""So, is Father Joseph still here or has he gone ho--" Lissianna's question ended on a surprised squawk as she sat in her chair and something poked her in the bottom.
"What is it?" Debbie moved forward as Lissianna leapt back to her feet and turned to look down at what she'd sat on.
They both stared, dumbstruck, at the cross on her seat.
"What the..."
"A cross sale?" Debbie suggested, and Lissianna glanced at her with confusion to find the other woman was no longer staring at the cross on the chair. Her gaze was shifting over the office with bewilderment. Following her gaze, Lissianna stared at the plethora of crosses filling her office. Big ones, small ones, wooden ones, metal ones; every size and sort, they lay all over her office, covering her desk surface, her chair, the bookshelves, the top of her filing cabinet... They were just everywhere.
"What on earth?" she murmured with bewilderment. Movement out of the corner of her eye, drew her attention to the door where Father Joseph hovered, biting his lip.
"Father Joseph? What... ?" She waved her hand around the room vaguely to indicate the crosses.
"I was sorting crosses," he explained apologetically.
"Sorting crosses?" Lissianna echoed with bewilderment. "In my office?"
"Yes." Father Joseph nodded. "It was the only empty room today." He moved a little farther into the office. "1 expected to be done before you arrived. Sorry."
He glanced around the room, then held out his hand.
"If you could just hand me the one on your chair, I'll start removing them."
Lissianna picked up the cross and handed it over. Father Joseph accepted the item, stared down at it silently as he rotated it in his hands, then turned to the door. "I'll go fetch a box for the rest. Could you get them all together while I do?"
Once he was out of sight, Debbie turned an arched eyebrow her way. "He looks like hell, doesn't he?"
"Yes, he does. I hope he gets over this insomnia soon. Something must really be bothering him to be keeping him up like this."
Debbie nodded, her face pensive as they began to gather the crosses. It wasn't long before Father Joseph returned with a box and Lissianna's office was once again cross-free. She watched him carry out the box, noting his stooped shoulders and heavy tread. The man was obviously exhausted she thought and shook her head. "He needs to sleep."
"Yes," Debbie agreed with a sigh. "I'll talk to him about getting some sleeping pills or something. This bout of insomnia has to end."
It was a sentiment Lissianna echoed at the end of her shift when she went in search of a candidate to feed from before heading home and again found Father Joseph prowling the halls. She could have slipped into his thoughts and sent him on his way, but Lissianna tried to avoid mucking about in the minds of the people she worked with. She had to see them on a daily basis and had no desire to learn anything that might make it uncomfortable to deal with them.
Deciding it wouldn't kill her to go a day without feeding--especially since she'd fed so well the night before thanks to Thomas--Lissianna merely allowed him to walk her out to the car, wished him a good day, and started the engine.
Once she was on the road, Lissianna's mind turned to Greg. He'd promised to be up by the time she got back. He was going to sleep through her shift, then have coffee and "a special treat" ready for her when she got in. Lissianna hadn't a clue what the treat was. She suspected it was probably some food or other he was fond of, though Greg seemed fond of all food. Lissianna didn't really care what it was. She was just excited at the prospect of seeing him again.
She liked him, enjoyed talking to him, and the man could kiss like no one's business... as she'd found out before leaving for work last night. Of course, they'd kissed before, but this time there had been no interruptions, no ties restraining him, and the man had knocked her socks off. She was looking forward to more sock-knocking kisses.
Lissianna smiled at the thought as she parked in the garage. It wasn't until she got out of the vehicle and was heading for the kitchen door that she noticed the black Porsche parked beside her mother's little red sports car. The sight made her steps slow and her heart do a little skip of alarm in her chest.
Uncle Lucian was here.
Swallowing hard, she hurried, racing into the house and straight upstairs, fear for Greg clutching at her chest.
In her upset, Lissianna forgot Greg's saying he would move to the rose guest room that night so she could have her own room back. She burst into her bedroom, expecting to find her mother, Lucian, and Greg there, only to find it empty. Tossing her purse on the bed, she turned back to the door, catching it as it swung shut. She would have pulled it open and rushed out, but the sound of a door being opened up the hall made her pause.
"I will need to call the council, Marguerite," she heard Uncle Lucian's deep voice.
"You can use the phone in the den," her mother answered in subdued tones.
Lissianna stayed stock-still as the footsteps receded toward the stairs. Her mind was swimming with chaos. He had to call the council? Why? It didn't sound good.
Stepping into the hall, she hurried to the door of the rose room. Lissianna walked in, almost afraid of what she might find. If Lucian hadn't been able to wipe Greg's memory, he might already have--
Her breath came out on a whoosh as she spied Greg peering at her from the bed. They had tied him down to the bed again... and her uncle was calling the council. The two things together didn't paint a pretty picture.