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He nodded. I frowned. “Jack said he was her brother—but if she’s older than you, and he’s younger, how can that be the case?”
He shrugged. “Madrilene and Jack come from shifter stock, and shifters, like werewolves, are extremely long-lived. Perhaps Jack didn’t turn until near the end of his life.”
My frown deepened. “Madrilene? Do you mean Alex?”
“Yes.” He hesitated. “Madrilene is the name she used when we first met.”
“Meaning vamps change names over the years?”
“Yes. And yes, I have also.”
“So Qui
“First name, no. But Qui
“Interesting.” But it wasn’t doing anything to explain how Jack could be just over eight hundred years old and Director Hunter more than Qui
“Given what you said about the vampire hierarchy, and the fact that you’re older and stronger than Jack is, what’s stopping you from putting commands into his mind?”
“He’s strong enough to keep me from controlling him. I could overwhelm him and kill him, mentally and physically, but I don’t have the strength to keep him under my control.”
“Of course, I only have your word on that.”
“My word not good enough?”
“A question I can’t answer as I don’t really know you.” I crossed my arms, for a moment regarding the rain-washed road ahead. “Why are you going so determinedly after the people behind the cloning?”
“Jack’s already told you—the source material was a friend of mine.”
“How good a friend?”
He glanced at me. “Not sexual, if that’s what you’re implying. He was born Hieremias, son of Glaucus, though he changed it to Henri Glaucus for ease of use in later years. We’d been friends for over a thousand years.”
It was hard to imagine knowing anyone for that length of time. “How did he die?”
His swift look was cold, hard, and sent shivers down my spine. And yet there was something else in his dark eyes. Something akin to pain
“Broken heart. He walked into the sunshine and stayed there.” He hesitated. “Or so I thought.”
What was the betting that it was another bloody werewolf behind the hurt? Geez, I wanted to explore possibilities with him, but did I really have the energy to fight the pain inflicted by the ex as well as what had happened to his friend? Then I remembered the magic we’d created while making love, and thought, Hell, yeah
“Obviously he was captured before he cindered if there are clones of him walking around.”
“Yes.” He paused again. “When I first saw the clone in Sydney, I was overjoyed, thinking I’d been wrong, that Henri hadn’t committed suicide. But a mind search quickly revealed the truth. The clone’s memory of life had only started seven and a half years ago.”
“So is that why you were attacked here in Melbourne? Because you killed the clone?”
“Possibly—especially if they were aware of my history with Henri. They would have had to realize I’d start searching for him.”
“Because of your friendship?”
“Because I owe Henri my life more times than I care to remember.”
A loyal vampire. Interesting. “So why would they be cloning Henri? What has he got that a million or so other vamps haven’t?”
He gave me a thoughtful look. “You don’t read newspapers much, do you?”
I frowned. “What’s that got to do with it?”
“Henri was a supreme athlete, and ten years ago was the only man alive who could say he raced in the original Olympics for real, not just in hologram.”
“Whoa… that makes him—”
“Ancient,” Qui
“How? He’s vamp, and most events are run in the day.”
“He’s a very old vampire. Only the midday sun will kill him.”
“So how did he race? Nonhumans weren’t allowed to compete back then.”
His smile was wry. “Back then, they didn’t have the technology to separate human from nonhuman. He won quite a number of medals over the years.”
“And when the alternative Olympics started?”
“He was a star. He won nearly all track events in the three alternative Olympics before his death. This year, the Australian Olympic Council commemorated his achievements by nominating him for the Sporting Hall of Fame. He was the first vampire ever to be selected, and his story was splashed all over the media.”
I was going to have to start taking more interest in the local news. “Whoever is behind this cloning couldn’t have known Henri’s love affair was going to go wrong and that he’d kill himself.”
“Couldn’t they?”
The Irish lilt was gone, replaced by harshness. For several seconds I just stared at him. “No way. Why go to that sort of trouble when it would have been simpler to kidnap him?”
“Because this way no one went looking for him.”
And in that moment, I understood the pain I’d glimpsed in his dark eyes. He hadn’t gone looking for his friend. I reached across, placing my hand on his arm. His muscles jumped under my fingers, as if he was resisting the comfort offered. “You couldn’t have known.”
“But I could have checked.”
“You would have killed yourself.”
His smile was grim. “Maybe. Maybe not.”
I had a feeling he wouldn’t have really cared either way as long as he’d discovered the truth. “Did he tell you he was going to commit suicide?”
“No, but I’ve known him forever. I should have guessed what would happen.”
“How could you guess that a man who had lived so many years would kill himself over a worthless werewolf?”
“Exactly,” he growled, then glanced at me, his expression no softer. “Present company excluded.”
Present company not excluded, and we both knew it. He might allow himself to want me physically, but he would never allow himself to want anything more. Because of his ex. Because of his friend’s ex. Which meant no matter how hard I fought to keep exploring, in the end we would part. And that was a damn shame, because we could have been good together. More than good
“What happened to her?”
“She’s dead.”
No surprise there. “She didn’t tell you anything before you killed her?”
“I didn’t kill her. She was dead when I found her.”
“And you didn’t think that a tiny bit suspicious?”
“Marnie loved fast cars and high speeds. She lost control on a wet road and slammed into a tree. There were witnesses. I thought it justice and let it go.”
“Did you question the witnesses?”
His glance was dark. “No. At the time, I had no reason to believe it was anything more than an accident.”
“And now that you do?”
“I ca
Surprise, surprise. “But why would they snatch someone so famous for the clones? Even if he was the best of the best, surely they must have known the emergence of the clones would eventually raise eyebrows?”
“Not really. Henri’s death was widely reported and ten years is enough time to wash away the public’s memory of him. Besides, the clones do not resemble him exactly, even if they are genetically identical.”
“But if you are old friends with Director Hunter, then she would have been aware of your friendship with Henri. Why didn’t she mention Gautier’s resemblance to him?”
His expression darkened. “Because she was hoping Gautier would lead her to his source.”
I studied him for a moment, then said, “And because she knew you’d want immediate action, therefore possibly fouling her own investigation.”
“Yes. Not that her investigation has given any results so far.”
That was because Gautier was a sneaky bastard. “And in the year you’ve been hunting these clones, you’ve made no inroads on where they might be coming from?”