Meadow's Keep (The Gatekeepers Series) (13 page)

“Mr. Bask, I presume.” Eryk
waited for a spark of energy but felt none and dropped his hand.

“Mr. Vreeland,”
Bask acknowledged but turned his attention to Jasmine.

She stood, almost shy
and hesitant.

Bask stepped around the table and gave her a stern expression, eyeing her. “You scared the crap out of me, young lady,” he said, his voice softening with every word.

She flung herself into his arms and Eryk saw the tears she was trying to hold back. “I missed you too, you old coot.”

He lifted her off the floor in an embrace
, surprising Eryk with his natural strength. “Well, hell, you aged me ten years.”

She slid down and took a step back, still holding his arms. “What’s that make you? A hundred and five?”

“Damn near.” He laughed and pulled the chair out for her.

She turned to Eryk. “Ole Bask here and I go way back. He let me intern at the Abbott House one summer.”

Bask laughed, a full body, rich sound that came from deep within. “Yeah. That little venture took three years to correct.”

Jasmine’s face reddened slightly. “I didn’t know they were
n’t supposed to be alphabetical.”

Bask patted her hand and turned his attention to Eryk, now sitting next to Dorian. “It’s uncanny.” He shook his head.

“Not really,” Dorian said and slid a piece of paper in front of Eryk.

He scanned the paper.
It looked like some sort of hospital release form. Mother: Patrice Drake. Father: Unknown. Birth: Natural, male, identical twins: Derrick Drake; Dorian Drake.

“Derrick.” E
ryk commented to no one in particular.

Under comments, it read
: Infant reacted to silver nitrate application to eyes, causing clouding. Flushed with mild saline. Condition improving. Mother refused removal of membranous material covering eyes.

Eryk couldn’t help but look at Morgan. She fluttered her lashes and smiled.
“
We
are special. It’s a damn good thing they didn’t remove that. Yancy said something about a double lens when he treated me after Jasmine….” She let the words trail off.

Jasmine sat us straighter. “I shot wasp spray in her eyes—purely by accident, mind you. Really,” she added for emphasis.

Morgan reached across the table and patted her hand. “I know that.”

Eryk looked back at the document.
First child deceased, day two, crib death.

“It says here we were born on August 16,
1980. It looks like I’m still your big brother, even if I am deceased,” Eryk grinned, directing his jest at Dorian. “Anything on our mother? Or father.”

As soon as he said it, Eryk’s mind reeled. Was it possible that
Donald Vreeland really was their father? Hadn’t someone said the mother OD’d? Somehow, he couldn’t picture dear old dad getting it on with a druggy. He could barely think of his father getting it on at all.

He realized how quiet the table had
become. They were watching him.

“Sorry
,” he apologized. “Wool gathering.”

“It’s okay,” Bask commented
, “all this is a lot to take in.” He looked over at Morgan and she gave him a slight nod, remembering how badly she’d handled the information about her adoption and Ruthorford.

She spoke, “I
got a summons from Bask to come to Atlanta, where he unceremoniously informed me that my parents were dead. In his defense, he didn’t know my adoptive parents hadn’t told me I was adopted. After almost passing out, I up and fled back to Virginia. Luckily, I returned a short time later and…well, all’s well that ends well.” She took Dorian’s hand and laid it on her large belly.

Bask couldn’t help but look at Eryk and Jasmine,
both of whom showed completely new combinations of traits, and wonder just what was happening to the line of the descendants.

Putting aside his musings, h
e turned to Eryk. “Years ago, one of my associates was in Washington, DC and passed your mother on the street. The eyes were a dead giveaway, being the Ruthorford green. He followed her to a hole-in-the-wall apartment and tried to find out something about her, pretending that she looked like his cousin, a runaway. She managed to get twenty bucks out of him, asking for formula money for her child. There was only one child in that rattrap—Dorian.”

His expression saddened. “
Unfortunately, by the time my associate got back to me and returned to the apartment, she’d overdosed on whatever she bought with that money. Dorian was bawling like a banshee. We brought him to Ruthorford and the Kilravens took him in and raised him. We tried to find something on the father, but never did. This,” he pointed to the piece of paper, “was all we could dig up.”

Morgan poured Bask some more tea and set it in front of him. This was the most she’d ever heard him
say. A man of few words, he was more of a delegator. For him to come to Ruthorford meant something, but she wasn’t sure what.

Bask nodded his thanks and took a deep drink. “Eryk…Derrick—”

“I’ll stick with Eryk,” Eryk said.

“Eryk, I’m sorry. We assumed the records were correct and one child had died.
I don’t know how the Vreelands obtained you. That’s something you’ll have to ask them. I am sure you will.” Bask, still dealing with the fact that they’d somehow failed this man, tried to comfort. “Listen, son, it’s obvious that they wanted you. They must have gone to a great deal of trouble to get you and keep all of this from you.” He saw the look of disdain pass over Eryk’s face before he masked it and wondered just what kind of life he’d actually had.

Bask had started the research the moment Jasmine has first called him from the fair.
The society pages had read like a fifties family show. Photos of Donald Vreeland contributing large sums of money to the charities for which Eryk performed filled the pages. Come to think of it, he hadn’t seen the “family” photos he would have expected of such a socially prominent family. There were pictures of the husband and wife together and plenty of pictures of Eryk, just not of the three of them together, unless they were on stage.

Bask glanced around the table at the foursome
talking among themselves. Things would change for Eryk from this day forth. Ruthorford’s descendants were a fiercely loyal bunch—to each other and their families. If Eryk hadn’t had it before, he would now—if he knew how to accept and appreciate it.

