Chapter 160
Kale excused himself to answer the phone and Katelina jerked her head towards the door. Jorick didn't seem to get the hint, or if he did he ignored it. Though he relaxed into the couch, she had the sense that he was listening to Kale's conversation.
"No, everything's fine," the blonde said with a sideways glance to his guests. "How are things there?" He nodded and murmured his understanding. "Joseff, I want you to keep a close eye out. Do you remember Traven?" He paused for the answer. "We met him a few times, long ago. He spouts French and tried to out-dress Claudius." A pause. "Yes, that's the one. He's been to Oren's asking about us. He thinks the covens should meet."
Katelina poked Jorick in the ribs. "Let's go. I'm hungry."
Jorick caught her hand and squeezed it gently. "It would be rude to leave while our host is on the phone." Though he didn't say it, she felt that "Now be quiet" was coming next.
Kale was oblivious to them. "I don't know. He's joining Oren's war and claims that he wants to make sure there's no hard feelings between us, though that seems like a stretch to me. He's up to something and I don't want to be involved."
Katelina understood how he felt. She tried to communicate this to Jorick, but again he ignored her.
Kale murmured a few more directions and then asked to talk to someone named Rachel. Katelina could tell the moment she got on the phone because his whole demeanor changed. His shoulders softened and a smile twitched across his lips. He dropped his voice so low that she couldn't hear his words, but she could guess at them. Now she knew why he'd brought a substitute second in command. Either his significant other usually filled the role, or Joseff did, and he'd been left behind to protect her.
When Kale finished his conversation, he hung up the phone and returned to them. "Sorry about that. Joseff's going to look into Traven and see if he can discover what he's after. However, there was something interesting."
Jorick's eyebrow twitched inquisitively. "Yes?"
"A message arrived yesterday, asking what happened to Kateesha's belongings. Apparently there's a question about who owns them."
Jorick's eyes glowed. "Who was it from?"
"I don't know. Joseff didn't recognize the messenger, and the note wasn't signed. Since I wasn't there, they left a mailing address for us to send an answer to. It's a post office box in Florida."
The men exchanged puzzled looks. "I don't know of anyone in Florida," Jorick admitted. "Not who'd be interested in Kateesha."
"Neither do I," Kale agreed. "Unless Anya went there. I could see her coven wanting to know."
Jorick seemed to consider how much to reveal. "I think they're closer to Oren than that. Besides, subtle messengers and post office boxes aren't Anya's style. She prefers to threaten in person."
Katelina thought of Verchiel's maps and database, but she wasn't in the mood to mention it. She suspected that the Executioner's name would be enough to send Jorick into a blind rage.
Saeed cleared his throat and in a deep voice commented, "Just because they have a post office box in Florida, doesn't mean they're in Florida."
"That's a very good point." Jorick studied the bulky vampire. "Do you know of anything Kateesha had that someone else would want?"
Saeed frowned. "She had many things, some stolen. It's hard to say."
"I told Joseff to write back and tell them that we don't have anything of Kateesha's. I don't know what it is they're looking for, but we don't have it. Anya might. Lennon, Alistair and Bridget joined with her, and maybe they took something."
The conversation disintegrated after that. Kale was cryptic and Saeed silent. At last Jorick surrendered. They exchanged goodbye pleasantries and the promise to let one or the other know if something turned up.
"About time!" Katelina snapped as the door closed behind them. "I thought you were going to wait for Saeed to try to kill you again!"
Jorick rolled his eyes. "Enough of that. I've already told you that alliances change."
"Once a bad apple, always a bad apple."
He made an exasperated noise. "Everything is very black and white with you. They are bad. They are good. No one is totally good or evil; it all depends on where you're standing when you look at them."
She snorted contemptuously. "Yes, I know, and I'm standing on the he-tried-to-kill-you side!"
He gave her a tolerant smile. "Never mind. Let's get your food."
The sixth floor looked just like the fifth; a hallway lined on one side with doors. It led to a restaurant that had an open front, like a mall eatery. Though it was nearly four in the morning, the lights were still on and the smell of food wafted out of it.
Jorick surveyed it, and then led her inside. The walls were painted a pleasant burnt orange and dotted with framed paintings and photographs. A long, broad bar complete with stools ran against one side. Scattered tables cluttered up the open floor space. A half wall near the back of the room separated several tables from the rest and a sign stuck to it read "Humans only". Katelina could just see the tops of three heads seated beyond it, hiding from the reality of the vampires around them.
She nodded towards them, as if to ask whether they were on business or not, but Jorick guided her to a table. They'd barely sat down when a human waitress appeared, carrying a glass of water and a menu. She smiled too sweetly at Jorick and found an excuse to bend over so they could see down her blouse. It wasn't the red bra that shocked Katelina, rather the lumpy pink scars that crisscrossed her chest. She straightened and gave Jorick an inviting look before she slipped off to another table.
"That was disgusting," Katelina muttered as she flicked the menu open and glanced through it.
"What?"
She lowered the menu and stared at him with incredulous eyes. "You can't tell me you didn't notice."
"Notice what? You mean the waitress?"
"Yeah! Did you see all those scars? Gross! If I looked like that I'd wear a turtleneck!"
Jorick blinked in surprise. "After the truck stop, I thought you were angry she was flirting with me."
Katelina snorted. "Not with that mess. Who'd go after that?" When he didn't immediately answer she added, "They're disgusting, right?"
Jorick shifted uncomfortably. "There are some vampires who find that-" He cleared his throat. "Attractive." Her eyes bulged and her mouth opened, but he went on. "It's the same as some men find women without panties appealing. Scars like that say that they're willing."
"Willing?" Then she got it. Jorick had once explained to her that vampires could have sex just by drinking one another's blood. The rest was unnecessary; just like when they made love, the orgasmic sensations were really mental manipulations. "That's the grossest thing I've ever heard! Ewww!" She jerked the menu back up and glared at it. "I don't know whether to be more disgusted that she was soliciting you, or that she's advertising herself as a piece of meat. 'Come chew on me! I taste good!' How nauseating!"
Jorick chuckled softly. "It's no worse than the things humans do to attract one another."
"But she is human! That's what makes it so gross." Jorick gave her an inquisitive look and she demanded, "Do you find that attractive?"
"Hmm. What?" Jorick's face looked innocent enough but something subtle shifted in his eyes, like a man forced to answer the "am I fat?" question.
"I said do you find all those great, lumpy scars attractive?"
"Of course not. Only yours."
She slammed the menu on the table. "Mine? I don't have a mess like that!"
"Of course not. I only meant that were you in some terrible accident and ended up like that, I'd still find you attractive." He sighed and dropped the smooth facade. "I'm not attracted to the waitress, all right? Can we please let it go?"
Just then the waitress returned. She took their order and winked at Jorick. He nodded politely, and then she left again. Katelina had another round of insults to share about the hussy but another vampire approached their table. There was something familiar about him, though Katelina couldn't place him immediately. He had long blonde hair pulled back in a smooth ponytail and green eyes that scanned them appraisingly.
"So it's true?"
