The Character of Bill belongs to Charliane Harris and Alan Ball. All other characters are the product of my warped imagination.
The Spanish Manuscript
The trouble started, as trouble so often does, because of the office party. One of the girls in the administrator's office was getting married and a large fancy dress party had been arranged for Thursday night. I'd told Bill I was going out with friends and I'd see him on Friday night but I hadn't managed to summon up the courage to tell him about my costume. Sarah and I had seen a couple of French maid's outfits in a hire shop a few days earlier and thought that they would be perfect. We'd be in a big group of people so we wouldn't be too embarrassed and there was safety in numbers.
The costumes were pretty much what you would expect really and consisted of stockings with a little garter, frilly knickers, a tiny little skirt which barely covered my buttocks, provided I didn't bend down, a white apron and a little cap. Finished off with a pair of sky high stiletto heels I looked...well, I'd rather not say what I looked like. I really had no idea what Bill would think of it. It certainly wasn't an outfit I'd ever think of wearing at any other time but hey, this was fancy dress after all! I covered the skimpy outfit with a long coat and set off.
The party started at one of the biggest nightclubs in town but quite soon degenerated into a pub crawl.
We visited half a dozen clubs and had several drinks in each one and although I tried to have as many soft drinks as I could get away with, I have to admit, by this stage I was quite drunk! That's probably why I failed to notice, when we split up into two groups, that I was in a group which happened to contain those of my colleagues who didn't know about Bill. Both my closest friends Sarah and Lou had gone with the other group as they were planning to get home soon. I had the day off the next day and I was having fun, so I thought I'd carry on, these things always seem like a good idea at the time. As did the suggestion from one of the guys that we should go to the vampire bar, Carmillas on the High Street.
I'd never been in there before but with the confidence of the exceedingly tipsy I thought, "Hey, I know all about vampires, I'll be fine!"
There were two enormous bouncers on the door, one human and one a vampire, he had olive skin and dark eyes and I noticed his fangs slide out a little as he studied my skimpy outfit for a moment. The inside of the club was dark, as you would expect, except for the dance floor which was lit up with coloured flashing lights. There was a long bar down one side of the room which was decorated in shades of grey, and booths upholstered in a rich burgundy velvet. Pete and Dave ordered in a round of drinks and we all stood chatting at the edge of the dance floor.
Our fancy dress costumes were attracting some attention from the other patrons so I wasn't too surprised when Dave, who was dressed as a cowboy, nudged me and said, "Hey Alex, I think you've pulled!"
I laughed. "Don't be so silly" I said.
"No really" he said "that guy at the bar's eyeing you up – oh, hey, he's a vampire!"
"Really?" I asked Babs who was standing in front of me looking over my shoulder.
"Oh yes….he's a looker, and he's definitely interested" she said approvingly.
"I looked over my shoulder towards the bar and, sure enough, there was a dark, good looking vampire leaning casually on the bar, looking over at me. He was casually dressed in jeans, a white shirt and a black leather biker jacket. His fangs were fully out and I could almost feel his eyes running over my French maid's outfit with approval, his full lips were curved up in a secretive little smile and his eyes were dark with desire…it was Bill.
Oh, dear! I watched as he stood up and began to walk across the dance floor towards me.
"Oooo…..he's coming over" said Babs excitedly.
Before I could do anything sensible Bill had swept me up into his arms and clamped his mouth on mine, one hand on the back of my head to hold me in place.
"Hey! Just a minute! What do you think you're doing!" Pete put his pint down on the nearest table, but before anyone could move Bill had picked me up effortlessly and tossed me over his shoulder, one hand casually on my frilly lace knickers, holding me steady. He carried me across the dance floor to the raucous cheers of some of the more drunk patrons and headed purposefully for a door marked "Private" behind the corner of the bar.
"Bill, wait…..put me down." I said urgently, but he ignored me and carried me through the door into a corridor and then through another door into a well appointed office containing a large desk and a leather upholstered chesterfield couch. He kicked the door shut behind him and resumed kissing me where he had left off.
"Whoa! Bill….No, wait!" I squeaked as he held me against the wall with one hand and slid the other one down over my hips heading for the cute little pink garter around my right thigh. "Wait!" I said breathlessly "What are my friends going to think?"
"You probably should have thought of that before coming in here in that outfit!" muttered Bill in a husky voice which sent shivers down my spine, pushing his hand up the tiny skirt and trying to work his fingers under the elastic of the lacy panties.
