Chapter Nine

Joie stood in the doorway of the lounge, her gaze scanning the crowd as she always did, getting a feel for the throng, picking out the ones most likely to cause trouble and the ones who might be interested in more than they should. She noted a tall, dark-haired man in the corner who looked up when she walked in with Traian. He quickly glanced away from them, taking a sudden interest in his drink, but she could tell he was watching them carefully. A second man drew her interest. He sat in one of the high-backed chairs near the fire, a newspaper in his hands. He was short and slender and wore reading gla.s.ses. He was looking over the top of the thick rims at Gabrielle.

Joie glanced up at Traian's inscrutable face. He, too, had a.s.sessed the room in one quick glance and she realized he had moved slightly to put himself between her and the tall, dark-haired man pretending interest in his drink.

Who is he?

I do not know, but he is very interested in your family. This is a dangerous place for travelers who may have mage blood running in their veins, he warned. Deliberately he didn't look at Jubal when he sent him a quick command. Make certain no one in the bar can see the weapon that came to you in the caves.

Jubal turned, very casually and waved to them both. Gabrielle looked up, gave a glad cry, and jumped up from the small table she was sharing with her brother near the lit fireplace to run across the room to them. Behind her, the flames leapt and danced, glowing orange and gold and red. The taller man put down his drink and turned his head to follow Gabrielle's progress.

More predator than man, Traian's instincts sent an alarm sliding down his back. He reached out very carefully and touched the man's mind. He liked the look of Gabrielle, but there was something about her that made him believe she was far more than she appeared and he was looking for ... the undead. It was very obvious to Traian that the man was attracted to Gabrielle and he justified his interest by fitting the criteria given to him by others in his secret society of vampire hunters.

Women were said to be more beautiful, drawing interest wherever they went. They came out at night looking for men to seduce to do their bidding. The only women who could ever be vampires were human women who had no psychic ability that had been turned by vampires. They were clearly deranged and no one could ever mistake one. As far as Traian was concerned, they were pitiful creatures in need of sympathy and a merciful dispatch to the next realm.

Clearly the man hadn't seen Joie yet, he was too busy ogling Gabrielle. Traian's blood would enhance Joie's beauty in a subtle way. He didn't want attention drawn to her family, especially when Jubal wore the mage's weapon. Before he stepped away from Joie, he made certain to shield her enough that she wouldn't appear interesting to the stranger.

Joie prepared herself to be practically bowled over as her sister embraced her, hugging her with her usual enthusiasm. Looking over Gabrielle's shoulder, she noted the man in the gla.s.ses looking past her to Traian. Recognition immediately flickered across his face, and he carefully folded the newspaper and laid it on the small table in front of him.

Traian, Joie warned. The one in the gla.s.ses, with the newspaper. Do you know him? He recognized you.

Traian sighed. Two members of the vampire hunting society in the small village close to where the prince of the Carpathian people made his home? That was too big of a coincidence for him to swallow. One might be a scout, but two meant they were hunting. The last time there was a hunt, men, women, and children were murdered, both human and Carpathian.

Joie shifted slightly to keep Gabrielle just a little behind her, her posture protective, but the two men were split, one on one side of the room while the other could control his side. Traian let his gaze drift naturally to the slender man with gla.s.ses who raised a gla.s.s to him the moment their eyes met.

He scanned the man's mind. Clearly human, he recognized that Traian was not. To Traian's amus.e.m.e.nt, the moment she noticed the stranger's interest in them, Joie again shifted, gliding slightly in front of him, even as she tried to keep an eye on the taller, dark-haired man.

The rush of joy and affection, a lightening of his heart and soul, made Traian tremble. He couldn't remember if anyone in his long lifetime had worried about him or tried to protect him. That small gesture meant the world to him because it revealed her faith in him. She'd made a leap of faith, committing herself to his life, his world.

He is not an enemy, he a.s.sured. Did we forget to discuss the fact that I am not certain I want you guarding bodies?

Really? She arched an eyebrow at him. Not even yours? I'm pretty good at it.

Traian's eyes were on the dark-haired man, but he lifted his hand to hip level, palm down and waved off the man with the gla.s.ses just as he'd started to rise. The man immediately sank back into his chair and reached for his newspaper.

He was going to talk to you.

Not yet. I have to deal with someone else first. Visit with your brother and sister for a few minutes. Keep an eye out for trouble.

