Riley Jensen 06 - The Darkest Kiss Part 16

"From what I remember, furiously. But about a month after the disappearance, they picked up stakes and left town. We never saw them again."

"And there were no whispers around town about why they might have left?"

"Not that I can remember. But I was a kid, so I'd probably lost interest in the whole situation by then."

Which was one major difference between him, and me and my brother. We would have investigated. I had a nose for trouble, and I hadn't been afraid to use it-as the many scars that scattered my body would attest.

"Has the school photo got names attached?"

"Yep." He looked at me. "You think your Aron Young's recent spate of murders has something to do with this Aron Young's disappearance all those years ago?"

"I have no idea what to think. I don't even know if I have the right Aron Young. Right now, I'm just grabbing at straws."

"If it is him, it's a long time to hold a grudge."

"Maybe he needed time to build up courage." Or strength, perhaps. It couldn't be easy for a ghost to pick up solid objects.

"Is there anyone up in Beechworth who might remember more about the case? Who was the cop on the case?"

"Old Jerry Mayberry was the local cop. He's retired, but still living up there, as far as I know." He gave me a half-smile.

"Haven't been back up there for a while now."

I shifted in my seat and looked at him. "How did your pack react when they realized you were gay?"

"I got more grief from the local kids than I did from the pack." He shrugged. "I think it was a disappointment to my mom, more than anything, because she wanted grandkids. But my sister has had five in the last seven years, so that 's one problem solved."

A little bit of envy swirled through me. Having a whole pack of kids had once been my dream, too. But that was gone forever-well, mostly. I still had viable eggs frozen, but I would never be the one to carry them. "Your sister has five kids? How come we've never met them?" He laughed. "She comes down here to escape the kids, not show them off."

"But I'd love to meet them sometime."

He gave me an amused look. "Spend an hour with that lot, and the whole idea of being a mom will suddenly not seem so alluring. Trust me, they're a handful."

"Kids are. h.e.l.l, I was."

"Imagine you and Rhoan multiplied by about ten. That's how bad they are."

I grinned. "No one can be that bad."

"Okay, so maybe I exaggerate a little." The amus.e.m.e.nt in his expression and the twinkle in his eyes did little to deny the statement. It also showed just how much he loved those kids. "Seeing you're coming back to my place after you pick up your car, you want to stop for some lunch?"

"If you're going to cook it, I'll definitely eat it." My cell phone decided to ring at that precise point, so I added as I reached for it, "At least, I hope I can, if this isn't Jack with another problem."

Unfortunately, it was.

"Riley?" Jack said, as soon as I pressed the receive b.u.t.ton. "We've got another one."

"Man or woman?"

"Woman. Another one of the names in James's Rolodex."

"You know, our murderess seems to be targeting those women as much as the men."

"Which is why I've sent Kade on to the murder scene, and I want you to go talk to Dia. Maybe she can shed some light on what is going on."

It was a big maybe. I liked Dia-a lot-but the information she saw generally tended to be vague, at best. She was far more accurate when it came to personal stuff-which is why I tended to avoid too much hand-to-hand contact whenever we went to coffee or lunch. My life so far had not gone the way I 'd planned, and I didn't want to know that the future would go to s.h.i.t, as well. Not knowing meant I could still hope. Still dream.

But even if she couldn't give us any direct psychic help, she was a part of the Toorak set, so she could at least give me information about the Trollops, as James's secretary had so charmingly called them.

"I've already rung her," Jack continued. "She's not home, but she said she'd meet you at the usual place in half an hour."

The usual place was an out-of-the-way nook in Brunswick that had some of the best coffee I'd ever tasted, and that didn't mind kids running around making noise. Which meant Dia had her daughter, Risa, with her. "I'll drive over as soon as I pick up my car. Did Benson pa.s.s on my question about invisible vampires?"

"Yeah, but I haven't had time to research the database yet. Personally, I never heard of that particular skill in vamps, but it's not like I've been around long enough to meet all the different types."

"But you've been around long enough to be fairly high up the vampire ladder." And considering he'd been a vamp for over eight hundred years, you'd think he would have heard something in that time.

