~

 

“This is your lead?”

Nathaniel strolled down the hallway, sidestepping students as they eagerly went about their daily slog of learning, carrying too many books, and juggling them with takeaway coffee cups filled with caffeine and overloaded with sugar, and turned his nose up at the ones who had forgotten what a shower was for.

“Don’t shoot the messenger…” Morgana tossed back.

“Shoot? Never…” he offered her a small smirk back and she knew what he was thinking – it was in his eyes as they glance over at her.

“You just don’t like the fact that the man is a professor, because it doesn’t make you the smartest person in the room…”

“Academic learning does not make you the smartest person in the room – wait until some of these great unwashed get out in the world – they’ll flounder like an injured fish in the open sea…” he snorted his contempt.

“Someone’s feeling cheery today…”

“Someone went on a wild goose chase, while the goose was hunting one of my own.” Nathaniel tossed back, and Morgana caught the annoyance in his tone and the caged look in his eyes before he snatched his gaze away back away from her.

“Well, just think – in twenty years the man will be losing his marbles and you’ll still be … you.” Morgana went to push open the door that stood ajar, but Nathaniel got there first and opened it for her.

“After you…” He grinned down at her and she arched just the left eyebrow at him.

“Age before beauty…” she grinned back.

“That’s what I said – after you…” Nathaniel’s grin widened, but it disappeared when she deliberately elbowed him in the ribs on her way into the room…

“Maybe not twenty years…” Morgana muttered as her eyes took in the professor.

If that really was Harold Jacobs, then he either aged well or he’d been a child genius.

“Professor Jacobs?” Nathaniel said from over her right shoulder, and the man reluctantly flicked his eyes up from the mound of paperwork that cluttered his desk…

There was a look in the Professor’s eyes that lasted for just one heartbeat that said he recognised what Nathaniel was – a spark of worry crossed his brow – and he wrenched his startling blue eyes from Nathaniel to Morgana and back again…

Morgana hadn’t expected the man to be in his late twenties, at the most early thirties. She certainly hadn’t expected him to look like he belonged on the pages of a high end men’s magazine as one of the models, and she really – really hadn’t expected him to know a vampire when he saw one.

“Can I help you?” Harold Jacobs pushed up to his feet.

There was an air of nervous apprehension about him, and Morgana didn’t like it. Humans weren’t supposed to know about vampires and the ones that did were supposed to have their memories wiped, or in the unlucky, for them, circumstance that memory wash didn’t work – taken out for the good of the species … and she’d led Nathaniel to a man who obviously knew exactly what had walked into his office…

“We should go…” Morgana offered the muttered whisper to Nathaniel. He turned his eyes down to the woman and saw that it wasn’t just the Professor who seemed nervous…

“Too late,” Nathaniel said with the blankest expression that she had ever seen him wear in her presence.

“Nathaniel…” she hissed back.

“Professor…” Nathaniel tossed the door closed behind him. He seemed more menacing to Morgana in that moment than he’d ever done before. “We’re looking for someone and we were told that you might know where to find her.”

“And who might that be?” Harold asked as if he was asking for a menu.

Morgana didn’t buy it and she could bet that neither was Nathaniel. The man was a vampire and could sense deception a mile away.

Add to that the fact that they were so damn good at reading body language and micro-expressions, and the good Professor was very bad at hiding them … the man was toast.

“Daniella Dubonnet.” Morgana said, sidestepping the vampire; she put herself in a position to ward of Nathaniel should she need to do it, and she was really rooting for not needing to do it.

“Sorry…” Harold gave a small shake of his head like he had no idea what she was talking about.

“Come now, Professor – we both know what I am…” Nathaniel said.

He noted the way that the man’s eyes narrowed for just a heartbeat, and the way that Morgana was strategically positioning herself across from him. He even saw the witches hand twitch as she drew her magic to her fingertips…

He had to wonder how far she would go to protect the human against him…

“Yes,” Harold said.

It would have been pointless denying it. He knew that the vampire had a read on him – his tone – his heartbeat – the little beads of sweet that were gathering at his hairline…

“Then let’s just say that I can get that information from you if needs be…” Nathaniel offered him the not so veiled threat, and Morgana’s hand twitched at her side again…

“Nathaniel…” she whispered, just loud enough for the vampire’s ears.

