone bit into a crunchy apple. Even from this distance Jess's hearing and sense of smell were acute. “Red delicious,” she muttered under her breath. She prided herself on her abilities, and ‘good news’ they seemed to be working okay tonight.
She wouldn't attempt mind control unless she had to. If she left them too foggy and with lost time it would be an easy jump for the Chief to figure out that she took the body. He probably would anyway, but he'd have no solid proof to hang on her. She pressed against the wall just outside the coffee room door, listening for any movement or sounds that meant they were going to leave. At the same time, she kept her hearing attuned to the morgue.
If she had to fog the minds of the workers in the coffee room, how much time would she have to help Britt if things got dicey? Not enough. Not nearly enough.
Britt entered the morgue with all the hair on his body standing on end.
Damn it!
He still hadn't shaken his phobia of bones! What if the local forensic anthropologist had remains in here? Give him a mutilated body any day over a pile of moldy, chalk gray bones. An uncontrollable shiver wracked through him.
Not in the actual morgue, but the storage area, a full bank of person-sized drawers were tucked into the wall on his right. There were name tags in slots in the front of the drawers so he didn't have to pull out each one in order to find Beverley Kellerman. Thank God!
He found her name on the third name tag, grabbed a gurney from the corner and pulled it close before he took hold of the handle to open the drawer. With the drawer still shut, he listened for sounds of a dead person coming to life inside. Hearing nothing but the sound of his own blood pulsing through his veins, he yanked the door open and rolled out the slab.
Beverley Kellerman looked very dead when he peeked at her face underneath the green sheet. He watched her for a few seconds. Was she really dead or just zonked out in vampire slumber? He'd seen Jess in stasis, and there was no way to tell if she was alive.
At any rate, Beverley Kellerman didn't look like Jess when she was sleeping. Instead she looked lifeless to the extreme. Put a whole new spin on deathly white, but that didn't mean a helluva lot, he supposed.
He poked her hard with his index finger. Then did it again.
Dead as it got.
Good.
Next he grabbed the thin sheet, whipped it off and tossed it into the corner so he could lift her onto the gurney.
He stared at her now and swallowed. Jesus. She was naked.
But of course, she was naked. What did he expect? At least she hadn't been autopsied yet. Didn't have long hideous cuts and stitches all over her body. In retrospect, throwing that sheet in the far corner had been a huge mistake.
"Get it over with, Brittain. You don't have all day,” he growled to himself, then pursed his lips and wrapped his arms around her cold, naked flesh. He flopped her onto the gurney like she was a prize catch just off a tuna boat. She had about as much give as a tuna, too.
He cursed again when he realized her shoulder length brown hair was caught in his watch strap. He tried to get free gently at first, then realized that was of little use to the victim. She really didn't care if he pulled her hair. So he yanked, and yanked hard. He heard a tearing sound that made his knees go a little wobbly before he pulled his wrist out from under her head. Yuck.