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Seymour takes me to my car and tries to follow me back to Mayfair But I speed away at a hundred miles an hour He is not insulted, I&039;o to my mansion by the sea I have not described it before because to me a house is a house I do not fall in love with them as do some mortals The house is on twenty acres of property, at the top of a wooded yard that reaches from my front porch all the way down to the rocky shore The driveway is narrow and winding, mostly hidden The house itself is mainly brick, Tudor style, unusual for this part of the country There are three stories; the top one has a wide view of the sea and coast There arein the living roohts that I have yet to board up I do not need a lot of space to be happy, although I have lived in es I could be quite happy living in a box I say that as a joke

My tastes in furniture are varied At present I surround myself with lots of wood: the chairs, the tables, the cabinets I sleep on a bed, not in a coffin, a grand athered art over the centuries and have a vast and expensive collection of paintings and sculptures in Europe, but none of it in Ah phases where art is important to me, but I ao I play alility, I am the most accomplished pianist in the world But I seldom write music, not because I as are invariably sad I do not knohy--I do not think of h, I am an anxious vampire, and it has been centuries since I felt the ee and then rush back out to my car My concern is for Ray If it is Yaksha after et to ical course to me based on the fact that Yaksha probably first becah Ray&039;s father I now suspect Yaksha has been observing me since I first

visited Mr Riley&039;s office But why he didn&039;t attack immediately, I don&039;t know Maybe he wanted to study the ene, to probe for weaknesses Yet Yaksha, , already knohere I am vulnerable

I am still in shock that he is alive

I drive to Ray&039;s house and leap to the front door I half expect to find hi the doorbell, but to just barge in I have to re anything that co I knock on the door

Pat surprises irlfriend is not happy to see me

"What are you doing here?" Pat demands

"I have come to see Ray" Pat must have called Ray&039;s house while he was at my place, probably several ti after he came home He probably invited her over to pacify her concerns But she does not look that pacified

"He&039;s asleep," Pat says She starts to slam the door in my face I stick out my arm She tries to force it shut Naturally, she is not successful "Get out of here Can&039;t you tell when you&039;re not wanted?"

"Pat," I say patiently "Things are not as they appear They are much more coer"

"What are you talking about?"

"I cannot tell you, not easily I have to talk to Ray and I have to talk to him now" I put my eye on her "Please do not try to stop ood idea"

She cowers under my stare I move to press her farther, but it becomes unnecessary Upstairs, I hear Ray climb out of bed I wait a few seconds, then call out his name

"Ray!" I say I hear his steps quicken We both do

"He&039;s mine," Pat ly defeated already Instinctively she knows I have a power she does not, beyond enuine, I can see that, a rare thing in a girl her age

"Have hope," I say sincerely

Ray appears He has on sweat pants, no top "What&039;s going on?" he asks

"Lots of things I need to talk to you, alone" I glance at Pat "If that would be all right?"

Her eyes are dao," she ives lance I have to be careful "Tell me what it is?"

"It has to do with your father," I say

He is concerned "What is it?"

I am stubborn "I must tell you alone" I add, "I&039;m sorry, Pat"

Ray rubs her back "Go upstairs to bed I&039;ll be up in a fewme a look as she leaves "I don&039;t think so"

When we are alone, Ray wants me to explain myself "You toldhere could not be helped I have not been entirely honest with you, Ray I think you suspect that"

"Yes You tampered with the file on my father&039;s computer"

"How did you know?"

"When I turned on the coe When I returned, most of it had been deleted"

I nod "That file was aboutme He was hired by soerous Tonight he sent soet away I believe he may come after you next"

"Why me?"

"Because he knows you are ht Also, even though this man hired your father, your father did not part company with him on the best of terms"

"How do you know that?"

"The people who caht told me"

"What do you mean, they caet away from them?"

"They et into all of that now What is i anywhere until you tell me where my father is"

"I can&039;t"

"You don&039;t know?"

I hesitate It is not easy for me to lie to those I love "No"

Ray is suspicious His sense of the truth, and therefore of lies, is reer?" he asks

"Yes"

He hears the truth in that word "We should call the police"

"No!" I grab his arm "The police cannot help us You have to come with me Trust me, Ray I can tell you more once we are at my house"

"What e do at your house that we can&039;t do here?"

"You will see," I say

Ray consents to accooodbye to Pat I hear her crying, and wonder if she will not shed a strea I could be bringing Ray into danger, not away fro Yet I feel eyes on me, powerful eyes such asfor Ray because I am afraid

Maybe afraid to die alone

Ray reappears in a few o to my car He has not seen it before and marvels that I have a Ferrari We drive towardthe same way as before I tell him I have two houses

"I am very rich," I say

"Is that one of the reasonsyou?" he asks

"Yes Indirectly"

"Have you spoken to o"