“Unfortunately, I think not…” Harold said, and before Morgana could react the vampire was around the desk and in front of the Professor as the man snap turned towards him…

“Nathaniel…” Morgana said it louder that time.

She had her magic right there in the fingertips of her hands and even if she didn’t want to use it – she just might need to…

“You can stare into my eyes, Vampire, but I take a brew of Mistletoe and Rowan Ash every day. I doubt you’ll find much.” Harold said and Morgana wanted to groan as the man offered the vampire too much information.

“Look, we just need to follow a path to dark magic and we were told that Daniella could help,” Morgana said. “That’s it. That’s all. Nobody needs to get hurt here or anywhere else…”

“Dark magic…” Harold repeated with a small nod. “And why do you think Daniella can help you with that? Can you not reach out yourself?” He eyed Morgana for a long moment and she eyed him right back.

“I’ve tried…” Morgana admitted and caught Nathaniel’s head as it snapped around on his neck, and she felt his eyes on her. “There are wards that prevent me getting close.”

“I told you…” Nathaniel berated her.

“And why would you think I’d do anything you told me too?” She shot back at the vampire. “Especially when there are human lives on the line.”

“The murder’s…” Harold said as Nathaniel opened his mouth to berate her again.

“Murder’s?” The vampire asked, a little too innocently.

“I’m aware of them,” Harold offered.

“Well, we know there’s dark magic…” Morgana offered back.

“And what do you think Daniella can do for you?”

“She’s allegedly got more power than most, and she dabbles in the dark side…” Morgana offered back.

Nathaniel folded his arms across his chest and watched the witch work. She was good in the persuasion department and she seemed to have gotten the professor to talk, and yet, he felt the rather unfortunate need to pound the man in the face – just for the fun of it … or that was how it felt.

“I wouldn’t say dabbles…” Harold corrected her.

“Would you say where she is so we can leave?” Nathaniel demanded and the professor finally turned his eyes back towards the vampire.

“I can get a message to her for you – what she chooses to do with that information isn’t up to me.” He offered back.

“I…” Nathaniel rocked forward on his feet and Morgana took a long step towards them…

“That’s fine,” she said.

“Is it?” Nathaniel turned his attention towards her.

“If she’s a white witch then she’ll want to stop the killing as much as we do.” Morgana shot back and waited while Nathaniel rolled that over within his mind…

“Fine…” he bit out, preferring his way of garnering the information over hers, but if the man was true to his word and he’d ingested the mistletoe and Ash brew, then he knew he didn’t stand a chance – save torturing the man – in getting what they needed.

“Leave me your names and a number and I’ll see she gets it,” Harold reached for a pad and pen and offered it across his desk to Morgana.

“How are you not dead?” Nathaniel bit out, bringing the man’s attention back towards him as Morgana wrote what the man asked for.

“I could ask you the same question.”

“Funny, vampire humour – love it,” Nathaniel’s voice dripped with acidity.

“I’m not just a pretty face,” Harold offered back, dryly.

“You know what I mean – someone must have left you alive…” Nathaniel was more than interested to know who that was.

“Hear no evil, speak no evil, see no evil…” Harold offered back.

“Monkey see monkey do…” Nathaniel said on a shrug, and Harold twisted his head on his neck and frowned. “Were we not throwing out stupids?”

“Don’t mind him – he doesn’t like that you’re the smartest person here,” Morgana offered her words as she pushed the pad and pen back towards the man…

“Two out of three ain’t bad…” Nathaniel said with a smug smile towards her, and she raised just the one eyebrow back at him. “I liked that song…” He mused.

“Before my time,” Morgana offered with a smirk that annoyed Nathaniel and he turned his eyes back towards the professor.

“Before my time too, I’m afraid.” Harold’s lips pulled upwards, but only slightly. Morgana snorted a chuckle.

“Well, I’m sure that you’re aware of the concept of a bat out of hell…” Nathaniel’s tone was threatening. Too threatening, and Morgana rolled her eyes and groaned at the man.

“Let’s go Batman,” Morgana tossed back over her shoulder as she started for the door.

“I think we still need to have a conversation about who left you alive…” Nathaniel bit out. “But, we can save that for another day.” He said with a tone that sounded a lot brighter to her ears, and she was sure, Harold’s, but she didn’t turn to look at the man as she went to pull the door back open and found Nathaniel’s hand on the door knob.

“Gee, such a gentleman,” Morgana bit out, her tone dripping with sarcasm.