Mixed Blessing (Mixed Blessing Mystery, Book 1) (21 page)

I shuddered involuntarily at the thought and struggled to not show the fear I felt on my face. If I had been scared of Jett's as yet undetermined involvement in the Alison Danvers murder case, I was now doubly scared of his interest in me. I wanted desperately for him to leave, to escape his inscrutable assessment of me. His azure washed eyes taking every inch of me in, as though he was seeing right through to my soul. How much did he already know about me?

Too much.

"So," he said conversationally, "what else have you found out?" We were back to the murder case. To the investigation he had instructed me to carry out. I mentally shook myself, attempting to brush all my multitude of concerns aside and concentrate on getting Stu released. For now, I couldn't turn my back on that, but the moment this case was solved, I was leaving. Getting as far away from here as I could.

Lucinda had mentioned South America as being a good place to hide. The
Iunctio
didn't have a hold there and any vampire wishing to hide found somewhere in South America that fitted the bill. I was now a vampire who wished to hide. A not very comfortable thought.

What had my life become?

I returned my attention to Jett's question. "Three more murders. Cause of deaths all the same as Alison's. Slit throats, exsanguination at the scene. No obvious evidence of a vampire bite, but the wound to the neck could have hidden it."

"Bodies not drained dry though," Jett interjected. He'd sat forward on his chair, his elbows resting on his knees. He was all business now.

"No, not very vamp-like, but then if they were trying to throw us off..." I let the sentence hang there. He nodded and then indicated for me to go on. I cleared my throat and sorted through what I already knew. "Same murderer's scent at the scene, no new emotional ones to add anything to what we already know. The victims felt fear and alarm, the killer anger and amusement."

"He's playing with them," Jett offered and I had a sudden thought that no, the killer wasn't playing with the murder victims, he was playing with
me
. The amusement I had felt at each scene I had just assumed was for the act he carried out, towards the victim. But in light of what I had uncovered this evening - the message the murderer had left for me - I was now sure his amusement was all for the game he played to hunt me. I didn't tell Jett this.

Instead I went back over the frequency of deaths, the escalation tonight to two. And then I ran through the connection to Vive La Vodka and watched Jett closely for a reaction. I'd made sure my scenting abilities were back on track before I divulged that little piece of news. Jett's involvement centred around that new SubZero Vodka Mixer, I was sure. When I mentioned the connection I had found, I took a deep breath in through my nose. I'd tried to hide it, to cover the inhalation with another clearing of my throat, but it was poorly done.

Jett's eyebrows shot up and his gaze held mine, then he sat back in his chair and crossed his legs, ankle resting on knee, hand resting on his crossed shin. He looked relaxed and curious in equal measures.

"What did you scent?" There was more there in the question. He wasn't just asking
what
I scented, but the tone implied
why
did I bother to scent him at all.

I swallowed uncomfortably having been caught out in the act, but knowing I couldn't explain it away or distract him, I decided to go for honesty. I mean really, he already knew what emotions he'd felt when I mentioned the vodka mix drink. I sifted through the catalogued scents; a
smooth and dry Merlot, laced with a floral bouquet, followed by soggy wet wool which quickly was replaced by stringent ammonia and then lastly a hint of uncomfortable mouldy cheese. It never did fail to surprise me how distinct each emotional scent was. There was no way to hide it from me, when I was able to scent. Of course, had Jett known I lost the ability when placed under straining emotional circumstances myself, he would no doubt use that against me. For now though, I held the upper hand.

"At first you were proud or satisfied, then you became uncomfortable, which quickly segued into anger and finally... guilt." I held his gaze, waiting for him to contradict me.

Finally, after several moments of heavy silence he began to chuckle. "You are far more dangerous than I realised." He shook his head, continued to chuckle for a moment and then brought himself back under control. "What do you scent now, kitten?" he asked, his azure eyes peeking out behind hooded lids.

