Chapter Two.
Phoe
T he woman standing in the doorway was lit by a warm yellow light at odds with the appearance of the haunted freaking mansion she inhabited. I shivered in the cold, wet rain and wrapped my arms around myself.
“Do you plan to stand there like lemons all day or get your asses inside?” she called out.
“Probably stand like lemons,” Nanci muttered. We looked towards the guys who were chewing over the invitation. I couldn’t blame them. The house had a derelict atmosphere about it, with vast swaths of ivy hanging from the brick walls. The building appeared sad.
Besides appearing uninhabited, an unwanted feeling and an air of darkness seemed to be embedded in the walls. Maybe I was letting my imagination run riot, but I didn’t want to go inside. Where were Callie and the Ghost Seekers Inc. team when you needed them?
Undecided, I stared at the immense building in front of us.
It definitely reminded me of a French-designed manor house.
Large windows sat bleakly looking down on us, and I could swear someone was watching me from them, even though I couldn’t see anyone.
The creamy brown stone was stained with black streaks.
One wing had its windows completely boarded up.
As flashes of lightning lit the sky above us, the whole thing felt like a scene from a horror movie.
“Take your time,” the stranger called sarcastically.
“Screw this,” Nanci declared and stomped forward. “I’m wet, cold, and miserable.”
“Babe!” Inglorious yelled in alarm and chased after her. Nanci jogged up the perron steps, and Inglorious cursed loudly.
“Shit, we can’t let them enter alone,” Drake swore and marched off. Chance and Calamity exchanged looks and followed suit.
“Not going after them?” I asked James.
A smug grin crossed his lips. “Do I look stupid?”
“James!” Kate exclaimed.
“What? Sweetheart, I didn’t become as successful as I am chasing idiots,” he quipped. Kate rolled her eyes, and James sighed.
“Come on, girls. Are you coming?” James posed the question to Daniel and Vladimir. Daniel and Lucian swapped glances and nodded. Vladimir stuck close to his wife, and I couldn’t blame him. Most of those here, we knew. Daniel clearly had Lucian, but Vladimir and Emmaline had nobody.
“Let’s go,” Emmaline said. “We were idiotic enough to exit the cars in this weather.”
As if agreeing with her, a loud thunderous crash boomed over our heads. The women swapped glances with each other and raced forward just as the rain pelted down even harder.
“Christ!” Maggie exclaimed, and I couldn’t disagree.
Soaked, I rushed into the vast entrance hall of the mansion and skidded to a halt as Drake yanked me closer. Once everyone was inside, the woman banged the doors shut.
“This is Eden. She and her husband are staying here,” Nanci said, but had a puzzled look on her face.
Curiously, I glanced around and understood Nanci’s confusion. Huge curtains of cobwebs fell from the ceiling and walls. They draped over the grand curving staircase on either side of the hall and hung from the massive chandelier above our heads.
A good two-inch-thick coating of dust covered everything, and the furniture had turned into shapeless lumps under yellowing sheets.
Where we stood, the puddles we were creating were giving the floor its first taste of water in decades.
A man glided out of a doorway and gazed at us impassively.
He was rather pale, as was Eden; in fact, they both needed to spend some time in the sun.
“Hello, I’m Jacques,” he said, and I cocked my head at his voice. It was beautiful, almost alluring, and Jacques smiled briefly as if aware of his impact. I wasn’t the only one affected, as I saw the other women react the same way.
“Interesting. I just read a book by my favourite author, Elizabeth N. Harris. It was called the Diary of the Vam’pir Jacques ,” Nanci drawled.
“Indeed,” Jacques replied. There was a hint of an accent, but I couldn’t identify it.
“Yes, his wife was named Eden, too,” Nanci pressed, and Jacques raised an amused eyebrow. Vladimir and Emmaline shifted uncomfortably, and I wondered what their issue was.
“Are you calling us vampires?” Jacques asked.
“No! They don’t exist. Nanci’s merely commenting,” Inglorious replied, stepping closer to his old lady. He laid a hand on her waist, a claiming gesture.
I felt uncomfortable with the entire scene. Something was definitely off here.
“They were Vam’pirs, not vampires,” Nanci corrected, and Jacques elegantly inclined his head, accepting her rebuke.
“Why were you all outside?” Jacques asked.
“Took the wrong turning and a tree collapsed, blocking the road. The others have similar stories,” Drake said, his gaze contemplative as he swapped between Jacques and Eden.
“The road flooded behind us,” Daniel said.
“So, you’re stuck here? Sadly, we don’t have much to offer. We’ve only recently taken over caretaking, but a few rooms are clean. Some bedrooms are usable and should have towels and bedding,” Eden said.