"No…no you don't understand!" I said. "They'll just think I've been snatched off the dance floor and carried off to be ravished by some sex-crazed vampire!"
Bill paused in his nuzzling and looked up. "They'll be right!" he said with a lascivious grin.
"No, no listen" I said, trying to hold him off. Too late I realised that my struggles were simply arousing him further as he took both my wrists in one of his hands and pinned them to the wall over my head. I stared up into his eyes, the pupils enormous and dark with an almost savage excitement. "It's a bit late for that!" he said.
"Listen Bill! I'm with a group of work colleagues, they don't know who you are….or what you are!" I said desperately.
"I should think they've got a pretty good idea by now!"
Just at that moment there was a rather tentative knock at the door and a voice said apologetically "Mr Compton…there's someone here to see you."
"Not now!" growled Bill "I'm busy!"
"I'm sorry Mr Compton," the voice became, if possible, even more apologetic. "It's the Police!"
"Oh those idiots!" I whispered, "I can't believe they called the Police!"
"Why on earth would they call the Police?" hissed Bill.
"I've been trying to tell you, but you won't let go of me long enough to listen!" I said quietly "They don't know who you are! They don't know that I know you! They think….." I stopped, unable to articulate quite what they must have thought.
Bill froze and stared at me, horrified. "You mean they thought…that I….Oh no!"
He released me hurriedly and directed me to the chesterfield. "Sit down over there…..I haven't torn anything have I?" he asked anxiously.
"No, I'm fine" I giggled.
"How much have you had to drink tonight?" he asked.
"Quite a lot actually, although I think I've sobered up a bit just recently!" I said, trying to arrange myself decently on the couch.
Bill took off his jacket and tossed it over the end of the sofa, then went over to the door, glanced back at me to check that I looked alright, ran his fingers through his hair and opened the door. "Yes?" he said sharply, standing in the doorway, his fangs still fully extended.
The vampire bouncer stood just outside with two police officers just behind him who, I noticed, backed off a bit when they saw Bill. "May we come in Sir" asked one. "We've received a complaint of assault."
Bill stood back to allow the policemen to enter the office and Pete slipped in behind them. "That's him!" he said pointing at Bill. "He just grabbed her off the dance floor and dragged her in here!" He turned to me anxiously "Are you okay Alex? Did he hurt you?"
"Yes, yes I'm fine…..and he didn't "drag" me anywhere, he carried me." I said patiently.
"Are you sure you're alright Miss?" asked the policeman.
Bill gave a sigh and sat down behind the desk in a large leather swivel chair. "There appears to have been some misunderstanding I'm afraid." He said in a slightly apologetic tone. "Miss Morgan and I are….acquainted, but it seems her friends were not aware of the fact and, understandably, panicked. I do apologise for wasting your time officers."
The policeman turned to me "Is that right Miss?" he asked.
"Yes, that's correct. We are…." I glanced at Bill, "acquainted." I noticed that the other officer was saying something into his radio.
"I take it that you don't wish to press charges?" he asked.
"Well…no." I said, smiling at Bill.
At this point the second policeman stepped forward, "I'm afraid we need to speak to the owner sir." He said. "Just standard procedure when we've been called in by a member of the public."
"You are." said Bill calmly.
"Sir?"
"You are speaking to the owner." I tried not to look surprised at this. After all, Bill had told me when we first met that he owned a number of businesses. He'd just never specified what they were, and I'd never asked.
The policeman consulted his notebook for a moment. "Mr William Thomas Compton?" he asked. Bill inclined his head gravely and smiled. "Very good sir."
I got up and went over to Pete. "I'm okay, really" I said, putting a hand on his arm "but thanks anyway."
"Look, I'm sorry if I've caused you any trouble" he said with obvious embarrassment "but I thought..." he looked over at Bill, who smiled calmly back.
"I should be the one to apologise" said Bill, "I should probably have introduced myself, I should have realised that you'd be...concerned...in the circumstances"
"That will be all then sir" said one of the policemen. The bouncer opened the door and the two policemen went out with Pete behind them. "Thank you Ilario" said Bill to the bouncer "see that this gentleman gets a drink on the house please."
As the door closed behind them I sat back down on the sofa and looked over at Bill. "So this is your office?" I asked.
He looked back at me, the secretive little smile creeping back as his gaze ran up my legs "Did you imagine that I was planning to ravish you in someone else's office?" he asked.
"That's what you were planning was it?" I asked with a little smile.
