Fires Of Solstice Part 13

She stomped her foot onto the gas. Her car sped down the block and turned the corner.

Damian waited until her car disappeared. He looked up her lighted window at the huge silhouette outlined there. Then he melted back into the shadows.

In Meredythe's apartment, Slade swept his arm across a table, shattering gla.s.s objects against the wall. Grabbing the TV, he heaved it across the room. He'd heard the car speed away. She'd eluded him again.

Snow was falling gently when Meredythe pulled into her aunt's driveway, muttering to herself because she'd somehow forgotten to stop at her apartment and pick up the Chicago file even though she planned on going there directly from her office. Oh well, she'd just have to do without it. Grabbing the wine on the front seat, she slid out of the car.

Evelyn met her at the front door. "I'm so glad you're here. I was beginning to worry. I have Methuselah's things all ready."

Meredythe froze in the doorway as her aunt looped a large shopping bag over her arm. "Thuse's things? Ready? I'm here for dinner, remember? Lemon sage chicken?"

Her aunt bustled about the living room shoving toys into another shopping bag. "I know, dear, and I'm very sorry, but I've a sudden change of plans. You remember Lady Sara, my friend from England? She sent me a ticket so I could come and spend Yule at Stonehenge." She stopped in the middle of the floor and clapped her hands together. "Imagine, Yule at Stonehenge. Can you think of anything better? I wish you could come with me."

Meredythe stood in the open doorway, snowflakes brushing past her to settle on the foyer floor. "But, Aunt Evelyn. I'm going upstate tomorrow. I can't take care of Thuse. And it's barely the middle of November. Yule isn't until December 21."

Evelyn handed her another shopping bag. "I know that. But Sara wants me to come now. And of course you can take Methuselah. Just leave him in your motel room. I'm sending enough toys to keep him occupied. And leave the TV on. He loves Animal Planet or better yet, Jerry Springer."

Meredythe dropped the other bag. "Aunt Evie, I don't even know if the motel allows pets."

Evelyn waved her hand in the air. "They'll never even know he's there. Now you better get going. The snow is coming down faster. I'm all packed too, and my taxi will be here in ten minutes." Turning, she looked up the staircase. "Methuuuuuuselah. Come along, dear. Meredythe is waiting for you."

Meredythe shifted the wine to her other hand. "You're leaving tonight?"

Instead of coming down the stairs, the cat sauntered out of the kitchen and Evelyn lifted him into her arms. "Yes. I know it's rather short notice, but I simply can't turn this invitation down. You understand, don't you, dear?"

Closing her eyes, Meredythe sighed with defeat. Goodness knows she wouldn't change a single thing about her aunt, especially her spontaneity. "Okay, Aunt Evie. I'll take Thuse with me. You have a good time at Stonehenge."

The squirming cat between them, Evelyn hugged her exuberantly. "Thank you, dear. I'll make it up to you, I promise. And I'll bring you a t-shirt."

"I know you will. Enjoy yourself."

Laughing, Evelyn pushed her cat into Meredythe's arms and glanced at her watch. "Oh my. I must get my suitcases downstairs. Good luck, dear. I hope you find the information you're looking for." She looped the shopping bags over Meredythe's arms, gave her a little shove and shut the door behind her.

For a moment, Meredythe stared at the closed door. She had a shopping bag covered with Christmas trees looped over her left arm and another with big orange b.a.l.l.s looped over her right. A bottle of wine was tucked into her left armpit and Methuselah was rubbing his chin against the stem as he balanced himself against her arms in her already overburdened grasp. A gust of wind scattered snowflakes and rang wind chimes as she looked down into his smug face. Shaking her head at the vagaries of life, she said, "Well, Thuse, you ready for a road trip upstate?"

Joyful tinklings and deep bongs followed them off the porch and down the path of rune stones to her car.

"Are they gone?"

Evelyn let the curtain fall and turned. "Yes, Rhys. She just pulled out. You know, I don't like the look of this weather. The snow's coming down harder."

The old druid joined her at the window and smiled. "The weather never has been one of my fortes, Evelyn. We'll just have to trust the G.o.ddess that she gets there."

The back door slammed. Sister Mary Francis pushed the beaded curtain aside and joined them. "Are they off then?"

Jezebel sauntered over to Rhys, sat at his feet and meowed.

With a smile, he lifted her into his arms. "h.e.l.lo, Jezebel. You haven't changed at all, have you?" A loud purr filled the room as he stroked her.

Mary Francis sighed. "Honestly, Rhys. Must you encourage her?"

There was a sharp knock at the door and they all froze. "You didn't forget to give her something, did you, Evie?" Mary Francis asked as she backed toward the kitchen.

"No, I didn't," Evelyn answered as she peered out from between the closed curtains again. "Oh, it's just Damian." Opening the door, she said, "Come in, Damian. You must be freezing out there."

"The cold doesn't have much of an effect on me," he said with a slight smile. "Rhys is here, isn't he?" He started when he saw the room's other inhabitants.

The cat hissed loudly and sprang from Rhys' arms to the sofa where she arched her back, fluffed her tail, spat and growled repeatedly.