I didn't want to inhale, I am not completely incapable of determining an emotion from a
look alone, it's just that emotions can be falsely detected if you go on how a person's body betrays them. They can act a certain way to lead you astray, they can hide how their body responds, but scents cannot be faked. I inhaled and felt a blush creep up my cheeks.

Sweet passion-fruit wrapped around me and ran delicious fingers down my spine.

Desire.

His desire for me.

My Dark Shadow stirred within me, a purr beginning deep down inside. I clenched my fists and willed her to behave. She may have been impressed with the alpha male before me, but I was just shit-scared.

Scared of what he could have done to me, scared of how much he knew already. Scared of his involvement in these murders.

Scared of my body's reaction to his nearness and the attraction of the danger he presented as well.

If there was a stronger scent on the air right now than passion-fruit, it was bitter-sweet dark chocolate. And it was all mine.

"Well?" Jett asked, a small twitch evident in the corner of his full lips. He was enjoying this, I was sure.

Well what? There was no way I was going to admit to being aware of his desire for me, if I just ignored it, perhaps it would go away.

My eyes flicked over to the dining table and my laptop - now with screen saver playing. "I was going through security footage at Alison's apartment over the past week, hoping to catch a glimpse of the killer."

"And how did you get hold of that, Georgia?" Jett asked in a too casual voice. Damn. I hadn't told him what I had detected at Alison's apartment, mainly because I had detected him. But in an effort to distract from his blatant lust-filled desire for me, I'd grasped the first thing I could see. Which happened to be my laptop and the video surveillance on it. Double damn.

I frantically thought of what to say, it must have been patently obvious by the look on my face that I was fumbling for an explanation. I'd learnt a lot in the two months I had been a part of this world. I'd taught myself to contain much of what I felt, to not react when placed in uncertain circumstances, to hide my emotions as best I could. But I was a newly turned vampire - albeit a powerful one - I was still struggling with my vampiric responses and to top that off, my body hadn't yet forgotten how to be human. Humans are incredibly open with their emotions. Sure some exist who are emotionally immature or cut-off from the world, but on the whole Norms can't help showing what they feel.

And right now, I was proving just how much of a novice I was in this new deadly game I played. And Jett was an expert at playing it. I was out of my league. I slowly lifted my gaze to his azure one, aware of his
Sanguis Vitam
thrumming in the air. Was he trying to intimidate me further? I lifted my chin and straightened my back, all the while holding that beautiful blue gaze.

"You asked me to investigate this murder, Jett. That's what I am doing."

His lips twitched again and although I was in way over my head, I could definitely smell the sticky toffee in the room. My lips pressed into a thin line and I narrowed my eyes at him. He started laughing.

"You are refreshing, kitten. No one has the courage to look at me that way anymore." His laughter grew, sticky toffee hung thick in the air. "Is it any wonder I wish you to join my line?"

I wasn't sure if he was actually expecting an answer to that question, it was as though he'd thrown it in at the last second, without intending to at all. He shook his head and let the laughter die. Silence replaced his humour, it felt just as heavy as the sticky toffee had moments before. I inhaled softly. I had to struggle not to show my reaction at what I smelled.

Strong rosemary and garlic, mouthwatering strawberry and chocolate cheesecake, and then abruptly sharp citrus - tart lemon - that made my mouth go dry. Determination, regret and... a lie.

But I couldn't tell if the lie pertained to his comment about no one ever looking at him the way I did, or that he wished me to join his line. It didn't really matter, all that mattered was that he was hiding something and my gut - even though it had no evidence to confirm it - thought it had something to do with the latter, not the former. Did Jett not want me to join his line after all?

I was confused by this development, but rather than feel any relief at the notion, I just felt more fear. Jett was playing a game and I was sure he had a different goal in mind to the one he had admitted to having before.

I wanted to confront him, to get everything out in the open, but all I said was, "The murderer had been inside her apartment and had been very close to her. Intimately."

His eyes came up to hold mine, his face now impassive, back to the Master of the City mask. If he was going to admit to being at Alison's apartment, now was the time to do it. He'd have to know I had scented him there. But no words of admission came, just a small nod of his head and then he was rising to his feet and taking up more room in my small flat than he had any right to.

