"I do. I'm just making more light for you." Gregori noticed that Russell had already started down the path. Typical Marine. He had to be on the front line.
J.L. motioned for them to follow. "The local healer said Tiger Paw grows on the other side of this forest. Close to a canola field."
"Healer very nice old man," Rajiv added. "He like little blue pills J.L. give him for gift."
Gregori chuckled.
"Wait a minute." Abigail stepped over a fallen bamboo log. "Are you giving the locals Viagra?"
J.L. shrugged. "They like it. It helps them be more . . . helpful."
She snorted. "You mean you're bribing them."
"Could be worse," J.L. muttered.
Rajiv nodded. "Village people like J.L. very much."
They reached the edge of the forest. Gregori's flashlight beam caught the bright yellow color of a canola field to the left.
"Oh, how pretty," Abigail breathed.
"This way." J.L. led them toward the canola field. "The healer said it grew in great clumps in this area."
They spread out to search for it, although Gregori stayed close to Abby. Their flashlight beams moved back and forth over the green vegetation.
She gasped. "There it is!" She grinned at Gregori, then flung her arms around him. "I found it!"
Rajiv, J.L., and Russell rushed toward her.
"Here." Rajiv dug into his canvas bag and handed her clippers and a plastic bag.
"There's a trowel in there, too, and some plastic pots." J.L. motioned to the canvas bag. "We weren't sure if you wanted clippings or the whole plant."
"Oh, the whole plant would be wonderful. Sometimes the root is the best part. And then I can get a soil sample, too." Abigail grinned. "You guys are the best!"
Gregori grabbed the trowel and located a cluster of small Tiger Paw plants. Soon they had three unearthed and planted in the plastic pots.
"Let me see if I can get through to Angus." J.L. called on his phone. "Hey, boss. We've got a pickup for you. Three plants."
Angus, Robby, and Kyo materialized close by.
"Are ye all right, lass?" Angus asked Abigail.
"Yes." She smiled. "We're making wonderful progress!"
"We'll have Mikhail teleport these to Moscow." Robby lifted one of the pots. "And then he can take them on to London. We'll have them safe at Romatech within twenty-four hours."
"That's fantastic." Her smile widened. "Thank you!"
Gregori wrapped an arm around her and squeezed her shoulder. "One down, and two to go."
Russell turned to J.L. "Did the healer tell you where the second plant is located?"
J.L. exchanged a worried look with Rajiv. "He said the Demon Herb is west of here. Close to the village that's three miles away on the other side of the lake."
"Let's go get it," Gregori said. "Then we'll be done here tonight, and we can move on to the next base."
Rajiv shook his head. "We should not look for it. It is very bad."
"What do you mean?" Gregori asked. "Is it some kind of narcotic?"
"I'm not sure," J.L. replied. "The healer just told us to stay away. Apparently it's called the Demon Herb because it's so powerful. People say it's cursed."
"Surely that's just an old superstition," Abigail said.
Rajiv shook his head again. "It is very bad."
"What makes it so bad?" Robby asked.
J.L. sighed. "Those who go looking for it are never seen again."
Chapter Twenty-three
"Abby, is that you?" Madison asked on the phone. "Are you in China?"
"I was about thirty minutes ago. Is Mom okay?"
"She's asleep, so I answered her phone. I'm in her hospital room. Where are you?"
"I'm close to Tokyo," Abigail explained. "Kyo's place. I needed to use the bathroom, and Gregori said I could either try the bamboo forest or he'd teleport me to a real bathroom. Guess which one I chose?"
Madison laughed. "That teleporting sure does come in handy."
"Yes." Abigail suspected Gregori had a hidden motive for offering to take her back to Kyo's house. The guys were worried about the accursed Demon Herb. Instead of spending the rest of the night going after the plant, they were trying to keep her safely ensconced at Kyo's luxurious estate.
She leaned back in the Jacuzzi tub. "You wouldn't believe the size of this bathtub I'm in."
