JAVIER (11 page)

“That was brilliant! Most adults are far too
dignified. Oh, I’m so glad you’re here, you’re such fun. I’ll get you an extra
big éclair from Madame.”

Javier strolled onto the beach;

“I think she deserves it Bee. You two look like you’re
having fun.”

He watched in amusement as Cassia tried to smooth down
her hair and tug her clothes into some sort of order; a difficult task when she
was wet and sandy. She looked gorgeous and the sea had moulded her clothes to
her body in a way that made his blood drum.

“Oh, Javier, where did you sneak up from? Beatriz and
I were just letting off some steam, she’s been doing some drawing.”

The words all came out in a rush and he saw her cheeks
flush red.

“Papa, Cassia thinks I could be an artist, she likes
my drawings. She knows loads about art and we’ve been talking about painters
and some of the pictures she’s seen. Cassia, can you sit back down, I want to
finish that drawing of you.”

Javier had rarely seen his daughter so animated with anyone
but him. She positively glowed with excitement. Clearly these two had hit it
off immediately. Following Cassia he sat down on the sand next to her as
Beatriz opened her sketchbook and called;

“Push your hair back Cassia, it was more over that
shoulder.”

Cassia arranged herself to Beatriz’s satisfaction then
cast a sideways look at Javier;

“Javier, your Beatriz has a rare talent and puts her
heart into her work.”

“You two seem to have become friends.” said Javier,
“It’s good to see, I sometimes think she’s too quiet.”

“She has a wise little head on her. She worries about
you.” There was a brief silence, “You saved my life tonight. I owe you.”

“Just doing my job. Anyway, I promised Harry I would
keep you safe. You realize of course that he is in love with you.”

Javier watched Cassia’s lovely profile as she stared
ahead. She was silent for so long he began to wonder if she had heard him. At
long last she sighed;

“I would have given anything to be able to love him
like he wanted. Once, I even considered pretending but it would have been such
a lie and he deserved better than that. No one else has loved me like he has,
like he does. I do believe I’m too much of a pain. Either that or I’m looking
for something that doesn’t exist.”

“And what is that?” Javier asked quietly.

“What my parents had. To love someone, to be bonded.
To belong to someone and have him belong only to me. Does that exist Javier?”

“You won’t find that amongst your Human friends Cass,
only amongst your own kind. And yes, it exists. Blood calls to blood, heart to
heart; an irresistible physical and emotional impulse. It is the way we all
wish to mate if we are lucky. It happened with Charlotte, Bee’s mother.”

“You still love her don’t you?” Cassia regretted the
question the moment she asked it. This was none of her business. She turned to
look at Javier quickly then resumed her pose as Beatriz called out. She didn’t
need his answer, she had seen the truth in his eyes. She felt a dull ache
settle in the pit of her stomach.

“I am considering arranging a protection team for
Harry Marshal. If they know where you live, they may also know about Harry. I
am still not completely sure about why they are interested in you unless it’s
simply because you are a Vampire.”

Okay, she got the message, thought Cassia. His dead
consort was off limits.

“Do you think he is in danger?  Should we warn him?”
she asked.

“Again, we don’t know Cass. We’ll keep an eye on him
but as to warning him…the less he knows about our world the better.”

They sat in silence for a moment then Javier said
abruptly;

“When Charlotte died I wished I had died too. For a
long time it felt as if I had.  But that was then Cass; many years have passed
since.”

Eight years thought Cassia, nothing at all when you
lived for many hundreds of years. She must have been a very special woman, his
Charlotte, and a very lucky one too.

“As I said before, if you had, little Beatriz would
have been alone; I cannot think her mother would have wanted that.” Cassia said
gently.

“No, she wouldn’t. To be honest Cass, it was only that
thought that kept me from putting a bullet through my head in the months
following.”

He was so matter of fact about it that Cassia felt
tears start in her eyes and blinked them back quickly;

“Good thing you didn’t. Suicide is a hard legacy for
children to live with.”

She was staring straight ahead and Javier regretted
reminding her about her father. He had never told anyone about the many times
he had sat at the table following Charlotte’s death and just stared at his gun
knowing he could put an end to his pain in seconds. It had been LaSalle’s
mother Reine who reminded him that he was still a father, that he had another
person to live for just as she had stayed alive for her young son when
LaSalle’s father had been killed.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to remind you about your
father.” he said

Cassia smiled, “It’s alright. It happened, we just
have to get on with it. What’s our next move Javier? Anything from Chronus
yet?”

