Page 21

T he library was dim until Isabel and Adam lit small lamps along the wide aisle. Rows and rows of shelves lined the walls, stretching back further than I could see in the darkness, with more on the balcony above. A raised area at the back of the room held a huge, ornate desk that was strewn with paperwork and books, beneath heavy red curtains that hid vast windows. Now I understood why Adam had suggested this place – it felt safe in here. The rich scent of paper and furniture polish was comforting, and surrounded by books with thick Persian rugs underfoot, even my footsteps were muffled.

I released Nicholas’s restless fingers, tension and frustration still radiating from him even as we separated. Meandering down the centre of the library, I debated idly with myself how long it must have taken Adam to collect so many books. Hell, I’d have loved to curl up in here and read my way through all of them, but I couldn’t see the opportunity to do so coming up anytime soon.

As the room filled with the dim golden glow of the lamps, I took a seat in a high-backed chair upholstered in the same damask fabric as the curtains. Nicholas sat beside me, so close his knee brushed mine every time I shifted. Despite everything that had happened today – or maybe because of it – I was hyperaware of his presence. I tried not to be distracted by the play of the light in his hair, highlighting coffee colours that I’d never noticed under electric lighting. He caught me staring.

“Nice jacket, by the way,” he murmured, his eyes briefly taking in the worn leather jacket I was still wearing. That familiar half-smile played at his lips, but thankfully he didn’t elaborate further. Instead, he leaned closer, ostensibly to reach for one of his diaries, and his scent – woodsy pine and something uniquely him – surrounded me.

“So,” Adam began. “Time for another thrilling round of ‘ Which Vampire Killed Who and Why —’” He dropped a pile of leather books onto the table with a thud, and they tumbled down untidily. “My favourite parlour game.”

Nicholas shot him a look. “If you’re no goin’ to be helpful—”

“I am always helpful,” Adam drawled. “I simply think we could benefit from some levity while discussing murder and mayhem. Centuries of perspective should allow for that, at least.”

Isabel’s lips twitched. “Some of us prefer to maintain decorum, Adam.”

“Yes, and look how well that’s served us so far,” he replied smoothly, earning twin glares from both vampires.

“And your irreverence has achieved what, precisely?” She glared at him across the table. “Besides ensuring you remain forever on the periphery of matters beyond your understanding. ”

“Children…” I muttered under my breath.

The tension dissolved a little, and I seized the opportunity to get us back on track. “Okay, let’s start with what we know. There are two of them?”

“What makes you say that?” Adam asked, taking a seat.

“There was the woman, but there was also whoever was calling my dad.” I leaned back and ran a hand through my tangled hair. “Tom thought the person who attacked him was Nicholas, so it stands to reason there’s a guy involved, too.”

“Smart,” Isabel said, her expression thoughtful. “But the woman in the park could have been anyone. You said yourself she didn’t engage with you. You hunt vampires. Therefore, any vampire would have the motive to—”

“Aye,” Nicholas interrupted. “Any vampire would have a motive. But the woman she saw didnae try to kill her. She was tryin’ to…” he searched for the right word.

“Piss me off?” I volunteered.

“That’d be it.” One side of his mouth quirked up.

“It’s a start.” Adam spread the books out before him, checking something on the back of each one. I took another from the pile and noticed it had a date stamped along the bottom of the back cover, embossed in gold. “But I dare say we need rather more than that,” he added. “What else have we learned? Didn’t your father mention an accent, Erin?”

“A Scottish accent,” Isabel corrected. “Someone you knew in Edinburgh, Nick?”

“Perhaps a relative unhappy with being overlooked?” Adam speculated. “It might explain the resemblance. ”

Nicholas gave him a dirty look. “I’m no that careless.”

Adam held up both hands. “You haven’t always been as meticulous as you are these days, and we both know it.” He sighed. “Though I am keeping track. Despite how singularly dull James will be for the next few decades.”

I ignored them both. “How do we know the accent was Scottish?” I asked Isabel. “Tom just said an accent, and he probably assumed because he knew about Nicholas. I can check—” I pulled out my mobile phone and dialled my parents’ house.

My father answered on the second ring.

“Hi, Dad.”

“Erin! Thank goodness; we were worried—”

“I told you before, I’m fine – there’s nothing to worry about.” When it came to my parents, white lies were the way to go. “Quick question though – it’s sort of urgent.”

He paused. “Go on.”

“When you spoke to Tom about your anonymous caller…” I prompted.

“Yes?”

“You mentioned an accent. Was it Scottish?”

“Scottish?” He sounded surprised. “No, no. It was European. More like French, I’d say. Maybe Italian?”

“I need you to be sure, Dad.”

“French, then. But… unusual.”

I frowned. I wasn’t sure what I’d been expecting, but it wasn’t that.