Damian's lips twitched. "h.e.l.lo, Mary Francis. I guess your cat is still angry with me." Mary Francis glared at him. "And can you blame her? You wanted to drink her blood."

"Now, Mary Francis," Rhys cajoled.

A stern look on her face, the nun rounded on the old druid. "Don't start, Rhys. I don'

t know why you trust him. There is no such thing as a reformed vampire."

Evelyn grabbed Damian's arm and pulled him farther into the room. "That's enough, Mary Francis. This is my house and I'll invite Beelzebub himself if I'm so inclined. Damian, you're paler than you should be. When was the last time you, ah... ate?"

Damian swayed slightly then smiled at his hostess. "Too long, I'm afraid, but I had to find Rhys. Slade was in Meredythe's apartment, waiting for her."

Even Jezebel froze at that comment.

Mary Francis shuddered and crossed herself. "Thank G.o.d she came here straight from work." Damian shook his head as he leaned against Evelyn. "She didn't, but I managed to convince her not to go into her apartment."

"And we all know how you managed to do that, don't we?" Mary Francis muttered.

His toothy grin had Jezebel hissing and spitting again. "I didn't have much choice."

When he swayed again, Evelyn shoved him toward her kitchen. "You come with me.

I have a raw steak in the refrigerator. That will hold you over until you can get...something."

He allowed her to guide him toward the kitchen. "Thank you, Evelyn. You're a queen among women."

Once Damian was out of sight, Jezebel quit hissing. Mary Francis lifted her into her arms. "What now, Rhys? Slade obviously didn't take the bait."

Rhys braced his hands on the back of the sofa. "We wait. Slade isn't going anywhere in this snowstorm. Once Meredythe is at the estate, she'll be safe. Not even Slade is stupid enough to attack Bleddyn on his home ground."

"d.a.m.n!" Meredythe cursed as the tires spun for the third time. She stepped on the gas again. The tires spun faster, but the car only slid deeper into the ditch at the side of the road. Gusts of wind buffeted the shuddering automobile on all four sides while snow and ice pellets bounced off the windshield. Grabbing her purse, she fished around and pulled out her cell phone. "s.h.i.t! No service. d.a.m.n these mountains! I'm going to have to walk." She pushed the door open and stepped out into the swirling snow.

"You wait here, Thuse," she said to the cat's inquiring meow. "I can see a light at the top of this hill, so there must be a house up there. I'll walk up and see if I can get us some help." She shivered as snow slapped her face. "d.a.m.n, but I wish I had a hat."

Closing the car door firmly, she left Methuselah curled up on the front seat. Shoving her hands into her pockets as deeply as she could, she hunched her shoulders against the biting wind-thankful it was at her back rather than in her face-and started climbing toward the flickering light. Slipping and sliding, she struggled up the hill, falling to her hands and knees repeatedly.

More than once she stopped to shake her numb hands-hands that spent more time in the snow bracing her falls and pushing her now-wet hair out of her face than they did in her semi-warm coat pockets. Tears had frozen on her cheeks when she finally skidded to a stop at the top of the hill, raised her head and looked straight into the most hideous face she'd ever seen.

The howling wind blew her shriek away. Shaking from more than the cold, she yanked her hair out of her face and grasped the cold stone to keep from falling. "d.a.m.n it, Meredythe, it's only a statue of a gargoyle. Get a hold of yourself."

Squinting toward the light, she could see the vague, dark outline of a house through the blowing snow. With a tooth-rattling shiver, she stepped away from the meager shelter of the gargoyle and plowed through the knee-high snow toward the house. By the time she reached the door, she was soaking wet and shivering uncontrollably. Sighing with relief, she leaned against the doorbell.

A few minutes later, she slapped her numb hand against it again. d.a.m.n it! Somebody had to be home to help her.

She'd just raised her fist to pound when the door opened, dim light and precious heat pouring out. She didn't notice either. Instead she gaped at the black-haired, gray-eyed man who stood before her.

He smiled, stared deeply into her eyes and said, "h.e.l.lo, Meredythe."

Chapter Seven.

An icy gust of wind shoved snow down the neck of Meredythe's coat and into the foyer of the house. She didn't notice. The man in front of her demanded all of her attention. Of all the people in world, how did she manage to end up at his house? Another freezing blast of wind enveloped her and she shivered. Her teeth began to chatter.

He grasped her arm. "d.a.m.n it, Meredythe, get in here before you freeze to death."

She ignored the shivers that racked her body when another blast of wind caressed her bare neck, and she wrenched her arm free. "I will not. I just need directions. How far to the town of Winterbourne?"

An amused look appeared on his handsome face and he folded his arms across his chest. "You already pa.s.sed it."

She shoved her freezing hands into her pockets, trying to ignore the icy water running down her back. Sheer force of will stopped her shivering. "It's not snowing so hard that I wouldn't have recognized houses when I went by them."

Neither his stance nor his expression changed. The cold blasts of wind seemed to have no effect on him even though snow was swirling around his legs. "You took a wrong turn and ended up in my private drive. You should have stayed to the left instead of veering right."