Javier shook his head, “No, early days. He will find
out though. LaSalle doesn’t want to move against the Humans until we know
exactly who is behind them. Who this Dion is and what his motives are.”

He called out to Beatriz;

“Tesoro, are you finished? It will be dawn soon and
Cassia and I still have work to do.”

“Two minutes papa.”

“What work?” asked Cassia, “Can we eat first? I’m
hungry.”

“You’re always hungry. Work first, food afterwards.
Come on, you must be cold, you are quite wet.”

“Done!” called Beatriz as Javier jumped to his feet,
took Cassia’s hand and hauled her up.

The two of them walked back to the chateau in
comfortable silence while Beatriz kept up a cheerful monologue as she skipped
along ahead of them.

Javier watched as Beatriz raced down the hall to find
her friends.

“Get changed and meet me here in ten minutes.” he said
abruptly.

“Yes sir! Right away sir.”

Cassia gave him a mock salute and her most insolent
look before running lightly up the stairs fuming to herself in Welsh. One day,
thought Javier, he’d find out exactly what she was calling him.

Exactly ten minutes later she was back downstairs in
dry clothes.

“I want you to be able to protect yourself Cassia.
From now on till this is over you are going to carry a gun. Come with me.”

Her face lost its mocking expression and paled
slightly, her big eyes widening before she nodded once sharply;

“If you think that’s necessary Javier.”

Cassia followed him down to the underground corridor
she had seen before, past the armoury and through another security controlled
door.  This place was as watertight as the Bank of England, she thought;
probably more secure actually. They were in a huge complex that was part gym,
part firing range. Javier waved a greeting to four foot soldiers who were working
out then directed her through an internal sound-proofed door into the range.
Reaching behind him he pulled out a small, lethal looking gun.

“Have you ever used a gun before?”

Cassia shook her head and Javier smiled slightly;

“Funny, I hoped you would say that. I chose this one
for you because it’ll be a good fit for your hand. I hope it is not needed but
I like to be prepared. Now, pay attention; hold it like this, release that like
this then lift and press this.”

He was calm and efficient as he demonstrated how to
use the gun and Cassia followed his every move intently. Javier handed her the
weapon and ear protection then put on a pair of earphones himself. Cassia faced
the target and carefully went through the steps he had shown her then fired.

The target zoomed forward on its mechanism and Javier
smiled;

“Not bad Cass. You’re a very quick learner. Now try it
again like this, excuse me, I’ll just get your line right.”

Standing behind her he corrected her stance and her
arms. Cassia forced herself to concentrate. His body was warm against hers and
she felt his breath on her cheek as he raised her ear protection and spoke
quietly;

“Don’t jerk the gun. Keep it steady and just press
gently. Look at your target, not at the gun. Now, try again.”

Dear God, he smelled heavenly. How was it possible to
smell that good? Taking a deep breath Cassia focused on the target; he was
being completely professional and she was not going to make herself look like
an idiot. Stilling her mind and body she fired. Again the target whirred
forwards, this time Javier whistled softly;

“Very good indeed. I hope this doesn’t give you any
ideas about going into armed robbery Cassia Mathrafal, I have a horrible
suspicion you would be pretty good at it.”

Cassia was just about to answer rudely when she saw
that he was teasing her. She shook her head ruefully;

“I’m not sure I could kill anyone Javier.”

This time his smile was bleak and he took out his own
gun and fired three shots in rapid succession.  As the target whirred up to the
front Cassia saw that all three shots had gone straight into the centre of the
target’s forehead, between the eyes.

“Sometimes Cassia, you do not have a choice. Kill or
be killed. I hope you don’t have to do it, ever. Now, show me how you engage
the safety.”

Cassia did as she was told and felt a small glow of
satisfaction as Javier nodded his approval.

“We come in here and practise again tomorrow.”

He took the gun from her and led her out of the
complex. The four guys were still sweating it out in the gym as they left.

As they ascended into the hall there was a low rumble
as the shutters rolled down;

“Dawn.” Javier murmured, “Everyone has already eaten.
Madame Lemond has probably left us something in the kitchen, I hope that ...”

