I sighed. Quinn was right, I wasn’t over Damien.
There was a surprise waiting for me after I changed: A very distinguished gentleman dressed in a grey flannel suit, his white hair pulled back in a low pony tail.
“Allwain!”
“Quinn said you needed me. So here I am. Before I came, I did some discrete research for you. Arthur. Well, Arthur has been around a very long time as you know. He has many,
many
offspring and they don’t all get along. Reynold came along somewhat late. Because Arthur was so devastated by the loss of the boy’s mother, there has been distance between them. I’ve been told that Reynold is forever trying to prove himself, to separate himself from his father’s notoriety and to be successful without Arthur’s aid.”
“So you believe that the person here in New York is truly that son?”
“All my sources led me to that conclusion. I think he has chosen this task as a way to prove himself, not only to his father, but to you and the Protectors.”
“I don’t know. I still don’t feel right about him for some reason.”
“Let’s go and meet him. I’ll test him without his knowledge and give him the tracking crimson. If he passes, give him the opportunity! If you’re still not sure, send someone you trust with him. After all, letting someone else take on this task, frees you to do other things.”
“That’s true. All right then, let’s go.”
Allwain offered his arm like a proper gentleman and we walked back to the house.
“I like the suit by the way.”
Allwain smiled and adjusted his tie with his free hand.
“It’s very uncomfortable,” he whispered. “I prefer my robes.”
“Well I think you look very handsome. Thank you for coming.”
Allwain shrugged his shoulders, “I need to check on the chemists anyway. Liridon and Gruen are in place. Charmaine could be helpful, what do you think?”
“I’ll let you know. How is she adjusting to her new life?”
He laughed, “Like a child discovering that she has toes. Everything is a source of wonder and joy to her. She spends time each day honing her skills. I think you will be pleasantly surprised, Katrina.”
“You seem quite taken by her,” I teased.
“Katrina, really.”
Lissel opened the door when we arrived and informed us that everyone was getting ready for dinner.
“Fine, if you will show me to the kitchen I have some things I would like to prepare,” Allwain said.
“See you in a few minutes. I need to wash up and change. I really am so glad you’re here, Allwain.”
I was half way up the stairs when I heard the door open.
“Quinn, good. I was just going up to change. We can talk.”
“I take it our latest guest has arrived?” he said as he walked up the stairs behind me.
“Yes, he’s in the kitchen, doing whatever he’s does.”
We got into my room and I used my power to block anyone’s ability to overhear our conversation.
“Now what did you find out?”
“That he cleared every level of security, that the Queen offered to give him the accounting and any help he may need. Reynold was the one who insisted on getting permission from you before going ahead. What did Allwain have to say?”
“Pretty much the same thing, that I should trust him.”
“And you still don’t, do you?”
“I don’t know if it’s really that I don’t trust him, it’s just for some reason I have a strange feeling about him. Not that I can explain it. Allwain suggested that I send someone with him that I trusted,” I said.
“Why are you looking at me that way? You…no…you want
me
to go with him?”
“Who else is there? Everyone else already has something they have to do and anyway you are the only one I trust to do this.”
“Is there more to this? What aren’t you telling me?”
“I have to leave tonight.”
“Alone?”
“The five of us, but not together. I can’t tell you anything more right now.”
He sighed and turned his back to me. I could feel his frustration coupled with his anger. When he’d calmed himself, he turned back.
“I’ll do what you want, for now. What about Reynold? He may not agree to this.”
“Those are my terms. If this is what he really wants to do, then he’ll have to agree. Now, we have some time before dinner, is there anything you can think of to do?” I asked as I walked to him, put my arms around his waist and smiled up at him.
“Maybe I can come up with something,” he mused.
After making love to Quinn, I rested peacefully in his arms until it was time to get up and get dressed.
“I wish we had more time,” Quinn said.
“We have all the time we need, Quinn. Just not right now,” I said giving him a kiss and getting out of bed. “Aren’t you even a little excited to go on a new adventure?”
“I would be if I was going with you. I don’t even know this Reynold. In the few minutes that I was around him I wasn’t impressed. And you, you didn’t exactly embrace him either.”
I put on my robe, grabbed my brush and walked back over to the bed.
“That’s exactly why you are going with him. These are the treasures of the ages that were meant to be protected by the sanctuaries for all time, not owned by a greedy few. Now the funds from their sale are providing our enemies the ability to threaten us all.”
“When you put it that way, I understand how important this is.”
