Engines and werewolves

Chapter 17

He chuckled. "Something like that. The resemblance will only be skin-deep."

Victoria furrowed her brow and squinted her eyes at Lukeman as she tried to imagine Blake's face on his body. She started back when her body began to glow. The light vanished.

"Focus and don't be afraid of the light," Lukeman scolded her. "It's only your powers manifesting themselves."

She pursed her lips and studied the photo again. The light returned to envelope her. "Don't be so pushy. This isn't as easy as it looks."

"Victoria."

She glared at the dark face in the picture. "What?"

"Victoria, look up."

She raised her eyes and gasped. Lukeman stood in front of her in his impeccable suit, but his face belonged to Blake. Victoria started back and gaped at the strange match of body and head.

He spread his arms and grinned at her. "Does this look not suit me?"

Victoria glared at him. "No, it doesn't."

"Then you prefer the old look?" he teased.

She blushed. "M-maybe I do, but the head is too small for your body."

Lukeman glanced down at himself. "I believe you're right, but it can't be helped. Fortunately, our foes need only see my face and recognize it as that of Blake for this ruse to work."

Victoria raised an eyebrow. "What kind of ruse are we doing?"

He flashed her a smile. It was unnerving being presented with that unfamiliar face but the familiar sly grin. "The simplest kind. I will impersonate the late Mr. Blake, at least from the neck-up, in his car and when certain we have fooled the authorities into believing he is alive his vehicle will have an 'accident' at the cliffs around the bay."

"You're sure this will work?" she asked him.

"There's only one way to find out." He strode to the door and paused with his hand wrapped around the knob. Lukeman turned to her and grinned. "If this doesn't quite work out to my plans, I at least have the comfort in freeing your father of suspicion."

She grabbed a flashlight from the glove compartment and stepped outside. A quick look at the tires told her stopping had been a bad idea. They were buried a half foot in the slush.

The chill wind from before blew over her. A sorrowful moan seemed to ride the breeze. The sound sank into her bones like damp into an old house. She wrapped her coat closer to herself and shivered before she turned to the road. The tall house stabbed the sky with its peaks.

Victoria sighed and slipped back into the car. She grabbed the keys and a notebook full of her homework. A quick lock of the car and she trudged down the driveway.

She had gone fifteen feet when something made her freeze. The hairs on the back of her neck stood on end.

Something brushed against her back.

Victoria spun around and shone the beam of her flashlight on the driveway. The light reflected off the headlights of her car. Nothing stirred.

The wind blew against her. The moan from before sounded louder. It sounded real.

Victoria stepped backward away from the car. The feeling of being watched crept into her mind. She turned and fled down the driveway. Her feet slipped and sank in the slushy snow. She stumbled more than once, but each time her fear drove her to catch herself and run faster.

Victoria reached the shut gate and slammed her shoulder against one of the stone columns. She looked back. The flashlight caught nothing but the dim reflection of her car. She grabbed her chest and caught her breath. Her heart pounded hard in her chest.

She took a couple of deep breaths and looked up at the wing that Lukeman inhabited. A dim light lifted her spirits. She pressed the button beneath the intercom. "Hello? Is anybody-"

"Good evening," came Albert's reply.

Victoria sighed. It was good to hear the sound of another person's voice. "Good evening, Albert. If I could just come-"

"Of course," he agreed.

Victoria heard the familiar click as the gate lock was released. She shoved them open and slammed them shut behind her as she hurried down the path. Albert was just opening the door when she rushed up to the entrance.

He stepped aside and arched an eyebrow as she stumbled into the warm, albeit shadowed, house. "Is something the matter?"

Victoria straightened and shook her head. "No, it's just-well, my car got stuck up the driveway, and I had to walk the rest of the way-"

"You act as though you ran," a voice spoke up. Victoria gazed up the stairs and the weight on her heart disappeared as she watched Lukeman step down them toward her. He reached the bottom floor and smiled. "You act as though you ran the entire length of the driveway."

Victoria held up her thick notebook. "Knowledge isn't something to take lightly."

He chuckled. "No, I think not." He stepped aside and swept his arm over the stairs. "If you would join me for a warm drink."

"Very warm," she agreed.

Lukeman looked past her at Albert. "Some warmed bourbon, if you would, Albert." The servant bowed his head and disappeared into the interior of the house.

Victoria sidled up to Lukeman who stretched his arm over her shoulders. "To what do I enjoy the pleasure of your company this dark evening?" he asked her as he led her up the stairs.

