I suspect he was doing much more than that, because mind reading usually does not leave a burned imprint.
I shivered, and the s Nmleze/em>So basically, you got no more from him than I did?
He half smiled. Cazador or not, on this plane I am just another traveler.
Somehow, I’m not believing that.
It was wryly said, and he acknowledged it with an almost regal nod. Perhaps I do oversimplify.
Perhaps? I seriously doubted there was any “perhaps” about it. I hesitated, then asked, Just how closely do you follow me?
Again that half smile appeared. It gave his almost stern features a softer edge, but didn’t ease the impression of . . . not menace—not exactly. Perhaps it was more an underlying sense that the urban exterior was little more than a veil concealing a darker, more deadly soul.
I cannot enter your home, if that is your concern.
Surprise rippled through me. So the vampire threshold rule applies on the astral plane?
Yes. He hesitated. I tail you everywhere else, though.
Everywhere else? I repeated, a little mortified by the thought.
He cleared his throat, and I had an odd sense that he’d swallowed a laugh. This Cazador did not fit the image I’d created of them. But then, neither did Uncle Quinn. Well, bathrooms are out of bounds, of course. As are boudoirs.
Oh, thank God.
This time, he did laugh. It was a somewhat harsh sound, as if he didn’t do it often. You’re an interesting person to talk to, Ms. Jones.
Thanks. I think.
He bowed again. You’d best return to your body. The weakness grows in you.
Odd that he could sense that and I couldn’t. But then, I’d become very good at ignoring my needs of late. Chat with you later, Markel.
Undoubtedly, he said.
I closed my eyes and imagined my body, and suddenly I was back there. I gasped at the shock of it and opened my eyes, but I didn’t move, wary of causing a repeat of the sickness that hit me last time.
“Well,” Rhoan said, voice impatient. “What happened?”
“Give her time to regain her full senses,” Elga said crossly. “In fact, go get her coffee and chocolate. This poor girl needs some fat on her body; otherwise she’s going to be of no use to anyone.”
“I’m a werewolf,” I murmured. “We’re naturally lean.”
But when even speaking hurt, I really was in trouble. I closed my eyes and rubbed my forehead somewhat gingerly. There was a low-grade throbbing deep inside my skull, and I knew it was a result of doing too much on too little sleep and food.
“Werewolves are lean, granted,” Elga commented. “But you, my dear, are posit Sar,
Is this one of those occasions where an “I told you so” would be appropriate? came Azriel’s silent thought.
Probably. But I wouldn’t suggest it because I might get nasty.
And that is supposed to scare me? The dry amusement in his tone swirled through me, sending warmth fluttering.
It would scare most men.
I am not a man.
True. You, reaper, are frustration personified.
Not unexpectedly, he made no reply. Rhoan came back carrying a large bottle of Coke and two chocolate- covered protein bars. I carefully hitched myself upright, but the room still spun around me. Elga was right—I couldn’t keep risking the astral plane feeling like this. Not when we were hunting someone who was obviously very familiar with it, and also very dangerous on it.
Elga frowned. “Coffee would be better—”
“Trust me, it’s not coffee that refuels her, but Coke. She was born with the stuff running through her veins, I think.” He squatted beside the bed and handed me the Coke. “I know I’m rushing you, and I’m sorry, but we really do need to know what happened.”
I took several gulps, felt the delicious fizz work its magic all the way down to my belly, then filled him in on all that had happened.
“Why in the hell would he want to play a cat-and-mouse game like this?” He tore open a protein bar and handed it to me.
“I don’t think he’s actually playing with a full deck, so who really knows.”
“Whoever this person is, he’s very adept at covering his tracks and keeping his identity secret—neither of which the insane tend to be.” He hesitated. “Can you tell us anything else about him personally?”
“Well, he had hair this time.” I frowned suddenly. “But oddly, it didn’t really have any color.”
“So it was gray?”
“No. There just wasn’t any color. It merged with the shadows, as if it were part of them. It was weird.”
“You know,” Elga said suddenly, “he could be blind.”
We both turned to look at her. “Why would you think that?” Rhoan asked.
“Well, if he was born blind, then he would have no understanding of color,” she explained. “Of course, the blind can be taught to associate certain levels of heat with specific colors through the use of various colored-light filters, but they will never know colors as the sighted see them.”
“Would that explain why he has no features on the plane? Because he’s never actually seen his face?” I asked.
She frowned. “Not really, because while he may not see it, he can feel it. He would know the shape of his nose, mout Sis no Lh, and face, at the very least.”
“Then why are his features missing on the field? I thought your soul wouldn’t allow such deception.”
“Normally, it doesn’t. However, he may not be concealing it. What he may be doing is changing your perception of what you’re seeing.”
“Which means we’re dealing with a very powerful individual indeed.” Rhoan thrust to his feet. “Damn it, Ris, I like that you’re involved in this even less.”
“And you think I’m any happier?” I shook my head. “Trust me, if I could go home and leave you to it, I would.”
“I know. It’s just frustration speaking.” He made a sharp motion with his hand. “Until we get our phone call, there’s not much more we can do. I suggest you go home and catch some rest while you can.”
I wished I could, but I still had a meeting with Jak to get to. I downed the rest of the Coke, then said, “He wanted me to chase the leads, not you.”
“He can’t get into this place, not even astrally, so he’s not going to know who is doing what straightaway. And if he’s as clever as I think he is, he’ll know we’ll be beside you every step of the way, regardless of what he orders. He simply doesn’t think the Directorate is a threat. That’s evident enough from his taunting phone calls.”
I finished the last of the protein bars, then licked the chocolate off my fingers and got slowly to my feet. The room did a slow turn, so I pressed my fingers against the wall and said, “Have all his victims so far been women?”
Rhoan nodded. “Different ages, but all women.”
“And they’ve nothing in common?”
“Other than the fact that they’re all vampires, no.”
“What about their makers?”
“Again nothing in common.”
Meaning Stane’s search for information on Dorothy’s maker would be fruitless, because he wasn’t the connection. Which, in turn, meant there was nothing to even remotely suggest who his next victim might be. Frustrating, to say the least. I pulled off the monitors and got dressed. “You’ll ring me the minute the phone call comes?”
