Chapter 59
Chapter Fifty-Nine
I headed up the stairway, hoping Marcus hadn’t left.
I couldn’t wait to find Sunaria and reciprocate her affection. She had a knack for knowing just how to deal with me and soothe my angst. A bark signaled the dogs would appear at any moment.
Hairs on the back of my neck stood up. I spun round and peered down into the foyer. Jacob stood at the base of the stairs, resting one hand on the banister. I had a mental recap on how quickly I’d flown in through the front door, and at the same time offered him what I hoped was a convincing smile.
“I’ve come to apologize,” he said.
Descending the steps, I asked, “For what?”
“My behavior at dinner.”
“Actually, I feel I owe you the apology,” I said.
The hounds ran to greet us, barking with excitement when they saw Jacob. I turned and ordered them to remain at the top of the landing. My tone stopped them in their tracks.
I reached the bottom of the stairs. “The work you do, it’s magnificent. I just want you to have the life that I never had at your age.”
“I spoke out of hand last night.” Jacob sighed. “Will you forgive me?”
“Already forgotten.”
My skin began to tingle. Dawn lingered close.
“You seem distracted.” He looked puzzled. “Would you like to talk about it?”
With a wave of my hand, I dismissed the idea. My fingers fumbled for the banister.
“Perhaps we could spend more time together?” he said. “I’ve got a few things on my mind I’d like to—”
“Of course.”
“You have to be somewhere?”
I nodded, halting my ascent up the stairs.
He looked disappointed. “I let myself in.”
“That’s fine.”
“That’s not my point.” Jacob’s tone changed. “You don’t have any staff?”
“They’ll be in shortly.”
Jacob’s face changed. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t be so touchy.”
“We’ve been apart for so long. We’re just getting to know each other, that’s all.”
Jacob stood looking up at me from the first step. “Your business…perhaps you can introduce me to some of the finer points. I’m interested in what you do.”
“I don’t want to push it on you.” Ascending the stairs backward, I tried to look natural, hating the sun for its relentlessly selfish act of rising.
“I know it’s early,” he said. “I thought you might like to stroll with me. We can catch the sunrise in the park. I thought you might like that.” He climbed another step and watched me retreat. “Have I disappointed you?”
“Of course not. I’ll see you tonight.”
A shimmer of daylight leaked beneath the front door and threatened its approach.
“First in the tavern you couldn’t wait to get out of there, and now here, I feel like I’m being avoided.”
The shimmer of light crept closer.
The doorbell rang.
Jacob turned at the sound, and I made my escape.
The day stripped away any reasonable excuse for my sudden disappearance. I hated knowing the closer we became, the more my secret stood exposed – raw and unavoidable.
I left my resting place feeling disheartened, having slept little.
A fire roared in the fireplace, warming the study.
I watched Jacob’s expression as he took in the central table and the dark leather and oak furnishings.
“This room has the best view of any in the house.” I studied his reaction.
Jacob seemed nervous. “You move…fast.”
I feigned pleasure from the fire’s warmth. “Sorry about that. Sunaria tells me I need to slow down.”
“Where did you go?”
Behind the bookcase lay a clandestine doorway – one of several in this house that led to a chamber that guaranteed a good day’s sleep.
“Had an urgent appointment and couldn’t miss it.”
“I see.”
“What do you think?” I gestured at our surroundings.
“You designed this room for me?” He reached up and eased a book off the shelf nearby. He opened it and leafed through it. “You chose these for me?”
“I did.”
“I’m speechless.”
“Look here.” I pointed to the fireplace mantle.
Jacob approached the mahogany fireplace and ran his fingers over the engraved fleur-de-lis. “It’s beautiful.”
As his fingers traced the design, I sensed his anxiety.
“You approve?” I tried to read his expression and stay out of his thoughts.
Jacob reached into his inner coat pocket and removed a dispatch. I couldn’t tell if he’d opened it. “This came for you.” He rubbed his fingers over the red seal. “Just after you…disappeared.”
Studying the envelope, I tried to make out the handwriting.
I faked disinterest in the letter that he still held. My gaze fell on the painting above the fireplace, a sunrise over the River Thames.
“I’m trying to get to know you.” He handed me the envelope. “Understanding you would help me have a better understanding of myself.” He smiled. “Who’s the letter from?”
Ascertaining whether the seal had been compromised, I opened it and recognized the handwriting.
Jacob stared at me.
I peeled open the cream-colored paper. Had I really been stupid enough to teach Rachel to read and write?
Daumia,
I fell in love with you the moment you rescued me in the cathedral.
You made me with your blood; therefore, our connection is deep.
I believe it’s your love for me that prevents you from allowing Jacob to become my lover.
After all, you turned me, brought me over.
To have your approval is all that I desire. Forgive me.