"Fine. As long as I know where I'm going, I'll leave." Spinning away from him, she took a step and went down on one knee when her foot slid out from under her. Before she was completely down, he was at her side and offered his hand. She ignored it and pushed herself to her feet.

"d.a.m.n it, Meredythe, your car's stuck in a drift or a ditch, isn't it? How do you propose to get to town?"

Her back to him, Meredythe gulped as still another icy blast forced her breath back down her throat. After a deep breath, she clenched her teeth and said, "I'll walk if I have to."

He placed his hand on her arm again. "Please, if you try to walk to town, you'll get lost in the storm."

She took a step away from him, but the wind shoved her back. He reached out, and this time she accepted his steadying hand.

"d.a.m.n, d.a.m.n, d.a.m.n," she muttered, mostly to herself. "The least I could have done was ended up on Dr. Glyndwr's doorstep."

Behind her, he cleared his throat. "Yes, well..."

Meredythe closed her eyes and dropped her chin to her chest. How could she be so stupid? Why hadn't she realized who he was when she ran into him the day of the lecture? This couldn't be happening to her. "You're him, aren't you? Dr. Bleddyn Glyndwr?"

Snow was piling up on the doorstep and blowing into the hallway. His hand remained on her arm. "Yes, I am. Please, come in. You'll end up sick if you stay out here."

Shivering, she turned to face him. Stop being stupid, she told herself. He's right. You'll end up dead if you try to walk anywhere in this blizzard. "Okay, I'll come in, but only until it stops snowing. I have a motel reservation."

"Fine," Bleddyn agreed. Once he had her inside, he'd find a way to make her stay. And according to the latest weather report, that wouldn't be too hard. "Anything you say. Just come in and let me close the door."

She stepped forward then stopped. The wind blew her hair over her face and she was forced to use both hands to get it out of her eyes and mouth. Spitting the last curl free, she said, "Oh, I can't, at least not yet. Thuse is in the car. I have to go get him."

Bleddyn c.o.c.ked an eyebrow. "Thuse?"

She shivered so hard a tear trickled down her cheek. "My cat-I mean, my aunt's cat."

At first, Bleddyn simply stared at her. Then he sputtered, "A cat? You brought a cat? Here?"

She flushed and her eyes narrowed. She braced her hand against the doorway as a gust of wind tried to push her inside. "I wasn't planning on stopping here first. If it weren't for this stupid snowstorm, you wouldn't even know I was anywhere near Winterbourne." She pushed herself away and took a step backward.

Like h.e.l.l I wouldn't. Bleddyn caught her arm. d.a.m.ned if she wasn't going to go back out into that storm to get the blasted cat. "Wait. I'll get your cat. You're already soaked.

There's a fire in the study. Come in and get warm."

She stiffened. "You promise you'll get him?"

An exasperated sigh escaped Bleddyn. "I said I would, but not until you come in by the fire." Meredythe allowed him to pull her into the house and close the door. "This way,"

he said as he led her away from the dimly lighted foyer and into a dark hallway. G.o.d, this place is creepy, she thought, trying to see through the shadows lining the walls. Didn't he believe in using electricity?

He looked over his shoulder. "Sorry it's so dark, but the power's out. I've got a generator running, but I use as little electricity as possible when it's on." He stopped and pulled a door open. Light and toasty warmth poured out. With a deep sigh of satisfaction, she stepped into the warm room.

He plowed into her back and had to steady her to keep her from falling when she stopped abruptly. Another shiver racked Meredythe's body, but this one had nothing to do with the cold. She swallowed nervously.

A large gray wolf looked up as they entered the room and rose slowly from her place by the fire. Settling on her haunches, she ran her tongue around her jaw.

Meredythe swallowed again. "That-that's a wolf."

He chuckled and slid past her. Stopping next to the wolf, he turned back to Meredythe. "Her name is Keri."

Meredythe stood absolutely still. Melting snow dripped off her coat to the floor. "You live with a wolf?"

He smiled and his hand strayed to Keri's head. "She won't bite you, I promise. Come, I'll introduce you."

Meredythe edged forward, her mind whirling. She kind of looks like that wolf-dog Sweetie, all white and silver. I guess this guy knows what he's talking about. He is an expert. Another thought leaped to the forefront of her mind. He's got this wolf. Maybe he has a black one too. Maybe he's the guy I'm looking for. He was in New York when the last murder occurred.

She shivered. If Dr. Glyndwr was the murderer, she could be in real danger here. However, she didn't fit the profile of all the other murder victims. Besides, there was no way he'd murder her in his own home, was there? And James knew she was here. So did Aunt Evie. Meredythe looked from the wolf to Dr. Glyndwr. His eyes met hers calmly. What was it about him? She... she trusted him. Deep, deep down, she was absolutely sure he would never hurt her. Why?

A slight smile twitched on his lips. All she could see in his eyes was concern, amus.e.m.e.nt...and a challenge. She glanced down at the wolf, Keri. Her tail thumped against the floor. Okay, what did she have to lose?

Your hand? she thought.

She flexed her stiff, cold fingers and unb.u.t.toned her coat.