The Vampire (THE VAMPIRE Book 1) (48 page)

Jason’s heart sank. He knew the answer already.

“Hello, Jason. How are you? What can I do for you?”

Jason was never so glad to hear someone’s voice in his life. The tone was reserved, businesslike, but cordial. And to him it was a lifeline thrown into rough water.

“Mr. Genier.” He sighed. “It is good to hear your voice. I really need to talk to Mr. Augere, and I cannot reach him. Could you please tell me—”

“If it is about clearing your personal items from the house, I do have some news on that. We have been getting estimates from bonded companies in the Boston area. We can set up a day and time—have you decided where you want the items to go? Local storage, or shipped to you?”

“NO! I mean, I am planning to take care of all that. I really do need to talk to Mr. Augere though. It is very important. If you can just tell me how to reach him…”

There was a long silent pause.

“He will insist I take care of it, whatever it is.” Curt. Detached.

“It’s not anything you can take care of; please can you just ask him to call me? If you can’t tell me how to reach him myself. The next time you speak to him—”

“I don’t know when that might be. He hasn’t been returning my calls.”

“But—I thought you spoke to him nearly every day. I don’t understand—is it because of me? That he isn’t calling you?”

“I don’t believe so. He accepts that things happen. He just goes on.” There was a brief pause. “I haven’t figured out a way to make him keep his phone turned on, much less make him call me,” Genier said, his tone a little warmer and friendlier. There was even a hint of humor in his voice. “If I do speak to him, I will give him your message.”

“Okay, thank you.” Jason sighed. It was the best he could hope for, it seemed. At least, he had gotten to talk to Genier again. At least Augere would get his message.

He should be talking to him soon.

It was after 6:30 and Carrie hadn’t gotten home from her job yet; Evan was out with his friends. His parents had a weekly card game at their friend’s house, but were reluctant to go and leave Jason alone.

“Mom—Dad, please, you don’t have to change your plans for me. There is no reason you have to stay home to entertain me. Carrie will be home soon; I’ll take her out driving. Please—just go, okay?”

He pretended he had already eaten while Carrie had dinner, and then they went out for her driving lesson.

He was distracted and having a hard time focusing on the present moment. But he still kept a watchful eye on Carrie. And she did on him, as well.

“Are we stopping for coffee after we pick up your photo CDs?” she asked. He’d almost forgotten about those. He was gazing at his silent phone.

“I’ll tell you what—how about if I stare at your phone for a while for you?” she offered in a sarcastic tone. “That way you can drive us home.”

He frowned at her. He didn’t realize he had been so obvious, waiting any moment to get a call from Augere. And if he didn’t get a call? He wasn’t sure what to do then.

“Never mind about me. You just keep driving,” he said to her. “Can we get donut holes this time?”

A short while after they returned home, both their parents and Evan returned. They all decided to look at the photo CDs together.

It was all captured; the wonderful trip he had enjoyed thanks to Augere. Places he’d almost forgotten about already were now saved for posterity. He had taken photos of the absinthe bar in Paris—now he had the name of the place—and memories came rushing back to him after seeing all of those images.

This doesn’t have to be the end of it,
Jason thought.
I could certainly go to all those places again. It would still be just as wonderful, maybe more, because I would be reliving it all again
.

“Not one photo of this mysterious boss of yours?” Carrie asked him. The rest of the family chimed in, with the same thought. They were hoping to see what he looked like. They were absolutely right, he realized with dismay. He had not a single photo of Augere. The few times he had, discreetly, tried to frame a picture with Augere in the background, Augere had always seemed to move away at the last moment. There was one photo—taken in the Catacombs— when he was sure he had caught a quick photo of Augere. He found the photo now and was dismayed to see it was just a photo of Augere’s hand. He stared at it now, without calling attention to it. The photo had a faint haziness about it, just his hand and the area around it, not the rest of the image. As if there had been a camera malfunction or interference. Maybe he could not be photographed? No, that was absurd. Augere had a passport; had a driver’s license. Of course he was able to be photographed. Jason wished he did have at least one photo of him. He felt a moment of deep regret now, that he had not a single image. There would be not one visual thing except his memory to help him remember what Augere looked like.

