“Regardless of whether this painting is real or not, someone finds it valuable, and they were willing to shoot you for it,” Viktor told her. “Have you done an x-ray?”
“No. I didn’t get a chance to run one yet.” Frustrated, she snapped the rubber band off her wrist, ran her fingers through her hair and pulled it into a ponytail. “God, I just want to get out of here right now. What do you think is taking the detective so long?”
The faint ding of the elevator sounded. “Speak of the devil.”
“Don’t say that word. Nope.” Waverly held up a dismissive finger at him. She crossed the room and opened the door. As she stepped halfway into the hallway, she heard footsteps. She peeked around the corner and spied the detective.
“We’re right down here.” She waved with a forced smile.
A low growl resounded in the showroom and Waverly’s body went tense with fear. Her heart pounded in her chest at the sight of the disheveled detective, her eyes glowing red.
“What the…” She lost her words as a low demonic laugh erupted from the possessed creature.
Waverly ran back into her office, and slammed the door shut. She leaned against it, attempting to form words.
“What’s wrong?” Viktor crossed the room to meet her.
“D…d…demon,” she managed, her heart pounding.
“Get what you need now,” he ordered. “Does your door automatically lock?”
“Yes. It’s locked.” She nodded.
“Have you got a bag of some sort in here? I need you to gather anything you need,” he ordered.
“What?”
“Just do it. I’ll get the painting.”
“How are we supposed to get out of here?” As Waverly reached for her backpack, a loud bang sounded, shaking the room. She screamed and quickly began stuffing supplies inside the bag. “It’s going to get in here.”
“We’ve got to take this,” Viktor carefully removed the painting from its workspace.
“But that thing is out there. There’s no way out.” Another loud thump sounded, and Waverly scurried behind Viktor. Splinters flew into the room as it pounded its fist through the wooden door, claws reaching for the door handle.
“Give me the key,” it growled.
“Key?” Waverly’s heart pounded against her ribs, sweat beading on her forehead. She looked to the apex of the ceiling, eyeing the small, rectangular, skylight windows. I’m never going to fit through there. She reached for her cell phone and began tapping at the glass. “I’ve got to call the police.”
“The detective is the police. I’m afraid we’re going to have to flash out of here. No worries, pet. Do you have your things?”
“What? I just told you we can’t get out of this room. I need to find a weapon.”
“I’m afraid we don’t have time to deal with this demon right now. I need to get you and this painting to a safe place.” Viktor wrapped his arm around her, his eyes locked on hers. He gripped the painting in his other hand. “This may make you a bit dizzy. See you in New Orleans.”
“New Orleans?” Panic swept through Waverly as it set in there was no feasible escape route.
“About those special things I can do. Please forgive me if I say just relax. I promise it will be worth it.”
“What? How are we getting to New—”
Waverly squealed as his energy slammed into her. Lost in space and time, her mind flashed with visions as she was sucked into another century. The vampire wore leather and fur, he stood watching a roaring fire. An attractive woman crossed the room and dropped her clothes, baring herself, offering her neck. As he kissed her shoulder, a possessive streak stabbed through Waverly.
Before she had a chance to process her feelings or what she’d seen, the vision shifted. She struggled to breathe as Viktor came into view. On his knees, he cowered as a taskmaster beat him with a whip. A male she didn’t recognize, tied to a stake, lapped at his wounds. Her heart broke for him, yet her energy simply swirled in the ethos, she was helpless to stop it. As the flagrum snapped, her heart caught in her chest. The scent of blood swirled in the air, making her nauseous. She froze as Viktor raised his head, his eyes looking to her.
As her feet thumped onto the ground, she immediately snapped into reality. Waverly released a mournful cry, the memories fresh in her mind. Her sadness quickly dissipated as Viktor came into view.
“Are you okay? Sorry, but I had to get us out of there. No time to fuss with demons. Or possessed humans.”
“Viktor,” she whispered, her eyes brimming with tears. He’d seen her in her vision. No one in her life had insight to her gift, her curse. Both fascinated and terrified, she reached for him, her palm brushing his cheek, her fingers tingling.
“Are you all right, pet? I’m sorry I had to do that without proper warning.” He released her hand.
She glanced at his lips as her body hummed with his energy. “Viktor. You saw me.”
5
Like a dream, Viktor sensed her in his mind. He hadn’t intentionally shown her specific memories, but rather let it play as a reel. Although Viktor no longer suffered the agony of the floggings, the memory lingered. “I’m not sure what you’re talking about.”
“That man, he was beating you.” She shook her head. “I saw you. You saw me.”
Waverly pulled out of his embrace, shaken, as she took in her surroundings. Lights twinkled in the distance through a wall of glass. Her eyes adjusted to the darkness, drawn to a lone flickering candle on the fireplace mantle. “Where am I?”
“Home.”
“This is your house? It’s dark outside. Why is it dark outside?” Panic flashed in her eyes.
“Because it’s night,” Viktor responded without pause.
“No. It was daytime when we were in the museum. Wait,” she defensively held up her hands, confused, “what just happened?”
“We’re in Louisiana. It’s night here. Time difference and whatnot.”
“Louisiana?” Her voice grew louder at the realization that he’d defied physics, somehow transporting them across the country. “No. No, we were just in California.”
“I’m vampire, Waverly.”
“Is this some kind of trick?”
“It’s no trick. It’s simply a skill. One I’ve mastered. For your first ride, you appear to have traveled well.” He gave her a warm smile. “Technically it’s your second. But this time you were awake.”
“You mean you can just disappear and reappear? Take someone with you?”
“Precisely.”
“This! This is how I got to Miami?” she exclaimed.
“Yes.”
“Oh my God. My vision…I saw you. I saw you there,” she repeated, her voice weary.
“I think you should rest. Humans, wolves. They react differently when I flash them.” He gestured to the sofa and flicked a switch on the wall, igniting the fireplace.
Waverly walked to a large, crushed velvet sofa and sat, staring blindly at the fire.
“How long have you had visions?” Viktor asked as he took a seat in an overstuffed chair.