“How long have I been here?”
Mrs. Reyes answered. “You were out for almost twenty-four hours. It’s about 2 a.m. right now.”
“Have any of you had any sleep?”
“No.”
“You should go get some sleep. I will be fine.”
None of them looked particularly happy at this suggestion.
“We are fine.”
“I’m okay, I promise. Go and get a few hours’ sleep. With any luck, I will be out by late breakfast and we can go home.”
It took another twenty minutes of convincing them before they agreed to go to the hotel and get some rest. She sent Mr. and Mrs. Reyes to her hotel room. It was after all already paid for. Mrs. Reyes would also pack her things and bring her clean clothes.
She promised to call them as soon as she woke up in the morning. She hugged and kissed each one of them, thankful to have such amazing people in her life. Sighing, she settled back into the pillows and closed her eyes.
A soft wind blew into the room gently fluttering the shades. Luc came in through the window. This time she was sure he floated over to her instead of walked.
“Belleza.”
He called her beautiful as he took her hand and brushed his lips across the knuckles. The electricity of the touch sent a shiver through her body.
She seemed to be more aware of his touch now as if she wasn’t before. His touch seemed to carry more spark. He did warn her they would be a bit closer. She just hadn’t understood close meant she wanted to rip his clothes off every time he touched her.
“How do you feel?”
“Fantastic. Can you answer some questions for me?”
“If I know the answers, of course.”
“Do you know how badly I was injured?”
“I do in fact. You had wounds to both arms, one nearly torn off. It took hours of surgery for them to sew it all back in place. You also had throat wounds and a concussion.”
“That’s a lot more injuries than I remember.”
“Apparently, the beast got you a few more times before the firing squad arrived.”
“The Nandi Bear is dead?”
“Yes, but it wasn’t a Nandi Bear, not a real one anyway.”
“What do you mean?”
“It was a shapeshifted witch. One of the witches that killed the Nandi Bear several years ago took the hide. She has been working on it since then.
“She was hired to ruin the dealership. Hired by the competition to put the dealer out of business. It’s why the creature was only damaging cars.
“They found extensive notes at the witch’s home.”
“That makes more sense than a carnivore from Africa suddenly developing a taste for American metal.”
“It does indeed. I also have other information for you. ”
“What information is that?”
“I know who the vampires are that have been doing the mass murders. I also know why.”
“I’m all ears.”
He smiled. “Americans say the funniest things.”
“We are a kaleidoscope of world culture.”
“True.”
“Who are the vampires?”
“Let me first tell you why they are being killed and who has sent them.”
“I think I know why. Well, at least part of the reason why. They each had an ancestor that went to the Oxford University in the 1800s.”
“Very good. You have done your homework well.”
“I do what I can.”
“A group of five college students attended Oxford University in the 1800s. This is true. They were all in the same archeology class.
“Their names were Bloodworth, Chamberlain, Davis, Nye and Perovsky. While on a student dig, they found an ancient disk. The disk just happened to be in five pieces.
The disc is reported to be a relic from the God Deimos. He is the son of Aphrodite and Ares. He is the god of terror, dread, and defeat on the battlefield.
“Perovsky who was already a vampire agreed to embrace them and turn them into vampires. Only none of them wanted to look that young forever. They decided they would wait a few years.”
“Once they had all been turned they would unite the pieces and reawaken the disc thugs, giving them control of terror, and dread.”
“They were going to use it to take over the vampires of the world. They could cow the humans and make sure they always had food, without the need to hunt.”
“With the disc, they could rule the world. They would have food, riches, power and could live forever as vampires.
“The problem was, Perovsky had other ideas. He disappeared allowing the others to live and die of natural causes. Now, he has decided it’s time to find the pieces of the disc and hold its power.”
“He is killing off their ancestors to get the pieces? Do they still have them after all of these years?”
“If they don’t have them, then one of the ancestors would know where they were. A magical pact was made. Which means they would be compelled to keep the piece to themselves or at least in the family.”
“Why now? It’s been over 150 years.”
“That I do not know for certain. No one knows why he has waited all this time. It would have been easier to wait until the others were old men and simply take the pieces from them.”
“There has to be something that has triggered him. I guess we can figure that part out later. Now what we need are the names of the vampires and a way to tie them to Perovsky.”
“I can give you their names. I cannot turn over evidence to you. That would betray other vampires. I have faith that you can get evidence. You will also have to find evidence to tie the vampires to Perovsky.
“Their being a part of his brood