"Yeah, but that ladder is composed mainly of blood vamps, with a few emos scattered here and there. We generally don't get other types of vamps joining."

I raised my eyebrows. "Joining? I was under the impression the hierarchy system was a natural part of being turned. "

Meaning, young suckers started at the bottom of the ladder, and rose through the ranks as they got older and stronger.

"It is for blood vamps. And it was-is-a good method of keeping track of all blood vamps, and ensuring there is no war between the different bloodlines."

I wondered what bloodline Jack had come from-and whether he'd ever created his own fledglings.

Wondered whether Quinn ever had.

He didn't seem the type, but then, what did I really know about either him or his history?

"I still can't see how that works, you know. Vamps are just as hungry for power as everyone else." Probably more so.

"What's to stop someone down the ladder b.u.mping off those ahead?"

"The threat that his or her whole line would be erased."

"So it's not so much a matter of honor and respect, as Quinn said, but rather fear?"

"It often works better than respect." Jack shrugged. "Anyway, there's a database kept of our history-a record, if you like, of the vamps who have lived and died since the hierarchy came into place. I 'll check it for any mention of a line of vamps immune to sunlight. But don't hold out too much hope. I'd imagine such immunity would have been greatly studied had it existed."

Or kept very secret indeed. After all, they wouldn't want humanity knowing there were some branches of vampires who could move around in daylight. Humans had enough trouble dealing with the nighttime versions.

"Once I talk to Dia, I might head over to Vinny's and see what she can tell me." After all, she'd kissed the sucker. Maybe she'd tasted what he was.

"Be careful," Jack said, and hung up.

"Bad news?" Liander asked. "Yeah, looks like I'm going to miss lunch." I shoved my phone back into my pocket. "If you see Rhoan tonight, could you give him the photos? I want to check if there are any other links to that school and Young's disappearance."

"Will do." He paused, turning right into traffic, then said, "So, how badly are Collingwood going to defeat Carlton in this week's match?"

I snorted softly, and we got into yet another argument about the pros and cons of our favorite football teams. It filled the time.

He dropped me off at my car then continued on. I got my keys out of my pocket, but didn't immediately climb into my car.

I walked back down the street and checked whether Young had crept home.

He hadn't-at least, not that I could smell, anyway. Which mightn't have meant anything considering how little I'd caught his scent the first time.

Brunswick was only a ten-minute drive from Glenroy, but by the time I found parking and got to the restaurant, I was a good twenty minutes late. I couldn't see Dia sitting in her usual spot on one of the outside tables, but as I neared the door, little Risa came bounding out of the restaurant and flung herself at my legs.

"'iley!" she yelled, wrapping her tiny arms around my left leg and hanging on with the grip of a boa. "c.o.ke!"

I laughed and picked her up, ignoring the twinge in my shoulder as I spun her around lightly before holding her close. She smelled of soap and powder and warmth, and made me wish again for a child of my own.

"Hey, monkey," I said. "What does your mommy say about you getting c.o.ke?"

Her amazingly bright, violet eyes twinkled with mischief. "Mommy said yes!"

I grinned as I entered the cafe. Dia was in the far corner, sitting in a booth near the large play area the owners had provided for the kids. She was, as usual, both immaculate and stunning. Her hair was a pure whitish-silver that shone with an almost unnatural brilliance, and when combined with the luminous blue of her eyes and the white business suit she wore, she was hard to miss.

Of course, the blue of her eyes wasn't natural, same as her silver hair. Her true hair color was a mix of silver and brown, and her eyes were also naturally brown, ringed by blue.

Dia wasn't only a psychic, but a clone with Helki shapeshifting genes who was able to subtly alter her appearance as easily as I could become a wolf. The silver and blue suited her psychic business better-and enabled her to use her true form when she didn't want to be noticed. Little Risa had obviously picked up her father's coloring, although Dia never talked about him nor was there mention of him on Risa's birth certificate.

