Fallen Ever After (18 page)

“That’s the puzzling thing.”

“I don’t understand.”

“He asked for a Katarina. When I told him there was no one who lived here named Katarina he muttered something that distinctly sounded like ‘she must have changed her name.’”

Oh, shit.

How the hell was I supposed to explain this?

“Well I can’t imagine why you’d think he was looking for me.” I hoped Harry bought my lie because I was Arie’s guest here and didn’t want this to cause any trouble.

“Except then he went on to clarify by asking for the young woman staying with Mr. Cush.”

I gulped. “Harry, I—”

Harry shot me a look that spoke volumes in terms of propriety. “Miss Ellis, whatever you’re involved in or running from has turned up here, and this is not the type of establishment that tolerates
that
sort of thing. We’re obligated to report suspicious or criminal activity to protect our residents.”

“Harry, I swear I have no idea what this is about.”

“The man left this for you.” Harry slid an envelope across the desk. “I suggest you make arrangements to stay somewhere else, and of course I’ll have to inform Mr. Cush. If you don’t cooperate I may have to notify the authorities as well. Do you understand, Miss Ellis, or whatever your name is?”

I tore into the envelope and took out the note. The same block lettering from the note at the club. I bit my lower lip as I read the familiar handwriting.

Katarina,

I see you’ve changed your name. The guy at the desk told me you and Arie were out. But I’ll stop by again. I know now that I need to see you again, and maybe I was wrong. Can you forgive me?

—T

“Miss Ellis, do I make myself clear?”

Double shit.

I’d have to tell Arie now. There was no way around it. I shoved the note into my army satchel and cleared my throat. Focusing on Harry’s eyes, I did my best to dazzle him. “Harry, no one came looking for me today. This never happened. My name is Holly Ellis. I’m Arie’s live-in girlfriend, and you think I’m really nice. I don’t ever cause any problems. That’s all you know…”

Harry looked confused and then his eyes cleared. “What were we talking about?”

“I said it looks like it might snow.”

“Yes, it does. I think they’re calling for one heck of a storm.”

“See you around, Harry.”

“Good evening, Miss Ellis.”

I turned with a deep exhale and made my way toward the elevators. As the elevator doors closed behind me I leaned against the wall, thinking about what it meant. I thought this person looking for Katarina had been a friend of hers, maybe an ex-lover, but he knew Arie too. Or did he? I took the note out of my satchel and read it one more time.

…maybe I was wrong. Can you forgive me?

When the elevator doors opened I stepped out and threw the note in the silver dome trash can in the hall. I warred with myself about whether I should ask Arie about ‘T’ but even if I did ask him, Arie didn’t need to know the details of the note. He might get upset about it. Especially the one that commented on how good I looked naked. I didn’t want to do anything that would bring up the past I thought we’d left behind when Katarina died. I didn’t want to show him a note that might make him jealous. I
really
didn’t want to cause more conflict between us. Not when he’d already been upset about my uncaring comment about Luna. No, I had to tell him. He’d feel hurt and deceived if I didn’t come clean and ask him who ‘T’ was. But food first.

I unlocked the door to the loft with the key that Arie had made for me and threw my satchel over the leather sofa before dialing the donor line.

“Yeah, I need a Crimson Dusk delivered.”

“Number?”

“169919.” I rattled off the code for our loft.

“Cush residence?”

“Yes. How long will it be?”

“Twenty minutes.”

“Thanks.” I hung up.

I flopped onto the sofa, too weak and tired after driving all the way out to Springfield, meeting my aunt, meeting my grandmother, and then the cryptic note from someone associated with Katarina. I could sleep for days, but it was probably because I hadn’t drunk since late last night at the club. If I could just close my eyes for a few minutes while I waited for the donor to get there, maybe I’d feel a little better. With a yawn I leaned my head back on the brown leather cushion and let my eyes drift closed.

At first I wasn’t sure I’d fallen asleep, but then I knew it was a dream. The kind of dream that showed me things that already happened, or were going to; when I looked down at the flapper dress I was wearing I knew this was the past.

“Luna, hurry up. You know what we’re supposed to do. We need to get in and get out. This place is crawling with vampires.”

We were in a bathroom that vaguely looked like the ladies room at HFC, but the walls weren’t red. They were white and a gold-framed mirror hung above the sink. I was—or rather, Luna was—dusting rouge on her face in front of the mirror. A woman stood next to her with her arms crossed.

“You want me to look the part, right?” Luna asked.

“Fine. But get on with it all ready.”

Luna sighed. “I just have to get him outside, right?”

“Yeah. I’ll do the rest.”

Luna put the rouge back in a silver rhinestone bag that matched her hair. “He just wants to talk.”

“Yeah, sure.”

“Promise me.”

“Come on. It’s time. I’ll meet you in the alley.”

Luna’s eyes reminded me of a caged animal. “I really don’t want to do this.”

“We’ve been over it. Let’s just get it done.”

Luna looked like she wanted to be anywhere else but there.

“Fine.”

Luna and the woman parted ways just outside the bathroom. Trapped as I was in Luna’s body in this vision, I couldn’t see where the woman took off to, but Luna skirted through the tables that stood in front of the stage. The lighting looked different; it seemed diffused by the cloud of smoke hovering above several of them. Which seemed odd to me considering the place was a non-smoking venue now, but I knew without a doubt that this was HFC. The people seated at the tables faced the stage, where a piano player keyed a jazz melody and a woman belted out a sad-sounding song. Luna stopped when she reached a table where a vampire sat swirling ice cubes in a highball glass.

“Where’s your friend?”

“She left, and I was thinking we should too.” Luna gave him a suggestive look.

