I looked up into his face. "Do you think they'll get away?"
He shook his head. "Not without our invention, and a great deal of luck."
"It's gone!" The cry came from Eres. "How the hell did they make off with the whole damn thing?"
Simon took my hand and guided me down the hall. We arrived at a door in the center-right wing of the house. The double-doors were wide open and revealed a study complete with bookshelves, a desk, and a hole in the wall. Our acquaintances gaped at the hole.
The man in black shook his head. "I don't know, sir. The safe was welded to the steel frame of the house."
Something floated down in front of my face. I tilted back my head and followed its journey from the top. The ceiling was divided into depressed squares that sank upward. My eyes widened as I beheld a large furry wolf creature cramped into one of those depressions. Their feet and one hand pressed them into place. Tucked under the other arm was a large metal safe.
Simon set a hand on my shoulder, and I whipped my head to him. He pressed a finger to his lips and shook his head.
Simon cleared his throat and stepped forward. "The thief must still be on the rounds, and surely the cameras caught them in the act."
Eres shook his head. "Not without the electricity, and they even hit the backup generators, but you're right about the first point. They have to be on the grounds." He turned to the dark man. "Wake those men up with a cattle prod if you have to, but get them searching the grounds." The man nodded and hurried out of the room.
Eileen let out a wail mixed with a sob. She turned and rushed into Simon's chest. "Why? Why does this happen to me?"
Eres clenched his fists and growled. "How I'd like to get my hands on whoever did this."
He put his arms around her and half-turned towards the door. "Perhaps we could all use a stiff drink."
"Why?" Eileen wailed.
"Shut your trap and let's get you a stiff drink as he said," her father snapped.
We left the room, and I brought up the rear. I stepped out into the hall.
That's when I felt the cold chill, and lost my mind.
CHAPTER 12
At least, I lost a part of my mind. The deep, intimate part.
Lady, we've got a problem.
I blinked and spun around. The voice sounded familiar, but the others were already at the front hall. "Hello?"
Don't speak out loud. Speak in your mind.
I tilted my head to one side and furrowed my brow. Specter?
The voice inside my head chuckled. The one and only, but no time for small chat. We've got a problem.
How the hell are you in my head?
It's a gift of mine to communicate with people if I enter their body, but we don't have time for small chat. Maeve's stuck in a tree close beside an exterior outlet, and the guards are circling her.
I raised an eyebrow. How'd that happen?
Never mind that! Just tell Simon that- When the devil's called he appears, and Simon was suddenly standing by my side.
He looked straight ahead and his voice was so low I could barely hear the words. "What's went wrong?"
I spoke, but I wasn't the one moving my lips. "There were a few more guards than I expected. When the lights were knocked out they covered the perimeter of the house. Maeve's stuck in a tree, and I don't know how Dolf's going to get out of the study."
Simon frowned. "Tell Maeve to wait where she is. Faith will rescue her. I will take care of Dolf."
I wanted to whip my head to him, but I still wasn't in control of my body. What the hell? How the hell am I supposed to do that? I screamed in my head.
I spoke again outside of my control. "Faith wonders how she's supposed to do that."
Simon grinned. "Through faith, but I'll explain in a moment. Tell Maeve to remain where she is."
The chill left my body and I watched Specter's spectral form slip through the wall to my right. My knees buckled and I would've dropped to the floor if Simon hadn't caught me.
"Steady. The fatigue will vanish in a moment," he assured me.
I raised myself onto my feet and brushed away his hands. "I'd really like to know how the hell I'm supposed to help her."
He gave me his sly smile. "Through a bit of vampire magic."
I frowned. "Come again?"
He chuckled. "Vampires are very quickly. Simply pull her onto your back and move from tree to tree until you reach the garage. Certus will take care of things there."
My mouth dropped open. "But I don't move that fast!"
"Simon? Simon, where are you?" Eileen's voice drifted from the hall.
Simon stepped towards the front hall and looked over his shoulder at me. "Focus on the point you want to reach and run. Your heritage will do the rest."
