Summit at Sunset (Sunset Vampire #3) - Page 7
By midmorning the following day, misery seemed to prevail throughout the conference. Once again, Katrina was stuck in a room full of vampires who were either disgruntled with the agenda or frustrated that their peers bickered over minor details. She glanced sidelong at Alton, noticing the stately vampire's jaw was firmly set as yet another disagreement between two participants threatened to turn personal. It took everything she had to curtail the weary sigh building inside her.
Meanwhile, Caleb sat alone in the lobby, upset that his trip to Europe was neither memorable nor enjoyable, even as his fellow visiting humans seemed to be blissfully engaged in what he coined "tourist mode." His body still felt quite sore and achy, though the affects of Katrina's blood had done him justice, and he felt much better than the day before. His mood wasn't helped any by an email he had read in his college mailbox from the President, Dr. Patrick Beaumont, regarding the upcoming fiscal year's budget.
Dr. Beaumont suggested that by the first of July there was a real threat of employee furloughs and layoffs for the upcoming fall semester. The email mentioned that final budget information was forthcoming later that week. Caleb hoped it didn't come to layoffs. He was one of the newest faculty hired at the College and might find his position on the cutting block.
By midafternoon, Dori stopped by to inform Caleb that she was collecting additional information, which she hoped would be helpful to their investigations. However, she was still very hedgy about the nature of her sources. It wasn't long before he grew frustrated sitting in the lobby trying to distract his dark thoughts by thumbing through a biography on James Madison, waiting fruitlessly for something noteworthy to occur. He popped up off the couch and proceeded outside for a walk, hoping the scenic surroundings and fresh air would improve his disposition.
Paige sat in the security office feeling bored while taking a shift at the video surveillance monitoring station. Upon spying the lobby camera view of Caleb going outside from his perch, she smirked.
That's right, kiddo. Get outside into the sunshine for a while. Being a spy isn't so glamorous, is it?
Part of her hoped that he would give up his unhealthy fixation with Baldar Dubravko. As she lamented her own situation, her favorite vampire physician walked in the door to the office with an inviting smile and bearing two large Styrofoam cups.
"Greetings, fellow servant of the people," Ethan grandly offered with a sparkle in his eyes.
He placed a sealed cup onto the desk before Paige while sipping from his own. The aroma from his coffee wafted her direction as she studied the sealed cup before her.
"What's this?" she asked, popping open the plastic lid. The smell of warm blood quickly assailed her sense of smell, making her mouth water slightly.
"Just thought I'd stop by and say hello," he said. "And I didn't want to come empty-handed."
She sipped at the warm blood, savoring the flavor. She hadn't fed regularly in recent days with all of the additional duties the major had foisted upon her.
"Oh, that's good," she complimented with a satisfied tone. "Thanks for not bringing me coffee."
He inclined his head and idly chatted with her for a few minutes. In fact, she could have sworn that he was openly flirting with her. Not that she minded, of course. But while she appreciated the company of such a charming and attractive vampire, she momentarily considered her stuffy supervisor.
"You're sweet, but I'm not really supposed to have visitors dropping by," she noted.
"Me? I'm not a visitor," he countered. "I'm a peer, a fellow employee. This is just your run-of-the-mill water cooler chit-chat."
She appreciated his quick wit and raised an apprising eyebrow. His lean-muscled body was sculpted in a manner that any woman could appreciate. She absently imagined tracing her finger across and down his bare chest.
Ethan idly chatted for a few minutes about his day, albeit with the sound of a man who wasn't quite sure of how to broach a topic. Paige couldn't help thinking that he was working on an angle to ask her out.
Would I or wouldn't I say yes? she wondered.
As if on cue, and with the poor timing that only she could have predicted as of late, the major stalked through the office door. He quickly panned the room, only to adopt a stern expression as he noted the doctor's presence. She had seen that look before.
"So, I'd appreciate your consideration of a sturdier lock on the prescriptions cabinet in my examining room," Ethan spoke up as if finishing the topic. "Not that we've had any problems, mind you, but I've worked in hospitals where even some of the staff were tempted. And what with the increasing prices of prescription drugs today…"
"Sure, sure," Paige smoothly replied. "I'll look into that for you."