Madison giggled. "Are you alone?"
Abigail snorted. "Yes." She'd locked the door so she could enjoy a long hot soak in the tub. "This place is beautiful. Full of art and antiques. And the garden outside is heavenly. Kyo must be awfully wealthy."
"Really?" Madison sounded impressed. "Can I meet him?"
Abigail laughed.
Gregori suddenly materialized inside the room. She gasped and nearly dropped the phone in the water.
"Something wrong?" Madison asked.
"I . . . dropped the soap." So much for locking a vampire out.
Gregori winked at her, then pulled his shirt over his head and dropped it on the floor.
She watched as his trousers hit the floor. Then his underwear. Good Lord, could any man be more gorgeous?
"Abby? Are you still there?"
"Yeah." Abigail sat up so she could observe Gregori in the glass shower stall. "Tell Mom and Dad I'm fine."
"Okay. What about the plants?"
What plants? Abigail watched as Gregori soaped up his body. Oh God, he was lathering up his groin.
"Abby? Hello? I think there's something wrong with our connection. Did you look for your plants?"
Oh, plants! "Yes! We're making excellent progress. We've already collected one and we know the location of the second."
"Wow! That's awesome!"
"Yes. Awesome," she murmured as Gregori rinsed off. He turned his back to her, and rivulets of white lather slid down his back, then over his muscular buttocks and down his legs. "I need to go now, Maddie. Tell everyone I'm fine." She hung up and dropped her phone on a white bathrobe she'd left on a nearby bench.
Gregori stepped out of the shower and smiled at her, his dimples showing. "Did you enjoy the show?"
"Yes." Her gaze lowered to his groin. Wow. He was already semi-aroused.
He walked toward her. "That's an awfully big tub."
"Yes." She sighed. "Totally selfish of me to keep it all to myself."
"Naughty girl." He grinned as he climbed in.
She moved over to make room for him, but he pulled her close into his arms. His eyes darkened to a red glow as he skimmed his hands over her rump.
"There's something I need to tell you," he began. "I don't want you to get scared later."
"You want me to stay here, don't you?" She ran her fingers along his whiskered jaw.
"In the tub? Actually, I thought we might move to a bed."
She poked a finger in one of his dimples. "I meant you want to keep me here in Japan."
"Ah." He teased the crevice between her buttocks. "You have to admit it's much more pleasant here than a cave."
"The plants are over there."
"Yeah, but you're safer here." His eyes returned to their normal grayish-green. "Why not let us do the dangerous stuff?"
"How can it be dangerous? I have three Vamps, a tiger, and a bear to keep me safe."
He gave her a dubious look.
"I can be very persuasive." She smoothed her hand down his chest to his abs. "What can I do to convince you?"
He sucked in a breath when her hand circled his penis. "You're on the right track." His eyes turned red again.
"Well, it's a big track." She tugged gently. "Hard to miss."
He winced. "You're too smart for me, Scholar. I came in here to seduce you into staying, and you . . . you . . ." With a groan, he leaned his head back.
"Shame on you." She kissed his ear. "Using sex to persuade me."
He snorted. "And you're not?" He grabbed her, and everything went black.
He tumbled her onto a bed. "We'll see who can be more persuasive."
Abigail smiled as she reached for him. He tried for several hours to persuade her, but in the end, she teleported back to the cave with him.
She woke hours later, cuddled beside Gregori on their sleeping bags. It seemed dark in the back of the cave, but then she noticed a wooden screen had been stretched across the cave, piding it in half and blocking any sunlight that filtered through the entrance.
Back in the dark recesses of the cave, J.L. and Russell were in their sleeping bags sound asleep. It had to be daylight outside. The numbers on her digital watch glowed two-fifteen P.M. Good Lord, she'd slept most of the day away. Her body no longer knew night from day.
"Good afternoon," she murmured to Gregori, wondering just how deeply a vampire could sleep. She kissed his cheek. Goodness, he was cold.