"Why do you think I had to come and sit down behind the desk?" he asked, shifting uncomfortably in the leather chair. I got up and walked over to the desk, my six inch heels imparting a slight sway to my hips, making the short skirt flick as I moved. I came around to his side of the desk and leaned back with my buttocks perched on the edge and my hands behind me.
Bill examined me with interest. "You really are tipsy aren't you?" He said.
"I've been out on the town!" I said and edged a little closer.
"Now….you know I'm far too much of a gentleman to take advantage of a lady when she's drunk" smiled Bill.
"Oh darn it! Are you….?" I perched on the edge of the desk and lifted my right leg up, the one with the garter. I placed my high heeled shoe on the edge of the chair, between his knees and began to slide it forward until the toe of my shoe was rubbing against the inside of his thigh. Bill reached down, carefully removed the shoe and, equally carefully, placed my stockinged foot back on his thigh.
"But I might want to be taken advantage of!" I said sulkily, wiggling my toes.
Bill chuckled "My, you are interesting when you're drunk aren't you?" he said. "You're a bad girl...come here" he patted his thighs and I kicked off my other shoe and climbed onto his lap. I leaned forward into his arms and kissed him, my tongue slipping between his lips and feeling his fangs slide out as I licked around them, the familiar scent of him in this unfamiliar place exciting me.
As I put my arms around his neck he put his hands under my thighs and stood up, lifting me onto the edge of the desk and kneeling down in front of me. He kissed the inside of my knee and began to place tiny kisses up my thigh until he reached the little garter which he tugged at with his teeth until it slid down my leg and fell, unnoticed, to the carpet under the desk. When he reached the top of my stocking he paused.
He slid his hands up my thighs and, slipping his fingers under the edge of the tiny lacy panties he eased them carefully down my legs, pulled them off and began to kiss the soft, warm skin above the stocking. I put my hands behind me on the desk and leaned back, feeling his tongue slide up the inside of my thigh. The months I had spent with Bill had destroyed most of my inhibitions regarding sex and the alcohol had eliminated any few which may have remained. All I wanted was for him to take me, as often and in as many ways as he could think of, and I knew he was extremely inventive!
I knew now the kind of pleasure he could give me and I wanted it. My heart began to pound with excitement as I felt his fangs scrape over my thigh and I moaned quietly. He slid his tongue up between my legs and kissed me, running the tip over my soft folds and flicking it over the sensitive little bud until I began to squirm on the desk. He gave me one last lick, then moved his mouth down and sank his fangs into my thigh, drinking deeply. I felt as though a knot in my stomach had suddenly loosened and released a warmth that flowed out and turned my muscles to water.
Bill suddenly pulled back and looked up at me, one hand on my thigh, his lips wet with my blood. For just a moment I saw his eyes glaze over as the alcohol in my blood hit him and he threw his head back and closed his eyes, luxuriating in the unusual sensation. After a moment, he opened his eyes and shook his head, as if to clear it.
"Oh my, you really are drunk, aren't you?" he said thickly.
"You can taste it?" I asked, surprised.
"Oh yes!" he said, "are you sure you're okay. I meant what I said about not wanting to take advantage of you."
I wrapped my legs around his neck and pulled him closer to me. "Oh, but I want you to take advantage of me Bill. Please take advantage of me!"
At this he stood up slowly, regarding me spreadeagled on the desk. I gave a little shiver as I watched him lick my blood from his lips, watched him examine my body, feeling for the first time that perhaps there was something dark and dangerous beneath that calm, cool surface, and then he had lifted me by the waist, turned me around and pushed me down on my stomach over the edge of the desk. I felt the harsh denim of his jeans against my bare buttocks as he leant over me and heard the clink of his belt buckle. My heart began to pound harder and he gave a little growl deep in his chest as he heard it speed up.
I reached forward and laid my hands amongst Bill's paperwork as I felt his swollen shaft nudge between my lips and begin to push into me. He gave a little groan and reached forward to hold my hips as he began to drive himself into me harder, pushing me against the padded leather edge of the desk. I heard a slight rustling sound and had to stifle a giggle at the thought of Bill standing behind his elaborate desk with his jeans around his ankles. Then I felt my flesh begin to twitch and I forgot about everything else.
When the room had come back into focus and my pounding heart had slowed down a little he picked me up, stepped out of the jeans and carried me over to the sofa, sat down and drew me onto his lap. He lifted me gently and pulled me down onto him, his still hard rod sliding easily back into my wet sheath. He reached up and fastened his mouth on mine kissing me deeply, his tongue mimicking the actions of his shaft, inside me, moving in that familiar rhythm in time to the movement of his hips under me. I put my hands on the back of the chesterfield leaning over him, my long hair had come loose from the cap at some point and fell in a wave down his unbuttoned shirt.
