Charlie huffed and pursed his lips together. “Fine. Come with me. I think I know where he is, or at least the general vicinity.”
Thirty minutes later, Charlie parked at the same marina where I’d seen Lucien before. He got out of the car and tucked his hands into the pockets of his leather jacket. A sharp wind twisted his curly hair. He attempted to smooth it back, but it was futile. He turned and gave me a forced smile.
I watched him walk away, grateful for our friendship. In another lifetime, I might’ve actually liked him more than a friend. He was strong, loyal, kind—my lingering gaze stopped when I found the dock where I first saw Lucien standing. My heart stopped beating. Lucien. My longing to be with him made my heart ache and my body go numb. But I felt something else tug at my senses, a new feeling. It was an urgency of some kind. Something was wrong.
The car door opened and Charlie jumped in, bringing with him a strong gust of wind. “That wind cuts through you sharper than my Uncle Jack chews through a thanksgiving turkey.”
“Did you sense anything?”
He turned to me. “Did you know my uncle actually sharpens his dentures before thanksgiving?’
“Charlie, please,”
He let out a long, drawn out sigh. “He’s not here.”
“I could’ve told you that,” I said.
“It wasn’t a complete waste. I sense that Valium Vampire will be here in a couple of hours.”
“Who?”
“Forget it. Let’s get something to eat and then we’ll come back.” He started the car and drove from the parking lot.
“Do you feel anything else?” I asked.
He frowned. “Like what?”
“Like something’s about to happen. And it involves Lucien.”
“I don’t. What are you picking up?” Charlie asked.
I shrugged and looked out the window. “Maybe it’s nothing.”
A couple of blocks away, Charlie and I sat in a small cafe next to a wide window. The light spilled in and reflected off a freshly wiped table. Charlie did most of the talking, speaking mostly of the Deific employees. I tried to follow along, but I couldn’t get Lucien out of my mind.
“Eve?”
I looked at him. “Hmm?”
“I was asking you what you think we should do for Don.”
Don was the night janitor at the Deific. He recently went through a divorce. “I’ll go talk to him and see if I can figure out what would be best,” I said.
All of a sudden, Charlie tensed and grabbed my hand on the table. “Valium!”
“What?”
“In a few seconds, Valium, I mean Lucien, will pass by this window.”
I stopped breathing and slowly looked outside. Even though I could still hear the bustling sounds of the restaurant, time slowed as if it, too, was holding its breath as much as I was.
On the sidewalk in front of me, Lucien stepped into view. I wasn’t sure it was him at first because he was dressed completely different. He wore a black suit jacket that was unbuttoned, and beneath it, he wore a black vest over a red shirt. His hooded blue eyes looked angry as he stared ahead, unaware of everyone and everything around him. He walked with purpose and with a confidence I rarely saw in anyone. I wished time would stop so I could capture his image, but even as I thought it, he passed by.
Go after him! My body jerked into action and moved toward the door. Outside on the sidewalk, I followed his every movement—walking away from me.
A hard thump on my shoulder sped up time. Two men walked by, one of who had purposely bumped into me. When he was a few feet away, the man who had nudged me turned around and stared. It wasn’t his red spiked hair or his many tattoos of crossed bones all over his body that frightened me—it was his smile. It spread across his face the way oil coats the sea.
“Vampires,” I heard Charlie hiss behind me. He pulled me back into the restaurant. “You didn’t tell me he had friends.”
“He doesn’t. They’re following him. We’ll have to warn him when we see him at the marina. Let’s go.”
Ten minutes later, we were back in the same parking spot overlooking the marina. I checked my watch every few seconds. Charlie tapped on the steering wheel to unheard music.
“Something feels different,” he said.
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“I don’t think he’s going to show.”
“Why? You said earlier he’d be here.”
“Well that’s before I saw the other vampires. It changes things.”
“What’s the point of being psychic if everything can change?” I didn’t like the sound of my voice, but with every passing second, my anxiety grew.
“Look, I never said the gift was perfect. I only said I was.”
I ignored his attempt at a joke and got out of the car. I glanced at my watch again. He should be here by now. Charlie exited the vehicle on the other side.
“I’ll go walk around, see if I can pick anything up,” he said.
I turned the other way and walked down the pier.
When we met up again several minutes later, Charlie said, “I’ve got nothing. It’s like he disappeared or something.”