Crossroads (Anna Strong Chronicles #7)

Crossroads (Anna Strong Chronicles #7) Page 36

THE LOBBY IS ONCE AGAIN FULL OF TOURISTS EITHER just back or about to depart on a tour. Excitement and anticipation color the air.

I approach the concierge desk. A bronze-skinned Navajo in a long-sleeved shirt and intricate bolo of beaten silver looks up at my approach. He's handsome, young, dark hair polished to a sheen as it falls around his shoulders. I'll bet it's soft.

I'm tempted to reach out and touch it.

I resist, opting instead to smile and ask, "Can you give me directions to the View Hotel?"

He looks at me with eyebrows raised in shock. "You aren't thinking of staying with our competition instead of here, are you?"

It takes me a beat to realize he's teasing. I hold up both hands. "Never. I'm just supposed to meet someone there."

While I'm talking, he's pulled a map from a rack on the corner of the desk. He's smiling when he looks up and I imagine that thousand-watt smile coupled with that begs-to-be-touched hair have been the downfall of many a maiden.

It stirs vampire lust, and not for blood.

I ratchet down the hormones and concentrate on the directions he's tracing on the map. "It's only about four miles east on Monument Valley Road."

An easy run. I thank him and leave. There are four young college-age girls behind me, all big eyes and blond hair and sexy innocence, and I wonder what kind of personal instruction in the Navajo way he offers besides directions.

I run parallel to the road, out of sight of cars, but close enough to hear the wind rush of traffic. Vampire chastises me for thoughts of the handsome boy. Her thoughts are on finding our friend. Then we kill our enemies. Carnal pleasure comes after.

I'm there in minutes. The hotel is surrounded by pinnacles of rock, mesa and sand and framed by clouds. Shadows roam and dance over the desert floor. For a minute, human Anna enjoys the view, then she's called back by vampire.

First, find Frey's Jeep in the parking lot. I don't see it. Is it possible I beat him here?

The lots are full. It's a combination of sight and scent that lead me to the Jeep.

A hand on the hood. Warm. The smell and gurgle of fluids cooling tells me he hasn't been here long.

I hang back, out of sight, of the entrance. There is no artificial landscape here-the ground is barren of plants so I must find a spot in the only shade available-a corner of the building itself-and press back out of the light.

I open the conduit cautiously. Not to transmit, but to receive what I might. Even expecting it, I am disappointed that nothing comes through.

A grim thought. Has Frey already confronted Chael? Is he lying wounded, or worse, nearby? How many times have I beaten myself up for breaking the psychic connection between us? It leaves Frey helpless to reach out to me for help and me powerless to find him on my own.

Shit. I can't wait here. It's possible Chael and Judith have already moved on. Maybe I wasn't giving them the show they expected. If this attempt is a bust, I'm sure Chael will come up with something else.

I return to the Jeep. I'll ride back with Frey.

A shuffle of feet from the front of the hotel-as if people were running to get away. Frightened voices call for security. I smell fear and anger.

Fear from the humans escaping from inside.

Anger from Frey.

I buck the tide of people moving out to fight my way in. I see Frey, alone in the back of the lobby, crossbow drawn taut. He has a handkerchief over the lower part of his face. I hear Judith Williams' thoughts now, as she begs for her life. I can't hear Frey's response but I know what I want to tell him.

Don't listen.

In a heartbeat, I'm beside him. "Shoot her."

She turns eyes filled with horror in my direction. "Anna. We are vampire family. Don't let him do this."

"Frey, if you don't shoot her, I will," is my snarling response. "If she's here, Chael is close."

"Do we need her to find him?" Frey asks me, voice devoid of all emotion.

"No."

The arrow sings across space in a whisper. Judith Williams holds up her hands. The arrow pierces the right one and pins it to the middle of her chest. She has te to glance down once before her body crumbles into red ash.

"We have to go."

Frey points with the crossbow to a stairway in the back of the lobby. Behind us, there is the sound of footsteps running our way. Either security or the police or some brave or curious soul wanting to see what has happened.

Frey and I don't check behind us to find out. He pauses once to snatch up the arrow and we are behind the stairwell door and out the back before they reach the pile of ash that was Judith. I wish we had time to clean up. In a culture with skinwalkers who practice curse magic, I'm afraid some innocent might be blamed for what happened.

On the other hand, someone who practices curse magic is hardly innocent. I have experience. As far as I can remember, Frey's identity was hidden behind the handkerchief and no one rushing to get out paused long enough to take note of the woman running in. There's nothing left to identify as remains. Most likely, witnesses will describe a kidnapping. Process of elimination of the hotel guests may turn up Judith Williams as the "victim." Even if that happened, Chael would most likely lie about his roommate being missing.

We're at the Jeep and out of the lot before the alarm spreads. Only when Frey has taken us off the main road does he pull over and turn to me.

"Who is with John-John?" No recrimination in his tone, only a father's interest.

