Blood and Buttercups (A Vampire’s Guide to Gardening #1)

Chapter 17

17

The NIHA office looks like any other business suite. The building is wide and about three stories tall, built from unassuming tan brick and landscaped with a few bushes and empty concrete planters that haven’t been en vogue since the eighties. It’s surrounded by a moat of grass and a few ash trees.

It’s not far from the Department of Motor Vehicles, and there’s a paved walking trail that borders the grass and winds down to the Colorado River.

If I didn’t know better, I’d say it was an insurance company. You could walk by it a hundred times and never notice it.

The sign out front says, “Nicolau International Hematology Association: Garfield County Administration Office.”

A man holds the door for us as we walk inside. He’s probably in his early thirties and handsome in a dangerous way. His features are sharp, and his slacks and shirt are crisp.

He’s one of those men your eyes cannot help but be drawn to. His skin is light but warm, and his hair and eyes are dark, making him one of the most striking men I’ve ever seen.

“Noah,” he says.

Noah nods, though he doesn’t even glance at the man’s face. “Cassian.”

The exchange is neither hostile nor friendly, but simply…happens. It’s almost like two cats passing each other in the street, caring little that the other is there as long as they stay on their side of the road.

It’s bizarre.

The man’s eyes move to me as I pass, and he lifts his nose just slightly, like he’s scenting the air.

Before I’m through the door, he catches my wrist. “Who bit you?”

His voice is smooth and cultured, and his accent is vaguely European, but muddled.

I blink, startled, trapped in his deep brown gaze. Recognition passes between us, and his eyebrows jump. It’s like we know each other, but I’ve never seen this man in my life.

Noah steps between us, subtly making the man release me. “We’re late for an appointment.”

“Who is she?” the man demands.

“My pre-vamp—she was the victim of an attack. Her infection was none of her doing.”

The man’s jaw twitches. “She’s one of mine.”

As if that’s a challenge, Noah narrows his eyes. “Maybe you should be careful who you bite.”

I watch the exchange, baffled. Though I expect the man to respond, he merely looks at me, his eyes sliding over my face, and then continues into the full light of midday.

I turn back to Noah, raising my eyebrows, and whisper, “What the heck was that?”

“That was not good.”

The look on Noah’s face does nothing to ease my concern. “Why? Who is he?”

“Cassian Chevalier.”

“That means nothing to me.”

“He’s from an old line and was one of the earliest supporters of our medical research. In the early 1900s, he offered himself as a test subject so we could begin studying Vampiria B. He followed Dmitry Ivanovsky’s virus research and theorized that vampirism could, in fact, be a legitimate illness.”

“He’s a vampire?” I say, though I already gathered it from their strained conversation.

Noah nods. “About twenty years ago, he granted money to several of our science labs in hopes of creating the synthetic blood. But his life’s mission is to eradicate vampirism entirely, which doesn’t always make him the most popular man at the yearly company picnic.”

I think about that for a moment. “Doesn’t everyone want to eradicate viruses?”

Noah ushers me inside. “Not necessarily this one.”

I think about what Dr. Granger said would happen if the general populace learned about the virus. Most would be horrified. Others would see it as the fountain of youth.

“There are people in NIHA who would like to use it?” I ask carefully.

“Not in its current state, necessarily, but some would like to see it put to use, yes. They believe that if we could harness it, minimizing the side effects, we could cure cancer. Heart disease. Aging.”

“And the downside?”

“To begin with, it would be extremely expensive, so the only people with access to it would be the wealthy. Second, if we ever reached a point where it was widely available, it would likely cause population issues.”

“But it doesn’t matter because it doesn’t exist, right? This hybrid, genetically modified Vampiria B virus?”

“As far as I know, it does not.”

“Does NIHA have their scientist working on it in their labs?”

“If they do, I’ve never heard about it. But hunters don’t rank that high in the NIHA hierarchy.”

I nod as we walk through the lobby. Our footsteps are muffled by the gray runner that carpets the faux-wood flooring, the soft noise drowned out by the hum of the large fish tank built into the wall directly across from the entrance.

“What did he mean when he said I’m one of his?” I ask.

“He believes you’re from his line.”

“Like…” I cringe as I think of Olivia’s question. “He thinks we have a sire bond ?”

Noah makes a face. “How many paranormal romance books have you read?”

“So many.”

“You cannot be compelled by the vampires who preceded you; there is no special connection. I don’t know how the older vampires are able to recognize the lineage, but it’s limited to that.”

