Always the Vampire

Saber hovered during the ghost tour, on alert for any disturbance. I stayed alert to his health and to my twenty-five tourists, shepherding them along, answering questions, and generally doing my best to insure they got a bang of boos for their bucks.

We arrived at Cosmil’s just after ten, me still in my green Regency costume, Saber in blue jeans and a white polo shirt. A similarly dressed Triton sat on the couch, his arm around Lynn. Cosmil and Lia stood at the gleaming stainless steel island, both wearing those white scrublike uniforms, whipping up either a late dinner or magical potions. Judging by the spread of bowls piled with ingredients, the flasks filled with liquid, and the aroma of herbs, my money was on potions. I didn’t see Pandora, but as soon as I thought of her, I sensed her outside in the tree line. Patrolling, I gathered.

“Wow, Lynn, you look fantastic,” I said when she acknowledged me with a shy smile. Her silver blond hair shone in the soft light, her skin no longer looked sallow, and her blue green eyes sparkled. “I’m not sure Triton is good enough for you.”

She laughed and plucked at the hem of her navy shorts, paired with a warm pastel pink scoop-neck T-shirt. “Triton ran me home to get fresh clothes, and we stopped by Mom Kate’s to prove I’m okay.”

“The phone calls home weren’t cutting it,” Triton added.

“How did you explain Triton to Kate?” Saber asked.

“They introduced him,” Cosmil said, “as my intern and assistant. I sent a note along for Mrs. Tidwell explaining that Lynn had contracted a particularly nasty bacterial infection that would need several days more treatment.”

“Nice work,” I said, leaning a hip against an armchair.

“Yes, well, we have explained the potential danger to Lynn and bought time so that we may protect her, but now tell us, have there been further developments in the murder investigations?”

“No,” Saber answered. He sank into the matching chair across from Lynn. “The autopsies may be done this weekend, but I doubt we’ll hear from Detective Balch until Monday.”

Cosmil nodded as he moved a pinch of red powder from a bowl to a flask. The liquid popped, and a very thin line of smoke rose. Lia leaned into the wizard to inhale the smoke and smiled her satisfaction.

I cleared my throat. “If that’s more miracle cure you two are mixing up, Saber could use a shot of healing tonight.”

“Why not heal him yourself?” Lia’s eyes fixed on my face.

I blinked. “You mean with the am—”

“Way,” Triton jumped in. “Wasn’t that the stuff you bought on the Internet? I think you left that here, didn’t you, Cesca?”

Never say I can’t take a hint. “That’s right. I don’t have any at home.”

Lia had watched impassively, and now waved her hand. “Never mind, then. We’ll see to it. Right now, tell us your plan for protecting Lynn. We must get this settled.”

“How do you know I have a plan?”

“You’re mentally broadcasting bits of it. We really must work on shielding your thoughts.”

“Damn, Cesca,” Triton said, “tell us already.”

“Okay.” I stood straight, ready to sell the idea. “We want to hide Lynn but also have someone looking after her in case she gets sick again. When I thought of safe places and people, the first name to pop to mind was Victor Gorman.”

I looked directly at Lynn. “I warn you, Gorman is not the most couth of men. In fact, he reeks of jalapenos and cigar smoke most of the time, but he is relentless. He’s stalked me for months.”

“He’s a stalker?” Lynn asked nervously.

“Not in the typical sense, I promise. He’s a vampire hater. A member of the anti-vamp group, the Covenant. Think a redneck Van Helsing.”

“Why would your stalker agree to protect Lynn?” Triton demanded.

I gave her a conspiratorial grin. “Because I told Gorman a rogue vampire was obsessed with a gorgeous, innocent heroine.”

“She also offered to pay him,” Saber put in dryly. “I don’t like the guy, but he’ll bust his butt for the money.”

“He won’t harm her?” Triton pressed.

“No. He knows to do the job and nothing more.”

“Plus,” I said to Lynn, “you’ll only be with Gorman during the day. I’ve made other arrangements for night guards. Two male vampires I met in Fernandina Beach.”

Triton shot off the sofa and paced toward me. “Vampires? Are you using grits for brains? They’re more infected by the Void than we are.”

“These two aren’t sick at all, so chill. Ken and David are former Marines who were trapped in the Atlanta nest. They’re very grateful that the nest system has been dissolved, and want to do me a favor. They also happen to be on vacation in Orlando right now, so they can be here tomorrow night.”

“Oh, yeah? Why can’t they get here tonight? And where will they stay?”

“They’ll keep Lynn at the beach house. Starrack may know about the property, but it’s kind of off the radar so I have a gut feeling he doesn’t. As for question two, David and Ken could have come to St. Augustine tonight, but I told them I’d need Lynn’s approval. If she says no, David and Ken stay in Orlando, and I can nix Gorman, too.”