Eternal Service (21 page)

“Thank you. We are.” Jackie said.

Alex chatted with the couple and realized how incredibly human and normal they seemed. Actually, the two of them were very lovey dovey and Alex felt as though she was stuck in a mush pit.

After a few minutes of discussing the needs of vampire children and pregnant vampires to consume human food, Jackie looked over to her children. “Damn. The kids call him Uncle Dix. As hard as it will be for us to let the man go, it’ll be harder on them.” She directed her next question to her husband. “What’s going to happen to Dixon?”

“The man will be fine. Sure, some marbles will be jumbled. He won’t remember us, the kids, or working with our group, but he’ll remember he had a military career and a good life. We’ll relocate him to a nice spot, maybe out in the country, where he can live out the rest of his days.”

Jackie glared at her husband. “Baby, we used that excuse on the kids when the dog died. They didn’t believe us then either.” She started crying. “I loved that dog.” William put his arms around her to calm her down. He mouthed the word “hormones” to Alex.

Alex had learned more about vampire children and pregnant vampires, and their food needs, in just a few minutes talking with Jackie than in anything she had read. She found it fascinating, and could have talked for hours. Raymond had already walked away to talk with other team members, and now with Jackie crying, Alex excused herself to mingle as well.

Alex found her wineglass sitting on the coffee table. Thanks to the little tassel, she recognized it as hers, but she still sniffed at contents to be sure. She took a sip of her wine and enjoyed that it remained chilled. The sweet taste coated her throat. Scanning the room, she noticed Dixon had finally arrived. He came fashionably late and wearing jeans. Men! How hard would it have been for him to tell her this was a casual affair? His denim blue button down shirt wasn’t even tucked in.

Sulie seemed to be the unofficial hostess of the party. She brought out trays of different types of food, but nothing appealed to Alex. Another member of the team helped Sulie to serve. From the team folders, Alex recognized the vampire as Daniel, a turned human who had joined the group only a few decades ago. He appeared older than the other members of the Colony. While reading his file, Alex took note of the fact there were no past aliases listed for the man. Now seeing his fully gray hair and beard, age spots on his arms, and the wrinkles in his face, she understood why. This tall, lean vampire was still living his first life. She decided to walk over and introduce herself.

“This is hot,” Daniel said in a slight British accent. He walked past her and placed the pie on the trivet on the table. It smelled like apple–pie that had been heavily seasoned with cinnamon. “You must be Captain Brennan,” he said, holding out his hand.

“Nice to meet you. Please call me Alex,” she said as she shook his hand. She watched as his cool blue eyes looked again at his hand. She remembered from his file that he had two sires, Sterling and Raymond. He had once been human. She couldn’t stop herself from asking. “So tell me, Daniel, you were turned by Sterling and Raymond?”

He stared down at her from his tall 6–foot 2–inch frame, his cool blue eyes looking as calm as a glacial lake. “That’s right. I’m the same age as Dixon, the man you’re replacing.”

Overall, he looked like a typical history or philosophy professor in his blue button down shirt and khaki pants. His mannerisms, sense of style, and composure were so opposite of Sterling’s that she never would have put the two together. “Why do you have two sires? I thought it was a one–to–one relationship.”

His cool blue eyes now lacked their luster, and the corners of his mouth turned down. “I don’t like discussing the day I died, Captain. Let’s just say, I made the most of a bad situation.”

Her mouth fell slightly open; a tiny gasp escaped her lips. She had never thought of how personal the experience would be, and it wouldn’t necessarily be a pleasant experience. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to offend you. I was only curious.”

“Perhaps Mason can quench your curiosity,” he said dryly. “He was also turned.”

She pursed her lips and nodded in understanding. “I didn’t mean to be rude.” She lifted her wineglass and took a big gulp, finishing her drink.

“Let me collect your empties for you, Alex.” He took the glass from her hands before she could say no, or even before she could thank him, and returned to the kitchen. Probably making a hasty retreat from the prying new director.