Few would have guessed Dia was blind. The sight she did have came through the presence of a creature known as a Fravardin-an unseen guardian spirit who'd been a.s.signed protection duties by her clone brother, Misha. They'd failed in their duty to protect him, but only after a b.l.o.o.d.y battle that had taken many of their lives. After his death, they 'd honored his wishes and continued to protect Dia. When she was outside the house, one of the Fravardin kept close-and by linking lightly to the creature's mind, Dia was able to move with a serenity and grace that denied her handicap. I had no idea where the creature was right now, but given she was looking directly at me, it had to be somewhere close.

"Mommy didn't say yes," she said dryly. "But Riley rarely takes notice of a no, anyway."

"It's only once a week." I slid into the U-shaped booth then placed Risa on the seat beside me. The little girl clambered to her feet and ran around the booth, white pigtails flying as she threw her arms around Dia's neck.

"Love Mommy," she said.

"That child has the world worked out already," I said, swallowing a laugh. "She's going to do just fine when she grows up."

"Oh, yeah." Dia picked her daughter up and swung her over the table. "Go play until the drinks get here."

Risa ran off happily. Dia shook her head, amus.e.m.e.nt and love evident in her expression. "I've already ordered the coffee and cake. What's the problem?"

"I need to know about the Toorak Trollops."

She lifted a pale eyebrow. "How have the Trollops come under Directorate scrutiny? They're basically harmless."

"Yeah, but someone is b.u.mping them off and stealing their ident.i.ties to kill their lovers."

The amus.e.m.e.nt fell from her features. "G.o.d, there's been nothing along the gossip lines suggesting anything like that."

"We've managed to keep the press relatively quiet." They were still concentrating on the dead politician, and I think Jack was hoping to keep it that way. "What can you tell me about them?"

She wrinkled her nose. "They're actually not very nice people."

"Not nice how?"

"It's their att.i.tude. Not only do they treat men as dumb playthings, but they go into relationships simply to see how much they can get out of it. It's become something of a game between them."

I smiled a thanks at the waitress as she brought over three plates of thick banana cake, then said, "I take it you mean gifts and money?"

"But also position. They try to outdo each other when it comes to bed partners."

"So a politician would be prized more than a shoe store owner?"

"Depends on who the politician and the shoe store owner are, but yes." She paused, looking at me steadily for a moment. "So the murder of Gerard James was not political, as the press have been saying?"

"Nope. Bad choice of a bed partner, we think."

She picked up a spoon and scooped up a piece of banana cake, munching on it for several seconds before saying, "I know both Cherry Barnes and Alana Burns were going out with him. Can't say I'd be sorry to see either of them dead and gone."

I raised my eyebrows. "And here I was thinking you got along with everybody."

She snorted softly. "In my line of work, I have to try. Doesn't mean I always succeed. Though if Alana has been murdered, it's odd that I didn't see her death coming."

"So she was a client?"

Dia nodded. "So was Cherry. Neither of them were pleasant customers, so I was thankful the others stayed away."

"What do they come to you for?"

She shrugged. "Usual s.h.i.t. Am I going to find wealth and happiness in my life, that sort of stuff."

The waitress brought over our coffees and a small gla.s.s of c.o.ke. A squeal of happiness erupted from the play area, and a white-headed blur was suddenly scrambling over her mother to get to the soda.

"See what you've done?" Dia said, shaking her head in amus.e.m.e.nt. "She'll be hyper for hours now."

"You say that like it's a bad thing." I grinned as the little girl grabbed the straw and began drinking, a look of pure bliss on her face.

"It is when I have several clients to look after this afternoon. " She shook her head. "I saw Alana two weeks ago. She seemed her normal, aggravating self then."

I hadn't yet read the cleanup team report, but the state of decay suggested Alana had been dead for at least a week- meaning Dia had probably seen her just before she'd died. "So you didn't sense anything odd about her?"

"No." She frowned. "Though with Alana, it was difficult to tell. The self-centered are often hard to read."

"Do you know of anyone who might want to kill her?"

She smiled. "She was certainly never on Cherry's Christmas list."

Dia's tone was dry, and I raised my eyebrows. "So the two of them didn't get along?"

"Cherry was more a wannabe Trollop than an official member. I 'm afraid Alana delighted in proving to Cherry that she would never be one of them, simply because she wasn't good enough to keep her men."