“Okay, thanks. I’ll call again soon, yeah? When I’ve got more to tell you.” I hesitated. “In the meantime – you know the drill.”

“Alright. Your mum says hello,” he added, and I rolled my eyes. “And stay safe. You can’t protect anyone if you’re dead.”

My laughter sounded false even to me. “I know.”

I hung up, the others watching me expectantly. Nicholas and Isabel must have heard, but Adam waved a hand at me.

“French,” I said. Adam’s eyebrow arched as he shot Nicholas a meaningful look. He picked up a diary he’d discarded, fingers drumming against the leather cover as he rechecked the date.

“How much does your family know about you, Erin?” Isabel asked, exchanging the diary she’d been holding for another.

I shrugged. “My dad’s always known I could recognise the… otherworldly.” My mouth formed the word without thinking, though it never seemed like the right word, anyway. Vampires were definitely a part of this world, in my experience. “I told him a lot when I was younger, and he always believed me – at least, he never tried to refer me to a psychiatrist,” I chuckled, remembering.

“My mum was less understanding, so eventually I stopped mentioning it. They don’t know everything, but my dad’s perceptive enough not to ask.”

Isabel nodded, her gaze far away. “It is fortunate you can rely on your family, even a little.” Collecting herself, she added: “Now, this French accent. Might it be a regional dialect? Perhaps Breton?”

I considered her words as I reached for a diary at random – it was an odd thing to say, though admittedly I knew nothing about Isabel’s family. Through all the research Tom and I had done, we’d never found out much about her life as a human. We knew she’d been born during the reign of Henry the Eighth, but even that was more of a guess. There was a lot we still didn’t know.

Nicholas leaned in close as I flicked through the pages, his voice low and velvety in my ear. “Well, I happen to think you’re quite the huntress.”

I tried not to glance at him. “And when have you seen me in action, exactly?”

He chuckled quietly. “That night in the park wasnae the first time I saw you. I prefer to do a wee bit o’ hands-on research where I can.”

Well, you missed that one, Erin.

“The way ye move when ye fight… there’s a sweet surrender in it,” he whispered, his breath cool against my ear. “Makes me wonder how ye might’ve surrendered if I hadnae stopped us earlier.”

Heat rose to my cheeks as I remembered how I’d lost control in the attic, and I snapped the diary closed. Isabel shot him a loaded look from across the table, but Nicholas merely offered her an innocent smile.

“Our time in the Paris apartment at the turn of the century – was that the sole time you spent in France?” Adam asked Nicholas, oblivious to our quiet conversation.

“No.” He was all business again. “I was in the capital during the Great Wars, o’ course. And I remember some time in the 1790s, I think, but no for verra long.” Nicholas pushed to his feet, and I felt the sudden coolness where his leg had been pressed against mine. He walked around to where Isabel was sitting and plucked the diary she was reading from her hands.

Isabel snatched it back from him with a glare. I wondered, briefly, what it contained.

“What do you mean, you think?” I wondered out loud. “I thought you guys remembered… well, everything.” At least, that’s how it seemed with Solace.

“No, love.” Nicholas shook his head. “Our memories are no more infallible than yours. There’s more to remember, aye, but over time the details fade. Only the significant events remain, just as they do for you.”

“For example, most vampires remember their first kill. The deaths of friends and family. People they sired.” Isabel explained. “Did you change anyone in Paris, Nick?”

His eyes found mine, and something vulnerable flickered across his face. “I couldnae say,” he said finally. I shifted in my seat as he added, “Mayhap one or two.”

The careful way he said it, trying to soften the truth for my sake, somehow made it worse.

“How could you not know something like that?” I asked. Apparently, there was a lot I didn’t know.

He shared a silent look with Isabel. Scowling, she nodded.

“Do you know how vampires come to be, Erin?” He stared at me intently. “How we’re sired?”

I shook my head. “Bloodborne, isn’t it? You share blood…” I’d tried not to think about it too much, though it was a subject that Jon had obsessed over endlessly .

Isabel replied: “Yes, traditionally. A vampire drinks from a human until they are on the brink of death, and then the human must drink of the vampire,” she explained. “But it seems there’s more to it.”

“Are you saying it isn’t the only way?” Adam appeared as interested as I did – obviously, this was something Isabel and Nicholas hadn’t shared with him.

Isabel leaned forward onto her elbows, resting her chin delicately on her interwoven hands. “There have been scientific advances over the last century that we could never have imagined or expected.” She glanced at Nicholas, who was watching her.

“Society used to be dominated by religion.” Her tone had lost its usual edge, and she seemed troubled by her words. “It is hard to explain to what extent, to one who has never known such a world. Disease was thought a punishment from God for our earthly sins. As time went on, things changed. We once dismissed medical breakthroughs, preferring prayer and remedies lacking scientific basis. But no longer.”