Eileen stepped into the mouth of the hall and looked in our direction. "Simon! There you are! Daddy and I were worried you might have been taken by the burglars!"
He strode towards her and shook his head. "No, I was merely giving Faith directions to the upstairs bathroom. The one to the left of the top of the stairs and down the hall."
Eileen reached Simon and looked past him to glare at me. "Oh, I see. Well, take your time, Patience."
"It's Faith," I reminded her.
She looped her arm through one of Simon's and turned her back on me. "Well, take your time, anyway. We'll keep the food warm."
The pair went off together, and I was left alone in the darkened hallway. I sighed and looked around me. Simon had mentioned the location of a bathroom. I marched to the front hall and up the dark stairs to the second floor. Three halls ran in different directions. Two to my left and right, and another straight ahead. I took the left one and came to the end. A window lay at the end of the hall, and on the other side was a large tree.
Something moved in it.
I walked up to the glass and squinted. Maeve's pale face stared back at me from among the tree branches. A bag sat in her lap and its strap lay over one shoulder.
I gasped and pulled up the window to stick my head out. "Maeve!" I whispered.
Maeve started and clawed at the tree for a moment before she regained her hold. She whipped her head to me and glared. "Don't do that!"
"Did Specter get a hold of-"
"Present," the spook spoke up as he appeared from below us. He pointed down. "There's the problem."
I followed his finger and noticed a guard parked against the side of the house.
"Why can't you just knock him out?" I suggested.
He sat back in midair and folded his arms across his chest. "I could, but then they might stick two people here to do a better search, and then Maeve would be in trouble."
I swept my eyes over the area. The garage was a good hundred yards from the house. Trees were scattered across the distance. I pursed my lips and inspected the closest thick branch. The branch was only a foot from the window, but there was a sheer fall to the ground.
Maeve watched me with a frown. "How are you supposed to get me down?"
A thought struck me. I eased myself over the ledge of the window. "Very carefully," I returned.
Specter floated close beside me. "I'd offer to help, but these hands can't hold a human."
I sat side-saddle on the sill and nodded down at the guard. "Knock him out."
Specter frowned. "But-"
"We'll get out of here before they notice him, so knock him out!" I hissed.
Specter shrugged and floated downward. He floated into the man's body and another second later the guard dropped like a rock. Specter reappeared and looked up at me. "Better hurry. There's another watch coming soon."
I climbed to my feet and eased a foot into the void. The tip of the branch held my first foot, so I leaned towards the tree and caught a higher branch to steady myself. For a moment I was stretched between branch and sill, and then my second foot followed. The branch bent under my weight. I felt my first foot slip down the smooth bark. My heart thumped. I whipped my eyes up and looked to a point at the trunk close beside Maeve.
And then I was there. She yelped and nearly fell back. I grabbed her sleeve and yanked her back against the tree.
She glared at me. "Tell me when you're going to do that!"
I looked from where I was to where I used to be. "Did I. . .did I really move that fast?"
Specter floated up to us and clapped. "And it was horribly clumsy."
I frowned. "It was my first time, okay?"
He tapped his wrist. "And it might be your last if you don't get out of here soon."
I took a deep breath and looked down at the ground. "Let's get out of this tree and get to the garage."
Maeve's mouth dropped open. "To the garage? Are you stupid? We'll never make it."
"I can carry you on my back and run there," I told her.
She scoffed. "That's the stupidest idea I've ever heard."
A sly grin slipped onto my lips. "Simon thought of it."
Maeve frowned. "Fine, I'll go, but if this gets messed up it won't be Simon's fault."
We climbed down the trunk of the tree and dropped the last seven feet to the ground. Specter flew around us. "Guards are coming!"
I backed up to Maeve and leaned down. "Quick!"
She grudgingly climbed onto my back. I grabbed her legs, steadied her, and looked ahead. Another tree stood some twenty feet from the house. I focused my attention on that and leapt forward.
I only moved forward a couple of feet and stumbled to a stop.
"What are you waiting for? An invitation?" Specter asked me.