“Let’s hurry, while the others are having drinks we should speak with Allwain and go over the list of things and the latest news about them,” I said walking back to the vanity.
I stood in front of the mirror and brushed through my hair while enjoying the view of Quinn’s carved naked physic behind me. Of course he caught me and gave me one of those smiles.
He walked up behind me. “The leader of the Five blushes?” he teased as he pulled me close.
“I can’t help it if I’m shy and demure,” I said batting my eyes, before we both burst out laughing. It felt just like it did when we were little, best friends growing up together in Germany. It seemed like a life time ago now.
“I’ve loved this time with you, Katrina.”
“You make it sound like we’ll never see each other again.”
He turned me to face him. “I told you that I had no other expectations other than to live in the moment. That’s what I’m doing.”
“If this is about Damien, I want you to know I think that you’re right. I didn’t have closure. I may never have closure, I don’t know. What I do know is that I love you, Quinn.”
“And I love you. That being said, we have lives that may always keep us apart. Whether we are a couple or not doesn’t change the way we feel about each other does it?”
“No, you’re right we have always been there for each other and we always will be.”
A knock came on the door startling us both.
“Drinks are being served in the parlor miss,” Lissel said from the hallway.
“We’ll be right down, thank you. We better go.”
Quinn bent down and tenderly kissed me one more time.
“I love you,” I whispered.
“I know.”
Allwain was still in the kitchen when we got down stairs, so we made a quick appearance in the parlor and headed there.
“Anything to tell us?”
Allwain looked up, but didn’t stop mixing the concoction in front of him.
“Reynold has accepted all the stipulations that I put forth and passed every test that I gave him; even those that I did without his knowledge. This is the last thing, the crimson,” he said looking over to me, letting me know he had place the tracking compound in it.
“Good. Quinn has agreed to go with him. Reynold will have to agree to that as well, before we give him the accounting of treasure.”
“Where do you want us to start, Allwain? Is there a treasure any more important than the others that you wish us to retrieve first?”
“They are all important or they wouldn’t have been in the repository. Our enemies have no idea what some of these objects are or the power they hold,” he said shaking his head in disgust. “If they ever do, there will be no saving us. These are the pieces you must retrieve at all cost. Go to South America, I will have someone waiting there that can help you.”
“Let’s go tell Reynold what we’ve decided, Quinn. You start after dinner.”
“There you are,” Kate said. “What have you two been up to?”
“We have been consulting Allwain. He agrees with us that it would be very helpful Reynold, if you could take on the task of recovering the lost treasure of Macchu, with certain conditions.”
“What exactly do you mean, Katrina?” Reynold asked cautiously.
“That I go with you,” Quinn answered, surprising everyone. “We leave right after dinner.”
“Wait just a minute, this is
my
mission. I don’t need any Watcher holding me back.”
Instantly Quinn was within inches of him, fangs bared.
“You’ll find I am no ordinary Watcher. You either agree or
I
go alone!”
“Quinn, that’s enough,” Mother said. “Do you agree, Reynold? After all, Katrina has the final word.”
“I apologize, Quinn. I had no idea. Your scent…”
“Purposely done to hide the fact that he is a vampire, much the way the demon Belnovus are protected,” I said. “Now do you agree or not?”
“If that is the only way I can proceed, then yes, I accept your terms.”
Quinn backed off and offered his hand, which Reynold reluctantly shook.
“Good,” Mother said. “Champagne please, Lissel.”
“To your success,” I said raising my glass in a toast.
“Success!” chimed in the others.
“I’m starving,” Kate laughed. “What’s for dinner?”
“Beef Wellington and all your favorites plus cherries jubilee for dessert, how does that sound?”
“Wonderful!” Kate sighed.
Everyone was much more relaxed at dinner, everyone except me. All I could think about was the message and what I was going to do about it.
“Allwain are you going back home tonight?” El asked as we ate our cherries jubilee.
“I haven’t decided yet. I may take a few days to explore the city. That is if you don’t mind me staying, Elizabeth.”
“Of course not. I would be happy to show you around.”
“That was a wonderful meal, Elizabeth. Thank you so much for your hospitality. I don’t know about you Quinn, but I am very anxious to get started,” Reynold said.
“I’m ready if you are,” Quinn said as they both stood.
“I brought packs filled with everything that you will need on this leg of your journey. Of course you can contact me whenever you need to by using the skrying mirrors I gave you. If you will follow me to the back room I’ll get you started.”