The Last Keeper (4 page)

Dearest Brother,

Congratulations, both on your first grey hair and the news of your family addition.
 

First, please accept my apologies for the delivery of this letter. I knew that, due to its content, it needed to reach you and only you.

I am in dire need of your advice on a matter I know you are well versed in. While attending the function you so kindly inquired about—no injuries to report I am afraid—I encountered a young man.
 

I am sure by now you have realised the importance. The young man I met has had a profound effect upon me, and I require your advice on whether I am correct.
 

Upon meeting him, for the first time in my life, I found myself speechless. Not only that, but I couldn’t tear my gaze away and I think I finally understand the meaning of looking into someone’s eyes for the rest of time.
 

I cannot accurately put words together to describe the depth of the feelings that coursed through me in that single moment. One word from his lips and I was enraptured.

Part of me is praying I am incorrect and I have been bewitched by the spell of infatuation. However, the greater part of me is concerned that it has finally happened. As you well know, this is my greatest fear. If I am not, then I am afraid the end is almost here. There are a great many things we need to now discuss, and I believe seeing you in person would be the best way.
 

I am rushing things again, aren’t I? My apologies. You know how I can be. The messenger has been instructed to wait until you have finished this and composed a reply.
 

Please write back as soon as possible. I would greatly appreciate your help with this matter.

And, as always, please take every step to ensure this letter is destroyed.
 

Kindest regards,

Your Sister

It took me far too long to write the letter, and by the time I was finished, Sam was awake.
 

“You need me?” Sam asked, half asleep. His dark hair was tousled, but his sharp eyes missed nothing. He looked a lot like Helen, but his father was apparent in the hard line of his jaw and the deep reddish-brown of his tight curls.
 

“Yes, please, Sam.” Rising, I handed him the envelope. “You know how to get to William’s house safely, I take it?”

“I do.”

“Good. Take my horse, and get there as soon as you can. My boat will be ready for you at the docks. Do
not
let anyone see this letter. Once you arrive, please wait for a response.”
 

As much as I’d have preferred him to take the car, getting it across the channel was a problem. Thanks to my contacts, borders weren’t an issue, but traveling could be.
 

William lived with his wife, Alison, and their sons, David and Michael, in a small village skirting the border between France and Switzerland. The journey would take Sam a minimum of five days by horse, but that meant pushing Tara to her limits. I also expected William to insist he stay overnight before returning.
 

“I’ll be back before you know it.” He smiled, heading for the door.
 

A couple of hours later, I finished with the first pile of the notifications and had updated our records. They were death notices—all of them. The number of our un-matured descendants dying had increased since war had been declared, and although it was a concern, there was little we could do about it.
 

I picked up another notification. It was a request for assistance—recognisable by the insignia on the back of the envelope.
 

The nearest Seat had probably dealt with it, but I needed to make sure. There were times when unruly vampires fell through the cracks and we ended up picking up the pieces, but The Seats were good at keeping our rules. I was loath to admit it, but I needed them. I needed them to keep their own in check so I could do what I had to do with as little help as possible.
 

Still, requests for assistance couldn’t be ignored. I tried to think of something other than this problem that would likely require me to leave the country—it was too close to William for comfort—but when I let my mind wander, all I thought of was the night before.
 

All roads lead to Rome. All thoughts lead to . . .
 

I almost hurled my pen across the room. I would have, anything to stop my thoughts from going there again, but Helen said, “Are you accepting visitors?”
 

There was a strange look in her eyes that I couldn’t quite place. “Why not?” It would grind away the hours. “Who’s visiting?”

Glancing at the clock, I saw it was just after lunchtime. I’d spent the entire morning wading through my pile of notifications. Perhaps the waiting wouldn’t be as hard as I’d thought.

“A certain Mr. Synclair.”

My heart stuttered in my chest for the briefest of moments. What reason did he have for visiting me? I’d met him only briefly, and only once. Surely my sudden departure couldn’t have worried him enough to visit.
 

Maybe he felt the same way. Maybe he’d felt that connection, as well.
 

I sighed. What a silly notion. How could he possibly feel anything for me after meeting me only once?
 

I had hoped to hear from William before I was once again confronted by the enigma that was Mr. Ray Synclair. The Fates were turning against me, a collaborative, determined effort to bring about the end of my race.
 

“Serenity?”

“Sorry,” I answered automatically.
 

My heart raced with the sheer anticipation of seeing him once more. It made me want to run away from everything.
 

I followed Helen out of my study and to the sitting room. Even as I paused in the doorway, Helen scampering off to attend to something, I lost all ability to form a coherent sentence. And he hadn’t noticed I was there yet.

He had his back to me, standing by the glass display cabinet where I kept my collection of precious stones. Every few seconds he leaned forward slightly, looking closer at one stone or another, perhaps trying to figure out what they were. It took a rare and knowledgeable person to be able to identify the uncut gems. Only I knew their origins, having collected them throughout the years.
 

His hand fluttered over the dark blue of the lapis lazuli, almost grazing the rough surface. Then he pulled back, as though he thought he shouldn’t be touching it.
 

Clearing my throat, I forced myself to speak. “Mr. Synclair, to what do I owe this pleasure?”
 

He straightened up, his shoulders tensing as he turned around and repositioned himself. “Miss Cardea, please, call me Ray. I’m sorry for intruding, but you left early last night . . .” He paused, struggling for words.

“I’m sorry about that. I felt unwell. I’m fine now.” It was a lie. Fortunately, I had years of practice.