Memory would fade. In time it would almost be like he never existed.

You will never have to see him again.

But of course he would, Jason thought suddenly. He still had to go to Boston to get all of his stuff. He would have to see Augere then. How else? He felt reassured of it now—and maybe he could get a photo then, he could even him ask him maybe, or be discreet about it—when the thought that Augere might choose not to be present upset him suddenly. Or, what if, as Genier had suggested, a company simply packed up his things and shipped them somewhere? He would have no excuse to see Augere then. That thought filled him with dread. He needed to speak to Augere again now. Before that could happen.

He needed to see him. Even if it was for one last time.

He went to bed a little after 11:00; everyone else in the family stayed up late since it was Friday night.
Everyone else,
Jason thought,
isn’t mentally, physically and emotionally exhausted from staring at the emptiness of what their life might become in the coming months
.

He kept his phone with him all the time; checking it obsessively, and discreetly now, hoping for a call from Augere. Why would Augere not call him? He trusted Genier would give him the message. Augere would have no reason not to call. Maybe he was even hoping Jason might call him. But it concerned him Augere was not even returning Genier’s calls. It certainly made Jason a lesser priority.

There continued to be no call.

He took Carrie out driving on Saturday afternoon. She had been driving for about an hour and they were stopped at a stoplight.

“I’m taking you to one of my favorite places,” she announced. Jason nodded, as he fiddled with the radio, trying to get a decent alternative music station.

She pulled into a parking spot near an indie book shop called Books Rock. He followed her inside and she led him to a cozy table near several racks of books;. All of the books in that area he soon noticed were of the paranormal genre. He loved the look and ambience of the place. A kind of shabby chic, combination Victorian tea room, coffee house, bistro kind of place. A place with many comfortable chairs and seating areas; tables with small lamps. The kind of place that invited one to browse and linger a while; more like a cozy living room at someone’s house than a bookstore. A waitress came to their table and Carrie said she would treat Jason. She ordered the Tea for Two. As soon as the server left she began.

“Okay, Jason. Let’s have it.”

He gave her a blank look, but he knew what she was after. “What?” he asked innocently.

“You have been moping; preoccupied, worried. Staring at your phone like you’re waiting for the Governor to call off the execution. What is going on with you? I can probably help.” Her tone was confident.

For one crazy moment he imagined blurting out the whole living with a vampire/portal creatures/hired killer story, just to see her reaction, just to be able to say “So, Carrie, what are your thoughts about what I should do now?” but he immediately thought better of it. Of course, he could never tell anyone. But just now he was feeling very emotionally vulnerable, a state quite uncharacteristic of him, until just lately, and he did not really trust himself. “Carrie…” He sighed.

“Please, just don’t tell me it’s nothing. I will have the truth. Or at least, the closest version of it.”

He just shook his head.

“I’m very surprised, and not a little upset, that you feel you can’t confide in me.” She looked both miffed and hurt.

He glanced around the room. There had to be a way out of this. He thought he found one. He spotted something of interest a few tables away.

“Have you ever had a tarot card reading?” he asked her suddenly.

She shook her head.

He nodded at a woman sitting at a table just beyond. She had a tarot card deck with her and a small sign under the rose colored lamp on her table read: Tarot Card readings/$10.

“Do you want one?” he asked her. But before she could answer he suddenly realized this could be the sign he had been looking for. The Hanged Man image that kept popping up in his mind and elsewhere had been a prompt; now the Tarot Card woman being present was a clue he should be focused on; he suddenly remembered: Redlyn, and the Tarot Card reading in Salem. A look of amazement came over his face. He suddenly recalled she had predicted he would travel, before he knew it himself. And she had said something else that seemed very significant just now.