She and Jacques exchanged unreadable looks. It seemed they didn’t want us here and were offering us a roof over our heads rather begrudgingly.
“Damn! We should have brought the cases in for dry clothes,” Lucian complained. He and Daniel glanced at each other and shrugged.
“Guess we’re getting wet again.” Daniel sighed.
“Be quick, and we’ll take you to your rooms. Please don’t wander the mansion; it is perilous here,” Jacques interjected.
“Dangerous? How?” Drake and Chance demanded together.
“The floors are rickety, and several have collapsed. The safe rooms are the bedrooms we’ll show you and a couple of others you may use,” Jacques offered, swapping a glance with Eden.
Something was going on, and I wanted to understand what. Neither was pleased to see us.
“This is the Washington Manor?” I asked.
“No, that’s not right. It’s the Washington Inn; we drove past a sign,” Kate said with a frown.
“It is indeed called Washington Manor, but it was bought over a hundred years ago with the intent of making this a hotel,” Jacques replied.
“Ah, that makes sense,” I drawled, but I still felt something was direly wrong.
“The rain has lightened ever so slightly. May I suggest that you fetch what you need? Jacques and I don’t have enough dry clothing for you.” Eden spoke, glancing at Jacques.
“Stay, I’ll grab your cases,” Drake said, shooting Chance and Calamity a look. In other words, my husband was telling them to remain behind and protect us. Drake was also clearly unnerved by the strange atmosphere.
A crash sounded from somewhere deep inside, and Eden and Jacques swapped a concerned glance while the rest of us jumped.
“As we stated. Some parts of the building are not safe; that merely confirms our words,” Jacques said, and I frowned.
“Daniel, I’m freezing,” Sabine murmured, and Daniel and Lucian both straightened. “Suitcases! I’ll fetch yours,” Daniel said, eyeing Lucian.
“Well, I’m more of a warrior than you,” Lucian quipped, and Daniel scowled.
What on earth did that mean? Puzzled, I looked between them, wondering if I should ask.
“Right, whoever is collecting cases, please hurry,” Jacques said and opened a door. A gust of wind blew hard and nearly slammed it out of his hands.
Drake closed in on me. “Stay with the group,” he whispered in my ear and kissed me before rushing outside. James and Inglorious followed him as Daniel and Lucian also left.
Vladimir hesitated, and I called out to Emmaline. “Come and join us, honey.”
Emmaline and Vladimir swapped glances. Slowly, she moved towards us, and Vladimir kissed her and then hurried after the others.
“Thanks; it feels a little lonely not knowing anyone,” Emmaline replied.
“I can imagine how threatening this must seem,” I offered in a friendly tone, but Emmaline shook her head.
“Oh no, I’m not threatened. Trust me, Vladimir and I can take care of ourselves. But it is a very unusual situation,” Emmaline replied.
Nanci sent shivers up my spine when she said, “This reminds me of that film based on the Agatha Christie book, Ten Little Indians .”
Shit, why did she have to say that?
Kate
In horror, I gaped at Nanci. Did she really go there?
“Why would you…” I broke off and gazed at her.
“Say that? It’s true. We’re all strangers caught in a creepy-assed hotel, and we’re trapped and can’t get out,” Nanci retorted.
Sabine and Maggie moved closer together and regarded the rest of us suspiciously.
“Shut up!” I hissed, and Nanci shrugged with a grin.
Vladimir was the first to return, carrying a single case, a handbag and a rucksack. He hurried over to Emmaline and examined her. Satisfied she was okay, he turned to our reluctant hosts. “Sorry, I’m dripping even more water.”
“It will mop,” Jacques said with an airy wave.
I noted how Vladimir seemed to be watching Jacques closely. It was as if he were trying to place him. I was relieved when James hurried back in with our cases, and Inglorious was at his heels with several other suitcases.
“I grabbed yours,” he said to Rosie.
“Where’s mine?” Calamity demanded.
There was a thud as Drake dropped it as he entered. “Right here, you ungrateful brat.”
“Yeah, okay, old man,” Calamity retorted, and I choked back a laugh. Their banter was normal, which was a relief.
We twisted to face Eden when another bang and a howl echoed through the house.
“What the hell was that?” Drake demanded, his eyes narrowing.
“Probably the wind. A branch might have broken a window. Eden, my love, take them to their rooms. There is food in the kitchen. You can reach it through that door, and that one leads to a sitting room. Wood for your fires can be found in that hallway over there,” Jacques said, pointing to several exits.
“Stay in the areas we’ve mentioned. We won’t be able to guarantee your safety otherwise,” Eden added.
“Got it,” I muttered. “No wandering around the creepy-assed house.”
“Exactly,” Eden replied and bared her teeth in a smile.
Maggie