A Stone-Kissed Sea
Page 8

Healthy humans were a vampire’s guarantee of eternal life and eternal influence.
Thinking of herself as food made Makeda’s skin crawl. “What was the letter about?”
“You’ve heard of the problems with this Elixir drug, yes?”
“I’ve heard of it, but it’s only a problem in Europe, isn’t it?”
If it wasn’t, then Makeda’s lab would soon be neck-deep in research, which meant the thalassemia project Makeda has spent the previous three years on might be shelved.
Please don’t let it be spreading to the Americas…
“It has spread out of Europe,” her father said. “There are cases here in the United States now. In California.”
Damn.
Makeda took a deep breath as a wave of quiet anger washed over her. She would be taken off a project that could save hundreds of lives and possibly cure a blood disorder affecting thousands of children.
Because she needed to study a vampire drug.
“She wants you to see her tomorrow evening,” Yacob said.
“I’m sure she’s going to redirect our research targets if Elixir is becoming a problem,” Makeda said, unable to cloak the bitterness in her voice. “Why not speak to Dr. Pak?”
Yacob shook his head. “I have no idea.”
As ambitious as she was, Makeda had no argument with Jerry Pak as the head of the hematology lab. He was a brilliant researcher and surprisingly good at herding the distracted PhDs he was charged with directing.
So why did Katya want to meet with her?
“What time?” she asked her father.
“Eleven. The sun this time of year…”
“Of course.” Northern climates were ideal for vampires in winter, but summer could be an issue, even in Seattle. “I’ll make sure I’m there. Main office?”
Yacob nodded.
“Okay then.” Makeda stood. “Better get back to the onions.”
Her father called her as she reached the door. “Makeda.”
“Hmm?” She turned, surprised to notice the grim expression on his normally cheerful face.
“Whatever she asks of you, be careful. Katya is a benevolent monarch in her world, but she is still a monarch.”
Makeda arrived at the handsome redbrick-and-beam building just off King Street at five minutes to eleven the next evening. She hated being late, but arriving too early might make her appear nervous. The building was guarded heavily, as all Katya’s buildings were, though most people passing by would have no clue anything was out of the ordinary. Rows of windows were carefully blocked from the inside, and human and vampire guards patrolled the block in the guise of office workers, news vendors, and dog walkers.
The dogs were not pets, and the walkers were not hipsters.
She passed a guard she’d met at several of Katya’s employee events, but he didn’t give Makeda a second look. She could almost feel the heat of electronic eyes on her as she walked into the lobby. She rode the elevator to the third floor and was ushered to a comfortable chair by a friendly human secretary.
At precisely 11:02, another assistant came to the door. This one was not human.
“Dr. Abel?”
Makeda rose and walked out of the waiting area with the open windows revealing the glint of Seattle’s many lights. She walked away from the human secretary, the buzz of normal conversation, and into the silent inhumanity of Katya Grigorieva’s private office.
Makeda was the only human there.
Lifting her chin, she concentrated on keeping her heart steady and her breathing even.
She was escorted into an office far brighter than expected. The day-like lighting and colors made her think of an afternoon at the beach, not a vampire lair. Behind a beech-gold desk sat a very pretty teenager with pale skin and long dark hair. Katya held out a hand for Makeda to shake. Makeda took it, noting the warmth of her skin, an affectation Katya had made the effort to produce since vampire skin was normally much cooler than human.
“Dr. Abel,” she said, releasing Makeda’s hand. “I believe we’ve met before.”
“We have,” Makeda answered. “At the Christmas party for the lab two years ago. Dr. Pak introduced us. I’d seen you on the tours before that though.”
“I enjoyed that Christmas party, but I think I made the majority of my employees nervous. I decided not to attend after that.” Katya smiled and Makeda noted her slightly crooked teeth. “Better to let employees have their time to socialize without the boss hovering and listening in.”
“It’s not a logical reaction though.” Makeda sat when Katya did. “Not from humans. You could conceal yourself in another room and easily listen to our conversations from a distance if you wanted to.”
Katya’s eyebrows rose.
Well, shit.
“Not that I’m implying you would,” Makeda quickly added. “Simply that you could if you wanted to.”
Luckily, her employer looked amused and not offended. “You’re correct, of course. But it’s not conducive to good employee relations to remind humans of that too often.”
“Of course.”
Katya crossed her arms, and Makeda noticed the way the vampire was dressed. Again, it wasn’t as she had expected. While Makeda wore a professional suit, Katya was in a pair of jeans and a fleece pullover more suited for backpacking or camping.
“You’re brilliant,” Katya said. “And I don’t hand that label out lightly. In general, vampires are far more intelligent than humans. It’s not prejudice; it’s fact.”