He pulled his mouth from mine and began to nuzzle at my throat, the sharp tips of his long fangs pushing tentatively at my skin.
"I want more" he breathed "It tastes so incredible, I've never tasted anything like it before."
He held me with one hand on my hip and the other behind my head and drew his tongue over the large vein in my neck, feeling the pounding pulse under my skin. Shifting his position slightly so that his rapid thrusts hit just the right spot, he waited until my body began to shiver in his hands and bit down hard into my throat. I screamed out his name and he reached up and clapped his hand over my mouth, stifling my moans as he drank deep draughts of my alcohol laced blood.
Just as I began to feel dizzy he pulled back and caught me in his arms as I fell forward weakly onto his chest. He gave a low rumbling growl and slid sideways on the couch until he was lying across it holding me on top of him, one hand in the small of my back holding me tightly to him, preventing me from falling. We lay in each others arms for a moment, Bill's eyes glazed with the after-effects of all the Margaritas I had drunk earlier. Then he shook his head again and looked at me. I was lying with my head on his chest, the room was blurring before my eyes, my hand slipped off his shoulder and fell limply to the carpet.
"Alex?" Bill whispered into my ear. I could hear him, but somehow his voice appeared to be coming from very far away. "Alex!" his voice was more urgent now but I was still unable to do anything about it, I felt that I should just go to sleep and everything would be alright. I closed my eyes with a little sigh.
Suddenly I felt myself being lifted as Bill stood up with me in his arms. My head fell back loosely over his arm and my hair trailed to the floor as he carried me towards the rear wall of the office. Moments later he had sat down on a narrow bed and pulled me onto his lap. I felt his cool lips brush against mine and thought vaguely that a kiss would be nice. I opened my lips and immediately his mouth closed on mine, I felt his tongue slide between my lips and tasted his sweet blood leaking onto my tongue. I clamped my mouth on his and drank instinctively, I wasn't really capable of thinking about it but it seemed that my body knew that this was the right thing to do and simply went ahead without consulting me.
When I began to wake up a little I realised that Bill had sunk his razor sharp fangs through his own tongue! I blinked and pulled back from him.
"No Alex, not yet" he murmured "you need more. Come on." He put his hand behind my head and pulled me to him, kissing me again and I took another few mouthfuls and then began to struggle to sit up.
"I'm okay, really. Just a little dizzy." I muttered weakly.
Bill held me tight and examined my eyes carefully. "Okay, I think you'll be alright now, so long as you get some rest. I'm so sorry, I've never tasted anything so good before!" Bill looked down at me guiltily. "It must be the combination of the fae blood and the alcohol, it was beyond doubt the most delicious thing I've ever tasted!"
I smiled at him slightly blearily. "Perhaps I should get tight more often!" I said.
"Alex, no!" Bill looked horrified at the thought. "I could have killed you!"
"But you didn't, did you?" I whispered. "You stopped in time. Even though you'd never tasted anything as good, you still stopped." Bill opened his mouth and I could see that he was about to argue the point but then he sighed and brushed a strand of hair off my face.
"You have more faith in me than I do, do you know that?" he said with a little smile.
"Where are we anyway?" I asked. This doesn't look like your office! We were in a small dark room, completely light tight, with just a cupboard and a narrow bed. Light was coming in through the door from the room beyond.
"It's just a small safe room behind the office. The door is behind a bookcase, there isn't much space to work with I'm afraid but I, or any of the vampire staff can spend the day here if necessary. He pulled a few cushions up to the end of the bed and lifted me onto them. "You need to rest for a while."
As he spoke there was another knock at the outer office door.
Bill looked up, clearly annoyed. "What now!" He stood up and pulled a paisley robe from the back of the door and spread it gently over me. "Wait here, I'll deal with this" he said, heading out into the office. I heard him cross the room and there was a pause as he picked up his jeans and pulled them on, fastening the belt as he walked to the outer door. I heard the door open and then there was another pause. Bill said "Come in" and two sets of footsteps moved across the office.
Intrigued, I got up quietly and moved to a position from which I could look out through the gap of the slightly open door, into the office. I could just see a strip of the room, including the edge of Bill's desk. As I peered out Bill walked across and sat down behind the desk with his back to me. "What can I do for you?" he asked.
