Bones smiled a trifle grimly. “I may well have to kill him before this is over. But if I do, at least I’ll know it was my only choice.”
We started walking again. Occasionally I saw graffiti along the walls, showing that these tunnels weren’t always kept free of visitors.
“Why is all this down here, anyway?”
“Used to be primarily steam tunnels,” Bones replied. “It was how they heated the university above. Now it’s also used for phone, computer, and electric wires as well. Some parts of these tunnels run all the way to the power plant. It’s right easy to get lost in here, if you don’t know where you’re going.”
Finally we reached another apex, and there, to my amazement, was an underground stream.
Bones stopped. “This is where we meet Mencheres.”
“No way,” I snorted.
After a minute, there was a grating noise. Then, just like something out of an old Dracula movie, a crypt-like door slowly opened in one of the walls and a dark-haired vampire came out of it. All he needs is a cape, I thought irreverently. Then it would be perfect.
The vampire didn’t have a cape, though, and I felt power slide all over my skin, sharp as an electric shock. Whoa. Whoever he is, he’s packing some serious voltage.
“Grandsire,” Bones said, stepping forward. “Thank you for coming.”
Mencheres looked no older than thirty. He had long black hair, charcoal-colored eyes, and a hawkishness to his nose that, combined with his finely tinted skin, suggested Middle Eastern ethnicity. But it was his power level that flabbergasted me. His crackling aura was like nothing I’d ever felt before. No wonder Bones had said Ian wouldn’t want Mencheres as his enemy. Feeling the power surging off him, neither did I.
“Bones,” he said, hugging my lover. “It has been too long.”
Okay, at least he sounded friendly.
Bones turned to me. “This is Cat.”
I came forward and stuck out my hand, unsure of what the proper protocol was. Mencheres gave me a slight smile and took it.
As soon as his fingers closed over mine, I wanted to jerk my hand back. Zing! I might as well have jammed my wet finger in a light socket. I managed to give him the barest shake, then I let go, using all my control not to rub my hand to try and get the numbness out of it. Later I’d have to ask Bones exactly how old Mencheres was. I was betting he measured birthdays by millennia, not centuries.
Once proper greetings were exchanged, Bones dove right in.
“I’m leaving Ian’s line,” he announced. “Ian wants her, and she wants to murder one of his people, so you can see why I need to shirk my loyalties to him and be head of my own line.”
Mencheres flicked his gaze to me. “Do you really think killing your father will make anything in your life better?”
I wasn’t prepared for that question, so my reply was a little stuttered.
“Uh, yeah. Hell yeah, in fact. For starters, I wouldn’t have to worry about hit men sighting my head in their scopes, and for another, I think it would be really, really satisfying.”
“Vengeance is the emptiest of emotions,” Mencheres said dismissively.
“Beats suppressed rage,” I shot back.
“I didn’t say it was her father she wanted to kill,” Bones interjected in a smooth voice. “How did you know that, Grandsire?”
How indeed? My brows lifted. Mencheres shrugged.
“You already know how.”
Bones seemed to accept that. I didn’t. “And?” I prodded.
“Mencheres sees things,” Bones replied. “Visions, glimpses of the future, that sort. It’s one of his powers.”
Great. We had to convince a vampire swami to take our side. Guess if he could see the future, he’d already know whether or not that was a good idea.
“Got any stock tips?” I couldn’t help but ask. “The government doesn’t pay shit for salary.”
“Are you going to claim her as one of yours?” Mencheres asked Bones, ignoring me. “Is that why you wanted to meet with me in secret? To ask for my support should you go to war with Ian over her?”
“Yes,” Bones said without blinking, while it was all I could do not to snap, Shouldn’t you already know that, Miss Cleo?
Mencheres gave me such a look that I shifted uncomfortably. Jeez, I hadn’t said it out loud.
Bones sighed. “Kitten, I’m guessing I need to inform you that Mencheres can also read humans’ minds, and from his expression, half-breeds, too.”
Uh oh. I was so busted. “Whoops,” I said. Then my eyes narrowed. “Not vampires’ minds, I take it, or you wouldn’t have phrased it that way.”
“No, not vampires’ minds,” Bones acknowledged. His mouth quirked. “Unless you’ve been hiding something, Grandsire.”
Mencheres also had a ghost of a smile. “If I did have that power, it would have saved me from many wrong decisions. No, just humans. And half-breeds. Have you told her under what pretext you’d claim her as yours, Bones?”
From the way Bones suddenly tensed, I didn’t need mind-reading skills to know there was indeed some information he’d left out.