Page 70 of The Vampire Always Rises

There was no answer from him, not even the feeling of him touching my mind.

“I must be out of range. Text it is.”

To: Merrick

I just found Ellis. He’s OK.

Three minutes later I received the response:

From: Merrick

Good. Go back to Nice. I’ll meet you there once we’ve got your cousin.

To: Merrick

I have a lot to tell you about what he’s doing. Ellis, not Carlo.

From: Merrick

Tell me later. We’ve followed Carlo to a villa, and Han is about to break through the security system.

“Troubles?” Ellis asked when I made a face at the phone.

“Not really. Merrick is in Rome busy breaking through Carlo’s security so they can storm his villa, which means he’s incommunicado right now. The big poop. You’d think he’d want to hear your news, since it is all about Carlo and what he’s doing.”

Ellis stilled for a few seconds before taking my arm in a grip that was borderline painful. “Say that again.”

“Say what? That Merrick is a poop? I suppose that’s unfair, but he is the sort of man who likes to protect people rather than keep them informed—”

“No, the part about him being in Rome and breaking into a villa. What villa?”

“I don’t know, and you’re going to leave bruises if you keep squeezing my arm like that.”

Ellis clicked his tongue, but released me, turning to call across the room to Armande, “What was the name of the villa where Carlo sells the vampires to the vivisectionists?”

“Villa Luna,” Armande answered without even glancing toward us.

Ellis turned back to me.

“On it,” I said, my blood suddenly sporting little icebergs of pure dread.

To: Merrick

What’s the name of the villa you’re at?

From: Merrick

I told you that I’d talk to you later. We’re going in.

To: Merrick

WHAT’S THE NAME?

From: Merrick

Villa Luna. I’m turning my phone off now. I’ll call you when we have him.

“Jumping giant green frogs and all their little tadpoles.” I lifted eyes that I knew were filled with fear to Ellis. “He turned off his phone.”