Chapter 16
Chapter Sixteen
Bella lounged in a chair, one booted leg thrown over the arm, as she reviewed the security changes Sergi had sent out that afternoon. It wasn’t required reading. The updates would only be good for three days, and the chance of her being home before then was slim. But knowing what the old plan entailed could help her identify possible security threats once they returned. Anyone using an old protocol would be considered suspect. It was a rare moment for someone in the Family to get their procedures wrong. But it happened on occasion, which was why she waited for answers to the security questions before attacking.
Jacques squatted on a bar chair playing video games on his tablet, eating nuts from a can. The occasional groan signaled each death of his avatar.
She glanced at the time on her tablet, surprised to see it was a couple minutes past one. Romero was late.
The knock came on the heel of her thoughts. Still punctual considering he was a busy House leader.
She glanced out the peephole. Romero and two of the bodyguards from the tea house stared at the door. She unlocked it and opened it slowly, peering around the door to confirm it was just the three of them. When she was satisfied they were alone, she swung the door wide. “Come on in.”
The three vampires followed her to the main living area where Jacques now sat on one of the chairs framing the sofa. No tablet in sight.
Romero glanced around. “They’ve updated the decor since I’ve been in one of their suites.” He wrinkled his nose, which turned him from handsome to absolutely adorable.
“Turquoise not your color?”
“Can’t say that it is.” He looked around and then at the hall that led to the two bedrooms. “Do you mind?”
“I’d be worried if you didn’t ask.” She waved for the bodyguards to have a look around and ensure there weren’t other vampires lurking about. Devon would have asked the same.
When the bodyguards returned, shaking their heads to confirm the rest of the suite was empty, Romero nodded toward the door. They exited, closing the door firmly behind them. They would station themselves in the hall to detract any unwanted visitors.
Bella waved Romero to the sofa. He unbuttoned his suit jacket and stretched out. His entire posture shouted sedate. She wasn’t fooled. There was tension behind his eyes and a throb at his temple.
“Is there any update on Lucas?” Romero asked.
“No. The last we heard he was in Maryland.”
“Maryland? There’s no library there.” Romero considered it a moment. “Is the book the only item Lucas is searching for?”
“He’s also searching for Philipe Renaud.”
Romero closed his eyes. “That makes sense. I wish he’d come to me first.”
“Do you know where Philipe is?”
“He never gives his location.”
“So he’s not dead?”
Romero shrugged. “Not that I’m aware of, but I haven’t heard from him for several months.”
“Do you know how to reach him?”
“In a way.”
Bella itched to get up and pace. The back-and-forth subtleties weren’t her forte. She preferred the direct approach but didn’t want to push a House leader. Perhaps a different angle.
“Would the House Renaud send vampires to protect their secrets?”
Romero’s gaze searched the room before he refocused on Bella. “Every House has its secrets.”
“Lucas has gathered information that points to someone in the Renaud Family who’s not following the House’s primary mission in the protection of all vampiric knowledge.”
“That’s a rather dangerous supposition. What led him to that conclusion?”
“Someone has been tampering with the inventory.” She explained the fake book for the De f?rste dage and its presence in the card catalog system at several libraries, including the home library in New Orleans.
Romero’s color faded. “You’re positive about this?”
“The first location the cadre checked was the Los Angeles branch. This was a couple of months ago, but, as you’re aware, the House has since been distracted with other issues.” She didn’t have to mention the Boretsky incident since Sergi had visited Romero and Lafitte at the time. “Lucas recently visited the San Francisco annex where the fake book reflected the actual book was out for restoration but, according to the curator, the book had been moved to Los Angeles at the time of the 1906 earthquake. Besides the fact the Los Angeles library wasn’t built until 1930, we know the book was in San Francisco in 1925. Lucas has since discovered the same fake book in Boston and New York.”
Romero shot off the sofa and paced along the windows that reflected the bright lights of the city against the backdrop of the dark Mississippi River. He ran a hand through the thick black hair, giving him a tousled bedhead look. When he turned back to Bella, he looked like a vampire who had finally come to a stark realization. “It’s taken decades, but apparently Philipe’s concerns were well founded.”
Bella glanced at Jacques, who had shifted in his seat, more acutely attuned to the discussion. Now, they were getting somewhere.
“What secret is Philipe hiding? It has to do with whatever’s written in that book, right? Something that could create a disturbance within the Council?”
“He never told me what was in the book. He claimed it was too dangerous for anyone to know. That just the idea of it could be enough to spur a civil war.”
“Did it ever occur to you it might be the ravings of someone who’d spent too much time in the stacks and not enough time in reality?”
Romero laughed. “A sentiment from someone not comfortable with books?”
“I’m more of an action-oriented vampire.”
“Devon always did prefer diversification in his cadre. Do you have anything to drink?”
Bella nodded to Jacques, who stood and went to the bar.