"Your staff appeared to be under the impression that you were...engaged" said a vaguely familiar voice. Just as I was wondering where I'd heard that voice before, the speaker walked over to Bill's desk and came into view. Ulrich! What on earth was he doing here? Bill didn't reply, he simply leaned forward and placed his elbows on the desk, looking at Ulrich, with a mildly enquiring expression.
"Paperwork?" asked Ulrich, eyeing the disarray on Bill's desk. I blushed, recalling our recent activities on that desk as he leaned down and picked up the pink garter from the floor. He held out his hand, the garter dangling from his index finger.
"Yours?" he asked with a smile. "No, not your colour! Tell me, does Alexandra know that you entertain strippers in your office?"
Bill reached over and took the garter from Ulrich's outstretched hand. "I don't!" he said. "Now what can I do for you?"
Ulrich leaned casually on the corner of Bill's desk. "Well, I'd like to speak with you and Alexandra, if that's possible. Provided she's still speaking to you that is..." he said, his eyes straying to the pink garter in Bill's hand.
"Okay," I thought, "this has gone far enough." I picked up the robe from the narrow bed and put it on over what was left of my maid's costume. I was turning up the collar, trying to hide the bite mark on my neck when it occurred to me that, maybe a little evidence that I belonged to Bill might not be a bad thing. I peeped out of the gap behind the bookcase and saw Bill turn to look in my direction. He made a slight, beckoning gesture with his head and I pushed the bookcase forward a little and walked out.
Ulrich turned at the sound and his eyebrows rose as he saw me. "Oh, I see!" he said, his smile widening. "What a shame I missed the show!" he turned to Bill, "a little role playing perhaps?"
"I've been to a fancy dress party." I said mildly.
Bill stood up "You have no need to explain yourself to him Alex." he said. "Now, what did you want to talk to us about Ulrich?"
Ulrich smiled at us. "I'm sorry, I should apologise since actually I'm about to ask you both for your help."
"What on earth for?" asked Bill, surprised.
"It's a long story, perhaps you should both sit down."
Bill pressed the intercom on his desk and said. "Ilario, bring two bottles of Tru Blood to my office would you please...and..." he looked over at me, "a coffee for Miss Morgan?"
"Yes," I said quickly "a coffee would be...lovely!"
He got up, pulled out the leather chair from behind the desk and offered it to Ulrich with a smile as I sat down on the couch. Evidently he hadn't quite got over the flowers in the honeymoon suite and didn't want to risk having Ulrich and I sitting on the same couch! I'd better be very careful here I thought, hopefully the coffee would kick start my dozy brain.
There was a brief knock at the door and the vampire bouncer I had noticed earlier came in with a tray. He put it down on the edge of the desk with a nod to Bill and turned to the door, just as Ulrich asked Bill "Have you ever heard the legend of the Princess Azaria?"
Bill looked blank but the bouncer stopped dead with his hand on the door handle. Both Bill and Ulrich's heads snapped around to him.
"Ilario?" said Bill quietly "you know what he's talking about?"
"I've heard stories sir….from my maker." Ilario turned to Bill and smiled "He was from Peru originally. He came north into Mexico where I was born. I recall the name, but not much else.
"Perhaps you should stay and hear this" said Ulrich taking one of the bottles of Tru Blood and sitting down in Bill's chair. Ilario came over and sat on the arm of the sofa while Bill picked up the coffee and the other Tru Blood, sat down next to me and put his arm around my shoulders.
"I understand" said Ulrich carefully "that you both know Lazlo Petrovic?"
Bill growled softly and said "I met him in the 30's and we've both encountered him since. I'm sure you're aware of the circumstances."
"Well, I've spoken to Charles. Mind you, he was almost incoherent with rage at the time." Ulrich gave a little smile. "He certainly won't forgive Lazlo in a hurry! In fact I was quite surprised that he handed him over to The Authority for questioning and didn't simply deliver the true death himself. He says that Lazlo attacked both of you, and by the time he had recovered you had managed to subdue him and chain him in silver. Is that correct?"
"Yes, that's correct."
To his credit Bill's expression didn't flicker by so much as a fraction as he said this. He had promised me that he would not reveal my part in "subduing" Lazlo. I have to say that Ulrich looked a little unconvinced, but he said nothing. We were, after all, the only people there at the time and Lazlo was well and truly "subdued" by the time Charles' security team arrived.
"Well, I'm sorry to say that he has escaped from our custody!" said Ulrich. "We foolishly allowed him to be released on the understanding that he would remain at our headquarters but he knocked out his guard and fled."
Bill gave a sigh and rolled his eyes.
