Bound by Blood (Vampire Romance) (3 page)

Nodding agreement, Lisa gave her good nights and headed to her bedroom.

Once she was gone, Alex found he had little reason to stick around. He had learned all he could from her, which wasn’t much but at least it was a starting point even if it wasn’t one he could share. For now, he would leave the captain and the others to their own devices. After repeating his directives to the captain and the officers, he took his leave.

Lisa had given him two clues she probably was unaware of, one being the speed in which the child had been abducted, and the ring. The fact that the child was of his lineage he did not dismiss. The question was why and who. Much the same as what his mortal relations were asking. Tonight, he would meet with more of his kind and see what he could glean. Tomorrow he would ask Lisa more pointed questions. The thought of seeing her again appealed to him more than it should have. Actually, more than anything else had in many years.

Chapter 3

Parking his car near one of the downtown office buildings, Alex made his way to the Ross Towers Plaza. Although it was dark, it wasn’t yet nine o’clock and he was certain Louis would still be there.

“Knew you would still be hard at it,” Alex said when he entered Louis’s office.

“Where else would I be?” Louis barely looked away from the computer monitor, finishing his task.

“True. You’re always hard at work. Probably contributes to your financial success.”

“May as well be a success at something,” he said. “Being human was a failure. But yes, business does have its advantages.”

Alex chuckled. “Give over, Louis. You know you enjoy what you do. Who you are.”

Hitting the enter key with a flourish, Louis pushed himself away from the desk and stretched before settling into the chair opposite Alex’s and away from the business side of his desk. “Is that how you knew I would still be here?”

“Are you ever anywhere else?”

“You would be surprised,” he answered.

Alex raised one eyebrow. “I’m sure I would be. Care to enlighten me?”

Louis waved it away. “No sense in it. You would just say it was still work. So, what brings you here? It must be related to
your
work.”

“It is.” Alex ran both hands down his face, leaving his fingers pointed and his hands folded at his lips. Coming to a decision, he let his hands fall to his side and leaned back in his chair. He still wasn’t positive coming to Louis was the best move, but it was the only option he could come up with. “Which vampires do we know wear an earring, a wedding band on the middle finger and has true black hair.”

“Raven. Carlos. Thaddeus.” Louis shrugged. “I could name a few more. Can you narrow it down any?”

“Who would want something of mine?”

Louis raised his eyebrows. “Maybe you better tell me what is going on here. What do you have that anyone would want, let alone those I named?”

Alex gave him a tight smile. “That’s the question.”

“You’re not making sense, Alex. Is this for work or about you?”
“It started out for work, but I think it must be about me. A little girl was abducted this afternoon.”

“I listen to the news.”

“Let me go back. The little girl who was abducted this afternoon is my great-great-- Oh, I don’t know how many times removed.”

“You know this?”

“Oh, yes. You know I have followed my lineage.”

“Yes. There are not many others who can do so.” Louis extended his hand and rolled it in the air, indicating Alex should move forward.

“She was snatched while the nanny was watching her. The nanny remembers certain things, just as I told you. But the key is how quickly the child was abducted. No one saw anything. The nanny barely remembers. You have been around humans enough to know people see things and think they see things, yet no one around the playground has any recollection of anyone else being there, let alone actually abducting this child.”

Louis nodded in agreement. “You believe he’s one of us?”

“He has to be. Or someone who knows about us and is after me.”

“I hate to disabuse your sense of self-importance, but he may not really know who you are.”

“You think I’m overreacting?” Alex stood and paced the perimeter of the room. There was the possibility Louis was correct and it had nothing to do with him at all. But the child was still his. So far, she was the last of them and unless the Morgans had a few more children, he would have to take care of this one even more than the others. Not that he had ever been hands-on, if that was the term these days, but he always made it his business to know their whereabouts, what they did and how their lives progressed, and always, how many children they had. It was the only part of him and Katherine that had lived on. And he had loved Katherine desperately. Surprisingly though, it wasn’t her face that came to mind as it had for decades, then more faded around the edges over the centuries, but the nanny’s. Probably because she was the one closely associated with the case. She was his only link to Cassandra’s disappearance.

