Chapter 573
Verchiel chose that moment to barge in, whistling to himself, Jamie on his heels. "Sorry, are we interrupting?"
Katelina flushed and hurried to get up, while Jorick scowled.
Jamie cleared his throat and took his place in front of the laptop. "It's Kali, with a K. Her master is-" he paused and frowned. "Her master is-I don't remember, but I know I read it." The more he clicked, the deeper the lines on his forehead grew. "I know I saw it."
"Or thought you saw it," Verchiel said gleefully. "If she's as old as Kately made her sound-"
Jamie looked annoyed as he clicked through page after page. "I resent the insinuation she tricked me. If I read her file then it means it's here. Ah. Look. Kalie. Fledgling of Marguerite, turned 1912."
Verchiel pushed away from the table. "That isn't very old. I ruled out everyone who was turned after 1500."
"Yes," Jamie snapped. "That's obviously not her. But"
Jorick laid a hand on his arm. "I hate to say this, but I think the" he gritted his teeth. "Verchiel might be right."
Verchiel? Since when did Jorick call him anything that wasn't an insult?
Jamie looked up angrily. "She didn't trick me." Katelina felt the silent conversation between them. As it ended, Jamie's shoulders sagged. "Maybe."
"We should question her next."
Katelina stiffened at Verchiel's suggestion. She'd come there to avoid the vampiress.
Jorick's eyes lit with a smug light. "Yes. Bring her in." Jamie rose and he said, "Stay. Unless she's older than I think, she can't fool all of us at once."
After what felt like forever, Verchiel came back alone. "I can't find her. Someone said she went for a walk. I did a quick check of the grounds, but I didn't sense her."
Jorick and Jamie exchanged looks.
"Then I thought I might bring those twins in, only I can't find them either. Apparently they're off with someone named Sarah. Any idea who she is?"
Katelina caught her breath.
"She's a friend of Katelina's," Jorick said.
Verchiel looked surprised. "Good for you. It's about time you met some new people."
"She isn't new. She's mywas my best friend from school." Was she still? The question surprised her, and she pushed it away. "I left her with Kali a little bit ago. The twins weren't there. Kali said they were busy."
Verchiel shrugged. "Apparently they got un-busy."
"I'm sure she'll turn up." Jamie stood again. "In the meantime, get back to the list. I'll take over after lunch."
As the Executioner disappeared, Jorick scoffed and glanced to the grandfather clock. "It's close enough to lunch that it's pointless to bring anyone else in."
"Shirking your duties." Verchiel grinned. "I'm starting to rub off on you."
Jorick's voice was chilly when he said, "In that case I'd best bathe."
***
Sarah didn't turn up until supper time, surprised that anyone was looking for her. "We went for a walk."
"That's what someone told Verchiel, but he couldn't find you."
She shrugged. "He must not have looked very hard. We were right out there." She stopped. "Who's Verchiel?"
"That would be me." The redhead stuck his head between them and Sarah flinched back.
"He's the Executioner that The Guild sent to investigate," Katelina explained.
Sarah gave him a once over. Her expression said she found him lacking. "Interesting hair."
"You like it? You'd be surprised how much work this takes." He took Sarah's hand and gave her a wink. "Any friend of Kately's is a friend of mine, and I can be very friendly."
She tugged away. "I bet you can. If you'll excuse me, they're showing a movie in the basement and I told Des I'd go."
"Oh yeah? When did you see him?" Verchiel asked conversationally.
"On my way in here. Excuse me. I'll see you later, Kate." Then she hurried off.
As soon as she was gone Verchiel turned serious. "I was hoping someone saw her and Kali on their walk."
Jorick scoffed. "After all the interviews you conducted, that's what you're worried about?"
"Call it a quirk, but I think it's weird when vampires disappear and no one knows where they are for hours. I'm surprised you aren't interested."
Jorick smiled. "It's not my investigation. Speaking of which, shouldn't you get back to it?"
"I've been interviewing them all day. I deserve a movie break, too."
***
Katelina didn't bother to change into her pajamas, even as Jorick stripped off and climbed into bed. She stuffed a small book in one pocket, and Memnon's dagger in the other, just in case.
She glanced at her watch, then paced a small circle in front of the door. "This is a waste of time. William will smell us."
"So you've decided he's the culprit."
"Long ago. He has motive. He has means, and everyone admits he's up to something."
"No, they admit that he and Acwellen are up to something. But that's right, you ruled him out because he's too 'nice'."
She stopped walking to stare at him. "So you think it's Brandle?"
"No. But I don't think its William. Never mind. Maybe you'll solve it tonight."
"I doubt it."
She made a couple more circles before the knock came. Sarah ran over the plan; Katelina would hide in the cupboard, and Sarah would stay in the chest. If someone came by, they were supposed to leap out, tackle them, and shout for the other. It couldn't be much simpler.
Katelina climbed into the cabinet and pulled the doors closed. The smell of mothballs and dust was overwhelming. She groaned as she imagined hours trapped with it.
She tugged the dagger out of her pocket and, with a silent apology to the furniture maker of old, bored a small hole in the side. Clean air eked through and she breathed it in.
She got as comfortable as she could near the hole, and pulled the paperback out of her pocket. Thirty pages in, the too-perfect heroine lectured all the characters, the supposedly attractive hero was more jerk than nice guy, and the sci-fi promise of aliens and intelligence seemed like a lie that made her yawn. It was nine a.m. when she decided she could close her eyes for a second. Maybe she'd care about whether they lived or died after a quick break-
A scuffling sound woke her. In a flash she came to terms with her surroundings and pressed her eye to the air hole.
The creature stood no more than four feet high and wore a long white nightdress with cap sleeves. Skeletal arms peeped out, wrapped in discolored skin the consistency of wadded paper. The head was bald and covered in the same pitted wrinkles.
At Katelina's gasp, it turned toward her. With no nose or lips to speak of, the most prominent features were a pair of mismatched eyesone green and one milky whiteand a gleaming set of vampire fangs.
It wasn't a creature, but a vampire.
The eyes went wide, and the vampiress scampered away. Katelina more fell than climbed out of the cabinet. She found her feet and dashed after her, only shouting for Sarah as an afterthought.
She turned through the storage area, and saw a wisp of white swish around the corner. She pushed herself and bounded into a corridor in time to see the door to Annabelle's mysterious room slam closed.
"Hey!" Katelina skidded to a stop and pounded on the locked door. "Hey! Open up!"
Nothing moved inside. She banged again, then fell back to gather her thoughts. Sarah's plan had worked. They'd found the stalker; a vampiress whose wrinkled skin denoted an age she couldn't even guess. But who could be that old?
A single name leapt to the forefront of her mind, and her heart stopped.
Lilith?
