Chapter 55

The sounds of conversation and clinking glasses trickled out from behind an open door. A tall, burly man in a mid-grade tuxedo stood in the single doorway, assessing the three of them. When they approached, he nodded to John and stepped aside. Beau and Dana followed him over the threshold.
The room was enormous - this apartment was clearly designed for entertaining on a large scale. Like the foyer, it was decorated in tasteful, low-key style, clearly designed to act as a setting for the art rather than to catch the eye. Low, white leather couches and delicate gilded chairs with white-on-white satin upholstery were scattered about the room, most filled with chatting guests in designer gowns and custom dinner jackets. The Van Gogh on the wall above one of the sofas took Dana's breath away. There was magic in the room too but it was low grade and dispersed. Dana figured she and Beau weren't the only supernatural beings in the room but the crowd was too big for her to tell any more than that.
As soon as they stepped in, a waiter appeared with a tray of champagne flutes. Beau and Dana each took one, thanking the young man as they continued to follow Saville. John wound his way through the guests, stopping now and then to say hello or shake a hand but he didn't bother to introduce Beau and Dana to anyone. He was clearly a man on a mission.
They moved through an archway to another room, a little smaller and a little less crowded. Two thugs in tuxes stood just inside the arched doorway, glowering, so Dana could see why this room was less popular with the guests. French doors were open onto a rooftop garden and a few guests had wandered out to enjoy the starlit summer evening. The most notable feature of the room, though, was that it was full of glass display cabinets and statuary niches, displaying artifacts that would have been the pride of any national museum collection. Several of the objects fairly glowed with the power of magic.
"Mr. Richard Sterling," John said as they approached a stunningly handsome man who looked to be in his mid-thirties. "I'd like you to meet my new friends Miss Dana Logan of Philadelphia and Monsieur Baudoin Dumont, of Montreal."
The tall, slender man with shoulder-length black hair and uncannily bright blue eyes, bowed over Dana's hand first. "Enchanté, mademoiselle. I've heard many good things about you from John here - although he claims your intent is to beggar him with every transaction."
"Ah, Mr. Sterling. John drives a hard bargain and knows it. But his inventory is unmatched, so I suspect we will continue trying to beggar each other for quite some time." She'd practiced several versions of that response, which was good, because her whole body had gone cold at his touch. She'd never felt this exact sensation before but she had a pretty good idea of what she was dealing with. Vampire. One of the few entities powerful enough to take on a dragon and win. She'd never been quite so scared in her entire life.
"Monsier Dumont," the man continued, finally releasing Dana's hand to shake Beau's. "Welcome. John tells me you have an interest in medieval jewelry. I have several pieces that may suit your tastes. By all means, have a look around you and see." He waved one slender, elegant hand at a case along one wall. "Let John know if there's anything you'd like a closer look at."
With that he turned back to the blonde he'd been chatting with before they'd arrived. Dana took one last look at the man and her eyes flew open wide. Holy shit. She'd almost missed the surge of power she'd felt from his hand in her discover of his darkly magical essence. But looking back at his hand now...
"Beau," she whispered. "On his right hand. Is that - "
Beau nodded abruptly. "The gargoyle ring. Which means his strength will be magnified many times. We need to be very, very careful, cherie."
He laid his hand on the small of her back and guided her over to the display case Sterling had indicated. John Saville followed closely behind.
The case was a low one, with an ivory velvet surface that came about to Dana's waist, covered by an arched glass cover, held with brass hinges and keyed locks. She'd bet her car that the glass was bulletproof.
Beau bent to examine one of the artifacts in the case. As John had mentioned once, there was indeed a crown. Dana's heart rate sped up then dropped with a nearly audible thump when she realized it was a platinum tiara, probably Georgian in origin. It also radiated no magic whatsoever, beyond that of beauty and age. She moved a few feet further down the case to study a copper bracelet. That one did radiate magic and it matched the photographs she'd seen of a Native American talisman stolen from her Chicago contact. She crooked her finger at John.
"I have a client who'd be interested in this one," she said, hoping he'd open the case. "She loves anything remotely associated with the Anasazi." She moved further down, then pointed to an amulet. "And this, Beau. Wouldn't your mother love this Celtic pendant?" The silver tree of life design was the one missing from her friend's New York gallery and was a highly powerful druid relic. She'd briefed Beau on what she was looking for, so he played along.
"Yes," he drawled, rubbing his chin as if pondering the quality of the item. "That may do very nicely for her birthday."
"Excellent choices, Ms. Logan." Sterling's silky voice came from right behind Dana's ear. She whirled to find him standing there, with no other guests in sight. The doors had been closed and only the two bodyguards shared the space with Dana, Beau, John and the vampire.
"I might have even believed you were legitimate collectors, if you hadn't made a call to a certain Interpol agent this afternoon." He flicked his hand and one of the henchmen crossed the room, stepped out the French doors and returned, carrying in a man dressed in black jeans and a black turtleneck. He was wrapped in lengths of silver chain and he snarled as the guard tossed him to the floor in the center of the room.