Don't worry, Traian, I've got my eye on you all the time. She flashed a saucy grin at him.

Traian couldn't help the little glow warming his insides. She believed he wanted her happiness above his own, and she wanted to give him happiness. He had a mad desire to scoop her up and run back to her room, where he could make love to her all over again. He looked at her, allowed the thought to shimmer in his mind, to glow hot in his eyes.

Joie laughed. "Stop that."

Gabrielle looked from her sister to Traian and made a rude noise. "Oh, no. Joie, we leave you alone with him for a few minutes and you seduced him, didn't you?"

Joie shrugged unrepentantly. "You have to admit, he's pretty hot."

Gabrielle's eyes widened and her hand went up to cover her open mouth. "I was so joking with you, but you really did. You totally slept with him. I'm telling Mom."

"Well, you tattletale, if you say one word to Mom, I'm going to tell her you were thinking of taking that job researching the Ebola virus. You know what she'll do when she hears that. And, for your information, there was no sleeping involved whatsoever."

"You're in such trouble, you hussy, and you wouldn't dare tell Mom on me," Gabrielle said. She pushed at Joie's shoulder, looking at the man so studiously reading his newspaper, trying unsuccessfully to move her sister aside for a better look. "Now that is a hottie, Joie. There's more to a man than muscle." She grinned at Traian. "No offense or anything."

"None taken," he a.s.sured her.

"Your tongue is hanging out, Gabrielle," Joie whispered. "Stop ogling him. For you to be falling at his feet, he must have an IQ of two hundred." She glanced up at Traian. "No man she's ever looked at could carry on a normal conversation. I think she can see straight through to their brains." She nudged her sister. "Your eyes are popping out of your head."

"I was just looking," Gabrielle hissed back. "At least I didn't throw myself at him and show off by doing in underfed trolls fresh out of the grave. I'm discreet."

"I was happy she did that," Traian pointed out. "She did rescue me."

"Yes, well, I suppose you would have been happy, under the circ.u.mstances," Gabrielle conceded. "But she has a major hickey on her neck. If Mom saw that, there'd be consequences."

Traian bared his strong white teeth at her. "I think I can handle your mother."

Gabrielle and Joie looked at each other and burst out laughing. "It isn't possible, Traian, even for you," Joie said.

He laid his hand very gently on Joie's shoulder. "You will have to excuse me for a few moments. Please stay warm by the fire." He guided both women back to the table where Jubal sat observing the room. "I have a couple of things to do." He maintained eye contact with Jubal who nodded almost imperceptibly. "Do not draw undo attention to yourselves while I am gone."

Joie caught his hand. "Traian, we can help."

"Not with this. Just be safe until I return."

She bit her lip and nodded.

Traian bent his head and brushed her mouth with his before walking over to the bar. He took his time, making his way across the room, shoulders straight, allowing himself to be seen only as slightly intimidating as he approached the man with the dark hair. He leaned onto the bar beside him and lifted one finger toward the innkeeper, who hastened over. He glanced toward the stranger. "What are you drinking?"

The man gave him a tentative smile. "Vodka." He spoke with a slight Hungarian accent.

Traian held out his hand. "Traian, I am visiting my parents, and you?"

The man looked a little relieved. "Gerald Hodkins, just a tourist. I wanted to see this part of the country. I've heard so much about it from various family members."

Traian sent him a friendly smile and ordered two vodkas. The innkeeper, Mirko Ostojic, met his eyes and gave him a brief nod. Traian lifted the gla.s.s toward the other man and they drank. Cool water slid down his throat.

"It is beautiful country," he ventured.

Gerald nodded. "Dangerous to travelers who don't know their way around though."

Traian's eyebrow went up. "Not so much anymore. My parents moved to this region about ten years ago. They bought a little farm just up the road, basically to retire, but they like to raise sheep. They told me there was virtually no crime here." He injected a note of worry into his voice. "I work in Sri Lanka, so I do not get to visit often."

Gerald shrugged his shoulder. "This place was cleaned out some time ago, from my understanding, although there might be pockets left."

Traian signaled Mirko over for another round. "Pockets of what?"

Gerald glanced right and left as if someone might be listening. He'd been drinking quite a bit already and he waited until the innkeeper had poured another drink. He raised the gla.s.s to his mouth. "Have you heard the rumors of vampires in this region?" He took a healthy swallow and regarded Traian steadily over the rim of the gla.s.s.