to follow the man in the lab coat, she left Luc to fall into step behind her.
She glanced around nervously as they walked up the hall. The blood bank was as silent as a tomb. Not a happy thought, she decided, but it brought to mind coffins and she wondered about them. Obviously, Lucern didn't need to sleep in one. While he had reinforced the darkness in his hotel room by hanging a blanket over the curtains, he wasn't sleeping in a coffin. She supposed that was something else Stoker had got wrong. But, then, according to Lucern, he didn't need a coffin because he wasn't dead. He was just old.
Kate was scowling as she, Luc and their guide entered a room with metal and glass refrigerators around it. Luc was very old. She usually preferred to date men her own age. Lucern did not fit in that category. She could safely say he was the oldest man she'd ever dated. Maybe he was the oldest man anyone had ever dated.
She paused just inside the door and merely watched as Lucern walked past her to one of the refrigerators. He opened its door, revealing neat rows of the red liquid he so needed.
Kate peered curiously at the man in the lab coat. He looked completely out of it, a zombie at Lucern's mercy, and she felt a moment's gratitude that she had a strong mind. If not, Luc could have put the whammy on her and gotten her to do anything he wanted. Which was a scary thought.
She turned her attention back to Lucern, then watched with interest as he selected a bag and poked his teeth into it. The procedure was pretty clean. He was apparently able to suck the blood directly up through his teeth like through straws, because he just stood there, teeth inserted as the blood drained away. It was relatively quick. Still, Kate found herself glancing nervously up the hall as she waited for him to finish.
Lucern went through eight bags that way, one right after the other. When he had finished with the last, he started to close the refrigerator door. Kate rushed forward and stopped him.
"What are you doing?" he asked as she opened her backpack. She began shoving bags in.
"Getting some to go. You'll need more tomorrow," she pointed out. "And I don't want to go through this again."
Lucern nodded. "Take the empty bags, too," he instructed. Then he moved to the blood-bank worker, murmuring something she couldn't hear.
"What did you say?" Kate asked as they hurried back up the hall through which they'd entered.
"I instructed him to change the records to reflect the difference, so that the blood isn't missed."
"Oh." Kate fell silent as she stepped outside. The cool air on her face as she removed the mask was a relief, and she felt some of her tension drain away. But she didn't relax completely, not even once they were in a cab and headed back to the hotel. She was as wound up as a clock, and had been all day. She could hardly believe it had been so easy. Knock on the door? Sheesh.
Lucern's hand closed over hers, and Kate glanced at him in surprise. The man was actually smiling. Sort of. At least, his usual scowl was missing. That was the equivalent of a smile with this man, she thought, noting his cheeks were now flushed with color and the lines of pain were gone from his face. She couldn't believe how much blood he'd drunk, but it appeared to have done him good. He looked healthier than she'd ever seen him.
Her gaze dropped to his hand covering hers, and she turned hers over to clasp it. She knew he had sensed the tension still gripping her, and he was trying to tell her without words that it was all right. But she felt like a teenager holding hands with her boyfriend for the first time. She was sorry when they arrived at the hotel and he released her to pay the driver.
They were both silent as they walked inside and took the elevator to their floor, Kate wondering if he would kiss her and thank her for her help once they got there. She hoped he would. She hoped he'd do more than that. But she knew it wasn't likely when they entered the room and heard the television playing. Chris was back, relaxing on the couch.
"Oh, hey! I was wondering where you two had got to.