She blushed. Her reasoning for coming now seemed so lame. "It's about my father. I wanted to tell you how he was doing."

His sly smile slipped onto his lips. "I see. Is he better?"

She nodded. "Much better. He came home a week ago, though the doctors say he shouldn't go to work for another week."

"With your father as he is I wonder how you were able to excuse yourself from his side," he commented.

She winced and held up her notebook. "I told him I was going to be studying with some friends."

"A lie?" he teased.

Victoria shook her head. "No. I brought this so I could study. If I stayed, that is. Now with my car stuck-"

"You are stuck," he finished for her.

She ran a hand through her hair and sighed. "Yeah."

He studied her for a long moment as they walked to his chamber door. "But that isn't all that's bothering you, is it?"

Victoria shrank beneath his astute observation. "It's just the dark. That's all. I really shouldn't be afraid of it anymore, but sometimes-well, you know."

Lukeman opened the door and bowed his head to her. When he raised his head his eyes were tinged with a yellow color. "All too well."

Victoria stepped into the room and Lukeman closed the door behind them. The familiar warm fire crackled in the hearth, and before it stood the two high-backed chairs. She took one and Lukeman settled into his usual place beside the mantel.

His steady gaze fell on her. "Will there be any lasting effects from your father's illness?"

She shook her head. "No, at least the doctors don't think so. He might be a little slow for a month, but that should be it."

"And you?" he wondered.

She blinked at him. "Me? I wasn't-" He held up his hand.

"You were not sick, but you know I speak of a different affliction."

Victoria's shoulders sagged and cast her eyes downward. "The mirror."

He nodded. "Yes. Does its power bother you?"

She furrowed her brow for a moment before she shook her head. "I. . .I don't know. I don't feel any different, but it's like the world's changed. Almost like there's something in the corner of my eye I can't quite catch."

"Does that scare you?"

Victoria sighed. "I'd be lying if I said it didn't."

Lukeman smiled. "And you are a terrible liar."

Her eyes flickered up to him and narrowed. "I don't have as much practice as you."

"And I would have you have no practice at all, but that I appreciate your company," he returned.

Victoria glanced at the French doors. "I told Dad I wouldn't be back tonight, but I really should call someone to get my car out."

"In the morning," he replied as he stepped up to her. "I doubt any company would go this far out in such weather." A knock on the door interrupted them. "Come in."

The entrance swung open and Albert stepped inside. He held a tray in both hands, and on the tray was a large bottle of golden bourbon. Two short, fat glasses sat beside the bottle, and the contents steamed forth from the mouths.

Albert set the tray on the table beside Victoria and bowed to Lukeman. "Will there be anything else?"

Lukeman lifted one of the steaming glasses even with his face and smiled. "This is your special recipe?"

"Of course, sir."

"Then that will be all."

Albert bowed again and retreated from the room. Lukeman turned and held the glass out to Victoria.

"I think you'll find that though Albert is cool toward you, his drink is not," he teased.

Victoria hesitantly took the glass and inspected the contents. She frowned and her eyes flickered to Lukeman who had taken the other glass in hand. "Are you trying to get me drunk?"

"Do I really need to?" he pointed out. He raised his glass. "Cheers." He tipped his head back and downed the contents.

Victoria half-heartedly followed his example, but with less enthusiasm and less loss of drink. She licked her lips and her eyes widened. "This isn't bad."

Lukeman chuckled as he set his empty glass on the tray. "Albert is a wonder with everything he chooses to master. That is, everything but being the master."

Victoria set her unfinished glass beside his and looked up at him. "How did you meet?"

Lukeman resumed his position beside the mantel and gazed into the fire. "Albert has always been a family servant. He was hired by my father as a young man for his intelligence and loyalty. When my father died his loyalty proved to be strong indeed, for even after my-well, my change, he remained a steadfast servant."

Victoria recalled back to the time when they faced their first Brotherhood member. "Did he know magic before you were changed?"

Lukeman smiled and shook his head. "He hardly knows magic now and there isn't a magic bone in his body, but he gets along with whatever spells can be

concocted by more natural elements."

Her face fell and she turned her gaze away from him. "I see. Then he was like me before I shattered the mirror."

Lukeman walked over to her and knelt before her chair. He grasped her chin in his hands and turned her head so she faced him. His yellow-tinged eyes smiled at her. "He is a friend, but you are something quite more dear to me."

Victoria blushed. "I-I-" He leaned down and pressed their lips together in a long, passionate kiss.

Her body burst aflame with desire. She leaned into the kiss. Their hands groped each other, vying for a feel of flesh.