Secret Life of a Vampire
Page 16

"Well, maybe. That would be nice." Lara realized he still hadn't claimed a last name. And something about his story seemed oddly familiar. "Your father was Italian, but he was working in Bohemia, where he met your mother?"
"He lived in many places, but he had a way of burning his bridges behind him." Jack approached her street in Brooklyn. "Can I see you tomorrow night? We can work some more on this case."
"You mean the kidnapping?" She'd become so intrigued with Jack's story that she'd almost forgotten about Apollo.
"How about eight-forty-five?" He turned onto her street. "Your place?"
"Okay." She gathered up her belongings. "Thank you for helping me."
"Lara." He stopped the car in front of her apartment building. "I want Apollo stopped. I pray the girls are still alive. But most of all, I am determined to keep you safe."
"I'll be fine." She unbuckled her seat belt.
He touched her cheek. Her heart stuttered in her chest.
"I want to kiss you," he said softly. "Is that all right?"
"Yes." Oh God, yes. She skimmed her fingers along his high cheekbone, then across the hollow of his cheek and the dark whiskers on his jaw.
He leaned forward and pressed his lips against hers. His mouth moved slowly, sweetly, molding her till she ached to open up to him. She slipped her hand around the back of his neck and ran her fingers into his soft dark hair. He was so delicious, so tempting.
He broke the kiss and settled back in his seat. "Good night, Lara."
The rascal. He had to know he was leaving her hot and bothered. The red tinge in his eyes let her know he was as turned on as she was. "Good night, Jack."
She climbed out of the car and hurried up the three flights of stairs to her apartment.
"So how did it go?" LaToya lounged against her bedroom doorway, wearing her pajamas.
Lara booted up the computer at her desk. "It was great. We now have a description of the perp. Tall, blond, and goes by the name Apollo."
"Cool." LaToya yawned. "And Jack behaved himself?"
"Yes." Lara connected to the Internet and Googled Giacomo Casanova. "You look tired. Go on to bed. I'll fill you in on the details tomorrow."
"Okay. Good night." LaToya closed her bedroom door.
When Jack had told her about his childhood, certain things had bothered Lara, and it had taken her a while to figure out why. Jack's father had lived such a naughty life that the old priest who tutored Jack had worried that he would follow in his father's footsteps. The man had been a womanizer who lived in many places. His last job had been in Bohemia, where he'd seduced Jack's mother. He'd died there at the age of seventy-three.
As Lara scanned Casanova's biography, her chest tightened. Her heart raced. Giacomo Casanova. Famous womanizer. He'd lived in many places until some sort of scandal forced him to move on. His last job was librarian at Castle Dux in Bohemia, where he died at the age of seventy-three. In 1798.
Lara's stomach roiled, and she pressed a hand to her mouth as bile rose in her throat.
No, it was some kind of strange coincidence. People didn't live to be more than two hundred years old. She was imagining things. But had she imagined Jack's super speed and hearing? His ability to teleport or control minds?
She jumped to her feet and paced across the living room. Who was he? What was he?
He had to be human. He had a beating heart. She'd felt it before. She'd felt his breath against her face when he kissed her. And she'd felt his erection under the zipper of his jeans.
She paced back and forth, but nothing was making sense. She collapsed on the couch and grabbed a legal pad off the coffee table. She could figure this out, dammit. If she was going to be a detective, she had to be smart enough to solve things.
She scrawled a title at the top of the page. You Don't Know Jack. Then she began a list of his characteristics. Intelligent. Strong. Handsome. Witty. Sexy. Sweet. Gorgeous. Protective. Supportive. Generous. Naughty. Great kisser. She frowned at the list, then marked a big X through it. It looked like a wish list for the perfect boyfriend, not clues to reveal his true identity.
Her gaze drifted over the list once more. Damn, he would be the perfect boyfriend if there wasn't something weird about him. What she needed was a list of his stranger characteristics. She began writing. Teleportation; mind reading and manipulation; super speed, strength, and hearing. These were the obvious ones. She needed to dig deeper. The truth could be hiding in the obscure.