"Yes…..I know!" said Ulrich "it was foolish of us not to keep him restrained, but we had no real reason to think that he would do that, we treated him well, with the respect due to his age and position. Unfortunately, it appears that he escaped because he came into possession of certain information which he should never have had access to. Information about Azaria."
Ulrich took a swig of his Tru Blood and continued. "Azaria was a princess of the Inca people. She lived several hundred years before the Spanish invasion of Peru. She was supposedly the daughter of Pachacuti the Sapa Inca but in fact, the legends say that she was part fae."
I felt Bill's arm tense around me although he gave no other sign. Ulrich regarded me carefully. "I should, perhaps, explain that I have spoken with Charles in depth about you Miss Morgan." He said.
Bill's fangs lengthened and he glared angrily at Ulrich. "He had no right to tell you anything about her!" he snarled.
Ulrich smiled "I have no intention of making the information public, don't worry. I only bring it up as it is highly relevant to my story. You see Azaria was turned when she was about 18 years old, by another vampire who also has fae blood…Lazlo!
It appears that he travelled extensively in the years after he was himself turned and one of his favourite haunts was South America. On one of these visits he met Azaria and fell hopelessly in love with her. In order to keep her with him he turned her, it is not known whether or not she agreed to this, but the legends say that for quite some time she and Lazlo remained with her people, feeding only on a few trusted servants who they glamoured but otherwise trying to live normally amongst them whilst only coming out at night.
Lazlo tells us that after a dozen or so years, the fact that her appearance had not changed at all began to arouse the suspicions of the priests. Especially since the people loved her as a protector and had begun to worship her as a goddess. He told her what we all learn, that it was too risky to remain in the same place for too long, that it was time to leave and that she would be coming back to Europe with him. To his shock she flatly refused and told him that she would never leave her people, and when he tried to compel her, as her maker, she was able to resist him. We assume that this was because of the fae blood, but I admit we don't really understand how the blood affects vampires – there are so few left now…." Ulrich paused, eyeing me speculatively and I felt Bill's arm tighten protectively around my shoulders.
"Anyway, as you can imagine, this infuriated Lazlo and, in a fit of anger, he went to the priests and told them what she was, he gave them information on where she lay during the daylight hours and how to capture and restrain her."
Bill's eyes went wide with shock. "He betrayed her? His own child?"
"Oh he regretted it later" sighed Ulrich, "but by then it was too late. The priests had found Azaria and placed her in a box bound in silver. However, when her people found out what had happened they were horrified, they didn't believe what the priests told them until it was demonstrated that the silver burned her. The priests tried to tell them that she was an unnatural monster and a danger to them but they didn't believe this either and refused to allow the priests to destroy her, as they wished to do. Eventually they came to a terrible compromise. Azaria was to be placed in a box, a coffin, covered with silver plate and placed in a secret chamber in one of the temples. The priests assured her people that she could not die, but would remain with her people for eternity."
Bill gave a horrified cry. "She might not die but she would suffer unimaginably! You're not saying that they actually did this?" he turned to Ilario who bowed his head and said "This is what I have heard also, the legends say she was placed in a silver coffin but that it's location was lost long ago."
"But possibly not any more!" said Ulrich.
Ilario looked up "She has been found?"
"No, no…" said Ulrich "We are a long way from that. The Temple was said to have been built by the people of Cuzco, somewhere in the Urubamba valley. Agents of The Authority have been searching for it for centuries with no success, but it seems that we were looking in the wrong place. A manuscript was recently discovered in the Vatican archives, written by a Spanish monk, Diego Rodrigues, which records the discovery of a silver coffin which was brought back to Spain by the Catholic Church and hidden in some secret vault. Unfortunately the manuscript appears to be incomplete, if it was ever completed at all!"
"And this is why Lazlo fled from The Authority? To search for her?" asked Bill.
"We think so" answered Ulrich, "but who can say what his motives might be?"
"But why would The Authority be interested anyway?" asked Bill, evidently confused. "Surely she wouldn't…..after hundreds of years….be still…?"
"Viable?" asked Ulrich. "We don't know…..that's why we want to find her. No vampire has ever been confined for so long. We have no idea what effect it would have, or even if it would be possible to revive her."
Bill and Ilario simply stared at Ulrich, horrified.
"Um…excuse me?" I said quietly. The three vampires stared at me. "How could she possibly survive?"
"She couldn't!" said Bill. He looked at Ulrich "could she?"
Ulrich looked at me uneasily and sighed. "How much do you know about this?" he asked Bill.
