Love Your Entity (12 page)

He nodded. So did his reflection. “That’s right.”

“Are you trying to punk me or something? Is this some kind of reality show gone bad?”

“I have no idea what you are talking about.”

“The fact that you aren’t really a vampire.”

“How do you figure that?”

“If you were, then I wouldn’t be able to see your reflection,” she said.

“That’s an urban myth, dating back to the days when mirrors were backed with thin sheets of silver. At that time, most vampires were not able to see their own reflection. No one else could see their reflection either.”

“Right.” She looked around. Vampires seeing their reflection? She didn’t think so. She’d seen a few episodes of the first season of the BBC version of
Being Human
. The vampire on that show couldn’t see his reflection, although he was dark and sexy. Maybe Ronan was an actor like that one, only American not British. “So where are the hidden cameras?”

“They don’t work in this house. I’m assuming it’s because of the ghosts haunting the place.”

Bingo. He’d just confirmed there were cameras. Wow, she’d almost fallen for that vampire stuff. Maybe this could be tied into some publicity for her book. As far as she knew there was no mention of television coverage in her promo plan or her publisher’s. Unless they hadn’t told her because they’d wanted to surprise her?

What about the bookcase? Maybe they’d replaced it with a fake one like on TV. And the freaky-fast speed? A hologram or special effects or something. She didn’t know the details. “So this is a reality-show hoax.”

“No, the cameras to which I was referring would be part of the area’s surveillance system.”

“The city of Chicago is watching you all?”

“No.”

“So you are watching the city instead?”

“No, just our small corner of it.”

“How do I know this is real?” she demanded. “I mean that
you’re
real.”

He held his arms out. “You can touch me, feel me.”

“No way.”

He looked hurt. Like she should care? If she was talking to a real vampire, she needed to get the hell out.

Then he got angry and, as he did, his eyes did something strange and his fangs appeared. “I swear on my sister’s soul, I’m a vampire,” Ronan grated. “Get over it!”

Looking at him now, she finally accepted his word. She took one step back, then another. “Look, it was one thing inheriting a house with a ghost or two. But moving into a nest of vampires is quite another. You say this was your house at one time and that it should be yours again. Fine. You can have it. Life is too short for this crap. Not
your
life of course since you are immortal. Or is that an urban myth as well?”

“No, that’s true.”

“Well then, I hope you and your house are very happy together.” Sierra rushed to the front door.

“Noooo!” Ruby plastered herself against the door. “You can’t leave!”

Chapter Ten

“Step away from the door,” Sierra told Ruby.

“No!” Ruby shouted. “You can’t desert me in my hour of need.”

“Yes I can. Watch me.”

She would have stepped forward but a sudden force sent her flying backward to land on her butt on the floor. Sierra was stunned. That energy had come from Ruby, not Hal.

“I’m not letting you leave,” Ruby said.

“You are not locking me in this house with a vampire, Ruby,” Sierra told her.

“You can leave as soon as you help me go into the light.”

“Are you talking to the ghost? Ask her about my sister,” Ronan said.

“Thanks for asking how I am,” Sierra said with mocking bitterness. She ignored the hand that Ronan belatedly put out to help her up. “Too little, too late.”

Sierra scrambled to her feet before facing Ruby. “After everything I’ve done for you, this is how you repay me?”

“What have you done for me?” Ruby countered.

“I talked to you. I listened to you. I said I’d help you.”

“And then you walk away before you help me.”

“He’s a vampire.”

“He said he wasn’t going to hurt you,” Ruby pointed out.

“He drinks blood for a living.”

“Tell him I know something about his sister.”

Sierra shook her head. “No, I am not doing that.”

“Fine. Then I’ll tell him.”

Ruby moved to the mirror, and breathed onto it, creating a mist she wrote in.
Addie.

Sierra could hear Ronan’s indrawn breath before he said, “That’s my sister’s nickname.”

“Like that was hard to figure out,” Sierra scoffed. “Ruby heard you talking about your sister Adele and she made a lucky guess. Fake clairvoyants do that all the time.”

“Tell me about Ruby,” Ronan ordered her.

“She’s the ghost who just pushed me onto my butt. She was a prostitute in Al Capone’s establishment until she was murdered here in this house.”

“That’s why I need your help,” Ronan said.