Secretive. He definitely had something to be secretive about.
Hardworking. Motivated. She'd gotten the impression he didn't need to earn a living. He was fighting what he called the bad guys.
Has enemies. He'd mentioned enemies several times. And his friends and enemies all had the same ability to control minds.
What else? Old-fashioned. That made her cringe. He'd said he was seven years old when his father died. What if his father died in 1798?
Never drinks with me. Come to think of it, she'd never seen him eat, either.
Pale. Megan had said that Apollo was pale, too.
Eyes that can glow red.
Lara stared at the list. Her mind ticked off the possibilities LaToya had mentioned that night over dinner. Her ideas had seemed silly then, but not anymore. Superhero. Mutant. Alien. Bionic man.
Could Jack's secret have something to do with Romatech Industries? If Roman Draganesti had managed to clone blood, what other strange things had he accomplished?
Lara tossed the list on the coffee table and lounged back against the sofa. She rubbed her temples. Whatever Jack was, he was giving her one doozy of a headache. If she had any sense, she'd avoid him. But she knew she wouldn't. When it came to Jack, she was hopelessly intrigued. And falling fast.
CHAPTER 11
"With the amount of mind manipulation involved, I believe we can assume Apollo is a vampire." Jack finished explaining the case of the missing college student.
"I agree." Connor tapped his fingers on the desk in the security office at Romatech Industries. "He could be a Malcontent. Instead of hunting for a victim every night, he lures them to his place and keeps them on hand."
"Yeah," Phineas said. "The dude's stocking his pantry."
Jack suspected Apollo was using the women for more than food. He paced across the office. After dropping Lara off at her apartment, he'd driven back to the townhouse. Then he'd teleported to Romatech and called this meeting.
Phineas lounged back in his chair. "Limp dick."
Connor arched a brow. "Excuse me?"
"I wasn't referring to you," Phineas muttered.
Connor continued to stare at him.
"The Apollo dude's a limp dick," Phineas explained. "He has to use mind control to catch a woman. If he was the Love Doctor like me, the ladies would naturally succumb to his sophisticated charm and manly physique."
Jack chuckled. He'd been in New York for almost four weeks, and in that time, he hadn't noticed any women succumbing to Dr. Phang.
Connor cleared his throat. "I believe it is time for you to make another round."
Phineas frowned. "I did one ten minutes ago."
"And a good job ye did, too," Connor said. "Off ye go, lad."
Phineas trudged toward the door. "I'm more than just a babe magnet, you know. I can tell you want to talk to Jack in private."
Connor's eyes twinkled. "Och, ye're verra astute."
"Yeah, you bet your plaid-covered ass I am." Phineas flipped up the collar of his Polo shirt. "Dr. Phang is one astute son of a bitch." He closed the door behind him.
Jack sat in the chair Phineas had vacated. "I hope you've trained Dr. Phang well. I would hate to lose him in battle."
"He's become a verra good swordsman. Ian and Dougal taught him." Connor narrowed his eyes. "He would benefit from some lessons from you. I would say ye're actually the best swordsman in Europe, but if Jean-Luc heard that, he would skewer me."
Jack smiled. Jean-Luc had been claiming himself the European champ for centuries. "I'll be sure to tell him. He's too vain, as it is."
Connor snorted, and turned his attention to the surveillance monitors.
Jack glanced at them and spotted Phineas leaving through a side entrance. The Vamp's body blurred as he raced into the wooded grounds that surrounded Romatech. "I'll fit in a practice session with him before dawn."
"Good." Connor drummed his fingers on the desk, then stopped abruptly. "How much does the girl know?"
Jack wiped his face blank. "Nothing."
Connor studied him carefully. "Is she... intellectually challenged?"
His mouth ticked. "No."
"The more time she spends with you, the more suspicious she'll become. And the more ye'll be tempted to tell her too much."
"She knows nothing," Jack said. "It's the other police officers we need to be concerned about. So far, they don't know anything about Apollo. We need to keep it that way. We can't afford to let them actually solve this case."