"Not much, thankfully!" said Bill "I've heard of it being threatened as a punishment. To be locked in a coffin bound with silver and starved for years. I understand that your body would wither and dry out like an Egyptian mummy, but surely you couldn't survive in that state for hundreds of years? You'd go insane!"
"We don't really know" said Ulrich calmly. "As I said no-one has ever been confined for this length of time. But the best theory we have is that, after the first ten years or so, the body goes into a state similar to hibernation. Personally I would think that insanity might be preferable and this is why we don't want Lazlo to find her before we do. If he is able to revive her, we have no idea what she might do or how dangerous she might be."
"This is all very interesting Ulrich, but what has it to do with us?" asked Bill. "Other than the fact that you have let Lazlo slip through your fingers that is!"
Ulrich sat back with a sigh. "I don't really know." He said, "but the fact that Alex has the fae blood makes her attractive to Lazlo, as you know, so I felt that you had a right to know and also you have a vested interest in his capture, for that reason. That was why I came here tonight.
But I have to say that Charles is considerably impressed with your talents in public relations Bill, and Alex has proven herself to be a brave and resourceful friend to our kind. I hoped that you would agree to help us in the search if you could."
"But how, exactly?" asked Bill, evidently puzzled.
Ulrich drained the bottle of Tru Blood and stood up. "Oh, I don't know! Maybe I'd hoped that having someone with the fae blood on our side would help…..we're in trouble here Bill. Having Lazlo at large is a risk in itself, but if he were to find her...well, we have no idea what might happen. After what happened in the US with Russell Edgington it would only take one incident to ruin all our work. He could single-handedly destroy years of progress with the human public.
Our agent in the Vatican Archives discovered the manuscript and translated it but when we sent someone to collect it he was gone, and the manuscript and the translation were both missing. He was later found dead, his body had been dumped in the Tiber, but the police report suggested that he had been mauled by a large animal."
Bill sat up suddenly. "What kind of animal?" he asked.
"The report didn't specify, but we think it was probably a wolf" said Ulrich.
I had been sitting quietly listening but at this point I just couldn't help myself. "A wolf?" I said. "In Rome? That's a bit unlikely isn't it? Unless it was suckling a pair of abandoned twins!"
All three vampires turned and stared at me. Ulrich raised a questioning eyebrow at Bill.
"No" he said "I've not mentioned anything. But why would they be involved?"
"Why would who be involved?" I asked.
"Money" said Ulrich flatly "Lazlo has plenty of it and he could afford to pay them well."
"Um….excuse me!" I said firmly."I seem to be missing something important here!"
Bill and Ulrich looked at each other doubtfully and then at me.
"Look, if you want my help I think I have a right to know what's going on!" I said. It's not easy to look haughtily offended whilst wearing the ravaged remains of a French maid's fancy dress costume under a man's paisley bathrobe, but I managed it.
Bill turned to me and took my hand. "We think that Lazlo is using weres to help him during the daytime." he explained. "Werewolves."
I gaped at him in surprise. I really wanted to laugh out loud but I could see from his expression that he was serious. "Werewolves?" I said softly.
When I actually thought about it I wondered why It had never occurred to me before. If vampires could exist, and faeries, then why not werewolves. God knows what else was out there that we poor, innocent humans didn't know about...but we did know about them though didn't we, I thought to myself, at least our ancestors did. We just didn't believe in them any more, we were far too clever and sophisticated for that!
Bill was watching me quietly, trying to gauge my reaction.
"Werewolves," I said carefully "okay…..anything else I should know about that you haven't seen fit to mention?"
Bill winced and squeezed my hand "It's not that I intended to keep it from you, it just never came up!"
I suddenly recalled Sookie's words to me in Amsterdam. "Bill's good at only telling you what he thinks you need to know."
"So what are they exactly? Men who can change into wolves? Are there any around here?"
"Yes" said Bill calmly "There's a pack in this area, I know the packmaster quite well actually, he's a reasonable man. He gave me an apologetic look, "There are also a couple of shifters. Shapeshifters. Weres are men and women who change into one specific animal. Shifters can change into anything."
I thought about this for a moment. "So these huge black cats that people say they see every so often all over England, but there's never any evidence for, they never find any bodies for instance – they could be weres, or shifters?"
"Very probably" said Bill with a smile, "like "The Beast of Bodmin Moor" you mean?"
"There are lots of them, people report them all the time, but no-one ever believes them because there's no evidence, they just assume they've had too much to drink, or have a vivid imagination." I said amazed at this possible explanation.
