Lost in Magic (Night Shadows Book 4) (8 page)

Chapter Thirteen

To say he was unhappy with Allison’s plan would have been not unlike saying the ocean was wet. All Mick could think about while he scanned the various eateries of the
Euphoria
was how badly she could get hurt on her own. How dangerous her choice was. It would have been dangerous to search
any
of the ship alone, at least to his way of thinking, but to search the infirmary was the worst. Like she’d pointed out, it was the most obvious source of blood aside from the passengers.

His only consolation was that their mystery vampire—or vampires—didn’t know there was a witch aboard. If they did, if they knew about him, Ali would be targeted for sure.

Mick ground his teeth as he approached the restaurant where he and Allison had shared dinner the second night. It felt like a year ago already. And given the time of day it was only sparsely occupied. Poor hunting grounds for a vampire. Unless that vampire was specifically targeting lonely women.

I should probably check the casino.
But it was on the other side of the level. He’d just have to work his way there.

He almost missed the dark eyes that lingered on him as he looked around. And then he nearly snapped his gaze back to those eyes too quickly. But when he did finally look back the gaze was gone, turned down to the book the dark-eyed man was reading.

The man in question was older, with thinning silver hair peeking out from the edges of the wide brimmed hat he wore. He sat with his back to the window wall, seemingly uninterested in the magnificent view. Mick might have brushed him off if not for the oddity of his outfit and those dark eyes he’d glimpsed. Vampires all had pitch black irises, indistinguishable from their pupils. And an intolerance for sunlight, much like the man’s long sleeves and discarded sunglasses might indicate. Beneath the table Mick could see full length pants. The entire ensemble was black. Such a cliché that he wanted, for the sake of his sanity, to dismiss the man entirely.

But he couldn’t.

No, he was going to have to approach the man. And a part of him hoped this
was
the vampire he was searching for.
If he’s up here then at least Ali’s safe.
Until, or unless, this stranger saw them together.

“Afternoon,” Mick greeted as he approached the small table where the man sat.

After a beat the man looked up and offered a closed smile. “Good afternoon,” he said. “Can I help you with something?”

Mick returned the smile politely. Just in case this man was an ordinary human. “Ah, actually,” he said, “I was wondering … are you married?” What the hell kind of question was that?

The man’s smile remained and he lowered the paperback face down on the table. “No,” he said. “But I’ve known some amazing women in my time. Need some perspective?”

Finding himself hoping this man just liked the serenity of a cruise and black clothes, Mick pulled out the opposite chair and took a seat. “Please.” He paused, briefly debating how honest he wanted to be. A little honesty did, after all, earn better results. Usually. “I was hoping to ask how you know when you’ve met the right one. Or, I guess, when you haven’t.”

The stranger leaned back in his chair and chuckled quietly. “In my experience, if it scares you, it’s probably good for you. But tell me about her. About your relationship. I’m a good judge of character.”

Mick leaned forward, one hand extended. “I’m Mick, by the way.”

The man caught his hand in a predictably weak grip. “Boris.”

****

Allison released a breath and wiped sweaty palms along the sides of her jean shorts. She may have put on a brave face in front of Mick when she was trying to convince him of the necessity of this plan, but she was nervous as hell.
I’m sure that’s natural.
She was searching for evidence of a blood-sucking murderer, after all. Evidence she wasn’t really sure she wanted to find.

Here goes.

As she’d anticipated, the nurse from the day before was working again. And she recognized Allison immediately, even managing a smile. A smile tinged with sadness.
So she knows about Mrs. Michaels.
“Hi,” Ali said with a smile. “I’m sorry to just drop in, are you busy?”

The nurse blinked at her for a moment. “Not terribly,” she said. “What can I do for you?”

Putting on her best sheepish smile, Allison folded her hands behind her back and said, “Well, I was hoping for a tour or some insight, actually. You see, I’m about to graduate medical school and start my residency, and I wanted some tips. Some real tips, not advice from professors who haven’t practiced in a decade, you know?”

There was a brief stretch of silence and the nurse’s smile returned. Professional. Impersonal. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I can give you a few minutes of my time, I suppose, but I really can’t offer much. We don’t do job shadows here, you understand.”

Holding her hands up as if to rebuff the idea, Allison said, “Oh, of course! I wouldn’t dream of infringing on confidentiality. Just … what’s it like, being a nurse on a big cruise ship? Is it satisfying? What made you choose nursing?” She hated when people threw multiple questions at her simultaneously. But what was she supposed to say? It wasn’t like she’d rehearsed for this. “What sorts of supplies have to be kept in stock? Medications, blood stock, anything like that?”

