The vampire motioned toward the elevator and I turned to see the doors open, and two giant thugs stepped out. “Please escort Miss Baker to the room that has been prepared for her, and escort Mr. MacInnes back to his room as well. They are not to be harmed in any way, or you will answer to me.”
Mac and I entered the elevator, and I clung to his hand like a nervous child. Everyone was silent during the short ride, and then the doors opened to reveal a hallway decorated in warm earth tones, lined with doors on each side and the occasional decorative potted plant.
“This way, Miss Baker,” one of the thugs intoned.
I hugged Mac and whispered, “Love you, hon. I’ll see you later.” Mac gave me a weak smile in return, and then I stepped out into the hallway. The thug led me down a maze of halls until he finally stopped in front of a nondescript door and opened it, ushering me through. Once I was safely inside he shut the door behind me, leaving me alone. Though I had a feeling the effort was futile, I checked to see if the door was locked. Of course it was.
I stood in a short hallway that angled off a few steps away from me. Compared to the cold, barren feeling of Harrison’s office, this décor was much more my style-cream wallpaper adorned the walls and the rich burgundy carpet was so thick and plush my shoes instantly sank into it. I looked down at my muddy white sneakers and scowled. With one hand leaning against the locked door for balance, I toed both shoes off and then tugged the damp socks off afterwards. My toes wriggled happily in the unfamiliar feeling of clean, new carpeting, and I walked forward to explore the place further. After the bend the hallway opened up into an enormous room.
“Lord and Lady.” I whistled, impressed. Off to my left was a bar, an honest-to-goodness bar stocked with a variety of glasses and bottles of expensive liquor, with three barstools lined up in front of the highly polished dark wood. To my right was a round dining table with four chairs around it, and the room stretched out past the table to include a sitting area with couches, tables and a ginormous flat-screen television hung on the wall. A door across from me led into what I assumed must be another room, and I headed toward it.
The bedroom was also huge, complete with an orgy-sized bed like the one I had in my room in Castle Silverleaf, though this was a much more modern design. The headboard was the same glossy dark wood as the bar and tables in the previous room, and a mountain of pillows were arranged at the head of the bed. An overstuffed easy chair sat in the corner with a table and reading lamp next to it, and there was even a bookcase along the wall next to it. Curious, I crossed to it and examined the titles. They were all books I owned, an eclectic array of the works of my favorite authors. I frowned, concerned. How long had the vamps been planning my stay here? Since they nabbed Mac? Since the moment they heard of my father’s death? I supposed it wouldn’t be too difficult to find out my reading habits, they only needed to look at the history of my credit card, and that would be a ridiculously simple task for someone like Zachary Harrison.
On to the next room, I decided. The next door was to the right of the door back to the sitting room, and it led to a walk-in closet complete with dressing table and a lighted mirror that took up a good portion of the wall. I jumped, startled by my bedraggled appearance-rain and my hair do not mix well. In the reflection of the mirror I spotted clothes filling the racks behind me. I was willing to bet they were all my size too-there seemed to be a running theme with people feeling the need to makeover my wardrobe. First the faeries, now the vampires. Frowning, I opened one of the drawers and discovered a rainbow of satiny, lacy undergarments.
“Not a chance.” I shook my head firmly and slammed the drawer shut.
An assortment of perfume bottles and cosmetics I didn’t recognize were spread across the top of the dressing table-I don’t generally wear makeup either. I guess I’m just bad at being a girl. I sniffed in their direction and sneezed at the floral mess that assaulted me. Yuck. No way I was touching any of those.
I was willing to bet the door on the other side of the closet connected to the master bathroom, and I confirmed my suspicions the moment I opened it. This was nothing like the one in my apartment, oh no. The room was like having your own personal spa. A marble Jacuzzi tub took up one corner of the room, there was not one but two sinks, and a shower area-I hesitated to call it a stall, it was simply too large-complete with a zillion water jets guaranteed to spray you from every conceivable angle. More bottles of obviously feminine things I had no knowledge of lined the counter of the sink closest to the tub.
Apparently being imprisoned in the head Dracula’s tower wasn’t going to be as bad as I thought. Probably a good thing, considering I was going to be here for about two weeks. I decided to test Harrison’s claim that the place was faerie warded. I called out Portia’s name several times, to no avail. I walked over to a mirror and examined it. I wasn’t sure if there were any sharp implements about to cut myself with, but then again the place was filled with beauty products, there had to be some clippers or scissors or a razor somewhere.
For several minutes I searched through the bathroom drawers, increasingly appalled by the sheer enormity of the items stored within them. Did women really use all of this stuff? Finally I found a petite pair of silver scissors in a drawer full of nail polish, and I sliced a small cut into the palm of my right hand. Holding my palm flat against the glass, I chanted an invocation:
“Through ward and steel I punch this door,
A portal to home create once more.
With blood as key, to set me free,
As I will, so mote it be.”
The image shimmered with a faint, anemic glow and then returned to normal. I swore at it loudly and soundly before washing my hands in defeat. It looked like I was good and stuck.
Damn vampires.
Chapter Sixteen
I thought that I would be much too paranoid to let myself fall asleep in Vampire Central, but as soon as my head hit the pillow I passed out. Admittedly the combination of a relaxing shower, a feast of gourmet food, the softest most comfortable pair of pajamas in the continental United States, and Casablanca on DVD might have contributed to my sleepy state.
I drifted into the dream, the transition from sleep smooth and pleasant. The grass was cool and damp beneath my bare feet as I walked into the center of the grove. Soft moonlight pushed back the shadows that lurked between the surrounding trees, and lazy fireflies pulsed on the summer breeze. I felt calm, serene. Powerful. As I smoothed the skirt of my robes the first note of warning chimed in the back of my brain, reminding me that I’d never be caught dead in a set of long, flowing robes while awake, not even if they were a very complimentary shade of emerald green.
Frowning in confusion, I studied my surroundings again, looking for any familiarity, and an approaching rustle of leaves caught my attention. I turned in the direction of the sound, and my heart leapt at the sight of Lex walking toward me. He’d been spared the indignity of dorky wizard robes, but not given the benefit of a shirt-not that I was about to complain about that detail-wearing only a pair of black leather pants.
Apparently this was going to be a good dream.
Without a word Lex drew me into his arms and gave me a long, lingering kiss. When he pulled away, he gazed down at me. “Where are you, Cat?” Confused, I glanced around at the unfamiliar setting. “No, not here. Where did the vampires take you?”