"How can you sleep like that?" He'd left his blanket in a pile at his feet. She covered him up, then added her blanket on top.
"Is that better?" She tucked it in around his chin.
He didn't seem to be breathing.
"Gregori?" She leaned over him, but felt no air escaping his mouth. "Hey." She patted his cheeks.
No response.
She yanked the blankets down and ripped open his shirt. No heartbeat.
"Gregori!" Panic seized her. She forced his mouth open, felt around inside, then breathed into him.
She planted her hands over his heart and pushed.
"What are you doing?" Howard slipped around the screen and started toward her.
"CPR! He's dying!"
"He's already dead."
"Don't say that!" She pinched his nose and breathed into his mouth again.
"Miss Tucker!" Howard knelt beside her. "There's no point in doing that."
"I'm not giving up on him!" She went back to pressing against his heart.
"Abby! The Vamps always die at sunrise. This is their death-sleep!"
She sat back on her heels. "Their what?"
"Death-sleep. Gregori didn't tell you they go into a death-sleep?"
Tears stung her eyes. "He - he's really dead?"
"Yeah, but don't worry. He'll wake again at sunset."
She swallowed hard. "He's really . . . dead?"
Howard nodded. "But it's just temporary, you know."
"How can death be temporary?"
Howard shrugged. "I don't know. It's a vampire thing."
She looked at Gregori, and a tear ran down her cheek. "Oh my God! He's really dead?"
"Well, Undead is more accurate, I guess, considering that he wakes up again." Howard gave her a curious look. "He didn't tell you?"
"No." Or did he? She thought back to when they'd returned to the cave. She'd been worn out from their lovemaking and gone straight to the sleeping bag. He'd stretched out beside her.
"I need to warn you," he had whispered. "I sleep like I'm dead."
"Me too," she'd mumbled before slipping into a deep sleep.
"Oh my gosh," she whispered. He'd meant it literally.
A rush of anger swept over her. "That's how you tell me?" She yanked the blankets back up to his chin, then slapped him on the chest. "You scared the hell out of me! I thought I'd lost you!"
Tears streamed down her face. "He can't hear me, can he?"
"No, ma'am." Howard rose to his feet.
She stood and wiped her cheeks. "I'll have to wait till sunset to vent my rage."
Howard nodded. "Good plan." He shifted his weight. "You want a donut?"
A burst of laughter escaped her. "Oh God, I'm going crazy."
Howard stepped back with a worried look.
"Not really crazy," she assured him, then took a deep breath. Good Lord, it was after two in the afternoon. She'd cuddled up to a dead body for hours. "I need to get out of here."
"This way." Howard led her around the screen. "We put the screen up as a safety precaution. If any sunlight hits the Vamps, they'll die for real."
She shook her head. Death-sleep. Gregori had always inferred that he spent the day sleeping in the usual fashion. Why did he lie to her?
He was really dead. The poor guy had actually died while she'd slept next to him. Had he suffered any pain? He must have. She shuddered. It was terrible to even think about.
Howard pulled the bamboo door away from the cave entrance so they could slip outside.
"Miss Abby!" Rajiv waved at her. He had a fire going and a big pot suspended over it. "I make you hot pot."
"Thank you." She walked over for a closer look. "It smells wonderful."
He looked at her and frowned. "Miss Abby cry?"
She took a deep breath and gazed up at the blue sky. "I'm all right now. Thank you."
"She didn't know Gregori would be dead," Howard grumbled.
"Oh." Rajiv grimaced. "That's bad."
Abby nodded and motioned toward the other end of the island. "I'll be over there for a little while."
Rajiv nodded.
She went behind the hill and found a place to relieve herself. She washed her hands in the lake, then straightened and gasped. Now that it was daylight, she could see the south side of the lake. Gray stone stalagmites jutted up from a flat field. She'd read about karsts in her research, but hadn't realized how unearthly they would look. She stared at them for a while, then headed back to the shifters.