“Clearly Ruby can communicate with you without my assistance. She can mirror-write. Good thing you can look in mirrors now, huh? You two have a good time. I’m outta here.”

“No,” Ronan said. “I just saved your life and this is how you repay me?”

“He thinks you are ungrateful too,” Ruby said. “Tell him I agree with him.”

“Tell him yourself,” Sierra shot back. “Write it in the mirror, why don’t you.” She turned her attention to Ronan. “As for you, how do I know that you didn’t yank that bookcase down yourself as a ploy to con me into thinking you saved my life?”

“Because
I
yanked the bookcase onto you,” Hal stated from the top of the staircase. “I told you to get out. You didn’t listen. Just like Ruby didn’t listen. I told her she couldn’t leave. Instead of backing away, she just stood there looking at me as if I ain’t worth shittin’ on. She still looks at me that way.”

“Because you murdered her, Hal,” Sierra said.

“Who are you talking to now?” Ronan demanded.

“Hal. The upstairs ghost who smokes a cigar and was a member of Al Capone’s gang.”

“Shit. You need a scorecard to keep track. How many ghosts are there in this house?” Ronan said impatiently.

“I’ve only seen two,” Sierra said.

“You haven’t seen my sister, have you?” Ronan reached into his back pocket and pulled an old photograph out. The young woman had a Gibson girl hairstyle piled on top of her head. She wore a white gown that covered her from her neck to her feet per the fashion of the early 1900s. She had Ronan’s smile.

“No, I haven’t seen her.”

“I don’t know if that’s good or bad,” he muttered.

“Can we get back to me?” Ruby said with an impatient tap of her foot. “Get rid of Hal. Have the vampire do it.”

“Ruby wants you to get rid of Hal,” Sierra told Ronan.

“How the hell am I supposed to do that?”

“I have no idea. You’re a vampire. Think of something.”

“He’s got no powers over me,” Hal bragged, before pointing to the grandfather clock, which flew toward Sierra. “Time’s running out.”

Ronan instantly stepped in front of her, preventing it from hitting her. It hit him instead and shattered.

“I never liked that clock anyway,” Ruby said.

“That belonged to my family,” Ronan growled.

Sierra’s fear grew. “Look, I want no part of a turf war between vampires and ghosts. You entities can figure it out among yourselves. A word of warning,” Sierra added. “Ruby smashed the plastic clock in the kitchen the first day I was here. These two may have a thing against clocks. I’m just saying…” Her hands were shaking but her voice was strong. She’d pushed the 911 button on her phone in her pocket and the speakerphone. The police would be here soon. “The house at 661 Nikolas Street has trouble. They’ve tried to kill me. Help needed urgently.” She disconnected before the dispatch operator could say anything. She also turned it off in case they tried to call her back. She didn’t want a callback. She wanted an entire SWAT team.

It took ten minutes, but officers banged on the front door. “Chicago police. Open up!”

“If I don’t do what they say, they’ll knock down the door,” Sierra said.

Ronan opened the door.

“We got a report of a disturbance here,” a sexy dark-haired officer said.

“That came from me.” Sierra hurried to his side, praying he wasn’t a fake cop from a strippergram. He sure looked good enough for that job. “They are keeping me here against my will. Get me out of here, please.”

“What’s going on, Ronan?” the sexy cop said.

“I can explain, Alex,” Ronan said.

Sierra stepped away. “You’re another fake cop! Just like Damon.”

Alex said, “I assure you, I am a real cop.”

“She can’t be compelled,” Ronan told Alex.

“What about you?” Sierra asked the other cop. “Are you a real cop?”

“Yes.”

“Are you human?”

“My wife doesn’t always think so.”

“A simple yes or no would do,” Sierra said shortly.

“What drugs did you take?” the unsexy cop asked.

“I did not take any drugs. I’m telling you, I am being held against my will.”

“Are you afraid for your safety?”

“Hell, yes.”

“I’ll escort her out,” the unsexy cop said. “You talk to the guy.”

“He’s not a guy. He’s a vampire,” she said as she scurried past Ruby. Or tried to. Ruby was not budging. Sierra couldn’t get past her. It was as if the ghost had put up a force field of some kind of kinetic energy to stop Sierra.

“Come on,” the unsexy cop said impatiently. “You said you wanted to leave.”

“They won’t let me,” Sierra said.