Carrie caught the look of wonder and surprise on his face. Then it seemed to him she might have been thinking over his suggestion, when their order arrived: a silver teapot and two cups; a three tiered silver server with little cakes and miniature pastries. The smallest, most perfectly tiny éclairs Jason had ever seen, tiny circles of cheesecake; one bite fruit tarts, miniature frosted cakes and bites of brownies; several varieties of tiny sandwiches. There were mini croissants, jam and real clotted cream—a new favorite, since he had been able to try some in London. It was a very charming presentation, almost too beautifully done to eat.

“I had a reading done in Salem, recently,” Jason explained, selecting a sliver of checkerboard cake. “I’m just now remembering some of the stuff this woman said to me. It was pretty amazing, since some of the stuff she predicted has already happened since then.”

“Really? Maybe I
should
have a reading…” Carrie went on to talk about Salem; how lucky he was to live in Boston and be so close to cool places like Salem and all the stuff there was to see and do. She went on about how much she really wanted to go there too and hinted about him inviting her to visit him at his place for a weekend. He had to get her off the subject. It was too depressing and she could be close to figuring out his true circumstances.

As he poured himself some Earl Grey, Jason concentrated on remembering what Redlyn had said. He nodded at Carrie’s comments, only half listening, already bothered she would never get to see his great place in Boston now. And a pang of sorrow as he realized: neither would he, not ever again.

Distant shores. He remembered that part. She was certainly right about that. And…“everything, or something coming apart…and put together again.” The Hanged Man image and now by chance the sight of a woman with tarot cards made him feel this was all important somehow and that this was something he was meant to take note of and put together. He asked their server for some paper and he took a pen out of his pocket. He began to write down what he remembered as Carrie looked on, munching a petit sandwich.

Everything coming apart. Yes, that had certainly happened. Did she say it did go back together, or just that it might? He couldn’t recall the exact words now. He had recorded all of the session, but that recording was back in Boston now.

“…right, Jason?” Carrie was saying.

“Hmm?” Jason was embarrassed he hadn’t caught her comment.

“Just as I thought. You weren’t even listening.” She sounded upset.

“Sorry; I was. Just not every word. I was just distracted for a moment. The woman over there reminded me, and I was trying to remember what my tarot reading had revealed. It seems really important right now.”

“Oh? Does it have to do with what has been bothering you?”

He stared at her. “Okay. Look. I am expecting an important phone call; it might come sometime this weekend. Or, maybe Monday. If it doesn’t come by Monday evening, I will seek your advice. Is that going to be okay?” He was only half bluffing. If he didn’t hear back from Augere soon, he would need advice from somewhere. It might as well be from Carrie. Even though she couldn’t know any of the details. That would be a difficult trick.

“Just so long as you know, I am not letting you off the hook. You need to tell me. I can’t have you going on like this.”

Jason nodded. They had a deal. They finished their tea and all of the delightful treats. The tarot woman had left. They decided to browse the books for a while, and Jason bought a book for Carrie. Then they headed home. Sleep would not come easy, and Jason had to take a combination pain and sleep aid from the upstairs bathroom; even then, he had difficulty falling asleep.

On Sunday everyone slept in and then their mom fixed them all a big breakfast. It was like old times, with all of them being home together and enjoying the same routines he remembered when growing up.

He took Carrie for another driving lesson, and then they went to see a movie at the Cineplex. He realized he consistently enjoyed her company more than almost anyone else he could think of. The movie was an absurd comedy, and a welcome relief to him after all the heavy emotions of the past week. He wasn’t at all tired at the end of the evening, but he had to say goodnight because everyone but him had someplace they had to be in the morning.

I should set my alarm clock anyway,
Jason thought. Get up a little earlier for a change. Yeah, a good plan. That way he could squeeze in a few extra hours of worry. And hopefully that wouldn’t interfere with the full day of obsessive ruminating he already had planned.
Somehow, despite everything, my absurd sense of humor is still mostly intact
.

He hastily ate a light breakfast while he waited until a decent hour to call Genier.

To his extreme relief and surprise as soon as the secretary had said “just a moment” he was put through to Mr. Genier. All was not lost.