Page 58 of Fangs for the Memories
I can’t help but release a blood curdling growl at the mere thought of him speaking with Grace.
“Oh dear,” Viktor says. “You have got it bad.”
“Fuck you. Do what I asked, and find me that vampire.” I stand and stalk past him, sure I can hear him wheezing out a laugh. “And I’m giving you the Géllert to manage,” I add as a final passing aside. “It’s all yours. Make sure it’s Darasz free before you open to the public.”
There’s a problem in having a gargoyle who has known you since you were a pup as your second in command. He knows everything about you.
And it’s impossible to fire a gargoyle.
My driver has already made himself scarce, and I find Grace in the hall, waiting for me. She’s wearing a long, belted coat with a fur collar which sets off her beautiful hair. In her hand is a large tote bag.
The sight of her is enough to settle my unquiet soul. I’ve never liked the scent of minerals which fill the water of the hot springs bubbling up in various places around Budapest. It’s the curse of having such a sensitive nose and reason enough to avoid them.
But if my mate wants to see what Budapest has to offer, she will get her wish.
Grace
Ferenc’s big car whisks us through the snowy streets of Budapest. For the time being, the sky is clear, a faint watery blue, and the ice glitters around us.
Of all the things which were planned before I left the UK, a trip to the famous Seycheni baths was the only thing I was looking forward to. While I am a little disappointed we can’t go, I’m excited for any form of naturally occurring hot spring.
The car executes a couple of swift turns before it ends up in front of a set of innocuous looking wooden gates. Ferenc’s driver gets out and pushes them open, revealing what seems to be a small yard in between two buildings, with a brick wall and rough cliff dead ahead.
It isn’t looking very promising so far, but I tamp down my concerns and resolve to be more patient. The car moves through the gates and the engine is stopped.
“We’re here?” I ask Ferenc.
He nods, hopping out of the car and coming round my side to open the door in an exhibition of old-fashioned manners which means I’m halfway out of it before he arrives. Still, he takes my hand and helps me down with a smile.
Out of the car, the place looks no less nondescript. Save for a large metal door, which looks like it was fashioned in the thirties. It’s this door Ferenc leads me to.
“It’s not more caves, is it?”
“Would I do that to you? I’ve seen enough of them myself to last me a lifetime.” Ferenc grins before fixing his driver with an impressive glare. “Viktor is nearby. Any issues, you know how to contact me.”
He places his hand on a flat pad, and I watch as it’s scanned, the door lock clicking and the entire thing swinging slightly open.
“You take your bathing seriously.”
“I don’t want just anyone using my private baths.” Ferenc chuckles, pushing the heavy door open and ushering me inside.
There is a short passage, hewn out of the rock, but light floods in from the far, end and the sour scent of sulfur hits me.
“Rotten eggs!” I cover my mouth and nose.
“It gets a bit better once we’re out in the courtyard,” Ferenc says, his voice slightly strangled.
I hurry down the passage and out into the bright light caused by the snow all around. It is a courtyard, filled with virgin snow, save for the three large rock pools which steam in the frigid air, the area around them also free of snow and ice.
On three sides, the pools are hemmed in by vertical cliffs, but the fourth is open with a view from the Buda side, across the Danube to Pest. In the weak sun, it’s still magnificent.
“Wow,” I say, mesmerized.
Ferenc stands alongside me.
“I had forgotten how good the view is from here,” he says quietly before looking down at the snow.
“We can get undressed over there.” He points past the first pool to where there is an alcove and a carved stone bench.