“I would like for you and Jasmine to come up to Abbott House, fill out some surveys, take some tests. It’ll give me a chance to show you around, help you get grounded before I send you two into the field.
”

“
Field?” Eryk asked. They sure treated all this
stuff
matter-of-factly.

“Dorian can teach you what you’ll need to know. That can be done b
efore or after Atlanta, it doesn’t matter.”

Jasmine broke in, “He wants to poke us with needles and test ou
r skills, both apart and together.” She caught the looks going back and forth between Dorian and Morgan. “What is it with you two? You need some alone time?” she teased.

“Not exactly,” Dorian said.
He looked at Bask.

Bask stood
, causing the chair to wobble on two legs. With lightning speed, Jasmine reached out and stopped it, brushing her hand against Bask’s leg in the process.

He reached down and rubbed the spot. “You’ve got quite a spark,” he said
.

“Sorry. I’m still figuring this out…as you well know.”

“Eryk,” Dorian said, “you can stay here with us. Any time, for as long as you like. It will make the training go quicker.”

Eryk gave a slight smile, but it didn’t reach his eyes.

Morgan nodded, throwing in her support. “If you don’t want to stay in The Shoppe with the soon to be squalling babies, the cottage is right there and it’s yours.”

“Babies?” Bask interrupted. “I thought there was only one.”

Morgan turned to Bask, a glint in her eyes. “What? You thought I was becoming a beached whale with one baby? What did you think I was having, a hippo?”

He had the for
esight to blush. “I wasn’t going to say anything…,”

Morgan rubbed her huge belly and laughed until the stomach tightened and she winced. At Bask’s concerned look, Dorian, Jasmine and Eryk all announced, “Braxton-Hicks
,” and laughed.

Dorian let the laughter settle down but grabbed the lightness of the moment to pin down Bask. “Eryk might not know you, but we do. It took more than these papers to make you come all the way to Ruthorford. And don’t give me the ‘I wanted to see for myself’ routine. We know you better than that.
Plus, all this insistence on training. Add in a visit to Abbott House and I smell a rat. Or to be more precise, a Gulatega.”

Still standing, t
he older man pulled some more paperwork from his brief case before he closed it, setting in the chair. “It’s not much, be there have been some reports of activity at Meadow’s Keep.” He laid the papers in the center of the table.

Morgan blanched.

“Gulatega? Ian?” Dorian asked, his words measured.

E
ryk could feel a protective cloak emanate from Dorian to surround Morgan. He automatically responded by encircling Jasmine, whose hair suddenly stood on end.

“Hey!” she squeaked. “What was that for?”

“Not sure.” The green of his eyes swirled.

“I
didn’t mean to start something,” Bask said. “The reports we’re getting are vague. Possible movement around the grounds. Some lights. All from outside spotters. Nothing official. But we need a couple to check it out.”

“Not Morgan,” Dorian stated firmly.

“No. I was thinking—” He looked at Eryk and Jasmine.

Dorian balked. “
No. It’s too dangerous. Neither one of them knows what to look for, or what to do if they find it.”

Bask seemed unconcerned
and waved it off. “Just a look-see. How long before you can get them ready?”

Dorian ran a hand through his black hair. “I don’t know. A couple of
weeks, maybe.”

“Well, you’ve got days,” Bask corrected.

“…there’s no—” Dorian started to say.

“Hey…don’t forget I’m sitting right here
,” Jasmine interrupted. Her energy heightened, sparking from her fingertips. “I can do whatever has to be done. I watched enough of Dorian’s lessons with Thom.” She jerked a thumb toward Eryk. “This greenhorn, here, I don’t know about. I can guide him, I suppose.”

Almost glaring at her,
Eryk spoke, his voice low, “I’m a quick study.”

“What about that meeting you
said you want to have with your father?” Bask asked.

“It’ll have to wait.
” Whatever was going on affected the safety of the people sitting around him. If he was in, he was all in. The man who’d ignored him all of his life would just have to wait. “What about Morgan’s delivery?” He knew he and Jasmine couldn’t be in two places at the same time.

“I
t’ll be a short trip. I just want you to have a look. If you need help, I have a couple I can send in from West Virginia. You’ll be back here in plenty of time to cover for Dorian and Morgan.”

Bask
grabbed his coat and slung it over his shoulder, not bothering to put it on, and picked up his briefcase. “I need to get back to Atlanta.” By now they were all standing. “Why don’t you and Jasmine come up in a couple of days?”

Eryk took the proffered hand. “Okay.” He glanced at Jasmine, who gave a slight nod.

Bask studied Eryk. “Hopefully, I’ll have some more information for you by then. We’re still looking into things. I’m sorry. I wished I’d known.”

“Well, if Donald Vreeland is involved, plan to look deep. He’s damn good at covering things up
,” Eryk said.

Jasmine spoke. “Yeah, well Abbott House is
damn good at uncovering,” she said with pride.

Bask smiled at her. “I’m glad you’re all right. Be careful,” he added
.

“I will,” Jasmine
rose on tiptoe and kissed him on his cheek. “Promise. We’ll see you in a couple of days.”

“Look over those reports,” he said, walking toward the front door.

“I’ll see him to the car,” Dorian said. “Morgan, sit.”

“I’m not Meesha,” she snapped back
, but sat anyway. “Jasmine, would you bring those rolls over...and some milk, if you don’t mind?”

Eryk helped
Jasmine get some plates, the rolls—which turned out to be hot cross buns from the B & B—a pitcher of milk, and a glass for Morgan. He noticed Dorian kept the closed sign up when came back inside and locked the door.
What now?

Dorian grabbed a bun off the plate and took a huge bite
.

“You’re gonna gain as much as Morgan and it’s not
going to come off you so easily,” Jasmine teased him, poking him in his still hard abs.