“I don’t understand what you mean. Vampirism… is a disease?”

“We dinnae ken,” Nicholas admitted, his broad shoulders tense beneath his shirt. “There’re elements as can be likened to deficiencies of the immune system. Some become vampires without exchanging blood. Others die despite it.”

The lamplight caught the sharp planes of his face as he spoke, and I couldn’t help but notice the coiled energy in the way he held himself. He might have changed his mind about leaving, but his body was still ready to fight.

“We also know that there is an element of the mystical that cannot be explained with science.” Isabel sat back from the table. “Our speed and healing abilities—”

“Elements that grow stronger with age,” Nicholas interrupted, his eyes narrowing slightly.

“Indeed.” A slight smile played on Isabel’s lips as she glanced at him. “And I must say, an extra century does make quite the difference in refining such gifts. Some things only time can teach.”

A muscle twitched in Nicholas’s jaw, his right index finger flexing against his knee. The air in the room seemed to thicken, and my pulse quickened as I sensed the shift.

In a blur of motion too fast to track, Nicholas had Isabel pinned against a bookshelf, his forearm across her throat. Books tumbled down around them. Despite her predicament, Isabel’s smile remained unchanged, almost fond.

“Age isnae everythin’, Izzie,” Nicholas growled softly, towering over her, though there was a glimmer of amusement in his eyes. “Some of us learned our skills the hard way.”

“If you two are quite finished destroying my library,” Adam’s dry voice cut through the tension. “Many of these volumes are older than the both of you.” He caught my eye, adding: “Though significantly less dramatic, I’d wager.” I bit back a smile.

Though he hadn’t raised his voice, both vampires instantly separated, exchanging looks that were more playful than antagonistic. Nicholas returned to his seat, but I couldn’t miss how his gaze went back to Isabel – he’d bested her, and he knew it. She knew it.

My heart was racing, and I knew half the room could hear. I’d seen Nicholas gentle, heard his soft laughter and felt his cool touch. But the last minute or so was a reminder of what I’d worried about before… that underneath his control, was a lethal warrior I couldn’t begin to imagine.

Isabel settled back into her chair, continuing her earlier thought. “There’s also the extreme aversion to aspects of the ultraviolet spectrum… these are not things research commonly supports as symptoms of a disease.” She raised an eyebrow at me. “What illness can you name that strengthens the host?”

I had no answer. But my understanding of vampire limitations seemed suddenly – and dangerously – incomplete.

“The one thing we know for certain is that vampire blood invades like a virus.” Her voice held centuries of disquiet. “In a matter of hours, the human immune system is overtaken. If already weak, the human may die before the transformation is completed. But if the accounts of vampires who were never bitten are true , then the virus – if we should call it that – can be transmitted in other ways.”

A hush fell over the library as Adam and I processed this revelation. My heart was still pounding – not just from their demonstration, but the implications. It could only be a good thing that vampires weren’t as easy to make as I’d thought. But if vampirism could spread without deliberate blood exchange, how could we – I – ever hope to contain it?

“None of this is proven, of course,” Isabel said quietly. “We can never test these theories, as we cannot risk our blood being formally studied – though I would imagine there are more than a few curious vampires in the field.”

I nodded, dazed. How many accidental vampires were out there, not even knowing what they were? It was a terrifying concept, but we had a more immediate mystery to solve.

“So, getting back to Paris…” I forced my voice to sound casual. “You could have changed a few people, or you may have changed every single person you fed on.” I was determined to appear nonchalant, but the prospect was terrifying.

“Tis no likely.” Nicholas’s face was difficult to read, and I knew he was trying to gauge my reaction.

“How long were you there for?” Adam muttered to himself. He seemed to have taken the new information in his stride. “It must have been a few decades with me. There was the Tower’s construction, and the World Fair… time has dampened my memory, I’m sure.”

“The Eiffel Tower?” I asked, with more than a little disbelief. “Seriously?”

“Aye, though Adam’s memory of its being built is somewhat hazier than mine,” Nicholas said, giving me a knowing look. “Something about testing every absinthe house in Paris ‘ for research .’”

“I was being thorough,” Adam huffed. “Someone had to document the cultural significance of the era.”

“Is that what we’re callin’ it now?”

Adam ignored him. “But yes, the Eiffel Tower. A rather ghastly affair, though these days it’s quite drowned in gaudy lights. Have you been to Paris?” he added .

“No.” I was excluded from the reminiscing, but I should have expected as much. I’d never been around older generations who didn’t indulge in nostalgia on a regular basis – though Adam couldn’t have been all that old back then.

“When was the World Fair?”

