“What will happen with Caroline’s estate? Is she married to someone?”
“Caroline was not married; unlike Vespucci, she wasn’t planning to change identities or move to a new territory. Designating an heir in a competitive Coven can paint a target on your back,” he said. “The Council requires all vampires to have similar languages in their wills to avoid entanglements in human courts. In a case like this, with the entire Coven leadership gone, what happens depends on how she structured her fortune. Many structure their finances as a private corporation and give their people stock, while others hold it closely. I suspect she isn’t as trusting as I have been with my people.” That made sense after hearing how Rick owned the security company. “The lawyers will handle the estate, and new leadership will come in. The vampire world is in the middle of a shakeup as new Masters arise, and others move where they have opportunities.”
I’d grown up ignorant of Vampires in my country, so all of this political stuff with Packs and Covens was new to me. “I’ve got so much to learn,” I said as I looked out over downtown.
“When you think you have nothing to learn, you are merely existing,” he said. “I’ve been a vampire for centuries, and I never stop learning new things.” Oksana brought over a Coke for me, and I thanked her for breakfast again before she retired. “What did you think of the land? Are you going to take it?”
“Vicki’s picking out drapes for the home we haven’t designed yet,” I said. “I may need your help getting the coastal commission to agree with our plans.” I showed him the satellite view of where we were hoping to build and what zoning laws were. “A hundred-meter setback from the high water line kills our dream.”
“All of these are ‘should’ restrictions,” Alessandro said with a smile. “I’ve dealt with government regulations and zoning rules more than I’d like to admit. Think of what the Commission’s goals are, then tailor your proposal until its benefits outweigh the effects of the waivers.”
“Like what?”
“Come on.” We went to his conference room; the computer screen there took up most of the wall. Alessandro brought up the satellite view of the property along with the zoning laws. “The coastal development plan has two goals; minimal visual disruption of the coastline, and conservation of native vegetation. Are you planning to raise sheep there?”
“No, we’d like to let the land return to nature. All we want is to run on it without interference, which means keeping it private.”
He backed the view up to show the peninsula. “You can donate land to a charity and take the tax deduction, and not allow the public to access it,” he said. “You should consider redrawing the boundary lines if you do that. Combine that with an easement across the northern portion of the properties to connect the Blowhole Beach park area with the Talisker Park; the public good then outweighs the variance. A strip wide enough to put in hiking and bicycle paths would buy a lot of goodwill. The South Australian Government has inquired about buying the land, but it wasn’t a high enough priority.”
“We’ve talked about an airstrip on the west side, maybe some houses for Pack members who want to live close. The farmhouse here is all right, but the resort doesn’t fit what we want. I don’t know what they were thinking with that spaceship.”
“Then put that in your proposal. Removing eyesores and structures helps, as will using historical designs and natural materials for your proposed structure. If you can show the Commission that the coastline will be better after your proposal than now, you have a chance.”
The idea had merit. “If it doesn’t work, can you come to the meeting and use your power to change the Commissioner’s minds?” He looked at me like I was kidding. “Vicki wants this bad, and I don’t want to disappoint her by saying we can’t do it.”
“We should probably come up with a great proposal first,” he said.
“Nicholas? Linda called; she needs to talk to me in person.”
“Is something wrong? Is it the show?”
“She has some rough cuts we can watch, but she needs to talk to me about personal things, too.”
“I’ll ask Alessandro if we can bring her.” A few minutes later, Oksana volunteered to drive to the beach and pick up our Sharkbait Productions Director and her Merman.
Vicki Corcoran’s POV
Consuela was right; it was going to take a while to feel right again. My blood was already thin after my kidnapping; having Caroline treat me like a juice-box a little over a week later? Bad news.
I needed a blood transfusion, but Nicholas’s blood wasn’t compatible, and he had vampire blood inside him. It allowed him to heal quickly and made him immune to vampire venom last night, thank Luna. Alessandro told him the effects would only last a few days, maybe less since he’d used it for healing his gunshot wound and the slashes Caroline gave him. No one knew what would happen if Consuela used mermaid blood, and human blood would require a visit to a hospital and an explanation I couldn’t give. When my Pack representatives arrived, we’d see if any of them had my blood type.
I turned on the news, resting back against the pillows in the bedroom at Alessandro’s Coven. The coverage was breathless yet shallow; the police hadn’t released all the details yet. A photo of bodies stacked high, decapitated heads piled like cannonballs on top, couldn’t be shown without blurring it out.
I pulled out my phone and started checking messages. My family flying home from their time at Mermaid Beach didn’t say much. I sent a group text, telling everyone I overdid it last night and was spending the day resting up with my husband.
