to a great number of things, some of which might actually surprise you.”
“Let me guess,” Caleb ventured wryly. “You own the Tube system, don’t you?”
The edges of Alton’s mouth upturned ever so slightly, and he reached out to place a hand on Caleb’s shoulder. “Rubbish. Honestly,” he retorted. “You’re an absolute scamp. You know that, don’t you?”
Caleb grinned back at the tall vampire as Lynne Fuller recalled, “Scamp, indeed. One minute he was running towards the escalators in my line of sight. As soon as I was down on the next level, I turned back to spot him again, but he had already disappeared into nowhere. You’re fast, Caleb, almost like a vam--”
The blonde agent refrained from completing her sentence given their public surroundings, but her suggestion was obvious to everyone present, and her eyes fell upon Alton and Katrina in equal turn. Alton’s eyes briefly darted to Katrina’s, both of them exchanging a similar consideration of Lynne’s observation. Alton turned to stare inquisitively at the woman.
“Not entirely as fast, obviously,” Lynne amended. “But remarkably swift.”
Katrina frowned as she considered how quickly Caleb seemed to be able to move for a human. She had noted that when she had first revealed herself to him in the park near her estate, and he had run away at a rapid pace. Likely, he would be a very fast vampire, she mused.
“Our apologies, Caleb,” Rob offered. “The matter is quite an embarrassment on our part, and we won’t get caught off-guard again.”
“Exactly,” Alton agreed as he gestured for everyone to follow him from the terminal area. “Next time, we keep Caleb top-side in the light of day. And there will be additional resources available at a moment’s notice, if needed.”
“It sounds strange, but I’m not convinced they were actually looking for us,” Caleb speculated.
“The timing is too convenient,” Alton reflected. “Why else would they have been there, if not to intercept you?”
Katrina frowned as she followed directly behind Caleb and Alton. The two other vampires and the Fullers brought up the rear. Alton led them through a length of the terminal until he reached a non-descript, solid metal door. He punched a series of codes into a numeric keypad, and a metallic clicking emitted from inside the wall. They walked into a well-lit, carpeted hallway with pictures of London night scenes placed intermittently down the length of both walls.
“Please remind me, and I’ll provide you with the codes to these access doors, Katrina,” Alton suggested as they walked down the hall.
“Thank you,” she replied, wondering how many such corridors existed.
Eventually, they entered an open, well-lit lobby area located deep beneath Alton’s office building. The central portion of the room contained a carpeted floor decorated with professional reading chairs and couches, a mix of end tables, coffee tables, and some live potted plants. A few men and women in business attire either milled around the nearby elevators and seating area or were gathered at the small coffee shop set off to one side of the elevators. While the area was obviously in a subterranean portion of the building, it appeared much like a traditional office lobby.
“Yet another professional gathering area for humans and vampires alike,” Alton commented just loud enough for Caleb to hear him clearly. “It also tastefully bridges the office complex with the subway system.”
Katrina scanned the area and complimented suspiciously, “Very impressive, Alton. This is all very elaborate, actually. But to what end, I wonder?”
He smirked with a gleam in his hazel eyes. “Why, Katrina, I would have thought that was readily apparent. I intend for London to be a major hub of interaction for our kind, and all alongside the common commerce of humanity. Certainly London is a multifaceted center: commercial, cultural, and social. How much more so for our own kind?”
She began to understand the implications at hand. Alton appeared to be establishing the complex to act as a sort of base of operations or centralized venue for vampires. However, what were missing from his explanation were the barriers to his success. Namely, who would have an interest in seeing the venture fail? And more to the point, why?
However, rather than broach the subject with him in such a public setting, she merely nodded and looked at Caleb, who appeared somewhat tired or shell-shocked from his recent adventure. She reached out to grasp her young, sandy-haired mate by the hand and smiled at him. “You look tired,” she observed with a supportive squeeze of his hand.