Night's Illusion Page 3

  Giovanni thought of nothing else after bidding Angelica good night. She had claimed he would find someone. But what if he did and he couldn’t perform? What if centuries of abstinence had left him both mentally and physically unable to please a woman?

  As a young man, he’d had fantasies just like every other male. But he had never done any experimenting, never done more than kiss one of the village girls. Once he had spied on a neighbor’s daughter while she bathed. He had felt guilty for weeks afterward. Even after he went to confession for absolution, her image continually popped into his mind at the most inopportune moments.

  And then he had entered the priesthood and done his best to forget such things. Until he met Maria Elena. He had loved her desperately, but he had been a young priest who had just taken his final vows and she had been betrothed to another. The first time he’d met her had been in the confessional, a moment he would never forget.

  She had poured her heart out to him, sobbing because her father was forcing her to marry a man she didn’t love. A man more than twice her age. She had come to confession frequently, though after the first few times, their conversations had been less about repentance and of a more personal nature. And as the weeks passed, they had fallen in love.

  Maria Elena had continued to come to confession every couple of days; they had few other chances to be alone. Things changed after her marriage. As an unmarried woman, it was unseemly for her to go anywhere unchaperoned, but once wed, she had a little more freedom.

  Unhappy with her husband and her life, she had begged Giovanni to take her away, and when he refused, she had pleaded with him to make love to her. There had been times when he was sorely tempted to turn his back on his faith, to renounce his vows and take what she so willingly offered. And then, when he was about to turn his back on the priesthood and yield to temptation, Maria Elena told him she was pregnant. It was like being splashed with cold water. He loved her, he wanted her, but he could not steal another man’s wife, or make love to her while she was carrying another man’s child.

  To his regret and relief, a few weeks later he had been transferred to another parish.

  He had never seen Maria Elena again.

  * * *

  With the coming of dawn, he sought refuge in his lair. It was with a sense of peace that he closed his eyes. There would be no dreams in the Dark Sleep, no sense of loss or regret for a love affair that had never been.

  Chapter 3

  Deep in the earth, the ancient vampire known as Alric stirred. Bored with his existence, he had gone to ground two hundred years ago. He might have slept another two hundred had he not heard someone mention his name—someone he knew from long ago. And with it a name he had never thought to hear again—Giovanni Lanzoni.

  Curious, he propelled himself upward, through tons of earth, until he reached the surface. He shook away the bits of dirt that clung to his clothing

  Lifting his face to the midnight sky, he drew a deep breath. Scents he had never experienced before flooded his nostrils. But one scent remained ever the same.

  The enticing aroma of fresh, warm blood.

  He smiled as he explored his surroundings. Rising after two hundred years in the earth was like being born again, he mused, as he sped through the night. A kaleidoscope of colors and sounds. Things he had never seen before—multi-hued lights brighter than a thousand wax candles. Streets covered in a black substance he didn’t recognize.

  He paused when he saw a couple strolling down the street, his eyes narrowing as he studied their clothing. The dress the woman wore would have been considered scandalous in his time. The man wore short pants and a short-sleeved shirt with BLACK IS MY HAPPY COLOR printed on the front.

  With a shake of his head, he continued on.

  Strange-looking conveyances shot past him, spewing noxious fumes. Buildings made of some shiny material rose higher than the hills back home. Had he been a young vampire, he might have been frightened by so much that was unfamiliar. But he relished the chance to explore this new world. He was Nosferatu. He learned and adapted quickly and had nothing to fear from mere mortals.

  A thrill of excitement skittered through him as he looked forward to discovering and mastering all of mankind’s latest inventions.

  A thrill of a different kind filled him as he contemplated revisiting old friends.

  And old enemies.

  But first he needed to feed.

  After two centuries of abstinence, he had a prodigious thirst!

  Chapter 4

  Giovanni woke to the insistent ring of his cell phone. Eyes still closed, he fumbled for the phone, murmured an irritable “Hello?”

  “So,” Mara asked cheerfully, “how was your date?”