She admired Ethan's quick thinking.
The major suspiciously regarded them.
"Well, I'll be going then," Reynolds said. "Have a great day," he offered with a friendly tone to Major Pietari as he walked past him to exit.
"Problems?" Pietari queried.
"I think I can handle it," she said.
At least, I'd sure as hell like to try, she slyly entertained as the major continued into his office.
She studied her monitor as one of the surveillance windows displayed the handsome Ethan Reynolds walking back to his office. She couldn't help but smile.
Later that afternoon, Caleb's mood had improved slightly as he appreciated the beautiful forested mountain scenery around him. He discovered a couple of small walking trails leading into the nearby forest and took one on a whim. After only ten minutes, his cell phone rang, and he noticed that the number was from his college.
"Hello?" he asked.
"Caleb? Hi, this is Paul," the friendly voice offered.
Dr. Paul Wright was Dean of Social Sciences, namely, Caleb's division. He got along great with Paul and appreciated the casual, first-name basis they were on since he had first started. Paul was a favored person around the College, and a great dean. However, given the earlier email Caleb read that day, he had a sinking feeling that the call wasn't strictly a social one. A queasy feeling formed in the pit of his stomach.
"Hi, Paul. What's up?" he offered in a friendly tone despite his misgivings.
"Uh, Caleb, I know you're in Europe and everything," Paul began with a rueful tone. "I would've waited to see you in person, but I felt that I needed to let you know as soon as possible. You may not have seen a message from President Beaumont that went out two days ago -"
"Yeah," Caleb interrupted, "I just saw it this morning when I was checking messages. Doesn't sound too good for budgets this year, does it?"
"Well, uh, no, not really, Caleb," Paul hesitantly replied in an uncharacteristic manner. "Actually, that's why I'm calling. Listen, there's still a lot that could happen between now and fall, but…"
Caleb thought he was going to throw up. "Looking like layoffs, isn't it?"
The pause that followed was nearly painful to him.
"Yeah, Caleb, I'm afraid it is," Paul conceded. "Each division had to select some potential staff for layoffs based upon seniority, you see, and well, I had to add your name for our department. I'm really sorry, Caleb. Listen, it's not for certain yet-"
"But likely, isn't it?" Caleb pressed.
"Yeah, it's looking that way," Paul said. "Believe me, it's nothing personal and certainly not a reflection on your performance. You're one of my best, Caleb; your enthusiasm's made quite an impact on the students, as well as your peers. It's just, well, it's just a damned shame. And, hell, I just thought you deserved to know where things stand."
Caleb's mind raced as he felt his future spiraling into uncertainty.
"Any idea when you'll know for sure?"
"Probably the next couple of days, I think. Listen, I probably shouldn't have called you about this."
"I won't tell anyone, Paul. Besides, it means a lot that you'd warn me. You've been really great, so no matter what happens I'll always appreciate all you've done for me."
Paul swallowed aloud.
"Dammit with this seniority crap. Believe me, there's a couple of burnouts around here that I'd much rather see retire instead of letting fresh talent go."
"Ah, the tenure conundrum rears its ugly head."
Paul chuckled. "You'd valiantly jest in the face of a hurricane, wouldn't you?"
Caleb's tight-lipped expression demonstrated otherwise. He just hated the idea of Paul's being riddled with guilt over the situation. It's not his fault, after all.
"Someone once told me that even if you don't have control over what happens to you, at least you have control over how you choose to react to it," Caleb offered.
"You're wiser than your years," the dean quietly offered.
Caleb shrugged. "I dunno about that. But listen, will you do me a favor?"
"Sure, if I can," he replied.
"Call me the minute you know something for sure, okay?"
"You got it. It's the least I can do," Paul promised.
The two said goodbye, and Caleb fell into a daze as he contemplated how both the trip and his personal career seemed to be going to hell all at the same time. His mood quickly grew dour, and he wandered into the forest while considering a host of prospective options for his uncertain future.
As he walked through the serene forest appreciating nature's own form of silence, the surroundings complemented his reflective mind. However, it also seemed lonely and added to his sense of melancholy. The sun had nearly set, and all that remained was a reddish-orange spectrum on the horizon, which seemed analogous to the sun's setting on what was his burgeoning career in academia.