"Kayani."

"Good. How did you get away?"

"He and John-John went riding."

"He lent you his car?"

"No. I didn't tell him what I was doing. I tried to steal it, but it has pretty good security."

He lets a grin touch the corners of his mouth even as he's shaking his head. "You tried to steal a cop's car?"

"But I didn't. No harm, no foul."

"You hoofed it across the desert?"

"Felt good, actually. To let vampire have her head."

"I understand. Well, what now? No sign of Chael, but if Judith Williams was there, he must be, too. Do you think he'll give up and leave? He hasn't succeeded in getting rid of you and I don't know what else he can try."

I let my gaze stretch out over the landscape. "I don't know. He's crafty. But he's not good at working without someone to throw under the bus when things get rough. How did you find Judith anyway?"

He taps a forefinger against his head. "She was leading a host out of the hotel. Telling the girl she was taking her somewhere more private. She was taking her behind the mesa to kill her. It was there in her thoughts. I got there in time."

"Why didn't you follow her? You took a chance taking her down in the lobby."

"She picked up on me too soon. As it was, she threatened to kill the girl as soon as she read my intentions. I managed to scare the girl into bolting. But Judith wasn't about to go outside quietly. I remembered what you said."

"Kill her on sight. Good decision."

"So what do we do now?"

I consider for a minute. "Let's watch the road leading from the hotel. I do think Chael will try to leave. As soon as he can. Unless he has some contact here on the reservation, with Judith gone, he's by himself."

Frey puts the Jeep in reverse and swings back toward the road. Luckily, there is only one way in and out of the hotel parking lot. We find a place to park the Jeep behind some desert scrub and crouch down to watch the road.

One car enters the lot, a big Lincoln Navigator with tinted windows and a set of oversized tires designed to leave as big a carbon imprint as possible. It's closely followed by a parade of police vehicles, both civilian and Navajo, screaming in with flashing lights and sirens shrieking. The driver of the Navigator pulls over and jumps out, hand on chest. He's a blue hair, probably a year or two closer to the big one after thinking he was the object of pursuit.

Frey and I know better. We watch the cops head for the entrance of the hotel, some rush inside, others set up a perimeter with crime scene tape.

They're going to have a tough time analyzing that crime scene. If they even think it a crime scene. What's left? A pile of fine ash and little else. I remember Detective Harris and his visit to me a few days ago about Williams. But in that case, there was tangible physical evidence. Just enough to confuse things. Here there is no body. Only witness accounts that they saw a standoff between a woman and a masked man with a bow. Both are now gone. If for some reason, they run DNA on this ash, it might come back human, but at least the age of the deceased will be in acceptable human range.

Not long after the police arrive, the lot is blocked off by a Navajo Police vehicle. An officer steps out and begins flagging down approaching tourists and telling them they have to turn around, that the hotel is temporarily closed. He's greeted with a lot of unhappy grumbling, but all comply and make lazy U-turns, wondering out loud what has happened.

Frey looks over at me. "What now?"

"You should go home," I say after a moment's consideration. "The police probably think Judith Williams was kidnapped. Somebody may describe what you're wearing even if they couldn't see your face. I'll stay here and watch for Chael to make his move. He's old and powerful, but I doubt he's had to fend for himself against humans very often. His minions take care of the dirty work. He may be looking for a way out. I think I'll give him one."

Frey narrows his eyes. "What do you mean?"

"He'll need help to escape." I spread my arms. "Here it is."

Frey nods his understanding. "Where will you take him?"

I tell Frey about the cave I explored yesterday. I leave Sani out of it-one problem at a time-but behind those rocks seems a perfect place to take care of a villain like Chael.

Frey frowns. "Those caves are sacred. What you propose would desecrate what they represent. No. I think I have a better idea."

Frey describes a mesa, here, in back of the hotel. There's an opening in the rock, hard to see from the desert floor, but an easy climb to reach. "Get him there and you'll have all the privacy you need."

I realize Frey is offering to let me take care of Chael and my spidey sense starts to tingle. "You'll go home? Let me handle Chael?"

He lowers his eyes. "You were right last night. I can't risk John-John losing both his parents. Killing Judith Williams was too easy. I know Chael won't go down witho fight and you are the stronger between us. I trust you to take revenge for Sarah's death just as I trust you with the life of my son."

His words raise gooseflesh on my arms. Partly because they're said with so much sincerity, partly because the lowered eyes are a tell. He's spouting crap. One thing I know about Frey, he's a fighter. His pretty speech would have been pitch-perfect had he not added the part about trusting me with the life of his son. It sounded like a codicil to his will.

He's up to something.

But I haven't the time to challenge him. I wave him off. "Okay, get going. I'll get back to Sarah's as soon as I can."

He gets back into the Jeep, cranks it over, and heads in the direction of Sarah's house, all without another word or backward glance.

Oh yeah. He's definitely up to something.