  Scowling, he sat up, his back propped against the wall. “Is nothing private?”

  “Not when I’m the one who arranged it,” she replied with asperity. “Did you like her?”

  An image of Angelica flitted through his mind. A wealth of red hair. Beguiling gray eyes. A figure to make a saint weep. “She seems nice enough.” And yet she had stirred nothing within him. Had he truly lost the ability to feel desire?

  Mara snorted. “Did she like you?”

  “Why don’t you ask her?”

  The sound of throaty laughter rang in his ear. “I did. She found you handsome and thoroughly charming.”

  “She said that?”

  “Word for word.”

  “And did she tell you that we are not fated to be together?”

  There was a pause before Mara said, “Yes. I’m sorry. I thought you would be a good fit. But never fear. I’ll keep looking.”

  “No,” he said firmly. “I’ve changed my mind about abandoning my vows. I’m just not cut out for the whole dating scene.”

  “It was just one date. Give yourself a chance.”

  “It was a bad idea. I was uncomfortable the whole time. I don’t know how to make small talk with a woman. If I ever knew how to flirt, I’ve forgotten it long since. Give Logan my best.”

  “Hey! Don’t you dare hang up on me.”

  He heaved a sigh of impatience. “Now what?”

  “I think you’re giving up too soon.”

  “I appreciate your concern, Mara, truly. But my mind is made up.”

  Her sigh of resignation came through the line loud and clear. “I hope you know what you’re doing,” she said, and ended the call.

  * * *

  “Well?” One brow raised, Logan looked at his wife. “Are they going to crown you Matchmaker of the Century, or throw you out on your ear?”

  She glared at him. “He says he’s not ready. I don’t know what else to do.”

  “How about leaving the poor man alone?”

  “Tomorrow, I’ll tell the family to stop looking for possible dates,” she said glumly. “At least for the time being.”

  * * *

  Giovanni dropped his phone on the bed. Had he made a mistake? Should he have agreed to let Mara keep looking? Sure, Angelica had said there was a woman somewhere out there for him, but it might take years—decades, centuries—for him to find her. Maybe she hadn’t even been born yet!

  Shucking his clothes, he stepped into the shower in his secondary lair. Though he usually preferred to take his rest in the bowels of the old church, he made his home here. It was a large, old house with five bedrooms. Built for a growing family, it had far more space than he needed. He had bought it furnished some years ago.

  He closed his eyes as the water sluiced down his back. In the old days, people had bathed in the river. Running water and electricity were conveniences he very much appreciated. A washer and dryer were far more convenient than scrubbing clothes in a stream and drying them on a rock. A closet was far better than storing his garments in a wicker basket, as he’d once done.

  After stepping out of the shower, he dried off quickly. Maybe he would take a trip, he thought as he dressed. Go visit Italy. It had been a long time since he’d seen his homeland. Of course, his family a
nd everyone he had once known were all long dead.

  He ran a comb through his hair, turned out the lights, and left the house. He hadn’t hunted in a while. It was, he thought with a wry grin, one way to get a woman in his arms.

  Chapter 5

  Cassie ran headlong through the darkness. Heart pounding with terror, lungs burning, she plunged through the thick hedge that bordered the east side of the park. She whimpered as sharp thorns raked her arms and tore at her clothing.

  She never should have let Darla talk her into attending that party. Something had warned her not to go, but she hadn’t listened. It was Friday night, after all. Time to forget about her boring life. Time to stop wondering if she was going to get fired. Time to have a little fun for a change.

  She darted a glance over her shoulder. Had she lost her pursuers?

  But no, she could hear them clamoring through the hedges, hear their drunken laughter as they called back and forth, boasting about what they would do to her when they caught her.

  Her legs were trembling when she reached the concrete walkway that meandered through the gardens.

  Gasping for breath, sides heaving, she glanced over her shoulder again. They were gaining on her.

  She was doomed.

  A startled cry erupted from her throat when she slammed into something solid. Only it wasn’t something, but someone.

  The man took a step back, his arms darting out to grab hold of her to keep her from falling.

