“We’re here,” he announced quietly when she blinked her eyes open with confusion.
“I fell asleep.” She sounded surprised, and Marcus smiled.
“You’re exhausted. I could see that when I woke up. You need sleep.”
“Thanks,” she said dryly. “You really know how to charm a girl.”
“Sorry,” he muttered, realizing just how unflattering his words must have sounded. He hadn’t meant them that way. The woman was beautiful to him, even with her hair a mess, her face pale, and huge black bags under her eyes. He suspected she could stand in front of him wearing a potato sack and covered in mud and he’d still think she was beautiful . . . and that was a bit alarming.
Turning, Marcus pushed the button on the intercom on a post several feet from the closed gate to the driveway and then waited.
“Yes?” It was a woman’s voice. Probably Jackie, Vincent’s wife and life mate, Marcus thought as he gave his name.
“Come on up! We’re ready,” Jackie said, sounding almost painfully cheerful. It seemed obvious that Bastien had warned them about his traveling companion. Jackie was a private investigator before she married Vincent Argeneau and still was as far as he knew. She would be all over this like white on rice, doing everything she could to sort out if Divine was this Basha that Lucian was looking for . . . and that thought worried Marcus.
Pushing the worry aside for now, he slid his foot from the brake to the gas as the gate began to slide open.
Ten
Divine peered curiously around as they headed up the driveway, her eyebrows rising as they got past the gate and she could actually see the house bathed in early morning sunlight. Two stories and huge, it was much more than she’d expected. This “family friend” was obviously the successful type. But then he hadn’t been hampered by having to slide by under the radar, Divine told herself. Besides, she might not have a big house and such, but she had saved up quite a bit of money over the years. She wasn’t exactly poor. She just couldn’t afford to draw attention to herself by throwing money around, so lived conservatively.
It would have been nice to have a real home though, Divine acknowledged sadly as she peered over the curtained windows and well-tended gardens. The kind of home that had a plot of land rather than an RV that moved every couple days, always sitting on rented land. But Divine had given up that dream long ago. Staying in one place was dangerous. Constant movement helped prevent capture.
Marcus pulled to a halt in front of the house, and turned off the engine. Glancing to her as he opened his door, he said, “Shall we?”
Divine’s eyes widened with surprise. “I was just going to wait in the SUV while you went in to get the blood from your friends.”
Marcus hesitated and then pulled his door closed. Turning to face her, he said solemnly, “Bastien is having the blood delivered here, but it won’t get here until possibly tomorrow, tonight at the latest. Vincent and Jackie offered to put us up until then. They’re going to feed us and give us rooms to sleep in.”
Divine frowned at this news. She hadn’t signed up for all of that. She wasn’t used to depending on others, and wasn’t comfortable doing so now. “I have to get back to the carnival, Marcus. Madge will be worried about me. I haven’t had a chance to call yet. And I have to get money out of the bank, buy a new RV, and set it up for customers. They count on me to—”
“You can call or text Madge from the house. I’m sure Vincent will be happy to let you use the phone. And you can’t buy a new RV until you can get to the money. It’s Sunday. The banks are all closed. So that will have to wait until tomorrow anyway.” Reaching out, he took her hands and said gently, “You need blood and a place to rest. Both of those are waiting just through that door.”
Divine turned and peered at the door in question, but still hesitated. Finally, she said, “Tell me about these friends of yours.”
Marcus hesitated, and then said, “Well, their names are Vincent Argeneau and Jackie Morrisey Argeneau. They’re life mates who found each other about four years ago.”
Divine stiffened in her seat, her heart suddenly thumping like a scared rabbit’s in her chest. Argeneau? He’d brought her to the home of an Argeneau? His family friends were Argeneaus? Who were they? How were they connected to her? Dear God, she was sitting outside the lion’s den like a lamb waiting for slaughter.
“Jackie was born mortal and was turned less than five years ago . . . by a rogue,” he added quietly. “Which was fortunate, because Vincent had used up his turn to save a cousin of mine.”
Divine swallowed. Jackie was a mortal? That was good. Jackie wouldn’t be able to read her, and wasn’t likely to be a threat. However . . . “How old is Vincent?”
Marcus grimaced and then admitted, “I’m not sure. I think he’s about four or five hundred years old.”
“A baby,” Divine murmured, relaxing a little. Neither of them would be able to read her. If she just continued to act as if there was nothing wrong, surely they wouldn’t know who she was? She wondered though who his parents were, and if she’d ever met them. And she wondered if she’d even recall his parents if she had met them. It had been a long time ago that she’d lived with her grandparents. Uncle Lucian had been around a lot, and his twin too, though she couldn’t remember his name. She hadn’t much liked the man. She remembered an Aunt Marta or Martine, and a couple of other uncles visiting at one time or another, but those were not memories she had held on to. She’d done her best to forget that time of her life once she’d realized she could never return to it.
And yet, here she was, about to meet a relative, and Divine found herself oddly numb about the whole thing. This man was probably a cousin or something to her, but she didn’t feel like she was about to meet family. He was a stranger to her whether he carried the same last name as she’d once had or not.
“Vincent has a company with diversified interests, but his main interest is in the theater,” Marcus continued. “He produces plays. He used to act in them too, but I gather he’s kind of dropped out of that since meeting Jackie.”
An actor, Divine thought, relaxing a little more. Neither of them was sounding very threatening, and surely it couldn’t hurt to stay here for one night? She was exhausted, and sleeping in a bed rather than the SUV was sounding mighty attractive. Sighing, Divine nodded and tugged her hands free of his hold. His touch was oddly disturbing.
“Fine. One night,” she said quietly, reaching for her door. “But tomorrow, I have to visit a bank and someplace that sells RVs.”
“I’ll take you to both myself,” he assured her, getting out on his side as she opened her own door and slid out.
“To both what?”
Divine turned at that cheerful question and found herself peering at a well-dressed blond woman who was short and curvy, with intelligent eyes presently brimming with curiosity.
“Jackie,” Marcus said with a nod of greeting as he came around the truck. Turning to Divine he said, “This is Jackie Morrisey Argeneau. Vincent’s wife.” Turning back to the woman, he added, “Jackie, this is Divine.”
Jackie smiled and offered a hand in greeting, but asked, “Just Divine?”
“It’s Madame Divine, but Divine will do,” she said mildly.
“Right,” Jackie said slowly, her eyes narrowing briefly. But then she smiled and turned to Marcus. “So what is this both you will take Divine to yourself?”
“Oh.” He smiled crookedly. “Divine’s RV burned up two nights ago and she needs to buy a new one. We’ll have to hit a bank and RV place tomorrow,”