Standing alone, she mentally chastised herself for her lack of common decency. Vampire etiquette. She’d have to write some notes so the next director wouldn’t be so confused when she retired. Maybe Dixon had such a book. She then shook her head. Mr. Denim Jeans at a cocktail party probably wouldn’t have such a thing.

Looking around the room she didn’t see Dixon, but did notice all the lovely antiques once again. The style of the room was eclectic with pieces ranging from what Alex assumed was turn of the century to modern day. The window dressings, wall coverings and kick–knacks all looked old, but it wasn’t like she was an Antique Road Show expert, so she had no clue about their origin. The furniture looked more modern, as were the air purifiers she noticed each room had. Bigger and sturdier furnishings filled the room. Of course with the frame size of all the vampires, you would need bulkier furniture.

The lighting was darker than Alex preferred, but she assumed that was because of their exceptional eyesight and ability to see well in the dark. She liked the decor, everything from the lace curtains to the black leather sofa. The exterior wall of the room had a large, stunning fireplace. It was built with stone bricks, not masonry bricks. It appeared more rustic and homey in her mind, plus the hearth was large enough to offer two seats close up to the fire.

“Here Alex,” Dixon said, walking up to her and offering her a plate of food.

Now that she didn’t hold her wineglass, the plate gave her hands something to do. “Thanks, Dixon.” A small grimace crossed her face as she sniffed the food on the plate. The smell wasn’t too bad, but she had to guess the brown stuff was hummus. She watched as Dixon ate some off his plate, and even made a satisfying noise like he liked the food. Alex ventured a try. It had a hummus texture, but tasted more like what she suspected gourmet dog food would be like.

“By the way, I was thinking that any notes you may have taken …” Alex began, but was quickly cut short when Dixon told her she had to try a dish called Matador Mania and he left to find her some. Standing alone, she took the opportunity to set her plate down and to take pity on the man for being a bachelor and liking Sulie’s cooking.

As Dixon walked into the kitchen, he passed Sterling coming out of it. Sterling’s shoulder length, feathered blond hair brushed across his face as he walked towards her. “Here, Alex,” he said, handing her a glass of wine. “I believe this tasseled one is yours.”

She thought back to the information she read in his file. Playboy. She noticed his seductive smile and the glint in his eyes. Did women really fall for the retro look? Overall he was a good–looking man, … er, vampire, but the look was not a turn–on for her.

His smile widened and showed his fangs. He lifted the wineglass he offered slightly into the air. “Is there something other than this wine you want, Alex?”

She stifled a snicker. Perhaps if she hadn’t read of his sexual escapades from his file, his charm may have worked — maybe. Right now he looked transparent. She took the offered glass. She sniffed the offering to confirm it wasn’t blood, then took a big gulp of wine to get the dog food taste out of her mouth. “Thanks for the wine.”

His eyes studied her, and she felt uneasy.

“I think I offended Daniel,” she confessed in a low whisper to give them something to talk about. She then shook her head and corrected herself. “I know I offended him.” She took another sip of her wine.

He took a step back and Alex wondered if his new physical stance meant a surrender in terms of playing her.

“How so?” Sterling asked.

She sighed. “I asked about his turning.” Alex watched as Sterling’s look turned stone cold. She narrowed her brow as she studied the vampire. She may be in his lair, but she wasn’t a damsel in distress, and there were answers she wanted. “I’m so new to this entire vampire thing. It’s so fascinating to me.”

Sterling glanced away, as if surveying the room. “Well, we have purebreds, half–breeds and full vampires in this house. I’m sure Daniel didn’t take offense.” He then mumbled under his breath, “Hell, you could kill the man and he wouldn’t be offended.”

She seized the opportunity. “You were the one who turned him. How did it happen?”

He turned his head, looked her straight in the eyes, and said, “That’s not my story to share.” He took the last sip of his beer. “I’m empty. You need a refill?”

Looking down at the nearly full goblet she said, “I’m good for now.”

