“And a bone for Lorde.”Abbi wrapped her arms around the dog’s neck and pulled her down beside her, making Lorde squirm and wag her tail.
“Sounds like we have our orders,” I said.
Lu leaned back.“She’s not the boss of us.We don’t have to listen.”
“I can hear you!”Abbi said.
Lu moved to the stairs, her body language shifting into high alert.
“You think we’re in danger?”
She shook her head.“Still.I walk into the room first.”
There was a reason she took point in unknown situations.Even though I was a big man and a strong man, she wasthrawn.Being half-vampire meant she was stronger than me, faster than me, and could heal a lot quicker than I could.
It didn’t make her invulnerable, but with her reflexes, she could respond to an attack before I even knew what hit us.
The hallway at the top of the stairs was well lit, built of dark wood with a deep green-and-gold wallpaper.Fixtures in the ceiling gave off a warm light, and the hall branched in two directions.
“This way,” Pamela said from where she was waiting for us on the left.“Figured you’d want to pick out beds first.Where’s Abbi?”
“Truck,” Lula said.“We need to know what kind of magical and practical protections you have in this place.”
“Sure thing.We’ll head to the control room instead.”
She crossed to the right hall, and after a few turns (I was mentally mapping how the hall worked as a defensive structure), it spilled us out into a beautiful room.
I whistled again.“This is very nice.”
More of the dark wood accented the space, with dark green subway tiles at the bottom half of the walls, wallpaper on the top, and wood inlaid floors.
The walls were high enough to cover two stories, but instead of an upper floor, exposed brass staircases led to a loft which lined the entire well-lit upper space.
Bookshelves racked back from the open loft rooms and a handful of padded chairs littered the area.
But the main room, the control room, was set much like I would expect a military space to be arranged.There were maps on one wall (marked with push pins), and a mix of wooden and metal storage cabinets, with doors and drawers, set at strategic positions.
Centering the room was a large wooden table that could seat twelve, matching chairs drawn up tight.
The table held a variety of crystals, small tokens, silk bags, and other magical bits and twigs on one side, looking as if they’d been dropped there after a treasure hunt.A few leather-bound books were stacked at the far end.
“Don’t mind the mess,” Pamela said.“We left in a hurry last time we were here.”
“I’ll get these out of the way.”Josie scooped up the books.“Be right back.”
She took the nearest staircase to the upper level.
“Kitchen’s that way,” Elmer pointed at the door on one end of the room.“Bedrooms back that way.Main library there,” then to another door to a room set at what I thought was west, “and various other rooms that way, including a safe room.So.Think this will do for you?”
“What magical defenses do you have?”Lula asked.“How hidden is this place, really?”
“You won’t find anywhere with more magical wards or spells,” Pamela said.“Nothing can find us here.No gods, monsters, or humans can cross our trip lines without us knowing it.”
“How do you know someone’s crossed the trip lines?”Lu asked.
A mechanical snap cracked the air, and every light dimmed.Red emergency lights flooded the place.
An alarm wailed.