  Cassie stared up at him, but it was too dark to see his face clearly. Had she run away from one predator only to fall into the arms of another?

  And then Lynx and four of his buddies were there, circling her and the stranger. Moonlight glinted on the wicked-looking knife Lynx held in front of him.

  The stranger’s arms tightened around her waist. “Easy, there,” he murmured. “There’s no need to be afraid.”

  No need to be afraid, she thought. Was he blind? Didn’t he see Lynx and the others surrounding them like hungry wolves around a wounded animal? The knife blades glinting in their hands?

  “Give us the chick, old man,” Lynx demanded. “And we might let you go.”

  Cassie closed her eyes and buried her face against the stranger’s side. She felt an odd tremor in the air. It made the fine hairs at her nape stand at attention. Gathering her courage, she dared to open her eyes to see what was happening, only to find that Lynx and his buddies were nowhere in sight. “What? Where . . . ?”

  “They’ve gone.” Her rescuer’s voice rumbled in her ear, deep and kind. “What are you doing out here, child, wandering in the park alone at this time of the night?”

  Child? She was over twenty-one. “It wasn’t my idea,” she said, taking a step away. “My girlfriend took me to a party. I didn’t know what I was getting into. When I said I was leaving, Lynx said I couldn’t go until I . . . until I’d paid the toll.”

  It took him a moment to comprehend her meaning. “He’s a friend of yours?”

  “No! I just met him tonight.” He had seemed so nice when she was first introduced to him.

  “If he’s smart, he won’t bother you again.” Feeling suddenly protective of her, he asked, “Where do you live? I’ll walk you home.”

  “That’s not necessary.”

  “Maybe not, but I’m still taking you home.”

  Shoulders slumped, Cassie muttered, “Whatever,” and started walking.

  “What’s your name?” Giovanni asked, falling into step beside her.

  “Why?”

  “Suspicious, much?” he asked.

  She glanced up at him. In the glow of a nearby streetlight, she saw his face clearly for the first time. His eyes were light—hazel, perhaps—his shoulder-length hair black and wavy and edged with silver. He seemed awfully young to have gray hair. “Sorry, but you are a stranger.”

  He nodded, a faint smile lifting the corners of his mouth. It was, she thought, a very nice mouth.

  “Perhaps I should introduce myself first. My name is Giovanni Lanzoni, but please, call me Johnny.” It was what his mother had called him, though he’d given the girl the English translation of his name.

  “Hi, Johnny.”

  “I’m very pleased to meet you, Miss . . . ?”

  “Douglas. Cassandra, but everyone calls me Cassie.” She frowned, thinking she had never known a man with such nice manners. Not that she’d known that many men.

  They walked in silence for a time. Cassie was acutely aware of the man beside her. Though he was not big and bulky and stood only a few inches taller than she, there was an air of power and authority about him that was both comforting and unsettling. With a shake of her head, she dismissed it as nothing more than the aftereffect of the night’s events.

  She felt drawn to him in a way she didn’t understand. But what was even stranger, she felt safe with him, and that was really odd, because she hadn’t trusted anyone since her parents had abandoned her when she was fifteen.

  “What happened back there?” she asked as they left the park. “Why did they leave without a fight?”

  “I merely advised them that it would be in their best interest to leave you alone.”

  Cassie frowned. “I didn’t hear you say anything.”

  He shrugged. “Perhaps you were too frightened to notice.”

  Cassie shook her head. She had been scared, sure, but too scared to hear whatever threat had sent Lynx and the others hurrying away without an argument? She didn’t think so. She shook her head again. Why was she always drawn to the wrong guys? First her ex, and then Lynx? Not that she ever wanted to see him again.

  She felt a sudden spark of attraction when Johnny’s hand accidentally brushed her fingers.

  His gaze jumped to hers, leaving Cassie to wonder if he had felt it, too. She stopped at the end of the concrete path that led to the door of her apartment complex. “We’re here.”

  Giovani glanced at the run-down building. It was in desperate need of a coat of paint. Some of the roof tiles were missing. A few of the windows were patched with tape. “You live here?”