Though the light was fading, it was still ambient enough to see where he was walking. He wondered what alternate paths he might soon be compelled to walk in life, as well.
Will they be lit well enough for me to see them?
After a time, he stopped in the middle of a small clearing. A couple of large trees appeared to have fallen against some of their neighbors, creating the small open area. It was peaceful, and the fallen trees reminded him of how things seemed to be going in his own life lately.
I'm practically ignored by Kat given the conference issues, he bitterly determined. Now, the career I've barely started might be cut short just days from now. Damn.
He stood as still as a statue, shallowly breathing in an almost trancelike state and contemplated the situation he might face upon returning home from the Slovenian conference. He felt so powerless over his circumstances, having no influence over the fiscal conditions affecting his college or the final staffing decisions to be made. While his confidence in the leadership at the College was strong, he also realized that unsavory decisions sometimes couldn't be avoided, no matter the good intentions of the decision makers.
What will be, will be, he conceded with resignation. It wasn't the first time that he had faced undesirable prospects.
His mind snapped back to the present upon hearing a shuffling sound behind him, like some animal walking past a bush. Then a small, snapping sound followed, and his muscles tensed. He slowly turned to his left while gazing around the area with a frown. After turning nearly completely around, his eyes settled on Paige.
She wore a pair of faded blue jeans and short-sleeved Interpol rock concert t-shirt. Curiously, the shirt had a black and red image of a deer in a forest being watched by a camera. As she casually leaned against a tree trunk staring at him while snapping a thin length of tree branch into smaller pieces, he found the image on her t-shirt somewhat ironic for his circumstances. Of course, he was playing the part of the deer.
Her bright blue eyes stared back at him with a piercing intensity, which he found slightly unnerving.
"Trying to be subtle. Didn't want to scare you," she offered.
"You? Subtle?"
"Whatcha up to, tiger?" she asked, ignoring his sarcasm.
"Just taking a walk and thinking," he replied while folding his arms before him.
"Saw you take a walk on the video cameras earlier. But then you disappeared from around the complex, and nobody knew where you went. Kind of worried me," she said, noting his body language. "So, I had just enough time to change outta the stupid khakis and sport coat before sunset and figured I'd come looking for ya," she added.
"Thanks," he replied.
Of course, the fact that Paige is here and not Kat means my mate is blissfully unaware of the development.
Paige noted his dark mood and absently dropped the remaining pieces of branch to the ground.
"Shouldn't be out in the woods alone," she mildly chastised. "It's almost dark, and there are wolves around, you know."
He's seriously troubled over something.
"Yeah, well I haven't seen any. So, I'm feeling pretty safe right now."
The edges of her mouth upturned slightly as she adopted a fully-upright stance and playfully corrected him, "No wolves? I'm a bit of a wolf, remember? In fact, after I acquired a general idea of where you went, I tracked you here by your scent, Mister Rabbit."
He smirked at her comment, recalling a happier time just months ago when they had analogized her as a wolf and him as a rabbit.
"Ah, but don't forget, you're a friendly one, Miss Wolf," he fondly recollected. Then the fleeting moment faded as the recent, disappointing phone call replayed in his mind.
Paige's eyes flashed for a second before returning to their previous state, and she took two subtle steps in his direction.
Time to have some fun with him.
"Me? I'm not a friendly wolf, kiddo. I'm only friendly to you because I want to be," she clarified in a deliberately ominous voice. "We're predators, remember? I get really unfriendly when the mood strikes me."
He was unsettled by her suddenly edgy demeanor, but anticipated that she was just trying to distract him. Instead, her comment only increased his chagrin over his current situation.
"Tell me about it," he muttered while turning his back on her. "You vampires get all interested and friendly, and then suddenly you disappear or turn off like a damned light switch. And frankly, it just pisses me off."
"Hey, what gives?"
"Aw, crap. Just leave me alone, Paige," he fumed. He wasn't in the mood to play games.
She was completely taken aback by his retort and froze in her tracks as her mind raced to understand.
What the hell? Is it something I did?
She noted the tension in his body language and the fact that he had turned his back on her.