I stood quickly, a defensive move to bring me in line with his gaze. He was firmly hiding behind that mask now and a quick inhalation told me he was feeling... frustration - a small smattering of oregano and sage the only emotional scent I could detect. I held his gaze and knew he was aware I was assessing him. A small smile appeared on his plump lips.

"Dangerous," he said with a shake of his head and then walked from the apartment, managing to throw his
Sanguis Vitam
at the door and repairing it before his large frame disappeared from sight.

I was no closer to determining who was doing the killing, but I sure as hell was closer to knowing how much danger I was in. From Jett. From the fairy. From the murderer himself. So many of my rules broken, so many of my secrets out. And for what?

I knew the murders had something to do with SubZero's Vive La Vodka. I knew the murderer was not human, but either vampire or fey. I knew the murderer was trying to taunt me. And I knew Jett had some connection to it all.

He had said I was dangerous, but that was a lie too. I was the one in danger and for some reason I didn't have the wherewithal to retreat when I knew I should. Leave, disappear. There was nothing here to hold me except Kara. I told myself that Samson didn't count. My stupid confused emotions, where that vampire was concerned, was dangerous too, so I could afford the luxury of believing I was better off far from him as well.

But Kara. She'd been my friend since kindergarten, she'd accepted my new life without hesitation or judgement, and coupled with my desire to get Stu free, she was all that held me to this city, all that made it impossible to leave. But as soon as I got Stu off these charges, as soon as I solved this blasted case, I would flee. Flee from Kara. Flee from the obligation of unconditional love. And embrace solitude.

Rule number two: keep to myself.

But now was not the time to do this, if I wanted to solve these murders. And as much as Mark's rejection this evening still hurt, it was time to use what I had and put pressure on people to solve this crime. Kara hadn't replied to my text message and probably wouldn't until tomorrow, once she'd spoken to Stu's lawyer. I couldn't wait any longer. Things were getting complicated and dangerous and I needed to get this done.

I slipped into my bedroom and dressed in seconds in my usual black attire, armed, jacket on - this time accompanied by an oversized bright green four leaf clover enamel belt buckle as I needed a little luck - I grabbed my keys and cellphone and headed out into the last of the night. I couldn't glaze or influence Mark with my
Sanguis Vitam
, but I could appeal to the cop. The cop who wanted to solve this murder case as much as I did and I had to hope he'd be prepared to use whatever was available to achieve just that.

I would have liked to have given him more time and walking through the doors to Central Police was not the easiest thing to do at all. I felt shame and guilt at what Mark had seen this evening. I felt embarrassment and fear of his knowledge of what I am. I couldn't stand before him behind a carefully prepared mask any longer. He knew what I was, what I was capable of to some extent - and he had already passed judgement.

I squared my shoulders and lifted my chin as I approached the front desk and without hesitation I glazed the officer on duty to get Mark to come out and see me. Perhaps it was a little over the top, I may have been able to use feminine wiles. It was a different officer from the first time I came here, he may have had a desire to help me out, but I couldn't afford to tread carefully anymore. The time for caution was over, even if I alienated Mark more and more.

Stu's freedom, the lives of further victims and my own safety were at risk. It was time to embrace the vampire, to do what I needed to do to survive.

Within minutes Mark's large bulk appeared behind the frosted glass of the door to the rest of the precinct. I could hear his low, gruff voice, but not the exact words. From the tone I could tell though, that he was questioning the uniformed officer I had glazed. I blinked slowly and prepared for the worst.

The door opened out into the waiting room, a soft scraping sound interrupted my thoughts, as some little piece of paper got caught beneath its frame and dragged across the lino. I blocked it out and instead concentrated on Mark's heart beating, rapidly. I could smell stringent ammonia on the air. All of which I expected, but the soggy wet wool and hint of bitter-sweet dark chocolate were unwelcome. He was uncomfortable and felt a little fear.

I held my ground as his tired blue-grey gaze came up to meet mine.

