had just managed it for the second time.
Adela couldn’t believe her eyes. She’d stepped out to check on the Hummer Toby had lent her and came face to face with the vampire from Chicago. The one who turned out to be an aide or secretary or whatever he was to Dracula.
She gaped. He stared.
“You!” They practically spoke in unison. Hers was more of a strangled gasp. His, an accusation.
“Yes,” she managed with slightly less horror than her earlier monosyllable. “You want to see Toby?” She had no idea what this vamp was doing so far from the Windy City, and preferred not to know.
“He’s expecting me.”
News to her, but she had quite enough to worry about without adding an extra vamp to the mix. “He’s inside, in his study, I think.”
“Okay. Where will I find that?”
She was about to show him when the night nurse pulled up. The front drive was looking like a parking lot. And Zeke—she now remembered his name—was looking at the nurse as if she were good enough to eat, a circumstance that was far too probable to be comfortable.
Adela grabbed his arm. “Let me take you into the study.” Over her shoulder, she called, “Piet’s out on the terrace, Laura.”
Laura paused just inside the double front doors. “I need to talk to Mr. Wise.”
“So do I,” Zeke said.
“I’m here!” A calm, oh-so-Brit voice announced.
Adela decided Toby could cope with all this while she ran away to get gas and find a spot for quiet meditation and prayer.
He came forward, hand outstretched. “Hello, Zeke. I was expecting you but not quite this early. Brilliant, and thank you for coming.”
Zeke grabbed the hand. The subsequent handshake would have crippled a mortal. Zeke grinned. Toby offered a polite smile.
“Glad to come, man! Not often I get a weekend by the ocean, but when Vlad the man says, ‘Zeke, get yourself to Oregon!’ I get my tail into action.” He looked around the wide, slate-floor hall. “Nice place you’ve got here.”
“It is, and it’s borrowed. I’m a guest here too.” There was just the teeniest bit of aspersion in his words. Adela sympathized. They surely did not need this on top of everything else today.
“Excuse me, Mr. Wise?” Laura, the nurse, hovered on the fringes of Zeke’s unmistakable presence.
“Ah! Laura!”
Curious. Very curious. Toby’s wide smile and the light in his eyes suggested more than professional interest. Goddess help the girl! Or maybe she already had! After all, Lizzie seemed more than content with her vampire. Meanwhile…“Toby, I’m off. Thanks for the keys. I’ll gas it up.”
“Don’t go back there alone.”
Came out as an order, but she’d take it as friendly concern. He’d been incredibly supportive through it all so far. “Don’t worry. I won’t! See you later!”
She didn’t exactly run but needed vampire-free space and clear, tension-free air. Adela hoped Laura would be okay but sensed Toby could be depended on.
Toby didn’t blame Adela scarpering off fast as the Hummer could carry her. He rather envied her the opportunity, but he had responsibilities, and two were standing at arm’s length. “Laura, I have news for you. Not quite what I had in mind but should serve, for a few days at least. Please see to Piet and let Amy Redding leave, and I’ll talk to you soon. I’ve matters to discuss with Mr. Randolph.” Who was giving Laura far too much of his attention.
“Call me Zeke,” he said, with a decidedly interested smile.
“Good evening,” Laura replied, seemingly unimpressed. Good! “Welcome to Oregon. I hope you enjoy your stay, and if you’ll excuse me, I must see to my patient.”
The look that came Toby’s way begged him not to let her down. He wanted to tell her he wouldn’t ever, but couldn’t while Zeke was within earshot. And damn him for watching as Laura walked away, down the long corridor toward Piet’s suite.
“Very nice!” Zeke turned up his mouth in a smug smile.
“She’s marked and she’s mine!” He snarled it and didn’t care. Hospitality be damned. The riot of emotion all but curdling his brain stunned Toby. If Zeke as much as breathed on her…
“Hey! It’s cool, man.” Zeke stepped back and raised both hands in a gesture of submission. “Nothing in it. She’s yours. I respect that.”
“I trust you will.” If he didn’t, he’d rip out Zeke’s guts and hang him with them.
“Well, man, I’m here and ready to take care of this Radcliffe dude.”
Abel help him! Zeke made Toby feel like an alien in his own country, but they had to work together, and if Vlad thought he was the vamp for the job, he’d not question the Lord of Wallachia. “Better come into my study.”
Perhaps not the best choice. Zeke stared at the bare desk, the wide-open filing cabinet, books obviously swept off shelves, and a couple of overturned chairs.
“Hey, man! You been broken into?”
“No, just a visit from the FBI!”
“No shit!”
“I rather disagree. In my opinion, it’s a pile of shit!”
Zeke threw back his head and laughed. It reminded Toby the lad had only been eighteen when transformed, if gossip were true. “You said it! Why are they on your case?”
Toby put his finger to his lips. Zeke’s nod conveyed he understood the room might be bugged. “Have a seat,” Toby said, crossing the room and picking up an overturned Sheraton chair and tossing it to Zeke, who caught it deftly, set it upright and sat down, waiting. Toby brought the other over.
“They have some bee in their bonnet that Connor Inc. is/was/has been involved in money laundering. It’s my belief that the old CFO, Laran Radcliffe, gave them some false information, no doubt to cause us even more trouble.” Toby shook his head. He doubted they’d installed closed-circuit TV, but he was rather getting into the spirit of this. “The man runs off. They keep asking me where he is. As if I’m likely to know! Hell! I’ve done nothing the past three months but sort out the books and try to make sense of the mess.
“I offer to cooperate. Agree to give them anything they want, and in reply they come barging in here when I’m out, scaring the willies out of the nurse and pestering poor Piet.” Another pause for emphasis. “At least now they can’t suspect him of conniving to flout any laws. The old chap doesn’t know what day it is half the time.”
“You said it, man!”
Zeke looked ready to elaborate. No point in risking overkill. “Hold on, Zeke. If you want to smoke, let’s go outside.”
Had to hand