What had she done?
Jacob read my expression. “Is there a problem?”
“Nothing that can’t be sorted.”
I’d nurtured Rachel and gone to great lengths to smooth her transformation, be there for her, and it had backfired. I’d selfishly enjoyed the way she’d stared at me, her admiring smile, and her coy blush. I’d encouraged her.
I looked over at Jacob. “You read the letter?”
“I did.”
I tried to maintain my composure.
Jacob studied my face. “It all makes sense now.”
“I’ve never been romantically involved with her.”
“I’m sorry for doubting you.” He shot me a wary glance. “Rachel clearly has an unsound mind.”
She had always acted a little scatterbrained, but crazy? “I didn’t know how to tell you,” I said with a shrug.
“May I visit her?”
“It’s best if you don’t.”
“Your idea of her taking the sea air, it’s the best thing for her. The blood thing?” Jacob ran his fingers through his hair. “Where do you think she gets her ideas from?”
When I didn’t respond, Jacob continued. “Very often, it’s a stressful event that triggers such an episode.”
I recalled Rachel sucking from those whom she’d seduced, rocking with pleasure as her once willing consort had quickly become an unwilling victim, fading in her arms, and I’d been the one to teach her. I saw Rachel’s bloody smile after her first kill, proud like a child who’d learned a new trick.
A knock at the door made me jump.
Marcus appeared and stuck his head in. “Can I have a word?”
I approached him. “Not a good time.”
“I’ve searched everywhere,” Marcus whispered. “Rachel’s gone and so are all her belongings.”
“Go look for her,” I said. “I’ll follow you soon.”
“Something wrong?” Jacob asked.
I closed the door. “Everything’s just fine.”
“From her letter, she appears to believe she’s a vampire,” Jacob said calmly.
The room felt horribly stuffy, the air thick and heavy. I loosened my shirt collar.
Jacob’s gaze met mine and he nodded, revealing more than just his suspicion. “She told me everything.”
I tried to speak but couldn’t.
“You don’t go out during the day,” he said. “I’ve never seen you eat anything.”
As he continued speaking, I felt myself unraveling as my worst nightmare unfolded. I placed my pale hands behind my back.
“So I can see where she gets her wild ideas from.” He moved closer.
“Quite an imagination, that girl,” I managed to say.
“Living with an eccentric can rub off.” Jacob nodded my way.
I forced a smile, hoping that the stress I felt wouldn’t cause an elongation of my fangs.
“Or perhaps she isn’t delusional,” he said.
“How do you mean?”
Jacob rifled through his jacket pocket and withdrew a small bottle filled with a clear liquid. He quickly opened it and flicked the contents onto the back of my hand.
I wiped off the moisture, unsure whether to be shocked or annoyed. “And I thought you were a man of science.”
“I am.”
“You just threw holy water on me. I assume that’s what it is?”
You’ve lost him, again.
“You look so incredibly young. I mean, we could pass for brothers.”
“I’m flattered.”
“You’ve never eaten in front of me. I’ve never spent a day with you. And the way you move…” Jacob reached into his coat pocket.
“Please don’t tell me that’s a cross.”
Jacob spun around and held up a mirror in front of me, gasping at what he didn’t see. “I didn’t believe her.” He held up the mirror again.
I let out a sigh. “I could never muster the courage to tell you.”
“I deserve the truth.”
“I reasoned that if you got to know me first…”
He took a step back. “Why did you come back into my life?”
“Because I love you.”
“Are you even capable of such an emotion? I wished you’d stayed away.”
My heart felt like something had punctured it. I pressed my hand against my chest, trying to ease the pain.
“How long have you been…a vampire?”
He deserved the truth at least. “Nearly twenty years.”
His face paled even more.
I ran my fingers through my hair. “I wanted to be the one to tell you.”
“You should have.”
I turned away. “I never asked for this.”
“But it’s meant to be a myth, folklore,” he said.
“People are comforted by that.”
Jacob took a seat near the fireplace, but then stood up again, fidgeting. “Are you really my father?”
The question stunned me. “Of course I am.”
Jacob’s face softened. “Someone did this to you?”
“I chose this life so that I could save yours. I was hanging by a thread, literally seconds from death, and I had to make a choice.”
“Don’t blame me for what you are.”
“I don’t.”
“How is it done?”
The courtyard. My arms pulled back in their bindings. A scarlet flow that seeped from my wound. Sunaria’s voice, her scent mingling with her taste. Death summoning me and then that dark decision…
Outside, a crow squawked, shattering the silence.
“Rachel cut her wrist.” Jacob gulped. “And it healed instantly.”
“She wanted to show you proof of what we are. Where is she?”
“I don’t know.” Jacob’s voice almost broke. “Do you drink blood?”