“1889,” Isabel’s gaze grew distant. “I did not attend.”

“So you must have been…” I asked Adam.

“Twenty-two. You say you were in France in the 1790s, Nick?” Adam flicked through the pages with increasing irritation. “Could you be a little vaguer?”

“I told ye there were periods where I kept no record.” Nicholas glared up at him, ignoring the insult. “But the 1790s are irrelevant. I wasnae around people for most o’ that period, I stayed out in the countryside.”

The conversation was fast going over my head – I didn’t understand what any of them were talking about. My knowledge of French history – and specifically, Nicholas’s history – was too scarce for me to contribute much.

“Maybe we should try focusing on one time and place each, and find out what we can – then move on to the next. With each of you searching for different things, we’re just going to miss something,” I said, trying to think methodically. “There’s too much to get through otherwise.”

Isabel peered up at me, distracted. “You know, Erin, your presence here is no longer required. You have shared what knowledge you possess.”

I pulled a face at her dismissal, but she was already absorbed in her book .

“It can’t hurt to have another set of eyes, surely?” I liked to think being a hunter might give me an alternative perspective if nothing else.

She didn’t glance up this time, though Nicholas didn’t meet my eye either. He had spread out several diaries and was making his way through the pages, arranging and connecting loose papers with a renewed sense of purpose.

“You should rest, love,” he murmured, glancing up at me. I shifted uncomfortably in my chair, and his eyes darkened with concern. “I can see from the way you’re sittin’ your ribs are still troublin’ you.”

Typical that he’d try to protect me by pushing me away.

“You might check on Tom,” Isabel suggested.

Nicholas reached for my hand, but I pulled back, catching the flash of hurt on his face before he masked it. I should feel sorry, but I was more pissed off than anything.

I wasn’t an idiot. Isabel wasn’t being cruel – she was being practical, trying to shield me from Nicholas’s history. But they’d forgotten how involved I was in this. It didn’t matter to me if Nicholas was the actual target or not. This was my fight. I was the hunter, damn it, and I planned to be the one to bring Jon and Maggie’s murderer down. I’d lost too much to let a couple of vamps and a snarky immortal take that away from me, too.

Cramming a few of the early diaries into my satchel, I left the library in a hurry, without saying goodbye even to Nicholas. If they wanted me gone, fine. It wasn’t going to stop me from learning what I could.

Nicholas probably didn’t want me to read some of the things he’d written, but I had another plan for how I could use the books. They’d been right about one thing – I’d left Tom to his own devices for long enough. I needed to make sure he was alright, and the diaries would make an excellent peace offering.

I was pulling on my coat in the hallway when Adam appeared – he could move almost as quietly as the vampires when he wanted to.

“They’re not telling you to leave to get rid of you, you know,” he said, examining the fingernails on his left hand.

“You’re sure about that?” I asked bitterly. “It feels a lot like I’m the naughty child being sent home from school for misbehaving.”

“Izzie’s protecting him.” Adam adjusted his cuffs, a nervous habit I was beginning to recognise. “You cannot imagine the things in those books, Erin, and I’m sure you wouldn’t want to. As for Nick…” He clasped his hands behind his back. “I suspect he’s ashamed of what you might think of him.”

I showed him the diaries in my bag. “I’ve imagined it all.”

He frowned. “Then try not to judge him too harshly.” His usual polish cracked slightly. “The person you will read about is gone. His actions weigh upon him still, but he did nothing more than play his role.” He met my eyes. “I forgave him, but I don’t think he could survive if you didn’t.”

I glared at my boots and bent to tighten the yellow laces. “That’s not a promise I can make, Adam.”

As I straightened up, he was smiling – but there was sadness in it. “It shouldn’t be easy. We know what you are, after all. But I have known Nick for years, and already I can see the change in him since he met you.” He fixed me with an intent look. “After so long searching, it would be a pity if I had to watch him lose you for the sake of the person he used to be.”

I pursed my lips. “I don’t see the monster when I look at him,” I admitted. “But some things are hard to forget… And the other night – I know you know I was there. Outside the club—” I couldn’t speak.

“He will always be a vampire. He can’t help that.” Adam shrugged. “But she didn’t die, you know – the woman. I accompany Nick when I can, and he finds it easier to control himself when I’m there to keep an eye on him.”

“She’ll still be traumatised for the rest of her life.”

He laughed. “You underestimate Nick’s allure, I think.”

“Trust me, I don’t,” I muttered to myself, pulling my bag onto my shoulder. I pushed a hand through my hair, missing my hat.

I changed the subject. “I need to try to mend some bridges with Tom. He’s actually really useful with stuff like this, if I can convince him to work with us.”

“Then please, try your best to do so.” Adam’s voice grew serious. “And don’t forget how much you are asking of him.”