A Gift of Three (A Shade of Vampire #42)(34)

“He knows a lot about us,” Jovi mused. “I mean, if it’s so dangerous to leave the house, how did he get to us? He knew what GASP was, knew about our kind—he knew I was a werewolf, and didn’t seem surprised by your presence.” He turned to Field. “He’s way ahead of us.”

“Then that’s something we need to remedy,” Field replied. “Start checking all the maps. What we need is a bigger one, one that will show us where we are in relation to the fae stars.”

I started pulling down the largest maps I could see, sliding their heavy paper out of the cylindrical containers and laying them down flat wherever there was space. Many of them were useless, either replicas of the one we’d just found, or of entirely different places, their annotations written in languages I couldn’t understand. We even found a few of Earth—America, Africa, Europe—old maps that must have been from centuries ago, detailing countries with old names that were no longer in existence.

“I think we have to assume that whoever lived here before was just a collector,” I stated eventually, feeling like I’d looked at hundreds of maps that were no use to us whatsoever. The sky was also darkening. We’d opened a window to let in some air—not that it helped much since it was so humid. The sky was red and gold, the sun setting rapidly, leaving the swamps covered in darkness, and only the tips of the mountains and highest reaches of the jungle were still bathed in light.

“When do you think we go down for dinner?” Jovi asked, following my gaze out of the window.

“Not sure. Maybe we’ll be called?” I speculated.

Both of them looked at me.

“What?” I replied. “He seems old-fashioned, don’t you think? Inviting us to ‘dine’ with him—it seems like whatever he is, he’s also under the pretense of being a gentleman.”

Jovi guffawed. “A gentleman? I’m leaning toward serial killer if anything,” he replied, looking at me in disbelief.

“I actually think Serena’s right,” Field added. “I think if we join him tonight, and try to keep our manners in check”—he looked pointedly at Jovi—“then we might get some of the answers we need.”

“I think Serena’s our best bet on that,” Jovi argued.

“What do you mean?” I asked, genuinely confused.

“Druid or not, he’s still a man, and I don’t think he’s immune to…you know, your charm,” he teased.

“Oh, knock it off,” I replied, rolling my eyes. “Field’s right. We eat with him, we ask questions, we try to be polite, and then we get our friends and get out of here. There will be no femme fatale part of the plan—we’re not in a spy movie, Jovi.”

He shrugged. “Whatever… I still think you should lead the questions.”

“I’m happy to do that,” I retorted, “but more because of my budding journalism skills than anything else. I’m going to have a shower before we go down—I’m covered in dust and boiling hot. See you all downstairs?”

“No,” Jovi corrected, “see you at the top of the staircase—we go down together.”

“Fine,” I replied, “see you shortly.”

I left the room, already looking forward to a cold shower. I wished I had something to wear other than my pajamas though—not only did I feel embarrassingly underdressed for when we left the house to trek though miles of jungle, but my clothes were also filthy and covered in a layer of dust and grime that would make me feel instantly dirty again the moment I got clean.

As I walked to my room, I kept my eyes averted from the stuffed animals and the grotesque ceiling. I thought about what Jovi had said, about the Druid noticing my ‘charms’—I kind of wanted to punch Jovi for making a comment like that, but I also wondered how true it was. I recalled the way the Druid had stared at my hand clasped in Jovi’s, and how uncomfortable that had made me feel…I wasn’t really sure why.





Serena





[Hazel and Tejus’s daughter]




I re-entered the room I’d been in when I arrived and checked the door on the other side of the room, correctly guessing that it was a bathroom. I sighed with relief when I noticed a small copper bath and an old-fashioned shower head. The tub was full of cobwebs, but there was an old, only slightly moth-eaten towel hanging on the back of the door. I tried the taps first, not worried if there wasn’t any hot water—I would definitely only be using cold. To my surprise, after a short gurgling of pipes, the water flowed from the showerhead forcefully, and there was both hot and cold water available. Next I searched under the sink for some soap, finding a thick block of it wrapped in rotting tissue paper.

I gave the tub a rinse and then stepped under the faucet, reveling in the feeling of the water beating against my skin. I closed my eyes, trying not to picture Phoenix and my friends lying on those eerie-looking hospital beds, but it was an image that hadn’t really left my mind since I’d first seen them—no matter how hard I’d tried to focus on getting out of here.

I used the bar of soap to clean myself, even using it on my hair, whilst vainly wishing for Corrine’s herbal concoction back in The Shade. Once I was satisfied, I stepped out, grimacing as I used the towel. It smelt of mold, but it wasn’t as bad as when I later put my pajamas back on, discarding the robe. They were filthy. Feeling like the entire shower process had been a bit of a waste of time, I stepped back into the bedroom, opening the nearest window and catching the last of the sun’s rays before it dipped down completely. I looked around the room for a lamp, noticing one by the table. It was another oil lamp, with a set of damp matches next to it—but a significant amount of kerosene remained in the base. After a few tries, I finally got one of the matches to light and held the flame to the wick. It lit, casting the room in a yellow glow.