Page 79 of Twilight Destiny

Chapter Thirty-Three

The apartment felt strangely empty when Rosa woke on Saturday morning. Everything had been packed except her furniture, the clothes she intended to wear that day, a mug and the coffee pot, a spoon and a fork, and a small frying pan she used to scramble a couple of eggs for breakfast.

The movers showed up at nine. It didn’t take them long to load the furniture, since she didn’t have much more than her living room set, her bed, dresser, and nightstands, and the table and two chairs in the kitchen. All the appliances had come with the apartment.

The movers had just loaded the last of her things when Jake arrived. “Ready to go?”

“As soon as Mr. Evans comes up to look the place over. I’m hoping he’ll refund my cleaning deposit even though I didn’t give him thirty days’ notice.”

“Oh, he will,” Jake said with a wink.

“How can you be so sure?”

Kincaid shrugged. “Just a feeling.”

Rosa was wondering what he meant by that when Mr. Evans knocked on the door, even though it was open. He was a short, rotund man, with a receding hairline and a perpetual frown.

“I just came by to have a quick look around,” he said.

Rosa nodded, her fingers crossed behind her back, as he ambled from room to room.

“Not bad,” he said, “but since you neglected to give me the thirty days’ notice specified in your rental agreement, I’m afraid you’ve lost your deposit.” He smiled wolfishly. “In any event, we rarely return cleaning deposits. We like to repaint when our tenants move out, so it’s spotless when the new ones move in. The way it was for you. You understand?”

“I suppose so.”

With a brief nod, he headed for the door, only to stop after a few steps. Pivoting on his heels, he said, “I suppose I can make an exception in your case, Miss Ravenwood. We’re sorry to lose you.” Pulling his checkbook from his back pocket, he quickly wrote out a check and handed it to her. Then, looking somewhat confused, he hurried out of the apartment.

Rosa glanced at Jake, her brow furrowed thoughtfully. “Did you have anything to do with his sudden about-face?”

“Who? Me?” Jake asked, looking affronted. “Why would you think that?”

“I don’t know. You tell me.”

“He wasn’t going to use your deposit for paint. He was planning to buy himself a new TV.”

“How do you know that?”

“Darlin’, I read his mind, and I decided you needed the money more than he did.”

Rosa shook her head, not sure if she should be feeling grateful or guilty.

“So, are you ready?” Jake asked.

Grabbing her handbag and her cell phone, she took a last look around the room. She had expected to feel at least a little sadness—after all, it had been her first apartment—but she had no real ties here, no memories worth keeping except the hours she had spent with Jake. “I’m ready.”

Rosa closed her eyes when Jake wrapped his arm around her waist. When she opened them again, they were standing in the living room at Blair House.

Rosa shivered as she glanced around. The room was lovely, the walls a pale gray, the carpets a darker shade. There was a large fireplace. White drapes covered the windows. She knew it was only her imagination, but she had the creepy sensation she was being shadowed by ghosts as she moved from room to room. There were six bedrooms, a large, rectangular kitchen, and two bathrooms.

“How many vampires lived here?” she asked.

“Eight, I think. Seven men and a woman.”

“Did someone die in this house?”

“I don’t know. Why?”

Rosa shook her head. “No reason.” She opened a small door located at the far end of the hallway next to a linen closet. “What’s down there?” she asked, staring into the darkness below.