I was watching the weather when my phone buzzed with an incoming call. It was Linda Cartwright, my mermaid friend and reality show producer. “Morning Linda, how is the party going?” I’d made sure she was around for the SAMM, Sharkbait’s Australian Mermaid Mixer.
“It worked, Vicki! I found the one for me!”
“WHAT?”
“His name is Commander Matt Rooney; he is the Commanding Officer of Clearance Diving Team Four out of the Naval Base near Perth. He’s four years older than me, never married, and OH GODDESS is he great in the sack,” she said dreamily.
“Back up a bit, Linda. Tell me how it happened.”
“I slept all afternoon and then worked until one in the morning instead of hitting the welcome party last night. I was finishing up for some deadlines, and I had to talk to my people in California. The time difference sucks, right?” Bedtime in Australia was early morning in the States, especially on the west coast. The only way you’re awake for any time together is if one of you works nightshift. “I came down to the pavilion we have at the beach around midnight; I talked to dozens and dozens of guys, but nothing clicked, you know? I was about to give up because who wants an American woman with a demanding career who’s pushing forty?”
“A smart guy. You’re smart, courageous, and you still have a hot body,” I told her.
“I was disappointed and told some of the other women that when I joined them at a table. They encouraged me not to give up yet because some guys were off doing some important stuff. I wasn’t tired, so when they took the vans to pick them up, I asked to go along.”
“What time was this?”
“Three AM, but I wasn’t drunk or anything. We waited at the pier, and when Matt walked off the boat, and I looked in his eyes, I just knew. It was love at first sight.”
“What did he think?”
“He just stared at me, unable to move for a few seconds. Finally, he walked up, put his hand on my cheek, and asked if I was real. I kissed him and proved it.”
I could just SQUEAL. “That’s SO hot! Did anyone get it on film?”
“Yes, but it’s not going on your show because I’m behind the camera, not in front of it,” she insisted. “Things were tight, so I had to sit in his lap on the way back. He told me about himself, and I told him what I did.”
“How did he react?”
“He knows you, and he’s a diver, so yeah,” Linda said. “He retires next month from the Royal Australian Navy and was looking for a job, and I want to give him one. I want you to meet him and approve the offer I made him, Vicki.”
“What did you do?”
“I asked him to be our new Dive Master for Sharkbait Productions. I know you originally planned for an all-girl for the Sea Scout, but that’s not realistic, and we both know it. Married couples onboard can work, with females in front of the cameras.” She was right; limiting it to just women was making it hard to fill out the crew. “We need someone with decades of diving experience, and that’s been Matt’s life. On the bonus side, if we ever need to disarm a sea mine or set a charge underneath a rival ship, we’re covered. The Clearance Diving Team is part of the Australian military’s Special Forces, like the SEALs, but he says they don’t go more than a couple clicks past the waterline.”
“He sounds like a good guy, Linda. I’m happy for you.”
She giggled like a teenager. “Can I bring him to meet with you? I know you’re probably tired, but Matt and I have to fly to Perth this afternoon, so it’s now or much later.”
Damn, that was fast. Linda meets a Navy guy at three in the morning, has him in bed by six, and is flying home with him by two. “Let me make sure it’s all right. They’ve got me on bedrest at Alessandro’s place downtown.” I linked Nicholas, who made the arrangements. “One of Alessandro’s people will pick you up from the hotel in about forty minutes,” I told her. “I can’t wait to meet this guy.”
“I’ll see you soon,” Linda said. I hung up, excited that there was at least ONE couple that came out of this meetup.
I did some reading on the Web about the Clearance Diving Team and Australia’s special forces. Matt would fit right in with Ian, Hammer, Kai, Manuel, and Ricardo.
I was reading about combat divers in the Iraq War when Nicholas told me we had detectives on the way up. The pair, an older man and his younger female partner, talked to the two of us for about twenty minutes. We answered their questions while staying within our cover story; Alessandro hired them for our security, we didn’t talk much, the guys were professional, and we didn’t see them after they dropped us at the pier. I pretended to be shocked when told the officers were dead, and I made the connection to the news I’d been watching. We wrote out and signed statements, and they were gone.
Nicholas got me more juice, then returned with Linda and a tall, dark-haired man with a close-trimmed beard and mustache. “I’ve seen you before,” I said as he walked it.
“Quite,” he replied. “Commander Matt Rooney at your service. We spoke briefly at your Surf Shop appearance in Perth.”
“You asked me to sign my poster with a saying.”