“But can they recognize one of their own?”

“They can—and there’s a scientific reason for it. We just haven’t found it yet.”

“So, it’s…magic?”

“It’s not magic.”

“But it’s basically magic.”

He shoots me a look, and I laugh.

Lowering my voice, I tease, “What I’m hearing is I’m actually a mythical being. Tell me, do you find me distracting? Have I enraptured you with my unexplainable charm?”

“You’re a regular siren,” he deadpans.

I smile, tempted to loop my arm through his to see what he does. “Why is it bad if I’m connected to Cassian Chevrolet?—”

“ Chevalier —”

“—that vampire guy’s line?”

“Because it doesn’t look good when vampires show up bearing his mark. It undermines his goal.”

“I don’t have a mark.”

“You do, and he can sense it. Other older vampires will be able to sense it as well.”

“Okay…”

“Every once in a while, when someone from his line shows up…they tend to disappear.”

I think about that for a minute, and then I balk. “He kills them?”

“We don’t know, and no one asks questions.”

“ Why? ”

Noah gives me a dark look. “Because he donates a lot of money.”

“Montgomery,” a man with a smoothly shaven head says from the threshold of one of the office doors. In his mid-forties, he’s in good shape, but judging from his clothing, he’s not overly proud of it. He wears a slightly wrinkled button-up shirt, a tie with penguins on it, and he holds a foam cup of bitter coffee. It worries me that I can smell it from over here.

“Come on in,” he says, motioning us into the office. “Pardon the mess.” The man moves the chair in the corner next to the one opposite his and then stacks several papers. “I’m just borrowing this office.”

“It’s fine,” Noah assures him.

The man looks up, raising his eyebrows. “Either of you want coffee?”

I glance toward the stale-looking black liquid languishing in his white foam cup. “No thanks.”

He jerks his hand toward it with a look of disgust. “It’s terrible anyway.”

Noah clears his throat, apparently ready to get the meeting started. “Piper, this is Reid, my boss. He usually works in Denver, but he drove in to speak with us. Reid, this is Piper.”

“Hello, Piper.” Reid reaches over the desk to shake my hand. “It sounds like you’ve had a rough intro to the pre-vamp life. We’ll get all the details surrounding your attack, and then we’ll get a hunter on your case, all right?”

“Are you head of the conservators?” I ask, confused.

“No, I lead up our Colorado division of the investigation department.”

“But Noah—I mean Montgomery—was…”

“Demoted?” Reid supplies. “He’s still one of mine, even if the higher-ups sent him back to the nursery—no offense.”

“None taken.” I settle into a chair.

“We passed Cassian on the way in,” Noah says as he sits in the chair next to me. “He thinks Piper is from his line.”

Reid cringes and then quickly schools his expression, shaking his head. “You’re not having any luck, are you, Piper?”

Thankfully, I don’t think he expects a response.

“All right, let’s fill out the basics.” He turns to the computer and then scowls. “Why is this file still locked? I sent a request to IT before I left Denver.” He shoves his laptop to the side and shuffles through the mess for a pad of paper. “I’ll figure it out later. All right, Piper. Let’s start with the basics. What do you do for a living?”

“I’m a flower farmer.”

He tears his eyes away from the paper. “A what?”

“I grow flowers in my backyard and sell them at farmer’s markets and to local stores. I have a little shop online, too, and I do subscription bouquets.”

“You’re a gardening vampire?” he says dumbly.

“Pre-vamp,” I correct. “Stage One. I can eat vegetables.”

“Good thing, too,” Noah adds, “because she’s a vegetarian.”

Reid rubs his hand over his face, looking tired. “Why would a vampire turn a nice flower girl like you?”

I clasp my hands on the table. “He made it sound like he wanted to be together. Romantically.”

“We know who it was, but he’s not in the database,” Noah adds.

Reid gives Noah a sharp look. “You don’t have access to the database right now.”

“I paid Daniel in donuts.”

“You’re going to get yourself fired, Montgomery.”

My bodyguard shrugs like he couldn’t care less.

“Who is it?” Reid asks, pulling a pad of scratch paper in front of him.

“Ethan Brennan of Brennan Properties.”

“Never heard of him.”

“Probably because he’s not in the system.”

Reid grunts.

“We have his phone number, too, and you should probably print out the texts he sent Piper. Might be a good idea to make a paper file as a backup, since I suspect that even if you can get past the security restriction, all this is going to get deleted again.”