The vampire guzzled down the rest of his drink. “Let’s get out of here.”

They headed for a side door that I couldn’t remember ever being there and into an alleyway just outside the club. No sooner had they stepped outside than Luna grabbed him by his tie and pulled him into a kiss. The vampire backed her up against the brick exterior of the club and never noticed the woman I’d seen in the bathroom with Luna come up behind him while they were sucking face.

Too late.

My eyes widened as she pulled out a wooden stake and pierced him through his back. Blood spurted out of his mouth and he fell to his knees. I gasped. A car pulled up at the end of the alley and a man that I couldn’t make out clearly got out and started to walk toward them.

“No, Daeveena!” Luna screeched. “Why did you do that?”

Daeveena.
Why did that name sound so familiar?

“I had no choice, and neither do you.” She kicked the stake deeper into the vampire’s back, and his head hit the ground.

“We didn’t come here for this,” Luna said, shaking her head.

“This is exactly why you are here. You’ve done well, Daeveena. Get in the car,” Victor Monti said. I recognized him from when he’d come to visit Luna at the club.

Daeveena did as he directed while Luna continued to stand there staring at the body, which had already begun to disintegrate.

“I said get in the car.”

“No. I don’t want to do this anymore.”

Without warning he struck Luna and a silver-gray liquid that must have been her blood spilled from her busted lip. He took a step toward her and she flinched.

“Do you want to stay here and answer to them?” He pointed to the club. “Because I don’t think they’ll be too happy to find you standing next to his pile of ashes. If you want me to leave you here…”

Victor turned and started to walk away.

“Father, no. Please…don’t leave me,” Luna sobbed.

I felt so sorry for her. I knew things were bad, but seeing it through her eyes, feeling her heart break for what she’d done, made it more real than Tessa telling me she had daddy issues. No wonder she seemed so dependent—a hollow shell that echoed the sounds of the sea and got pulled back into it by the tide.

Victor didn’t even turn around to look at her. “Then get in the car.”

Luna slid into the backseat next to Daeveena, who looked almost as miserable and resigned as she did.

“I told you. We don’t have any choice,” Daeveena said.

The driver looked at her through the rearview mirror. Victor got in the passenger side. As they pulled away the vision started to fade. At the same time there was a knock at the door. When I opened my eyes I was alone in the loft but I remembered where I’d heard the name Daeveena. Julian at the club had mentioned a half-faerie, half-demon by that name when he came looking for his cousin.

My head felt fuzzy but then I heard a second knock on the door. I’d forgotten that I was waiting for a donor. I answered the door and instantly recognized Denise, the doctor who became a Crimson Dusk donor after her son became a vampire.

“Denise, thank you for coming. Please…come in.”

When she came in and took her coat off, she looked haggard. Her face was gaunt.

“Are you sure you’re up for this?” I asked.

“I’m fine. I’ve been donating more these days. You know.” She shrugged. “For the younger ones. Extra precautions after what happened at the club.”

I nodded. “I think Arie has some orange juice in the fridge. You should drink some afterwards.”

“It’s fine. I’ll just do a banana bag at the hospital and if anyone asks I’ll tell them it’s for a hangover.”

I had no clue what she was talking about. She walked over to me and tilted her neck.

“Thanks,” I said before biting into her.

***

I called Arie at the club and he said he wouldn’t be home until much later. After Denise left I took a hot bath and fell into bed. Today had been a lot to absorb. My brain felt like mush, and I couldn’t think or feel anymore. I just wanted to sleep. When I was human that’s what I would do. Sleep. Sleep always combated the numbness I felt after dealing with something difficult. I’d wake up and the heavy weight would still be there, but it would be manageable—doable.

My way of dealing with stress hadn’t changed even as a vampire. I thought it was strange that Arie didn’t need sleep like I did, but when I told him, he said that happened when a vampire gets older. I guess it made sense, because it was like that for humans too and we’re very similar. But when I cracked a joke and asked if that’s where the term sundowners came from, he glared at me. All of these drifting thoughts ceased as I fell asleep.

I woke up to Arie kissing my shoulder.

“I missed you tonight.”

“Mmmm,” I moaned as I rolled over to face him. “I missed you too.”

“How are you holding up?” he asked, his voice turning soft.

When I called the club I’d told him that I’d finally met my grandmother but the club was loud and he was working so I didn’t tell him much else, other than that I was tired and planned on crashing early. It was sweet that he knew how much I needed him and put everything else aside for the moment.

I sighed. “She has Alzheimer’s and she thought I was my mother.”

I didn’t feel like sharing what seemed like a strange premonition because I didn’t know what to make of it myself. But Arie visibly flinched. Not much fazed him most of the time.

“I’m sorry,” he said.

“Don’t be. I’m just glad that I got to meet her.”

He brushed a hair off my cheek and tucked it behind my ear.

“Hey, I have to tell you something.”

Arie raised an eyebrow. “What?”

I inhaled. “I had to dazzle Harry. I’m sorry.”

“Why on earth would you have to do that?” Arie asked.

“Someone was here looking for Katarina and they think that I’m her. I guess they thought Katarina changed her name and said as much in front of Harry. He threatened to tell you and call the police. I figured having the police involved wouldn’t be good for either of us.” I sighed. “So I had to dazzle him.”

“Did Harry say anything else?”

Here it was. The moment of truth. Time to tell him and see how he took it.

“Just that the man left a note and signed it with the initial ‘T.’ Arie, who’s ‘T’?”

Arie cursed. “A pain in my ass. It’s a long story, and I don’t have the energy to dredge up our long and sordid past with Katarina tonight.”