“Are you sure? You know we still have some excellent doctors at the hospital.” His playful smile was infectious, and I found myself smiling brightly at him.

“I’m quite fine. There were just a few too many people, that was all.” Even as the lie left my lips, guilt washed over me, which was a first.
 

“Would you come for a walk, Miss Cardea?” he offered, a faint blush creeping up his cheeks as he spoke.

“Serenity. I’d much prefer for you to call me Serenity.”
 

I should have refused his invitation. I should have waited for William’s reply, but I couldn’t. I felt it again, that burning desire to stand with him like this forever. How could I possibly deny him? He looked so unsure of himself as he spoke. There was no way I could watch the uncertainty in his unusual eyes grow into something more when I had the power to stop it.
 

“We can take a walk through the gardens, if you wish.”

I kept a reasonable distance between us while we walked. It was a pleasant and clear day, and with the warmth of late summer in the air, we didn’t need to bother with coats. The nights were starting to turn chilly again, with the season starting to wind down, but there was one thing I still took pleasure in: the full blooms of my exotic flowers. The gardens of the few houses I had dotted around various countries were considerably larger than this one, but it suited my needs.
 

“How are you liking the city?” Ray asked, after a few minutes of comfortable silence.

“It’s not the same as it used to be,” I blurted out.
 

It had been years since I was last in London, though that information wasn’t commonly known. I cursed myself for not thinking before speaking.

“You’ve been here before?” His tone was curious, but I felt as if he’d read more into my words than he was letting on.

“Many years ago,” I admitted. It wasn’t an easy task to avoid looking at him, not when I was drawn to him so.
 

“I don’t think it’s changed that much, but I didn’t get out a lot when I was younger,” he said quietly.

“But you have lived here your whole life. The differences would be less noticeable to you.”
 

“I suppose that’s true,” he conceded.

Neither of us spoke again as we toured the small gardens. Ray never enquired about the more unusual plants I’d planted nor did he try to close the gap between us . . . though he wanted to. Whenever I looked down, his hand was twitching, as though he was contemplating reaching for mine but hadn’t quite summoned the courage. What scared me was if he had, I wouldn’t have stopped him.
 

“May I . . . ?” I paused, nodding towards the cane he was leaning on.
 

We’d come to a stop by the back door, but I wasn’t ready to go inside yet. There were so many things I wanted to know about him, and for a moment, I was going to indulge myself.
 

“You don’t have to answer,” I added when he didn’t say anything.

“I don’t remember a lot of it. Any, really. Flashes now and then of what happened in the years after,” he began, staring intently at his hand, a small scowl on his face. “It happened during the Great War. I was very small at the time, and my mother didn’t get to me in time. No one was expecting the first wave of bombs, and our house was caught in it. The only reason the doctors saved my leg was because they thought it would strengthen as I grew.”

“Did it?” I asked gently when he stopped.

“Yes,” he said, glancing up. “I couldn’t walk at all when I was a child. It’s why I spent so much time surrounded by books. They were my best friends, and I still love them. Before this mess started, I was training to be a history teacher.” He was smiling brightly again, and it was clear he was set on that path for life.

“Why are you really here, Ray?”
 

He winced. “The truth?”
 

“That would be a good place to start.”
 

“I honestly don’t know. I have no idea why I was so excited to dance with you. I don’t know why I had to come by today to make sure you were well. There were so many stories about you from the other teachers, and something in me told me that I absolutely had to meet you. That somehow I had to get to know you. You must think me mad.” He didn’t meet my eyes when he spoke, opting for staring at the ground instead.

“Thank you,” I whispered, causing him to look up.

“For what?”

“For checking on me today, for wanting to dance with me, and for telling me. I’ve enjoyed your company.” I stopped myself right there. It would be so very wrong of me to continue.
 

“As I have enjoyed yours. More than I should admit.”

“Join me for dinner.” It was supposed to be a question, but it came out more like an order.
 

The day had shown me beyond any doubt that I couldn’t wait for William’s reply before seeing him again. I doubted Ray would keep away for a whole week, especially when I’d already offered dinner. As much as I wanted to fight what I felt, as much as it terrified me, I needed to keep him where I could protect him.
 

For now.

“I’d love to.” His smile was so wide that I grinned back.
 

The twitching of his hand told me just how nervous he’d been about admitting the depth of his infatuation.
 

I wanted to tell him everything, and it took a great effort to keep from doing so. He would surely run if I were to blurt out my deepest secrets without any warning. Or he would be off to the asylum before I could stop him. Neither were reactions I wanted. And again, I was getting ahead of myself. There might not be a need to tell him everything.
 

Hope was a wonderful thing, even if it seemed increasingly unfounded.
 

After extending the dinner invitation for two nights’ time, I watched as he walked down the road, presumably to his home. There was a bounce in his uneven step, and I could almost see the grin he was surely wearing. When he glanced back at the corner and saw me, the smile I’d envisioned was shining brightly as he raised his hand slightly before walking on.
 

I would need to find out where he lived, and soon. I wouldn’t go there unless I was invited, but I wanted to check the area surrounding his home, in case there were any threats that needed dealing with. Just as I would watch the people close to him for any signs of anyone more than human.
 

“And you said you would never find him,” Helen accused, closing the door.

“I don’t know that,” I said, hoping to avoid the subject.

“You invited him to dinner?”
 

“Yes, two nights’ time. Will you join us?” It would be more comfortable if there were more than just the two of us.

“Yes, but you’re avoiding the point, Serenity.”
 

“I know.”

“You know what William’s reply will say. Why are you trying to fight it?”