“It’s always interesting,” the nurse replied with a small, deliberate laugh. “You never know who you’ll meet.” She paused, gestured to a waiting room chair, and moved to take a seat. “I chose nursing so I could help people. Not just with one kind of problem or in one location, but wherever I worked.”

Accepting the invitation, Allison said, “That’s really good of you.” God, she was terrible at this sort of thing.
Note to self: leave future interrogations to the professionals.

Nodding her acknowledgment of the compliment, the nurse continued, “We try to keep a variety of things, but not too much at the same time. It’s a complicated balance. But yes, we have all that. All of the standard supplies you might expect.”

Allowing a portion of her genuine frown to show, Allison asked, “But isn’t that dangerous? I mean, don’t you worry about theft?”

“Theft?” the nurse repeated, obviously surprised by the question. “Who would steal from a cruise ship infirmary?”

So they probably haven’t had any mysteriously disappearing blood.
Shrugging, Allison said, “Oh, I don’t know. You never know when you get a prescription junkie around, right?” She wanted to cringe at how dumb she sounded, but she needed to make her questions seem off-hand. The nurse would get even more suspicious if she made it too obvious that she had a focus.

“I suppose not,” the nurse said. “But it’s not something that’s been an issue in the couple of years I’ve worked here.” She offered a shrug of her own, then, adding, “Not to say sometimes little things don’t go missing. But that happens everywhere.”

That got her attention. “Oh? What sorts of things?” Had she misinterpreted the nurse’s earlier words?

****

“I wasn’t expecting you to call.”

Mick sighed and fought the urge to hang up. Rhea’s barely-familiar voice, feminine but calculating and dangerous, held a note of impatience he could practically feel across the line. “Yeah,” he said. “I wouldn’t have called if it weren’t important.”

“You’d better not be planning to beg for mercy,” Rhea said. He was surprised she even knew the word “mercy.”

“No,” he said. “No, I was hoping we could work a sort of … agreement.” An agreement with him on the losing end. But he pushed ahead before she could ask the obvious question. “There’s a problem on the ship. A vampire problem. People have died, and now the vampire knows he’s on borrowed time.”

“That is a problem,” Rhea said impassively. “But not mine.”

Grinding his teeth, Mick continued. “I can’t in good conscience leave this ship vulnerable. I’m sure you understand.” Actually, he wasn’t sure she did, but insulting her wouldn’t get him anywhere. “I was hoping you would help me clean this up.”

The impatience in her voice intensified. “And in return?”

“In return I’ll come quietly,” he said, glad Ali wasn’t there to hear this. She’d surely disapprove. “If we can wrap this up first, if you’ll help me, I won’t resist when it’s time to go.”

Rhea laughed, the sound echoing across the phone line. “As if you could resist me surrounded by ocean.”

“Rhea, please,” he said, swallowing the bitter taste of his pride. “This is bigger than us.”

“That’s debatable,” she said, her tone short. But he sensed her pause and held his tongue. “Still, the Council would disapprove of me turning my back on a vampire problem. So I’ll agree to your terms. But understand that when I say we go, we go. Immediately.”

This is such a bad call.
“Agreed.”

The line clicked without pause and Mick pulled the phone from his ear. He plugged it back into the charger and moved to the balcony for some air. He was pretty sure he had a lead on their vampire, whether he liked it or not, and his gut insisted he’d need Rhea’s power to survive the fight that would follow.

The old man, Boris, had put on a hell of an act. He played innocent old man flawlessly. Or, rather, as flawlessly as he could. But Mick’s gut twisted just thinking about the man. Those dark, unflinching eyes. That pale, covered skin. The black attire. The fact that Mick had only caught fleeting glimpses of perfectly white teeth behind the man’s thin lips. As if he were hiding something.

Most vamps had control of when their fangs descended, it was true, but not all. And Mick suspected this man was older than the vampires he was used to. How much older, he had no way to know. But for a man portraying himself as frail and aged, he emanated a sense of strength Mick couldn’t put his finger on. His grip had been weak, but even that had felt calculated. Deliberate.

Sure, he could be grasping at straws, but his instincts were usually sound. And his instinct insisted that Boris was dangerous. Boris, and likely the younger man who’d come to fetch him. Another man with dark eyes and long sleeves over pants. Sure, the younger one was wearing denim jeans and dark gray instead of black, with no hat or sunglasses, but they were probably still the only two on the entire ship dressed so completely.

A soft knock at the door told him Ali was probably waiting on him. She’d texted him just minutes earlier saying she was stepping into the elevator. So now he had to tell her what he’d discovered and, though he didn’t want to, what he’d had to do as a result.

She wasn’t going to like it.