“Cassia! You poor girl, Max filled me in about your
close shave. Darling let’s have a good look at you.”

Rafe crossed the hall and took hold of Cassia, holding
her at arm’s length and checking her over;

“I’m fine Rafe, Javier’s been teaching me how to
shoot. We were just going to have a bite to eat.”

“Well, you’ve got a good teacher; he’s a damn good
shot. Now, come with me, I got Madame Lemond to make up a tray of goodies for
you and I’ve raided LaSalle’s cellar for something really special. You don’t
mind do you Javier? I assume lessons are over for the day?”

Javier shook his head; “Go ahead; I’ll catch up with
you at breakfast Cass.”

Cassia opened her mouth to speak but was swept away by
Rafe as he wound his arm round her waist and propelled her towards the dining
room. Javier watched them go, fighting the wave of aggression sweeping through
him. He had absolutely no claim on her.  So why did he want to launch himself
at Rafe and rip him to pieces?

As he slammed into the kitchen and raided Madame
Lemond’s larder he tried to ignore the words repeating in his head in an
endless loop;

Ella es mia, mia, mia, mia…

CHAPTER 10

Cassia sat up in bed, wildly pushing off the covers.
Her heart was hammering and her breath was coming in gasps. Rubbing her eyes
with her hands she felt the wetness on her face; she had been crying in her
sleep. Grabbing her watch off the side table she peered at it; almost two hours
till it was a decent hour to awaken. Flavia slept quietly in the other bed,
buried in her blankets as always.

She tried to remember the dream. Violent, it had been
violent. Someone had died. There had been blood and noise and someone crying,
pleading. Cassia sipped some water and sat on the edge of her bed staring at
the tall shuttered windows. She refused to believe the nightmares were back. No
doubt it was simply an anxiety dream; after all, it wasn’t every day that
someone tried to shoot you in the head. She was wide awake now. She got up
silently, slipped on her robe and let herself quietly out of the room. She would
go down to the kitchen and make herself a hot drink.

Cassia padded down the corridor through the sleeping
household; the carpet thick and comfortable under her bare feet. She hadn’t
seen Javier again after Rafe had swept her off to dinner. She had enjoyed
Rafe’s company; he was charming and intelligent and witty and she had felt
herself relax completely as she had eaten the delicious food and drank more
than her fair share of LaSalle’s vintage Bordeaux. They had made a date to go
across to the mainland to a club he knew. Cassia couldn’t remember the last
time she had gone on a date with one of her own kind. Perhaps Javier was right,
she wouldn’t find what she was looking for amongst the Humans. What she wanted
was more than the romantic Human notions of love; it was the visceral, fierce
possessive impulse, the unbreakable bond that joined couples together body and
soul. She had seen it in her parents and she had seen it right here with
LaSalle and his countess, Max and Katie, Gabriel and Hera.

Crossing the cool marble of the hall she pushed open
the kitchen door and stopped. Javier stood at the stove stirring hot chocolate
in a pan; its rich aroma filled the kitchen.

“Couldn’t sleep either? Come on in Cass, I’ve made
more than I can drink.” Javier spoke without turning around. How did he know it
was her? Of course, another indication that she spent too much time with
Humans; he had caught her scent.

Cassia hesitated then pulled up a chair at the massive
old scrubbed table. Javier brought over two steaming cups of chocolate then
went and rummaged in a large cupboard emerging triumphantly with a battered
tin;

“Breton biscuits; Madame Lemond’s secret recipe. She
tries to hide them from me but I always find them. Try one.”

He sat opposite her, prised off the lid and pushed the
tin across the table. Cassia took one and fiddled with her cup, blowing on the
chocolate to cool it. It helped her to have a distraction from him. He had
stubble on his face and his hair was all over the place; there were shadows
under those beautiful eyes and why couldn’t he tie his robe tighter? It gapped,
giving her a clear view of golden skin and tightly toned muscle. Lust, that was
all she was feeling, pure lust. Well, that was easily controlled.

“Is Madame Lemond another one of the trail of women
who fall for your smile and those eyes? I’ve seen you in action remember? In
that club in London with the blonde and the redhead. You are a master of the
art Javier of Seville. Well, it doesn’t work on me. Why couldn’t you sleep? You
look awful.”