“Who?”

“The ghosts,” Ronan said cheerfully. “She sees ghosts.”

“Push up your sleeves and show me your arms,” the unsexy cop said.

“He’s looking for needle marks,” Ronan told her.

Sierra was infuriated. She was the victim here but they were treating her like she was the problem. “I am not a drug addict!”

“You just have fun with drugs on a recreational basis, right?”

“No, that’s not right! I’m telling you, he’s a vampire.” Sierra pointed to Ronan. “Didn’t you hear him say that he can’t compel me?”

“I heard.”

“So why aren’t you arresting him?”

“Because it’s not illegal to be a vampire,” Alex said.

Sierra looked at Ronan and pointed accusingly at Alex. “Is he another cop with fangs?”

“That would be an affirmative,” Alex said.

“I suppose you’ll compel your partner now to forget you just said that.”

“I don’t have to,” Alex said. “He’s a vamp too.”

Sierra couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “What is it with this town? Is everyone a vampire?”

“Chicago is a city not a town,” Ronan said. “And no, not everyone is a vampire. You aren’t.”

“I’m not,” Ruby piped in. “I’m a ghost.”

Sierra’s head was spinning and her anger growing. “I can’t believe this is happening. You cops are vampires yet you think
I’m
on drugs because I see ghosts? How messed up is that?”

“Most of the people we come in contact with who see hallucinations are drug addicts,” Alex said.

“I’m not most people,” she shot back.

“Yeah, I get that,” Alex said.

Ronan stepped in front of her. “She’s mine.”

“Listen, I am not a piece of property. You already claim you own this house. Fine, you can keep it. But no way does anyone own
me
.” She leaned closer to look him right in the eye. “You got that?”

The fact that he was a vampire who could rip her throat open was momentarily blocked out by the knee-jerk reaction to something her biological father had said the night she and her mother had left. “You are both mine and if I can’t have you, no one can.” That kind of maniacal control was a trigger for her, one that instilled terror and anger at the same time.

“It’s okay.” Ronan gently took her hand in his. “You’re safe now.”

“She’s a feisty one,” Alex said.

“Hello, enough about you,” Ruby said. “Back to getting rid of Hal. There are three vampires in front of us. You’re telling me that three vampires are powerless to get rid of one ghost named Hal?” Ruby demanded.

“They’re vampires not ghost busters,” Sierra said.

“You got that right. What happened to the clock?” Alex asked, noticing the fragments of wood for the first time.

“The ghost did it,” Sierra said.

“Right. Well then, we’ll leave you to it, Ronan. We’ve got another call to take.” Alex nodded Sierra’s way. “Good luck.”

“Thanks for nothing,” she said.

“Definitely feisty,” Alex said.

“And fiercely loyal,” Ronan said.

After the two vamp cops left, Sierra belatedly realized she was still holding Ronan’s hand. Or he was holding hers. “What makes you say that?”

“That you’re loyal?”

She nodded, unable to take her eyes off their entwined fingers. Why did that look so right? She was holding hands with a vampire. How weird was that? Totally weird. Or it should be.

“Because you’ve helped spirits in the past.” He slid a strand of her hair behind her ear and then caressed her cheek. “I saved your life twice tonight. Here’s your chance to help me.”

“You’re not a spirit,” she whispered.

“No, I’m not.”

“You’re something dark and scary.”

“Yeah, I am,” he said gruffly.

“I’d be stupid to trust you.”

“You aren’t stupid. But you can trust me.” He squeezed her hand.

“Prove it.”

“How?” he said.

“Let me leave.”

Ronan sighed and took a step back, releasing her from his hold. “I can’t do that.”

“Sure you can.”

“I’m not the one keeping you here,” Ronan said. “Your ghosts are doing that.”

“Hal wants me gone,” Sierra said.

“Damn right,” Hal said.

“Ruby is the only one who wants me to stay.”

“No she’s not.
I
want you to stay.”

His voice was intense and demanding but the look on his face was what grabbed hold of her heart. There was a yearning there that was unspoken but fierce. Those brown eyes of his displayed the briefest flash of vulnerability and that was her downfall.

Why was Ronan able to get to her? She was so conflicted about all this. Was it really his expression and his eyes or was it a vampire thing? He’d claimed he couldn’t compel her but what if that was a lie?