Chapter Fourteen

“But I think she was hiding something,” Allison said in conclusion as she watched Mick for a reaction. She’d told him about her conversation with the nurse, and how as they’d talked she’d come to suspect that there actually was something suspicious going on behind the scenes. Though whether the nurse just wasn’t permitted to talk about it or was herself in on this conspiracy was anyone’s guess. But the entire time Allison had been talking, Mick had been acting funny. Like he had something else on his mind.

When he failed to offer more than a frown and a grunt of acknowledgment Ali sat forward. “Okay, your turn. What’s so distracting?”

Mick stared at the silent television mounted on the opposite wall for a long minute. Just when she was about to lose her patience he turned his gaze to her on a sigh. “I think I found at least two of our vampires,” he said. “Hopefully the only two.”

Allison reeled back, nearly losing her sideways balance on the sofa. “What? That’s good! Why didn’t you interrupt me?”

“Good and bad,” Mick said. “One of them seems older. A lot older. That’s a problem.”

Frowning and curling one foot beneath her butt, Allison asked, “How is that a problem? What am I missing?”

Mick leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees. “The older a vampire gets,” he began, “the more dangerous they are. By nature of the fact that they’ve lived long enough to learn a few things.” He paused and wrapped one hand around his clenched fist. “If a vampire’s strong enough to have a subordinate, especially in a place like this, we could be looking at a situation that’s bigger than us.”

“Aren’t we already?” It had been her understanding that they were already at a distinct disadvantage here, what with his power being earth-based and her being essentially a civilian in a supernatural battle. To her way of thinking that alone said they were going to have a hard time getting any real traction on the situation. So she shrugged and said, “One vampire, two vampires—old, young—what difference does it make?”

“If we were on solid ground,” Mick said, finally looking over at her. “None. We’d still have good odds. But we’re not, Ali. I have barely any earth to work with on this ship and we’re completely isolated.”

Allison leaned forward and rested a palm on his forearm. “We’ll find a way, Mick. We have to. Now tell me about these suspects you found.”

“Suspects?” Mick repeated, a flash of amusement flickering in his eyes. But it passed and he released a breath. “I met an old man in one of the restaurants. Complete cliché, all in black with long sleeves, pants, a hat—even sunglasses.”

Ali found herself drawing a mental image of the nice elderly man she’d met twice now in passing.
Come to think of it …
both times she’d seen him he’d matched that description. But did that mean he was a vampire? “Couldn’t he just not like the sun?”

“Sure,” Mick said. “But on a
cruise
? That’s kind of suspicious. Especially a cruise to the Bahamas.”

He did have a point.

Pursing her lips, Ali asked a question she didn’t want to know the answer to. “Is his name Boris?”

Alarm lit Mick’s eyes and he shifted to better face her. “It is. You’ve run across him?”

Ali nodded, letting him tangle his hands with hers without resistance. “Yes, in passing. He always seemed friendly.”

“Of course he did,” Mick said, tightening his grip. “Ali, does he know where your room is? Does he have
any
clue?”

Attempting to ease his worries with a smile, Allison said, “He shouldn’t. I met him on the dock before we set sail and then again in line for breakfast.”

Mick released a breath and lifted her knuckles to his lips.

Trying to ignore the useless fluttering of her heart, Allison asked the question burning inside her. “What else is distracting you?”

His grip loosened and he looked up at her. Something akin to guilt stole across his face for a beat and her heart clenched. What could it be?

“After I got back from my meeting with Boris,” Mick said carefully, “I realized how out of our depth we are here. Especially with at least one younger vampire answering to him. Who knows how many more there might be.”

“Mick—”

She wasn’t sure what she’d intended to say, but when his cell phone went off she dropped it. He would probably have to answer that.

Mick frowned again and released her hands in order to move to where his phone was resting, charging on the side table. He lifted it without unplugging it. “Jude?”

Allison’s heartrate doubled as she worried what kind of trouble Jude could be calling about. They’d asked him to call Mick’s cell if anything strange happened. But they’d also expressed their sympathetic desire to be there supportively and she had to hope that was why the grieving man was calling now.

“No, no, you did good,” Mick said, unplugging his phone and turning a glare out the window. “I agree, that’s very suspicious. You should contact someone you’ve already dealt with and follow-up. Just to verify it.”

Verify what?
Oh, Ali wished she could hear Jude’s half of the conversation.

“Out of curiosity,” Mick asked, “could you describe him?” Another, longer pause and some head nodding. Allison wondered if Jude was describing one of the vampire suspects Mick had met earlier. “Really? He said that? I’m no expert, but I’d feel the same way if I were you.” A brief pause followed before Mick added, “Please do. Okay, try to get some sleep. And keep your phone charged, okay?”