Javier laughed so hard he almost choked then wiped his
eyes and sighed. Suddenly he was completely serious;

“Well, you certainly know how to make a man feel good
Cassia. I was thinking about this situation, slayers, bikers, daggers, rogue
Empaths, it just doesn’t make sense. Have a look, have you ever seen one of
these?”

He lifted the lid of the flat grey metal box she had
noticed on the table. Inside, resting on the plush lining were four ornate
black daggers. They gleamed glassily side by side and Cassia reached for one of
them only for Javier to grab her wrist and push her hand away;

“No, do not touch them. It’s too risky. Believe me,
they are lethal to our kind. That one there, that is the one that Ferenc
Bathory used to kill Gabriel’s brother Andras. Ironically, it was also the
dagger that was used to kill Ferenc this summer. I don’t know why we keep them;
they should be destroyed.”

“Where did they come from? How old are they?” Cassia
stared in fascination. The whole Vampire world had heard of the death of the
renegade Ferenc Bathory.  It was strange to be here, at the heart of the
powerbase that governed their world. The High Council might be their political
leaders but everyone knew that without the backing of the warriors on this
Island they were powerless.

“Nobody knows for certain. They are magical items.
Perhaps more than three thousand years old. The Empaths made them. Legend has
it that there were six, made in the Empaths’ old base in ancient Greece. The
Warrior’s Council captured these at great cost over the centuries.”

Cassia stared at the gleaming obsidian daggers. They
were beautiful objects, works of art. It was hard to believe they were so
deadly. Why did they look so familiar?

“So they’re all identical?” she asked

“Yes, why? You look puzzled.”

“Reading me like an Empath again Javier? I think I’ve
seen one of these before. Lying somewhere, innocent and innocuous.”

“Well you saw the empty box from Erebus’s safe. Could
that be it?” Javier asked.

Cassia shook her head then gave a frustrated sigh and
took another biscuit, munching at it absently. Looking up she saw Javier
watching her and felt her cheeks flush;

“What? They’re delicious. I just can’t remember but
those daggers seem so familiar, as if I’ve seen one before. It’ll come to me. I
never forget anything.”

“Why couldn’t you sleep?” asked Javier suddenly.

“Bad dream. Very bad. I get them sometimes. They scare
me; big, sometimes bad things always follow. You will be careful won’t you
Javier?”

His expression was suddenly deadly serious and he
reached across the table for her hand, taking it in his before she could snatch
it away. Cassia felt tears pricking her eyes and spilling over. Why had she
told him? It was her dark little secret. The thing that terrified her so much
she had never told anyone about it. Her fingers curled around his so tightly
she was sure she would crush his hand.

“You are an augur Cassia? My god, when did it start? 
Please, don’t cry. Talk to me.”

“I started dreaming during my adolescence. Always
before something big, an illness, a death, a birth, an accident. At first I
thought it was coincidence, something to do with the transition into adulthood.
You know, all those metabolic changes…all the pain. I never told anyone, things
were bad enough in our household with my father’s nightmares.”

“But they didn’t go away?”

“No,” Cassia whispered, “It’s like a curse. They are
rare thankfully but always come before some momentous event.”

Now the tears were falling in earnest, dripping off
her chin onto the table;

“I dreamed my father’s death Javier. I watched him,
day and night to try to stop him but I got so tired. So very, very tired and
then, one day, I dozed off over a book I was reading. He killed himself and
Flavia saw it. I blamed myself, secretly. If I hadn’t fallen asleep he might
not have done it.”

Javier had come round the table and now sat beside
her, holding her face in his hands, brushing the tears away with his thumbs;

“What you saw was going to happen, whatever you did.
You know that Cass. Nothing you or anyone else could have done would have
stopped it. Augurs see what they see. This dream you had, did you see a face?”

“No. Sometimes I don’t. It isn’t always someone I know
that well or care about but in this case it is. I woke up crying. It has been
five years since this last happened Javier.  I was beginning to hope it had
gone away. What if it’s Flavia or my mother or Harry or…” Cassia stopped; she
had been about to say “you”.

Javier stroked her hair back and used his sleeve to
dry her eyes;

“Cass, you could talk to someone about the burden you
carry. Someone right here, on the Island. Someone who could help you, who would
understand.”