"Humans are very good at rationalizing away what they don't understand" said Ulrich. "It's been very useful to us in the past!"
I sat on the sofa, my hand in Bill's cool grasp, my head spinning. "So, do you, like, work together?" I asked.
"No!" snapped Bill and Ulrich simultaneously. "We don't generally mix" said Bill, "weres can be dangerous and untrustworthy and they hate vampires, but you can buy them with enough money! They thought we were insane to reveal ourselves to humans. They usually stay well away from trouble which might involve you."
Ulrich gave a short laugh "They have more than enough trouble of their own." He said. "They're vicious and argumentative and love nothing more than a good fight. It takes a strong man to control a pack."
"But you think that Lazlo is employing some?" I asked.
"It seems probable" said Ulrich, "unless there's a real wolf loose in Vatican City. Which, as you pointed out, is unlikely!"
There was a ringing noise and Ulrich pulled a phone out of his pocket, glanced at the caller ID and flipped it open. "Yes? Any news?" he asked. "He's been in contact? Good! Does he have the second copy?" Ulrich began to pace up and down the office "If he has it, then why hasn't it been collected yet?" He stopped and listened for a moment. "What do you mean he won't give it to us!" he snarled into the phone. "Damn it, why does he have to be so difficult?" I could faintly hear a voice explaining something as Ulrich began to pace again. After a moment he sighed and said "Yes, I understand. We may be able to help you with that. I'll get back to you."
He walked back to the desk and sat down again.
"Well, the good news is that there is a copy of the translated manuscript in existence. Our agent gave it to a friend of his the day before he disappeared. The bad news is that he refuses to give it to us."
"Does he want money?" asked Bill, "surely The Authority could afford to pay him for it?"
"No, that's not the problem" sighed Ulrich. "Apparently his friend's death has terrified him. He's afraid that he's being watched and that, if he is seen with one of our agents, or a member of The Authority he'll end up face down in the river as well."
"He could well be right!" said Bill. "So what can you do?"
"He has left Rome and fled to his home city of Naples, with the copy of the manuscript. He refuses to tell us where he is or have anything to do with any vampire. He truly believes that he is being watched and if he is seen in the company of a vampire it may cost him his life."
"So how could I help?" asked Bill.
"Well, you probably couldn't" admitted Ulrich, "but Alex now...he would probably agree to meet her..."
Bill face darkened immediately. "Now wait a minute, don't you think she's done enough for you? She could have been killed after helping you in Cairo. You know Lazlo's interested in her and you want to send her in as your agent! Are you crazy?"
Ulrich had the grace to look a little embarrassed at this outburst. "'I assure you I appreciate everything she has done for us and I'm sure she'll be fine. Our best information says that Lazlo has left Italy, with the manuscript. You would go with her, obviously. I doubt if Reynaldo would object to meeting a young human woman, one who has no obvious connection with The Authority."
"What about the press conference?" I asked quietly.
Bill and Ulrich both stared at me for a moment as if they had forgotten that I was there.
"What press conference?" asked Ulrich.
"The one at The Osiris in Luxor, I was there, with you."
Ulrich thought for a moment. "As I recall, the other girl did most of the talking didn't she...the reporter?"
"Susie" I said. "Yes, you're right, she did actually."
Bill reached for me and gathered me into his arms. "I can't believe you're taking this seriously!" he said. "What if he's right? What if he is being watched?"
"Well, no-one's going to be surprised to see a young Italian male chatting up a pretty girl now are they?" smiled Ulrich.
Bill gave a low growl but said nothing.
I sighed and looked up at Bill, "I can't help thinking about that poor girl" I said "Could she really be still...suffering, after all this time?" I reached up and stroked his face. "What if it were you, Bill? Shouldn't we try to help her if we can?"
Bill pulled me onto his lap and hugged me. "You see, that's the difference between you and Ulrich, sweetheart. Ulrich wants to find Azaria to prevent any political fallout which might damage The Authority's public relations. You just feel sorry for her!" he placed the tip of his finger on the end of my nose, "and that's why I love you."
"That's not entirely fair!" said Ulrich with a laugh. "I want to help her too. But if we can manage it without any "political fallout" that would be a bonus."
Bill and I just looked at each other for a moment.
"So that's settled is it?" asked Ulrich. Something in the tone of his voice made Bill and I break apart and look over at him, suspiciously.
"Why?" asked Bill.
"Because Reynaldo is going to bring the translation of the manuscript to the Basilica of San Lorenzo Maggiore in Naples at noon, the day after tomorrow..."