Okay then, rejection. Problems with the old lady maybe? But that's not all, I'd wager.
"Well, I'm here now. So why not talk to me?" she invited in a friendlier tone, all pretense of playing with him put aside for the moment.
Big sister's on duty now.
He shook his head and walked a few steps away to sit on the edge of one of the large, fallen tree trunks. While he kept his arms folded before him, his eyes softened somewhat as he looked at her.
"Never mind," he said. "You've got enough on your plate right now."
She shook her head.
Once again, tiger, you're trying to shoulder everything yourself.
Perching beside him, she placed a supportive arm across his shoulders. At first his muscles were tight, but then she felt him relax somewhat. She used her free hand to reach up and turn his face towards hers, insisting, "Hey, I'm your babysitter, your surrogate vampire. Talk to me, kiddo. Spill."
He stared back at her as darkness continued to fall around them. Then he shrugged.
"Well, first, Kat's been so distant with the conference distractions. Of course, that's when she's actually in the room. Most of the time, I never even see her. She's obsessing over Alton's latest project."
Paige remained silent as she lightly ran the tips of her fingernails across his shoulders.
It's a pretty big project, too, something not tried at this scale before. In the vampire world, this is "big time."
"And I got a phone call today," he continued. "It was from Dean Wright at the college. He said that the way the budget's looking, I may not have my faculty contract renewed in July."
Her eyes widened with surprise, and she began to realize how both of the things he mentioned were culminating to generate his bad mood.
He loves teaching.
"Okay, that's bad, I'll admit," she conceded while pulling him to her in a side-hug. "But it's not the end of the world. There are other teaching positions out there. Time to go job hunting. I mean, you nailed the position at your current college. You can do it again."
He incredulously stared back at her.
"You have no idea what you're even saying," he corrected with exasperation. "Do you know how lucky I was to land the job at the college in the first place? Think about it, Paige, isn't it a little strange that I'm a twenty-six-year-old straight out of graduate school, and yet I'm a full-time college professor? That just doesn't happen in the real world. Listen, it sucks to admit this, but I wasn't exactly their first choice on the hiring list."
Her eyebrow rose with surprise. "You weren't?"
He looked away. "No, I was at the bottom of their list of finalists. Of the four finalists, I was fourth."
"So, what happened there, then?" she asked.
He paused. "Dean Wright was pretty candid with me after I was hired. He said their first choice got a better counter-offer from another college. The second guy didn't like the salary range, and the third candidate didn't pass the pre-hiring drug test. So, that only left me. It sounds like I was just a name to pad out the finalist's sheet. Although I think Paul told me the story right off so I'd buckle down from the start. Yeah, as if I needed any incentive to do that."
Okay, that's pretty surprising, Paige admitted. Not that it changes my opinion about him, though.
"Does Katrina know that?" she asked in a quiet voice.
"Are you kidding?" he chortled. "It's not something you go bragging about to your five-hundred-year-old, supermodel-looking, successful vampire-mate, now, is it?"
She winced at the pain evident in his voice and immediately regretted asking. Her mind searched for the right thing to say, but all she managed to do was increase her grip around his shoulders and hug him closer to her.
I wish I could fix this, but it's a little out of my league. It's not like I can just bleed dry the people who fire him, right?
Then she evilly smiled before discarding the idea altogether.
"Red's not going to think badly about you," she reassured him. "Hell, she loves you more than life itself, and I should know. What I'm trying to say is it doesn't matter in the end whether you're a professor or a window-washer. She loves you, the same as I do."
He peered into her bright blue eyes and noted her sincere look of sympathy. The edges of his mouth upturned slightly, and then his lips pressed together into a fine line again.
"But you see, it does matter," he insisted. "It matters to me. Being a professor was the one thing I could claim as my own special talent, my own niche in life. Soon, that may be gone too."
"Listen, if it's about the money…"
"And yeah, it's also about the money," he interrupted. "Geez, I'm already feeling inferior that she pays for these trips we take. Then I don't even pay more than the cost of groceries at the estate. Hell, if I lose my job, I'll be complete dead-weight!"
She couldn't help smiling a little bit at his retort, which he found infuriating.
"Just what's so damned funny?" he demanded.