Mick disconnected, rubbed a hand down his face, and returned to the sofa. He dropped the phone back onto the table and turned his attention to her. “Someone matching the younger vamp’s description came to Jude’s door, asking questions about his mom. He tried letting himself in and everything.”

“Oh my gosh,” Allison said, the breath rushing from her lungs. “But he’s okay?”

Mick nodded. “The guy backed off when one of Jude’s neighbors walked by. I told him to contact one of the crew members he’s been dealing with.”

“But is he going to be all right?” Ali pushed, concern filling her chest. “What if the vampire comes back while he’s asleep?”

Mick sighed. “Hard to say. I guess it depends on how much of an easy target, or a necessary target, they think he’ll be. I’ll call him in a little while to check on him.”

Allison brought a hand to her mouth, mumbling, “This is crazy. It’s so complicated.”

“It is,” Mick said with a nod. He lifted a guilty gaze to her and her stomach twisted. “To complicate it more, there’s one other thing I need to tell you.” He didn’t pause long enough for her to ask the obvious question. “I called Rhea.”

Sucking in a breath, Allison asked, “Why would you do that?”

“Because we’re in over our heads out here,” Mick replied. “Because like it or not, Rhea’s damn good at what she does and we could use the help. So I made a deal with her.”

Dread settled like heavy, leaden weights in her chest. “And I’m not going to like this deal, am I?”

Mick shook his head. “I agreed to go with her without incident if she’d help us first.”

****

Warner paused, keycard in hand, at the sight of the elderly man knocking on Allison’s door. He’d seen the man once or twice before around the ship, but never around Allison.
What the hell’s going on?
First that prick stayed over, then that other guy showed up crying this morning, and now some old man was looking for her?

“Excuse me,” he called, tucking his keycard away and turning toward the man. “Are you looking for Allison?”

The elderly man turned and smiled, arm lowering to his side. “As a matter of fact, I am. Are you friendly with her?”

“I am,” Warner said. “But I don’t think she’s in right now. I haven’t seen her since this morning.”

“Ah, how unfortunate,” the man said. “Does she have a usual time returning? I thought I might check in on her, what with all of the strangeness going on.”

Warner inclined his head. “I understand,” he said. “I worry about her, too. She’s hooked up with some sketchy guy.”

“Has she?” the man asked.

“Yeah.”

The man hummed thoughtfully. “A woman traveling alone should be especially vigilant.” He smiled and added, “It comforts me to see a strapping young man looking out for her, though.” He tipped his hat to Warner. “Perhaps I’ll just look for her at breakfast tomorrow, then. Thank you for easing my mind.”

“Glad I could help,” Warner said with a smile of his own. He watched the older man walk back down the hall and then cut a glance to Allison’s room.
She’s probably still out with that guy.
He’d just run to the restroom real fast and then he’d keep an eye out to make sure she made it back.

Someone had to look out for her, after all.

****

“You did
what
?” Ali demanded, anger and surprise in her voice, as she shot to her feet. Mick couldn’t say he was in the least surprised by her response. “What were you thinking?”

He did his best to keep his response under control. “I already explained, we need the help.”

“But she’s going to take you away,” Ali argued. Her arms began gesturing and she said, “You’ll wind up in, what, witch prison? For taking a
vacation
? That’s not okay!”

He was touched by her concern, but in this moment it was causing unnecessary friction between them. “Ali,” he said, “I wasn’t intending to start a fight on the middle of a cruise ship. And Rhea wouldn’t hesitate to cause a scene if I pushed it.”

He watched her jaw work as she processed his words. At length she crossed her arms over her chest and said, “I don’t like it. It’s not right. What’s going to happen to you?”

Pushing to his feet and stepping up to her, Mick said, “I don’t know. I’ve never gone AWOL before.” He placed his hands on her elbows and tugged her up to him. “But I’ll be okay, baby. They’re not going to kill me for this.” They could be unreasonable, but the Council he worked for wasn’t so heartless. Although a part of him whispered “I hope” at the end of that assertion.

Allison released a breath and slumped into him. “It’s too much,” she admitted. “I can’t even handle the vampire thing, and adding you getting arrested for exerting your basic human rights … I can’t deal with this, Mick.”

Wrapping his arms around her, Mick pressed a kiss to her head. “I’m sorry, baby,” he whispered. “I wish I could keep this from you.”

Ali uncurled her arms and wrapped them around his waist. “No,” she said, “I want to be included. I just need a minute to breathe. Vampires … are a sore subject with me. That’s all.”

He held her tighter, knowing from her tone that she wouldn’t want to talk about why.
Maybe someday.
The thought gave him pause. Were they working on a “someday” kind of relationship?

He sure as hell hoped so.