Page 5 of The Healer and the Vampire
Conrad sat in the Café for as long as he could. After an hour and a half, he got up and headed out, not sure if he wasbeing followed or if anyone even noticed his involvement back at the Hotel. It left him anxious and on edge. The last thing he wanted right now was to get on the wrong side of a bunch of paranormals.
He was familiar with the paranormal world, having grown up in Baton Rouge, which held many secrets, as did the surrounding areas. It was a mystical and supernatural landscape, and the rule he learned from an early age was to mind your own business. He was very good at minding his own business.
The pull he'd felt toward the Indigo Hotel had not diminished since he'd been there last. Everything in him was urging him to return. He was pretty sure it had something to do with the handsome man he saw at the desk. He was a vampire. Conrad picked that up from his stance, his movements, and especially his eyes. The man with him was a wolf, which was also obvious considering his build and his habit of tilting his head back to detect scents.
They all had tells if you watch them, and back in Baton Rouge, staying away from the supernatural could keep you alive, so Conrad learned who to fear and who to stay far away from. The paranormals of Eastport were more socialized and seemed to have blended into society, but Conrad wasn't ready to let down his guard.
He had hoped that saving the guy had been Fate's purpose for pushing him to that location, but clearly, there was something else to be discovered there. Honestly, Conrad wasn't sure if he had the will or the strength to go back to the Indigo. The place had been a mad mix of wolf and vampire energies, very powerful and very potent. He needed to get his car and get out of there for a while until he figured out what this all meant.
The parking lot was quiet, which he appreciated, and he could see his car clearly. There was no activity, just a cool late afternoon breeze that brushed the hair back from his face and brought with it a soft scent of amber, warm and spicy. It was one of his favorite scents; it was attractive and relaxing, but he was confused as to where it came from. He was surrounded by parked cars, no place for the lovely aroma of amber to be hiding.
He took several deep breaths and felt his body calm and his muscles relaxed. The tension of the day had left him stiff and sore. The closer he got to his car, the stronger the scent became, wafting around him on the light breeze, tantalizing him.
Suddenly, he stopped about five feet from the back of his car. Something was off, and he should have noticed when he entered the lot, but he was too eager to get to his car and get out of downtown.
Looking around slowly, he began to back up a step at a time. The air was thick with apprehension, and he feared it was already too late to run. In mere seconds, he was surrounded by large men in expensive suits, all with the aura of the paranormal. His day was officially ruined.
They didn't touch him, they drew closer until he was within a circle, and one of them stepped closer, eyeing him like a specimen of some sort, before finally speaking. His voice was low and deliberate, it was all accusation and no sympathy.
"Conrad Lowe, you will come with us." The statement chilled him to the bone. He did not want to go anywhere with these people. If they were anything like those back home, Conrad was in for a very bad experience. His urge to delay and dissuade took over, and he attempted to back away and looked around the lot seeking someone to intervene.
"Why, what have I done?" He barked his frayed nerves on full display, but it was impossible not to be scared. "You have no right to hold me or make demands of me." They stood and silently watched him, not breaking the circle but not touching him either. They were waiting for him to realize he had no choices left. Then another, who had been standing back, stepped through and approached him. This was the handsome man from the lobby.
This man was a vampire, and those surrounding him were a mix of vampires and wolves. The man looked surprised when he saw him, but quickly covered his response and expression. "Come with us, Conrad. We just want to speak with you." He stood close, and Conrad could smell that amazing amber scent that had been tantalizing him. He took a deep breath and stared at the man. He looked to be in his thirties or so, he appeared since vampires could be any age.
“Speak to me here.” Conrad tried to bargain. “I don’t have time, I have to leave.”
"I saw you heal that man." The vampire said without showing judgment or emotion of any kind.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
"Are you going to continue to play this game, or are you going to explain yourself and tell us why you're in Alpha Henrik Vaughn's territory?" One of the wolves shouted, having picked up on the fact that Conrad knew what they were. The handsome vampire intervened and stepped in front of the angry wolf.
This was going from seriously bad to unbelievably worse in record time. The paranormal secret was something they would kill to protect, and that fact sent an ice-cold chill through him. The vampire stepped closer, and Conrad stepped back.
"We want to talk with you." The vampire enunciated. Conrad was aware that that was his last warning or request, and if he did not go with them, he would be forced to go with them. Not in the mood to be manhandled by these men, he nodded and stepped forward, and the circle spread out, giving him room to walk, and they fell into step beside him and behind him.
"Are you a magic, a caster, a witch?" The wolf snapped at him. Conrad felt the wolf's anger, and he recoiled despite himself. He was the same guy who Conrad had seen talking to the vampire at the front desk. They both saw him, no doubt, when he followed that man. It was stupid to involve himself in that man's life when it was so important that he stayed hidden, but he couldn't just let him die.
"No." He left it there; further conversation would just lead to more anger and chaotic explanations. Conrad had been down that road many times, and he finally had learned the fewer words, the better.
The vampire moved up close to him, almost in a protective manner, and Conrad didn't know what to make of it. The others did not hide their distrust of Conrad, which was evident in the side eyes he received and the sneers; they were not happy dealing with him. But the vampire was curious; he wasn't filled with the same suspicions. His countenance, although previously hard, was now softening with concern.
"You'll be fine, just answer our questions." The vampire told him as they made their way across the street and through the garage entrance on the basement floor. They didn't take him into the Hotel for all to see; instead, he was being taken to a private room on the garage level. Conrad suddenly feared for his life, and his heart began to pound out of his chest.
The vampire reached over and gently touched his back. “No one is going to hurt you, Conrad. My name is Remi Toulouse, and those around you are Koa at your left, behind you are Ivan, Reese, and Thomas. We just want to talk to you." He removed his hand, and Conrad missed it immediately. His touch had been comforting, but now, as they approached a metal door with a guard out front, he found his anxiety ratcheting up once again.
"We don't know who you are or what you're capable of, so we take precautions." Koa was the one to explain this time, and some of his anger seemed to have dissipated.
“Yeah, okay, sure.” Conrad was incapable of coherent speech at the moment, with his heart stuck in his throat. The vampire, Remi, might say he was safe, but experience had taught Conrad that paranormals were not friendly or nice or trustworthy. The vampire cut a strange glance over to the wolf named Koa, and suddenly the wolves began to hang back.
He opened the metal door, and they walked in just the two of them. He closed the door behind them. Conrad noticed a large mirror on the wall to his right and realized the wolves were behind the mirror, and it was up to the vampire to interrogate him.
"Sit." He said, and Conrad sat down in one of the two metal, straight-back chairs that faced each other. Remi sat in the other chair. The chairs were the only things in the gray room. The wolf had said they didn't know what to expect from him, so obviously they brought him somewhere secure, a place where he could do little damage if things went south.
Remi had a computer pad and called up a video of Conrad walking across the lobby behind the man who had a heart attack, and it showed him bending and touching the man. The man satup, and Conrad quickly made for the door, trying not to look suspicious as he rushed out the door. He looked suspicious as hell, no wonder the security people clocked him. Conrad shook his head and raised his eyes from the pad to look at Remi.
"What do you want me to say?" Conrad asked softly, and the concern was back. Remi looked at him with dark eyes that searched and pressed to understand. It was several long minutes of silence that left Conrad crawling in his skin, wishing he were anywhere but here. Why did he stop at this Hotel? Why didn't he keep running? His thoughts were getting frantic and useless, he was here and wishing would not change that fact. He had to find a way to survive.