Her expression turned serious. "Listen, tiger, I don't know if you've given it any thought or not, but a five-hundred-year-old vampire has had a lot of time to build up a nest egg. And consider that Alton, 'Mister Capitalism' himself, was her mentor. Doesn't a little light bulb pop on in your head? I mean, look, I'm only about a century old, and I'm doing okay, if you know what I mean. Thanks to some financial tips from Katrina, of course."
He appreciated all of that, but it really didn't help to alter his feelings over the matter. In fact, it made him feel a little worse.
"Well, yeah, I see a light bulb coming on," he sarcastically replied. "And it indicates that what little means I had to make my own way is about to go away. So, now I'm supposed to just completely mooch off all the wealthy vampires in my life?"
Paige's eyes flared with anger, and she popped him on the back of his head with the flat of her hand in a manner that nearly knocked him off the tree trunk.
"Hey!" he barked. "Take it easy!"
But instead of apologizing, she stood up before him and glared back at him.
"You — You're just so full of crap, Caleb!" she admonished. "Do you think that you're worth is in any way balanced by your ability to pay your own way? Let me tell you something, twerp, you're being an idiot!"
He started to jump up from the log, but she moved in a blur and pushed him back onto the trunk.
"Dammit, Paige!" he shouted back at her while barely catching his balance from falling backwards. The effort twisted his still-achy back somewhat, causing him to wince slightly.
"No! You listen to me now," Paige demanded. "Money is just a means to us, a necessary facet. It's all just material stuff. It makes life easier. But it's not what we're about, Caleb. We're mostly about the blood, and, trust me, you've got some good tastin' blood for a human."
Her mind easily recalled the smell and taste of his blood when she had helped heal his chest wound just prior to last Christmas. It had taken all her control not to drain him dry, actually. He tasted amazing to her.
His eyes suspiciously narrowed. "Just what the hell do you mean by that?"
She adopted an almost cruel expression and paused for a moment to consider him.
Time for a way-overdue dose of reality, young one.
"That wonderful red stuff running through your veins right now means more to a vampire than a truckload of money," she pressed. "But it's more than that. With you, Katrina gets a mate. She gets your love, your body, your devotion, your companionship, and your blood. Don't judge us by conventional human values or goals. Money has no motivation for Katrina, or to me, for that matter. Hell, her savings practically compounds itself faster than you could ever spend it."
He blinked with surprise, his mind trying to process everything that she was telling him. His heart raced in his chest as he tried to make sense of it all. Meanwhile, she crossed her arms in front of her and silently stared at him as if watching time pass before her eyes.
I just don't want to be a mooch, he fumed.
"Okay, so maybe I didn't realize everything," he stammered. "I just felt -"
"…sorry for yourself," she interrupted him.
His mouth snapped shut, and he looked away.
Maybe a little bit, he conceded.
"I just want to be useful for something," he absently whispered. "I want to contribute."
Her temper had abated somewhat, though she observed him with narrowed eyes before reaching out to grasp him firmly by the upper arm. He took notice of her hand before looking back into her eyes, which he gratefully noticed were no longer glowing.
"Your worth is determined by who you are as a mate, friend, and companion," she stipulated. "Not by your bank account, credit score, career, or job title. There may come a day when all that would be useless to your circumstances anyway."
He was taken aback by her comment and pressed, "What does that mean?"
"Play your cards right, and you may find yourself a little more than human someday," she alluded.
His eyes widened at the mention of a forbidden topic between him and Katrina, one of the seven all-important rules he had promised to uphold.
But it's not a forbidden topic between Paige and me, he realized.
"You mean, I may actually be turned," he ventured out loud.
Turned into a vampire.
Paige's mood abruptly shifted from intense to off-handed, and she merely shrugged.
"Who knows," she equivocated. "It's not something that's been discussed with me. But you never know, I suppose."
Not my place to offer, she silently berated herself. He belongs to Katrina, not me. The latter realization generated a momentary pang of both regret and longing in her.
A series of silent moments passed between them, and he realized just how dark the forest had become while they argued. If not for Paige's pale skin, he might lose sight of her in her dark clothes. Most of the nearby trees were merely dark images around them. It was a little unnerving, and he was suddenly grateful for her proximity.