Reid scowls at Noah. “I’m going to take care of this, but I need you to back off. I don’t want to lose one of my best hunters because he can’t keep his nose out of places it doesn’t belong. This kind of behavior is exactly what got you demoted in the first place.”

“One of your best hunters?” Noah lifts a brow.

“ The best.”

“I’ll lie low, but Piper’s a close friend. I’m going to be around.”

Close is a stretch, but my heart does a little dance.

Reid lets out a long-suffering sigh and sticks out his hand. “Give me your rental agreement. I’ll take a copy, so we’ll have it on file just in case one of the higher-ups throws a fit.”

“Montgomery,” a woman calls as we’re leaving the office. She’s in her late twenties, only about five-two, and Hispanic, with warm skin, dark eyes, and three-inch stilettos. Her deep brown hair is up in a sleek chignon, and her pencil skirt looks like it cost more than my entire wardrobe. “I’m glad you came in today. I have the paperwork for your new pre-vamp. Don’t call him a door-to-door salesman—he doesn’t like that. His wife just left him, and she took his cat. Make sure you get him set up with a counselor and a support group right away.”

It takes me a minute, but I recognize her voice and the chirpy tone. She’s the highly efficient woman I spoke to on the phone right after I learned vampires exist and they have a government-funded, non-profit organization keeping track of them.

“You’re Emma,” I say.

She turns to me, smiling. “I am. And you are?”

“This is Piper,” Noah says.

“Ah.” She gives him a knowing look. “Now it all makes sense.”

He frowns. “What makes sense?”

“You bribing Daniel with donuts.” She smacks Noah in the chest with the file. “She’s pretty.”

I laugh, startled, unsure if I should thank her or keep my mouth shut.

“Yeah, well, donuts weren’t enough, apparently, since they’ve already moved me to a different pre-vamp.” Noah lowers his voice. “Keep an eye on her file for me, will you? Someone’s been messing with it.”

Her eyes darken. “ What is going on?”

He shakes his head, irritated.

“Will do.” She turns back to me. “How are you adjusting?”

“Good, mostly.”

Except that I have a stalker, and I just found out the head of my vampire family doesn’t appreciate new additions.

“If you need anything, you just let me know,” she says to me. “I, myself, have been enjoying Wexley’s Organic Blood of the Month Club. Kangaroo is excellent. Who knew?”

“You’re a pre-vamp?”

“Stage Two.” She rolls her eyes. “Got bitten twice.”

“How?” I ask before I realize it might be rude.

“Tired old story—vampires who stopped taking their meds. Two times—two different vamps. And they say working as a receptionist isn’t a high-risk job.” She laughs. “Speaking of that, I need to get back to it. Have fun babysitting Colin, Montgomery.”

“Thanks,” he says dryly. “Oh, Emma, wait. Who got assigned to Piper?”

“Ainsley.”

He relaxes, nodding.

“Who’s Ainsley?” I ask when we begin walking again.

“Reid’s girlfriend.”

“Girlfriend? He looks like he should have a wife, two kids, and a high-strung Labrador retriever.”

“He had the wife and the dog.”

“What happened?”

“She left him for a vampire. We don’t talk about it—he took it pretty hard. Thankfully, he now has Ainsley.”

“Doesn’t he live in Denver, though? How is she going to be my conservator when she’s three hours away?”

“She has family here, so she goes back and forth between the Glenwood Springs branch and the Littleton location.”

“And she’s nice?”

“She’s great.”

“And this Colin guy. How often do you have to see him?”

“Just long enough to check in and take him to his appointments.”

“Do you think it’ll be okay?”

“I’ll make sure Ainsley doesn’t leave you alone while I’m gone.”

“What are we going to do if my file gets wiped clean again, I don’t get assigned a hunter to my case, and Ethan is never brought to justice? Will I ever be able to go outside by myself again?”

I like having Noah around, but I don’t want to live like that.

“Reid will get someone on it,” Noah promises. “Until then, you’ll just have to deal with me.”

“I suppose I’ll manage…”

“You want to go out tonight?”

I look at him, startled by the abrupt turn in the conversation. “For dinner?”

“And maybe go to Carbondale for a movie? You can have popcorn now.”

“Like…a friend-date?”

“You can call it a friend-date if you like. We may or may not make out in my car before we go home, but we’ll leave it open.”

Heat floods my chest. “I friend-zoned you.”

Noah’s eyes are bright, and his smile is tinged with mischief. He opens the door, standing just enough in the way I have to brush past him to get out. “It’s cute you think that means something.”