"What are you doing here, Gigi?" He sounded angry, but underlying it was resignation, weariness. I sighed and took the necessary steps to come within a foot of him. I was impressed he didn't back away, but kept rigidly still. Not even a twitch of his fingers to indicate a defensive move.

"I have a question for you, Mark," I said and waited for him to nod and show he was ready to hear it. It took a few seconds, but finally came. "What wouldn't you do to solve these crimes?"

He blinked slowly, a whoosh of air escaping his lips that no Norm could have detected. His eyes searched my face briefly, took in my relaxed stance, and then back to the cerulean blue of my eyes. I smiled showing a row of blunt white teeth. No vampire trait in sight, the ball was in his court.

"I won't break the law," he finally replied in a whisper-quiet voice only I could hear.

"There is no human law for what I do," I said in response and watched him flinch. I barrelled on, there was no time left for cushioning this for him, more murders would happen tomorrow. If we had any chance of stopping this and in the process getting an innocent man off the charges and allowing me to escape, then we had to come to an agreement tonight. " I am subject to Nosferatu rules," my voice was just as quiet as his and with the amount of noise in the room, no one would have been able to overhear - not even a vampire. "Rules designed to protect us from detection and in the process protect the humans too. I can promise you I have no desire to harm a soul. My only desire is to stop this murderer before he attacks again."

I watched as he took all this in, not giving anything away. I inhaled softly and cocked my head to the side, studying him. His impassive face, his forced relaxed calm and his scent. Apple mixed with lime. He was confused and if I could hazard a guess, it was confusion over his reaction to what I offered. He wanted to solve this crime, he wanted to use my skills, but this was all outside of his normal operational parameters. Was I the bad guy here or not?

I waited patiently. I'd said my bit. Even if I could have glazed him, I'm not sure I would have wanted to right then. I
needed
him to accept me. I
needed
him to come to this conclusion without influence from me. I respected Mark enough to trust he would choose wisely. I just hoped his fears and prejudices wouldn't overshadow his desire to serve and protect.

He let a long breath out and ran a large hand through his short, spiky hair. "OK, come with me." Turning abruptly, I was forced to trot behind him through the frosted glass door.

He was in a hurry, whether that was to hide me from inquisitive cop eyes or because he was uncomfortable to have me at his back, I couldn't tell. But I did have to jog to keep up as we traipsed down one corridor, through a door, then another corridor and door, the further we went into the bowels of the station itself. Finally he opened the door to an interrogation room. I knew this from the label outside. Interrogation Room 5-b. Pretty self explanatory. Inside was a rectangular table and four chairs. Two on either side. To be expected. But unlike the T.V. shows, there was no two-way mirror, no camera set up on the table or in the corners of the room. It was windowless and had recessed lights behind a grill in the ceiling and that was basically it.

I took a few steps into the room and turned slowly at the sound of the door closing behind Mark. His gaze was on the floor, his hands in the pockets of his crumpled suit. He looked tired and a little strung out, and was determined not to look me in the eyes.

"I didn't think I'd see you so soon," he said in a quiet rumble.

"Me neither," I replied honestly. "It's not like I enjoy punishing myself or anything."

His eyes shot up at that. He looked puzzled. I shrugged at his unasked question.

"I've exposed myself to you, Mark and what did you do? Walked out." I shook my head with a sad smile on my face. "Not exactly confidence building, is it?"

A huff of breath sounding almost like a laugh came out of his mouth and as though he was embarrassed by his reaction his hand came up and rubbed at the stubble along his jaw.

"It was a hell of a lot to take in and if I'm honest, I haven't taken it in yet," he admitted. "I would have got back to you."

I wasn't sure if that was the truth, but for some reason I couldn't bring myself to scent his emotion. Did I really want to know if he lied about this? I ran a hand through my own hair, repositioning my ponytail.

"I can help solve this case, you know that," I said, getting us back on track. "And regardless of what you think of me, of my kind..." I winced at that statement - since when did I class myself as a
kind
? - "I could make the difference between more people dying and not."