  She bit down on her lower lip, suddenly embarrassed as she looked at the place through his eyes. “It’s a dump, I know, but it’s all I can afford.”

  “What is it you do?”

  “I serve drinks at the Winchester Lounge five nights a week.” The place was a dive. Her salary was nothing to brag about, but with tips, she made enough to pay the rent. Barely. “Do you know it?”

  “Yeah.” He had gone hunting there a time or two. “I live alone,” he said, weighing each word carefully. “In a rather large house with five bedrooms. It’s nothing fancy, but certainly better than this. And in a safer neighborhood.”

  She blinked up at him. “Are you asking me to move in with you?” she exclaimed. “Are you crazy? I’ve only known you, what? Ten minutes?”

  “I’m not suggesting anything immoral,” he said, obviously insulted that she would think otherwise. “I’m gone all day, and a good deal of the night, so you would have the place to yourself most of the time. The house is paid for, so there’s no need to pay rent. I’ve been alone a very long time and I’ve grown weary of my own company. I merely thought . . . Forgive my impertinence. It was a bad idea.”

  Cassie shrugged it off. Had she known him better, she might have jumped at the chance to live rent-free in a decent house. “Thanks for walking me home.”

  “Please accept my apology,” he said stiffly. “I didn’t mean to offend you. I was merely trying to help. Good evening.”

  She stared at him a moment. Perhaps she had misjudged his intentions, she thought as she walked swiftly up the stairs to the front door. She paused, her hand on the latch. Maybe she owed him an apology. She turned to tell him she was sorry, but he had already gone.

  What a strange man. He had seemed harmless enough. A gentleman. And yet... She shivered as her mind replayed what had happened in the park. There was something about him, although she couldn’t put her finger on it. Something she’d
felt on some primal level but couldn’t explain.

  With a shake of her head, she went inside and closed the door behind her, thinking that perhaps she had escaped two predators that night, even though one had rescued her from the other.

  She laughed softly as she went into the bedroom, bemused by her fanciful thoughts.

  Chapter 6

  Giovanni’s first thought when the sun went down was of the young, golden-haired, brown-eyed woman he had met the night before. Cassie Douglas. No woman had ever affected him quite the way she had. Even now, hours later, he clearly remembered the flowery fragrance of her hair. The warmth of her skin.

  The tantalizing aroma of her life’s blood.

  When she’d looked at him, his whole body had responded. That, too, was unusual. He was, after all, a priest. Years of abstinence and rigid self-discipline had left him immune to the temptations of the fair sex.

  Or so he’d thought.

  Her scent, the sound of her voice, had awakened feelings and desires he’d not known since Maria Elena.

  Leaving his lair, he went to his lonely house, where he showered, dressed, and ran a comb through his hair. And all the while, the memory of his meeting with the young woman played in the forefront of his mind. He told himself he was centuries too old for her. She was barely more than a child. But try as he might, he couldn’t stop thinking about her.

  Cassie. She worked five nights a week at the Winchester Lounge, he thought. Was tonight one of those nights? Before he could talk himself out of it, he was on his way out the door.

  * * *

  Cassie glanced at the clock, willing the hands to move more quickly. It never worked, of course. Tonight, more than usual, she hated her job. Hated the lustful stares of the men, their furtive snickers, their lewd attempts at humor. She was tired of fighting off their unwanted advances, tired of forcing herself to laugh at their vulgar jokes. Heck, she was just plain tired.

  Waiting at the bar for an order to be filled, she found herself thinking of the man who had come to her rescue the night before. What was his name? Johnny something. A real gentleman, he was. Then again, maybe he wasn’t. After knowing her for only a few minutes, he had hinted that she should move in with him. Though he seemed nice enough, she could only imagine what might have happened if she had agreed. No doubt she would have become one of those women you read about in the paper who vanished without a trace, never to be seen or heard from again. Suspicious, much? She grinned inwardly as his words from the night before replayed in her mind. Always, she thought.