“I didn’t say that,” Louis said. “I’m just suggesting you look at all the alternatives. What does her father do? Could he be the target? Is he wealthy?”

Alex snorted. “Of course he’s wealthy. I saw to it. You even handled some of the investments.”

Louis waved his had to dismiss the comment. “I’m trying to think of reasons for the child to be missing, not stir you to righteousness.”

Running his hand through his hair, Alex grinned down at him. “That’s too easy to do. So, how do I find Carlos, Raven, or Thaddeus? They can be my starting point.”

“Most likely at El Lago,” he said naming one of the more popular nightclubs in the city. “At least it’s Raven’s favorite place. We can start there.”

Within half an hour, the men were well ensconced in one of the curved booths favored by the club. Alex wanted to hold his ears. He had given up the loud music about a century before, and he let Louis know it.

“Hey, I’m just leading you to where you want to be.” He pointed to the back of the room. “It’s quieter there.”

After giving his friend a dark look, Alex was on his way. Louis stopped at the bar and ordered two drinks which he carried to the back.

“Raven?” Alex asked even as he searched the room.

Louis discretely pointed to the other side of the room. Spotting the black haired man Alex studied him. He could see the earring, but there was no wedding band. No ring, he corrected himself. It might not be a wedding band. But would he know Carlos? Leaving his drink on the table, he stood and made his way over to the other vampire.

“What do you want with Carlos?” Raven asked without looking at him.

“That’s my business. I want to know where he is. If you know, that would also be my business.”

Raven shrugged then went back to watching the dancers. Alex, moved in closer, and grasped the man’s wrist in a crushing grip. “I want to talk to Carlos.”

Finally, Raven pointed to behind the bar with is chin. “There’s a room back there he uses. I have no idea if he’s there or not.”

Releasing the man, Alex headed behind the bar, only to be stopped by the bartender. Looking the man over, Alex decided he was only doing his job. For him, he pulled out his badge and was given immediate access. Sometimes it really did help.

It was less noisy behind the bar, and there was more light. Of Carlos, there was no sign. He searched the entire area. Empty. Since the man had no need to pack anything, Alex looked around. There was a photograph, one of him with a young woman.
His wife?
It looked to have been taken in the early 1900s, which meant Carlos was a bit younger than himself. This was definitely one of Carlos’ lairs. From the lack of personal effects, it was obviously not his home. From the picture, the woman appeared to be a Spanish or Mexican bride. Picking up the photo, he examined it, studying the picture for a ring. And he found it on the couple’s fingers. The question remained, would Carlos be the only one looking for him. And was he looking specifically for him? If so, why? He replaced the photo on the shelf.

Satisfied with his discovery, he went back to the club and motioned to Louis it was time to leave. “I found what I wanted,” Alex told him.

“So, Raven is your man?”

“I didn’t say that. But I will be making more visits.”

Louis nodded his understanding. “You know where to find me if you need anything more.”

Leaving his car near Louis’s office, Alex headed home for rest. It would take too long to drive. He had already had a long day since he had spent some time in the daylight hours while working. If he left now, he could stop in the police station, and then head for needed rest until tomorrow evening. He had a feeling he would need it. Stopping at headquarters would give him easier access to the information he was searching for.

“’bout time you showed up,” his partner said when he entered the room.

“I was working on a case. Didn’t anyone tell you?”

“Yeah, they did.” Nick got up from his desk and joined Alex at the coffee pot. “I thought maybe you wanted a permanent shift to day.”

Alex poured his coffee, and shook his head at his partner’s suggestion. “Rest assured I’m strictly a night shift person. Works better with my biological clock.”

“I am definitely relieved. I was afraid I was going to have to work with Sam.”

Alex shook his head in mock dismay and made his way back to his desk. It wasn’t so much the caffeine would matter to him as much as he needed his partner to see him drink it. The stuff held no appeal for him, but it was a good prop. Setting the cup down on the corner of his desk, he seated himself and booted his computer in one smooth movement.

“So what are you looking for now?”

Alex looked at the other man. “Don’t you have your own case to work on?”

