Page 62 of Visions in Blood
I stared, finally understanding.“He didn’t recognize you?”
“It might come to him later.His mind seemed elsewhere, and it was only a brief glance.”
“That’s good, right?”
She shook her head.“You do have a knack for the obvious.”
“And you’re a laugh a minute.Did you see anyone on your way down?”
“There are several people on the first sublevel, one or two on the second, but I sense no one on this level.”
“Let’s not take a chance of someone coming down.We should try one of the doors close to the stairs we used.”
“Agreed.Let’s try the east side.”She led the way, stopping short at the secure door that should lead to the lower levels, assuming the library maps were correct.She pulled out a plastic passkey from a small pocket at her waist.Without waiting for a prayer or words of encouragement, she ran the key over the door pad.
A green light flashed, followed by the sound of the lock disengaging.She pulled open the door, took one step onto the landing, then stopped.
She lifted her head as she’d done the day before, and I swore under my breath.She caught a scent.
Would I ever get lucky with one of these jobs going easy?“The same vamps from yesterday?”
She nodded, and I pulled out my bone-handled dagger, quietly thanking Devon and Sergi for forcing me to learn how to use it.We crept down the stairs, and while I didn’t have the ability to sense anyone or have near as good hearing as Simone, I strained to pick up the slightest sound.Quiet as a tomb they say, and as we reached the first landing, we were now four levels below the surface.This floor was different.No wide-open areas, just hallways honed out of rock—and no light.
I retrieved a penlight, keeping the narrow beam focused on the floor as I followed Simone.She paused at each intersection before quickly moving on.At the third intersection, she turned left then right before stopping two doors down.
I moved the beam of light to the door and then around the doorframe.The sign confirmed we’d reached the restoration area, and the only thing preventing us from entering, assuming the door was locked, was a traditional door that needed a good old-fashioned key.Thank heavens for small favors.Simone tried the door to confirm it was locked.
I held the light in my mouth as I pulled out my lockpicks.In less than thirty seconds, the door opened.I moved back to let Simone enter first.Once I’d closed the door behind us, the room blossomed in light, blinding me after the darkness of the halls.
These vamps never failed to surprise.The halls were taken straight from one of Sergi’s favorite Bela Lugosi flicks, minus the cobwebs, but in here, state-of-the-art technology dripped from every corner.Stainless steel cabinets and counters lined two of the walls, and the floor was spotless concrete.Ten long rows of tables occupied the center of the room and seemed to stretch forever.Each table housed clear storage boxes which held various items—ancient manuscripts, scrolls, paintings, books, and other miscellaneous artifacts.I stopped in front of the first box.Seals and locks kept the items safe and snug in what appeared to be automatically regulated environments.Displays showed temperatures, humidity levels, and other measurements that meant nothing to me.
“You start here and move right; I’ll take the left side.”Simone prowled the aisles, only stopping at the displays with books and only long enough to check titles.
I followed her pattern, moving down each aisle before moving to the next.There were thirty tables per row, and though most of the artifacts were books, it didn’t take long to reach our conclusion.
The book we sought wasn’t here.
ChapterTwenty-Three
When the twoof us met back at the main door, the tip of Simone’s fangs showed.“Tell me again why we couldn’t have done this yesterday while we were alone in the library, rather than creating an elaborate ruse for no reason.”Simone had been chafing to go home after the second day in L.A.She had become accustomed to living at Oasis, and more than a day or two away always made her testy.
“It was exactly because we were alone that we couldn’t.Without spending a couple of weeks here, we have no idea how often they have staff in this room, and we’d prefer no one noticing the book missing after we’ve taken it.That means, no one can know we were looking for it.”
Her response was a fang-filled scowl.“The note clearly stated the book would be here.”
“Do you detect our vamp friends being in here?”
She shook her head.“Could there be another room?”
“Maybe.The map only showed one, but maybe it was more representative of the area and not that it was all in one room.”
“I need to check the rest of this floor and the ones below.”
I didn’t like it, but she was right.Something was off about the whole thing.We couldn’t leave until we checked everything.“All right.Let’s go.”
“I can move faster without you.If I find anything that might be another restoration room, I’ll come back for you.”She nodded to the far side of the room.“That looks like it might be an office.Maybe you can find something there.”
I nodded and glanced the direction she pointed, grateful I wouldn’t have to sneak around if the other vamps were still here.When I turned back, she was gone.“And good luck to you too.”My grumbling wouldn’t do any good, so I strode to the office, glancing around a second time for cameras or any other security but didn’t spot anything.The office door wasn’t locked.