*******

Alex walked over to the fireplace hearth to warm herself. That’s when she noticed that Dixon had gathered more food on two plates. She suspected one of the plates was going to be hers. She patted her growling stomach. She was hungry, but there wasn’t much of anything here to eat. She found a bowl of tortilla chips and some salsa and nibbled on what she thought was the last of the edible food in the house. At this point in time, the guacamole even began to taste good.

She looked over at Dixon once again. How could he have worked so closely with these people for so long? Secrets definitely lurked about that were not documented. Alex wondered if the man knew the answers, if he didn’t care to know them, or if he remained oblivious to them.

Just then, she noticed that Raymond pulled Dixon aside and started talking to him. She wondered if their conversation was information about a case, or perhaps another secret. She didn’t want to interrupt. Well, that wasn’t true. She didn’t want to appear pushy on her first day on the job, so she remained where she was, wishing she had the super hearing vampires had. She watched as Dixon’s hopeful expression turned to a saddened one. After a few minutes, Dixon nodded and walked away from Raymond, leaving the plates of food on the table. Alex noticed a look of disappointment from Dixon – like he had just been told that Santa didn’t exist. She suspected the conversation was probably on the topic of his retirement. Of course, the men would be sad to say good–bye to each other. After all, they had worked together for decades.

Raymond approached Alex as she continued pretending to admire the fireplace. In truth, she was using her hand on the mantle to steady herself. Hopefully he had not noticed her trying to eavesdrop on his conversation. She took a sip of her wine and told herself to be more professional. After all, this was an official team meeting.

His expression changed from a saddened one to smiling at her as he approached. “We enjoy having a fire here during the winter months.” He continued smiling at her as she sipped her wine. “We have no body heat.” He offered her his hand and she held it. He slid his thumb back and forth across her hand, his skin temperature picking up her warmth. “The heat of the fireplace can warm us, just like your hand is warming my hand right now.”

She cleared her throat and closed the gap between the two of them. “You like feeling warm. Don’t you?”

“Oh, yes.” He continued stroking her hand.

She took a sip of her wine. She pointed across the room. “What were you and Dixon discussing?”

Raymond glanced over at Dixon and cleared his throat. “His retirement plans. He was hoping for a specific opportunity and, unfortunately, it isn’t available.”

Alex picked up on his saddened tone. “That’s too bad. I hope it doesn’t interfere with him enjoying his retirement.”

Raymond looked away from her. “I’m sure he’ll enjoy the twenty or thirty years he has left.”

She felt like another secret was in place, but still placed her arm on his shoulder to comfort him. Obviously the two were close. “I am sorry he’s leaving.” She sighed, “I am grateful for the promotion, but I know I have some pretty big shoes to fill.” She stroked his back and leaned slightly in toward him. “Do you want to talk about it?” she asked.

Without hesitation, he said, “No.”

She didn’t like secrets, but, after having offended one vampire tonight, she decided not to offend a second – especially not Raymond. She dropped her hand from his back. “OK,” she said.

He grabbed her hand and leaned into her. His breath caressed her cheek, “Thanks for understanding.” His hand touched her face, “I will miss him, but I am looking forward to working with the new director.”

She glanced down at his moist lips, and then licked her own. The light from the fireplace cast a warm glow across his strong muscular jaw. She took a breath, and waited for his kiss, but he pulled away abruptly, removing his hands from her face. He turned from her and faced the kitchen the exact moment his sister walked through to the living room.

“Yes, Sulie,” Raymond said.

“Oh, there you are. I’ve been looking for you.”

He straightened his stance, crossed his arms, and became stoic. “Yes. I heard you calling, but I was busy talking with Alex.”

Alex turned slightly away and ran her hand through her hair. What was she doing? Kissing a team member was bad enough, but to kiss him in front of other team members? Exactly how unprofessional did she want to be tonight? Looking over at Raymond she decided she didn’t care. He was all sex wrapped together in a handsome vampire, tight body. She felt embarrassed, as though his sister just caught them in bed together, and they hadn’t done anything yet. Yet. Now wasn’t that the operative word here?