“Hey, we’re partners, remember? Besides, this case is going nowhere,” he said, motioning to the folder lying open on his desk, “and you know it. I can’t do anything until someone in the syndicate makes a move.” He leaned over Alex’s monitor, watching him plug information into the database. “What have you got?”

“A nosy partner!”

Seeing Nick’s affronted look, Alex relented. The man didn’t have to know everything Alex needed; besides he could help him get through the databases quicker.

Briefly he outlined his day, what he was looking for, and more specifically, who he was looking for.

“If you have leads, why aren’t you sharing it with the police?”

“Good question, but I have to rule out the possibility. You know how the local police are. You tell them who you think it might be, a very marginal suspect, and suddenly they have them in custody. In the meantime, the real person goes free and has a longer chance to cover his tracks. I want to be prepared before I call them in.

“Makes sense,” he agreed. “So shoot.”

Two hours later, with Nick’s help. Alex had the information he needed.

“You’re not going after the guy alone are you?” At Alex’s startled look, Nick held his hands up, palm outward. “Just checking on protocol and all that. Besides, I don’t want to miss any of the fun.”

Fun wasn’t the word Alex would have chosen, but he let it slide. “I plan on taking this picture,” he held up the composite they came up with from the data base, “and share it with the nanny. After that, we’ll see. Most likely it will not be anyone she can identify.” Although, since he had seen the original picture of Carlos, he was confident the likeness was similar enough.

“True,” Nick agreed. “Well, good luck, and let me know what I can do.”

Alex shut down his computer, and started to rise.

“You’re not leaving yet, are you? It’s only three.”

“Hey, I’ve been here since it was light out, remember?”

“You’re back on midnight tomorrow?”

“Back, but maybe not here. The captain gave me clearance to work the Morgan case. A buddy of mine is involved.”

Genuine compassion flooded Nick’s face. “Sorry to hear it. I didn’t know. If you need anything while you’re out there, just call.”

Chapter 4

Entering his house, dimly lit with the use of timers on his lamps, he draped his coat over a chair in the hall and made his way to the kitchen. Once there he removed his shoulder holster, locking it in the small safe under the kitchen cabinet. It was as good a reason to use the space as any. It didn’t matter for him, but he never knew who might find his way to his home. Better to follow procedures. Besides, he always played safe. Thought he had anyway.

He grabbed a glass off the shelf and reached for the blood he kept in the refrigerator. There was little else in it save those few bottles and a bottle of wine or two. Pouring himself a glass full, he set it on the counter. By the time he finished changing clothes, it would be at a more palatable temperature.

Returning to his great room, dressed in black jeans and black turtleneck jersey, he turned on the CD player, then moved to the corner armoire and opened it. Inside was his computer. It was a lap top, but he found he worked better at a desk. As it booted up, he retrieved his drink and set it next to him. While at headquarters he sent himself all the files he considered pertinent to the case. He had his own special database at home. One that Louis helped him develop. In its listing were all the vampires he knew of, and any traits he had been able to garner about them. It was a rather comprehensive list. The other database, set to integrate with the first if needed, contained any mortals he knew who were familiar with vampires, or those in the first database, whether they were known as vampires or not. That list was significantly shorter. And kept as short as possible. There were very few who actually knew the persons were vampires. More often, it was a case of them knowing there was some anomaly about them, but not what. In some instances, they had been caught observing the vampires, which meant it was often more annoying than if they had actually been aware of the reality.

Carlos was listed. His circle of known vampire acquaintances was very small. Louis’s name was on it, but then, he was on everyone’s list. He made it so. Granted Carlos was not old by vampire standards, but not terribly young either. Yet the list of those who might suspect him was the longest. Interesting. Apparently, the man was careless. Alex encrypted the information then sent it to Louis. It was always good to have other, trusted, eyes to review his findings. It was entirely possible he would see a connection not immediately apparent to Alex. In the mean time, Alex printed the list for his own use, and looked for possible connections between the people involved. There always was one. No matter what he had said to Louis, his gut told him Cassandra had been taken because of him, but who could possibly want the child?  No one in this generation would know there was a connection between them, nor from the last. It would have to be someone with a very old score indeed.