A Taste Of A Vampire

Chapter 9

Claire could not stop thinking about what she had read in her great-great-great-grandmother’s diary. She had read it over so many times that she had every word memorized. She had tried to come up with any solution that she could to try to make some sense of it, but nothing could puzzle it together.

She had worked it over in her mind so many times that she felt as if she was in a maze with no way out of it. She went to Granger and found him polishing the silver in the silver room. He set his tools down and stood at attention, looking at her with a friendly smile and a nod.

“What can I do for you, milady?” he asked warmly.

She cleared her throat a little. She didn’t want to give too much away, but she had to find out whatever she could. “I met our neighbor, Mr. Ryder, and I was wondering if…” she hesitated a moment and continued, thinking carefully about how she would ask. “I was wondering if you knew anything about their family.”

He lowered his brow in uncertainty. “What do you mean, milady?”

“I mean… How long have they been there, and what other family members have you known or met, and how well do you know Mr. Ryder? Did you ever meet any of his other family?” she asked, trying to sound curious without sounding suspicious.

He was contented with her questions. “Ah yes, of course. Well, I’ve known Mr. Ryder as long as I’ve been here. I have never known any of his family, however. He has never married, though many ladies have been keen to turn his head and take that position as his wife. He inherited the estate from his uncle, as his uncle never married either, and had no heir of his own. His uncle died in a tragic accident abroad, and Mr. Ryder came then to take over the estate.”

She nodded thoughtfully, soaking in every word that Granger told her. “Did you ever meet his uncle?”

“No, milady, I did not. I know only what I have heard from the previous staff here, and from what is known in the village,” he answered evenly.

Claire watched him and pressed her lips together in a thin line. “Granger, have you noticed that Mr. Ryder has changed much in the time you’ve known him? I mean… in looks. Has he seemed to age much?”

Granger shrugged slightly. “Not much, madam, no. I haven’t seen much change over the years, I suppose.” He frowned a little and looked at her curiously then. “Is everything all right, milady?”

She waved her hand dismissively. “Oh yes, of course. I was just wondering about the neighboring properties, that’s all…the area and land owners around here. It’s interesting to me. Thank you, Granger. I appreciate it.”

He smiled and nodded and she turned and left him to his silver polishing.

His answers only served to create more questions in her mind. She promised herself that no matter how much she liked him or wanted him, or even how much she was falling for him, she wasn’t going to succumb to him again until she knew the truth about what was going on with him.

She was sitting up against the pillows in her bed that night, with her fireplace going and the balcony doors slightly open, reading her great-great-great-grandmother’s diary again for the umpteenth time, and chewing her lower lip over all of the thoughts that were tangled in her mind, when she saw something out of the corner of her eye.

It was the briefest movement of a shadow in the moonlight on the floor. She looked up and saw him standing there in the doorway, his hand on the balcony door pushing it open further.

Claire closed the diary slowly and carefully, and set it on the nightstand beside her. She swung her legs off the bed and stood up, watching him the entire time. He came toward her, a smile on his mouth, his green eyes seeming to dance as he reached out his hands to her.

“I couldn’t keep away from you. You’ve consumed my mind and heart, and there’s nothing at all that I can do about it. I don’t want to do anything about it except have more of you. I need more of you.” He spoke in a hungry and low voice.

She reached her hands up and held his, stopping him before he could touch her. With a shake of her head, Claire spoke the thoughts that had been tormenting her.

“Nicholas, we have to talk.”

She let go of him and he lowered his hands to his sides and raised one dark eyebrow slightly.

“What is it that we need to talk about?” he asked softly.

Taking a deep breath, she reached for the diary on the bedside table and held it up to him. “My great-great-great-grandmother, Elizabeth Grayson, wrote this journal. In it she talks about a man who lived in the home you live in. His name was Nathaniel Ryder. She talks about how she loved him, how she wanted to marry him, and how he wouldn’t marry her because he knew that Giles Grayson would be better suited for her.”

She took a breath and watched him. His expression was completely unreadable. She pressed forward.

“She describes Nathaniel in explicit detail. She talks about his dark black hair, his green eyes, and the ring he wears. The exact same ring that you wear. She talks about how he seems to appear out of nowhere like you do. She talks about how he has a scar on his neck, exactly in the same place and in exactly the same shape as your scar.”

Claire watched him with laser beam intensity. “The similarities between you and Nathaniel are exact, Nicholas. Exactly the same. I need to know what’s going on. I need to know who you are.”

He was silent for a long while, watching her, thinking. She could see that in his face, but only that.

“You know who I am,” he said at long last. “You know much more about me than most people do. I can understand your confusion about an older relative of mine having a relationship with your great-great-great-grandmother, but that’s all there is to it.”