Page 73 of Brimstone Bound
***
‘I meant what I said before,’ I told Lukas when the car pulled up in front of the DeVane Hotel. ‘It’s better if I do this alone.’
‘May I ask why?’ he enquired.
I drew in a breath. ‘Because if I’m right, the sight of you could scare her off for good.’
Lukas’s eyes flew to mine and a gratifying jolt ran through me at the thought that I’d managed to surprise him. ‘Are you going to tell me who you’re talking about?’
‘Nope. I might still be wrong – and then I’ll be embarrassed.’
‘Areyou wrong?’
I shook my head. ‘No.’ This was the only thing that made any sense.
‘I’ll wait at the bar,’ he told me. ‘Come and find me when you’re ready. But if I’m to be considered a threat, then at least leave the damned crossbow in the car. It’s a lethal liability.’
I breathed out. ‘I will. Thank you.’
I’d wondered if I should head for the unobtrusive side entrance again, but the sight of Lord Horvath by my side stopped any of the DeVane staff sending me off in that direction. They clearly recognised him. He nodded to me and turned left towards the bar, from which I could hear the strains of piano music filtering even though it was late at night.
I watched him go and then marched to the front desk and asked for Wilma Kennard.
It didn’t take the assistant manager long to appear. She was dressed in the same professional attire as before. When she spotted me, her business-like smile didn’t so much as flicker. ‘Ms Bellamy. And here was I hoping that I’d never see you again.’
‘It’s lovely to see you too,’ I murmured.
‘I hear you’re keeping some interesting company these days,’ she said, her gaze drifting briefly towards the bar. ‘Be careful with that one.’
I wondered whether she was aware that some of her staff had been bribed to keep Lukas and his vampires informed about the hotel’s well-heeled guests and any unusual occurrences that took place. Then I wondered ifshewas on Lukas’s payroll.
‘I appreciate your concern.’ I inclined my head. ‘But let’s move on – I don’t want to take up more of your time than is necessary. I need to see your guest list.’
Kennard’s eyebrows shot up. ‘Do you indeed?’
‘It’s important.’
‘No doubt it is. It always is. However, that simply won’t be possible without a warrant. I have to safeguard my guests’ privacy.’
I knew I could obtain a warrant via DSI Barnes, but it would take time. I was so close to the truth now that I didn’t have the patience to wait. ‘There’s only one guest in particular I’m interested in. I need to know if she’s here and, if so, what room she’s in.’
Kennard sighed. ‘One guest?’
I nodded.
‘Under any other circumstances I’d be compelled to refuse, but I feel terrible about what happened to your colleague. I suppose I can bend the rules on this occasion.’ She jerked her head. ‘Come on, we can go to my office.’ She smiled faintly. ‘You already know where it is.’
I followed her through, wishing I didn’t feel the disturbing sensation of déjà vu as I sat down in the same chair as last time and waited for Kennard to log in to her computer.
‘What’s the name?’ she asked.
I cleared my throat. ‘Sullivan. Anna Sullivan.’
She started. ‘As in Clan Sullivan? Are we talking about a werewolf?’
‘We are.’
Kennard tutted, then typed in the name and hit return. ‘I’m sorry. There’s no Sullivan staying with us.’