"I agree. Nothing is more important than keeping our existence a secret." Connor gave him a pointed look.
Jack glared back. "She knows nothing."
Connor looked away, frowning. "I'll tell Angus about this Apollo problem. And I'll have Roman send out a memo to all the minor coven masters in America. Perhaps one of them will know of a resort with classical Greek-style architecture in their district."
Jack nodded. "Excellent idea."
"Hopefully, we can locate Apollo's resort in a few nights," Connor continued. "I assume the place will be fenced off and have a few daytime guards. Apollo's control over the ladies' minds may be weaker during the day, while he's in his death-sleep."
"True. And he can't afford to let any of the women escape." Jack frowned as he wondered how many women Apollo might have killed. "I'll compile a list of missing college students." Especially pretty redheaded females.
"Good." Connor glanced at the surveillance monitors. "Do ye know which police officers are working the case?"
"I could find out. They'll be working out of the precinct where Columbia University is located."
"That would be Morningside Heights. We should erase their memories." Connor looked at Jack. "We should erase the memories of every mortal who knows about this case."
Jack gripped the arms of his chair. "Lara is immune. Her memory cannot be erased."
"By you," Connor finished softly.
Jack gritted his teeth. "My psychic powers are as strong as any Vamp's."
"I doona mean to insult you, but I have to question if ye really tried. Deep inside, ye may no' have wanted her to forget you."
"I tried," Jack growled. "Laszlo tried, too. We couldn't get through to her."
"Then ye willna mind if I give it a try."
Jack shot to his feet. "No."
Connor's eyebrows rose. "An interesting reaction."
"Don't play these games with me, Connor. You will leave Lara alone."
The Scotsman heaved a sigh and leaned back in his chair. "What the hell is wrong with you all? Roman, Angus, Jean-Luc, Ian-'tis spreading like a bloody plague. I've been wondering if a Vamp loses his mind once he reaches the ripe old age of five hundred, but I remain unaffected, thank God, and you-ye're just a youngster."
"Two hundred and sixteen years old," Jack said wryly. "Barely out of training pants."
Connor gave him an annoyed look. "There are at least twenty thousand law-abiding Vamps that we know of, and almost half of them are verra bonny and clever women. Why can ye no' dally with one of them?"
Jack shrugged. "I never intended this to happen."
"Do ye no' realize that ye risk the lives of every Vamp around the world when ye tell a mortal our secret? Ye doona have the right to endanger us all."
"I haven't told her anything."
"Yet." Connor rubbed his brow. "I've seen this happen too many times now. Ye're acting just as sick as the others did."
"Love isn't sick. Amore is the most powerful and positive force in the universe."
"Ye've known her-what-two weeks? Ye canna call it love. 'Tis a bad case of lust, nothing more."
Jack paced across the room. No, he'd lusted before. He'd loved before. He knew the difference. "This is more than lust."
"It is folly," Connor grumbled.
Maybe so, but was it love? Jack halted and stared into space. How deeply was he falling for Lara?
"Can ye stop seeing her?" Connor asked softly.
Could he? There were only a few things he had to do to survive. Hide from the sun. Drink blood. When looked at that way, the life of a Vamp seemed endlessly monotonous.
Every day at sunset, his heart leaped to life in his chest, but for so long he'd felt dead inside. He'd given himself entirely to the cause of fighting the Malcontents, for it gave him a reason to climb out of bed every night. It was a dark life of constant conflict and bloodshed. It had lasted two centuries, and it could go on forever. Merda, he was living in a circle of hell.
Lara felt like an angel who had come to his rescue. All beauty and light. He was no longer living for death, but for amove. He was falling in love.
Love. He'd always believed in true love, but he'd always been unlucky in it. His first love, Beatrice, had died before he could marry her. Her loss had hit him with such devastation that many years passed before love found him again, in 1855. With high hopes he'd told his mistress his secret, only to have her reject him. He'd been forced to erase her memory, but his memory had remained intact, and the pain of losing her had taken years to get over.