“And who would that be Javier?” Cassia asked wearily

“Hera. You could trust her. I trust her.”

“The Empath? What would she know?”

“Not just any old Empath Cassia. She is the last of
the healing women. Born with unique powers, magical powers. I have seen them.
She knows only too well about the duty, the burden and responsibility that
comes with having a gift you were born with, that you never asked for. She is
the kindest of women, she would listen, understand.”

Cassia felt a piercing stab of jealousy;

“You sound very fond of her, I must say! Close are
you?”

Javier’s expression darkened and he shook her
slightly;

“Don’t be ridiculous. She is Gabriel’s bonded consort;
they belong to each other. She is my friend Cassia. I can’t believe you just
said that, it’s not like you. You don’t hear me asking whether you had a good
time with Rafe. He’s certainly got a way with women; you seem to lap it up. I
bet the two of you made another date.”

“Oh, now who’s being ridiculous?”  Cassia asked
furiously, “How on earth did our conversation degenerate into this childish,
petty bickering?”

“You started it I believe Cass when I was talking
about a good friend. Did he kiss you?”

“What?” They were suddenly glaring at each other
aggressively and Cassia felt Javier’s hands wind into her hair and grip
tightly; his eyes were almost black and she felt her mouth go dry.

“Did. He. Kiss. You. Yes or no Cassia Mathrafal?”
Javier whispered. Cassia couldn’t tear her eyes away from his as her hands
reached up and held onto his arms, digging into the hard muscle.

“None of your damned business Javier of Seville.” Her
voice was a mere thread, the words breathed out.

When Cassia ran through the moment later again and
again in her head she still wasn’t sure who had moved first but suddenly her
hands were fisted up in his hair and he had yanked her towards him and they
were kissing; deep, desperate hungry kisses that bruised their mouths and stole
their breath.

Her brain seemed to shut down as her body took over
completely, answering his. She felt him lift her up and set her down on the
edge of the table then hold her tightly against him as if he wanted every bit
of himself to be in contact with her. Heat radiated from him and the scent of
him filled her senses. They were kissing so deep and so hard she suddenly felt
the taste of her own blood in her mouth. Abruptly Javier pulled away and
stilled against her and she felt him tighten up all over;

“Cass.” he whispered as her eyes flickered open,
trying to focus.

He was gazing at her, the pupils hugely dilated in his
golden brown eyes and, as he leaned forward to kiss her again she saw his
canines descend into his mouth. This time as he kissed her gently, tasting her,
she heard him moan, deep and low in his throat. Something was suddenly
different; she felt his body tremble slightly and all his muscles were tensed
under the gentle caress of her hands.

His mouth moved along her jaw and then he pushed her
robe urgently out of the way as his tongue trailed down the side of her neck
till it rested on the spot where her pulse hammered. She felt his teeth graze
her skin, sending tiny shock waves shooting through her body.

“Eres mia, solo mia…” the words were breathed against
her neck as he bent her head to one side and centred his mouth over her vein.
Cassia tipped her head back and arched against him.

Javier pulled away from her so suddenly she almost
lost her balance, gripping the edge of the table to hold herself upright; her
eyes flying open in shock and confusion.

“Javier? Javier, what…?” her voice cracked and she
raised a shaking hand to her mouth;

He had his back to her and was propped against the
kitchen counter holding onto it with trembling hands as if it was the only
thing keeping him from falling.

“Javier? Please look at me. What is it? Please.”
Cassia leaned against the table, her legs shaking so badly she doubted they’d
hold her up.

Javier turned slowly to face her, his face drained of
colour and his eyes hollow and dazed;

“This can’t be happening. It cannot happen.  How can
this be happening with you?”

Cassia felt misery twist inside her so sharp, so
agonizing, it was as though he had stabbed her with his knife then slowly
turned it round and round. She heard herself speak as if from a great distance;
her voice harsh and grating.

“You’re right. I’m not Charlotte, I’m just a thief.
How could someone like you possibly want someone like me?  Don’t worry Javier
of Seville, I’m sure it’ll pass. Let’s be grown-ups, let’s just pretend this
didn’t happen.  Excuse me, I’m leaving. I’m sure Madame Lemond and her staff
will be in here soon, you’d better pull yourself together.”