“Scotch or cognac?” he asked as he checked the bottles. “Looks like we have some top-shelf vodka as well.”
“I’ll take a vodka on ice.” Romero sat down and accepted the glass Jacques handed him.
Jacques opened the fridge and pulled out two beers, handing one to Bella.
Romero took a sip then stared into his glass. “I take it Sergi’s recent visit with the human woman, who was introduced as Devon’s Blood Ward, somehow relates to this book?”
“Why would you assume that?”
“Well, let’s see. I haven’t seen Devon or Lucas for over a year. Lucas calls, of course, but we never talk House business. Then within a span of a couple of weeks, Sergi comes to my court, and then Devon follows. Neither of them had business with either me or Lafitte. I know Sergi visited the library, I assume asking about Philipe.”
“Let’s just stop the dancing, shall we?” Bella stood, beer in hand, as she took Romero’s previous position to pace in front of the windows. “I’ve been watching Devon and the cadre tiptoe around this book and the missing Philipe for a few weeks now, with everyone guessing what might be written in it. A book that is either hidden somewhere in the bowels of the Renaud library system or has been purposely removed. The search for answers has attracted a string of vampires with deadly intentions. But as I mentioned before, I prefer direct action over all this intrigue.”
She stopped and turned to Romero. “Do you know what Devon considers my specialty?” When Romero shook his head, she continued her pacing. “I’m really good at distractions. Like a magician, I get everyone to look one way while the real trick is happening elsewhere. And when I think about everyone chasing after this book that claims to be out for restoration in several libraries—it smells like a distraction to me.
“We have a curator who gave false information about the book being someplace we knew it wasn’t. If she had only gotten her dates right, maybe I could believe that Devon and Lucas have gotten worked up over nothing. But the fact that the Renauds not only have incorrect data in their inventory, which supposedly hasn’t occurred once in the library’s history, but that they’ve also managed to misplace a book tells me someone is lying.
“Now, how do we know they lied? Or worse, that someone altered the inventory? Because we know, firsthand, that in 1925, Guildford Trelane asked Philipe if the annex had the De f?rste dage in the inventory. Philipe confirmed he found the book and they arranged a meeting. Trelane, along with his wife, daughter, and her boyfriend, traveled to San Francisco specifically to review the book. We know, based on Lyra’s own words, that Philipe and Guildford met. On their way home, the Trelanes are involved in a horrific accident that killed the House leader, his wife, and supposedly the boyfriend, leaving Lyra traumatized.”
She glanced at Romero and was satisfied she had his complete attention. “Are you with me so far?”
He nodded.
“At some point after that, and who knows when since a hundred years passed before someone asked about the book again, Philipe disappears. Did he get worried when he heard about Guildford’s tragic death, or was it because some other vampire came looking?”
She returned to her chair to perch on its edge. She rested her elbows on her knees, still holding on to her beer, and looked him in the eye. “Devon isn’t going to let this go. And he doesn’t care what it does to the Council or whether it creates a civil war. Venizi has been trying to silence Devon—hell, his entire House, for decades. Maybe longer. We need to find Philipe before someone else does.”
Romero studied her then finished his vodka. “I believe this is where the players are asked to lay all their cards on the table. Yes, Philipe has a secret and is hiding to protect it. But he’s apparently not the only one with a secret. If Devon is ready to go public with something, I want to know what evidence he has. And then, if it’s warranted, I’ll help you find Philipe.”
Bella considered the request. It was back to trust. But there was one other thing she wanted to know first. Something she was sure would provide a link back to Venizi. Even if it wasn’t enough proof to take to the Council—she had to know. “Tell me one thing. When did Philipe go underground?”
Romero ran a hand through this hair. “That’s hard to pinpoint; let me think.” His brows scrunched in thought, then his features hardened. “I don’t remember the year; it’s been a few decades. But one thing does stick out. It was about the same time Venizi began questioning Devon’s seat on the Council.”
Click.
That was the turning point. The catalyst. Venizi must have gotten wind of the book and dreamwalkers. Maybe Hamilton had cracked and given Venizi a breadcrumb he was able to follow. She was making wild-ass guesses, but she knew Venizi too well.
“You believe the two events are related.” Romero scooted up on his seat until there was little space between them.
“I think it goes back farther. Either Venizi was aware of the book before Guildford’s trip to San Francisco, or he’d been following Guildford and found an opportune time to take care of two problems.”
“I don’t understand.”
“I know. That’s because you’re missing an important ingredient.” She turned to Jacques. “What do you think?”
“He’s a trusted ally, and he’ll be told soon enough once Devon returns. We need to find Lucas and Philipe now.”
Bella was taking a huge chance, but Jacques was right. And she’d been thinking along the same lines earlier that evening.
“What I’m going to ask needs to remain between you, Devon, and his cadre. At least for now. Are you willing to accept those terms?”
“I give you my word.” No hesitation.
“What do you know of dreamwalkers?”