"Listen, I didn't mean to piss you off," he offered with resignation. "I'm just an idiot sometimes, like you said."
She sighed. "Yeah, well, I didn't mean to belittle your circumstances, I suppose. Just grow up a little bit, will you, tiger?"
"Yeah," he acknowledged with a nod. "I get it."
She flirtatiously smiled and added, "But don't grow up too much, okay? I like a little occasional immaturity in my men. Keeps you playful."
He rolled his eyes and shook his head.
"I'm just sayin'," she added, sensing his mood improve by the moment.
"Whatever," he countered in his best Valley Boy impression.
She effortlessly watched him in the darkness with her vampire-enhanced vision and felt encouraged.
"Friends?" she softly asked.
The hint of a smile formed on his lips, and he nodded.
"Friends."
She slowly moved forwards and embraced him in a tender hug, perching her chin atop his shoulder. He wrapped his arms around her and appreciated both their closeness and the closure of their argument. Then she turned her face towards him and pressed her soft lips against the skin of his cheek in a gentle kiss.
"You mean a lot to me," she tenderly whispered. "Love you, kiddo."
He sincerely whispered, "Love you too, Paige."
A warm feeling passed through him, and he momentarily wished that a similar experience could be shared between him and Katrina again soon.
One problem at a time, he resigned.
"Don't say anything to Kat about this layoff stuff, okay?" he stipulated. "It's not completely a done deal yet."
"Sure," she conceded, though she wasn't left feeling very hopeful.
It really doesn't sound good for the poor kid.
After a couple of moments, she gently disengaged from their embrace. She playfully patted her hands against his body in a rapid flurry of slaps, demanding, "Okay, you moonlight-groper, back to the hotel already."
"Yeah, probably a good idea," he agreed and headed into the trees to their right.
Unfortunately, he was going in the wrong direction. Paige shook her head with disgust and darted forwards. She grasped him by the hand, pulling him after her as she stomped headfirst into the forest in a completely different direction.
"Come on, Daniel Boone, let's get you back to civilization," she half-teased, half-admonished.
As they walked among the trees, a wolf howled in the distance.
"Hey, that's a wolf," he said with surprise.
"See? Told you," she muttered with satisfaction.
By the time they returned to the hotel, it was rather late in the evening. Paige agreed to sit with him while he ate dinner in the main dining room, during which time she noted something odd. The few human patrons in the room furtively glanced at Caleb, and some whispered to each other after doing so.
She carefully listened in on some comments from nearby people and discovered that one patron viewed Caleb and Dori's recent experiences with the local police negatively. Another comment suggested they had brought it on themselves. It took her practiced sense of control not to rush over to give the person an earful over that.
"Not real popular lately, are you, kiddo?" she asked before sipping from a glass of Coke, which she intended to exchange for a mug of warm blood sometime soon because her formerly ignored hunger was approaching an unpleasant level.
He looked up from his plate of chicken paprika, a local dish made with a creamy sauce containing spicy, red paprika served over noodles. "Not so much," he conceded with a gander at the room's patrons before returning to his pasta.
Admittedly, it bothered him, but he had much bigger problems on his hands to contend with.
A clerk from the main desk strode into the dining room and headed over to where they were seated. The lady extended a small white envelope to Caleb.
"Mr. Taylor, this was left for you at the main desk," the young woman pleasantly offered. "I was going to deliver it to your suite, but one of the other clerks said they saw you enter the dining room."
"Thanks," he replied as he turned the envelope over in his hand. It was labeled Mr. Caleb Taylor in an ornate script.
Paige curiously stared at the retreating desk clerk and then focused on the envelope. "Something from Red?"
He slipped open the seal and withdrew a white piece of paper with a single sentence: The vault – 10 pm — tonight.
"Strange," he remarked and handed the message to Paige.
She peeked at her watch. "Hey, it's 10:10 already."
"Let's go then," he excitedly insisted while rising from the table.
"Whoa, tiger," she admonished, grasping his wrist with a sweep of her hand. "Let's ask ourselves why someone wants you where you know you can't go in the first place?"
As escape from her grasp seemed futile, he capitulated.
"Yeah, but what if they altered conditions so that