Page 25 of Sleeping With the Vampire

“Don’t tell anyone what I said,” she said, sounding scared.

“I won’t,” I said. But I had to wonder why she would be so fearful just telling me what she’d seen.

I went back to our rooms, by which time, dawn was already breaking. I was tired, it had been an exhausting night, but as I was about to go in, I noticed a big, black car standing in the streets. The lights were on and the engine was idling. It seemed to be waiting for something.

Or someone.

As I watched, the window came down and a female voice called out to me.

“Miss Bonnici?”

I carefully walked closer.

The door opened and the voice again came from inside. “Could I speak to you for a moment?”

I hesitated.

“It is perfectly safe, I assure you.”

Something about the voice reassured me and I came closer, peering into the dark interior before getting in. I saw the profile of a woman in the back. She was tall and expensively clothed. Her hair was short and white and the face was remarkable and noble. She was elderly, yet an aura of beauty and nobility surrounded her.

I immediately knew this was Councilor Lare. I also realized that she was a Beauty, which I had been unaware of until now.

As soon as I got into the car, the door closed behind me. I sat down on the seat across from the councilor, noting that the partition between the driver and us was up and shut solid. We had complete privacy.

“Thank you for meeting me like this, I understand that you must be apprehensive,” she said in a melodious voice.

“It is an honor for me to meet you,” I said. “I have heard so much about you.”

“Indeed,” she said, with a short laugh. “As I have heard about you.”

I wondered what she meant.

“Dominic told me about your meeting. I thought maybe I could help you.”

“Help me? How?” I was intrigued.

She folded her long, slim hands in her lap and gazed out the window.

“My time here is coming to an end,” she then said, in a faraway voice. “I have only served on the Council for ten years, but it has felt like so much more. I have lost count of the attempts on my life or the times I’ve been outvoted or manipulated.”

“Sounds terrible,” I said.

She sighed. “It is the life of a councilor, I’m afraid. Having to rule, to make the decisions that affect all under us, is no mean feat. And not everyone is happy with the outcomes. Someone always feels slighted or hard-done-by.”

She took a breath. “I am a medium but I also happen to be a Beauty, as you no doubt know. That is why I was selected for the position. As you know, a Beauty is not only attractive and pleasant to deal with and a good communicator, but we also absorb negativity and have the ability to transform negative forces into positive energy.”

“Not all of us,” I interjected. My own abilities in this particular area were sorely lacking.

She laughed, a musical sound that was lovely to hear.

“If you wanted to, though, you could develop that part of your character. It could come in handy.”

My mother had tried, I remember, but I had always preferred to be with my father, preferring his world of action and exercise to my mother’s greenhouse with the orchids and the ferns, the sound of dripping water, which always made me drowsy.

“You said you could help me?”

She smiled at my impatience. “You have great potential, Isabella,” she said. I didn’t like her using my full name. “Being both Guard and Beauty makes you strong as well as kind, you can make the peace and keep it.” She paused. “But you will have to choose soon, and I fear you don’t know what it is you’re choosing.”

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